Weleft the entrance further behind, and walked as quietly as we could overcrunching, dry leaves and snapping, brittle twigs. I winced with every step,terrified of the ghosts that might be sleeping behind every tree. I would hateto be the one to wake them, horrified of what they might do.
“Areye all right?” Alec whispered, pausing for a moment to take a quick look at me.
“Oh,wonderful,” I whispered back. “It’s always been my dream to trek through acreepy Scottish forest at night with nothing but a flashlight to guide my way.”
“Dinnaeblame me for yebein’here,” he replied, his voice lilting with amusement.
“Justkeep moving. The quicker we can get out of here the better.”
Wepressed on, until our beam of light illuminated an abrupt break in the trees,and then, there it was. The rock Gracie’s body had been laid on, gleaming likemoonstone in the glow from the flashlight. A chill clawed its way down myspine, and every hair on my arms stood upright. I wondered if she would bethere, lurking behind the rock, waiting to pop out as we made our approach.
Ibraced myself, staying behind Alec as we stepped into the clearing, whenquickly he turned to shine his light in another direction.
“What’swr—”
“Shh,”he shushed me quietly, grabbing my arm and pulling me down to crouch with him.“Did ye hear that?”
Myheart hammered wildly in my chest, as I stared ahead at the gnarled trees.“What?”
Heturned the light off, leaving us to sit defenseless in the dark. His handremained firm on my shoulder, powerful in his grip, but his trembling arm gaveaway his fear.
Wesat there for a minute, before he turned the light back on. He helped me backup and apologized, explaining that he thought he had heard something. I toldhim it was fine, while appreciating the comfort of having him there. Especiallywhen I knew that he was just as afraid as me. If not more.
Oureyes were set on the rock and it’s smooth, marble-like surface. A glint ofreflected light caught my eye as we got closer, and I began to wonder if it hadbeen in my head, when Alec muttered, “What’s that?”
Icould hear my blood, pounding through my head and rushing through my veins, aswe came closer and saw what it was shimmering in the light.
“Oh,my God,” I groaned, not caring to be quiet, as my hand reached out to hoverover Gracie’s ring. “Oh, God. What the—what the fuck …”
“Thisis her ring?”
Inodded, unable to bring myself to touch it with my fingers and to feel thesolid gold. Too afraid to know that it was real. “Y-yes,” I said. “Oh, my God …I don’t, I don’t understand. Did-didn’t you say it wasn’t here? Didn’t you sayyou were just here yesterday?”
Alecreached out to take the ring and held it between his fingers. “Yes,” hereplied. “Ye’re sure it’s hers?”
“Yes!”I hissed loudly, watching with horrified wonderment as he turned the gold diamondring in the light.
Helowered his hand and swept his gaze over the clearing, before turning his eyesback on the stone. With an inquisitive cock of his head, he held the flashlighthigher and peered closer at the rock’s surface, before reeling back.
“Weneed to go.”
“What?”
Ilooked closer, and although the light was dim, I could now see the scrawledhandwriting marring the pristine surface.
Stopl-l-looking, Alec.
Justas he had, I reeled backward, taking two steps to stand beside him. I opened mymouth to speak, when the distinctive sound of snapping twigs resounded throughthe hollow night, echoing out among the trees.
Igasped and whipped my head to look in the direction from where the noise camefrom. “What—”
Leavescrunched; twigs snapped. The sounds came closer with every passing millisecond.I was frozen on the spot, like a stunned animal. Gawking and waiting for thenoisy ghoul to show its ugly face, until Alec grabbed my hand and ran, pullingme toward the entrance of the woods. We were chased by the phantom sounds, aswe tripped over roots and stones, scratching our faces against the outstretchedfingers of gangly trees. Once we emerged from the forest, Alec shouted at me toget into the car.
Butwithout his hand to drag me along, I was frozen again, staring at the gapingentrance, and half-expecting to see my sister dragging her footless leg along theground behind her.
“D-d-da-dammit,Rosie! Geti-i-in!” Alecshouted, nearly pushing me into the open door of the car.
Then,with both of us inside, he peeled away from the woods, and I looked back.Waiting to see if it was her causing all the racket, until the woods faded frommy sight.
