Amber swallowed hard. Liz reached back and opened the mini-fridge to hand her a bottle of water. After taking a sip, Amber continued.
“I think they were in the cellar. If I’m right, he disturbed a nest of these things that are like reptiles that feed on blood. John got away, but they followed him home that night and attacked. He killed them and barely survived. He ended up in the hospital with an infection.”
“Like Riley,” Liz said.
“Maybe,” Amber said. “I want to think that we found Riley in time, but maybe. John lost a hand. When I came to Maine to take care of my uncle’s house, I visited John. I was almost mesmerized by him. He was a very charismatic person. But I saw something where his hand should have been and it spooked me.”
Amber took another sip of water before she continued.
“It was like his hand was regrowing, but as some kind of mutant claw. At that point, I didn’t know that anything strange was going on, but John came to my house during the night and he left me a note. I have it,” she said, pointing. “It’s on my phone.”
Liz reached back to grab the device.
As soon as her hand closed around the phone, it buzzed. Liz yipped and dropped it, nearly losing her balance.
“Sorry!” Liz said. She scrambled to right herself so she could pick up the phone. Alan was faster. He scooped it up, turned it to make sure it wasn’t broken, and then handed it to Amber.
Amber’s face fell as she read the message.
# # #
“He’s gone,” Amber said.
“Who?” Liz asked.
Amber didn’t answer. She stared at her phone and blinked, trying to make sense of what it told her.
“Amber?” Alan asked.
Amber sat back in her chair and took another second before she set her phone down and returned her focus to Liz and Alan.
“That was from Nick. He said he would tell me if anything happened at the hospital. Apparently, Riley woke up and left the hospital. Nobody saw him go. Nick and Ricky are headed this way because they didn’t get any answer when they tried to contact Jennifer and Aaron.”
Liz narrowed her eyes. “That’s a lot to process.”
“I don’t understand,” Alan said. “Riley was the one who got lost in the woods and then was unconscious when he was taken to the hospital? How did he just leave? Did he have a car?”
Amber shook her head and shrugged. “I have no idea.“
“How well do you know Riley?” Liz asked.
“Not at all, really,” Amber said. “I talked to him for a couple of seconds after the reception and then helped track him down in the woods.”
“You’re thinking that maybe this would be a good time for us to leave this little drama behind,” Alan said.
Liz looked at her husband and nodded.
Amber put a hand on her own chest. There was a cold ball of ice forming inside her—something bad was happening. Liz and Alan stood up. They were serious.
“Can we check out in the middle of the night?” Alan asked Liz.
“I don’t see why not. If they have a problem, they can bill us.”
“Good point,” Alan said. He and Liz headed towards the door. Liz noticed the sunflower seeds on the floor for the first time.
She glanced back at Amber. “Don’t get frozen in indecision. Believe your gut, whatever it’s telling you.”
“Wait,” Amber said, standing. “It might be best not to go out at night.”
Liz gave her a sad smile. “We’re not the type who stay put and try to hide. We learned that lesson a while ago.”
“Hold on,” Amber said. “Will you guys go with me to check on Jennifer and Aaron? Nick said he couldn’t reach them.”
Liz and Alan looked at each other.
Alan said, “You want to go while I’m packing our bags?”
Liz nodded and said, “Don’t fold my dress.”
“Got it,” Alan said. He checked the peephole before he went out into the hall.
“Come on,” Liz said, gesturing to Amber. Let’s go check.
Amber stuffed her phone in her robe pocket and picked up her stake and flashlight. She followed Liz into the hall and they moved together. Amber still had cold dread rolling around in her stomach. Liz looked like she felt the same way. They reached the end of the hall and Liz extended a fist to knock. The door swung inwards when her knuckles hit it.
“That’s not good,” Liz whispered.
“Hello?” Amber called as she pushed the door inward with her stake. “You in there?”
A cold wind swept towards them from the room. Amber curled her naked toes at the icy air. Liz hunched up her shoulders.
“Not good,” Liz whispered again.
They stood in the hall, peering into the darkness. Amber clicked on her light and swept it around while she pushed the door open the rest of the way. The door met resistance from some garments on the floor. Clothes were strewn on the carpet. The sheets and bedspread were there too. Only the fitted sheet remained on the bed.
“You in there?” Amber called. Advancing slowly, Amber flipped on the lights. The windows were wide open. The curtains billowed with another cold blast of air. Liz was cautious at first, looking over Amber’s shoulder. As soon as she deemed the room to be empty, Liz went to the windows and started closing them. She paused at the door to the balcony, turned on the light, and waved Amber over. They moved carefully, looking at the corners of the balcony before they shut the door and turned off the light out there.
“Bathroom,” Amber said.
They checked it out. The tub and shower were empty. They left the lights on and retreated to the pile of clothes near the door.
“They left?” Liz proposed.
Amber shook her head. “Not through the door. This jacket and these shoes were up against the door when I pushed it open.”
“Then they went out the window, or over the balcony?” Liz asked.
“I don’t know,” Amber said.
They both jumped at the sound of
