The second thing I see is a man dressed in a ghillie suit, perfectly blending into the forest foliage, moving on quiet feet toward the tent furthest from mine.
I watch him, mesmerized by his smooth, silent movements. He opens the zipper with deft fingers, before stepping into the tent. I’m about to follow him when I hear a guttural, horrified scream from inside the same tent he just disappeared into. All noise around me ceases until another scream of terror erupts from the woman in the tent. Only to be broken off by a loud, shattering crack of what can only be human bones.
The tent door starts to open again, and I dive behind my own tent, panting with shock. That man just killed whoever was in that tent.
And I did nothing to stop it.
Tears slip silently down my cheeks while I force myself to steady my breathing, strengthening my resolve yet again. I have to stay focused. I couldn’t help the woman in the tent, but I have to help my child.
Footsteps hit the earth nearby, the leaves crunching loudly beneath them. These don’t sound like the quiet, skilled steps of the man in the ghillie suit. There’s a loud hiss and pop, making me flinch. Someone is mumbling under their breath, and I risk peering around my tent to find the source of the strange noise.
A man wearing a tan suit has his back to me. He’s pouring water onto the fire with a metal bucket, the coals hissing and logs popping in protest.
“This isn’t what I signed up for,” the stranger mutters, kicking the bucket away. “It wasn’t supposed to happen like this.”
I slowly get to my feet, looking in all directions for the Ghillieman. My eyes stop at another tent where the tan fabric seeps crimson. Another dead person, I bet. The man in the suit is too busy having his own crisis, so I tiptoe my way over to the bloody tent.
As much as I don’t want to see whatever awful thing happened to the person dwelling inside, I have to make sure it’s not any of my friends or my daughter.
I peel the tent back and nearly collapse with relief when I see it’s not one of my friends. It’s one of Pierce’s guests, Sean, I think. His throat is slit, his eyes wide open with shock. I quickly close his eyes before rushing out of the tent, tripping on my way out. The air leaves my lungs as I hit the ground. Gasping, I hear the intake of breath nearby.
Oh shit. I forgot about the man in the tan suit. Hurrying to my feet, I grab the closest thing I can find to defend myself with, the metal bucket, and throw it at the man as hard as I can.
It hits his face with a sickening crunch. He falls to his knees, grasping his nose.
“What the—Capri? Is that you?”
I look down at the man, now covered in both dirt and blood, and let out a strangled sob. “Josh? What are you doing here?”
Josh’s smile is both endearing and terrifying to look at. His teeth are covered in blood, but my gosh, it’s nice to see a familiar face. Josh and I have never been very close, but he’s still a welcome sight, even if he’s equivalent to scum with what he’s done to Teagan and Lexi.
There’s noise coming from the trees, and my immediate thought is that the man in the ghillie suit is back. I grab Josh’s arm and bring my hand to his lips, begging him to stay silent as we slip back into my tent.
Loud footsteps clamber into the clearing. Josh and I stare at each other, both riddled with panic as we listen to every movement outside.
“Hello? Is anyone here?” the person whispers.
My heart clenches with both elation and fear. I’d know that voice anywhere. Josh’s eyes go wide with recognition, too.
“Teagan?” I mouth, pointing to the door of the tent. Josh nods, then reaches for the zipper.
He almost has the tent door completely open when a loud gunshot rings through the air.
Chapter twenty-seven
We hit the floor of the tent in tandem, Josh throwing his body over mine as the sound of the bullet ricochets through the air. The two of us stay frozen in place for what feels like hours before Josh finally shifts his weight off of me and stumbles to his feet.
Stifling a groan, I roll onto my back. I didn’t realize how much I hated the feeling of him on me until he was gone. I know he did it to protect me, but something about it makes me shiver.
“What the hell is happening?” he asks, reaching down to help me to my feet before wrapping me into a firm embrace. “And why on earth is someone running around with a gun?
I half laugh, half cry into his suit. “I wish I knew. I just hope whoever is out there is long gone. And if it was Teagan, then I hope she was smart enough to run and hide.”
Josh brushes a hand through his dark hair, nodding in agreement. “The last thing I remember was coming out of the bathroom. Lex was passed out on the floor of her room. And then, nothing.” Josh releases me, pulling back until his frightened eyes meet mine. “Is she okay? Have you seen her?”
I swallow, shaking my head. “No, I woke up in this tent not long ago. When I came out, there was a man in a ghillie suit. I think he might havehurt the others. What if Lexi is in one of those tents?” I rush out of my tent, and run over to the tent where the woman was screaming and throw the flaps open. The scent of body odor hits my nostrils fiercely. I bite back a gag before finally getting a good look at the body on the cot. “It’s not her,” I sob out. “It’s not Lexi. Teagan must have run. They’re safe, still. Somewhere. They have to be.”
I don’t know if I’ll survive if something happens to them.
