Deep Woods

Prologue

Caidyn

It was late Thursday afternoon when everything started. Fourteen-year-old Caidyn Skye was in the backyard of her family home, lounging on the trampoline with her sister Teegan. The pair were raiding through Teegan's extensive makeup supply, deciding which products Caidyn was worthy of keeping and which bottles belonged in the trash. Caidyn spritzed a perfume bottle on her wrist and inhaled. It smelled like sweet flowers and vanilla. She held up the bottle for her sister to inspect.

"What about this one?" She asked. Teegan looked up from her magazine and gazed at the bottle before breaking into a grin.

"Yes! Oh my god yes! Lily Blossom was like one of my favourites. It's only right to continue the tradition of wearing it." Teegan exclaimed, her dark eyes dancing. Caidyn giggled and nodded, putting the bottle of perfume into her keep pile. She looked at Teegan again wistfully. She couldn't believe that the summer was nearly over. In just a few short days Teegan would be leaving for college and she wouldn't see her sister until Thanksgiving. Though the two were competitive, they had a special bond and had always been connected in a way different than most siblings. Caidyn was going to miss having Teegan for her always helpful advice on boys, makeup, school, and clothes. She wouldn't dare to admit it but facing school without her older sister seemed too terrifying to fully fathom. Dropping her magazine, Teegan lifted a large bottle of moisturizer, wrinkled her nose and dropped it into the trash pile.

"Hey! I could use new moisturizer Teegs." Caidyn said, rescuing the bottle from the discarded section. She turned the bottle over in her hands, scanning the label. Teegan raised her eyebrows and shook her head.

"Dear god no. I got this for free at Erica Turnpike's birthday party. It's crap and I'm not letting my little sister spoil my reputation by using garbage moisturizer. You can take my honeysuckle cream if you want. Just please, please don't sacrifice your skin on this." Teegan begged. Caidyn rolled her eyes and laughed, tossing the moisturizer back into the garbage pile. Just as Caidyn was reaching for the next item, a high pitched siren cut through the serene afternoon air. The loud wails raced across the neighbourhood, screeching out to everybody in the vicinity. Teegan threw her hands over her ears and winced.

"What the hell is that about?" Teegan complained. Caidyn laughed, trying to keep the nerves from reaching her throat. The siren continued, blaring louder and louder by the second. 

"It'll probably be done in a few minutes," Caidyn responded, trying to ignore the sirens, instead beginning to sort through her sister's eyeshadow. Teegan grumbled and produced a nail polish from her pocket, leaning down to reach her toes. They waited a few painful moments, carefully looking through the products and hoping that the sirens would stop and they could breathe. But they didn't. The noise continued to blare as Caidyn's heart continued to race. She watched her mother through the window, turning towards the television for some source of understanding. Caidyn looked over at Teegan nervously but her big sister was still painting her nails, her eyes glued to the brush as it blended colour across her toes. Something was wrong. 

"Caidyn, Teegan come inside right now." Their mother shouted from the doorway. Her face was white as a sheet and her eyes flitted across the backyard, scanning for danger. Caidyn reached down and began clearing the makeup. Teegan, however, rolled her eyes and continued to paint.

"Mom the police are probably just trying to scare some little boy away. It'll be done in like one second." Caidyn looked at her sister nervously, wondering where her strange sense of calm was coming from. Her mother glared at Teegan.

"Inside the house. NOW!" She hissed, her eyes growing steely. Caidyn scrambled around, picking up the makeup and putting it back in the bags. Teegan groaned and reluctantly closed her bottle of polish.