The Silent Shadows

Chapter 3: The Vanishing

The drive back from Hawthorn Manor was tense, with neither Emily nor Jason saying a word. The fog rolled across the narrow roads, and the truck’s headlights barely cut through it. Emily stared out the window, her mind racing. The whisper still echoed in her ears—*Leave now.* It wasn’t Sarah’s voice. It couldn’t have been.

Jason’s grip on the steering wheel was tight, his knuckles white in the dim light. He hadn’t spoken since they fled the house, but Emily could feel his tension building, like a dam ready to burst. She could still see the look on his face when they heard those footsteps, that brief flicker of fear he tried to hide.

“I don’t understand,” Jason finally said, his voice quiet but strained. “She’s not there. She has to be. There’s nowhere else she’d go.”

Emily shifted in her seat, her stomach twisting. “Maybe… maybe she got out before we got there,” she offered, though she didn’t really believe it. If Sarah had left the manor, she would’ve called, texted—anything.

Jason shook his head. “No. I know her. She wouldn’t just leave without telling anyone.” His jaw clenched as he focused on the road ahead. “Something’s wrong. We need to go back.”

Emily’s heart skipped a beat. “Back? Jason, that place—”

“I’m not leaving her in there,” Jason snapped, cutting her off. “We can’t just run away because we got spooked by some old house.”

Emily bit her lip, unsure of what to say. Her mind flashed back to the darkness, the way the shadows seemed to move, the voice. She knew Jason was right about one thing: something was wrong, but she wasn’t convinced the house was all they had to worry about.

They pulled into town, the streets quiet and still. The clock on the dashboard read 10:43 p.m., but it felt much later. Briar Hollow always fell into a heavy silence after nightfall, but tonight, it felt different—like the town itself was holding its breath.

As they pulled up to Jason’s house, Emily’s phone buzzed. She fumbled for it, her hands shaking. A message from her mom, asking where she was. She quickly typed out a response, not wanting her mom to worry, then glanced at Jason.

“I’m going home,” she said softly. “But we’ll figure this out. Tomorrow.”

Jason nodded, but his eyes stayed locked on the horizon, where the silhouette of Hawthorn Manor loomed in the distance. “Tomorrow,” he repeated, though his voice was distant.

---

Emily barely slept that night. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the manor—the darkened windows, the creaking staircase, and those whispers. When she finally drifted off, her dreams were filled with shadows creeping toward her, unseen hands pulling her deeper into the darkness.

The next morning, she woke to sunlight streaming through her window, a strange contrast to the heaviness still lingering in her chest. As she dressed quickly, her phone buzzed again. This time it was from Jason: *Meet me at the café. 10 a.m. We need to talk.*

Emily grabbed her bag and headed out, her thoughts swirling as she walked the quiet streets of Briar Hollow. When she arrived at the café, Jason was already there, sitting at their usual booth, staring blankly at his coffee. His disheveled appearance told her everything she needed to know—he hadn’t slept either.

“I tried calling her again this morning,” Jason said as soon as Emily sat down. “Still nothing.”

Emily swallowed. “We’ll find her, Jason. Maybe we need to—"

But before she could finish, the door to the café swung open, and a familiar figure walked in. For a split second, Emily’s heart leapt—*Sarah*—but it wasn’t her. It was Mason Harper, one of the guys from school, looking pale and shaken.

Mason spotted them and hurried over, his wide eyes darting around the café. “Have you guys seen Oliver?” he asked, his voice trembling.

Emily frowned. “Oliver? No. Why?”

Mason ran a hand through his hair, pacing nervously. “He went out last night—said he was going to check out Hawthorn Manor, you know, after hearing Sarah had gone there. But he hasn’t come back. He’s not answering his phone either.”

A chill shot down Emily’s spine. Another person gone.

Jason’s face darkened. “Not Oliver too,” he muttered. He looked up at Mason, his jaw clenched. “We’ll go back.”

“Back?” Mason looked at him like he was insane. “You want to go back there? That place is cursed, man! We shouldn’t—"

“We’re going,” Jason said firmly, standing up from the booth. “You can come or not, but I’m not leaving them there.”

Emily hesitated. The thought of going back to Hawthorn Manor made her blood run cold, but Jason was right—they couldn’t just ignore this. Sarah was still missing, and now Oliver too. Something was pulling people in, and it wasn’t going to stop.

With a sigh, Emily stood up and grabbed her coat. “I’m coming,” she said, her voice steadier than she felt. Mason looked between them, fear evident in his eyes, but after a tense moment, he nodded and followed them out.

---

The drive to the manor felt even longer in the daylight. The fog had lifted, but the overcast sky cast a gray pallor over everything. As the manor came into view, it looked just as menacing in the daylight, its blackened windows staring back at them.

Emily, Jason, and Mason stood in front of the gate, hesitating. The silence was deafening, broken only by the wind rustling through the overgrown weeds. Emily’s heart pounded in her chest, the same feeling of dread creeping back.

Jason stepped forward first, pushing the gate open. “Let’s go,” he said quietly, leading the way toward the manor.

As they approached the door, Emily glanced at Mason, whose face had gone pale. She didn’t blame him. The house felt even worse today—like it was waiting for them.

The door creaked open again, just as it had the night before. The darkness inside seemed to swirl, pulling at the edges of the light. Emily hesitated for just a moment before following Jason inside.

This time, the house felt different. The air was heavier, colder. The silence was oppressive, pressing in on them from every side. And just as they crossed the threshold, Emily swore she heard it again—*the whisper.*

“Welcome back.”