Cameron Keen never expected her life to become entangled in the horrors of Blackwood Mountain.
Drawn back by a past she can't escape, she soon finds herself face to face with her old friend Josh Washington, a man haunted not just by grief, but...
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WHAT WE KNOW NOW.
[ August 10th, 2014 6 months after the prank ]
Cameron trudged through the front door of her apartment, her limbs heavy with exhaustion.
It had been a long shift, the kind that drained her of more than just energy—it stole her ability to think, to feel. Maybe that's why she liked it so much.
She dropped her bag on the floor and slumped against the door, kicking off her shoes as she finally reached for her phone.
The screen lit up with notifications. Three missed calls from Josh, one from Sam, and a single text from Matt asking if she was okay. Her stomach tightened at the sight of Josh's name.
It had been half a year since Beth and Hannah had disappeared, and she had done everything in her power to distance herself from the ache of it all, from everyone.
But Josh...he always was persistent if nothing else.
With a sigh, Cameron tapped the voicemail from Josh and put it on speaker as she shuffled toward her room. His voice filled the silence immediately.
"Hey, Cam...it's me again. I'm sorry for calling so much. I just...I don't know. I wanted to catch up with you, if you have the time. I miss talking to you. Anyway, uh, hope you're doing okay. Call me back...or don't. No pressure."
Cameron paused in the hallway, her hand resting on the doorframe of her bedroom. She could hear the strain in his voice, the desperation he tried to hide behind a casual tone.
She sighed deeply and turned off her phone, the screen going dark as she tossed it onto her bed.
Sliding under the covers, she pulled them up to her chin, trying to push away the gnawing guilt that settled in her chest. She wanted to reach out, to tell him she was there for him, but she couldn't. Not yet. Not when she was barely holding herself together.
As the silence closed in around her, Cameron stared up at the ceiling, wondering how much longer she would be able to avoid the inevitable.
____________
[ Present day, February 2nd, 2015 ]
"Come on, guys! Hurry up! We need to find Mike!" Sam's voice rang out sharply as she charged ahead, her headlight beam bouncing wildly off the damp basement walls.
The cold, musty air clung to them as the group hurried to keep pace.
Mike had disappeared down the labyrinth of underground corridors, and Sam seemed determined to catch up with him before it was too late.
