Edge Of Innocence

Chapter 2 (INTO THE WEB)

Lucas reluctantly agrees to go with Lea. As they step out from his house into the quiet, dimly lit street, a shiver of doubt runs through his mind. The darkness seems thicker tonight, each shadow casting an eerie depth that heightens his suspicion. He questions why he didn’t just call the police, why he felt compelled to follow a stranger with a story that sounds increasingly improbable.

The silence between them grows, with Lea walking a few steps ahead with a small light, her figure barely visible in the night. Each step feels heavier, each glance around a reminder of the unknown path he’s stepping into. Yet, despite the voice in his head urging caution, he continues, drawn into a current of mystery that he can’t quite resist.

The path is narrow, flanked by towering trees whose branches weave together above.A sliver of moon hangs low in the sky, casting only a faint, silvery glow that struggles to penetrate the thick branches overhead. The dim light barely illuminates the narrow trail, leaving Lucas to rely more on his instincts than his sight. The forest hums with life, filling the silence between them with unsettling sounds—the distant howl of wolves, the rustle of unseen creatures moving through the brush, and the constant chirping of insects that only seem to grow louder with each step.

As they press deeper into the woods, Lucas can’t shake an unsettling feeling. The path grows darker and narrower, yet Lea seems completely unaffected by the shadows and sounds surrounding them. She moves with steady confidence, as if this trail is familiar to her, untouched by the fear her own story should have inspired.

Lucas trails behind, his mind racing with questions. The air is thick with tension, yet Lea seems unbothered, unburdened by the horror she described only hours earlier. His fear grows, not from the darkness around them but from the woman in front of him, whose composure feels both unnatural and unnerving. Each step stirs a new doubt, an unanswered question. Why does she seem so at ease? And why, despite his instincts telling him to turn back, does he continue to follow her deeper into the unknown?

After what felt like an eternity of silence, shadowed steps through the forest, Lucas finally glimpsed something through the dim moonlight—a shape lying still on the ground. The silence pressed around them, broken only by the distant rustle of leaves and the occasional howl in the distance, an eerie symphony that heightened his unease. Lea, walking just a pace ahead, suddenly stopped, her eyes fixed on the figure sprawled across the forest floor.

Lucas felt the weight of the night close in on him, confusion and doubt swirling within. Lea’s husband lay there, pale and unmoving, his face concealed by shadows, a sight both unsettling and oddly surreal. Lucas found himself rooted in place, unable to look away, yet paralyzed by a strange reluctance to move closer.

Before he could gather his thoughts, Leah’s demeanor shifted. Her controlled, determined expression fractured, giving way to trembling hands and a voice edged with desperation. “He’s alive. He has to be,” she choked out, tears beginning to streak her face. In an instant, she was on her knees beside him, cradling her husband’s face, her voice rising into a frantic plea.

“Please, help me carry him somewhere safe. We can’t leave him here... your house, it’s close.” Her words hung heavy in the night air, and for a long moment, Lucas hesitated, his instincts warning him to pull back. He looked down at the lifeless form, sensing that whatever life remained in Lea’s husband was slipping away, if it hadn’t already. Everything about the situation felt wrong, but her desperate eyes, the panic breaking through her voice, pressed on him, leaving him with little room to refuse.

Lucas felt a surge of unease rise within him. “I should call the police or an ambulance,” he said, pulling his hand instinctively into his pocket. “When we get to the street, we can rush him to the hospital.” But as his fingers searched, his heart dropped—his phone wasn’t there. He searched again, patting down his coat, hoping he’d simply missed it, but it was nowhere to be found. He must have left it back at his house... or lost it somewhere along the way.