Darkretreat Stories

They met in a hostel-sunburnt, broke, bored. A too-friendly guide offered them a cheap trip to a "hidden island" off the coast of East Timor. No tourists. No rules. No signal. They said yes. Now they're sleeping under trees, eating strange fruit, and trying to pretend the painted people in the jungle aren't real. The guide won't stop smiling. The fire burns all night. The locals just... watch. Something is wrong here. Something wants them to stay. And the island always gets what it wants.

Jack Nichols only wanted to remember. A blizzard-stranded retreat in the Vermont mountains promises healing, silence, and a fresh start. Instead, he finds himself trapped with strangers who vanish one by one-after an unplugged rotary phone calls their names. The inn's calm, smiling psychologist insists it's all part of the "program." The other guests whisper, accuse, and watch each other too closely. And when Jack forms a fragile alliance with Sophie Lang, the only person who seems to see what he sees, the phone turns on her. Now Jack is left with one question: is he uncovering the truth about his past-or falling into someone else's design? The snow will keep them in. The phone will keep ringing. And when it calls Jack's name, there may be no one left to answer.