THE FIRST CONFESSIONS The air in the lounge was thick with dread, the silence broken only by Derek’s ragged breathing. He lay sprawled on the floor, pale, blood drying in streaks down his chin. His trembling hands clutched at Rebecca’s sleeve as though she alone had pulled him back from the abyss. No one moved. No one spoke. Finally, Dave broke the silence with a sharp, uneasy laugh. So we’re just supposed to believe that? He choked because of a book? You people sound insane. Insane? Sugar snapped, her voice cracking. She shoved her bandaged arm toward him, the red welts still livid on her skin. First me, now Derek nearly died in front of you, and you still want to act like nothing’s wrong? Dave folded his arms, scowling. It’s hysteria. That’s all. Fear makes people imagine things. Daisy’s voice rose, trembling with both fear and fury. No one imagined what we just saw, Dave! The book demanded the truth. Derek lied, and it punished him. Do you really want to test that theo

SECRETS AND BLOOD The lodge had never been so quiet. Not even the wind dared slip through the cracks of the tall windows. Shadows clung to the walls, thick and unmoving, as though they had witnessed the horror and refused to let it go. The only sound came from Daisy’s uneven breathing as she sat on the floor of the lounge, her fingers gripping the empty space where her friend’s body had been. Lucia was gone. She had been there only hours ago, her body limp, her lips blue, her betrayal still sharp on Daisy’s heart. Daisy had cried over her, clutched her hand, begged her to wake up. And now… nothing. Not even a trace. The rug beneath where she had fallen was unmarked, as though death had never touched it. They took her, Daisy whispered, her voice trembling. Her wide eyes darted toward the book lying on the table. The leather cover looked the same, still, silent - but Daisy could feel its weight pressing on them all. Rebecca stood closest to her, her calm mask cracking at the edges

WHISPERS IN THE WALLS The silence after the book’s last stir wasn’t relief. It was tension, a held breath, as though the very house was waiting for them to move wrong. The candles burned low, their flames stretched thin, shadows pressed to the walls like stains that wouldn’t wash out. Derek sat hunched forward, sweat slicking his face, his body trembling from whatever unseen claws had raked him earlier. His eyes were bloodshot, hollow, darting nervously from corner to corner. Sugar cradled her bandaged arm as though afraid it might be torn open again, her usual smirk erased. Rebecca leaned forward, hands clasped tightly in her lap, her voice still calm but her eyes sharp, searching. And Moses paced. Always pacing, trying to keep the group’s focus on him, but every step betrayed a crack in his bravado. Dave stood rigid against the wall, arms crossed, jaw locked. He hadn’t said a word since the book had mocked them with Lucia’s death, and Daisy thought-no, felt-that his silen

BONDS BREAKING The group staggered into the main hall like survivors of a storm, each face a canvas of exhaustion and dread. The lodge seemed to know it had them, the very walls humming with satisfaction. The candles burned lower, shadows swallowing more of the space, yet no one dared reach for the matches. Silence was thick except for Daisy’s ragged breathing and the faint creak of the floor beneath their unsteady steps. Daisy trailed behind, her hands trembling as she wiped her cheeks. Lucia’s scream still echoed in her ears. Even with her body gone, Daisy swore she could feel her presence, somewhere under the floor, trapped between the boards and the dark. The memory of Lucia’s clawing hand, of her voice begging not to be let go, burned into her skin like a wound. Rebecca’s calm voice broke the silence, though it quivered at the edges. We need to think. If we panic now, we’re finished. “Finished?” Moses spat. His face was pale, his shirt clinging with sweat. We’re alre

LUCIA'S LOVE The house breathed around her. Daisy felt it in the groaning beams, in the damp walls that pulsed faintly when the silence grew too long. It was no longer just a lodge. It was alive. Watching. Waiting. She sat on the rug near the cold hearth, knees hugged tight to her chest, while the others murmured in fractured whispers. No one dared touch the book anymore, though it lay at the center of the table like a dark heart. Its leather gleamed faintly in the firelight, as though mocking their fear. Rebecca sat upright in the corner, composed but tense, her fingers twined too tightly in her lap. Moses leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, glaring at the floor like it had insulted him. Sugar sprawled in her chair, quiet, biting at her thumbnail, her bandaged arm hidden in the shadows. Dave prowled restlessly along the wall, unable to sit still, every muscle in him taut. Derek shivered beside the door, pale and hollow-eyed, his hands twitching as though remembering the