Chapter 5: The Warning

  In Dan’s room, mold thickened the air, the bed sagging, lamp dark, shadows cloaking them. Dan slept, breath steady, while Priya stirred, skin prickling. Faint voices—Sarah, Caleb, Maya—drifted up, jagged, urgent. What’s happening? Her eyes snapped open, heart racing. “What’s that?” she muttered, seeking Dan’s warmth, but the cold sank deeper, her breath visible.

  A door slammed—Sarah’s exit, a gunshot in the quiet. Priya sat up, glancing at Dan, still asleep. Was that real? The chill bit, blanket useless on the floor. It’s too cold.

  She rose, barefoot, floor icy, creaking like a warning. The window gaped, fog swirling in, reeking of rot. She reached to shut it—a man emerged, pale, thirties, coat flapping, face waxen, perfect. The air froze, forest still.

  “My God, who are you?” Priya said, voice shaking. “Are you alright?”

  “I’m not lost, Priya,” the man said, voice soft, chilling, a slow blade. “But someone is walking to their doom. I need you to see.”

  Priya backed up, hand trembling on the frame, cold searing her. “Wait, how do you know my name? What do you mean, doom?”

  “Sarah,” the man said, low, prophetic. “She stepped into the fog, chasing a shadow. The night will devour her, Priya. Her scream will break under the moon, her light stolen. It’s happening now.”

  Priya froze, panic clawing. Sarah? “How do you know Sarah’s name?” she said, trembling. “What are you talking about? Is she hurt?”

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  “The night sees all, Priya,” the man said, smile faint, eyes fixed. “It whispers her fate, and yours. She’s running now, but the dark is faster.”

  Priya shook, tears welling. “Stop it! Get the fuck away from here!”

  The man laughed, low, gravelly. His eyes flared red, fangs gleaming. His voice shifted, southern, menacing. “We’re gonna kill every one o’ y’all,” he said, cackling, boots crunching as he blurred into the fog, gone.

  Priya slammed the window, frame rattling, and ripped the curtain down, hands shaking. She stumbled to Dan, shaking him, nails digging in. “Dan! Wake up! Please!” she said, panicked.

  Dan woke, groggy, voice rough. “P, what’s wrong? You okay?”

  “A man... outside the window,” Priya said, voice breaking, his eyes haunting her. “Knew my name, Sarah’s. Said she’s walking to her death, Dan. He had fangs, red eyes. Said they’ll kill us all!”

  Dan sat up, alarmed, skeptical, hand on her arm. “Whoa, slow down. A guy? You sure it wasn’t a nightmare, P?”

  “It wasn’t a dream!” Priya said, cracking. “He was real, Dan. I don’t know who he is, but it was... terrifying. We have to check on Sarah!”

  A scream—Maya’s—ripped the air, Caleb’s shout chasing it. Dan and Priya locked eyes, fear binding them. “That’s them,” Dan said, leaping up, and they ran, floor shaking.

  In the living room, furniture barricaded the door, wood splintered, air thick with fear. The laptop was dead, shadows twisting. The window framed Sarah’s body in the fog, blood glinting like ink. Maya and Caleb slumped, panting, Maya’s tears streaking, Caleb shaking, knife tight.

  “What happened?” Priya asked, breathless. “Are you alright?”

  “It’s Jake,” Caleb said, hoarse, eyes hollow. “He’s not... human anymore. He tore Sarah’s face apart. Left her out there.”

  Maya looked up, voice broken, accent heavy. “His eyes, y’all... red, like a damn animal. Fangs like knives. He was drinkin’ her blood, starin’ right at us.”

  Priya stilled, the man’s words echoing. The night will devour her. Her stomach sank, truth striking. He knew. Dan gripped her arm, face pale. “Wait, what? Jake? Our Jake? You’re sayin’ he’s some kinda... monster?”

  A soft knock hit the door, slow, mocking. They turned, hearts pounding, the silence worse than the sound, fog pressing in, starved.