Nick could tell that his friends were becoming irritated.
They had agreed to let Ash and the others stay in their cabin for safety, but the newcomers had spent the entire evening inside a separate room instead of joining the party. Amanda and Dr. Crews were older, so no one expected them to drink, dance, or play games with the younger guests. Ash, Gwen, and Heather were around the same age as everyone else, which made their refusal feel unfriendly.
Nick understood that they were watching for Jason, so he tried to calm the others.
"They probably just need somewhere quiet."
His explanation did little to improve the mood.
The young adults considered Ash's group overly cautious. Treating an old story about an undead killer as a genuine threat made the relaxed weekend feel tense and uncomfortable. To them, the armed vigilance seemed less responsible than ridiculous.
The party continued beneath that growing awkwardness. Music played, board games moved across tables, and conversations carried on as the night approached midnight.
Jason never appeared.
No screams came from the forest, and nothing disturbed the water outside. The long period of safety gradually weakened the fear created by Nick's warning.
Fatigue and skepticism replaced it.
"See? Nothing happened."
Melissa covered a yawn with one hand.
"I told you everyone was frightening themselves over an old campfire story."
A woman sitting near another couple rubbed her eyes.
"Maybe Tina has been under too much pressure. But Judy and Dan still haven't come back. Could they have gotten lost in the woods?"
"Who knows?" Ben said from near the stereo equipment. "Michael hasn't shown up either. We planned this whole birthday party for him, and now it's already the next day."
Nick's expression tightened.
Judy and Dan were the couple who went camping alone in the forest the previous night. Neither of them had returned or contacted anyone.
Michael's absence worried him even more. Nick had found his cousin's abandoned car along the road that afternoon, with no fuel left in the tank and no sign of Michael or his girlfriend.
Four people were missing.
That was becoming difficult to dismiss as coincidence.
Nick glanced toward the shotgun hidden beneath the couch. He decided he would retrieve it as soon as the party ended.
By then, most of the guests had lost interest in continuing. Couples began rising from the couches and disappearing toward their assigned bedrooms, eager to spend the rest of the night alone.
Nick did not attempt to stop them. He had already repeated the warning several times, and another lecture would only make them ignore him completely.
Melissa remained behind long enough to invite him upstairs.
"We could talk in my room."
Nick understood what she was offering, but after a moment of hesitation, he declined.
"Maybe later. I need to check on Tina and the others."
Melissa's expression darkened. She turned away and climbed the stairs with enough force to make every step announce her anger.
Only after she disappeared did Nick retrieve the two shotguns he purchased in town. He brought them into the quieter room and asked Tina to come with him.
Amanda and Dr. Crews were already standing when they entered. Both had grown tired of waiting and intended to use the bedrooms prepared for them upstairs.
Tina immediately looked worried.
"Mom, you should stay down here."
Amanda gently touched her daughter's arm.
"We're in the same cabin, Tina. Nothing has happened, and I need some sleep."
She reminded Tina not to stay awake all night before following Dr. Crews toward the second floor.
As the other guests returned to their rooms, the enormous first floor became silent. Most of the lights were turned off, leaving only the living room and several sections of the hallway illuminated.
Five people remained awake.
The fireplace cast unsteady light across Ash, Gwen, and Heather on one side of the room. Ash removed the cloth covering his weapons and handed a shotgun to each woman.
He kept the large silver greatsword for himself.
The shotguns could not permanently kill Jason, but a blast at close range should damage his body and interrupt an attack. That delay could give Ash enough time to reach Gwen or Heather before Jason finished them.
Nick sat across from them and uncovered the two weapons he had purchased. He handed one to Tina, who held it with obvious uncertainty.
"You've never fired one before?"
Tina shook her head.
Nick began explaining the safety, the action, and how to brace the stock against her shoulder. Tina listened carefully while keeping the barrel pointed toward the floor.
Heather leaned back and covered another yawn.
"Do you think Jason decided not to come tonight?"
Ash watched the dark windows.
"He may have avoided the cabin because everyone was gathered together."
"Then couldn't we stay in one group until morning and remain safe?"
"Jason usually attacks isolated people first, but that's a preference rather than a rule."
Ash glanced toward the ceiling as footsteps moved through one of the rooms above them.
"If he comes through the front door and starts killing everyone, no one here except me has a realistic chance of stopping him."
Heather looked upstairs as another bedroom door closed.
"So we should force everyone to stay downstairs?"
"Do you really believe the couples currently trying to enjoy their private rooms would agree to that?"
Ash suddenly became still.
There were several bedrooms on the second floor. Most now contained two people who believed Jason was nothing more than an old legend.
"We should go upstairs."
Ash had no interest in spending the entire night waiting for Jason to choose the time and location of his attack. If the killer entered the cabin to target one of the couples, Ash wanted to confront him before more people died.
Jason had returned from death more than once and survived injuries that destroyed ordinary human bodies. Ash suspected that the killer might be controlled or strengthened by a supernatural entity similar to the Bloodthirsty Demon.
If that theory was correct, his father's holy greatsword could permanently destroy Jason just as it had destroyed the demon inside Leatherface.
Heather looked at him thoughtfully.
"Why does Jason always target couples who are alone?"
"The camp counselors responsible for watching him were distracted by each other when he drowned."
Ash rested the greatsword across his knees.
"He may associate intimacy with the negligence that caused his death. After returning, he started punishing anyone who reminded him of them."
Or perhaps Jason had simply spent too many years beneath the lake and developed an unnatural hatred toward anyone enjoying a romantic life.
Heather glanced toward the back door.
"What if we went outside and pretended to spend time alone? Would that draw him toward us?"
"No."
Ash rejected the suggestion immediately.
"We already have several people upstairs acting as unintentional bait. There's no reason for you to put yourself in danger too."
Nick shifted uncomfortably.
Ash was discussing his friends as possible targets. He wanted to object, but none of the couples had been ordered or tricked into separating.
They ignored every warning and chose to enter private rooms on their own.
Ash had already done more than anyone could reasonably expect by remaining in the cabin to protect them.
While the five continued talking in the living room, no one noticed the back door opening.
Ben and Kate slipped outside without turning on the porch light. They crossed the dark yard and entered the RV parked behind the cabin.
Neither of them closed the vehicle's door before they began removing their jackets.
Ben released a relieved breath as he sat on one of the padded benches.
"We're finally away from them."
Kate climbed inside and looked toward the cabin.
"They're acting insane. They genuinely believe someone is wandering around the woods with a machete."
"Especially Ash."
Ben began arranging the cushions into a makeshift bed.
"He looked like he expected a killer to crash through the window at any second. Nick even drove into town and bought guns because of them."
Kate shook her head.
"Tina probably imagined the whole thing because she's under too much pressure. Now everyone else is feeding into it."
Ben guided her down onto the cushions.
"Nick is usually sensible, but he's going along with them because he likes Tina. Melissa must be furious."
Kate laughed quietly as the two settled deeper inside the RV.
Outside, the surrounding campground remained completely silent.
Neither of them noticed the large figure standing among the trees.