"Maya, wait for me!" I could hear Stella's giggles and the sound of her breathing heavily as she ran. I was a little farther ahead, sprinting through the large back pasture on my grandmother's property. "Run faster!" I hollered back with a grin. I slowed down and turned, lightly jogging backward. "Maya, literally no one at our school can outrun you…" she huffed, coming to a halt a few feet from me, leaning over, her hands on her knees. I couldn't help but smirk at her. "I'm sure somebody in this backwater town can outrun me." I turned away from her, looking out at the trees—my beautiful, peaceful sanctuary. Neither of us had ventured back into those trees after we'd seen our first wolf. The animal had looked calm, docile even—not tame, but it didn't seem very interested in us. We assumed it had already eaten.
"So, where have Daniel and Bailey gone off to?" I asked, turning to face her, waiting for a response. She merely shrugged, keeping her head down as she caught her breath.
"Hey, losers!" I heard a male voice from up on the hill, and a big grin spread across my face. "Who are you calling a loser, Bailey Rynes?! You want a piece of this?" I slapped my forearm and held a fist in the air. I watched him jog down the hill to meet us at the bottom.
"I wasn't sure if Daniel was with you guys or not. I didn't bother going by his house to check," Bailey said, catching his breath.
I let out a dramatically exhausting sigh. "Baileyyyy... why are you so difficult?"
He grinned at me and shrugged. "Gotta make life difficult for you somehow." I glanced up toward the hill to see if Daniel was anywhere to be seen, but alas, he was not.
Our party—now on a mission to hunt down our buddy Daniel and scold him for being late—started making our way back up the hill. First, I needed to let my grandmother know where we were going so she wouldn't freak out. I pushed through the back French doors and called out loudly, "Grandma! Where you at?!"
I heard a soft "In here" from the front of the house. I made my way into the living room, accidentally bumping into one of the people staying with us. I'd forgotten they were here, having just arrived yesterday.
"We're going to go get Daniel's lazy bones up and out of the house. Just wanted to tell you where I'd be…" I explained quickly.
She nodded, rocking in her fabric recliner. "Just be safe, dear. Text Damien if you need a ride back."
I groaned internally. "Yes, ma'am." Damien was one of the older guys living with us for the summer. I'm not entirely sure why my grandmother trusts my well-being with him, but regardless, Daniel was my top priority right now.
"I bet he's sleeping," Stella spoke up as we left the house and shut the door.
"Or maybe binging something on TV," Bailey added, laughing at Stella's comment. I remained silent, focused on the task at hand. Stella caught up to walk on my left, and Bailey caught up on my right.
"Why are you walking so briskly? You training for a walk-a-thon?" Bailey teased.
I grinned a little, glancing at him. "I just want to hurry up and get there and get back. I'm only allowed to stay out so long before it gets too dark to hang out."
Stella spoke up next, "I don't understand why you have to go in as soon as the sun sets. It's still light out. Also, why can you stay out late during school but not summer?"
I shrugged and rolled my eyes. "Don't ask me…"
Daniel's house came into view not long after that conversation. The country roads were annoyingly long on foot. I couldn't wait to get a car. I ran up to his door and opened it wide. Immediately, a foul smell hit me, and I wrinkled my nose. "Oh my—what the f—ugh!"
Stella and Bailey exchanged confused looks.
"What?" Bailey asked, stepping inside and sniffing the air.
"I don't smell anything," he added, though I still held my nose tightly.
Stella stepped inside and gave me a questioning look. "What do you smell? I don't smell anything. Maybe you're having a stroke." She grinned and walked toward Daniel's room, Bailey following behind her.
I entered slowly, still taken aback by the strong, nauseating smell. I couldn't believe no one else smelled it. Cautious, I looked around for Daniel's parents, assuming they were out shopping or something. That's what I thought... until I heard the blood-curdling wail coming from Stella, followed by Bailey's urgent cry for Daniel to wake up.
"Daniel?"