I'm Ethan Winters, and I came to the backwoods of Dulvey, Louisiana, to a creepy place called the Baker farm, chasing a lead on my missing wife, Mia. After scouring the dilapidated mansion, I found her, and we tried to escape together—only for her to vanish into thin air.
When we reunited, Mia had lost her mind, attacking me like a wild animal. She stabbed me repeatedly with a knife, hurled me into a barricade, bashed me with a jagged piece of wood from the wreckage, and when I fought back with an axe, I ended up killing her. Or so I thought—because somehow, she came back, drove a screwdriver into my left arm, and then chopped it off with a chainsaw. Reeling from the ordeal, I followed a woman's voice on the phone, urging me to escape, only to get blindsided by a fist and collapse.
"Where… am I? What's going on…?"
『You're awake? Yo, what's up!』
My eyes snapped open to a girl's smirking face, uncomfortably close. Confusion hit me like a truck. Who the hell is this? My vision darted around, and something flew through her face, smacking mine. What the—?!
『Ugh, Lucas, what's your deal? Well, enjoy the gross food!』
With a cheeky wave, the girl floated away with startling ease. I blinked, taking in my surroundings—an absolute nightmare. A dining table was littered with what looked like organs, doused in Tabasco and pepper. Around it sat a gaunt, mustached man with thinning gray hair and a sickly pallor; a disheveled middle-aged woman with wild hair and an equally bad complexion; a scrawny guy in a ratty gray hoodie, his face unshaven; and an old woman in a wheelchair, her unfocused eyes staring into nowhere. Except for the old lady, they shoveled the "food" into their mouths without flinching. Was that what hit me? Nausea surged, but I fought it down. Where was that girl? The middle-aged woman noticed me stir and sneered.
"Finally up, sleepyhead? Dinner time."
"Who are you people? Where's Mia?"
"Eat. It's delicious."
"N-no, I'm good…"
"No need to be shy. You're family now."
Family? What was she talking about? I tilted my head, but the hoodie guy—Lucas, apparently—chucked a plate of "food" at me. What the hell?!
"This idiot won't get it no matter what you say!"
"Lucas! What're_you doing?!"
"Mind your manners at the table!"
The mustached man, who'd been eating silently, grabbed Lucas's hand and sliced it off with a knife. After Mia's attack, I watched with eerie detachment.
"Ow! What the hell, old man?! Give me a break!"
"Out of the way, Marguerite. This ill-mannered hand's trash."
『Haha! Look at you, eyes bugging out! This family dinner's nuts, right?』
The girl's voice echoed from nowhere. I scanned the room, but she was gone. Marguerite, the woman, shoved aside by the mustached man, stormed to the next room, tossing Lucas's severed hand into a trash bin. The man approached me.
"No looking away, but no picky eating either. Gotta eat your dinner, right?"
"No, really, I'm full…"
"Eat. You gotta eat. Come on, eat."
『If you don't eat, bad things happen, so maybe take a bite? Just one, though—Clancy ate three and was writhing in agony!』
The man—Jack, I guessed—shoved a handful of "food" at me. Following the girl's advice, I reluctantly took a bite and immediately spat it out. What is this godawful taste?! Worse than any animal guts—what kind of organs are these?!
『Yeesh, you don't wanna know. If you must, check the fridge later.』
"Hey, this jerk spat it out! Jack, he spat it out!"
"Quiet down, Marguerite!"
"I made it special, and he spits it out!"
"Go back over there!"
"What, you screwing with me?!"
『It's pretty gross, so no wonder.』
Marguerite shrieked hysterically, Jack bellowed back, but I was too busy gagging to care.
"I won't forgive this jerk! Spitting out my cooking!"
『Marguerite, maybe make something tastier? Lucas is drowning his in Tabasco.』
Marguerite stormed out, the girl's voice echoing again. Why isn't anyone reacting to her? Am I the only one hearing this?
"You're new to the family, so you wouldn't get it, but this is a delicacy in our house. Got it?"
『Oh no, Jack's pissed. Make him angrier, and you're screwed!』
"Sorry, it was just… too intense, and I spat it out."
Judging by the girl's warning, pissing off Jack, who held a knife, was a bad idea. I played nice, and he lowered it, satisfied. I didn't want my hand chopped off like Lucas's. Wait—my arm, the one Mia cut off, was back, fingers moving. How?
"Fine. Let's eat slowly. I'll call Marguerite back… huh?"
"Dammit, just when it was getting fun—those cops are back!"
"Interrupting our family time, those damn pigs."
A bell rang, and Jack's face twisted. Lucas, equally annoyed, said it was the police. Perfect—maybe I can signal them for help.
『Nope. Try to escape, and they'll kill you. I don't want you dead, Ethan.』
The girl's voice scolded me. Who are you?
"Stay put. We'll be right back. Come on, Lucas!"
"Yeah, yeah. What about my hand? Wasn't there some herb in the yard?"
Jack and Lucas, who'd grabbed his severed hand from the trash, left the table. Only me and the silent old lady remained. Is she even alive?
『Rude. She's totally alive!』
"…My bad. Who are you?"
『Oh, uh… I'm Eveline. Talking in your head… just kidding!』
The girl popped up behind the old lady, wearing a black dress and boots, eerie as hell. So her name was Eveline, and she was speaking from there? Why couldn't they hear her? Telepathy? Whatever—escape came first. I had to break these restraints.
"Why are you here? You one of their kids?"
『Yup, I'm their kid. What, planning to escape? Wanna die again… cough—I mean, for real this time?』
"I don't wanna die, but staying here's a death sentence. Getting the cops' help is obvious."
『Hmm. Good luck getting out.』
Her smug grin pissed me off, but I rocked my body, toppling the chair to the floor and freeing myself from the restraints. My wrist was somehow reattached. Weird.
"Alright."
『Alright? That crash is gonna bring them back.』
"Anywhere to hide?"
『Hmm, the garage maybe?』
"Can you lead me there?"
『Can I tag along? I won't get in the way.』
"Do what you want."
The old lady didn't react, so I figured Eveline was a ghost or something. Either way, I had to get out.
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