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"I think he's right."

Rhett shakes his head.

"I've been outnumbered."

"You have," Sayer says.

"For the rest of your life, probably."

For a heartbeat, the three of us simply stand there. A mother. A father. A son. Not the family we should have been. The family we still have time to become.

Then the mist begins moving again. The temperature drops. Deep within the Hollow…

Something opens its eyes.

Rhett's expression hardens instantly.

"It's time."

I nod. No more hesitation. No more fear.

Together, we step beyond the last line of ancient trees and into the waiting darkness.

24

RHETT

OCTOBER 26 ~ 5 DAYS UNTIL HALLOWEEN

The Hollow is not a place. Not anymore. Places have boundaries. Places have rules. The Hollow stopped following rules a long time ago.

The moment we cross beneath the twisted canopy of ancient trees, the forest changes. Not gradually. Instantly.

The path behind us disappears. Not blocked. Not hidden. Gone.

The trees stand differently now, their positions shifted from where they were seconds before. The clearing where we entered is replaced by an endless wall of black trunks and pale mist.

I stop. Carys nearly walks into me.

"What is it?"

I stare behind us.

"Don't turn around."

Her expression tightens.

"Why?"

"Because I don't know what you'll see."

"The path is gone."

I glance at him.

"You see it too?"

He nods. The Hollow isn't trying to hide itself from him. It's showing him.