Top! Loving this lodge so much. Hope you're enjoying high school, friend! :) Sending positivity your way.

I finally wrote the next part! Just in time for Halloween, too :)

Thank you all for the comments! It means so so much <333

Enjoy~

Day 9, Part 3

Silver Crystal stepped out of the house and swung her flashlight around the dark gardens, darkness creeping in around the beam. Rain beat down around them, a chill already settling into her bones, even through her heavy raincoat. The trees swayed in an unruly wind, their boughs creaking and fallen leaves whipping by. 

“You know,” Hex said distractedly, adjusting the hood of her raincoat so that it covered her tangles of short brown hair, “on Neptune, it rains diamonds.” 

It wasn’t hard to imagine. Raindrops cut through the flashlight’s cold glow, sharp and glittering like crystal shards. And for everything that had happened in the last week and a half, Silver might as well have been on a different planet. She shivered, and glanced over her shoulder at the warm lights emanating from Lockaria House. But she couldn’t go inside yet.

“ECHO!” Reuby screamed beside Silver, but her voice was snatched up by the wind and the rain.

“That won’t work,” said Silver Crystal. “Wherever Echo is...I don’t think she can hear us.”

~~~

Writing, Ronin, Reuby, and, of course, Wiccan, trooped through the forest, their footsteps silent on the soggy leaves amidst the pounding rain and roaring wind. They shouted Echo’s name, to no avail. 

Reuby thought back to what Silver had said. Echo wouldn’t be able to hear them. They needed a different approach. “We should split up,” said Reuby.

“What? That’s a terrible idea!” Ronin snapped. “That’s how people always get killed in horror movies.”

“There’s three of us, not counting Wiccan, and a whole forest. If we split up, we can cover more ground,” Reuby retorted.

“She has a point,” Writing shrugged.

Ronin glared at them with an expression half incredulous, half exasperated.

“We have to find Echo, no matter what,” Writing continued.

Ronin glared. “Even if it means you get killed?”

Writing’s expression softened. “Ronin—I know you’re scared. I am too, okay?” He lowered his voice—they weren’t entirely sure they could trust Reuby. “Echo and I have almost gotten to the bottom of what’s going on here, and that’s why we need to find her. I can’t do it alone.”

After a moment of thought, Ronin sighed and reluctantly gave in. “Fine,” he grumbled. “We meet back at the house in an hour. You’d better come back.”

~~~

Writing wandered through the dark woods, methodically calling out Echo’s name. They racked their brain, trying to think of somewhere she could be—were there any caves in the forest, perhaps, where she was being held?

The answer came suddenly. The treehouse he and Firelily had discovered the day Kyanite had been killed. How had they forgotten about that? 

He ran to the treehouse, stumbling over tree roots, swatting away rain-soaked branches, until he arrived at the base of the treehouse.

“ECHO!” they shouted.

“She’s not here.”

Writing’s blood ran cold as he warily turned around, clenching his hands into fists. 

A person stood there, leaning casually against a tree, with dark brown skin and a crop of curly brown hair.

“Who are you?” Writing snarled.

“Calm down, I’m not going to hurt you.” The person held out their hands, palms up. “I’m Carnelian.”

Writing’s breath caught in their throat. Carnelian—that was the name in the diary. But—

“We found your diary,” said Writing, the words coming out in a rush. “How—how are you still alive?”

“That’s the thing,” said Carnelian, turning to face the trees. “I’m not.”

Indeed, in turning around, Carnelian had revealed a bloom of red staining the back of their white sweater. 

“But how—”

Writing stopped himself. It made sense, in a crooked sort of way; the AE ghost Ronin had encountered, and now this ghost they were talking to right now....

He wasn’t going to dwell on it. There were more important questions to be asking Carnelian. 

“The last few pages of your diary—they were ripped out. Did—did you figure out anything about who the murderer was, or why the murders were happening?”

“Yes, I—I did,” Carnelian said, their voice barely a whisper under the pouring rain. Writing had to step closer to hear. “But I have to be sure I can trust you.” 

“Of course you can trust me,” said Writing. “Why would a murderer ask you that? It’s not like they can kill you, or anything—you’re already dead.” They seemed to realize that that might be a touchy subject, so they added, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

Carnelian waved a hand dismissively. “I guess you’re right. Besides, the murderer would probably be with Echo now. It’s nearly eight o’clock.”

Echo.

Writing had nearly forgotten that he was supposed to be looking for her. “Please, just tell me what you’ve figured out. I need to find Echo.”

“It’s too late for that,” said Carnelian. “Even if you do somehow manage to find her in the five minutes you have left, it doesn’t change the fact that someone is going to die today. If not Echo, then another one of your friends. Maybe even you. Maybe even your AE.”

Writing’s hands clenched again. Carnelian’s words seemed threatening, but they spoke so matter-of-factly. That was the scariest part. 

“You knew what would happen,” Carnelian continued, “when you filled out that form. You knew that your friends would be murdered. And you still signed up. You still came here. And now you’re trying to stop it. You can’t stop it, Writing.”

Writing was too stunned, too frightened, to even wonder how Carnelian knew their name. “What are you saying?” he asked, voice shaking.

“Can’t you see it?” Carnelian cried, flinging their out, gesturing to the entire Osorthe Forest and everything in it. “We’re in a ski lodge.”

~~~

Rough rope cut into Echo’s skin and floorboards creaked overhead, sending dust drifting down into the basement. It was nearly eight o’clock, and no one had found her yet. She hadn’t expected anyone to.

The basement door creaked open and the murderer clomped down the stairs. “It’s eight o’clock,” they said.

I know, Echo thought, but her mouth was stuffed with cloth and she couldn’t speak. 

“You certainly got close to solving the mystery of Lockaria House,” said the murderer. “One more day, and I’m sure you would’ve figured it out. But we can’t have that, can we?” 

Echo glared at the murderer. No, clearly they couldn’t. She’d realized that, as she sat there in the basement, waiting for someone to come save her. But now that she’d figured it out—or at least had an inkling of an idea—there was no way she’d be able to live.

It was just too dangerous.

For all of them.

“Well, as much as I’d hate to kill you, promises are promises,” said the murderer, taking the cloth out and forcing belladonna berries into her mouth.

Bitter berries exploded across her tongue, but Echo didn’t struggle. She knew she’d never get out of here alive. 

And then the world went dark. 

~~~

Alive: 6

Dead: 9 (Pangolin, Oliver, Daisy, Eclipse, Kyanite, Artemis, Sterling, Echo)

I totally forgot about this ski lodge over the summer, but I'm so glad I rediscovered it! Last year I would read along and check for a new part every day. I love this ski lodge <3