Page 20 of Hide And Seek

“In the late eighties, two people went missing during a hike. Everyone was worried, but they assumed they’d just gotten lost. Maybe even attacked by a bear. Tragic, but explainable. So even though they never turned up, the place didn’t shut down.” Zach paused, raising a brow. “The next year, three more campers went missing during the first week of the grounds being open. People started to suspect something was wrong then, because that’s a lot of missing people in a short period of time. And then… the Woodsman finally showed his face. Or what was left of it.”

He paused for dramatic effect.

“While everyone was freaking out, wondering where the missing people were, he went around the camp and killed ten people with an ax,” he went on. “He chopped them into pieces and left them stacked up like logs by the campfire.”

Caitlin rolled her eyes. “Spare me,” she said under her breath.

“There were three survivors who managed to hide,” Zach went on. “They saw what happened. And they saw his face.”

“You said what was left of it,” I cut in, brows furrowing. “What does that mean?”

“Half of it was missing. It turned out he was the groundskeeper who used to work there. Edward Stryker. He’d been forced to leave the job because he was in a terrible accident years beforehand,” he said. “Someone had been throwing axes around and got him right in the face. No amount of surgery could fix it properly.”

“I see,” I said, raising a brow. This story was starting to sound like a movie I’d seen once. A decidedlyfictionalmovie.

“So, after that, he spent years living with all this rage simmering inside him, because everyone kept looking at him like he was a freak,” Zach went on. “One day it all got too much for him. That anger needed to go somewhere. So he came back here and killed two hikers. Chopped them up and hid the pieces in a cave somewhere. It made him feel a little better, but not for long. So the next year, he came back again, and… well, I told you what happened.”

“And of course the police never caught him, even though they knew who he was by then,” Jensen piped up. “So he could still be out there, roaming the woods with an ax, just waiting to run into more victims.”

Caitlin rolled her eyes. “Sure.”

“It really happened,” Zach said. “Ask anyone who lives around here.”

“If it really happened, how come I’ve never heard about it?” I asked, lips twitching with amusement. “I mean, not to sound like a total weirdo, but I went through a huge true crime phase when I was a teenager, and I must’ve researched every single serial killer or spree killer case that’s ever happened in this country. And I never heard the name Edmund Stryker, or anything about people being massacred at this camp.” I hesitated for a beat, lifting a palm. “Also, given the way things are these days… if that stuffreallyhappened, where’s the Netflix documentary about it?”

“Exactly!” Caitlin said, throwing her hands up. “It’s total nonsense.”

“It’s not. The locals just covered it up, including all the cops,” Zach shot back.

“Why would they do that?”

“Because they didn’t want all the tourism in this area to stop. So they made sure the media never picked up the story,” he replied. “But, of course, stuff always leaks eventually.”

Caitlin let out an irritated sigh. “Even if the Woodsmanwasreal, he’d probably be at least seventy by now,” she said. “Maybe even older. Or dead. So it doesn’t make sense that people act like he could still be out there searching for more victims. It’s just stupid.”

“Well, maybe he has a son. Or even a grandson.” Jensen raised a brow. “Maybe they’re carrying on his legacy. Roaming the woods and getting revenge on anyone who dares to be out here.”

Something made me look to my left at that exact moment.

Rhys was looking at me. Not at Zach, not at the kids, not at the beanie sitting abandoned on the log. Right at me.

For a second, neither of us moved. Then the corner of his mouth lifted, just slightly. I had no idea what it meant, but it made something twist in my chest, so I yanked my gaze away.

“Oh, shut up, Jensen,” Caitlin snapped. “You’ll scare the kids.”

“They’re not even listening to us. They’re too busy looking at the scavenger hunt clues.”

“What do you think, Rhys?” Caitlin asked. “Obviously Zach and Jensen aren’t going to listen to me or Alissa, but maybe they’ll listen to a man telling them it’s a pile of bull.”

I took a deep breath and looked up at Rhys again. He was still looking at me, lips slightly curved at one corner, but then he finally dragged his gaze away and focused on Caitlin.

“You’re right,” he said. “The Woodsman isn’t real. But itisvery loosely based on a real case.”

Her forehead wrinkled. “What case?”

“Edmund Strake and the Blackpine Rites.”

My eyes widened. “Wait, I’ve actually heard of that before,” I said, sitting up straighter. “I didn’t know it wasthisBlackpine, though.”