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"Jay!" I whispered loud, leaning out my bedroom window. "What are you doing here?"

He looked up at me with his goofy smile, the kind he always made when he had a big idea. "I came to dig up the treasure we buried! Remember? Two years ago today!"

"Right now?" I looked back at my clock. "Jay, it's almost ten o'clock..."

"I know!" he said, puffing out his cheeks. "But the park's not far. And today's the day we buried it! I didn't wanna miss it." He started playing with his fingers like he got shy all of a sudden.

"Really?"

"Yeah!" He nodded super fast. "So come on!" He waved his arms like I was taking forever.

I pouted. "But Mommy would never let me go. She says it's too dark outside."

"It's okay," he said, grinning. "Just climb through your window. We'll be back before she even knows!"

I looked down. The ground looked really far. My tummy did that weird flippy thing. "That's too high..."

"Princess, don't worry," Jay said. "Just don't look down. I'll catch you. I promise."

I bit my lip and nodded. "Okay, Jay... I trust you."

I sat on the windowsill, closed my eyes, and jumped. I let out a tiny squeak and boom! I landed right in his arms.

When I opened my eyes, he was smiling with those shiny gray eyes of his. "Told you I'd catch you."

I giggled. "I knew you would."

He put me down and grabbed my hands. "Hey, Izzy... do your parents have cameras or alarms?"

"Yeah," I said, reaching into my pocket. "But I got the remote! I can turn them off for ten minutes." I held it up like it was magic or something.

His eyes got big. "Izzy! You're so smart!"

"I know," I said, feeling proud.

We tiptoed to the park, all quiet and sneaky like spies. He gave me a little shovel and took one for himself.

"Let's dig!" he whispered.

I got down on my knees and dug the first scoop of sand, then stopped.

Crunch.

My head snapped up. "Jay... did you hear that?"

He blinked. "Hear what?"

"There was a crunch sound! Like... like leaves or something!"

He looked around. "I didn't hear anything."

I frowned. "Maybe it was just a bird..."

I dug again.

Crunch.

This time louder. Closer.

"Jay!" I grabbed his arm super tight. "You heard that, right?"

He froze. "Yeah. Where's it coming from?"

We both looked around. My heart was thumping super loud in my chest. I peeked behind a bench, nothing. When I turned back to look at Jay—

"—Jay! Watch out!"

But I was too slow.

Something hit him. Hard.

He fell into me, all heavy and still. I screamed, catching him before he hit the ground.

Then I heard a voice. It was mean and scary.

"You're coming with us, little girl."

Another voice shouted, "Shut up, would you?"

Bang! Bang!

A relentless banging shook the door, dragging me out of the nightmare that had swallowed me alive.

My eyes shot open. I wasn't in the park anymore. I was trapped, back in the cold, room with no way out. The nightmare wasn't just a dream. It was a distant memory. A memory I couldn't escape from.

I scrambled backward, my breath ragged and shaking. Hot tears burned tracks down my cheeks, unbidden and unstoppable. My chest ached, heavy with a sadness that felt like it would crush me. Jason was right. We were friends. Once.

I curled in on myself, clutching my knees as if they were the only thing keeping me together. My voice barely a whisper, cracked and hollow, praying that Gabe's kindness hadn't been in vain. "Please, Amanda... Please send help."

Cover made by Storyaddict

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