“I’ll tell you what I think it is,” Nikki said. “And you might think I’m a world-class prat for saying it, but you both know Katy described a bigfoot. Don’t fucking pretend it didn’t occur to you.”

In actuality, the insane notion that it was a bigfoot had never entered Andrew’s mind. And he wasn’t going to start entertaining the thought now.

“That’s ridiculous,” he said, watching Kate sleep.

“Unlike those terrible screams, the yellow eyes, and the stones crashing around the house, right? That’s all quite normal for Maine, is it?” Nikki said.

“Baby, just calm down,” Ryker said.

She broke away from him. “Are you both so daft that you don’t see it? I’m no bigfoot expert, but I’ve seen enough specials on the telly to know that everything fits perfectly.”

“There are no bigfoots in Maine,” Ryker said, peering out from between the blinds.

“And how do you know that?” she replied, hands on her hips, the dark streaks of her makeup running down her face.

He whirled around. “Because there’s no such thing as a bigfoot, that’s why!”

He was suddenly very glad they hadn’t told her about the dead birds. That would only fuel her ridiculous speculation.

She turned away from him in disgust.

Andrew sighed. “Look, Nikki, I’m with Ryker on this. I don’t know what the hell is out there, but I’m pretty sure it’s not Sasquatch.”

Nikki went to the kitchen and lit another candle. She did her best to avoid looking at them.

Andrew tapped the inside of Kate’s wrist. “Kate. Can you hear me? I just need you to wake up for a second and make sure you’re okay.” He said her name louder, his tapping more insistent. Kate’s eyes didn’t so much as flicker.

He looked to Ryker. “I’m starting to get worried.”

“What do you mean? She’s not seizing anymore. That’s a good thing, right?”

“It would be if she were conscious. But not if I can’t get her up. It could be a sign that something else is very wrong. I think I need to get her to the hospital.”

They slowly turned to the front door.

“What time is it?” Ryker said.

Nikki checked her phone. “Half past one.”

He punched the top of the chair. “I was hoping it would be closer to dawn. It feels like we’ve been up for days.”

Andrew pulled the sheet up to Kate’s neck. The fever had definitely broken, but at what cost?

“It doesn’t matter. This can’t wait until light. Look, I’ll take her to the car. You two can stay in here and keep everything locked.”

“Not a fucking chance,” Nikki said. “I don’t want to stay here with that thing.”

Ryker said, “Nikki’s right. We’ll all go. It’s not safe here.”