“Hello, person over here,” I cried.

The scythe disappeared and I waited for the person to yell “sorry.” They didn’t. Instead, the blade appeared again, slicing angrily through the hedge, much, much too close to me for comfort.

“Hey!” I yelled. And then it hit me that this was on purpose. This person was actually trying to slice me in half like a big avocado. I didn’t pause to think. I ran.

Here’s the thing about panic running—it never goes well, especially when you’re scared out of your mind. I ran to the right, then took a left, another left, and kept going into the maze thinking that they’d have a hard time finding me the deeper I went. I also hoped that there was another exit. I definitely didn’t want to run out the way I came in and have them lop my head off in the process. The mere thought of that had me doubling my speed, and I ran until I reached a dead end.

I am not a runner. I am not even a fast walker. I was doubled over, sucking air through my mouth, trying to get my lungs to reinflate. I was also trying to do it quietly in case the person had followed me and was even now creeping up on me. I staggered back the way I had come. I didn’t want to be trapped in a dead end. The hedge was thick enough that there was no way I could jump over it or plow through it.

I came around a corner and there were two people standing there. I screamed. They screamed. As I was about to turn around and run, Andre yelled, “Scarlett, it’s us. Me and Nick.”

I spun back around. It was them. I took two steps forward and launched myself at them, grabbing them both around the neck and hugging them tight.

“Oh, man, you guys, there was this scythe and it came through the hedge and I think someone is trying to kill me,” I panted.

They hugged me back and then Nick set me back on my feet and studied my face. “Sweetie, are you all right? You sound a teeny bit hysterical.”

“Someone tried to kill me,” I said. I gestured to the hedge. “A big old scythe came through and . . . I sound demented, don’t I?”

“A touch,” Andre said. Although he looked sympathetic.

I looked at Nick. “What are you doing here?”

“Andre told me that Harrison came down and I thought that sounded like fun, so I decided that after seeing my last patient of the day, I would go for a drive in the country, too.”

“Andre told you he’s afraid of the ghost, didn’t he?”

“I am not—” Andre began but Nick interrupted.

“Yes, he’s been a nervous wreck since you arrived and he heard about it,” Nick said.