Jasper gave a reassuring squeeze to my shoulder when he noticed me tensing up, even though he looked just as pale as me.

Thanks to Seth’s style of driving and the lack of traffic around us, the drive didn’t take two hours.

In my mind, I had expected a seedy cabin in the woods; instead, the small house at the end of the road looked unexpectedly inviting. Flowerpots stood on the steps leading up to the door and a friendly sign welcomed us to Mil er’s Holiday Rental.

It was only the yellow curtains drawn shut that made its appearance seem sinister.

“Do you think they’re still here?” I asked.

Seth looked less than convinced as he turned off the engine.

Just by the look on his face, I could tell he had also noticed the glaring absence of another car.

“Let’s find out,” Jasper muttered. After taking a deep breath, he opened his door and got out onto the street.

Seth wordlessly followed him. I got out last, softly shutting the door before I walked up to the others.

“What are we supposed to do?” Jasper asked, gesturing at the front door. “Are we just supposed to knock and hide in the bushes to see if someone comes out?”

Seth shot him a bewildered stare. “Are you taking the piss right now?”

“Do you have a better idea?”

“Not really,” Seth admitted.

“All right. I’ll do it then.”

Neither of us was convinced this was a good idea. Still, Seth and I hid behind the bushes at a safe distance from the door and watched as Jasper climbed up the front steps, his walk uncharacteristically uncertain. He took a deep breath before he raised a hand and gave three loud knocks, immediately turning around and darting towards us.

We waited with labored breaths for someone to step out, Jasper panting next to me. Only when five minutes had passed and nothing had happened, I got up from my crouching position behind the bushes. “This is stupid. If they were really in there, this man wouldn’t just come out.”

“You’re right,” Seth said.

“Maybe we should split up?” Jasper said. “Go around the house and see if there’s anything there. If anything happens, yell for help.”

Seth shook his head. “Jas, splitting up is how people get killed.

Also, I think it’s pretty obvious there’s no one here. There isn’t even a car. In fact . . .”

He turned around and walked over to the front door. I couldn’t see what he was doing as he crouched down by the doormat, his back to us, but a moment later, he turned around with a key glinting in his hand. “He put the key back for the owner of this rental to find. They’re not here anymore.”

His words snubbed out the last little glimmer of hope that had still been flickering in my chest. I wordlessly turned around and went back to the car, back into the passenger seat. A moment later, Seth and Jasper got in as well.