“Why didn’t you tell me?” Her voice is low and quiet. Tears start to slowly roll down her cheeks. She glances around the space as though looking for something. “I know you’re here, May. I can feel you.” I push in closer so that I’m almost passing into her body but not quite; it’s as close as I can get without coming out on the other side of her. “Whatever made you do it, I would have understood. I would have kept your secret.” Her tears are coming faster now. The sound of footsteps arrives on the front verandah, and June quickly tries to wipe the tears away.

Through the glass of the front door, I see Willa appear. She’s holding something red, but she disappears from sight before I can tell what it is. When she doesn’t come into the cottage, I move to the windows that look out onto the verandah.

The red thing in her hands is a gas can, which she has tipped forward so that a steady stream of gasoline pours across the wooden floor of the verandah. I can see that she’s doused the entire length of the front of the house. She walks backward down the steps, coating them as she goes. Only when the gas can runs empty does she set it down. Reaching into the pocket of her nightgown, she pulls out a book of matches.

I swing back to June, who’s still sitting on the couch, unaware of Willa’s plan for her and the cottage. June, I scream, at the very same time that a wall of flames jumps up in front of the windows. As it builds, it makes a loud whooshing sound that causes June to twist around to see what it is.

The bright orange light of the fire is mirrored in June’s blue eyes, which are already full of panic. Twisting her wrists, contorting her hands, she frantically tries to free herself from the rope. I can see that it’s no use. Willa may not know who’s who or what day it is, but she definitely knows how to tie a rope.

An ax sits against the side of the fireplace, tucked away so that it’s mostly out of sight. If I can make June see it and she can somehow get over to where it is, she may be able to free herself.

The sound of the fire is growing stronger. The glass in the windows has started to crack, and there’s a gentle groaning as the fire eats through the wood of the building. It’s only a matter of minutes before those flames find their way inside.