Cabin 9

The first thing Mara's uncle had given her upon arrival was a list of rules.

Not a radio.

Not a map of the mountains where she is working alongside her uncle for the summer.

Rules.

Mara laughed.

"Rules? Really Uncle Royce?"

Royce did not.

"Just read them." He said seriously.

Rules For Working at The Pine Ridge Park Mountains:

Rule 1. Never enter cabin 9 under any circumstances.

Rule 2. If you see someone on the trail after sunset, look away immediately and leave.

Rule 3. If you hear a knock on the window, close the blinds, and lock all the doors.

Rule 4. If you hear someone calling your name after midnight, no you didn't.

Rule 5. Don't tell anyone about Rule Number 5.

Rule 6. If you hear someone walking behind you, don't turn around. He knows if you do. Walk back to your cabin immediately. Don't look back. Please

Mara laughed nervously.

"Who wrote these..?"

Oh Mara. I did, of course.

"Not important. Let's go, I'll show you the station." Royce said sternly.

Mara frowns but stays silent and follows her uncle.

So did I.

The ranger station was a lot smaller than she expected.

It was a little wooden cabin, with a nice porch, some flowers planted around, stairs leading up to the building, and a wooden swing that could probably fit about 3 people. 4, if you tried. It had some windows, and Mara could see a couple rangers walking around inside. They walked inside, and the other rangers greeted her warmly.

"The maps are in there, the flashlights there, and the radios in there. Always keep your radio on you." Royce pointed around the cabinets.

"Your cabin is down the street to the left.

Cabin 9."

Mara stopped.

"Cabin.....9?"

Royce nodded.

"Yes."

Mara reached for her pocket, scrambling to get the list of rules.

There it was. First rule on the paper,

1. Never enter cabin 9

She shows it to her uncle.

"You... said my cabin was number 9..."

"Yes, I did."

"Then what is this supposed to mean?" Mara pointed at the rule.

A wave of confusion went over Royce. Then, he laughed.

"Oh Mara, there is no cabin 9!"

"What? But you literally just told me-"

"I said your cabin is down the street to the left." Royce cuts in mid sentence.

"Yeah, you said down the street to the left, cabin number 9."

Royce looked at her blankly.

Mara looked at the other rangers. One of them was awkwardly organizing a stack of paper over and over again. Another was whispering to his friend, casting strange and concerned looks at Mara. The other ranger straight up left to go to the storage room.

"Let's go. I'll walk you to the cabin." Royce said.

They walked the short distance in silence. Finally, the cabin came into sight. Same porch, same swing, just a crooked, metal "9" sign. Mara looked back at Royce.

"Don't" he said. Staring ahead, eyes glassy.

"Don't what?"

"Don't go in."

"But you-"

A crackly, low quality voice came from Royce's Radio.

"Royce?" It said. "Is she here?"

Royce looked around nervously and took the radio off his belt. "Yes," he said. "She's going into Cabin 9."

Mara was absolutely and utterly confused, but Royce nodded at her, signaling for her to go in, his face filled with fear and hesitation. Mara also hesitated. Looking back between the cabin and her uncle, not knowing whether to listen to her uncle, or the rules, not knowing what decision to pick. Finally, she made the decision, and took a deep breath, gripped her phone and the list of rules, and began to walk towards the stairs.

Finally. I had been waiting for this.

Not because I'm curious, no.

Keep walking, Mara.

But because I know what's inside cabin 9.

You're almost at the door.

For I've been there before.

Go on, Mara. There's no turning back now.

But, of course, she couldn't hear me. Not yet, at least.

She COULD still change her mind. She COULD turn around.

But, you know what they say, curiosity killed the cat.

And Mara had always been curious.

The leaves crunched under her foot as she walked, slightly damp from yesterday's rain.

It felt as though she had been walking for hours, the tension thick in the air. She turned around, hoping to see her Uncle behind her, but.... There was no one. Just, trees. A lot of them.

The ranger station was gone. She was all alone.

Well, almost.

"What the...." Mara whispered. She turned back around to face the cabin again. And right as she did, she heard footsteps behind her.

Rule 6, Mara, rule 6.

Her shoulders tensed up, but she kept her eyes forward and kept walking.

She finally made it to the stairs, and then to the door.

Mara paused. Then took a deep breath, and opened the door.

Finally.

The floorboards creak with each step she takes.

She continues down the hallway.

She grips her phone as she walks.

One step after another.

Then, she sees someone. Just standing there.

Mara had always been curious, so of course, she runs toward the figure.

The closer she comes, the more detail the figure gets. It's a girl, who looks about her age, maybe a little older, slightly disheveled. Messy hair, ripped clothes, no shoes, face covered in dirt and grass in her hair. Mara slowed down, and walked up to her.

"Why did you go in?" The girl whispered, voice shaking.

Mara opened her mouth, then closed it, because, truly? She had no idea.

"I made the same mistake as you. There's no going back now. I've been stuck here since I was 15," she said, slightly louder. "This is a trap."

"Why... Why can't we just leave?" Mara asked, voice starting to shake.

Mara, you stupid girl.

"No."

Maria's heart sunk.

"It's... Impossible. It truly is."

The girl took a shaky breath.

"It's impossible. When I first got here, I tried everything. I tried running back to where I came from, but the trees never end. Never."

She closes her eyes.

"I've also heard...."

She stops talking.

"Heard what?" Mara asks, barely above a whisper.

"The.... Things outside... "

Mara froze.

"I haven't been outside since."

The girl sighed.

"Let's go. I'll show you around. We will be here.... For a while....."

•••

The first thing Liam's uncle had given him upon arrival was a list of rules.

Not a radio.

Not a map of the mountains where he is working alongside his uncle for the summer.

Rules.

He laughed.

"Rules? Really Uncle Levi?"

Levi did not.

"Just read them." He said seriously.

Rules For Working at The Pine Ridge Park Mountains:

Rule 1. Never enter cabin 9 under any circumstances.

Rule 2. If you see someone on the trail after sunset, look away immediately and leave.

Rule 3. If you hear a knock on the window, close the blinds, and lock all the doors.

Rule 4. If you hear someone calling your name after midnight, no you didn't.

Rule 5. Don't tell anyone about Rule Number 5.

Rule 6. If you hear someone walking behind you, don't turn around. He knows if you do. Walk back to your cabin immediately. Don't look back. Please

Liam didn't understand.

He couldn't.

Not yet, at least.

He didn't know why his uncle was so serious about this.

He didn't know why he can't go into Cabin 9.

Liam didn't know how important Rule 1 is.

But I did.

I've seen people break it.

2 girls before him.

People like Mara.

People who just couldn't make the correct decision.

The third summer.

The third person.

And I wonder, I wonder how long Liam will last.