Frankie nodded. ‘Buddy had a goat mask and Darlene’s was a fox.’
‘There was a man with them too,’ said Ryan quietly. ‘He was wearing a bird mask. A crow, I think. They split up to look for us and he went the other way.’
The two of them took turns to explain what had happened.
‘Please don’t tell me you actually deleted the photos you took?’ I said.
Ryan groaned. ‘I did.’
I knew that, in the moment, it had been the sensible thing to do, but it was still bloody frustrating.
‘Wait here,’ I said.
Frankie sat up, alarmed. ‘Where are you going?’
‘I just want to see if they’re still around.’
‘You can’t leave us here,’ Frankie pleaded. ‘I want to go back to the cabin. Please, Dad.’
But I needed to know who this person was, this crow, even though I knew they were dangerous. Nikki’s warnings rang in my ears. I ought to take Frankie straight back to the cabin, load up the car and get out of here.
But I couldn’t. I wasn’t thinking about my article. I didn’t care about that right now. I was thinking about justice. I was certain these kids were responsible for killing Donna. They had attacked my daughter. I wanted them caught and punished. And I needed to know who the guy with them was.
Could it actually be Everett Miller? Suddenly, having witnessed this attack, seeing these masked figures in the woods with my own eyes, it didn’t seem so impossible.
I picked up one of the rocks Buddy and Darlene had dropped before they ran. It wouldn’t make a great weapon but it was better than nothing.
I hurried up the path, telling Frankie and Ryan to stay where they were. It only took two minutes to reach the point where the path split in two. I listened for voices, for movement in the woods, but heard nothing except the distant noise of motorboats on the lake. Buddy and Darlene, and the mysterious man in the crow mask, were long gone.
I took Frankie back to the cabin. The sun had gone down as we walked back and the resort was bustling now, the barbecue ready to go, and a band was setting up on a makeshift stage. A large bonfire had been constructed beside the lake, ready to be lit. I saw a few of David’s flyers discarded on the ground. Seeing the barbecue and all the food in metal containers lined up made my stomach growl, and I realised I hadn’t eaten since breakfast. I was running on adrenaline and stress.
We said goodbye to Ryan outside his cabin. I had asked him to come in with us but he was insistent: he wanted to be alone for a while. Probably it was the only way he could process what had just happened. There was no sign of David or Connie and I assumed they were busy elsewhere, setting up whatever their surprise was.
‘Are you sure you’re going to be all right on your own?’ I asked him.
‘Yeah. I’ll be fine.’
‘Lock the doors, just in case. If you need anything, you know where we are. Okay?’
We went inside. Frankie was shivering. She sat on the couch where Nikki had sat not an hour before. Outside, I could see people walking past the cabin, heading towards the festivities. I wondered how many of them had been drawn to this place by its dark past. How thrilled they would be to think that Everett Miller might still be here. That he’d been hiding out for twenty years and was now getting ready for his comeback.
But I wasn’t going to mention that to Frankie.
‘Right,’ I said. ‘We’re getting out of here.’
She blinked at me. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I’m packing up the car. We’re leaving. Right now. I’m going to drive to Houlton, talk to the police or the sheriff.’
‘But you just told Ryan we would be here for him if he needed us.’
I paused. She was right.
‘We should wait for his parents to come back.’
I was torn. I didn’t want to leave Ryan on his own, but I didn’t think David and Connie would be coming back to the cabin any time soon. They had their big surprise planned. They would be busy with that, whatever it was.
‘All right. We’ll go and find David and Connie. Tell them what happened and that they need to come back to their cabin. Then we leave. Okay?’
‘I want to stay here.’
‘Frankie . . .’
‘Please. I’ll be fine. You’re not going to be long, right? And I can start packing.’
Reluctantly, I agreed. I would be quicker on my own and there was the risk we’d get separated in the crowd. ‘All right, but lock the door behind me, okay? I won’t be long.’