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The black car roared down the highway, tires screeching as the middle-aged driver kept his eyes glued to the rearview mirror. Sid’s truck was still tailing them, its headlights growing closer and closer as it barreled down the narrow road. Madi’s heart pounded in her chest, her fingers gripping the edge of the seat so tightly her knuckles turned white.
“He’s gaining on us!” she shouted, panic rising in her throat.
The driver, his brow furrowed in concentration, muttered under his breath, “Not for long.” With a sharp turn of the wheel, he veered onto a side road that wound sharply through the forest. The tires slid on the gravel, but the man regained control, his foot pressing harder on the gas.
Sid’s truck followed, but the man was quick, his car more nimble on the narrow curves of the road. The gap between them widened with every turn. After a tense few minutes, Sid’s truck disappeared from view altogether, swallowed by the twisting road behind them.
Madi let out a shaky breath of relief as the man slowed down just enough to regain full control of the car. “Almost there,” he said, his voice steady now. “The police station’s not far.”
True to his word, within minutes, they pulled up in front of a small, unassuming building in Jasper, a town a few miles down the road from Ponca. The police station was little more than a one-room structure, with a single patrol car parked out front. Madi’s heart still raced, but a wave of relief washed over her as the man hurried her inside.
The lone officer on duty was an older man, tall with graying hair, sitting behind a desk cluttered with paperwork. His brow creased in concern when he saw Madi’s disheveled state.
“What’s goin’ on?” he asked, rising to his feet. “You alright, miss?”
Madi nodded, her breath coming in ragged gasps. “Someone’s after me,” she managed to say, her voice shaking. “He… he killed the last person who tried to help me.”
The officer’s eyes widened. “Killed? Who?”
Before Madi could respond, the man who had picked her up stepped in. “She’s talkin’ about a guy in a truck,” he said quickly. “He’s still out there. He chased us here.”
The officer’s face hardened, and he grabbed his radio. “I’m callin’ in backup,” he said, his voice serious now. “We’ll get the state police out here to help track this guy down.”
Within minutes, the station came alive with activity. State troopers were on their way, and the officer—who introduced himself as Mike—asked Madi to sit down and walk him through everything that had happened. Her hands shook as she recounted her ordeal: being lost, Sid finding her, the days trapped in the cabin, and her narrow escape.
Mike listened intently, his expression growing darker with every detail. “I know just about everyone around these parts,” he said when she finished, his voice low. “But I’ve never heard of this Sid. Never seen him, either.”
That revelation sent a chill down Madi’s spine. It was a small town—how could no one know Sid? Mike’s words hung heavily in the air, filling Madi with even more dread. Who was Sid, really, and how had he managed to stay hidden for so long?
When the state police arrived, Madi was asked to ride along with them to show them where the cabin was. Reluctantly, she agreed, her mind swirling with fear. The officers were armed and prepared, and while their presence should have made her feel safer, it only intensified her anxiety. The more real the search became, the more terrified she was that Sid would somehow find a way to escape.
As they drove through the winding roads and up the gravel path that led to the cabin, the tension in the car was palpable. When they finally arrived, the cabin stood eerily still. Sid was nowhere to be found.
The state troopers fanned out, rifles at the ready, and began searching the surrounding area. Mike stayed behind with Madi, standing by her as the other officers scoured the woods and the cabin itself. He glanced down at her, his expression softening slightly. “We’re gonna get him,” he assured her. “You’re safe now.”
But the weight of his words didn’t bring her any comfort. Sid was out there—somewhere—and Madi knew he wouldn’t stop hunting her.
After an hour of searching, the officers returned. Sid was gone, and his truck was nowhere in sight. They couldn’t tell if he had fled into the deeper woods or taken another route, but one thing was certain—he had vanished.
Mike made the decision to bring Madi back to Jasper. They went back to Madi's car still sitting just as she had left it. Office Mike pulled a can of gas out of the back of his police truck and put it in Madi's car. Madi then followed him back to Mike's house. As they drove back through town, Madi’s hands were shaking on the wheel, her body still running on adrenaline.
When they finally reached Mike’s house, it was a modest, cozy home tucked into the woods on the outskirts of town. Mike’s wife, Heather, greeted Madi with warmth and concern, her brow furrowing as she took in Madi’s appearance. “You poor thing,” Heather said, guiding her inside. “Come in, come in. You can stay here as long as you need.”
Madi nodded gratefully, her body and mind exhausted from the constant fear. She agreed to stay put until Sid was found. Mike promised her that the state police would be searching every inch of the area until Sid was caught. In the meantime, Heather showed Madi to a small guest room where she could rest.
It wasn’t long before Madi met Mike and Heather’s teenage daughter, Rae. Rae was a lively, bright-eyed girl, full of curiosity. She sensed Madi’s unease and quickly struck up a conversation, eager to keep her mind off what had happened.
Later that evening, as the two of them sat on the back porch, Rae listened intently as Madi recounted her terrifying ordeal. The sun was setting, casting a warm, golden glow over the trees that surrounded the house. The stillness of the forest felt oddly comforting, a stark contrast to the chaos of the past few days.
“I can’t believe all that happened to you,” Rae said, shaking her head in disbelief. “It’s like something out of a horror movie.”
Madi gave a tired smile. “It feels like a nightmare I can’t wake up from.”
As the two sat in silence for a moment, the soft rustling of the trees in the evening breeze filled the air. Madi closed her eyes, taking in the sounds of nature, trying to find some peace. But then she heard something—a different sound, subtle at first, but unmistakable. A rustling in the trees, just beyond the backyard.
Her eyes snapped open, and she exchanged a quick glance with Rae, who had heard it too. The rustling grew louder, as if something—or someone—was moving through the brush.
Madi’s heart began to race. She leaned forward, straining to see into the trees, her body tense with fear.
“Do you hear that?” Rae whispered, her voice barely audible.
Madi nodded, her eyes wide as she stared into the darkness beyond the backyard. The rustling grew closer, the sound of leaves crunching underfoot.
Someone was out there.
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