Excerpt 1:
“Aidan, man, we should probably get going soon,” Jeff says, pulling me away from the threatening spiral of memories. His interruption is a welcome distraction.

“You’re right,” Aidan says, his eyes locked with mine. “But before we go, Quinn, you need to know, you’re not safe here. Do you have somewhere else to go?” 

“What are you talking about?” My head volleys back and forth between the guys. Jeff runs a hand through his short brown hair and exhales a sigh. He leans in conspiratorially and says in a hushed voice, “Look, we’ve been checking out the unoccupied homes around here. You know, just borrowing things to help us get by. But one of the trailers we went to, we thought it was empty…”

Aidan finishes for him. “Quinn, one of your neighbors is dead. We thought the trailer was vacant, so we went inside. We grabbed some canned food and other stuff from the kitchen and then we went to the bedroom to see if there were any blankets and pillows.”

Tag-teaming again, Jeff continues. “We thought the smell was some food rotting. But… we found her just lying there on the bed, lifeless. Looked like she was stabbed. There was blood on the sheets and blanket.” He pauses momentarily before breaking the silence. “We would have helped her if we could, but she was gone.”

I raise a hand to cover my gaping mouth. The scream I heard the other night. That must have been it. Why didn’t I think to go see what was happening? Maybe I could have helped her. Maybe I could have stopped it.

“Guys, which trailer? Where did you see this?” I don’t know many of the permanent residents, and if it was someone who is only here for vacations, there’s no chance I know her.

Aidan steps to the edge of the porch and points, “Two homes down in that direction. The one with the wishing well in the front yard.” I wrap my arms around myself to contain the shiver running through me. The guys exchange a look and I know what’s coming next.

“Look, we gotta go,” Aidan says. “How about we check on you tomorrow? Would that be okay? Just make sure you’re alright.” Before I can filter my thoughts, they escape my lips. “That would be really nice. Yeah, I’d like that.”

“Okay,” Jeff says, nodding. The guys eye each other, silently communicating. They hesitate for just a moment and then Aidan speaks again. “Quinn, just keep a low profile, okay? Try to keep yourself hidden. We’ll come back tomorrow night after it gets dark and we can talk more then.” 

“Okay,” I say. “Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow. Or, today I guess.” The guys watch me head inside the trailer. I lock the door and peer out the window, watching them leave. I barely know them, but I sense they’re like me and Riley—good people trying to navigate their way through a bad situation.

As I tiptoe back to the bedroom and settle under the covers, I vow to tell Riley everything. She deserves to know we could be in danger here and she needs to meet Aidan and Jeff. Maybe they are our ticket out of here. 

Excerpt 2:
“Chris, come out now!” I huff through clenched teeth. Worry wraps its sharp claws around every last thought in my head. Slowly nodding in defeat, he concedes.

Shifting his weight to the edge of the trunk, he starts crawling out backwards. When one shaky foot reaches the ledge, he visibly relaxes. Pushing off of the car, he throws his other foot behind him, searching for a grip.

Just as he stands tall, leaning into the alcove of earth, a sharp cry cuts through the air, startling us both. “Chris!” Jasmine’s panicked voice rings in my ears as a scream escapes my own lips. “Noooooooo,” I shout as Chris loses his foothold. His little hands scramble over the bumper before he disappears into the plunging darkness below.

I drop to my knees, reaching into the vast emptiness. “Chris, can you hear me? Are you okay?” 

“I’m here,” a shaky voice answers. It’s barely audible. I hope that’s only because he’s scared and not because he’s fallen halfway to China.

“Stay right where you are,” I command. “I’ll be right there.” As I jump to my feet, Aidan, Jeff, and Jasmine surround me. “Where’s Chris?” Jeff asks. Pushing through the barrier they form, I walk around to the part of the crevice closest to the open trunk.

Sizing up the best option to find my footing, I answer. “He fell in the sinkhole.” My limbs tremble and my lips quiver. If anything happens to him…

“You sent a kid into a sinkhole to get your bags?” Jasmine explodes. 

Darting my eyes to meet hers, I start explaining, “No! He did it on his own. I was going—” Before I can finish, the guys spring into action. Maneuvering around me, Jeff eases himself into the gaping maw, landing on the ledge Chris found. His much larger feet slip with each step, sending a tumbling trail of dirt and pebbles deeper into the earth. Aidan drops to the ground, flat on his stomach just above the hole, his right arm stretched straight down along the edge. His fingers grasp the waistband of Jeff’s shorts, anchoring the rescue efforts.

Jeff leans as deep into the hole as possible without escaping Aidan’s hold. He calls to Chris, who answers almost immediately. After sending a few reassuring words to the kid, Jeff rights himself. 

“Alright, I’ve got to crawl down there. I can’t reach him from this ledge,” he explains. Aidan gives him one solid nod before backing off. Hesitation weighs in his blue eyes, but he just watches, every muscle of his body tensed and ready to act when needed.

While Jeff disappears into the darkness, Jasmine paces the opening. “I can’t believe he went down there. This is all her fault. She should be the one getting Chris out of there.” 

“Jasmine, enough. This isn’t going to help Jeff or Chris,” Aidan says sternly. “We’ll talk about this later. Right now, we just need to be ready to help when they need it.”

I close my eyes and recite a silent prayer. This is all my fault. If Chris didn’t hear me talking about getting the bags from the trunk, he never would have pulled this stunt. 

Voices echo from the hole, but the words jumble together. After a few minutes, a dirt-streaked hand emerges from the depths. Aidan dives to the edge and reaches toward it. “I’m here, buddy. Just another six inches or so and I can reach you,” he calls.  

Chris’ dusty mop of hair rises from the darkness. When he tilts his head back, the trail of tears slinking down his cheeks leaves a clean path in its wake. Aidan releases a loud sigh and heaves his chest farther over the opening.

Worried that the pit will devour yet another one of us, I scramble toward Aidan’s feet in an awkward crab walk. Plopping on my butt, I wrap my arms around his calf. “Jasmine! Help me!” I call impatiently. She rushes to his other side and grabs the other calf. Using our weight as leverage, he plunges farther into the hole. 

A moment later he’s calling, “I got him! Pull!” Jasmine and I share a quick glance before we struggle to heave two bodies out of the opening. Sweat races down my back as my arms tremble with exertion. It doesn’t matter how much this hurts, I won’t stop until they’re safe.