WHERE ELARA SLEEPS

Chapter 5: Chapter 5



The scream tore through the earth like it was alive like something buried beneath the dirt wanted out. Maya stumbled back from the plaque, her hands covered in mud and moss, her breath coming in shallow gasps.

That scream hadn't been in her head. The ground had vibrated with it. And worst of all it sounded like a girl. A girl choking on water. Elara.

The flashlight in her hand flickered.

"No, no, no," Maya whispered, smacking the plastic side. The beam steadied, but it was weaker now, like the dark was swallowing it. And for a second, she thought she saw something just beyond the trees. Pale legs. A shadow of a dress. A flash of long, wet hair. She swung the light in that direction. Nothing. Her pulse thundered in her ears. She didn't run. She stood there frozen over the plaque, her eyes scanning the tree line. Then everywhere was still and quiet again. Too quiet. Like the forest was holding its breath.

Then something whispered in her ear.

"You're next."

Maya screamed and bolted.

Branches whipped her arms. Roots clawed at her feet. She didn't stop until the lights of the main camp came into view. She ducked behind the mess hall, her heart slamming against her ribs. Her hands were trembling so hard she dropped the lantern. The metal clanged against the concrete. Suddenly Lights came on in the nurse's cabin across the field. Maya sank low in the grass. She couldn't let Hayes see her like this. Mud-caked. Bleeding from her knees. Eyes wide with terror. He'd sedate her like Erin. Or worse make her disappear too. She waited for everywhere to be calm before sneaking back into her cabin.

Maya cleaned herself up in the dark. The mirror was still cracked from the night before. Lines like spiderwebs branching out from the center, where Elara's ghost had once looked through.

She didn't sleep. She sat in her bunk with the covers over her legs, lantern beside her, flashlight clutched in one hand, Elara's name echoing in her mind. And the scream.

That eerie scream. And she fell asleep still clutching her torchlight.

The next day, camp went on like nothing had happened.

Erin was "sent home for mental health reasons." Brooke said it with that tight-lipped smile that meant drop it. A new girl named Katie showed up to take her bunk.

Director Hayes gave a chipper speech at lunch about "a bright, fun-filled second half of summer!"

But the kids weren't smiling.

And Maya saw it in their eyes they'd heard the scream too.

Especially one little girl.

Her name was Zoe. Eight, maybe nine. Big eyes. Real quiet. She tugged on Maya's shirt as she cleaned up after lunch.

"I saw her," Zoe whispered.

Maya dropped the tray she was carrying. Zoe flinched but didn't run.

Maya crouched low. "You saw who?"

"The girl in white," she said. "By the woods. She was crying. Her dress was wet. She asked me for help but…"

"But what?"

Zoe swallowed. "When I got closer, her face was wrong. It kept changing. Like… like someone wearing a bunch of masks."

Maya's stomach dropped.

"Don't tell anyone else, okay?" Maya said, voice soft. "Just come to me if you see her again. Promise?"

Zoe nodded. Then she looked over Maya's shoulder, her face going pale. Maya turned.

Brooke stood there. She was Watching them. Maya cornered Brooke near the old archery range.

"I found Cabin Thirteen," Maya said. Brooke's expression didn't change. Not at first. But her hand twitched. The kind of twitch people make when they're trying very hard not to react.

"You shouldn't have gone out there alone," Brooke said.

"There's a plaque. It talks about a sacrifice."

Brooke looked away.

"So it's true," Maya whispered. "They killed her."

Brooke was quiet for a long time. Then, finally:

"We didn't kill her."

"But she died. Here. Because of something that happened in 2007."

Brooke's voice was low, strained. "There was a ritual. Some of the counselors believed it would bring… good luck. Safety. One perfect summer, no accidents. The camp had been losing money. There were talks about shutting it down. Hayes was desperate."

Maya's blood turned to ice. "So they did a ritual?"

"They thought it was just… symbolism. A play. A Harmless play ."

"Then why is Elara haunting us?"

"Because something went wrong."

Maya stared at her. "Was Ash part of it?"

Brooke hesitated. "He loved her. He didn't know what they were planning."

"And you?"

Brooke didn't answer.

"You were there, weren't you?"

She looked at Maya, eyes filled with something Maya couldn't name Maybe fear.

"Don't dig any deeper," Brooke said. "You're not like her. You can still leave."

"But I won't."

Brooke sighed, then walked away, her silhouette vanishing into the trees. Why is she so scared to talk about what happened?"

That night, Maya woke to scratching. Not on the door. Not on the windows. Inside the walls. It was slow. Deliberate. Like fingernails on wood. The girls were asleep or pretending to be. Maya climbed out of bed, every step a silent scream in her legs. She pressed her ear to the wall. And she heard a voice.

"Let me out."

Then the scratching stopped.

Maya backed away, her knees shaking. The mirror cracked again, but this time, Maya didn't run. She faced it. And there she was. Elara. Not soaked. Not bleeding. Just sad. Her mouth moved. Maya read the words slowly:

"My bones are still here."

"In the lake."

"You have to end it."

Then her expression twisted. Eyes wide. Mouth open in a silent scream. Her hands slammed against the glass. Behind her, something else was in the mirror now. A shape made of shadow and teeth. Clawing its way toward her. The mirror shattered, shards flying into Maya's arms and face. Blood welled instantly. The cabin exploded in screams. One of the girls jumped from the top bunk. Another threw up. Katie wet herself. Director Hayes stormed in, Brooke was running behind him with a flashlight blinding them all.

"What the hell is going on in here?!"

Maya didn't answer. She just stood there, her head was bleeding and her heart was racing, she was staring at the mirror frame. Elara was gone.

But something else had looked back at her.

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