Ruth walked with them, her mind hazy—floating somewhere between dream and reality. She had thought everything was just another nightmare: wandering through the forest beside a soul named Ellese, seeing flashes of her brutal suffering and the punishment she endured.

She was only pulled back to consciousness when someone grabbed her—
Jasmin.

For a moment, Ruth thought Jasmin was part of the dream too. But she wasn’t. Jasmin was real. And Ericka and Thalia were there, trailing behind them, breathless and pale.

After the bonfire that night, Ruth had fallen asleep again… only to hear the voice of a woman calling her.
Not by Ruth.
But by a name she didn’t recognize.

That voice lured her through the trees.
Led her back to the abandoned warehouse.

It felt like they were being hunted—running from something unseen.
The forest stretched endlessly around them, disorienting and cold.

“Where are we?” Ericka asked between heavy breaths. They were all tired, dizzy, unsure where safety was.

Jasmin scanned the surroundings nervously and pointed ahead.
“There—come over there.”

At first, none of them saw anything. Thick grass hid everything from view.

But then a shape emerged—a small hut made of wood and nipa, hidden in the overgrowth.

“That could be a trap,” Thalia warned.

“It’s not,” Ericka said confidently.

Jasmin nodded. “I stayed there the night I got lost.”

Suddenly—rustling. Footsteps.

“Go! Hurry! They might see us!” Ericka whispered urgently.

They bolted toward the hut.

Inside, Ericka immediately knelt down, tapping the wooden floor.
Then—
tok
tok
tok.

She found it.

A hidden staircase leading downward.

Ruth stared at it.
That staircase…
She had seen it before.
Been here before.
Lived here before.

But when?

“Let’s go,” someone whispered.

They descended the steps and closed the trapdoor behind them. Darkness swallowed them instantly. Jasmin turned on a small flashlight, casting a dim glow.

“Jasmin, what if they see the light?” Thalia whispered anxiously.

“They won’t find us here,” Ericka said.

She was too certain—too calm.
Thalia and Ruth exchanged wary looks.

The room was small, with a single bed barely big enough for four. Ruth froze when she saw it.

That bed.
She had slept here.
Long ago.
Or in a life she couldn’t remember.

Jasmin sat down carefully.

“Jasmin… how did you find this place?” Thalia asked.

Jasmin took a shaky breath.
“Honestly… a woman guided me here.”

“Who?”

“She said her name was Felisa.”

Ruth blinked.
Felisa…
Ellese…
The murdered sisters.

Thalia’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Felisa Fuego?”

Ericka let out a long exhale.

“If I tell you I can talk to them—that my spirit travels and I see them—would you believe me?” Ericka asked quietly.

“Spirit traveling?” Thalia murmured. “Like dreaming, but… real?”

“Yes,” Ericka said. “I don’t just see. I experience what they show me.”

“You see… but you don’t feel what they feel?” Thalia asked, voice tight.

Ericka frowned. “What do you mean?”

Thalia didn’t answer. She shifted uneasily and sat on the bed.

“Never mind. What matters is that Jasmin’s here.”

Jasmin’s hands trembled slightly as horrible memories flickered in her eyes.

“After I used the restroom,” Jasmin began, voice trembling, “I saw a shadow. I thought it was Ruth going back to the tent, so I followed it. I thought Thalia was done already.”

“I followed that figure deeper into the forest. But it wasn’t Ruth—it was a man. A man in a hooded jacket. He moved like a shadow.”

Her voice cracked.

“I smelled something… like sleeping gas. Then I passed out.”

Ruth felt her heartbeat stutter.

“When I woke up,” Jasmin continued, “my hands were tied. My eyes weren’t covered… I could smell blood. I heard women screaming. Crying. Begging.”

Ruth felt her stomach twist.
Thalia touched Jasmin’s arm gently.
“Jasmin… you don’t have to continue.”

“I escaped,” Jasmin whispered. “A man helped me.”

Their eyes widened.

“Did you see him?” Ericka asked.

“No. His face was hidden. He waited until the others weren’t around. Then he cut the ropes… and let me go.”

She wiped tears forming in her eyes.

“I ignored hunger… thirst… everything. I just ran. I didn’t know if I’d make it.”

“Then why did you go back to the warehouse again?” Ruth asked softly.

Jasmin looked straight at her.

“Felisa appeared again. I saw you walking toward it, Ruth. I knew you were in danger. So I pulled you away.”

Ruth swallowed hard.

Thalia leaned back, flashlight trembling in her hand.

“What else did you hear?” Ericka whispered.

“I heard them talking,” Jasmin said. “The men. Their territory is huge. I didn’t know if I was escaping or running in circles.”

“They said that if they found me again… they’d kill me. They thought I’d tell the police everything.”

“You need to report it,” Ericka insisted. “We’ll help you.”

“I’m scared,” Jasmin whispered.

“You’re not alone,” Thalia said. “We’ll survive this.”

They had no idea what time it was.
Only that the darkness around them felt endless.

Ruth couldn’t sleep.
She couldn’t risk dragging them into another vision.
Couldn’t risk following that voice again.

“Sleep, Ruth,” Thalia murmured. “I’ll stay awake.”

Ruth didn’t answer.

This place felt safe…
too safe.

She noticed Jasmin had already drifted off.

“Ericka,” Ruth whispered. “Are you going to tell her the truth? That the person who helped her escape… wasn’t human?”

Ericka shook her head.

“There’s no need.”

Ruth stared.
“Isn’t she afraid?”

Ericka looked at her calmly.

“When you’re standing at death’s door…
you’ll take help from anyone—
living or dead.”

Ruth said nothing.
Because deep down, she knew:

If she had gone through what Jasmin had endured—
She wouldn’t have survived it.