Hush Little Hurricane

Chapter 5: Prey

As alluring as the huge bath in Josh's upstairs bathroom was, such a large space took the best part of an hour to fill with steaming water and bubbles. During this time Sam had gone around the room lighting a surprisingly plentiful supply of tea light candles around the room with a small box of matches that had been in the cupboard under the sink, listening to her country music as she went.

Finally, with entire tub full and bathroom sufficiently mood-lit, the girl re-twisted her blonde hair up to the back of her head. She had removed her clothes--save for the bracelet she never let out of her sight--and set them onto the side table by the door while she placed a fluffy white towel next to the bath and switched her music to the calming melody of classical cello. With that, Sam had sunk into the water and let the stinging heat expel the frigid cold that had seeped into her bones on the way here.

Sam wasn't sure how long she had spent in that bath; it had been around eleven-fifteen when she started filling the tub so probably midnight when she finally got in. It must have been around one in the morning then. all the tealights around the room had burnt themselves out. Only the pillar candle beside her still burned.

Perhaps it was nearing time she got out...

Too immersed in the melody of her music, Sam only opened her eyes when she felt soft thud and the candle beside her blew out. She took out her earbuds and put them aside, watching the remnant smoke of the candle twirl and dissipate.

"Hello? Guys? What are you doing out there?" She eyed the door suspiciously before muttering, "Being creepy?"

Deciding it was probably best not to give her friends any situation they could catch her in--especially given their prank track record--Sam got up from the bath grumbling her annoyance. The girl wrapped herself in her towel and climbed out onto the cold floorboards.

01:11

The presence of something, or lack thereof, by the door caught her eye. She knelt by the table and picked up the lone sock she had left in exasperation.

"Oh for Pete's sake! My clothes? Really? Whichever one of you did this is off my Christmas list. Seriously, not cool, guys. Not cool at all."

Opening the door, Sam stepped into the hall and made her way across the landing to the next door.

"Chris? Josh?" She called, but received no reply then muttered, "What the hell?"

As she walked down the hallway the grandfather clock suddenly chimed, eliciting a startled cry from the towel-clad girl.

"Ugh, stupid clock."

To her left the absence of music from the door she new was Hannah's but now Tess was staying in aroused Sam's suspicions. Were they hiding in there with her clothes?

Sneakily, Sam turned the handle...and pounced into the room. Only there was no one there. Not even Tessa herself. It took a closer look to realise something more than her best friend's absence was amiss. As she moved into the room, Sam could see the hearth held burnt out embers and Tessa's phone on the mantle piece had been paused playing its music. Not to mention her friend's socks, boots, cardigan and jacket were still laid over the desk chair.

Taking another step, Sam hissed in pain and picked up her foot.

"What the...?"

Sam inspected her foot and was perplexed to find a thin piece of glass. She looked up and noticed the side of the bed; the lamp was smashed and the sheets were ruffled like someone had been getting busy in them. No way it was Tessa...right? A final detail convinced Sam something was definitely wrong: a faint smear of red on the corner of the bedside table. She hurried back out into the corridor and on the central landing of the lodge.