We round a corner and head into a wider area that's roomy and pretty open. We get the comfort of a light shining through from above. We all look up and see a rocky jagged wall leading up to an open cave like a windowless skylight.
"Sam, could you climb up that?" Mike asks.
Sam studies it and puts her hands on her hips, a smirk appearing on her face after a minute.
"Easy. Why?"
"It's getting a lighter out, which means it's getting closer to dawn. You should go tell the others we're okay. We'll be back with Josh."
Sam nods and goes over to the wall. Mike follows and gives her a boost.
"You guys stay safe."
"You too."
Sam starts climbing up the wall, again making it look easy. We wait until she is pretty far up to leave her.
"We should get going." I say.
He nods and we walk down further. We enter a long open tunnel. It's creepily dark and strangely quiet. A shiver goes up my spine.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." Mike says, stopping and getting something from his pocket.
He pulls out my bracelet and my eyes grow wide.
"Where did you find it?"
"I was looking for you when Josh took you, when I found it lying on the floor. That's how I knew something happened to you." Mike says as he puts the bracelet back on my wrist.
"Thank you so much Mike." I say hugging him.
"Of course M/nc/n."
We keep walking and I fiddle with my bracelet, a smile on my face. I glance to Mike and he looks at me, seeing my smile.
"What?"
"I'm just really glad you found this Mike. I'm glad you found me in that room."
He smiles back and his expression changes to more curious.
"What did uh.. What did Josh do to you anyways?"
"Didn't I already tell you?"
"Well yeah but, he didn't do anything when you were in that room? He really just left you?"
He sounds like he doesn't believe me. Like he knows something else. I mean yeah I am lying a little bit, but there's really no need to say anything right?
"I mean, it just seemed like something else happened with how upset you were.." Mike says.
"Um.." I say, looking down and trying to think of what to say.
"He didn't touch you did he?" He asks, almost seeming scared.
"No, no he didn't do anything like that. I promise."
"Then what happened?"
"Mike I just.. I don't wanna talk about it okay?"
Mike, even with a concerned look on his face, nods and decides to let it go.
--
Walk for a while when I see something glint against Mike's flashlight.
"Wait Mike, what's that?" I ask walking over to where I saw it.
"Whats what?" Mike asks, shining his light on it again.
I pick it up and go silent with... shock? Emily was right.
"Y/n? What is it?"
"It's Beth's watch!" I say showing Mike.
"What? Let me look."
On the back of the watch, The letters BW engraved into the metal.
"How the hell did this get down here?"
"Emily thought they were down here, but I haven't seen enough to fully believe that yet." I say.
"Come on let's go." Mike says, handing it back to me.
I put the watch into my pocket and keep walking. I really hope Emily is wrong. I really hope they weren't down here for a long time. This place is scary enough without the wendigoes, but with? God I hope they're okay wherever they are. We come up to a room with walls made by planks. We walk in and hear murmuring. It sounds like someone is talking.
"You can't tell me what to do!" The person yells emotionally.
"Is that Josh?" I whisper to Mike, having hope that we can get the hell out of here,
"I think so... What the hell is he doing?"
I look through a crack of the wood wall to Josh. He is talking to nothing and stumbling around. We find a way in and keep our distance. He doesn't even notice us. Josh is staring at nothing and freaking out. It's freaking me out. Mike walks up to him and he still doesn't notice him.
"Josh?" Mike asks.
"You can't tell me what to do!! Okay.. okay... I trust you... I trust you." Josh says staring straight through Mike.
"What the hell's wrong with him?" I ask.
"No medication..." Mike says.
"What?"
"Schizophrenia. Y/n he's going crazy."
Mike slaps Josh in the face to get his attention. Not how I would have done it but, whatever works I guess.
"Josh!" Mike yells.
Josh comes to and looks at Mike, blinking for the first time in a while. Tears in his eyes.
"M-Mike?" Josh asks.
"Josh! Hey man." Mike says, patting his shoulders.
"Don't h-hit me, please." Josh says shakily.
"You were gone man, full mental jacket."
"We thought you died, again." I say.
"Hey." Josh says. "I'm really about the whole kidnapping you thing."
"Yeah, you only made me think you were dead and made me think my friends were going to die, so not too bad." I say half joking.
Josh hurt me more than I can ever forgive him for. But I don't want him to die here.
"Hey..." Mike reassures me, putting his hand on my back.
Josh looks at Mike with a smirk.
"So, you brought your new girlfriend huh Michael?" Josh says looking back at me.
I lightly chuckle, not really understanding, and Mike takes his hand away.
"Shut up Josh." Mike says, suddenly annoyed.
"What?" I ask looking at Josh, then at Mike.
Seeing Mike not laughing or smiling at the least at his joke makes my smile fade. Mike usually cracks a smile, but he looks pissed and.. Embarrassed? His cheeks are kinda red.
"Josh do you have the key to the cable car?" Mike asks, dismissing the situation and still seeming upset.
"Uh, Yeah." Josh says taking a key out of the pocket of his overalls and gives it to Mike.
"We should get going." Mike says, walking out ahead of us.
I look to Josh confused.
"Can't take a joke?" I ask. "I mean I know it's because of Jess but-"
"It's not because of Jess Y/n." Josh says.
"Then what?"
"Okay don't kill me but I kinda told Mike how you feel about him."
"What?! Josh seriously what the hell's the matter with you?"
"I mean-I- I thought he saw the tape and that was the plan but apparently he didn't-"
"Yeah because I threw the damn thing away Josh it was creepy!"
"I know and I'm sorry-"
"Can we get moving?!" Mike yells from a bit away.
We leave the room.
"I'm sorry. I really really am," Josh says. "But Mike told me that he-"
"It's fine Josh." I say as we walk up to Mike.
"Come on guys, we gotta get out of here." Mike says.
"Yup, lets go." I say.
Mike looks to Josh.
"Lets go you fucked up son of a bitch."
We walk in silence for a few minutes. The only noise being our footsteps and occasional coughing from Josh.
"You didn't.. You didn't have to hit me so much man." Josh says.
"Sorry man, I thought you killed Jess, I was wrong..." Mike says.
"I'm so sorry Mike. I'm sorry about Jess."
Mike doesn't answer. We walk into a clearing to see a huge part of the cave. It has some small parts of ground, but is mainly water. I look across the cave and see a metal door.
"There! That's where we have to go." I say.
"You know you guys, I'm not really up for swimming right now." Josh says.
"Would you rather stay here?" I suggest sarcastically.
"Touche."
Mike sits on the ledge and lowers himself into the water.
"Fuck it's cold... Come on, I got you." Mike says, holding out his hands to me.
I grip onto Mike's hands and get into the water.
"Oh.. god this is worse than I thought." I say as my feet hit the bottom and the water rises up to my hips.
"Okay now I really don't want to get in." Josh says.
"Josh..."
"Yeah yeah." He says, getting in.
Once were all in we walk to the door through the thick water.
Mike is beside me, but a bit ahead, with Josh a few feet behind me.
"Okay were almost there we got this." Mike says.
We are almost by the ledge to get up when all of a sudden Mike screams out and is pulled under the water.
"Mike? Mike!" I yell, looking around for any trace of him.
I remember what the man wrote in his journal and stand still, knowing only one thing could have got him.
"Shit! Shit shit shit." Josh mumbles.
"Josh. Stay completely still and we'll be fine okay? You need to stay still."
"O-Okay."
"I-"
Suddenly something grabs me by the waist from under the water and pulls me under. It starts to pull me away under the water and I try to fight it. It makes me resurface slowly and keeps my body from thrashing. I try to scream, but can't because something is covering my mouth.
"Shhh." A voice says quietly.
I look up to see that Mike is the one holding me and I calm down. I relax in his arms and he uncovers my mouth. We turn our attention back to Josh who is looking around for Mike and I. We are hiding behind a corner of the cave. It's a spot where we can see Josh, but he can't see us.
"No...No!" Josh yells.
I resist the strong urge to go to him because Josh already is compromising himself. He's not moving too much but he's loud as hell. A wendigo surfaces out of the water and looks at Josh. It looks like it could be almost eight feet tall.
"NO you're not real! You're not..." Josh yells at it.
The wendigo grabs him and picks him up by his overalls, his body fully leaving the water. It turns a little bit and I recognize a mark on it's shoulder.
A few months before Hannah and Beth went missing, Hannah wouldn't stop talking about getting a tattoo of a butterfly. She was too scared to go by herself so I went with her. She got a larger tattoo on her shoulder, while I got a small butterfly, the same as her's, on my hip.
"Is that-" I whisper.
"Hannah!" Josh screams, finishing my sentence.
Hannah stares back at Josh. It almost looks like she's searching his face. She starts dragging him away, into another tunnel.
"NOOO! NOOO!" Josh screams.
Hannah disappears into a tunnel as Josh's screams fade away.