Chapter Four

Dwight and Meg walked through the woods, keeping their eyes on the surrounding darkness. Dwight tried to keep up with Meg, who would sometimes speed up in her walking. She noticed, and stopped. Dwight bumped into her, and she turned around.

"Sorry," Dwight whispered.

Ahead of them was an old wooden shack. It appeared abandoned. Meg looked around the area. No one was around.

"We should go inside. Sit and rest for a few minutes." Meg suggested.

"I think that's a good idea, but there is no door and we have two killers looking around the woods for us at night," Dwight said.

"And it will help us to rest, so we can run if we need to," Meg added.

"Good point," Dwight said.

Dwight and Meg walked to the shack and stopped at the doorway. A young woman and man were already there. The woman looked from Dwight to Meg then back to Dwight. She smiled.

"Hello."

"Um... Hi." Dwight said. He smiled weakly.

"Hi," Meg added.

"I'm Claudette, and this is Jake," Claduette said, still smiling.

"I'm Dwight," Dwight said

"Meg," Meg said.

"Did you both wake up here too?" Dwight asked.

"Yeah," Claudette began. "I was grabbed by some crazy disfigured man with a hammer and chainsaw. Jake saved me."

"I just woke up, and saw him dragging her into a slaughterhouse," Jake said.

Before Dwight or Meg could question them further or tell them their story, a crow with a familiar bandage landed on Jake's shoulder.

"Hey, it's that stupid bird," Dwight said.

"Bird?" Meg asked.

"Yeah, I woke up and was walking until it started cawing at me. Then I stepped into that bear trap." Dwight said angrily.

"You said she cawed before you stepped into it?" Jake asked.

"Yes," Dwight repeated.

"She was trying to warn you," Jake said calmly.

"Warn me?" Dwight asked.

"And how do you know that?" Meg asked.

"It warned me. I was nearly caught by the same guy who grabbed Claudette. We both would have been killed if it wasn't for her." Jake said.

"Well, sorry..." Dwight began. "What happened to her leg?"

"I don't know. I woke up, and she was barely moving to me. I found a bandage in my pocket and wrapped it around her leg. She keeps coming back to me now." Jake said.

"Does she have a name?" Dwight asked.

"Not yet," Claudette joined in. "We were actually coming up with one until you both found us."

"How about Miserable? That's how I've been feeling since I woke up," Dwight suggested.

The crow cawed at Dwight and flew to his shoulder. Dwight sighed, and join Claudette and Jake on the floor. The crow nested herself against his neck. Meg let out a little laugh, and sat down with them.

"So how is it that four random people wake up in the middle of the woods? Surrounded by three killers? And have no memory of who they are and where they are from?" Dwight asked.

"Maybe we're dead," Jake said.

"The pain I felt from the bear trap says differently," Dwight said.

"Can I see?" Claudette asked.

"Uh... Yeah, sure." Dwight said.

Claudette took out some kind of gel and rubbed it around Dwight's torn skin, and then wrapped a bandage around it. After a few seconds, Dwight felt no more pain.

"How do you know how to do that? What was that?" Dwight asked.

"It came from a plant. And I... I was training to be a botanist!" Claudette said.

"You just remembered that?" Jake asked.

"Yes, I don't know how... I just did. It was like I felt a pain on the back of my head." Claudette said.

"I felt the same thing..." Dwight began. "But I still don't remember anything. Jake?"

"Nothing," Jake said. There was a hint of sadness in his voice. "Meg?"

"When... When I woke up, I remembered saying goodnight to an older woman with red hair... My... My mom... She was sick..." Meg said weakly.

Dwight, Claudette, and Jake said nothing. The crow flew to Meg's shoulder, and rested herself against her neck now.

"Your crow seems really smart..." Dwight noted.

"Maybe she can help us find a way out," Claudette said.

"Sure. Let's just ask the crow if she knows the way out." Dwight said. "Excuse me, Ms. Crow? Can you find us a way out of here?"

The crow looked at Dwight and cawed, before flying out the open door. The group watched it disappear. A few minutes later, the crow returned and began to caw repeatedly.

"You have got to be kidding me," Dwight said.

"Sorry, Dwight. I think she may have actually found a way out," Jake said.

"Hopefully," Meg added.