CHAPTER 6 – THE CABIN IN THE WOODS
CHAPTER 6 – THE CABIN IN THE WOODS
The Willow Lake cabin looked exactly as Margot remembered.
Stone fireplace.
Wide porch.
A wooden dock stretching across still water.
Perfect.
Beautiful.
Isolated.
Too isolated.
The nearest neighbor lived nearly three miles away.
Cell service flickered in and out.
Lucas unlocked the front door.
"Home."
Margot stepped inside.
Something immediately felt different.
The furniture had been rearranged.
The guest bedroom had been converted into a storage room.
Most disturbing of all—
The security cameras were new.
One in the hallway.
One facing the kitchen.
Another overlooking the back entrance.
"I don't remember these."
Lucas shrugged.
"Extra security."
"For who?"
"For us."
That afternoon, while Lucas prepared the fireplace, Margot quietly explored the basement.
She remembered old holiday decorations being stored there.
Instead she found shelves lined with locked filing cabinets.
Medical supplies.
Bottled water.
Portable generators.
A large industrial paper shredder.
Who kept a shredder in a vacation cabin?
Then she noticed fresh concrete.
One section of the basement floor was noticeably newer than the rest.
As though something beneath it had been sealed.
Footsteps echoed above.
Margot quickly returned upstairs.
Dinner was almost painfully pleasant.
Lucas poured wine.
Complimented her cooking.
Asked about her next novel.
He was performing the role of devoted husband with flawless precision.
Halfway through dessert, he smiled.
"I've been thinking about our future."
"So have I."
"I think it's time we simplified everything."
Margot remained silent.
"The lawyers can come next week."
"We'll update the estate plan."
He reached across the table.
"I only want what's best for you."
Margot looked at his hand.
The same hand that had held hers during funerals.
Hospital visits.
Book signings.
The same hand that had quietly erased her from her own life.
She gently pulled away.
"I'll read every page first."
His smile froze.
At 1:58 a.m., Margot woke.
Not because of a sound.
Because the bed beside her was empty.
Again.
She slipped into the hallway.
A faint light glowed beneath the basement door.
She crept down the stairs.
Voices drifted upward.
Lucas.
And someone else.
A woman.
Victoria.
Margot's pulse thundered.
"...she's becoming suspicious," Lucas whispered.
Victoria remained calm.
"Then stop delaying."
"I need one signature."
"You needed one signature six months ago."
"I underestimated her."
"No."
Victoria replied coldly.
"You became sentimental."
Silence.
Then Lucas spoke.
"I did love her."
Victoria laughed.
"No."
"You loved controlling her."
Margot gripped the railing until her fingers hurt.
Then she heard the sentence that stole the air from her lungs.
"If she refuses to sign..."
Victoria paused.
"...the insurance payout solves the problem anyway."
Margot's heartbeat stopped.
Insurance.
Not divorce.
Death.
She instinctively stepped backward.
A floorboard creaked.
The voices below went silent.
Complete silence.
Then—
The basement light switched off.
Footsteps started climbing the stairs.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
Toward her.
Margot turned and ran.
Behind her, the basement door burst open.
Lucas's voice echoed through the dark cabin.
"Margot..."
His tone was gentle.
May you like
Almost loving.
"Why are you awake?"
