Chapter 1

Five years later. 

“Susie! Susie!” I called. I was starting to worry, everyone around here knows the story of Cathy, the girl that disappeared five years ago. Now I was worrying that Susie, my little sister had been taken too. “Susie come out!” I yelled “It’s not funny!”. When she didn’t come out, I started running across the yard. I didn’t see her anywhere, so I ran to the house. I thundered up the steps and burst through the door. “Mom! Dad!” I yelled. They came running from the kitchen where they were making dinner. “What is it honey?” mom asked, “It’s Susie” I said, “I can’t find her anywhere!” “What do you mean?” dad asked, “We were playing hide and seek and she…”  I stopped midsentence ’cause guess who I saw on the couch? Susie. I walked over to her and said “Where were you? Why did you leave? I was worried!” “You worry too much” she said. “I do not!” “Yes, you do” “You know the stories, she was your age when she dissa…” “Max!” dad yelled from the kitchen, “Stop frightening your sister with those stories, they’re just something kids made up to scare people.” “yes dad” I said. 

I went up to my room to change. The rest of my family didn’t believe the stories, but I did. When we first moved in Susie did too, but my mom and dad convinced her they weren’t true. Of course, I don’t believe that and so anytime Susie wasn’t around I worried. So what? Maybe I’m a little bit worried of my sister disappearing, is that so bad? I went downstairs to eat dinner. 

The next morning, I woke up sweating, my blankets were tangled around my legs and my pillows were scattered across the floor. Visions of her standing at the edge of the woods, before she was dragged away, by an invisible force loomed in my mind. I got out of my bed, tripped on my blankets which were still tangled around my legs, and fell flat on my face. Without a pause I ripped the blankets off and ran to Susie’s room. I looked in and when it didn’t look like she was there I went in closer. Then she rolled over startling me. I sighed, turned, and went back to my room. Since it was only 5:00 in the morning, I decided to try to go back to sleep. But visions from my dream kept me awake. 

When everyone else finally woke up I went downstairs to eat breakfast. While I was making my food, I started telling my parents about my dream. But they stopped me when I mentioned the forest. “Max” my mom said “You are taking these stories too seriously. You need something else to focus on.” “That’s why you’re going to school,” said dad. “But dad! I don’t want to go to school!” I said. Susie and I had been homeschooled our whole lives and now my parents were just going to throw me into some school! I stormed up to my room and slammed the door, loving how dramatic it made my exit. In about an hour my dad came up to my room, “Max” he said. I turned away. “Max” then he sighed “I know you don’t want to go to school but you need something else to focus on, and homeschooling isn’t working anymore.” “But dad” I started “if you send me to school all the kids there will be talking about it anyway.” “No, they won’t because they will be focused on their classes.” Then he left. I didn’t feel bad.