I thought I was driving to my late wife’s mountain house to finally let her go. Instead, I found two abandoned twin girls standing barefoot on the porch, clutching stale bread like it was the last thing keeping them alive. Minutes later, one of them whispered my wife’s name… and led me toward a hidden trail only Olivia had ever known.

I wanted it to be anything other than what my chest was telling me.

“What did you just say?” My voice cracked, the sound harsh against the quiet of the mountain. I reached out, my hands trembling, but I stopped myself before I touched Ella’s shoulder. They were already terrified. I didn’t need to look like a madman. “How do you know that name? Who told you about Olivia?”

Ella didn’t answer. She just looked down at her bare, mud-caked feet, her small shoulders shaking. Beside her, Emma stepped closer, their shoulders locking together as if they were a single organism trying to shield itself from a storm.

“She said it,” Emma whispered, her voice barely louder than the rustle of the dry leaves. “The lady in the picture inside the house. She told us Ethan would come when the leaves started to fall. She said you have the keys.”