One hour earlier…
Jill stood in eerie woods, the silence heavy around her. Her boots crunched in a lonely clearing beneath a weary moon. She appeared ghostly in the dim light—pale and exhausted, as if sleep had evaded her. Dawn began to color the darkness softly.
A soft rustle cut through the silence. A figure stepped out of the shadows—a woman's face partially lit by the moon.
"Are you Jill?"
Jill hesitated, fingers brushing the handle of a dull blade in her pocket. "Yeah, that's me. Who are you?"
"I'm Linda. Linda Monroe. You called me earlier."
"Adex told me to contact you," Jill replied cautiously."
Linda nodded. "Where is he now?" She paused, glancing at Jill. "Tell me… nothing bad's happened to him?"
Jill didn't answer. Linda stared at her, studying her face.
"How long?" Linda asked quietly.
"What?" Jill blinked, thrown off by the sudden question.
Linda stepped closer, her voice steady. "How long has the baby been inside you?"
Jill rubbed her belly slowly, worry in her eyes. "I don't know the exact time, but it's growing faster than I can understand."
Linda gave a faint, almost sorrowful smile.
"Thanks for dragging me out here to the middle of nowhere," Jill said, her tone sharp. "This place creeps me out."
Linda's voice grew louder and more urgent. "He's possessed. If you haven't heard from him by now, it implies he has control, and he's coming for you. Jill"
Jill stared, speechless. The world shifted as leaves whispered, and an owl cried out in the woods.
"What... what can I do to stop it?" Jill asked softly.
"I've been where you are," Linda said. "I lost someone because I hesitated. Because I didn't listen soon enough. But you can still stop this. If you're brave enough to handle whatever is coming your way."
"How can I stop this? Please help me," Jill sobbed.
Linda took a small glass vial from her coat, holding a thick, dark liquid that resembled old cherries.
"Take this."
Jill eyed the vial like it might explode. "What is it?"
"It's poison."
Jill panicked and stepped back. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
Linda's voice stayed calm, almost too quiet. "You'll have to use it on him."
"Use it?" Jill's stomach dropped. "You want me to kill Adex?"
"He's already gone," Linda said quietly. "The thing inside him—that's what you'll kill. You only have one shot."
"This is insane."
Jill paced anxiously, her face tight with fear, running her hands through her hair in confusion.
"Maybe," Linda said, "but it's the only way."
Jill's hands trembled as she took the vial, holding it like a foreign object.
"Look," she whispered, "I don't even know if I believe you. I've seen weird things, sure. But murder? That's not something I can do because a stranger said so."
Linda sighed. "It's not murder if it saves a soul."
Jill laughed, a brief, harsh sound. "That's what people say when they're about to do something unforgivable."
"I didn't come here to argue," Linda said, her voice turning colder. She pulled out another vial—smaller, clear, and almost glowing in the moonlight. "This is the antidote."
Jill blinked. "What?"
"Poison him, and when the demon leaves, you have sixty seconds to save Adex. That's it."
"Sixty seconds?" Jill repeated, her voice rising. "That's it?"
Linda didn't react. "When it happened to me, there was no cure. I watched the man I loved fall apart, helpless. You've been given a chance—it's cruel, but still a chance."
Jill looked down at the two bottles in her hands. Her fingers curled around them instinctively—one life, one death.
"And what if I mess up?" she asked. "What if I'm too slow?"
"Then you'll bury him. If you do nothing, the demon wins and will use him to get to you."
Jill's throat tightened. She looked away, her voice quiet. "Why should I trust you?"
Linda's gaze remained steady. "You don't have to. But I made a promise to Adex. I told him I'd try to save him… through you. That's all I've got to give."
Jill didn't respond.
The wind intensified. A branch snapped in the distance. Something heavy stirred in the dark.
Linda and Jill turned toward the sound, but no one was there.
Linda took a step back. "He's close. He's coming. You have to choose now. Go to the safe house—it'll lead you."
"The safe house?" Jill asked, confused. "What is it?"
"I gave Adex a book," Linda said. "Told him to study it. Everything you need is in there. If you want to survive this, go to the safe house."
With that, she turned and walked into the woods, swallowed by the trees before Jill could call her back.
Jill stood there alone.
She stared at the poison and the cure, her heart pounding against her ribs in confusion. This wasn't what she expected.
She put both vials in her coat pocket and headed back along the path.
The leaves rustled again, this time closer.
Jill looked in that direction, but no one was there.
A faint voice called her name from behind— "Jill."
She turned again, but no one was there. Frightened yet strong, she scanned the area, her eyes sharp for movement as the leaves rustled behind her.
Suddenly, Mr. Halden appeared. Jill panicked but sighed in relief upon recognizing him.
"You scared me," she said.
"I've been looking for you," Mr. Halden replied. "We need to go—now."
"She told me to go to the safe house," Jill said quietly.
"How do we get there?" Mr. Halden asked.
"The answers in the book—I have it with me," Jill replied.
"Then we should get moving. It's not safe out here," Mr. Halden said, glancing around.
"I have to go alone," Jill added, her voice steady.
Mr. Halden froze, his brow furrowed in surprise. "Are you sure about that?"
"I need to do this by myself," Jill said, her eyes focused, a strange curiosity flickering across her face.
Mr. Halden nodded slowly. "Alright. But first, we still need to get out of these woods," he said softly.
Without another word, they turned and walked away.
A figure stood hidden in the shadows of the trees, watching. As they entered the woods, it whispered to itself—
"Safe house."