The cardboard box was awkward in Nze's arms as he headed for the door, but not so heavy that he couldn't slow his steps when he heard Ebuka's voice drop to a whisper that somehow carried anyway.

"Heard about the body, Eli?" A pause. "The Ugwoke girl. They found her this morning."

"Another?" Eli's voice had the hollow sound of a man hearing exactly what he'd feared he would.

"Third one in two weeks." Ebuka's words fell like stones into still water. "Torn apart, they're saying. Like something... something big got to her. Animal-like."

"Christ." The sound of Eli's palm hitting wood. "When will these kids learn? Wandering around at night like they own the darkness. Especially near the woods—"

"That's the thing, Eli." Ebuka cut in, voice tighter now. "They found her on College Road. Right in town. Not even close to the forest."

A silence stretched, heavy as fog.

"They're getting bolder," Eli finally said, his voice carrying the same grinding tension as his jaw. "These damn beasts are getting bolder and—"

Nze's foot caught the edge of a display, sending a wrench clattering to the floor. He spun around too quickly, the box throwing him off balance, and nearly collided with Eli, who had appeared in the doorway like a materialized shadow.

"Careful there," his uncle said, catching his arm with callused fingers. But his eyes weren't on the box or the fallen wrench – they were scanning the street outside, as if expecting to see something waiting there in the full light of morning.

They picked up a few more things at the market—items that Nze suspected his aunt Naomi had slipped onto Eli's list. Soon, they were back on the road, the truck rumbling through the hills toward home. The silence between them was thick, broken only by Bright Chimezie's highlife melody floating from the radio, bright and cheerful in a way that seemed to almost fill in for conversation.

The radio crackled with static before a serious voice cut through Bright Chimezie's guitar: "Breaking news: The body of seventeen-year-old Anita Ugwoke was discovered this morning on College Road. Police report suggests animal attack, with significant... portions of the remains missing. This is the third such incident in..."

Eli's hand shot to the radio dial, but Nze was faster.

"Wait," he said. "Ebuka was just telling you about this. Before you..." Nze paused, still trying to piece together how his uncle had suddenly appeared at his side in the hardware store, steering him away from that conversation with practiced efficiency.

Eli's jaw worked the chewing stick harder, his eyes fixed on the road ahead as they climbed back up toward their neighborhood. The sun was already beginning its westward slide, though it was barely afternoon.

"Wild animals," Eli said finally, the words coming out like they were being dragged. "That's all. The forest here, it's old. Deep. Things live in there that..." He spat out the window, but this time it seemed more from agitation than habit.

"What kinds of things?"

"The kind you don't want to meet." Eli's knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. "Listen to me carefully, Arinze. Two rules. Simple rules. Break them, and..." He swallowed hard. "First: Never go into the forest alone. Never. Not even with a small group. The hunters here, they move in parties of twelve or more. There's a reason for that."

The Hilux swung around another bend, and for a moment, the forest loomed in Nze's window like a wall of shadows, despite the bright afternoon sun.

"Second," Eli continued, his voice tight, "you're inside before dark. 6PM, you're behind locked doors. No exceptions. No excuses. The fog comes, and with it..." He stopped, as if realizing he'd said too much.

"The animals hunt at night?" Nze asked, thinking about those strange lights he'd seen from his window the previous evening.

Eli's laugh was hollow, like wind through dead trees. "Hunt. Yeah, let's call it that." He glanced at Nze, and for the first time, there was something like fear in his eyes. "Your mother knew these rules. Before she..." He shook his head. "Just promise me. Inside by 6. Away from the forest. Away from the fog. Promise me, Arinze."

The radio had returned to music, but underneath Bright Chimezie's cheerful vocals, Nze could have sworn he heard something else – a sound like distant laughter, or maybe crying, carried on the wind from the depths of the trees they were passing.

"I promise," he said, but he was looking at the forest, wondering what kind of animals would leave parts of their prey missing, and why his uncle's hands were shaking slightly on the steering wheel.

"Your mother," Eli said suddenly, as if the words had escaped before he could catch them, "she was always asking questions too. About the forest. About the fog. You are so much like her." He glanced at the car's clock: 1:47 PM. Still hours before dusk, but his shoulders carried the tension of a man watching the sun sink. "Curiosity isn't always good here, Arinze."

The road curved again, revealing their neighborhood perched above them like a fortress. The forest behind it seemed darker now, though the sun still blazed overhead.

"When she left," Nze began carefully, "was it because—"

"We're here," Eli cut him off, pulling the Hilux into their driveway with unnecessary force. He killed the engine but didn't move to get out. "Listen. About Anita Ugwoke. About the others." His fingers drummed against the steering wheel, a nervous rhythm. "People will talk. They'll say things. Theories. Stories." He turned to face Nze fully. "Don't listen. Don't ask. The rules I gave you – they're enough. They have to be enough."

A cloud passed over the sun, and for a moment, the forest's shadow seemed to reach toward them like grasping fingers.

"The college," Eli continued, his voice lower now, almost a whisper. "Holy Cross. It's got walls. Thick ones. Old ones. Built by people who understood..." He stopped himself again. "Just focus on that entrance exam. Stay close to home. And if you ever hear... if you ever see..."

But whatever he was going to say died in his throat as a twig snapped somewhere in the forest edge beyond their house. Eli was out of the car in an instant, gathering their purchases with quick, efficient movements.

"Inside," he said, and it wasn't a suggestion. "I've got work to finish in the shed. Lock the door behind you."

As Nze climbed the porch steps, arms full of shopping bags, he glanced back at the forest. For just a second, he thought he saw movement among the trees – not the casual swaying of branches in the wind, but something more purposeful. Something watching.

Inside, the house felt different without Aunt Naomi's presence, like a church after the congregation has left but before the spirits have settled. The silence pressed against his ears until it was broken by the sudden roar of Eli's chainsaw from the shed – loud and aggressive, as if challenging something to come closer.

Nze stood at the window, watching his uncle work with fierce determination, and wondered what exactly the man was trying to keep at bay with all that noise.

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ ✩₊˚

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