SHE did not know why she was here.

There was every chance that he had moved out of Loutham. This small town and its curiosities were never enough for him. He wanted more. So there was very little chance that he was still here, living in his parents' apartment. Something told her to be here. That this is the place from where she would get some answers.

So here she was, in front of Green Acres, the first ever apartment constructed in Loutham.

For all its name was worth, the apartment did not have the slightest smear of green paint on it. It was a shabby cream shade with red borders. Years of neglect had led to accumulation of dust in its crevices. Cobwebs hung from the external drainage pipes, like the fine threads of a dreamcatcher.

But there were people living there still - Ríone discerned it from the tricycles and a single car parked in front of the building. She looked once to her left and once to her right before entering the building.

She was dressed in a crisp white shirt accompanied by a brown overcoat. She had tied her hair into a small, tight bun. A flannel was wrapped around her neck while her tote slung from her left shoulder. She was the picture of restraint, the very opposite of what was happening in her mind.

She hopped onto the staircase, taking two steps at a time. As far as she remembered, Jake and his family lived on the third floor of the apartment. If he was still here somehow, she would find him there. She could not wait to meet him. He deserved to know what was happening.

The corridors of Green Acres were dingy. You could only just see what step you were taking. Lightbulbs that hung from the ceiling of the passageways looked ancient. More cobwebs slithered downwards from them. She could not help but wonder what had happened here to cause this condition. It very much resembled a haunted house.

Back when they were children, this apartment was actually green. It had small trees and flowering plants around it. The corridors were pristine. Jake, his brother Sean and Ríone would play hide and seek in them. It was so much nicer here back then. Like the downtown cafe, this too was her sanctuary whenever she needed to find an escape from her father.

His parents were so much nicer. They welcomed her into their space as if she was not just their child's best friend but their long-lost daughter. Sometimes she stayed here for almost the entire day, going back home just in time for dinner. And oh! Jake's mother used to bake the tastiest chocolate cookies.

Ríone's mouth watered - if his mom was with him, she would sure as hell ask for those cookies.

In a few moments' interval, she reached her destination. It was the fourth apartment on the third floor. A brass plaque on the door read: it was apartment '3D'. She took in a deep breath and knocked.

A minute passed. Then, the door opened and revealed a young man who said,

"Yes?"

"Um, so, does Jake Simmons live here?" she said."I am Ríone. Ríone Embers. His childhood friend."

The look of confusion on the man's face changed into that of pure awe when he heard her name. "Really? You are the Ríone Embers?"

"Yes?" Ríone gave him a sheepish smile.

"I am a big fan of yours," he said, straightening his snaky locks. "Please come in. You would not believe how excited I am! My name is Craig, by the way. Craig Louis. You probably would not remember me, but I studied in the same batch as Sean Simmons."

"Oh." Ríone nodded. He was right. She did not remember him.

"Please come in." Craig repeated. He extended the door open and there was a broad smile on his face. Although she was disappointed to find that Jake was not here, she did not have the heart to turn down Craig's request. That would be too bad. The boy seemed genuinely excited to have met her.

So she went inside with him.

***

"Do you know anything about Jake?"

They were seated in the very messy living room of Craig. There were two green sofas in the room, one of which was laden with dirty laundry. The centre table in-between the sofas was laden with magazines, books and newspapers. On a cleared spot of that table was perched an untouched cup of coffee, which he had prepared for her. An ochre-coloured wall clock hung from the opposite wall.

Ríone's eyes crinkled at the sight. Her mother would roll in her grave if she saw the state of the room. There was nothing in this that she hated more than mess, and this place was the definition of mess. All she wanted was to know about Jake and be gone as soon as possible.

"Yes, I do," Craig answered. "I bought it from him."

Ríone raised an eyebrow. "He moved away from Loutham?"

Craig's face fell. "No. Not really. He still lives in Loutham, close to the woods. He refuses to be anywhere near the sea. To be honest, he has lost his marbles."

Before Ríone could say something, he continued, saying, "I mean I get it. He saw his baby brother drown. It affected him a lot. No doubt he is the way he is."

His brother did not drown, Ríone wanted to say. He was taken by whatever lives underneath Loutham. That was it, was it not? There was something here, something which they had discovered when they were children. A chill trickled down her spine at the thought.

"What does he do?" She asked instead. "I mean, for a living?"

"Not sure about that." Craig said. "I did not know him well enough. Plus, when he sold the house, he was in nasty trouble with the local authorities, so we did not have time to make small talk."

"What did he do?"

"Well, he printed this book, a booklet to be honest, and distributed it amongst the tourists. I do not know what was in it exactly, but whatever it was, it drove the tourists away. That was how he got into trouble."

Ríone gave out a long exhale. A boy with Jake's potential had gotten wasted away like this. She failed to believe it.

"Um, can you tell me if I can find this booklet somewhere?" She asked after a while.

"No. You would not find it anywhere in the town." Jake shook his head. "But wait! I think he left one or two of those in this house. He left this apartment in my possession in a hurry, so there are still a lot of his things in here. Let me quickly check it out."

He jumped down from the sofa and disappeared into a room opposite to the living room. Ríone bit her lip in anticipation. She hoped Craig would find Jake's booklet. She needed to read it. She had to know what was going on in her old friend's mind.

"Found it!"

With a triumphant yell, Craig came out of the room. Ríone stood up, as he advanced towards her with a black something in his arm. Jake's booklet, she reckoned.

"Here you go."

He handed it over to her. With trembling hands, she caught hold of it. It was light, even for a booklet. The paper was coarse and thick. Its colour was akin to obsidian. She flipped it over. On its cover was written in bold Times New Roman: