00:00sun went down, and I heard it again. I was tending my campfire when the scream split the silence.
00:05Closer this time, I thought. Clearer. It came from the highway again, but something about it
00:10felt different. More urgent. More desperate. I stood there, frozen, the fire poker in my hand.
00:17The scream faded, and the silence returned. I waited for more footsteps, voices, anything but
00:23there was nothing. I should have left. I know that now. I should have packed up my track and
00:28driven straight to Bend, no matter how tired I was. But something kept me there. Curiosity, maybe,
00:34or a misplaced sense of responsibility. What if it was a woman in trouble? What if she needed help?
00:39I grabbed my flashlight and started walking toward the highway. The trail was narrow, overgrown,
00:45barely visible in the darkness. My flashlight cut a narrow beam through the trees, illuminating
00:50roots and rocks, and the occasional glint of animal eyes. I heard the scream again, louder now,
00:56more frequent. Every couple of minutes, that same high-pitched cry, guiding me forward like a lighthouse.
