Jess moved hesitantly through the trees, the beam from her small torch lighting the narrow path. It was cold, the first signs of frost appearing on the forest floor, each breath she took forming a small cloud of mist. The air smelt of damp wood and moss. Twigs cracked underfoot, and she started at the hoot of an owl. Her wool jacket snagged on something sharp and spiky. She cursed as she tugged it free, knowing that there would be a hole. Everything looked so different in the dark, but she knew where she was going, didn’t she? Of course she did, she’d been there a million times. The short, sharp, high-pitched bark of a fox sounded in the distance, and a shiver of fear ran through her, doubts starting to fill her mind. Why had she agreed to Ben’s dare to go to the old house in the woods in the middle of the night, for God’s sake? She was a sensible girl, not a risk-taker, but he’d needled her, taunted her about being a scaredy cat, and she’d snapped. He’d dared her, and she was damn well going to prove to him that she wasn’t chicken. It had always been like this between them. Ben was her best friend and nemesis in equal measure. She’d thought that they’d be an item once, but that idea had been quickly quashed. The school disco a few months ago seeped into her mind.
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