Hollows Grove
Lee Jacquot

My best friend’s brother is the most infuriating person to walk this planet.

Since the day I met him, he’s made it his mission in life to make mine hell. If he’s not hiding behind the nearest dark corner, he's plotting his next trick.

That’s Dorian Davis, and nothing about him has changed in the two decades that I’ve known him.

I should be used to it by now. Immune to his antics. I even considered myself prepared when his sister coerced us into helping her host a Halloween party for her company.

I wasn’t.

Turns out, Dorian didn’t want to scare me. He wanted to hear me scream.

To hear me beg.

He wanted to show me that everything I thought I knew was wrong, and that everything I thought I wanted wasn’t enough.

Maybe if I weren’t wearing a maid outfit, playing a real-life murder mystery game, and running through a hedge maze for my life, I’d appreciate the sentiment. But I’m currently doing all of those things, and if he catches me, I don’t think I’ll survive.

Because as he said... this isn’t a game anymore.