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Olivia ignored him, walking away toward the stage on the opposite side of the gymnasium. She’d entered a pair of doors to the right of the stage by the time James caught up.  
    They opened into a narrow, unlit hallway with two more doors on the left and one at the end. They continued, and James noted Japanese characters on the doors to their left, as well as the universal male and female symbols for “Restroom.”  
    “Are we in Japan?” James said.
    They hurried, reaching the end of the hallway as the last of the light escaped from the gym doors. They pushed through an exit and met a cool, calming breeze.  
    Before them sprawled a well-tended soccer field. Another field wrapped around the building behind them—a green pasture enclosed all of this, bordered by a thick forest.
    The sunset dripped blood-orange. James looked to his right—a concrete walkway extended around the building, away from the fields. He motioned to Olivia to follow him, but she was already on her way. Around the corner a large, empty parking lot fronted a series of buildings, including the gym. An archway provided a covered entrance between the gym and another large building. Beside it towered a sign printed with writing James couldn’t read. Olivia didn’t seem to have a clue, either.  
    A gated driveway allowed entry into the parking lot, lined by a black, wrought-iron fence that extended into the forest, circling the property and continuing well into the distance.
    “It’s so quiet. This place feels abandoned. I mean, I don’t even hear any birds,” James said.
    “Yeah…” Olivia said, lingering on the last part of the word. The drawl of her English accent melted James. He loved English accents.
    Olivia headed toward the gate.  
    “Whoa, wait—don’t you want to see if anyone is here? We should check this place out, right?” James said.
    “Something doesn’t feel right,” she said. “Well, I mean, all of this doesn’t feel right. I think we need to get out of here.”  
    “Yeah, I suppose,” James agreed. “We’ve been abducted, but who abducts someone and just leaves them alone? Could it be something went wrong? Maybe this is our only chance to escape.”
    “Exactly. Come on.”
    They dashed to the closed driveway gate. James pulled on one side, hoping. It was unlocked.  
    “Whew.”
    The gate squealed, settling long after James’ initial tug. They pushed through and met a road lined with pine trees. It shot far into the distance, undulating with dips and crests until the horizon swallowed it whole.
    “Inviting,” James said.
    Olivia nodded, then set off at a brisk jog. They followed the path for twenty minutes before slowing to a walk. The landscape persisted unchanged, the distant curve still distant. An unsettling, odd consistency to the trees troubled James as they journeyed.
    After a long silence, James said, “Does this road seem really remote? You would think we would have hit an intersection by now. Or hell, at least turned. We must be really out there.”
    “Yes, it does. But, what choice do we have? Let’s keep moving.”  
    Perspiration stung James’ eyes as they approached a distinct change: the road curved into a dead-end—a reflective barrier stood between it and the forest.
    “What’s this shit? How do people even get to this place?” James said.
    “No idea. Maybe there’s another road around here that connects to this one. I think we should keep going.”
    “Into the forest? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
    “You afraid? Like I said, we don’t have many options right now,” she said.
    James hated to admit forests spooked him—he blamed his city-boy upbringing.
    “I dunno,” he said. “It’s just that in all the horror movies I’ve watched, the forest generally turns out to be a bad decision.”
    “If this is a horror movie, then we’re already screwed, aren’t we?” she said, then hopped the road block.
    James kept close to her. The sun filtered through the forest