Chapter 20: The Path Unseen

Noah could barely hear anything over the pounding of his own heart. His father had been here. His father had left this for him.

He tightened his grip on the notebook, flipping through more pages. The writings were scattered—some entries were complete thoughts, others were just fragments of ideas. But there was a pattern.

Avery leaned over his shoulder. "Wait… go back."

Noah flipped back a page.

There, scribbled hastily in the margins, were two words:

"Old Willow Trail."

Avery's eyes widened. "No way. That's the hiking trail behind the creek, right? The one nobody uses anymore?"

Noah nodded slowly. The trail had been shut down years ago, overgrown and forgotten. But if his dad had written it down…

"What if that's the 'path unseen'?" Noah whispered.

Avery grinned. "Then I hope you brought good shoes, because we're so going."

That night, after making sure Grandma Ellen was asleep, Noah snuck out of the house, meeting Avery at the end of his driveway. She had a flashlight in one hand and a protein bar in the other.

"Midnight hike," she said, taking a bite. "This is either the coolest or dumbest thing we've ever done."

"Let's hope it's the first," Noah muttered, adjusting his hoodie.

The walk to Old Willow Trail was eerily quiet. Crickets chirped, and the occasional rustle of leaves made Noah glance over his shoulder. The town was asleep, but he felt wide awake.

When they reached the entrance, an old wooden sign, half-rotted and barely standing, marked the way.

KEEP OUT.

Avery scoffed. "Well, that's not suspicious at all."

Noah hesitated. His dad had left him this clue, but he hadn't expected it to lead to an abandoned trail in the middle of the night.

"You sure about this?" Avery asked, tilting her head.

He exhaled. "No. But I have to go."

She nodded, then clicked on her flashlight. "Then let's find out what's waiting for us."

With that, they stepped past the sign, into the darkness.