I loved this place, and I still do. These forests and hot springs are part of who I am. I will miss the summer nights when sleep eluded me because the sky was too bright. I will miss the air here, both the sulfur smell of the hot springs and the cold, clean air of the surrounding hills.
I will miss the Arctic. Kyra and I never did go to the Gates of the Arctic National Park, despite talking about it forever. I may not be as adventurous as Kyra was, but I would have loved climbing to a summit to stand on the roof of our world.
I will miss being one of the only students in Lost to ever take an interest in physics; I remember how much that had pleasantly surprised our teacher. I will miss when we—all of Lost’s students, Kyra, Piper, and Sam included—would have class on the shore of the lake when the weather finally turned warm, and the nights when we sat around a campfire, eating marshmallows until our jaws hurt.
I will miss our raggedy old house and my room, where I mapped the winter constellations on my ceiling with glow-in-the-dark stars. And Kyra’s little cabin with superheroes covering her door. And the little world we created for ourselves inside the small world of Lost, which was so separate from the overwhelmingly large world beyond.
But we were never quite safe there—and it wasn’t only the rest of Lost that judged Kyra. It was me too. I thought I was a good friend to her, the best friend I could be. I thought life as we knew it was truth, instead of just another story we told. But maybe I never stopped telling stories either.
? ? ?
Kyra always said we all lived on stolen land. That this piece of Alaska was never rightfully ours. I never understood when she spoke of stolen land and stolen time.
I do now.
I will miss Lost. But I am taking my memories of Kyra with me—her laugh and the taste of her kiss and the warmth of her smile—and home will no longer be tied to this place.
The Way the World Ends
“Corey? Corey, where are you?”
For a single, perfect moment, I’m convinced it’s Kyra calling me from beyond the springs. I answer as if it were. “Usual spot.” And my heart shatters.
“Corey?” The voice sounds distant, and around me, the landscape is still. There’s no one here but a memory.
I wrap my arms around my knees. I want to go home to Mom and Luke.
I close my eyes and imagine Kyra appearing in the mist of the springs. I can almost see it. Her hair would be mussed and her glasses would immediately fog. She would settle next to me, take off her glasses, and clean them with the sleeve of her shirt, sticking out from under her parka.
I’d reach out and squeeze her hand.
You’re here, I’d say.
I’m here, she’d answer.
You promised to wait.
I tried.
I promised to come home to you. I should have come sooner. I promised to remember us. I forgot.
Yes.
Forgive me.
But the fog obscures even this comfort from me. And a chill climbs up my spine. It’s still too quiet.
Then comes her whisper. What’s wrong?
I shake my head. I don’t know.
The mist shifts and the shadows part. And Mr. Henderson stands in front of me, fury carved on his face.
? ? ?
Mr. Henderson towers over me. He’s always been a man of few words, a stoicism not shared by anyone else in the family, but his body speaks volumes now, as rage burns in his eyes and anger pulses along his jaw.
“I want my daughter’s possessions back, Corey.”
I scramble to my feet and step away from the hot spring.
“You took her letter. You have no right to it. You have no right to ruin her words. You stole it. I could have you arrested for theft.”
“You stole her letters from her. From me. She didn’t want you to have them.”
Mr. Henderson takes another step closer and I take another step back.
“You were a good girl, Corey, but I won’t let you ruin my daughter’s legacy and run off with her memory. You do not understand how much Kyra mattered to Lost.”
“Kyra was my best friend. I knew she mattered. You, on the other hand, never understood.”
He lunges at me. I dodge as he reaches out to tackle me. Then I push. I’m not strong enough to floor him, but I throw him off balance for a moment. And I run.
His footsteps pound close behind me, but I don’t look back. I dash into the building to take a shortcut to the woods.
Inside, the entrance hall is unnaturally empty as I sprint through it. My bag is upstairs, but I don’t have time to grab it. I have Kyra’s notebook and her letters and my passport. That’s all that matters right now.
I race down the spa’s service stairs and toward the kitchen. If I can get out through the window, I’ll have a clear escape through the woods, rather than being cornered by the springs. Mr. Henderson will never find me in the darkness, between the trees.
I climb onto the counter and start to slide through the window when the shadows move again.
There’s a reason I didn’t hear his footsteps in the house.
Mr. Henderson is here, waiting for me.
Endless Night
I freeze. A cloud passes in front of the moon and we’re thrown into darkness.
Mr. Henderson snarls. “You can’t outrun me, Corey. You have nowhere to go. Hand over Kyra’s letter, and you won’t get hurt. Kyra was my daughter, and her legacy belongs to me.”
Kyra’s carefully crafted legacy.
“You have no right to it,” I say.
“This is Lost’s story, and we’ll tell it the way we see fit. She wanted to be here. She belonged here.”
I’m trapped. My hand inches to the pocket that holds her notebook and letter. “You let her die.”
Mr. Henderson’s smile turns into a grimace. “We fulfilled her prophecy.”
Suddenly, someone rushes past me. Roshan launches himself at Mr. Henderson. They connect with an audible thud, and the momentum lands them both in the snow. Mr. Henderson’s large hands clamp down on Roshan’s arms.
“Don’t! Kyra wouldn’t have wanted this,” Roshan pants. He holds on to Mr. Henderson and tries to wrestle him. Roshan is lanky and wired, but Mr. Henderson is bigger and stronger. He may not have Roshan’s flexibility, but he has more endurance and he is terrifyingly determined. “Kyra cared about Corey. She loved her. She wouldn’t want us to fight over some letters, not after everything she gave to Lost.”
“Corey is not a part of our community,” Mr. Henderson seethes. “She’s an outsider.”
“She was Kyra’s best friend,” Roshan says as I shout, “I’m not an outsider!”
I start forward to help Roshan.
His gaze snaps toward me and he shakes his head. Mr. Henderson uses the opportunity to push Roshan off him. Roshan gasps, but quickly gets back on his feet.
“Corey, go!” His shout sets me in motion. Before I can see if Roshan manages to grab hold of Mr. Henderson again, I jump off the window ledge and into the snow. I head straight for the darkness of the trees.
Endless Day
I run into the dark, dark woods. Deeper and farther than I’ve gone before. I have to get away.
I know I’m being followed. This forest has eyes. The trees are watching me. The wildlife is watching me. It’s dangerous here, but it’s far more dangerous at the spa and in town.
He’ll never let me leave.
I run until my legs become too heavy to lift and my sides ache. The ground slopes up. The moonlight doesn’t filter through the trees anymore. The snow is loose and tugging me down.
Endless night.
He’s coming for me.
I stumble and get back up.
I can’t see where I’m going.
Even my arms are heavy now.
Followed. Hunted. Terrified.
My lungs burn like they’ll burst. I stumble into a small clearing and drop to my hands and knees. I gulp in the frosty air.
The world spins around me.
The moonlight reflects off the snow, and it’s as bright as the stars above, as bright as almost-day.
Endless day.
I don’t know where I am. This secret corner of the world. If I died here, no one would find me for weeks.
Someone hums—or is it the wind?
My vision turns upside down and I cough. Retch. Tears burn my eyes and my head pounds.
I drop to the ground and roll onto my back. My breath comes in heaves. I pat my pocket to make sure Kyra’s notebook is still there. At least I’m not alone.