Chapter 1: Left Behind in Maple Heights

I am the freest kid in Maple Heights.

All my friends envy me. They say no one tells me what to do.

But the truth is, my parents split up, and neither of them wanted me. It’s weird, knowing you’re the kid nobody picked. Like being the last one left on the bench, only the game’s your whole life.

So, when I was eight, they left me alone in a run-down house on the edge of town, up near the woods.

Daytime was fine.

But at night, the wind would howl through the trees, and the old drunk down the road would reach his hand through the crack in my window: "Jenny, are you scared all alone? Uncle Gary will keep you company."

Sometimes, I'd wedge a chair under the knob or press my back to the peeling door, listening to the creak of the trees and the whistle of that wind, praying for morning to come. The moonlight would slice across the floor, silver and cold, and every shadow felt like it could lurch toward me. Maple Heights was small—everyone knew Uncle Gary's reputation, but no one ever called the cops or checked in, and sometimes I wondered if I'd just disappear and nobody would notice for weeks.