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With deft movements, Lila drew up the object from the reluctant clutches of the cold water. It lay in her open palm, an unwelcome puzzle piece...
Not gold, no.
"What the hell?"
She frowned, leaning in.
And then she blinked in a surprise. Not a gold nugget, but somewhat golden-hued... A human tooth, yellowed with age, a hollow where once a nerve lived. She turned it over, the root end jagged, broken from its home in someone’s mouth.
"James," she called into the walkie-talkie, her voice barely above a whisper, "I found something."
"Gold?" James' voice crackled back, tinged with hope and fatigue.
"No, not gold." Her response was terse, her mind racing. "It's...a tooth."
"A what? Lila, are you sure?"
"Positive." She squinted at the molar, its enameled surface dulled by river silt and time. "Human."
"What the hell," he exhaled, "That's... macabre. You okay?"
"Fine," she lied, thumb brushing the curve of the crown. Her pulse thrummed in her ears, a drumbeat of unease. What tale did this remnant tell? Who had lost it—and how?
"Get back here, Lila. Now." His voice left no room for argument.
"En route," she confirmed, though her feet remained rooted to the spot.
Lila's breath came in short, sharp gasps as she examined the tooth more closely. The chill of the creek seemed to seep into her bones, yet sweat beaded on her brow. Her heart thrummed a discordant rhythm, each beat echoing the growing dread within her. She could feel the weight of the forest around her, pressing in with silent, unseen eyes.
"James," she said, her thumb stalling over the grooves of the molar, "this might mean... there could be more."
"More teeth?" His voice barely concealed a shiver that matched her own.
"Or worse." She couldn't bring herself to say it—more remains. The possibility hung in the air, unspoken but heavy.
"Stay put, I'm coming to you," James insisted, his voice suddenly firm.
"Wait, James!" But the static crackling from the walkie-talkie told her he was already on his way.
She knew she should wait for him, should not be alone with this enigma and the gathering shadows. She clenched her fist around the tooth, as though it were a talisman against the creeping fear. The light from her lantern flickered, casting dancing shadows on the water's surface, and for a moment, she felt the world sway under her feet.
It was then that something caught her eye—upstream, where the creek rolled over a dam made of sticks and debris—a dark mass that didn't belong. Lila's pulse skipped. She took an involuntary step forward, her gaze locked onto the object.
"Damn it," she muttered, her resolve waning against her instincts. She glanced back at the walkie-talkie, its silence a reminder of her isolation.
As she moved closer, the contours of the dam became clearer, and she saw how the natural barricade had ensnared more than just branches and leaves. There was something else, something ominously out of place against the backdrop of the rushing water.
"James, there's something up here," she whispered into the walkie-talkie, her voice barely carrying above the murmur of the creek. "Caught in the dam."
"What?" he urged, his voice tense with anticipation.
"Hard to see... it's tangled, wrapped up in the mess of it all." Her words faltered as she drew nearer, the details obscured by the dim light and relentless movement of the water.
"Be careful," James' warning came through, laced with concern. "Don't get too close until I get there."
"Okay," she murmured, her voice softening, but her body didn't obey. With every step, the mystery of the creek unfurled before her, pulling her deeper into its chilling embrace. The tooth in her hand felt like a piece to a puzzle she wasn't sure she wanted to complete.
The creek’s babble was a deceptive lullaby, masking the sinister secret held within its depths. She should wait for James, she knew that, but the enigma was magnetic, drawing her closer to the water-logged barricade with an inexorable pull.
