Story Branch
Once
bitten,
twice
shy.
Isabel
murmured
under
her
breath,
staring
out
at
the
darkening
horizon.
The
saying
echoed
in
her
mind,
a
reminder
of
the
mistake
she
had
made
two
years
ago.
The
sun
dipped
lower,
casting
long
shadows
over
the
rolling
hills
and
the
dilapidated
cabin
where
she
now
found
herself.
[p]
Isabel
had
come
to
this
remote
part
of
the
countryside
to
escape
the
chaos
of
the
city,
to
find
solace
in
solitude.
But
as
the
evening
drew
on,
a
sense
of
unease
settled
over
her.
She
had
been
warned
about
these
woods,
about
the
legends
that
spoke
of
creatures
lurking
in
the
shadows.
She
had
dismissed
them
as
superstitions,