The Twisted Ones

Mouse spends the following day at the commune. However, Foxy is unwilling to bring supernatural trouble to her own home, so that evening, she, Mouse, Tomas, and Skip return to the grandmother’s house. Shortly after they arrive, the deer effigy knocks on the front door. To explain the situation further, Mouse and Foxy show Cotgrave’s manuscript to Tomas and Skip. After confirming its presence, Tomas attempts to film it through the peephole. However, when Skip suggests barricading the windows, Tomas stops filming to help move furniture.

The effigy begins tapping on the windows but eventually wanders off. Nevertheless, the group decides to sit up all night. They speculate on why it hasn’t attempted to break the windows, recalling supernatural beings that cannot cross a threshold uninvited, and dismiss calling the police as useless. They decide to take shifts spending the night with Mouse. 

The next day, Bongo returns unharmed. Attached to his collar is a note with the word “HELP” and a drawing of the “Kilroy was here” character. Thrown, Mouse wonders if Cotgrave is perhaps alive after all, or if the message came from someone who knew him. She also considers the possibility that the message is a trap set by the holler people but can’t suppress the impulse to respond.