Gray After Dark

When Hamish points his gun at Brent, Miley claims that Brent and Wes are hikers they came across while looking for Annabelle. Brent plays along, saying they will pack up their stuff and go. However, Hamish shoots Wes, killing him. Brent lies that he is part of a large search party looking for Miley. He charges at Hamish, who fires straight at him.

When Brent falls to the ground, Miley instructs him to close his eyes and stay still; then, she informs Hamish that he has killed Brent. She throws blankets over Brent and Wes, claiming she is giving the dead “some dignity.”

Miley fakes gratitude toward Hamish for protecting them. She suggests he should fetch Fred while she and Mary remove all evidence of Brent and Wes’s presence. As soon as Hamish is gone, Miley checks on Brent, discovering he is alive but struggling to breathe due to a punctured lung. She instructs him to control his breath by counting each one while Mary helps her tape the wound. Mary is in shock, observing that Wes “was a good person” (303).