The Bigshot's Superstar Wife

Chapter 146: Move Forward

The recovery process was long and exhausting, but ultimately successful. After weeks in the hospital, Marco, Lisa, and Darren were finally discharged.

Their bodies bore the scars of their ordeal, but their spirits seemed lighter. The horror of the forest still lingered in their eyes, yet they were alive, and that was what mattered most.

The variety show that had plunged them into that nightmare was shut down indefinitely.

The media tried to bury the news of the deaths and missing crew members, but whispers still spread like wildfire.

People speculated wildly, some believed it was a failed survival experiment, while others claimed the participants had stumbled into something far more sinister.

Rumors about cursed forests and monstrous beasts began circulating online, though few dared to believe the darkest tales.

Athena kept her head down. She avoided interviews and turned down countless requests to speak about the incident.

All she wanted was peace, to slip back into a quiet, ordinary life. However, peace didn’t come easily.

One morning, Athena received a call from her agent. A new variety show had extended an invitation, this time, a peaceful farming-themed program in a remote mountain village.

Athena was reluctant at first, but something about the simplicity of the show intrigued her. Perhaps, after everything, she needed a fresh start, something calm, something real.

The journey began under gloomy skies. The crew departed from the main city in a convoy of vans, winding along narrow roads that cut through dense forests and jagged cliffs.

Rain poured relentlessly, streaking the windows and muting the conversations inside. The world outside looked cold and gray, the mist curling around the trees like twisted fingers.

Hours passed, and the convoy finally reached the village. The air was damp, and the stone-paved roads shimmered under the rain.

The village itself looked old, a forgotten corner of the world. Wooden houses leaned slightly from years of wear, and narrow alleys twisted between the uneven buildings.

A faint mist clung to the rooftops, swallowing the distant hills. The production team wasted no time starting the live broadcast.

Despite the rain, cameras rolled as the celebrities were given their first task, finding their assigned homes.

The village was unfamiliar, and none of them had been given maps or guidance.

The mist had thickened, and for a moment, she thought she saw something moving, a dark shadow shifting between the trees. A sudden knock at the door made her jolt.

"Who’s there?" Athena whispered, rising slowly.

No one answered. The knock came again, louder this time. Marco stirred in his sleep. "Did you hear that?"

Athena grabbed a lantern and stepped cautiously toward the door. The knock came a third time, sharp and urgent.

Her fingers hovered over the lock. Something about this didn’t feel right.

"Don’t open it," Darren’s voice warned from behind her. He was awake now too, watching her with narrowed eyes.

Athena hesitated. The knocking stopped. For a long moment, silence swallowed the room.

Then a voice, hoarse and broken, whispered through the wood. "Help me..."

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Athena’s heart pounded.

"We should call the crew," Darren urged.

Athena stepped back from the door, her pulse racing. The knocking didn’t return, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that something, or someone, was still out there, waiting.

The rain kept falling, and the wind howled through the night. Whatever had been outside... it wasn’t gone.

Morning arrived with a heavy fog blanketing the village. The storm had passed, but the air felt colder than before.

Athena barely slept, her mind still haunted by the desperate voice from the night before.

When they stepped outside, the streets were slick with mud, and deep footprints trailed away from their door, footprints that didn’t belong to any of them.

Worse still, one of the wooden signs outside a nearby house was smeared with something dark, something that looked like blood.

"We need to tell the crew," Darren said grimly, his voice low. Athena silently agreed.