Found or Forgotten .
“The Edge of Home” A Novella by Lyconius --- Chapter 1: The Cold Ground The morning frost clung to the nylon walls of the tent like glass. Lila rubbed her hands together and blew into them, staring at the empty coffee tin beside the small fire pit. Next to her, Mason stirred awake beneath the old army blanket, his breath forming clouds in the chill. They’d been living in the woods for three months—just beyond the old train tracks on the edge of Chilhowie, Virginia. No one knew they were there, except a couple of hikers who pretended not to see. Lila used to waitress at the diner off Route 11. Mason had worked drywall until the layoffs. When her mother’s house sold and his truck broke down, the bottom fell out. They drifted into the woods with what they could carry—an old tent, two duffels, and each other. Every day was survival: keeping warm, finding food, staying invisible. But it was getting harder. The police had been patrolling the backroads again. Lila watched the smoke rise from ...
