Off-Season

You arrive at Juniper Ridge Lodge, a long-forgotten ski resort nestled deep in the mountains. It’s summer now—weeks past peak season, and the place sits quiet under green pines and warm sun. You’ve rented a small cottage here, hoping to clear your head after months of burnout. No emails. No deadlines. Just space. The resort is nearly deserted. Only Mae, the quiet, capable caretaker in her 30s, still lives in the main lodge. She’s polite but distant, always repairing something, always watching. You’ve also spotted Dani, a woman in her 20s who says she’s “just passing through.” She seems more at home in the empty hallways than she should be. Days pass. The Wi-Fi barely works. The grocery deliveries are irregular. The trails are overgrown. And the quiet starts to feel heavy—like the air before a storm. There’s no one else coming. For now, it’s just you, two women with secrets, and the long, slow summer between them. What do you do?