Twenty-Four

In a surreal, ritual-bound night at The Briars, Arthur Oakes chases a dark, tireless figure across the snowy grounds, believing the man carries the King’s meal. Freezing and coatless, Arthur circles the house while friends inside perform uncanny tasks—music plays, smoke shapes form, and card games spark fire—suggesting each has a role in summoning King Sorrow.

Arthur gradually closes on the dark man, who reveals himself as Enoch Crane, barefoot and scarred with a square of darkness on his back. Crane speaks in an eighteenth-century slur and taunts Arthur about long-cold feet since his hanging in 1789, implying a revenant state. As Crane stumbles, Arthur tackles him in the frozen blackberry thicket.

On the ground, Arthur sees Crane’s chest flayed into a square that houses a carved wooden cabinet. Overcome by exultant possession, Arthur opens it to a Cabinet of Curiosities holding tokens tied to the group—an airline ticket with Allie’s name, a sand dollar marked with blood recalling Donovan, a smoking Twin Towers paperweight, and a postcard that pangs Arthur with guilt toward Gwen. In the upper corner sits Crane’s heart; Arthur removes it, cold and beating, as Crane warns the King will either eat or stop Arthur’s heart next.

Arthur rises, momentarily faint as a vast shape crosses the stars; Crane vanishes, leaving a man-shaped impression in snow. Burning butterflies return to the house as Arthur brings the heart inside. Gwen fetches a gold-edged platter, and Arthur places the heart upon it at the card table with Gwen and Van, while the others’ eerie activities subside into a tense silence.

The water-filled helmet at the table bucks, flips right-side up, and reveals darkness beneath. A deep, amused voice emerges—King Sorrow—announcing their “party” and promising both fun and games, confirming the summoning’s success and escalating the threat that their anguish is now the King’s feast.