Eight years earlier, a rainy day trapped young Gemma and Evan inside Great Aunt Esme’s rambling home. Bored, Evan dared Gemma to retrieve two items from the “haunted attic,” promising she wouldn't chicken out.

Reluctantly, Gemma stomped up the dusty, dark stairs, flashlight beam shaking, heart hammering. The attic air was thick with the scent of age and dust. Frantically, she fumbled through a creaking trunk, pulling out a heavy, ornate mirror and a leather-bound book, just as Evan’s voice called out, warning of Aunt Esme’s approach.

Back in her room, Gemma hid the items. The mirror, cloudy and strange, revealed no reflection, but instead, a vivid scene: a boy her age, asleep with a bear cub in a cold, stone room. Startled by the cub's growl, the boy awoke, his deep brown eyes meeting hers through the mirror. As his hand reached out, Gemma dropped the mirror, a crack forming across its surface.

That night, muffled yelling woke her, then her mother packing their things. They left without explanation, never to see Aunt Esme again.