With a sudden rush of excitement I realized my mad guess had been right. Donaldson had found something and kept news of it back from the rest of us. And perhaps it was linked to the deaths of Max Feld and Leo Mickens.
Cautiously I reached out to examine the box. I lifted it. It was oddly heavy, and strange to the touch.
But no sooner did I have it in my hands when the door opened behind me. Donaldson had come back.
"What are you doing with that?" he shouted.
"I—"
He crossed the cabin at top speed and seized the box from my hands. And suddenly the monster appeared.
It materialized right in the cabin, between Donaldson and me, its vast bulk pressing against the walls. I felt its noisome breath on me, sensed its evil reek.
"Donaldson!"
But Donaldson was no longer there. I was alone in the cabin with the creature.