Thriller

The Clearing

In the forests of Stillwater, a private hunt exposes how thin the line is between consent and control.

A Claremont millionaire offers $25,000 for a single night in the Stillwater wilderness—one person as hunter, the other as prey. If the prey survives until sunrise, the money doubles. Contracts are signed. Boundaries are discussed. The arrangement is voluntary. But once the hunt begins, the forest becomes something else entirely. Distance is weaponized. Silence is deliberate. The prey is never certain whether they are being tracked—or studied. Every snapped twig feels intentional. Every pause feels calculated. What was framed as a game begins to resemble an experiment in dominance. The hunter moves with patience, testing limits, probing fear, drawing the night out rather than ending it. By the time dawn threatens the treeline, the wager no longer feels financial. It feels personal. The Clearing is a dark psychological descent into predation, manipulation, and the unsettling realization that some people don’t chase for the money—they chase to see who breaks first.

Themes

Predator and Prey, Wilderness Isolation, Primal Play

Setting

Stillwater

Year

2020

Published

2/19/2026