The Song Beneath the Lake

Ava was a musician seeking inspiration when she visited her family’s cabin by a secluded lake. One night, she heard faint singing beneath the water—a haunting lullaby that sounded strangely familiar.

She recorded it and played it backward, discovering her grandmother’s voice singing a song she had never released. As Ava dove into her family’s history, she learned that her grandmother had drowned in that very lake fifty years ago.

The climax: Ava swam into the freezing water to follow the sound, finding an old music box tangled in reeds. When she wound it, the lake grew still, and a soft voice whispered, “Thank you for finishing my song.”