Rule 24 - Domino

"Boo!" Hands caught my waist, and I screamed and spun around. A yellowing hockey mask with blood splattered on it stared down at me. I shoved him away and stumbled backward. A second masked man joined in then.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" Beth screamed.

Koi lifted his mask, and Blane followed suit. Both had matching confused expressions.

"What? It was just a jump scare," Blane explained.

The party went quiet except for the sobbing coming from various people.

"A jump scare? You killed Ruth!" Beth screamed at him. Everyone pulled away from the zipline, revealing the body still floating in mid-air.

"Jesus Christ…" Koi"s mouth parted open.

"Oh my god! Ruth!" Blane flew to her. Tears streamed down his face as he fumbled with her harness. "Help me get her down!"

Koi, Swayze, and Andrew sprang into action, two holding her limp body while the other two unhooked her. Carefully, they laid her on the ground. The knife was still embedded in her stomach.

"What did you do?" Beth demanded.

"We didn"t do shit!" Blane sobbed. He dropped to his knees and clutched Ruth"s hand. "We—" His words caught in his throat as he looked around the group. "It was just a prank."

"What was?" Mitchell stepped forward.

Blane stood and wiped his cheeks. He pointed to Koi, who raised his hands in innocence.

"Don"t look at me, I didn"t want to do it. I thought it was cruel."

"What was? Somebody better start fucking talking," Andrew growled. "This isn"t fucking funny."

"No shit, Sherlock," Mitchell said. "What was the prank?"

"We were supposed to just leave her for a while. She"d get to the end and no one would be there to get her down, so then she"d have to get pulled back. I don"t know what"s going on, man!" Blane put his hands on his temples and dropped to the ground in panicked sobs.

"Who, Ruth?" Mitchell asked.

"No, you fuck, her!" Blane thrust his arm out, pointing to me.

I blinked. Me?

They"d been trying to prank me?

Did that mean...

The group went silent as everyone came to the same conclusion at the same time. That knife had been meant for me. The roar of a chainsaw nearby sent everyone into a panic.

"Run!" screamed Beth. Shrieks and screams from everyone spread through as we all darted into the woods, abandoning Ruth to the chainsaw that sounded like it was moving close and moving fast.

It was midnight, and the further I got from the campsite, the darker it got. There was no moonlight coming through the trees, and I had to rely on my eyes adjusting to plow through.

I realized I'd left Georgie, and turned to go back. I couldn't abandon him!

"Dominooo..." A raspy voice called from somewhere.

I froze.

"Where are you?" The voice was deep, a male's. Was it the masked man from before? The one I"d seen the night I kissed Koi? The roar of the chainsaw being revved pulled me back to reality. My foot caught under a root, and I fell, right into the damp dirt and leaves. I scrambled up and held back a cry of pain as I limped a few steps ahead. My knee on my short leg had taken most of the fall. I'd already been achy and exhausted from work and the trek up to the cliff. I wasn't sure I could run anymore.

"Domino, come out! I just want to saw you in half!"

Pure terror flooded my system, and my body jerked forward. Tears streamed down my face, blinding me as I held my hands out to catch trees.

"You"re not gonna get far. I can hear you, Little Doll."

Swayze. It was Swayze chasing me? Why?

My lungs screamed for oxygen as loudly as my heart and muscles. It couldn"t be. There was no way. Did he mean to kill me? Stick a knife into me?

"Domino!" Swayze"s voice came from feet away, and an arm reached out, snatching me by the wrist and tugging me toward him.

I thrashed around and screamed, "Help!"

"Shut the fuck up!" Swayze"s hand went over my mouth. "Whoever"s out there will hear you!"

My chest heaved as I took in his words. He wasn"t the man with the chainsaw. The roar of the chain being revved once more sent a whimper from my throat but confirmed it. There was someone else out there.

"If I let you go, will you run?" He pressed me tightly to him. My chest was rising and falling hard. I shook my head vehemently.

"Are you going to scream?" he asked. He leaned in so close to me, the timbre of his voice vibrated against my neck, sending shivers through me. I shook my head again. "Good. Now, don"t let go of my hand. I"m going to get us out of here."

Choking back my fear, I nodded. He dropped his hand from my mouth and let me go. I stepped away from the tree he"d held me against and stared at him. My eyes raked over him slowly. Right before the accident, Swayze had pulled me out of line. Almost as if he knew...

It was Koi.

He had been on the other side. He had known who was coming down at what time. Koi was Swayze"s best friend, who probably knew that Swayze had called me Little Doll. Koi had blood on his mask.

Koi. Killed. Ruth.

Something in my expression must have tipped Swayze off. He raised his hands slowly. "Domino…" he warned. "Don"t do this. If you panic?—"

I turned and ran the other way. I stumbled and scraped my arms and legs on the trees, but still, I could hear the sounds of others screaming, footsteps rushing, and of course, the chainsaw.

I turned in circles, trying to find some clue as to where exactly I was when I saw something large and dark looming in the distance. A building, maybe. I started in that direction, and the closer I got, the better I could see exactly what it was.

The bathhouse!

Hope washed over me as I pushed my body to keep going. I"d fallen so many times, my body was covered in dirt and leaves. My hair was wild and my skin was slick with sweat. All I had to do was make it there, shut the door, and be quiet. With the lights off, no one would think to check. I knew the plan wasn"t foolproof, but it was all I had.

As I reached the old brick building, I wept. I leaned against the wall and followed it to the doors. I didn"t care if this was the men"s shower, as the signs indicated. I was safe. I pulled the door open with strenuous effort and collapsed inward, my hands catching me on the sharp tiles before my face hit it. I scurried back to let the door close and then I was enveloped in darkness.

On my hands and knees, I crawled to a wall and then rested my back on it. I focused on my breathing, as it felt like it was the only thing I could control at that moment. What was I supposed to do? It was midnight, my phone was back at the cliff, I'd abandoned Georgie, and Ruth, one of the park"s restaurant cooks, was dead. She"d been murdered by accident because Koi thought it was me going down at the time.

I wasn"t sure how much time had passed. There were no windows to offer light. In all my years on the road, not knowing who I was staying with or how I"d get my next meal, I"d never been this afraid. How odd was it that the place I should feel the most welcome was in reality the place my nightmares had been created.

The door creaked open, letting moonlight in. I scurried back, reaching a corner, and curled myself tighter into myself. A shadow came into view, but he didn"t turn the light on. Instead, he pushed the door further open and another man stepped inside with him. The door closed behind them and the jingle of keys and a lock turning echoed throughout the room.

Panic shot straight through my spine, sending electricity to all of my nerves. I trembled but forced myself not to breathe loudly or cry. Whoever it was knew I was here. I was sure of it. And then, a voice called to me, chilling me to the bone.

"Hello, Little Doll."