3. Daniella

CHAPTER 3

Daniella

T urns out Leighton also got an invite to The Pursuit from her new man crush, Carter, so we of course had to go shopping in search of the perfect costumes. Leighton decides on an all black witch, while I choose to go all the way with a sexy vampire. Getting the fake blood to stay where I want it and dealing with all of Leighton's glitter spray is an absolute bitch but in the end, we are more than happy with the result.

Finally, 7:30 pm rolls around and we're both getting nervous so we decide that pregame shots would be a good idea. We haven't been to the grocery store, so the only "chaser" we have is whipped cream. We pour our shots of vodka and squirt the whipped cream in our mouths, laughing. By the time 8pm comes, we have both done three shots each when my phone dings. Here goes nothing. Grabbing my purse and keys, I tell Leighton I'll see her there and head out the door.

Right outside of the apartment door sits a lifted black truck. It's so nice. The driver's side door opens and Braxton steps around the truck wearing a fitted, black, short sleeve shirt that leaves nothing to the imagination. He's covered in tattoos and his muscles are bulging. I mean for fuck's sake, you can see his abs through his shirt! Had he not started speaking, I probably would've been drooling down my chin, thinking about how easily he could throw me around.

"Well shit, had you told me you were going to look this good, I would've skipped dinner to make sure I had room to feast on you." Braxton smirks and slowly looks at me head to toe. Oh fuck. I squeeze my thighs together in hopes of hiding how turned on that made me. Looking back up at him, I put on a brave face and smirk.

"Careful there B, you keep talking like that and I might just let you have me for breakfast, lunch, and dinner." I see his throat bob and his eyes darken with desire. I don't know where this courage has come from lately but I love it.

I make my way over to the truck and he opens the passenger side door for me, putting out his hand to help me. What a gentleman. I grab it and climb onto the seat. He gently closes the door, walking around and hops in behind the wheel. ‘Bad Omens' is quietly playing in the background and I start to get comfortable. I look over at him and smile.

"So my best friend Leighton will also be there tonight." He looks at me curiously.

"Leighton huh? My friend Carter was talking about bringing someone named Leighton. Not a very common name. What are the odds."

Interesting. She usually cycles through the same three guys each month. Leighton is very aware of her sexuality and isn't afraid to show it. Her confidence is enviable. Some days I wish I could be more like her.

"So, what are the rules of The Pursuit?"

Quickly glancing over at me, he smirks and looks back at the road then says, "The Pursuit is a night where men are able to show their domination and inner demons. It's basically a big game of hide and seek. You and the other girls will get a head start to find a place to hide and then the guys will start hunting for their invitees like they are prey."

It takes me a second to process what he said, but it also forces me to ask the question that I've been thinking about ever since he invited me earlier. "And what happens if we are found?"

He doesn't look at me, but I can tell that his eyes darken and narrow a little. "If you are caught, then your pursuer can do whatever they want to you as long as you are consenting to it." His words make me gulp and my panties dampen. Being chased around like prey will be new to me. What the actual fuck did I get myself into?

We joke and laugh the entire ride there. Braxton is so easy to talk to and I feel like he truly listens to what I have to say. I tell him about my job as a graphic designer and he insists that he is going to use my "skill" to help market Black Lux on social media. We have a lot of the same interests spanning from music, to movies, to our love for big dogs. Leighton is the only person I talk to so it feels nice to open up to somebody else.

When we pull into the parking lot, I am shocked to see the old mall in front of us. I know that The Pursuit takes place in different locations each year, but for some reason, I hadn't thought about it being in an abandoned mall. There is a hole through the exterior wall on one side and graffiti that covers the brick wall to the right. This seems like the place someone would go for fun and end up dead.

There are a few other cars parked in the lot, which is comforting to see. We hop out of the truck and before we start walking to the door, Braxton grabs a mask out of his backseat and closes the door, locking the truck. I can't tell what is on the mask which makes me giddy thinking about not knowing if it's him behind it. Turning around, I head towards the door where people are filtering in. I can feel his eyes on me and it makes me shiver thinking about what is going to happen.

Suddenly, there's a hand around my waist stopping me in my tracks. I feel his breath on the side of my neck as he gets close to my ear, he whispers so that only I hear. "Good luck in there, Little Rage. I'm feeling very determined tonight." My knees threaten to buckle just as he lets go of my waist and grabs my hand to pull me towards the door. Shit.

Once we get inside, everyone is crowded around a guy standing up on a counter. He looks over to us and claps his hands while smiling. "Ah, there is the man of the hour! Why don't you get on up here and tell everybody the rules of the night?"

Braxton looks over to me and squeezes my hand reassuringly before walking over and hopping up on the counter. There has to be at least twenty other people here. Everyone turns their attention to Braxton.

"If you have been here previously, you know the rules and you know what happens if you break any of them. The girls get a head start before you begin your pursuit. No harm is to come to any participant in the game. All prey must consent to what is happening to them prior to it happening. If you break this rule, you will not like the consequences." His friend standing next to him, slaps Braxton on the back and yells, "Let the games begin!"

Braxton hops off the counter and makes his way towards me. "Keep your phone on you just in case and do not hesitate to call me if you need me." Looking to my left, I see Leighton. Smiling up at Braxton, I give him a wink and say,

"Catch me if you can, B."

And with that, I run over to Leighton, grabbing her hand and pulling her with me. She gasps then looks over to see it's me. "Jesus you bitch, you scared me!" She laughs before continuing to speak. "Let's give these boys a run for their money."

We end up running through a set of doors and back towards where the food court used to be. There was a department store with multiple levels right next to it. We take the stairs two at a time and get to the second floor entering the department store from up there. All around us, I can hear the other girls giggling and screaming, but I'm too competitive to want to stay anywhere near that so we go further into the store. All of the racks and some old clothes are still hanging, which is creepy as fuck but we use it to our advantage and hide in between rows of clothing. A few minutes later, we hear two sets of footsteps running towards us. Peeking through the rack I can see a mask with purple LED eyes and mouth on it next to a black mask with a blue LED skull. The guy with the skull mask looks in Leighton's direction and tilts his head and I know it's time to run.

The two of them start running towards us, and we both hop up ready to run away. When I turn to try to find my best friend, she is nowhere in sight, but further down the hall I can see that damn purple LED mask. Obviously, I have no time to spare, so I keep running until I find a spot to hide. In the distance I can hear Leighton scream and giggle. I guess I'm on my own now.

Taking in my surroundings in the dark store, I see a glow-in-the-dark clown mask standing next to a rack of clothing, staring directly at me. Now, I'm not sure which mask belongs to Braxton. The creepy clown starts walking quickly in my direction so I go for the door on the opposite side of the store. My adrenaline is pumping, and I am too afraid to look behind me. Suddenly, I feel a hand on the back of my head and a sharp burning pain on my scalp. He pulls me back, yanking my hair. I lose my balance and fall back to see the clown towering above me.

"You're not my date, but I guess you will do for now." My stomach drops, and I try to get up, but something is being held to my throat. It's cold and sharp.

"Oh, do you feel that gorgeous? I just sharpened it this morning. Now be a good little whore and give me what I need so we can move on."

My panic sets in and I start feeling around with my hands to see if I can find anything that might help get me out of the situation. I feel something hard and skinny and I slowly start to pick it up, realizing that it's a pipe.

As the clown starts pulling my skirt down, I quickly swing the pipe at his head, making contact. The sound of the metal connecting with his skull echoes through the room. He curses and falls back, dropping the knife he had to my neck. I scramble to pick it up before he realizes and get back on my feet.

"You fucking bitch! You're going to regret that!" I take small steps back, trying to get away from the psycho, but he stands and starts running towards me. My fight or flight kicks in. As soon as he is about to take me down, I swing my arm furiously and he stops. His eyes widen, confusion wiping away the fury from before. Blood starts to pour from his neck, as I realize I had sliced his neck open with the knife. He falls to the floor, choking on his own blood, and I drop the knife at my feet, feeling paralyzed.

The door to my left swings open and the first thing I see is the man with the purple mask. He takes it off and I see Braxton staring back at me. He slowly walks over looking down at the clown then looks back at me. "Are you okay? What happened?"

My breathing hitches in my throat, I feel nothing through my body except numbness. I open my mouth to speak, but then quickly close it again, nodding my head to let him know that I am fine.

"Let's get you out of here, I'll have somebody handle this." He takes my hand and pulls me through the mall. When we get back to his truck, he lifts me and puts me in the passenger seat before walking around and getting in on his side. "You don't have to talk about what happened if you don't want to, but just know that I will take care of this and everything will be okay. I just need to know that you are unharmed." I look over at him and nod my head.

We sit in silence for a while until I can think enough to form a sentence. "He tried to rape me and I killed him. I think I should feel something, but I don't and I'm not sorry that I did it. Is there something wrong with me?" He gives me a genuine smile and puts his hand on my thigh, rubbing it slowly with his thumb.

"There is nothing wrong with you, Little Rage. He got what he deserved." I know I shouldn't be comforted by his words and he should call the police, but the fact that he isn't makes me feel much more comfortable with him. I place my hand over his and hold it in silence until everything turns black.

I don't know how long I was asleep before I finally wake up again. I slowly open my eyes, looking up at the ceiling and seeing black instead of white. The confusion runs through me as I sit up to look around and realize I'm not in my bedroom. I've never seen this room before and I start to panic. Suddenly, the door opens, and Braxton walks in with a tray of fruit and a cup of coffee. "I wasn't sure how you drank your coffee or what kind of fruit you liked, so I brought all the things that I like." He gives me a shy smile and makes his way over to the bed, placing the tray in front of me.

Looking down at the spread, I see grapes, strawberries, and raspberries. Of course his favorite fruits are my favorite too.

"Thank you. You didn't have to do that. But can I just ask where I am right now?" He puts his hand on the back of his neck with a nervous look on his face, opening and closing his mouth before speaking again.

"You fell asleep in the truck and I was going to take you home but I didn't want to wake you to get inside, so I brought you back to my place. That way, I would be able to keep an eye on you and make sure you were okay. I hope that's alright." Jesus, he had to carry me out of the truck and all the way upstairs while I was completely passed out.

"You could have woken me up so you didn't have to carry me, but that was really sweet of you and I appreciate it," I say, trying to give him a genuine smile.

I never took him for the soft and caring type, but as he sits down on the bed next to me and places his hand on my back, rubbing small comforting circles, I realize that I have a lot to learn about him. I eat my fruit and drink my coffee while we talk about anything and everything. He tells me he is twenty seven and that he inherited the club from his parents' passing.

"Well, since I'm here, why don't you give me a tour of the place? Judging by this massive room, I'm guessing it's quite an impressive place." He chuckles to himself quietly and I instantly want to hear it again. Butterflies emerge in my stomach. Moving the tray over to the nightstand, he gets up and walks around to the side I'm sitting on, putting his hand out for me to grab. Next thing I know, he throws me over his shoulder forcing a gasp, then a giggle out of my mouth.

Braxton takes me through each room of the house on his back, showing his favorite parts. It's clear that he put a lot of thought into each aspect. It's huge and beautiful. The consideration behind every detail makes me want to see more of his life.

Once the tour is over, we sit on the large, black sectional in the living room. He looks at me with a serious expression on his face and says, "I won't pressure you, but if you need to talk about anything, just let me know. I'm not new to this, so I understand." Holy fucking hell, I killed somebody last night. And did he just say he wasn't new to this?