Chapter Two

Darcy

Snap.

My legs drop out from underneath me as the heel on my shoe breaks, sending me down to the forest floor in a crumpled heap. Of all the directions I could have picked to run in, this was by far the worst choice.

It wasn't my first bad idea this evening; agreeing to go home with Victor for a hot night of sex was my first, letting him lead me down a darkened alley that he said was a short cut to his place was my second, and running into the forest instead of back towards town was my third.

Bad luck only comes in threes though, right?

My night can't get any worse, my dress is torn, and I'm being hunted and chased through the darkness on the spookiest night of the year--Halloween. All I wanted to do was go out, have a few drinks and maybe get that agonizing itch scratched. My pussy had been as dry as the Sahara desert since I broke up with Chad a few months ago.

Yanking off my damaged shoes, they hit the ground with a soft thump, I'm better off without them anyway. Stumbling through the forest in the middle of the night in flat shoes is hard enough, running away in four inch stilettos is even worse. Pushing to my feet, a howl splinters the air, my eyes dart all around, trying to see through the shadows that surround me.

Why didn't I stay at home?

My mother always told me that Halloween was the time for the monsters, ghouls and other nightmares to step into our world while the veil between the two is weak. I thought she was trying to scare me, monsters aren't real. Or at least that is what I thought, until tonight.

A shout echoes through the trees and I quicken my pace, biting my lip to suppress the yelp of pain that wants to escape as I stand on a particularly sharp rock.

"Son of bitch," my voice is barely a whisper.

The forest spans out before me, trees in every direction. Tears well in the corners of my eyes, dripping down my face and staining my cheeks. I wipe them away furiously with the back of my hand and keep moving forwards, it's the only way I can go. I don't know where I am, my panic making me lose sight of the direction I'm going in.

It doesn't matter anymore, there is only the need to get away. My heartbeat pulses in my ears and I push myself to keep moving. Pushing against the pain and the fear that spirals through my entire body.

There's a snap behind me and I stop midstride. Have they found me? I wait for as long as I can but don't hear another sound, so I choose to continue. My foot catches on something and I'm falling for a second time, grunting as I hit the ground hard. Reaching my hands out in front of me, I feel wood, I was taken out by a gnarly tree root.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. The words repeat in my head.

A voice whispers out in the darkness, I can't make out the words but my heart rate skips up another notch. Feeling around the tree, I make it to the other side, sinking down against it and making my body as small as possible. If I can't be seen, then I can't be caught. My body shivers as the cold air wraps around me, my breath coming out in plumes of mist. Angling my head down, I try to hide it.

Twigs snap as footsteps draw closer and I squeeze my eyes shut, willing them to move past my hiding place. A hand lands on the top of my head and I let out a startled scream as I'm dragged painfully to my feet by my hair. I come face to face with Victor, his eyes burning into mine, he pulls me from around the tree and I stumble over the raised roots.

"Got you, now you'll give us what's ours." Laughter rings out around us as three of his friends step out of the shadows and into the open area.

"Where are the others?" one asks.

My body shakes as they close in on me, and Victor finally loosens his grip. Ripping away from him, I push against them, looking for an escape but they don't let me go."Please, let me go. I won't tell anyone about this," my voice quivers.

"We can't let you go now, that was never the plan. Your death was always on the cards," he snickers.

Hands shove into my back, and the two men in front of me step to the side as I fall to the ground landing hard. I'm pushed down into the dirt, my legs and arms flailing as I'm rolled onto my back.

Victor looms above me, a sadistic grin plastered over his lips, he straddles my hips but doesn't make a move to touch me in any other way.

"What do you want from me?" I think I know what the answer is already.

"It's the scariest night of the year. According to the books, if we make a sacrifice on All Hallow's Eve we get a single wish from Hadeon himself."

Not where my mind had been pushing me then, but the truth is no less horrifying. My heart thumps heavily in my chest as I thrash on the ground trying to loosen his hold on me. I get one hand loose and strike him across his face, my nails digging deep, gouging his skin open. He lets out a roar, grabbing my wrists and smacking them into the ground, jarring my shoulders with the angle.

He cackles and his eyes light up when he sees the fear written all over my face, his hips jolt on my stomach. My eyes snap shut, I can't look anymore. I can only wait for the inevitable to happen, for him to do whatever he plans, I have no more fight left in me. Shouts and thuds ring in my ears and something wet hits my face and chest. Then everything is silent, apart from the sound of heavy panting.

My eyelids flutter open, Victor is above me, suspended by the fist that protrudes from his chest. Blood drips down from the hand and onto my dress and I'm frozen for a moment.

"You want a wish? My only wish is for your death," the raspy voice has my entire body breaking out in goosebumps as my scream echoes through the forest.