Page 7 of Big Bad Wolf

Hello.

‘Ello.

‘Llo…

As the echo dies, I let out a slow breath, forcing my shoulders to relax even though the tension is still coiled tight in my gut. “You’re fine, Char,” I mutter. “You’re just in your own head.”

Right?

I fucking hope so.

I start walking again, faster now, my steps more deliberate, my focus narrowing to one simple goal: keep moving. Get somewhere. Anywhere but here where I can feel the weight of a pair of unwelcome eyes on me even heavier than the red cloak with the hood shadowing my face and hiding my hair...

And that’s when the first howl cuts through the silence so suddenly, my entire body locks up. Every muscle in my body goes rigid, my breath catching in my throat as I strain to listen, to figure out where it came from, what it is, how close the monster can be to me.

Monster… maybe it’s a dog. Dogs howl, right? Or it could be⁠—

Fuck!

There’s something in that howl that feels wrong. Like it wasn’t a simple animalistic sound, but a ‘gotcha’ moment. Whatever made it is out there, and they’re looking for me.

Holy shit.

Holy shit.

Holyshit.

My quickened pace becomes a jog as I start to weave my way through the trees, doing my best not to stumble. Come on, Char. Don’t be the stereotypical chick in a horror flick. Run away from the monster, not toward it, and you better not fall because there’s no promise you’re getting back up again.

A second howl has me yelping, then pouring on the speed. Branches snap beneath my feet as I bolt through them, the red cloak making my tear obvious for any pursuer. It’s a struggle, but I push on, even when I nearly fall, even when I’m sure that something is chasing me.

“Oh my God, oh my God, ohmyGod⁠—”

Don’t stop.

Don’t look back.

Don’t—

Something moves behind me. I stop, stare, and curse under my breath before spinning around and going in the opposite direction of where I sense that thing.

Dog.

Wolf.

Monster.

“Nope. Nope, nope, nope. Not today, Fido.”

I push harder, weaving between trees, ducking low branches that scrape across my arms and shoulders. The sting barely registers over the rush of adrenaline flooding my system. The forest blurs around me, dark shapes and shifting shadows that don’t stay still long enough to make sense of.

Go, Char. Go.

The ground shifts under my feet and I go down hard, a root catching my toes and sending me sprawling, the breath knocked from my lungs as I hit the dirt. Pain flares through my palms, my knees, but it doesn’t matter.

Get up.

Get up⁠—