AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Prologue
Jess
AsIstandalonein the forest with my eyes closed, the wind elfishly tickles my face as it dances through the trees. I tilt my head back, my face basks in the golden glow of the full harvest moon. Internally I scream in excitement as the elements have their wicked way with me.
The tendrils of my senses strain as they pick up the sweet tinge of tree sap and point me to the freshly broken branches. A haunting scent, one so familiar that reminds me of spring time in Michigan when I was a child.
Blinded by this seductive trance, I lose sight of what drew me to this mythical land in the first place. The reality hits and I realize he’s still there, lurking in the shadows. His barely visible siloutte taunts me, his fierce gaze grips my soul.
As I turn to run, I’m unable to move. Forced to stay in place as the gap between us comes to a close. Silence surrounds, neither a bird chirps nor does a cricket creak. Even the wind has stopped, left with the eerie feeling that life has ceased to exist as time stands still.
We come to an abrupt stop, standing face to face with little more than a foot that separates us. Our eyes lock in a fiery gaze. He extends his hand, and expects me to accept it. When I don’t, forces beyond my control take over and do it for me.
His touch is like ice, shivers shoot down my spine. My chest goes tight, frightened by anticipation of what’s to come. The broken record in my mind repeats, “He’s going to kill me. He’s going to kill me.”
The words, “I didn’t come all this way to hurt you,” telepathically echo in my head in his voice.
Tears fill my eyes as I’ve come to realize he’s here with a purpose, our meeting isn’t accidental. I steal a glance at our entwined fingers as he squeezes mine, then guides me farther into the darkness of night...
Chapter One
Jess
The blare of my phone alarm is like a shot of epinephrine to the heart. I bolt upright far too quickly and fight back the urge to vomit. Drenched in sweat and panting, I’m desperate to catch my breath. What the hell just happened?
I never saw his face, even though I stared directly into his eyes. How can that be? He wants to show me something, but what? None of this makes any sense.
Ironically, this dream started that fateful night. The memories of the aggressive attack still haunt me. Their faces so clear. Images I’ll never be rid of. It is as though it happened only yesterday.
The evening started off as most did in my bland world. Kara, Anna, and I clocked out at work and headed to the movie theater—they drove separately since they carpooled. Just after midnight, the movie ended and as usual I had to use the restroom. I told them to go ahead and assured them I’d be fine walking to my car alone. I remembered thinking to myself as I exited the theater, the parking lot was unusually dark and several light poles were off. Of couse, they were the ones near my car. Laughing, I joked that my “Spidey” senses were working overtime, so I shrugged it off.
That was mistake number one.
I reached into my purse to grab the keys and when I looked up, there were several guys standing near my car carrying on animatedly. I glanced toward the theater and saw the lights were off and security was nowhere in sight. Asking for an escort now was out of the question. Figured.
Lacking in common sense, I trudged on, peeking up every couple steps to see if they’d noticed me. I thought I would try to be sly, avoiding eye contact, but wondered if I knew any of them. Maybe if I pushed the red panic button on my car remote they’d freak out and take off. On second thought, if I scared them, they might get pissed and I’d rather take the chance at being ignored. My next thought was even more brilliant—maybe if I play it cool, walk up and flirt, “Excuse me, fellas,” they might let me through without any problems. Thinking back, I realize I seriously excel at being a dumbass.
The next few moments came and went in a blur, as the events rapidly came to pass. It was as though they knew my every move before I even made it. The second I stepped off the sidewalk their nasty lips curled into sadistic smirks. I tried to play it cool, continuing to push forward, attempting not to let my outward appearance reflect how truly terrified I was. Had I been thinking straight, I would’ve walked up to the theater and banged on the doors, or better yet—called the cops.
Their shoes scuffing against the rocky asphalt snapped me back as they gravitated toward me. Their foul stench as they neared led me to believe they’d just crawled out of a dumpster. Completely frozen, panic ensued as I frantically scanned the lot hoping to find someone—anyone—but it was empty. There were four of them and only one of me.
The largest miscreant in the group, who I’m guessing was their alpha, bobbed his head in the direction of my car. “Hey, gorgeous, is this little beauty yours?”
All I could do was nod as I was too terror stricken to utter a single word. This alpha was tall, well over six-foot and more than twice my size. Even though I was still a couple feet away, the smell of beer and cigarettes permeated from their filthy bodies.
Without a word the short, stout man grabbed my purse, and yanked it with such force it broke the strap. He rifled through it while the pack leader continued, “We’re gonna go for a little ride, honey.” He eyed me up and down with a sick-ass grin on his face, like I was about to be their party favor.
They cackled as they closed in, licking their lips and I gagged. The leader grabbed my right arm and threw me against my car and tried to snatch the keys from my hand. He was unsuccessful with my fingers tightly wound through the oval ring.
Their attention momentarily diverted as the parking lot lights flickered, some actually burst, sending shards of glass into the atmosphere while others faded completely out. I was thankful for whatever diety had taken control because it took their focus off of me while they scanned the parking lot, though the reprieve was short lived.
With no one else there, I returned to the forefront. His firm grip still held me in place, unable to escape. His fingers were so tight it cut off the circulation in my arm, and my hand went numb. The grimy fingers of his free hand glided along my cheekbone. My stomach lurched and I swallowed hard, desperate to keep the bile held back.
He hooked his fingertips under my bra strap and slid it down my arm as he ground his erection against my thigh, pushing so hard I thought my jeans might rip. He drew pleasure from my fear as his smile widened. “Hmmm, I don’t think we need to go anywhere, guys. Lights are low, no one’s around. Let’s have our little party right here. Baptize the parking lot and claim this gal as ours.”
His disciples whooped and hollered like a pack of brainless hyenas. Trembling uncontrollably, I knew there was no going back from this. They would take what wasn’t theirs.
Tears streamed down my face, and their laughter increased as they moved in to claim their prize. The visual of my tragic death and naked body abandoned in the desert left for the wildlife to feast upon runs through my head. What will my father think? How will he feel? There’d be nothing left of my remains for any potential rescuers to find. How I wished I would’ve waited for security to escort me out as opposed to risking my safety as I had.
