They? Who are they?!
Bates: Good friends
Why are they here though? Fear cuts through me as I hear heavy footsteps stomping down the hallwaybehind me.
Shit.
My pace picks up, carrying me farther and faster, my steps light and quiet. It’s nearly pitch-black in here, but my eyes are adjusting, and I can make out shapes, but nothing more than sporadic, tiny blinking lights from equipment and concession booths.
My stomach tightens as the footfall grows louder. He’s closing in, and I’m running out of time.
Bates: It’s too late for you to turn back.
Bates: You’re in my arena now
Bates: You just have to do one thing and one thing only …
Bates: Run
For once in my damn life, I don’t overthink it. I don’t run the calculations through my mind. I let go of all my inhibitions, and I do exactly what I need to.
I turn on the flashlight on my phone, barely lighting the path in front of me, and I take off, digging my feet into the floor as I stride down the hallway, letting my fear and adrenaline guide me.
The voice calls out again, feet shuffling, “Oh, Serenaaaa.”
Who the fuck is that?
The voice isn’t familiar enough for me to recognize. It sounds young, and if I had to bet money, I’d say it’s one of his best friends, a teammate.
They wouldn’t hurt me or touch me.
Right?
Spinning on my heel, I wave my phone around, usingthe only light in the entire damn building to search for the source of the voice.
I don’t see anyone, and it’s suddenly grown so quiet that I could hear a pin drop. The kind of silence that consumes you whole, making your stomach churn and spine shiver.
Goose bumps break out atop my shoulders, and suddenly, this feels far more real than I thought it would.
“Who is it?” The words rip from my throat with panic, shaky and desperate.
You dumb bitch.
Why the hell would you ask that? As if whoever it is will respond.
I can practically hear Kerrigan yelling at me for speaking so rudely to myself, even though she does the same exact thing. But if at any point in my life I’m acting like a dumb bitch, that would’ve been the moment.
Obviously, no one responds, but the steps restart, and I do the same, keeping our distance and quietly trying to get as far away as possible from whoever the hell that is.
The slow and steady footsteps behind me quicken suddenly, growing faster and louder, stomping and echoing around me.
I take off running again, not bothering to silence my steps. I break out into a full sprint as thumps behind me beat in time with my racing heart.
I’m going to need a new path though. Eventually, this will just loop right back around to where I started.
Whoever is chasing me is gaining distance faster than I’d like, and I really wish I weren’t wearing heeled boots for this adventure. But I can’t change that now.
An idea pops into my mind, and while I know it won’t be a long-term solution to escaping him, it will buy me a little time.
