She gathers her clothes up and puts them on in a rush.
We’ve already hidden ourselves in the shadows before her friend crests through the tree line.
“There you are!” A girl with long blonde hair exclaims, putting her hands on her hips.
“Hey,” Lydia says sounding breathless and looking disheveled.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Walk with me back to the cabin, I’m exhausted from all this running around.”
She links her arm with Lydia and they both take off, but I see Lydia searching the darkness, trying to find us. We walk slowly behind them out of sight, making sure they don’t set off any traps on their way back.
Before they head into the cabin, Lydia looks one more time out into the darkness, and it’s then that we step out of the shadows, letting her see that we’re still here. And we’ll be waiting for her.
Chapter 9
Lydia
Iwake with an ache between my legs and a pounding in my head. My feet stretch out and I yawn before I remember where the hell I am. My legs kick at the blanket that I’m currently tangled up in, the scratchy flannel print material keeping me trapped in this bed as I try to sit up.
My eyes wince at the intrusion of light pouring in through the windows as I try to remember what happened last night. The last thing I remember was screaming as a vampire sucked blood out of my neck. Instantly, my fingers fly to my neck. Where is it? I palpate the skin, trying to feel for where I know there were two small holes. But there’s nothing. It’s smooth.
That can’t be right.
But as I flex my hand, I realize there’s a small silver ring sitting on my ring finger. I go to pull it off, but it’s jammed. Not even sticking it into my mouth loosens it up. How did I end up with this on my finger?
Opening my backpack that’s at the side of the bed— I pause looking down at it. How did this get here? Didn’t I leave it outside?
Nothing is making any sense.
Inside my bag, I find where I’ve packed a compact mirror. It opens easily and reveals that my neck is, in fact, still intact. There’s not a blemish or anything.
Weird.
Was it all just a horrible dream, or some trick of the mind? What was in that drink?
My friends are all still sound asleep, but I notice the glaring absence of the Australian couple. Maybe they went out for breakfast.
Flashes of me running through the woods fill my mind. It had felt so real. The adrenaline… the desire. Shit.
Did I dream of being fucked by two hot vampires and another guy last night? I was so out of it, I didn’t even ask about protection. Definitely a dream, I decide.
A rumble from my stomach alerts me to my hunger as I wonder where the mess hall is located. I briefly remember Tracy pointing it out on our tour, but my mind was preoccupied by all the lurking monsters.
“Audrey, hey you awake?” I ask, knowing out of all my friends, she’s the most likely to not mind being woken up for food.
“Mmmf, I am now,” she grumbles.
“Want to come with me to find the mess hall?” I ask, seeing her peek through one of her eyes at my question.
“Fine.” She rolls out of bed and shuffles around the cabin, throwing random clothes on and shoving her feet into her shoes. “Ready?”
“Absolutely,” I say, following her out the door.
The morning air carries a chill, pimpling my skin immediately. I’m still wearing my shorts and tank from yesterday but didn’t feel like digging through my bag for new clothes yet. Maybe after breakfast.
“Do you remember what happened last night? It feels like a blur,” I say as we make our way down the dusty path. The sun has barely crested the treetops, and there’s a light mist clinging to the ground. It’s so eerie that it makes me feel like they put a smoke machine out here just to achieve the effect.
“What do you mean? We ran around in the woods, getting chased and then came back to the cabin,” Audrey says, giving me a concerned look.
