CHAPTER ONE
Raci
The only lightcasting onto the street beside the moonlight were the lights from the large cabin, the wedding reception still going strong. It was well past one in the morning and all I could think about was taking off my shoes and collapsing into bed.
I rented a room at the local Appleridge Inn in the center of town, about a twenty-minute drive down the mountain. But first, I needed to find my car.
Walking down the long drive, I could barely see anything ahead of me as my expensiveLouboutinscrunched the gravel beneath them as I searched. Where the hell did, I park and why could I remember?
As I got further away from the cabin, the darker it became. All the cars looked the same, dark blobs parked on both sides of the street, as crickets and frogs croaked all around me.
A rustling sound came from the distance and I paused, a streak of sheer terror pulsating through me. I didn’t need to be worried about bears, right?
Fuck! Where the hell was my car?
And then I heard a loud rumble in the distance.
The very unmistakable sound of thunder.
No, please. Please don’t rain. It would only make finding my car even more impossible.
But my pleas weren’t heard.
I felt a raindrop. Then two.
Then the sky opened up, and rain poured down on my head. And not just a bit of rain.
It was full on buckets.
Sheets came at me sideways, soaking my dress instantly straight down to my expensive high heels.
No! Not myLouboutins!
I wanted to cry. I wanted to sink in the mud.
My heels. My expensive high heels.
Ruined.
I looked down at the mud covering them and stomped forward, too sad to even pay attention to where I was going. They were my favorite pair with the red soles and now they’re a shitty mess of mud.
When I looked back up, I realized I wasn’t in the driveway anymore. Somehow, I was surrounded by woods. Very dark woods. All while it still poured out.
I must’ve looked like a drowned rat.
Tears slipped down my cheeks as I trekked forward, hopeless loss, clothes ruined, and at a loss for what to do. Fishing my phone from my purse, I held it up hoping to call an Uber or someone to help me, but the screen flashedno service available.
Shit!
Not only that, but the battery was dangerously low, so I powered it off and shoved it back in my bag. What the hell was I supposed to do?
I kept walking since I had no idea what else to do and up ahead, a cabin sat with a single light shining from the front window. Was it the same cabin with the wedding reception?
It couldn’t be. It looked a lot smaller, but I marched towards it anyway, because at this point, anything would help.
The rain continued beating down on me and I shivered, coldness seeping in with the wet.
So much for having a fun night out.
