The Heir - Blood Secret : The Chosen One - Secret Heir, page 2
“I’m good.” I lied, looking back up.
He stared at me for a moment, his expression softened.
“Then, why are you not out of here yet? Two, whole weeks off, go and do whatever young ones do these days!” Leaning forward, he rested his arms on the dark oak desk.
His cloudy blue eyes etched with concern.
“Francesca?” he frowned “Anyone else who was due two weeks of paid leave would be running for the door. Why aren’t you?”
I hesitated, my hands curled around the edge of the chair. I hadn’t realized I’d been absentmindedly toying with a bit of torn fabric. The knot in my stomach hadn’t settled and uneasiness washed over me at the thought of walking home alone in the darkness.
I sighed heavily and held my hands up not wanting a lecture and still not wanting to admit the truth either. His lectures always made me feel like a naughty teenager. If anyone else had lectured me I could just have brushed it off but he was one of those people who it meant something to when they were disappointed.
“I’m fine, honestly,” I said, flashing him my most convincing smile.
I didn’t want him to worry about me.
He leaned back in his worn-out office chair.
“You could always take Mary up on her offer and have dinner with us one night while you’re off!” He added, in an amused tone. He knew me well enough to know it wasn’t going to happen. I didn’t mean to hurt Mary’s feelings, I just preferred to be at home.
And besides, being by myself was blissful after the shifts at work. I loved nothing more than going home, curling up on the sofa with the open fire crackling in the background, with a strong coffee and reading a good book. Mostly my collection consists of Stephen king – Finders keepers being my all-time favorite. Nobody writes quite like Stephen King, especially his stuff from the eighties and nineties. That man is a modern-day genius.
Other nights, I found myself unsettled and staring out my living room window, gazing out to the street below. I had become used to having no one to talk to about my day or normal day to day chit chat with anyone over dinner. Doing it after so long would feel weird. Really weird.
Being a misfit was something that people picked up on, assuming that I was an easy target, back when I was at school. The popular girls would tease me, but I had a sharp tongue. After threatening to cut their perfect little cheerleader outfits up to shreds they gave me the space I craved. They knew to keep their distance from me, unsure if I was one to follow through with my threats. Come to think of it, they kept their distance from me pretty much every day after that showdown. And people say violence is never the answer. Clearly, they never met Miss Pageant perfect with her friends she bought with daddy's credit card.
I made friends with the ones that weren’t afraid to be themselves. The ones who didn’t follow suit with what was in fashion or who was popular.
However, as we grew up, all my friends decided our small town of Brookdale, Pennsylvania wasn’t where they saw their selves living out their days. I was beginning to think along the same lines, at the age of eighteen, I wondered what lay ahead, if I was to leave here. Surely there was more to life than just work, sleep, eat repeat? I was grateful for everything I had but... there was more.
There had to be.
I pulled my feet down from Andy’s desk and stood up.
“See, you in two weeks,” He said with a smile that showed off the deep wrinkle lines around his mouth, the kind that you only get from years of smiling.
I knew I had no other option but to leave, he would have just kept asking questions.
I made a dash for the door “See, ya.” I said, before exiting quickly.
“Dinner is at quarter to six most evenings!” Andy yelled from his office, again, no doubt hoping I would show up at their house for dinner. I rolled my eyes and rested my back against his office door
“Not gonna happen, sorry!” I roared back, smiling and shaking my head. I didn’t need to make up excuses like I had been known to do with Mary.
I was still spooked by the noise I heard outside.
So spooked, that I even contemplated on making small talk with Darcy, in hopes I could have gotten a ride home from her at the end of her shift. She loved nothing more than to brag about the new Porsche 911 sports car her dad had bought her for her nineteenth birthday. Too flashy of a car for a small town if you ask me. That was dear darling daddy’s girl all over. They say high school never ends, and I was starting to believe it.
Nonetheless, I couldn’t bring myself to smile and nod while she talked about the latest makeup trend or her favorite reality show. I knew the sooner I left, the sooner I would be home. I reached down for my backpack, having disregarded it under the bar at the beginning of my shift, and tossed it over my shoulder, making my way to the end of the bar. As usual, Darcy was too engrossed in flirting with a man old enough to be her father. I cringed, as I watched her toss her bimbo blonde hair over her shoulder, laughing loudly at some lame joke the customer was telling her. It was so high pitch and fake I was surprised that half of the dogs in town hadn’t come running to the supersonic whistle of it. It seemed to work on the old guys though, always did.
I was relieved to get past her undetected as I made my way out through the bar. It had begun quieting down as it was last orders. I stepped outside, the breeze was warmer than what I remembered from earlier, more humid. I took out my smartphone before I pulled off my denim jacket, wrapping it around my waist.
The street lights were giving off enough glow to guide me as I walked around to the footpath. It had been created by people taking the same route through the woods over the years. Often, I would think about the stories of the other people who had passed through that way, wondering who they had been and what adventures their lives had taken them on. But not tonight, for me it was all too different. Usually, the dim haze of orange was soothing as I associated it with getting back to my solitude, but lately, it seemed a shade off than usual. I stood nervously, biting my bottom lip, hesitating to go.
The darkness looked terrifying, the trees had caused monster looking shadows in the distance. Their wide jaws were open, menacing in the dark as they waited for me.
My hands squeezed into fists “Okay, I can do this!” I muttered under my breath. The only other option was to walk the long way home. But I was tired and just simply couldn’t be bothered to walk the distance.
It took over fifth -teen minutes, whereas the walk through the woods was less than five.
Maybe I need to find someone else’s books to read. Too much Stephen King had gone to my head. If I’d seen a red balloon even I would have squealed.
Ba bum ba bum ba bum.
I could feel my heart trying to break out from my ribs. I took a deep breath and pushed forward with my journey home. My heart battering, drowning out the whistle of the subtle breeze. I stayed alert though, unwillingly and unable to think of anything but that sound.
I held my cell phone up, and my fingers brushed over the touch screen, scrolling through my apps. I tapped for my torchlight app to turn on. The beam of brightness permitted me to see where I was going.
Keeping my cell phone aimed down on the ground, I only dared tilted it up every so often. It could only have been less than a minute into my walk home before I heard the same rustling sound from before.
I had almost made it too.
The branches above me snapped, and the sound of the leaves swooshing had me aiming my light up, wondering what size of animal it could be, to make noises and movements as loud as that!
I rushed forward, picking up my pace, still holding my cell phone up in my front view.
Suddenly, the sound of hissing in my ear had me running as fast as an athlete. I had done gymnastics years before, but the muscles in my thighs were beginning to ache at the speed I was running. My feet fell one in front of the other with a heavy pitter-patter like droplets hammering down in a thunderstorm.
Stop! Stop running there’s a reasonable explanation as to what it could be! I scolded myself, as I bent over and rested my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. I could see the bright lights from the streets ahead.
I was close.
I straightened my posture and prepared to keep going.
My light had turned off, somewhere between the running and stopping to catch my breath. I could only presume my hand had brushed against the sensitive screen, causing it to go off. I kept my eyes firmly on the street lights that were glistering in the distance. I started to walk slowly, the cold cutting at my skin like jagged points of a thousand pins.
It was never this creepy.
I used to enjoy the quietness.
The stillness that the woods had to offer. Not recently though, it felt more sinister, like eyes were watching my every move. I just couldn’t shake that feeling.
I scrunched my eyes, as I tried to focus in the darkness. I thought I had seen what I could only describe as a blur movement in the corner of my peripheral view.
I froze.
Rooted to the spot and my legs began to shake.
What if there was someone here, watching me?
You really should have taken the long way home my inner bitch scolded. I moved my head slowly, glancing all around, in the direction I had heard the creepy noises, straining to see if I could see anything or anyone.
Within a split second, something hit me with such brutal force, that I was thrown to the ground.
“Ouch!” I groaned, lifting my face from the dirt path, trying to gain my focus. My back hurt so bad, that I let out a loud whimpering sound. That was a bad idea. I regretted that reaction. What if the hunting creature heard that? What if it thought I was an injured prey? Just ripe for the pickings? What if it could smell fear? My thoughts were running wild.
I staggered to my feet, not waiting around.
I ran, releasing my arms from my bag, not wanting any weight to stop me from escaping.
There was no looking back. I didn’t dare. I tugged at my denim jacket, allowing it to drop to the ground. I knew I was going to miss my favorite item of clothing, but running for my life was more important, I didn’t give it a second thought at that moment. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, it felt never-ending. The lights seemed to move further and further away. I pushed through the pain, adrenaline kept me from thinking of anything else but running.
Sickness washed over me and my mouth filled with water.
The adrenaline coursing through me made me shake, I was quaking like rocks rolling down a mountainside.
Branches slashed at my skin, as I stumbled in the darkness. I would fall to the ground, then I would just as quickly get up to run again, fearing for my life.
Seemingly out of nowhere, a dark shadow in front of me had me skidding on the dirt and I found myself landing flat on my ass. I tried to scream, but nothing but a whimper escaped my lips. I couldn’t make it out, it was pitch black in the woods. I looked up to see what I assumed to be people, their dark figures moved among one another followed by the sound of grunting and gasping. I scrambled around in the dirt, patting my hands over the ground searching for my phone.
Finally! I found it!
My hands trembled as I struggled to turn on my torch app.
I was unsure who or what was around me.
Before I had time to react, I heard more noises coming from my left side.
The sound of twigs and branches breaking, struck fear in me, making me lightheaded.
I couldn’t resist knowing what the commotion going on only a few feet from me was. A tremor of uneasiness rushed through me like a cold wave in the middle of the Atlantic, as I held my cell phone up, aiming the bright LED light toward them
Dark figures moved among one another followed by more sounds of grunting and gasping.
One suddenly rushed past me.
I cranked my neck over my shoulder.
What moves that fast?
I rested flat on my back on the ground and breathed a sigh of relief of nothing being there.
Finally, freedom from fear.
I could have laughed. Oh! How I would be able to laugh about it the next day.
Only it was short-lived.
I held my breath at the sound of heavy breathing.
I slowly pushed up onto my elbows.
My eyes locked on to the looming figure that was darker than the darkness itself. Piercing red eyes bore into me, brighter than fire reflecting in a ruby, as they towered over me, staring down, like an animal stalking its prey.
“Run..!” It roared. All the air seemed to be sucked from me. I couldn’t run. I couldn’t even blink.
I wanted to cry.
To beg, but nothing came out, my lips trembled as my body lay paralyzed with fear.
I could feel everything around me spinning. I tried my best to fight, but my body gave out. Everything went black.
1
THE HEIR - BLOOD SECRET
Chapter two
My eyelids were heavy no matter how hard I tried to open them. My body refused to acknowledge the fact that I was trying to wake up, it was almost like having sleep paralysis.
My body was on lockdown, a survival instinct if ever there was one. They always say fight or flight. They never said possum was a potential reaction.
The sound of disembodied voices had me laying as stiff and still as possible. I so desperately wanted to prize my eyes open.
I wanted to know where I was. What I was facing.
Who are these people? What do they want with me?
Gathering my thoughts and pretending to be out cold,
I tried to comprehend what was happening. The possum may not have been the coolest spirit animal but right then it was the smartest option. I just hoped that they wouldn’t pick up on the rise and fall of my chest. I tried to inhale as little as possible. Surely they would hear me exhale or my heart or… something.
I knew I had to survive.
Stay still. Stay perfectly still Francesca I told myself.
“You had no right bringing the girl here!” A man’s voice growled.
Girl! I’ll show them, girl!
I was trying with all my strength to wake up more, but it was consuming me. All I could do was lay there and listen. My eyes still sealed shut against my will in a blindfold of my own making. My mind was running fine but my body was like a broken doll, refusing to do anything.
“I’m sorry my Lord, but the breacher, he was close to harming her. When she fainted, I had no other option but to bring her here to safety!” Another man replied.
Lord? Who gets called Lord in these days, and what the hell is a breacher?
Wait... He had said fainted.
That explained the sensation that washed over me. I had fainted. That was good, somewhat.
At least I would be back on my feet soon. But how soon? Would it be soon enough?
Wait! Where the hell am I? Who found me?
“You could have been followed.” The stern voice argued.
The other showed a little bite in his tone.
“I made sure I wasn’t.” He assured.
Who were they talking about? Did I really want to know? The floor was cold and hard on my back, and a dull ache traveled through me but I stayed still and silent as the dead.
There was a guttural growl.
“Bringing her here only puts her in more danger!” The stranger’s voice was laced with anger.
I didn’t dare open my eyes, I stopped trying to. I laid there still as a mouse, listening to the voices talking over one another, something about an attack will no doubt follow.
My body was aching from being pushed with such force by the figure.
The figure!
I remembered the dark shadow thing that chased me in the woods. My eyes suddenly sprung open.
Using every last ounce of energy that I had, I edged up onto my elbows to try and figure out where the hell I could be. The stench of mold and woodsy incense had my nostrils flaring. The smell was overbearing, it was like the musky smell at the old antique’s shop on Harper Road, not far from my work. I had to wonder just how far I was from work.
Had I lost an hour or a day? Whatever time had passed I was fighting back.
That smell was like a combination of dusty items that had been gathering over the years. An eerie but nostalgic tang that clung to the history stacked books against the shop walls. The antique shop on Harper Road was somewhere I found myself wandering and admiring all the items that they had on display quite regularly. I went there often to kill time in between my shifts, so I wouldn’t have to make small talk with Darcy. Talking to her aged me more than anything in that shop.
I moved my head, blinking through the tiredness, trying to take in my surroundings. If I needed to escape, I was going to try and take in as much of this room as possible.
Exits, staircase, windows, anything that could give me a head start from escaping these weirdos.
My eyes were drawn to the hypnotizing flames that flickered from the cobwebbed torches that hung on the brick wall. Once, a few Halloween's before my parents had died, we had gone to a haunted house attraction. It had been a scream, literally, but even that was nothing on this. As light licked at the walls I began to zoom in on the details; dust and darkness that seemed to swallow the shadows with its power.
“She’s beginning to wake up,” One of them said and my heart about stopped.
“Take her to your room, keep her safe until I decide what to do next!” The stern voice from before was aware I was coming around. Not to mention, he had amplified the “I” showing exactly who was boss and who I should be worried about. Though I had a feeling that he wasn’t my only problem.
“Yes, my Lord.” The man replied.
I didn’t hold back, I pulled myself up trying to focus my eyes in the dimly lit room. The scatter of movement leaving the room made me flinch, as it moved incredibly fast. I had never seen anything like it.
It didn’t help that I was still woozy, I tried to stand but my knees buckled beneath me, I braced myself for the fall, squeezing my eyes shut.
Damn it! Had I ruined my chance at freedom?
