Chapter 17
T he bag thudded to the ground and I sprinted toward the sound of a woman’s voice screeching in the night. Jenna’s voice. I was sure of it. What the actual fuck was going on? Why was she here in my woods?
“Jenna!” I called, the leaves rustling as I flew past them.
I wasn’t sure how far my steps had taken me until I was out of the woods and in the sparsely populated portion of the cemetery. I came up with nothing after searching every gravestone in my view.
After walking to my right, I strained with my better-than-perfect vision to see the headstones in the distance.
There was no one in the graveyard that I could see and my pulse skyrocketed.
Jenna was in danger. I knew it was her. I had to find her.
There could be another person like my own attacker lurking in here and Jenna wouldn’t stand a chance.
She hadn’t fought anyone a day in her life.
“Rae, goddamn it, where the fuck are you?” I screeched, pissed that she’d left. If Jenna was in trouble and her life was in danger, why wasn’t Rae here to help her?
A crash sounded in the underbrush back in the woods.
Farther right than where I’d exited. I sprinted toward the sound, uncaring that I could be running into danger myself.
I wouldn’t hesitate to put myself in danger for Jen.
She was the most important person in my life despite the recent disagreements.
When I hit the treeline, I stopped, stealth mode kicking in. I didn’t want to give my presence away so I slinked through the trees like a fox. A feminine groan laced with agony met my ears and I made my way toward it, trying to be as quiet as I could.
“You, bitch. You thought you would get away with the way you’ve been acting to me recently?” A maniacal laugh pierced the still night. “No, you don’t get to dictate what I do and how I spend my time. Let alone go through my fucking phone.”
My blood ran cold. Alex.
“I’m sorry,” Jenna cried. “Please, just let me go and I’ll never bother you again. I shouldn’t have looked at your phone. I should’ve just talked to you.”
Alex huffed as I stepped through the trees and the pair came into view. Jenna was lying on the ground and Alex towered over her as if he’d thrown her down. I stepped behind the largest tree trunk I saw, fearing the darkness wouldn’t be enough to conceal me.
“There’s no undoing the past, Jenna. You did what you did and now I’m going to do what I’m going to do.”
I was paralyzed as confusion swirled in my mind. What the actual fuck was going on? What was he going to do?
“Alex, no. I’m sorry. I’ll never bother you again if you just let me go. You can go be with all the other women?—”
Slap.
Rage boiled my blood as Jenna’s head snapped sideways from the blow.
My fury got my limbs moving again and I ran the short distance to them.
Stopping a few feet away, I balled my fists at my sides to keep myself from launching at Alex and beating the shit of him.
He was much bigger than me, but I didn’t care.
“Back the fuck off, Alex,” I growled. “Get the hell out of here. Leave her alone.”
Alex whipped his head toward me, his features seething.
“Jade, no,” Jenna whispered, as Alex sauntered toward me.
When he was an inch from my face, he smirked. “Well, who do we have here? Jenna’s little bitch girlfriend. Wow, I didn’t expect to beat two sluts within an inch of their lives, but I’ll take it.”
I spat in his face. “You motherfucker. Leave.”
His mouth crept into a demonic smile, his breath hot on my cheek. “I think I’ll stay. Two bitches for one. It’s my lucky day. Tell me, what is it that’s so special about you? I tried to get Jenna to stop being your little whore for months, but she never shut up about you.”
What the fuck?
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said.
Alex leaned back, putting much-needed foot of distance between us and crossed his arms. “Oh come on, I know you two fuck all the time since you both love women so much.”
“I told you, we've only ever been friends!” Jenna yelled.
I smirked, stepping toward him and bringing my face close to his once more. “Even if we had a fucking choice, why wouldn’t we love women when asshole men like you exist? No fucking thank you.”
Alex’s hand shot out to wrap around my throat.
His fingers dug into the sides of my neck and crushed my esophagus.
I gasped, trying to get air into my lungs before I kicked my leg out in an attempt to catch his balls with my knee.
He dodged my efforts and I twisted this way and that trying to get free from his grasp.
“Alex, no!” Jenna got to her feet and stumbled unsteadily toward us.
She grabbed Alex’s bent arm that held my shoulder and he elbowed her in the ribs. A squeal shook the trees as she fell to the ground again and my vision darkened around the edges.
“Rae,” I choked, as I began to fade. “Help.”
Just as my knees gave out, I was thrown to the ground, landing awkwardly on my arm. I groaned, struggling to sit up and right myself in case Alex came to deliver another blow. Instead, a blood-curdling scream rang out forcing my hands over my ears as pain lanced my arm at the movement.
Relief flooded my chest as I looked up to see Alex suspended in the air by Rae’s hand around his throat.
She hovered higher off the ground than usual and her ashen arm suspended him out from her body like a rodent.
Her face was stone as she glared at him, and his struggling unfazed her.
I glanced at Jenna who stared, mouth agape.
“You, filth. You will never taint the earth with your scum again,” Rae hissed.
Alex’s eyes bulged like a flys. “Who…who are you? Please, I won’t touch them again. Just let me go,’ he begged.
Rae wasn’t phased. She’d heard it all before as people begged her not to let them die or make their exit painful.
“All your life you have mistreated people and tonight it fucking ends. You chose the wrong woman to put your hands on.”
My heart swelled as I stared in awe of my creature as her possessive voice sent chills down my spine. The malice dripping from her words was horrifying, and I couldn’t blame Alex for the tears that streamed down his face.
“Please. I’m sorry. I won’t touch her again. I won’t ever go near her again. Please just let me go.”
He was openly sobbing and screaming as I watched in silent celebration as the light left his eyes. Then it stopped. The only sounds were from the forest surrounding us. Alex went limp in Rae’s grasp as she threw him to the ground and Jenna screamed.