Cursed Hearts

CHAPTER TWO: SOMETHING IN THE DARK

The wind howled long into the night. Emilia had barely slept. Even after the lights returned and the forest fel quiet again, the chills hadn't left her body. It felt so real, like it had actually happened. John stayed with her for the rest of the night to help keep her mind at ease. By morning, while she was getting ready for the day, she noticed some scratches on the window, more like claws mark on the window wood. and hand print on the glass.

“Morning”. John's voice draws her attention back. She turned around to see a shirtless, half awake John.

“Morning”. She replied with a faint smile.

“You ok??”

“Yeah”. She didn't want to tell him. He wouldn't understand and she didn't either. They set out after breakfast, heading deeper into the woods with their gear. Emilia kept glancing over her shoulders, her nerves on edge. Maria was talking about strange owl patterns and John made a joke about needing better coffee but their voices sounded far away. The forest felt different today or just her nerves.

“I'll set up new motion cams near the ridge,” John said, consulting the map.” Should give us a broader capture range”.

Emilia nodded absently. Her boots crunched over leaves and fallen twigs as they approached a dense part of the forest where the trees grew taller and closer together. The sun barely touched the ground here.

“I don't like this place”. Maria muttered, eyeing the shadows between the trees. “It feels so off”.

“Yes it does. This ain't your daddy's mansion. You're in the middle of nowhere”. John offloaded the bags. They set up camp gear near a rocky clearing. Maria offered to stay behind to monitor the live camera feeds while Emilia and John pilot off to scout potential owl nests. Emilia offered to go north.

“You sure you wanna go?”. John said with a worried expression. “You can stay with Maria. I can finish up alone”.

“No. I wanna do this. I need to clear my head”. Emilia smiled.

“Ok. If anything happens, just scream my name and I'll come get you. Ok?”.

“I'll try to remember that “. Emilia moved carefully, jolting notes. She stumbled across a tree with unusual claw marks near the base. It looked similar to the one she saw on the window. She felt it, thinking about what animal could possibly be able to cut this deep into a tree. Still moving her hands around the tree, a cool breeze hit her skin. She noticed the forest had gone silent again. No bird singing. A twig snapped behind her. Turning around quickly, a man stood across her.

“Hello?” She called out but no answer. He just stood still.

“Are you lost?”. She began to walk up to him but he walked away before she could get to him.

“Wait”. She tried to catch up with him but he moved too fast. She hastened her steps but still couldn't match his speed. She lost him. She paused to catch her breath. Looking around, she met two green eyes, just like in her dreams. It moved closer revealing its sleek black fur. Its gaze is so intense.

Emilia held her breath, heart racing with fear. It lunged at her, it's powerful legs propelling in a swift, motion. Emilia ran as fast as she could. Branches clawed at her bare skin. She tripped on a stone and fell to ground. The wolf loomed over letting out a growl before sinking its teeth into her flesh. Emilia screamed in pain, her voice echoing through the forest. She tried fighting it off but it didn't let go. She picked up a branch and stabbed it.

“Aaaaaaaaaoooowwwwww”. It howled in pain, retreating Into the woods. Emilia laid there, heart pounding, pain spreading to every part of her body. The world felt distant,as if being muffled. Her fingers trembled as they reached her bleeding neck. It was burning. Her vision started to blurr. A strange warmth crept through her limbs. She tried to sit up but darkness rushed in too fast. She collapsed.

★★★★★

John returned from his own end. “Emilia isn't back?” He asked Marie who was busy with her phone.

“Nope”. She putted down her phone. “ So how did it go? Find anything interesting?”

“Yeah. I saw some nests and…..” John was still explaining when Emilia's scream cuts him off. They both glanced at each other.

“That's….”

“Emilia “. They both set off hurriedly to look for her.

“Emilia?”. John yelled in frustration. It's been an hour of searching but they still haven't found her. Maria stumbled on her compass.

“Look”. She showed John the compass. “She must be close by. John snatched it from her and continued to search. He was beginning to panic, thinking of every terrible situation she could be in. He wished he had stopped her from going alone.

“Emilia?” He called again. Maria heard something rustle in distance. Following the sound and expecting the worse, she found Emilia's notebook and few steps away laid an unconscious Emilia.

“John, over here “. Maria said. John rushes over.

“Oh my God”. Maria sobs. “Is she dead?”.

“No. She still has a pulse”. John said. “We need to get her to the hospital. He lifted her form the ground as they raced back to the cabin.

“Go grab the key from the counter “. John said. Maria rushed in scrambling through gears and papers but no key.

“Maria hurry up “. John yelled. She searched the drawer and soon finds them. She rushed out again, her hands trembling as she tries to open the door. John carefully placed Emilia at the back seat, with Maria beside her as he sped down the road to the hospital.

“She's burning up”. Maria said.

“Check if she still has a pulse”. John said.

“Yes”. John increased his speed but slowed down at the intersection. Cars idled at the stoplight, their engines humming with anticipation for the green. John was growing impatient, there were no cars coming from the other direction. He looked at Emilia soaked in sweat, he had no other option than to take the risk. Driving past, to the other side. A police car chased after then.

“Pull over, I repeat pull over”. The officer said with a megaphone but John didn't stop, he sped up. They soon made it to the hospital with the police right behind them. They grabbed John immediately he stepped down from the car.