Secret Supernaturals: The Witch

The History

- ALTHEA -

“Okay, so what did he really do cause I’m ready to fight this b-” I could sense Cassandra getting agitated, so I decided to cut her off.

“It didn’t end the way you think it did.”

The clock read 5:39 p.m., but I already wanted to sleep and forget that I had to explain the situation. Beside me, Cass tried to furiously munch on the chips she grabbed in the pantry before we went upstairs to my bedroom.

“So he didn’t cheat on you?” I shook my head no.

“He didn’t break your heart into a million pieces? Break up over text? Ghost you?”

“Nope.” I continued to browse through the shows, trying to buy myself more time. She grabbed the remote from my hand, turned the T.V. off, and looked at me expectantly. I took a deep breath and attempted to find words to explain the situation without sounding crazy.

“We were in the woods, the area was pretty secluded and-.” I started

“Did he touch you without your consent?!” She stood up abruptly and looked like she was ready to raise hell. I grabbed her arm and pulled her back down.

“No! If you keep interrupting, I won’t be able to finish the story. Just listen!” She frowned but kept quiet nonetheless.

“We were just hanging out, okay. Going there was my idea, not his, but I honestly can’t remember why I wanted to go. It was near your area too.” She looked like she was about to say something, but I gave her a look and she settled back into her seat.

“Okay, we were there, it was getting dark and he suggested that we should go home.”

* * *

“Let’s go.” Liam held his hand out to me, and I took it without hesitation. We were quietly heading back to his car but the loud rustle by the trees suddenly made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

The sky was already turning darker, the shades of orange and red slowly fading into purple and blue. The trees were towering above us and, when I looked beyond them, I could’ve sworn I saw shadows lurking, following us. As if sensing my unease, he gripped my hand tighter.

“I got you, don’t worry.” His voice was like a warm blanket, and I instantly calmed down with his reassurance. The shuffling by the trees got louder but I just walked faster, wanting to get out of here as fast as I could. We reached his car but I could still feel eyes on us. My heart rate picked up, and I scoped the area.

On the other side of the clearing, just behind the trees, was a tall figure. It was too dark to tell, but based on their height and build, I assumed it was a man. How on earth did he get to the other side so fast? The SUV was in between us but I had no doubt that this dude could run twice as fast as I could, so making a break for the car wouldn’t be the best decision to make. I wasn’t running back into the woods either, so I had to think fast for a way to get out of here.

Liam pulled me closer and stepped in front of me. This was dumb, was he really thinking of taking this guy on? I tried to pull him away at the same time the stranger moved forwards, running towards us at full speed. Only the loud crunching of leaves beneath his feet could be heard in this wide, open space. I hid behind Liam, clutching at his sides as I braced myself for impact. It never came.

Instead, a loud shot rang out and, enough to scare the birds to fly away from their peaceful perch on the trees. For a while, I couldn’t hear anything other than the ringing in my ears but when I looked again, the stranger was on the ground. Blood was steadily pouring out of his wounded stomach. I didn’t know if he was unconscious or dead, if he was still breathing or not, but I had no intention to find out. In front of me, Liam held the gun in his hand steadily, looking unfazed at the scene before him.

He just shot someone, get the f**k out of there! I stared at him wide-eyed, and couldn’t help but back away when he turned and reached for me. He grasped my arm before I could get away and turned me back, steering me towards the car.

The man was still on the ground unmoving and I started to run to the car on my own. He was just protecting me, protecting us. I shouldn’t be running away from him. I kept repeating the words in my head, willing myself to calm down before my heart exploded. The door was already unlocked when I reached it, and Liam was right at my heels.

“Thea, I’m not gonna hurt you, I promise. Stay inside, okay?” He closed the passenger door, ran to the driver’s side, and got in, contacting I-don’t-know-who on his phone.

“We have to get out of here now, we don’t know if there are other people with him. I’ll take care of everything, okay?”

He reached for my hand, and gave it a squeeze before he focused back on the path before us. He was still on the phone, and I recognized the voice, but I couldn’t figure out who it was. My thoughts were still on that man outside and everything that has transpired in the past few minutes. Sitting in the car, I realized how badly I was shaking. My palms were so slippery I couldn’t even get my phone out of my pocket. I furiously wiped them on my jeans, forcing myself to calm down before I passed out.

He ended the call, and we were finally moving. Peeking through the rearview mirror, I couldn’t help but stare at the slumped heap on the forest floor.

* * *

I wasn’t aware that I’d been crying, I only realized when I felt the wetness on my shirt and Cassandra’s hand combing through my hair and rubbing my back.

“You’re at home, you’re safe.” She soothed and I welcomed the comfort.

No one else knew what happened that day aside from me, Liam, and whoever else he told the story to. Not even my parents knew. For months I’ve kept it to myself, and I never realized how strongly it really affected me. I started wiping my tears, and concentrated on my breathing.

It took a few minutes, but when I finally wound down, I felt Cass move away a little, giving me some space.

“Did you go to the police after or call an ambulance?” I shook my head no.

“He said he’d take care of it.” Which probably means that any record of it happening would be cleared, non-existent, as if I imagined the whole thing. I wish I did.

Silence fell upon us, and I enjoyed the short moment of peace knowing that it would most likely be as quiet as it was gonna get for the rest of the weekend. We sit together, letting ourselves digest all that info. Cass broke the silence first.

“Thank you for sharing all of that with me. I shouldn’t have pushed you so hard into telling me,” She gave me a tight hug. “But I’m glad that I could be of service. You can tell me anything, you know that, right?” I nodded and she stood up from the couch.

“Anyways…”

“We started this weekend off on some really sad vibes and I’m so sorry. I’m supposed to be cheering you up!”

“Why? Did you think it was the usual “he-was-a-fuckboy” reason?” I couldn’t stop the laugh that erupted from my throat.

“Yeah, then I was thinking we could talk s**t about him for a few minutes, y’know? Maybe discuss how to ruin his car or something.” I rolled my eyes. Always so destructive.

“We can still talk s**t about him, but I’d rather we don’t talk about him at all. Solid pass on the car though, I’m not trying to get myself shot too.”

It felt weird joking about it, but I decided that I would try not letting it affect me. Cass grinned, and we continued our bickering, helping me get my mind off the entire situation for a while. I was very thankful to have such a great best friend.

A knock on my bedroom door interrupted us, and Ms. Davis peeked her head in.

“Dinner’s ready, girlies. Would you like me to set the table downstairs or would you rather I take your food up here?” Ms. Davis was a sweet old lady who made the best cookies. She’d been taking care of our house since I could remember, and has done such a good job at it.

“We’ll take care of it Ms, Davis, thank you!” She nodded her head and ducked out, closing the door softly.

“I’ll go down first, you can freshen up. Your eyes still look a bit puffy.” Cass headed out the door, and I found myself alone again.

I went to the bathroom, leaning over the sink to wash my face. The memory hit me just as I closed my eyes, like I was watching a video behind my eyelids.

* * *

“A-aren’t we gonna c-call an ambulance or something?” My words came out in stutters as I stared at the stranger through the rearview mirror.

He moved, started getting up, getting on his hands and knees. I was about to tell Liam to call an ambulance now, but the words died on my throat. The stranger was… changing.

His limbs looked like they were breaking, elongating even. The clothing he wore was ripping to shreds. Claws sprouted from his hands, and his body was sprouting what looked to be fur. We were going faster now, and more distance was put between us which made it harder to see him but it didn’t matter. I already saw it. The creature faced our direction and, for a moment, I was scared that it would chase after us. We took a turn just as I saw it turn around and disappear into the woods.

What the hell was that?