Cannibal (Book One of A Bloodline's Saga)

My Personal Tour Guide

Cut at your face 

Blood in the sink

You'll hate yourself 

Till the day you die 

 Carnifex

"Emily, you getting up today or do you want to call it a quiet one?" Lucy asks as she gently taps on the other side of my door. 

Something inside me tells me to say I can't be f****d and that my head is still too sore for it, only my mind clicks onto Luke and how I still have his number faintly written on my arm. So springing up and out of bed, the hopes of spending some time with Luke giving me that wake up boost I need to answer the door with a wide grin. 

"I'll be out in a sec." I puff from my sprint to the door, Lucy shooting me another weird look and slowly nodding her head in response. 

"Alright then. Oh and by the way, were you up early this morning? I swear I heard the shower going." she questions on her way to the said room. 

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep so I ended up having a shower, she's all yours." I smile brightly, Lucy sending me that same bizarre look before I flap my hand as if it's nothing, then slam the door shut with a smug grin taking over. 

Throwing on an outfit I semi-agree on considering I'm beginning to get down to the clothes I thought were a good idea at the time, now seeming to regret majorly, I head back into the bathroom after hearing Lucy exit and throw my hair into a messy bun. 

Chucking my hairbrush back into my toiletry bag along with my toothbrush, I return back to my room and throw my clean clothes I strewn across my bed, back into the bag. Though a knock at the door distracts me and has me spinning on my heels to face a beaming Mum.

"I just wanted to come in and see if there's any washing that needs to be done because Cam and I are thinking of putting a load on." she announces while coming in with an almost half-filled bag of clothes.

"Oh my God you read my mind." is all I say when I begin loading my stuff into the garbage bag before she's off asking Lucy the same thing. 

Remembering Luke once again, I'm not far behind following Mum into Lucy's room and asking Lucy for her phone, both of them looking at me in confusion though I go into detail straight away with what happened to my phone. 

"Well f**k, are you going to be okay without it for a bit?" Mum questions, worry heavily evident in her tone as Lucy coughs her phone over. 

"Yeah, I just need to make a phone call to one of my friends because she would want to know what happened between Jake and I." I explain, Mum shooting me a knowing look when Lucy rants on about how I better not take too long. 

Giving her a flap of the wrist, I'm now off back into my room while Mum and Lucy delve into another conversation, my hands trembling with added adrenaline and pressure of not f*****g this; I roll up my sleeve and observe the largely written number on my skin. 

Running my fingertips over it as if it's a new piece of ink, I decide to swallow my fear and prolonging in favour of dialling the number. 

At first I think it's going to go straight to message bank or even worse, a disconnected number, only I'm proven wrong when it begins to ring straight away. 

"Hello?" the tired sounding voice responds, for some reason my voice seizing up before there's a chuckle on the other end. 

"Is this Emily?" 

"A-huh." 

"Well hello then." 

"Hello, Hi Luke sorry, were you sleeping?"

I'm now in panic mode as I begin to think that maybe I'm coming off way too desperate, and he now might not want to have me around. I mean I did just break up with Jake, well he broke it off with me in his own f****d up way, but in no way shape or form am I using Luke to get back at Jake or on the rebound. He is actually a genuine guy to have around and I'm glad I didn't just meet him at the restaurant that night. 

"I was, but that's okay I did give you my number. So what's wrong, you lost again?" he questions, though you can hear the grin in his voice. 

"Oh ha-ha funny, no, I was actually seeing if you were working today?" I reply with a bored look considering he will never let that go. 

Then again I could be lost a hundred times and it still wouldn't bother me having Luke around to get me out, yet would he? Like I know for a fact he likes my company, but is he only around because he feels sorry for me for what Jake did? 

Either way, if I wasn't with Jake I'd still have the same feelings for Luke, I just hope he knows that too and not think that I'm clinging onto the first guy that is showing me attention. 

"No I was only on the morning shift, why what did you have in mind?" 

"Well the parents and I are apparently going somewhere for a family thing but it always leads into Lucy and I doing our own thing, so I'll text you where we are and then you can come and chill with us."

Silence. 

"Would your sister care if I'm there?" he finally replies, a faint sigh of relief passing my lips before a grin sets in place.

"Nope, because she will be too busy trying to figure out who the f**k you are." 

There's laughter from the other end before he agrees to come, that's if he makes it in time and depending on where we are. 

"Oh my god thank you, you're actually the coolest guy I know."

"Oh I bet, now I'll see you soon okay, just give me a bit to wake up."

"No worries buttface, see you later." 

"The fu-" only I hang up on him with a laugh as Lucy knocks on my door demanding her phone back. 

"Alright I'm coming!" I answer while I do a weird dance all the way to the door before opening it with an even weirder expression. 

"Are you high? Because I won't tell Mum or Cam if you are if you let me in on it." she whispers when mum's voice is still being heard close by. 

"No, I'm just happy that Jake's gone I guess. I mean you know when you hear people waking up and one day just not caring about s**t?" 

A nod from Lucy. 

"Well I think that's just happened to me."

"Okay, well if you do get your hands on some weed, let me know." 

"Will do."  

"You two, did you hear what I said?" Mum demands when she comes speed walking into my room.

"No sorry, we were talking about something and we didn't hear you." Lucy says in a joking tone which Mum plays along automatically. 

"Well maybe you should learn to f*****g listen." Mum shoots back, Lucy and I giving her the bird before repeating herself. 

"I said are you f**k face's ready to go?" 

"Yes Mum!"

"Yeeeeees!" both Lucy and I drone out in boredom, Mum clapping her hands together then slapping our butts on the way out the door. 

"You are so f*****g weird." Lucy laughs to the car, Cam being heard coming out of the cabin and locking it up with their key. 

"I thought you would never come, now have you told them where we are going?" Cam grins as we all pile into the car. 

"Nope, I was waiting for you." Mum replies with a smile now matching his when they both get to share the excitement of telling us where we're going. 

"Well we are going on a trail walk through a nice bit of scenery, being deemed good to go through by the local rangers that run this town." he announces, my plans of seeing Luke a failed one for today, I wait for a few minutes before asking Lucy for her phone again. 

"Man, you just rang Hannah." she complains while we commence on driving to our destination. 

"I know, but apparently she saw Jake in town today." I lie, my eyes flickering to Cam who twitches in his seat at this newly found information. 

I feel bad for lying about Jake's whereabouts because I know he's after Jake for what he did to me, but I don't exactly want to leave Luke hanging and wondering where the f**k I am. 

"Okay, but hurry up." Lucy sighs then goes back to her iPod, the iPod being the only source of fun for the trip to our destination, for her.

"Toilet stop while Cam and I fill the car up?" Mum pipes up as we near a petrol station.

"Nah I'm good." I reply. 

"Yeah I will come actually." Lucy confirms when the car comes to a halt, everyone apart from me getting out and using this time to quickly notify Luke.

"Hey." 

"Hey Luke, ah I don't think we can hang out today apart from tonight which I doubt considering that would boil down to me sneaking out. But anyway, did you want to organise something for tomorrow?"

"I guess, why what are you doing today?" 

"Well we're going on some trail walk that the rangers said it is all good to go through, but I don't know what track we'll be taking." 

"Where are you now?" 

Describing him the petrol station as well as the buildings around it, he knows exactly what one and informs me that he has something planned. 

"What do you mean you have something planned, what could you possibly do?"

"My job." 

Then the line's cut off and I'm left wondering what the f**k has he got up his sleeve, only to jump back into the now when Mum and Cam as well as Lucy make it to the car with a drink for me, too. 

Accepting the bottle of Coke, we continue on our drive to the destination with my imagination going off and ideas of how Luke will stumble across me and my family, blooming wildly. 

                                                                                                 * 

The trip feels forever, only I know for a fact we're still in the small town. 

So parking the car in the many parking spaces the entrance of the trail has to offer, we're about to head in when there's a voice calling for us to stop.

I spin on my heels and almost bust out laughing as I see Luke in his ranger uniform, and a few people leading behind him, that I have no idea who they are, but they're all old and wanting to hurry up and get going with the hike. 

"I'm sorry; we were told that this place was good to go through." Cam states while Luke stops a few meters in front with the elderly yet active gathering behind him. 

"You are, it's just they must have left out that you need a guide considering the snowfall this morning, covered up parts of the track and it could get you getting lost." Luke explains which has Cam looking to Mum and asking if she wants to go somewhere else, though Luke's eyes are still on me as we share the inside joke of me getting lost all of the time. 

"No it's fine, we'll stay. I mean who's to say we can't do our own thing and have a longer look." Mum murmurs to Cam who mumbles something in reply, though Luke and I are too busy trying not to laugh and avoid eye contact. 

"Hey I know you, you're the guy that helped Emily and I find our way back through that mountain." Lucy pipes up, my head snapping onto her and shooting her a look as if to say "shut up". 

"Oh yeah, you're the young bloke we saw at the restaurant the first night too. But I didn't quite catch your name." Cam recalls with a look of annoyance now turning to one of friendliness.

"Luke and you?" he asks, Mum stating hers as well as Cam stating his. 

"Well I already know you." he grins when he sets eyes on Lucy.

"Obviously." she replies jokingly and a look as if to say "I'm not stupid" going with it. 

"I can see we're going to get along nicely. Now if you please follow me for the tour I am about to give you!" he announces, his voice reaching towards the group of elderly yet fit people who broke off somewhere in the conversation to do their own thing. 

We all share a laugh then begin following Luke into the entrance of the trail walk when he starts on the history of the place as well as the wildlife, birdsong or snapping of twigs accompanying me and my thoughts of getting out of here with Luke.

Not long after that I find myself at the front of the group as the others shuffle along at snail's pace to admire nature's work, which would be good for my parents considering they did want to take their time in admiring the walk. 

With Luke and I now being our own group of two, we walk for a bit longer up the path until we find we're out of ear shot from the others. 

"So, what do you think of my master plan?" he grins down at me, my elbow nudging his before rolling my eyes and shaking my head. 

"I can't believe you made up a whole trail walk just to hang with me. Are they even people who wanted to come for the walk or what?" I giggle when he can't seem to wipe the smile from his face.

"You could say it was a last minute decision thing, I mean I actually announced some bullshit tour experience walk in one of the main lounging areas at one of the hotels we have here, I was surprised by the response. I mean they're all old, but it was a good excuse to look like I'm working considering my dad doesn't pay me to do nothing all day. Besides, I'll be getting extra for thinking up of a way to keep the guests entertained." he smiles triumphantly as I process it all with a shocked look. 

"And you almost bet us to the place as well." I chuckle, him giving me a matching smile then replying. 

"Almost, but not quite. Not just that, I didn't want you being alone on the walk because we did agree to catch up you know." I state matter of factly with with a hint of a grin.

"Ah excuse me, could you tell me why this building is still here?" a tourists asks, everyone stopping to admire the rotted and broken down shack then locking their gazes back on him, mumbled questions pouring from their mouth's as well as hopes of learning something today. 

"Well before we started branching out more into the mountains, woods and forests that surround the town we know today, there used to be groups of families that lived in those mountains as well as the forests and woods around them. The more we expanded, the further away these people lived from civilisation." he explains when excited murmurs now travelling around the group while Luke goes on. 

"Hang on, so what kind of people would live up here, mountain men?" another pipes up.

"More like cannibals, but yes I guess you could say mountain men." Luke supplies with a small smile on his face when everyone gasps or makes a noise to state their distaste.

"Whoa, so you're saying civilisation chased the cannibals away?"

"Yes, only because they knew they were going to be chased out anyway for what they did. Only what the towns people didn't realise is, they were once successful cow farmers of a special kind that were used to the cold weather, only the cows started to die off and their food supplies were running scarce meaning their prized cows were no longer making them money. So they were forced to shut down and I guess that started the evacuation of some of the people that dwelled in these parts of the woods or forests. But the ones who stayed turned to eating the people who would come through here." 

"That doesn't put us at ease, what if they are still lurking around?"

"They won't be considering there hasn't been a trace of them for years. Besides, that's why we carry protection and whatnot in case we were to ever find ourselves in situations like that. Not just that, the people before me made sure this was a safe place for people to stay without worrying about people from the mountains taking vacationers from their beds." 

That causes a round of laughs before we're all moving again along the trail, my mind still on the story about the cannibals as the night I was attacked, comes rushing into my head like blood would to the brain. 

No don't be stupid, if they were cannibals then I would have already been dead. Then again, it still would make sense as to what the f**k attacked me in the woods that night I snuck up on Jake.

A nudge to my arm has my attention on Luke, his smile pulling me out of my thoughts as I rule those thoughts out as stupid and my imagination kicking in once again.

"I'm sorry, what?" 

"I said we're almost at the end of the trail, everyone is getting tired and I think your parents want to go home." 

Looking up where his gaze is, I see the snow starting to fall before catching on that we might lose our way back. So turning around, we all start heading into the same direction as to where we came, my eyes watching when the group begins to break away from one another to form their own ones. 

"Well if you are still down we can hang out for a bit tonight, I mean that's if you want to?" Luke asks while our group of two returns and makes the departure back, quick. 

"Sure, I'll text you when I'm coming but don't ring because I will have to sneakily use my sister's phone." I explain as he laughs then agrees.

"Sucks you don't have your phone."

"I know, but I'm getting a new one so I ended up ditching the old one considering it wasn't worth saving." 

"Smart move." 

The rest of the walk feels like seconds, my boredom peaking once again when I realise that I'll have to leave Luke, yet my day brightens as I remember the plan of meeting up with him later. 

Just as everyone finishes thanking Luke for such a good walk, even Mum and Cam agreeing with the others and thanking Luke as well, we head for the car we came in and follow Luke out in his car, and back towards where I'm staying then part our ways.