In the midst of the chilling silence of the night, Maestro K’s laughter echoed from Clara’s phone, which had fallen onto the grass. “One raven dead, one queen remaining. Let’s see how long you can survive this darkness alone, Miss Thorne.”
Suddenly, from the dark forest edge, dozens of pairs of red eyes from night vision goggles began to emerge, encircling Clara, who was sitting limply on the ground.
***
The red lights from the night vision goggles drew closer, forming a circle of death that enclosed Clara in the dark pine forest. Her breath hitched, her chest tight as if the oxygen in the area had just burned up along with Ethan’s car. Tears continued to stream down her face, wetting the ground she gripped with her breaking fingernails.
“Ethan…” she whispered again, but her voice was
