Her Soul Bonded Mate

Chapter 18

Neffi

“Are you sure you’re going the right way?” Taylor asked Sam as she drove deeper into the woods. It didn’t help that there were no streetlights, the moon was full, and we only had the stars to guide us. When Taylor asked if I wanted to go to this party, I didn’t expect I’d have to be in the same car as Sam, who was still upset that I was dating Liam.

Normally, I would have avoided the situation. However, Taylor convinced me that everything would be okay and that we would be separated at all times and I wouldn’t have to talk to her nor her me, and for the first twenty minutes of the ride, I didn’t even look at her; however, the moment we entered the woods that I had only been through once before with Liam when we were attacked by wolves, I had a feeling she was up to something and every part of me wanted to hop out that car and run like hell back towards the school.

“Yes, the G.P.S says it’s the right way,” Sam said, sounding as if she were enjoying the panic that was coming from her friends.

“Yeah, I think your G.P.S is broken,” LaToshia said, paranoid. She was sitting in the back sandwiched between myself and Rebecca, who was holding her seatbelt so tight I thought she was going to break it.

“Would you guys relax, we are almost there,” Sam said, as she turned left down a street that said, “Danger Do Not Enter.”

“Did you not see that sign?” I yelled. It was the first time I had said anything to her the entire ride.

She only rolled her eyes, then said, “If you were so scared, you shouldn’t have come,” in what sounded like a growl, reminding me of those wolves that had attacked. All of a sudden, my mind started to race with thoughts of what or who she could be.

Is she one of them? Did she kill my parents? No, that’s impossible. I thought.

Is it? The voice in my head said, and my eyes grew wide, as fear crept into my soul. When I challenged her before, I wasn’t scared because I knew how to fight and to me she looked kind of weak, but if she was what I thought she was, then there was a possibility that I wouldn’t be able to make it out of there without getting hurt or worse, dead.

“I vote we turn this car around and go somewhere else,” Rebecca chirped, just as Sam pulled into what looked like an old abandoned mill that sat on a hill. I seriously didn’t understand these people and their obsession with abandon places. It was well after 11 and there were a lot of cars there, people were standing outside, dancing to whatever song was playing, drinking from red cups and having what looked like a fun time. They were all dressed up in different costumes, ranging from a slice of pizza to a dildo, and yet, no matter how much fun it looked, I couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable and ready to leave.

“You were saying,” Sam asked, with a smirk that I wanted to whip off her face. She was dressed as a devil, with the red bodysuit, the fork, and horns to top it off. She also wore red and black makeup which matched perfectly with the demon that I was sure she was. She may not have been a wolf, but I was sure she was evil.

“Okay, I will never doubt you again,” LaToshia said, as she and Rebecca climbed out the car. LaToshia was dressed as Harley Quinn with pigtails to go with it. While Rebecca was dressed as a tiger with the ears and tail to match. Taylor was true to her word of dressing as a fairy, while I decided to be the Queen of Egypt Nefertiti.

Sam only smiled, then got out the car and walked towards the rest of the people. I slowly got out the car and followed Taylor. I didn’t want to be there. It wasn’t like last time, when I didn’t want to be there because my parents died and I didn’t want to be around people—no, this was something different. Being out there in the open under the cool air, made me feel vulnerable and uncomfortable.

Run. The other voice that occupied my head said the moment we joined the rest of the party, so I pulled Taylor to the side.

“What?” She asked, as she took a cup of what I assumed was alcohol from one of the boys that I recognized from our Criminology class. He was one of the few boys in class who actually raised his hand to answer a question. The rest only pretended to listen while trying to pick up girls.

“I’m ready to go,” I said, hoping she'd catch on to the fear in my voice, which she didn’t.

“Go? We just got here, and I’m sure none of the other girls are ready to leave,” Taylor said, as she took a sip of her drink, while the guy from criminology began kissing her neck and she let him.

“Okay, I’ll go that way,” I said, realizing just that fast that I wasn’t going to get anywhere with her. She was in her element and, like all the girls I came with, was parting like it was no tomorrow, while I stood back and watched. The fear in me intensified with each passing minute. I didn’t know what it was or why it was happening. All I knew was I was afraid. It was the same fear that had crept into me the night Liam kissed me for the first time. That moment, though unexpected, was completely ruined by what happened next and I could sense that what I had experienced would be a lot worse as the night dragged on.

Run, That voice said, again, after I had turned down the 10th guy who wanted to dance. In the brink of an eye, the crowd started running. My first thought was to run with them. I didn’t even bother looking for Taylor or her friends, because I learned from an early age, that the moment you see people run you run, so I did.

I ran as fast as I could towards the car that was only a few meters ahead. Sam had already made it to the car, which was weird considering how far back she was compared to me. Her face was in a panic just like Rebecca and LaToshia who had out ran me and made it to the car before I could and began to pile in; however, the moment I reached the car, Sam took off, leaving me stranded with nowhere to go, but deeper into the woods.

Then I heard the sound of paws hitting the ground, followed by a loud howl and I knew that my life was over, but I couldn’t stop running. I refused to stop running. I knew that if I stopped, or even tried to look back, it would be over for me. The one that killed my parents would be off the hook and I would have joined my parents in the afterlife before getting my revenge. That thought is what kept me running deeper and deeper into the woods, despite the burning sensation in my lungs and throat from breathing wrong and the pain in my side from all the running I was not used to.

“Neffi,” I heard Taylor yell, from behind me. Her breath sounded shallow but her voice—her voice was in distress. I had thought about waiting for her; however, the moment that thought came to mind, it quickly vanished as soon as I saw the largest grey wolf I’d ever seen, attack and kill a person not too far away from me. On instinct, I began to run faster—faster than I’d ever run before, as the screams and terror behind me only intensified.

“Taylor, keep up,” I cried, but didn’t lose my pace.

“I’m trying, I can’t run anymore in these heels,” She whined.

“Just keep running,” I ordered.

All of a sudden, I felt something pull at my hand, forcing me to run in another direction. It took me a second to realize who it was, and the moment I did, all the fear that had been summoned in me began to disappear just as quickly as it came. Liam, who was supposed to be out with friends that weekend, had somehow found his way there and was now pulling me and a terrified Taylor out of danger and towards what I hoped was safety.