The Endangered Luna

Chapter 4: Danger in the woods

Alisha's POV

Hayley's phone rang as she drove us back home and she reached for the phone on the dashboard. Her hand hit the phone instead of grabbing it and it slid to the floor of the car. She made an attempt to go for it but I stopped her.

“Keep your eyes on the road. I'll get it,” I said and bent forward to retrieve the phone from where it fell.

I found it after a few seconds and I picked it up but it had stopped ringing. Hayley indicated that I should drop it into her lap and I did.

She continued driving and I noticed her stealing glances at me after a few seconds.

“What?” I asked.

“I want to know what you think,” she replied and I immediately knew what she was talking about.

“I already told you, Hayley, it's none of them,” I replied. We were coming from a visit to a mutual friend and as it turned out, the friend had been having a get together but Hayley didn't make me aware of that when she invited me to tag along. And, as expected, there was booze, games, and boys at the get-together. Hayley had tried to play matchmaking all evening but I made it clear to her that I wasn't in any way interested. I didn't tell her about my encounter with Jackson at the funeral a few days ago and I didn't think I ever would because I knew what she would say. As it turned out, the scream that had interrupted our moment had come from a little girl at the funeral and it was because she thought she had seen the dead man coming out of the grave. It took a great deal of consoling and assurance to calm her down and some of the people present decided and agreed that it was probably Jan's spirit that she saw but I didn't believe in s**t like that. I noticed that Jackson and a few others didn't but none of them said anything. I had almost given myself away when narrating the incident with the little girl to Hayley but I managed to stop myself.

“Come on, Alisha,” she coaxed, “you can't tell me that none of those guys caught your fancy. You would be lying to me, and yourself, if you did.”

But she was wrong. None of them had caught my attention and it was all because of Jackson. From the onset, I really didn't care about boys, unlike Hayley who was crazy about them..

I turned to look at her so I could drive my point home. “Hayley, I am not interested in any of them and that's it.”

She stared at me long and hard, as if trying to break through whatever facade she thought I was presenting. Then she shrugged and didn't say anything. Her annoying ringtone broke the silence between us after a while and she was able to answer it this time.

“Hello,” she said into the phone and then I saw her freeze and the next thing I knew, the car was screeching across the road.

“Hayley!” I screamed and it took a few seconds for her to jolt out of her reverie. She realized what was happening and she regained control of the car and managed to bring it to a stop by the side of the road.

“What happened?” I asked, my heart beating very fast. For a moment, I'd thought the car was going to veer off the road and into the woods. I knew for sure that if what happened had happened on a busy road, then we would be dead meat by now.

She blinked a few times and I noticed how hard she was gripping the steering wheel. Gently, I placed my hand on her shoulder and said, “Talk to me, Hayley. What happened?”

“My mother was in an accident and she had to be rushed to the hospital,” she answered, without moving.

“Oh my God. I'm sorry,” I said in sympathy. “How bad is she hurt?”

“I don't know yet,” she replied. She turned the key into the ignition and the car stuttered for a few moments before it started. “I have to get to the hospital.”

“Do you need me to come with you?” I offered.

“No. Don't bother. I'll call you if I need you,” she said.

“Alright. Go see her,” I said. She gave me a reluctant look and I could tell what she was thinking. “Don't worry. I'll find my way home.”

“I'm sorry,” she said as I opened the car door and stepped out. “I'll make it up to you. I promise.”

“Sure. I know you will. Call me,” I said and shut the door. I watched as she pulled the car onto the road then she made a sharp U-turn and drove back in the direction we were coming from. The location of the hospital was just a few minutes drive from the place we went to earlier.

I waited until the red taillights of her car disappeared before I started walking. The sun had set fully but the moon was yet to appear in the sky so everywhere was a little bit dark. I had only walked for a few minutes when I started getting the feeling that I was being followed. I turned around and after taking several cautious glances at my surroundings, I started walking again. After another few minutes, I got the same feeling of being followed and this time, I was sure there was someone hidden somewhere that was monitoring my movements. My heart pace increased and so did my footsteps. I broke into a run after a while and I could feel my body flooding with relief as I was almost clear of the deserted road. That relief disappeared when I heard a crackling sound behind me and I looked back in time to see someone lunging at me. I screamed and dived sideways barely escaping the person's hold. I made to get up and run but the person was faster and the bones of my leg nearly cracked from the pressure they applied to it as he grabbed me. I realized the person was male and the scent of danger coming from him was overwhelming. All my attempts to escape his grip were in vain and it became clear that he was far stronger than me. I kicked out with my second leg, hoping to hit him and inflict pain on him with my heels but I felt his second hand on the leg instead. Then I felt myself being dragged into the woods and I screamed as loudly as I could. I'd heard of rogue wolves that lived their life as they wished without giving any care to customs and traditions and the thought of being abducted by one heightened the fear I was feeling. I continued kicking my legs but my attacker maintained his grip on them as he dragged me into the woods. I heard the sound of a car approaching and he stopped and looked up because he had also heard it. Realizing that it could be a form of help, I continued screaming for help and I made sure it was louder each time. But the car didn't stop and my heart fell through as it drove by until I didn't hear the engine again. The moon was already appearing in the sky and it glinted against the teeth of my attacker as he grinned wickedly at me. There was a sudden ruffle of leaves and a rush of movements. A figure appeared out of nowhere and went straight for my assailant. He whipped around and tried to defend himself but he was too slow and something hit him on the head, sending him to the floor with a thud. I was about to scream again but a hand on my mouth stopped me.