Adrenaline and fear course through my veins, the wet sound of mud squishing between my toes wars with the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance and the harsh pants of my breath struggling through my teeth. I brush another clump of my hair from my face, the normally orange locks tinged red and sticky with blood. A flash of lightning illuminates my path in the forest for just a moment and I mentally block out the presence of the blood caking my skin, only some of it being mine, not ready to mentally unpack what I had just done. Another bolt of lightning brightens the night sky, glinting off the steel of the knife still clenched in my hand, a deafening crack of thunder rattling my bones. As I continue my brisk pace through the darkened path, I slow my steps when I notice a cabin a little ways off in the distance, Lady Luck finally smiling down at me. Resuming my previous speed, I dart up the stairs to the cabin, peering through the windows to see if anyone is home, a small shot of relief pulsing through me when I find nobody there. Trying the door, I'm shocked as it just swings open, the space eerily quiet. "Hello? Is anyone there?" My voice was calmer than it had any business being, considering what I'd been through, not to mention what I'd done. I shake the thought from my head, refusing to acknowledge the events of the past..... God, how long had I been in that basement? Searching around the cabin, I catch a glimpse of my reflection in a mirror, my whole body freezing for a moment as I examine myself from across the room. My normally dull blue eyes seem almost neon in the mirror, the girl staring back at me looking like something out of a horror film, Blood and dirt streak down her face. My face seemed off to me, my once full cheeks now thin, deep circles beneath my eyes, my skin even paler than normal, blood specks blending with the freckles on my chest between the small streams of watered-down blood that made their way down my abdomen. I barely recognize myself, though when was the last time I'd gotten a chance to see myself in a mirror? The longer I ponder the thought, the more I realize I have no clue how long it has been since I'd been snatched from that park. Lost in my musings, I don't hear the door to the cabin opening, nor do I hear the people coming inside, rumbling laughter mixing with words I can't quite make out. "Easy, Jax!" The voice forcefully rips my thoughts from me, plummeting me back to the present.
Ducking behind the door to the bathroom, I held my breath, not wanting to alert whoever was out there to my presence, hoping I could just slip away unnoticed. The thought brings a memory unbidden to me, my body locking up in a panic as I replay my first of many failed attempts to escape that wretched place. The phantom pains dancing across my skin threaten to pull me under, though despite the half spiral I manage to keep myself in the present as I hear the footsteps stop, a low sound coming from one of them. Peeking through the crack in the door, I watch as one of the men bends low, and even through the leather jacket he's wearing his physique is impressive. The man drags a finger along the floorboard before lifting it to his friend, the both of them slowly looking around the cabin. Shit... Looking at the floor beneath me, I find tiny droplets of watered-down blood on the tiles, a small trail of them leading to my hiding spot. Noting the men hadn't panicked nor called out, an ominous feeling ate at me, that feeling of mania crawling up my spine as my body prepared for a fight. The reaction terrified me just as much now as it had at the encampment, though for an entirely different reason now. The men who had held me prisoner deserved to die, or so that nagging little voice buzzed in the back of my head said. This was different though; These men were simply returning to their cabin, and they couldn't possibly have known that I'd be there. Unless... Unless they were with the men who had captured and tortured me. My blood ran cold as the manic feeling grew, my suspicions spiraling at their lack of reaction. These men had to be with them, at the very least they were like them. Why else would you have a cabin this far out in the woods? I knew there was nothing near here for miles, after screaming for help multiple times throughout my imprisonment as well as after I'd escaped, each attempt being met with silence. As they slowly worked their way towards me, my resolve hardened, the mask I'd felt back then slipping over my features as I backed away from my hiding space, my body tensing and coiling as I crouched low in front of the tub, ready to end them before they had the chance to do the same to me.
The door swings open in front of me slowly, a beam of light bathing my bloody form from the living room as I grip the knife in my pocket tighter. "Oh shit. Ev, come here." The man's voice is gruff and full of surprise as he studies me carefully, taking in my bloody appearance as the other man comes to join him in the doorway, a string of curses leaving his mouth when he spots me. They two stare at each other, back to me, a silent conversation passing between them before the leaner of the two steps forward, his hands held up slightly."Hey, are you okay? You're covered in blood." The new man's voice is soft and full of concern, his brows knitted as his green eyes rake over me. We stand a few feet apart, both seeming to take the other in as we continue our standoff. He runs a hand through his short brown hair, musing it as he studies me with growing concern. At my lack of response, he takes a few cautious steps forward, freezing when I finally pull the large knife from my pocket, the long jagged blade caked in drying blood. He shoots a glance over his shoulder to his leather-clad companion before turning back to me, his hands raising slightly higher at the show. The longer I stare at the two of them, the more anxiety dances through me. The first man was bulky, the leather doing little to hide his muscle from me, he would be a problem on his own. Looking back toward the brunette, I realize even he alone would be trouble for me despite being much leaner than his counterpart. My mask remains firmly in place as my eyes dart between the two men, deciding the best way to end them and escape, my bravado being contaminated by panic at their size as my original plan flies out the window. "Easy there, little fox." My gaze immediately snaps back to the green-eyed stranger, the nickname making my pulse run ever faster. "Why don't you put the knife down so we can help you, okay?" His voice is soft and patronizing, as though I was some rabid animal he found wounded in the woods. The thought has me bristling more, and as he takes another step my mania wins out over my fear, my whole body now rigid with a strange feeling I couldn't name, a smile stretching unnaturally against my cheeks.
The look on my face gives both men pause, each seeming to notice the shift in my demeanor. It was them or me, one of us would have to die. The thought is irrational, and a small part of me screams the sentiment repeatedly as my less rational side drowns out its attempts. Raising my knife, the smile still stitched onto my face, I look between the two of them slowly before finally moving forward, laughter echoing through the room as I swing my stolen blade at the first man, a gasp of surprise leaving him as he jumps backward, my blade slicing cleanly through his coat, red blooming from his arm. Dancing backward, I watch the two men as they do the same to me, the second man now stepping in front of his injured companion. That strange feeling doubles as he reaches into his pocket, my eyes tracking the movement, my blood racing faster when he pulls his blade out, the look on his face still one of concern. "I dunno what happened to you, fox, but you need to calm down. We're not-" I lung forward, my arm arching, blade aimed straight for the man's throat when a sharp sting to my own has me wrenching my whole body back, my focus turning to the green-eyed man, more specifically the small syringe in his hand. The sickly familiar feeling of the tranquilizer entering my veins burns through me, panic and anger coursing faster. "YOU... You son of....o-of a-" The words come sluggishly from my mouth, darkness tinting my vision as I fight uselessly against it. The two men slowly approach as my traitorous eyelids begin to close, the last thing I hear is the low hum of their words as I'm finally swallowed by the abyss, my fate left to the two strangers who had just drugged me.