Autumn Falls by A.R. Kingston

Author:A.R. Kingston [Kingston, A.R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Keen Quill Press
Published: 2021-05-13T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty

“Your nightmares follow you like a shadow, forever.”—Aleksandar Hemon, The Lazarus Project

W ondering through a dense fog, darkness blinfolded Charlotte like a damp rag. She felt something cold and wet under her bare feet; leaves still drenched from the rain. She realized she was lost in the forest, still dressed in her pajamas. Thinking how strange it was that she could have wandered out this far, she remembered it had not rained on the island since she got there. The ground should not be wet. Wondering what was happening to her, she continued to explore the area when someone's crying coming from deeper in the forest glued her feet to the soggy soil. Straining her ears, her heart grew ice-cold as the sounds of crying turned to screaming and wailing, which turned into blood-curdling shrieks of agony. It sounded like a man was being tortured and torn apart. She thought of going for help when the sounds suddenly stopped.

Paralyzed by fear, she took an uneasy step forward, heading in the direction the screams came from. A light flickered from somewhere in the dense foliage and once again she was cemented in place, but this time by another horrifying sound. Squealing saturated the dark space around her. All she could hear in her bones were the horrible, agonizing howls of an animal in distress. Tears stung the corners of her eyes. She loved animals, especially pigs, and knowing one was suffering nearby caused her gut-wrenching pain. Moving for the light, she hoped to save it from its fate, but the screaming stopped, and the air grew thin and frigid.

She did not know how long she stood there, a minute, maybe more, when a bleat pierced the silence followed by a woman's scream. Glancing about her, a rustling in the nearby bush drew her attention. Squinting her eyes in the noise's direction, she spotted shadows moving in the distance and something rushed past her, knocking her off her feet. Wet soil broke her fall, and as she stood up, she caught sight of a cloaked figure chasing after whatever had taken her down. The robed person stopped and turned to look at her. This stranger bore a striking resemblance to Victoria, except this woman was wrinkled with a crooked nose, a hairy mole on her chin, and long white hair tangled in knots.

"You," the woman sneered, "you're not supposed to be here."

Reaching for her belt, she yanked something out, and as the sharp edge of the knife glistened in the blood-red light of the moon above, Charlotte knew her life was in danger. The woman swiped the blade for her neck, and she fell back, feeling the razor edge nick the skin of her throat. Falling to the soggy ground once more, she scurried away from another blow, backing herself up against a tree. Her attacker approached, holding the weapon up, ready to strike her down. Charlotte thought that was the end of her when the sound of her name in the distance pulled her back to her own time, and the world around her started to disintegrate.

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