She thought it was a group of children playing in the bushes at first, until they stood up to reveal that all their faces were almost swimming across the flesh-like mass that tried to mimic the way she stood, failing miserably under its own unstable weight.
The cold didn't seem to effect in the slightest as it propped itself up enough to leap out at her, scattering snow and branches in a flurry of movement while she turned and fled, ever-mindful of the ice beneath her feet, ever-mindful that the safest place to be was probably the lake.
The deputy lived right on the shoreline and even if he wasn't at home, she could still hide out there and call for help. At least, she hoped she could. They tore through the frozen forest, one gasping for air while the cluster of others laughed and chattered to themselves, seemingly enjoying the pursuit.
As the trees thinned out and the barely-trod snow turned to well-worn muddy paths she knew she was close to safety. Within minutes she was running round the side of the house, nearly tripping over the bloodied and broken remains of the deputy, half dragged out the door and long gone by now.
She had no time to act as the cluster came hurtling down the dirt path after her so she chose to take matters into her own hands. She chose to run out onto the ice, hoping it would hold and not caring if it didn't - dying of her own accord was likely a kinder death than the poor deputy had faced.
The ice crackled and shook beneath her as the cluster followed and with a thunderous crack she fell.
The faces above the ice clustered around her, mocking her as as everything faded to black.
No comments:
Post a Comment