Lead Me Out of the Dark

Mayday, Man Down

"Do you see them?" I heard a voice ask. My head whipped upwards. I had been staring at Deck, watching him beat the life out of Jack. I hadn't stopped him. I just stood there, paralyzed with fear, confusion, and indecision.

"Jack said they were at this cabin. Keep looking." Deck seemed to hear this too, because he jumped up off of Jack.

"It's the football team. You two run off. I'll stay back and talk to them," John declared.

"What? No, you're coming with us!" I hissed underneath my breath. That was the stupidest plan I'd ever heard. They'd probably beat the shit out of John just for standing near Jack's mutilated body. Deck nodded.

"Okay. Meet us at the truck in fifteen minutes." Deck ordered. John confirmed that he would, turning to stand facing the other direction.

"No!" I wailed. Deck ignored my pleas. He just kept pulling me towards his truck. I couldn't believe the events that had occurred tonight. Jack had tried to rape me. Now he was bleeding profusely on the ground. I wouldn't doubt that his nose and jaw were probably broken. Deck punched with everything he had. It wasn't a pretty sight. I heard a couple football players approach John. Luckily, Deck and I weren't in their line of sight. We were far enough away that I couldn't hear what they were saying. I tried to stop and stare at what was happening, but Deck kept pulling me along. I didn't understand his sense of urgency. Three of them began talking and one dropped to his knees beside Jack. I saw him grip Jack's neck for a couple of seconds, and then his wrist. He started yelling something and then the boys were huddling by Jack. John remained exactly where he was.

 As we got further away, it got harder to tell what was happening, but I heard when the boy on the ground began screaming at the top of his lungs. He was screaming so loudly it sounded gut wrenching. The boy who was wailing jumped off of the ground and sprang at John. He began trying to fight him, but the boy was small and young. He wasn’t very experienced. I wasn’t too worried, as John was handling himself very well. Then one of the bigger guys ran over and began helping him. He knocked John down with two blows.

A strangled scream ripped from my throat. I couldn’t help it. Deck looked over at me like I had lost my mind. His eyes widened when he saw the football players began moving in our direction. He began running, tugging me behind him like a doll. I saw them notice us and begin running in our direction.

My heartbeat tripled it’s speed, and I recognized the familiar stirrings of an anxiety attack. Oh no oh no oh no- I gasped, but my vision was already blackening.

“Deck?” I asked, my voice wavering.

“What?” Deck panted. He turned to look at me. He was looking directly into my eyes, and that made me dizzy. Why was the world spinning so much? It felt like the ground was spinning beneath my feet, like I was standing on a carousel.

“I don’t feel right,” I slurred. Then everything was black and I was falling…