Inferna Nuntius

Chapter 15

15

            The blood stained woman tore down the street, occasionally stealing a glance over her shoulder to make sure he wasn’t following her. I should have kicked him one last time, she told herself and pushed her legs even harder. Her tears mixed with the blood as they ran down her cheeks, dropping onto her shirt as they fell from her face. She ignored the dried, sticky blood that was caked o her face and neck and instead pushed her body even harder, trying to put as much distance between herself and her attacker. Her heat beat heart in her chest, thumping against her ribs with each contraction. Her lungs screamed at her to slow down; her legs were begging for a break, but her mind knew that if she stopped now he would get her. His long, bony fingers would once again wrap themselves around her neck and he would drag her to the ground, finishing what he started.

            That fear and that alone drove her body harder and harder. When faced with flight or fight, she had fought as much as her body would allow and then she taken to flight, taking herself as far away from him as possible. She hoped that her body was strong enough to carry her far enough away to remove herself from the danger, but there was that small voice in the back of her mind that told her she would never be able to get far enough away from the monster that attacked her.

            Her mind began to play tricks on her and she suddenly felt cold fingers grasping at her neck. A burst of adrenaline surged through her body and her screaming legs cried out with each step. Her muscular thighs began to show signs of fatigue and she felt the all too familiar sensation of a muscle cramp start to take a hold of her left leg, causing her to stumble and eventually fall to the ground. As her face made contact with the pavement, she cried out as the loose pebbles embedded themselves in her skin. New tears formed in her eyes, stinging as the crossed the freshly torn skin.

            She lay on the pavement, broken, bleeding, spent. Every time she tried to lift herself, her elbows buckled and she made contact with the ground once again. She willed herself to rise to her feet, but her body failed to cooperate with her mind. As she lay face down on the pavement, an easy feeling of calmness overtook her body and she felt her body relax. Her raged body welcomed the end of the fight just as much as her mind did. The pavement felt cool against her flushed skin and she slowly blinked, feeling the unfamiliar darkness start to creep closer and closer, enveloping her one blink at a time.

            As she opened her eyes one last time, her breath hitched in her chest as her eyes came to rest on a solitary pair of black boots. Her eyes moved north, starting at the boots and slowly moving up the jean clad legs, finally coming to rest on two arms that were reaching hastily for her. Her calmness was replaced by a primal fear and low cry escaped her lips as the arms grabbed for her, dragging her from the pavement.