The Vipers Temptation | Completed (edited)

Chapter 13 - Lost In The Woods

I'm cowering behind the bedroom door, holding a lamp. If anyone dares to enter, they'll get a lamp to the back of their head. There's a creak in the floor coming down the hallway and I prepare myself, gripping the lamp's base harder as a dark figure approaches the doorway.

My heartbeat echoes in my ears, and I brace myself. As they head towards the bathroom, I creep after them before lifting my arms and swinging the lamp towards the figure. In a flash, the person spins around, ducks out of the way, and grabs me from behind.

"Quiet." Relief fills me at Nico's voice. "The men from the hotel must have caught up to us and called in back up. Too risky to stay here. Get low and follow me. Got it?" Fear slices through me, but I nod. Nico and I stay crouched as I follow him to a window in the back of the bedroom, almost flushed against trees. "Wait a minute for the all-clear." He whispers before opening the window and sliding out.

After a moment, Nico reaches his hand back up and motions for me to follow. I peek out to see Nico readying to catch me. My landing is surprisingly silent before Nico takes my hand, and we move through the trees. I can barely see two steps with only the moons light to guide us, but Nico seems to know where he's going. Trees blur by as we quicken our steps.

Movement from our left causes Nico to hide behind a tree before engaging with two men. The first one, he sneaks up behind putting him into a chokehold and snapping his neck. The second, he shoots with his gun, which, thankfully, has a silencer on it. He comes back to me and we continue. I trip over a twig just as a shot rings out and hits the tree behind me. I almost got shot. Again. Fuck, this is real. This is happening. I'm being chased through the woods by killers while holding another killer's hand.

"Quick, this way." Nico tugs me in the other direction, and I struggle to keep up. I need to start taking cardio more seriously. After fifteen minutes of running, Nico hides me behind a bush. "Stay low and quiet no matter what you hear," Nico whispers in my ear so quietly I can barely hear him, and then he's gone. I stay hidden within a cluster of bushes and trees. My knees are folded as I laid my head on them and wait.

Within five minutes, I hear people running on the rough terrain, followed by grunts and shouts of pain. The blood stench penetrates the air, and I bite back a gag. I'm not sure how long I sit here before Nico comes back for me with bloody hands. I've watched and heard this man kill almost a dozen men, and yet those hands always treated me with kindness and pleasure. What the hell kind of fucked up situation have I found myself in?

"I don't think there's any more of them out there, but to be safe, we should head out. There's a town not far from here." He starts walking away, expecting me to follow, but my gaze is locked on the dead bodies lying on the ground. "Callie, we have to go."

"I've never seen so many dead bodies before. Since you entered my life, all I see is death." Nico forces my head to turn in his direction.

"Now is not the time. If you want to yell at me later, you can, but right now, we need to move."

With one last look at the bodies, I try to remind myself why Nico is wrong for me and that just because we had sex, it doesn't mean anything.

...

"Just admit we're lost." We've been traveling around the woods in circles, trying to find the town Nico mentioned.

"We're not lost."

"Then you're directionally challenged."

He whips his head back towards me. "Shut it."

"Freaking jerk," I mutter under my breath as I walk away, determined to find this damn town myself.

"What'd you say?" He demands as he follows behind me.

"Nothing." I snap. I'm so frustrated and focused on him following me that I trip and barely managed to catch myself.

"What?" He asks.

"Nothing! I said...nothing!" I huff. I need to get away from him, or those men won't be the only dead bodies in these woods.

"I feel like you're plotting my death."

"How observant of you." I stumble and almost roll down a hill, but Nico catches me.

"Careful." Nico whispers and I shiver from my front being pressed flush against him. After more time than necessary, I back away and pretend to be unaffected by his closeness.

"There's the town. Told you I knew where I was going." Nico boasts.

"Did you just say I told you like a five-year-old?"

"Yes, yes I did." With that, he starts walking down the hill.

...

"Oh fuck. Yeah, baby right there. Just like that. Fuck, fuck, fuck." I slap the wall in annoyance at our overly sexed-up neighbors.

"This is getting ridiculous," I mutter as I towel-dried in the bathroom.

We booked a motel room when we finally reached the town. It's been two days since then, and the one thing I have learned about the people in this motel is that they never stop partying or fucking, and I am over it. I quickly get dressed as another round of moaning starts up, and walk out.

"I'm finding the nearest taxi and taking it home." I tell Nico, who was lounging on the bed. "I can't listen to any more couples fucking."

"How are you going to pay for it? And they're not couples. Probably strippers from the strip club down the street."

"How are prostitutes any better?"

"At least they get paid for it."

"I'm done. Take me back to my apartment, and we'll just forget this happened." I start walking to the door when he jumps from the bed to block me.

"Unfortunately, I can't do that. Someone is after the both of us, and you're not leaving my sight until I figure out why."

"Playing possum in the middle of some backwoods town doesn't help! How do you even know of this town?"

"Long story. Just a little more patience." He holds up his hands up in a surrender motion.

"Fine. One more day."

"Perfect, now get dressed in one of the outfits I got you."

"Why?"

"We're going to see some of my old friends." With that last comment, Nico disappears into the bathroom to shower. I think he gets off on being cryptic.

And who would willingly be friends with him?