Let It Burn

Chapter 11

Vanessa

Posters of Derek Harrison have taken up 80% of the walls on campus, nobody has seen or heard from him since he left our Law Lecture on Monday evening. Everyone is going crazy, there have been fucking search parties and yet nothing was found. No trace, no clues. It's like Derek simply dropped off the face of the earth. The policeman is tapping his pen on his notepad with his brown eyes narrowed as if trying to see if I'm lying through my teeth "So you're telling me a biker guy you don't know, who stalks you and texts you almost every day promised he would get rid of any man who comes close to you. Derek disappears and so does the texts?" He asks and I sigh, this is the third time we are going through this "Yes just like I said the first three times you asked Officer" I reply "Why didn't you report him before if you kept seeing him everywhere?" The policeman asks

"Because I am new in this country, I didn't really think I would get taken seriously if I told you that I moved here and had a biker following me everywhere I went. I don't know anyone here except for the girls I met the day I arrived on campus; I had no proof but the texts that vanished. So, point proven" I reply getting frustrated "I understand dear, but if you felt this way you should've told us so that we could look into it. We have a missing student now and without proof, it doesn't have much credibility" he adds but I just nod "Can I go now?" I ask "I will contact you if anything changes," the policeman says as I reach the door "I didn't know him much but Derek didn't seem like the person who would disappear this way out of his own accord, he was really excited to be here," I say and leave before the officer can say anything else to me. I leave the principal's office and go straight into my dorm where we have managed to squeeze in another bed for Zola to move in with us so she didn't have to share a room with a complete stranger.

"They didn't believe you?" Zola asks when I throw myself onto my bed covering my eyes with my arm "Of course not, I have no fucking proof. I don't get it, how did everything just disappear" I groan "Maybe this guy is really dangerous, he knows every fucking location you are and now this?" Scarlett says "Yeah it's fucking creepy but as much as this sucks I want to get fucking wasted to ignore all of this shit for one afternoon" I say sitting up again "We weren't going to miss the bonfire" Zola smiles "We were actually trying to figure out how to convince you to go" Scarlett says "no convincing needed, I need a distraction" I say, I can't help but feel guilty about Derek's disappearance I truly never expected that this crazy fucker would actually do something to him.

This can't be happening.

Maybe Derek just took a road trip and isn't in danger.

Who the fuck am I kidding, he wants to play cat and mouse, and I fell right into his fucking trap. I had to test him, I had to be so stupid thinking he wouldn't go ahead and do exactly what he threatened to do.

"You can't do that" Zola's voice pulls me out of my thoughts, our eyes meet, and she reads everything she needed to know right there "It's not your fault" Scarlett presses "It might as well be, I pushed him. He warned me twice and now Derek is gone. Just fucking gone" I say pinching the bridge of my nose "It isn't your fault, Vanessa, how were you supposed to know that this guy was serious? And we don't even know if it truly was him, look LA is a crazy place it wouldn't exactly be the first missing person from this college either. So, you need to just keep your mind clear, I'll be the designated mother hen and you get black out drunk with Scarlett" Zola says with a shrug as if this whole thing was nothing to worry about, which in retrospect it might not even be. How much of a coincidence can this even be? It's my head it's playing games on me. There's no other explanation "I guess you're right I'm just freaked out" I shake my head "How about I get us some special candy and we can pretend this whole night is in a different constellation" Scarlett says and I can't help the smirk that grows on my lips.

"That I would like to feel"

Later that night the girls and I dressed in our hottest outfits with our tight dresses and high heels. Scarlett and I definitely looking for trouble. My phone vibrates on my bed just as we are finishing up.

Unknown: I hope you're going to behave tonight.
Even though I am very excited to see what tiny little dress you'll be wearing.

I look at the messages, and text my mum that I am going out before turning my phone entirely off "Ready?" Scarlett asks "Definitely" I reply throwing my phone back on the bed and following them out of the room "You didn't bring your phone?" Zola asks "I would rather not be paranoid every time a cute guy talks to me" I reply. We get an Uber to the edge of the woods and walk the rest of the way to the lake where the bonfire party is taking place, we could hear the loud music from the moment we got out of the car. Scarlett pulls me back and hands me a pill "This should take around 30 minutes to have any sort of effects, have you done it before?" She asks "more times than I care to admit. Don't worry it's nothing new" I say taking it before she says anything, she does the same thing while Zola just nods "I'll be lookout" she winks.

By the time the pill is having any effect on me, I am dancing very closely to a very very cute light-skinned guy whose name I have already forgotten but his striking green eyes are enough to make him memorable. He has the type of perfect face of a man who could easily break your heart and have you apologising, but I'm not looking for love, no I am looking for a night of pure euphoria with a man who hopefully knows exactly what he is doing and by the way his hands run up and down my sides, I can already tell that he does "Want to get out of here?" He whispers in my ear, voice husky and alluring sending goosebumps erupting all over my skin and causing my underwear to dampen "fuck yes" I reply grabbing his hand and leading him deeper into the woods

"I meant my car"

"Too far"

I push him against a tree and slam my lips hard against his and he hums in satisfaction as if all he was waiting for was for me to make a move, from there, he wastes no time in switching places with me so that I am pinned against the tree; his hands instantly pull my dress up, feeling my wetness through my lace thongs, he smiles against my lips before slipping his hand inside my thongs and inserting his fingers inside of me. I moan against his full lips and he moves his fingers in a "come here" motion that has me arching off the tree as he hits the perfect fucking spot "Is this good?" He whispers "fuck yes" I moan and he speeds up the pace, my moans are careless at this point as I grind against his moving fingers feeling that knot at the bottom of my stomach ready to burst at any -

"Oh God, fuck" I moan as my orgasm rips through me without warning, he lets me ride it out before unbuttoning his pants.

Twigs snap behind him and a low growl catches our attention, the guy turns around shielding me from whatever is there. He gasps seconds before his body falls, thudding against the grass. I drop to my knees and turn him around, I can't help but scream when he looks at me, blood running down his lips and that dagger poking out of his chest "Oh my God. SOMEBODY HELP" I yell hands shaking aggressively, his pleading eyes stare into mine as he chokes "No no no" I whisper palming the wound around the knife knowing the damage is bigger when it's been removed "PLEASE SOMEONE" I yell louder this time.

Running footsteps towards us.

Someone else screams.

Everything else feels like it moves at hyper-speed, the ambulance arriving and the police who drag me away from the body. The blaring of the sirens, the whispering crowds, the cries. Scarlet and Zola are on either side of me. I stare at the blood on my hands, on my thighs.

This is my fault

I look up and there in the distance is a tall man standing tall, his face hidden by the shadows but those hazel eyes. The hazel eyes that haunt my dreams and my deepest terrifying desires that I can't seem to shake off.

There he is eyes crinkled.

He's fucking smiling at me as if telling me 'I told you so'

"We found another body"

I snap my head towards the policeman "Did you get an ID?" The chief asks

"He's beaten pretty badly but it's Derek Harrison, sir"