Don't Look Back

Chapter 12

(Kidd's POV)

I wake up, but not in my bed. The world is a distorted haze, the edges of reality smeared by a thick fog that smells of rotting wood and fear. My throat burns, a searing pain that lingers from the hands that silenced my screams. I can't tell where the nightmare ends and the memories begin.

The cabin looms in front of me, the dark outline of its silhouette suffocating against the black sky. The door creaks open, the sound piercing through the heavy silence. I'm pulled inside by unseen forces, dragged back into the belly of this beast that holds my terror like a trophy.

Their voices echo around me, cruel and sharp like the snap of a branch underfoot. I hear them before I see them—two men, faceless shadows, their eyes hollow pits of darkness. They're here, but they aren't. They blur in and out of focus, figures of smoke that dance in the dim light, just out of reach. Yet, their presence is all too real. I can feel their hands on me, cold and rough, squeezing the life out of my body with every cruel touch. My chest tightens, each breath a laborious task as the memory of their grip lingers, like chains tightening around my lungs.

The air is thick, heavy with the scent of damp earth and sweat. It clings to my skin, sticky and cold, like the memory of their touch. I try to move, to run, but my feet sink into the floor, the wood swallowing me whole. I scream, but no sound comes out. My voice is trapped, choked by the invisible hands that still clutch my throat, a phantom pain that never leaves. I'm drowning in it, in the helplessness, in the dark waves of fear that crash over me again and again.

The cabin walls close in around me, narrowing, squeezing the air out of the room. The windows are black voids, offering no escape, no hope. My heart pounds in my chest, a frantic beat that echoes in my ears. I want to fight, to break free, but my body is frozen. Paralysed. I can't move. I can't breathe.

And then I hear it. The whisper of their laughter, low and menacing, vibrating through the walls. It reverberates inside my head, a relentless reminder of their power, their control. My skin crawls with the memory of it, the way their hands roamed over me, possessive and violent, leaving bruises that are more than just physical. My soul feels marked, scarred by the horror of what they did, of what they're still doing in this twisted nightmare.

I try to close my eyes, to shut it all out, but the darkness behind my eyelids is worse. It's there that I see them most clearly, feel their hands tightening around my neck, the life being slowly squeezed out of me. My lungs scream for air, but there's none to be found. I thrash against the invisible bonds, my body jerking in a desperate attempt to escape. But there's no escape. Not here, not in this place where time is frozen, where my torment is endless.

And then, just as suddenly as it started, the nightmare shifts. I'm outside, the cool air hitting my face, sharp and stinging. The forest is alive around me, whispering secrets I can't understand. The trees stretch up into the sky, their branches twisted into skeletal fingers that claw at the stars. I stumble forward, my legs weak, my body trembling with exhaustion and fear.

I run, the ground uneven beneath my feet, roots and rocks catching at my ankles. I don't know where I'm going, only that I have to get away, far away from that cabin, from those men, from the nightmare that never ends. But the forest is endless, a labyrinth of shadows and whispers, and I'm lost.

I hear them behind me, the crunch of leaves underfoot, the snap of twigs as they draw closer. My heart pounds in my chest, a wild, frantic beat that drowns out everything else. I run faster, but I'm not fast enough. I'm never fast enough. They're always right behind me, their presence a dark cloud that hangs over me, suffocating, unrelenting.

My lungs burn, my muscles scream in protest, but I can't stop. I won't stop. I push through the pain, the fear, the terror that threatens to consume me. I have to keep moving, have to stay ahead of them. But the forest is alive, shifting and changing, trapping me in its maze of darkness.

And then, in the distance, I see it. A light, faint and flickering, like a beacon in the night. I push towards it, my last hope, the last thread of sanity I have left. But as I get closer, the light flickers, dims, and then disappears altogether.

The darkness closes in, swallowing me whole, and I'm back in the cabin, the nightmare beginning all over again. The cycle repeats, endless, inescapable, a twisted loop that traps me in my fear, my pain, my helplessness.

I scream, but no one hears me. I'm alone, lost in the nightmare that is my reality, and there's no waking up from this.

                            _________

A piercing scream catches my throat and I bolt upright. It takes me a moment to realise I'm in bed, with my husband next to me.

"I'm here Stella, I'm right here."

He cups my face with his large hands and looks deeply into my eyes. "Nightmare?"

I nod and look at him through blurry eyes as I trace my fingers along one of his hands, to make sure he's really there. His thumbs brush over my cheeks, wiping away my tears. Then he closes his eyes and leans his forehead against mine, taking deep breaths that I try to match in order to calm down my own erratic breathing.

I'm okay.
I'm okay.
I'm okay.

Then the pain in my body registers and I throw the blankets off of me and scramble out of the bed. I stumble over to the doorway of the bedroom and cling to the doorframe for support. In a matter of seconds Kelly was next to me. I hesitantly put my hand in his, and then he suddenly pulls me close to him. He wraps his one arm around my shoulders and the other is still grasping my hand. He places a gentle kiss on my head and holds me close.

My legs began feeling weak and my head felt light in response to the way I quickly got onto my feet. As if he was reading my mind, Kelly carefully guided me over to the couch. We both sat down and he rewrapped his arms around me and gently eased my head to rest in the crook of his neck.

"I'm just so sick of this. Is this ever going to end?" I whispered, tears staining my top.

I only felt safe when I was awake, with my husband by my side. It had been a week since 51 rescued me and Brett. I was there for two longs days before I begged Kelly to sign my discharge papers and take me home. That was a week ago, but the memories never left me. 

"It will be okay. I'm not going anywhere." Kelly replied gently hugging me tighter.

"I love you."

The end.

_______

Authors note:

Thank you all so much for reading this story and I hope you enjoyed it. I love and appreciate every single read, vote and comment you leave. This was my first ever story and I'm sure it will not be my last. If anyone has any ideas for a future story I would love to hear them. And thank you all again <3.