Fort Oakley | Part One

27 | You Are Now Leaving Fort Oakley, We Hope You Enjoyed The Trauma

I kept running, my lungs burning with each breath as branches clawed at my exposed skin. My arms and torso were smeared with blood from the cuts Elvin had carved into me, and every step felt heavier. The cold air bit at my skin where my shirt had been cut away, but the fear driving me forward was stronger than the chill.

I didn't know where I was going.

I didn't even know if I was running in the right direction. All I knew was that I had to keep moving.

My stomach twisted when I remembered that Vance was with me when we were ambushed.

I didn't know if he was okay. But he would want me to keep going, so I did.

The woods were endless, and the darkness swallowed me whole. Every tree looked the same, their looming shapes closing in like walls. I couldn't tell where the cult was, but I could hear something behind me—branches snapping, leaves crunching. I spun in a frantic circle, trying to find a familiar landmark, but it was no use. My heart pounded harder with each second, the panic rising like a tidal wave.

I put my hands on my head, trying to catch my breath as I turned again and again. The world felt too big and too small all at once. I felt trapped, like the forest itself was alive, conspiring to keep me lost. Tears stung my eyes as I begun to panic.

Then I heard it.

"Charly!"

I froze, my head snapping up. That voice. My heart leapt.

"Charly!" Jacey's voice called out again, closer this time.

Relief flooded through me, and my legs moved before my brain caught up. I stumbled forward, chasing his voice.

"Jacey!" I shouted back, the words tumbling out between gasps.

The moment I saw them in the meadow, I thought I might collapse. Jacey was running toward me, Mason a few steps behind him, clutching the stuffed elephant tightly to his chest. I barely made it to Jacey before I crumpled into him. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me so tightly it was almost painful. But I didn't care. I buried my face in his chest, sobbing out all the fear and relief in broken gasps.

"You're okay," Jacey murmured, his voice thick. "You're oka—"

Jacey doesn't get to finish what he was saying, because the sound of a gun being shot echoes into the air, and it doesn't sound as far away as the rest of the gunfire.

Jacey pushes us forward to where Mason was hiding with a backpack, and he pushes me down into the long grass, hiding us from whoever was coming toward us.

Another shot rings into the air, and then Jacey jerks back.

''Jacey?'' I whisper, moving in front of him. He was clutching his shoulder, his eyes closed while he tried to breathe evenly.

''Are you hit?'' I ask, and he nods. ''Look in the backpack,'' he hisses out, teeth clenched together.

I drag the backpack towards me, quickly zipping it open. There wasn't much in it, only some clothes, food, and water.

And the gun Vance gave me.

I take the gun and spin around to where the shot came from, squinting my eye to try and see anything.

Willa walked into the meadow, looking around the open space, her gun aimed in front of her.

And so I tried to aim for the hand that was holding the gun. I fired, and missed.

Willa turned in our direction when I fired the gun, and she was looking right ut as, although I didn't think she was seeing us.

Our cover in the grass wouldn't last long since Willa was slowly making her way forward, but we had another advantage.