Casters

CHAPTER ONE

C A S T E R S

 

P R O L O G U E 

My whole life was a mess until he came into it. I was just going with the flow of life and trying to keep the peace until I found out who I really was. And what I really was. He changed my whole life, and my whole world. I now know things others are oblivious to.  I can do things others can’t. And I wouldn’t want my life any different now. Life wouldn’t be worth living without him. In some ways he was my life.

Chased

I kept running, I didn’t know what it was. To be honest I didn’t really want to know what was back there. Whatever it was must have been the thing that hit my car just a few minutes. I was frantically leaping over countless bending twigs and roots that seemed to be purposefully mocking me as I ran for my life. I had only gotten out of my car to check if I’d hit someone without seeing them. I’d felt awful but there was no way I could carry on driving without checking. My hands were shaking violently as I opened my door and lowered myself onto the road. It was one of those moments when all the nerves in my body started going crazy and a lump in my throat rose so big that I thought I might choke.

As I stood on the dirt of the off-track road I knew something was wrong. And that was when it started running at me. I say it because I’m not sure what it was. I couldn’t tell if it was human or an animal but either way it definitely wasn’t friendly. A menacing growl was all I heard before I took off into the woods. I could only see a blur charging at me at an impossible speed. Yet, as I constantly scanned my surroundings every time I landed on my now cut knees, I couldn’t see anything. The darkness of the night did nothing to help me in my time of need, so I heaved my injured body off of the ground and forced my feet to keep going every time I tripped.

Once I reached the Hastings family’s old property I stopped in the clearing of the forest. I don’t know why I did. It was as if my gut told me it was safer than leading myself further into the unknown. I knew if I went any further something bad would happen, something worse than what actually did happen in the clearing. That’s when I heard it, his voice.

“What are you doing here?” It boomed from somewhere I could not see, if I wasn’t already petrified I would be because of that voice. It made me feel inferior, like I was a silly little girl getting lost in the woods.

“I, I was running from something.” I could hardly speak as I mumbled into the darkness that surrounded me. My eyes darted around the trees that circled me but there was no sign of the speaker.

“You shouldn’t be here. Leave.” I knew the voice belonged to a male. It was deep and mysterious, yet it still terrified me. But surprisingly, I was rather intrigued by the silky tone that lured me in as I shuffled my feet forward.

“Neither should you, whoever you are. You’re not one of the Hastings’. I would know you if you were.” I don’t know why I stood there, I should have run as fast as my legs would go back to my car and back home. But I couldn’t, I was being drawn to whoever hid amongst the evergreens.

He gave a slight laugh and then added, “I do not mean to be rude Miss, but who are you?”

“Carmen,” I whispered so quietly I wondered if he’d be able to hear me. The way my name escaped my mouth sounded as if it was new to me.  “Who are you?” I spoke between panicked gasps.

“I’m Roberto Paolini,” Automatically I knew he was European. However, from the little I knew about Europe I could only guess he was Italian. The whole idea of a foreign stranger hanging around the woods at night didn’t provide me with much comfort. As I scolded myself my feet continued to slowly stumble towards the voice but I couldn’t stop them. It scared how I seemed to have no control over what was happening around me.