Hunted

Chapter 15: Masks Reveal Hidden Truths

"Where is she?" I immediately asked the nervous mess that was Elizabeth.

"She... she's..." Elizabeth stuttered, trying to deliver the news.

"She's what!?" I pushed, needing to know.

She took a deep breathe before starting again, "Andy's in surgery. From what I could get from the cops that came in with her, she was attacked in her kitchen."

"Oh God," I rubbed my palm over my face, thinking about how this could have happened, "When did it happen?"

"Within 20 minutes of the cops getting there. Her mom had been on the phone with her and when she got home, she found Andy," Elizabeth answered me.

"How long after that did you call me?"

"Maybe five minutes. I was on my way there when the ambulance left," she said.

I shook my head as I thought about the time frame. How could Jason attack Andy and be across the street from the ice cream shop so quick. It was roughly 15 minutes just to get to down town from Andy's and there was no way Jason had already known where I was going to be before than to be ready at that street corner.

He wasn't covered in blood, yet when he had motioned for me to answer my phone; it was like he knew about Andy. How could he have attacked her?

The only way for him to be able to be that prepared and able to attack in that way was if he wasn't working alone anymore. If he had help.

The thought shook me as I stared off; ignoring the inquiry Dylan was giving Elizabeth about how Andy was doing.

"Hey," Dylan shook my shoulders, "I'm sure she is going to be fine. She's the toughest person I know. She will get through this," he said as he pulled me into a hug.

I wrapped my arms around him and leaned into the embrace. He held me as my mind wondered to whether Jason had come to town with someone else, or if it was a coincidence.

After a few minutes, he pulled back and said he was going to go talk to the doctors, leaving me and Elizabeth in the almost empty waiting room. The second he left, Elizabeth tugged me closer, so we could talk without being overheard.

"What are you thinking?"

"What do you mean?" I played innocent.

"I've been living with you for a few weeks now. I can tell when somethings up. What do you know about Andy being attacked?"

"The person who attacked her is here for me," I whispered.

"How do you know?" she asked, fear present on her face.

"I saw him, across the corner from me when you called. He was just standing there, watching me. Like he was looking for my reaction."

"That's why you wanted to know about when she was attacked. There is no way he could be there and in the house," she reasoned.

"I know. That's what scares me the most. I don't think he came to town by himself," I whispered.

"If your demon didn't come alone, then who did he bring with him?" she pondered.

*****

It took almost 4 hours for Andy to be allowed visitors. The doctors said she was too weak, but we could see her for a few minutes each if we wanted. I was the first one in the room.

I watched as she laid there, unmoving as she slept away her fears.

Her body looked broken. Her arm was in a metal cast from a break. She had been stabbed multiple times in the stomach. Her face was smeared with her dried blood from cuts from what looked like glass. The most discerning incision was the one on her left arm. It was like a tattoo made from the tip of a knife.