saving darcy h.s.

18

O-O-O-O-O-O
*Emily's POV*
O-O-O-O-O-O

"Where does it say to turn?" Ellie, who was driving, turned around from behind the wheel. I poked my phone into front of her and she took it. I sat back in the seat in between Haydn and Kayla. We were less than five miles away from the destination that he map had marked. Haydn rested her hand atop of mine noticing how nervous this is making. I've been sitting squished between Kayla and Haydn for five hours in Ellie's little Pontiac and I have to pee so incredibly bad right now. 

"Everything's going to be fine." She whispered. My smile was fake, and i looked through the front windshield. The wind and rain had picked up. Wherever we were, there was surely a storm brewing up.  Ellie turned off the road and we were tossed about the car because of the gravel and divets in the driveway which was really just a pathway of pressed down grass where cars have ran over it countless times.

Seemed like Ellie continued down the homemade driveway slowly for another mile with her headlights as dim as they would go. Dusk was setting in darker and darker making our surroundings hard to make out and weary. "Look!" We all looked through the front windshield and saw a huge abandoned barn with a couple lights on inside. The glass in the windows were dusty and old. The sideing of the barn was worn and the paint was chipping off the wood from weathering.

Ellie turned her headlights off completely so whoever was inside wouldn't see us. We filed out of the car and I was the first willing to approach the creepy barn. Kayla followed along with the other girls. I had Harry' scontact pulled up on my phone incase something went wrong in the next couple hours. One of the other girls, if not all, had pulled up the emgergency number as well so we would be covered. 

The doors to the barn were ajar enough that i could sneek through the two without having to open them and risk it being louder than I anticipated. The barn was just as weird and creepy as the outside. Candles were lit causing a flickering glow among the rusty farm machinery. As I walked further I noticed the candles formed a trail leading to a ladder that rose to a secon level of the barn that was isolated from everything else. 

A loud creak from behind me made me jolt and I turned around scared it was someone who had caught me intruding on their property or that it was Steele. Relief swarmed around me when I saw Haydn give me an innocent face as she tried to open the door a little more so she could fit with her puffy jacket. My pointer finger flew to my mouth in a hushing notion. She mouthed 'sorry,' before I turned around and continued toward the ladder.

I spent just about ten minutes observing the wood and tried testing how much weight the rotting wood could hold. I haven't exactly eaten a good full meal since Darcy was taken a little less than a week ago, so you could say I'm a little on the lighter side as of now. I made it up with minimal creaking and hope flickered inside me when I found a single weighed down matress and a homemade wooden crib in the loft. A lump was formed in the crib and I moved swiftly over to it not bothering helping the other girls up.

I stopped halfway dead in my tracks when I heard whistling coming from a doorway to my left that i hadn't recognized before. Panic flooded over me as I frantically shooed Haydn and Sedona who hadn't started climbing yet to scatter and hide. By the time they understood, it was too late to find a hiding spot for Kayla, Ellie and I. The whistling grew louder and louder until it was in the same room as us. There in the doorway was a bigger, scruffier man than what I remember seeing in the mugshots in the police station. 

He looked between the three of us and gave an intimidating smirk. I gulped a little too loudly as he wiped his geasy hands on his jeans. "Well, well, well," He took a couple more steps closer. "You must be Emily. It's so good to finally meet you."

I stayed quiet not knowing what to say to him. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?"

"U-Uh, this is Ellie and Kayla." I said.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." He smiled a huge smile full of brown stained teeth that matched his worn jeans and off white, stained t-shirt. Everything about him made my skin crawl. He was nasty and slimy and made me want to go home and bathe just by looking at him. "I'm Steele. I see you got my message this morning."

I simply nodded my head. Words couldn't begin to describe how scared I am in this moment. My eyes shift to the movement coming from the crib a couple feet from my right. In my mind I silently begging the figure to turn and face me just so I can see that it's her. That Darcy is really laying in the same room as me. My prayers are rejected when it stays facing away from me.

"She's so cute when she sleeps. Her little whimpers keep me occupied for hours." I snap by head back at the man and he's staring dead into my eyes and I get chills all throughout my body. He takes steps towards me, "She's beautiful. Now I know where she gets her looks from. She looks so simliar to her mother. It's a shame you weren't there to protect her or your roommate."

The wall behind our backs are keeping us from backing away from the disgusting man infront of us. My fear grows for me and for the safety of my friends next to me as he continues his slow journey until he completely stops infront of us. 

Steele reaches his hand up and tucks a strand of stray hair behind my ear. "Now I understand why Harry got into bed with you that one night. You know he always said you were nice and unbelievably  stunning but he didn't mention how hot you are. God, would I like to get into your pants."

If there was one thing I learned from my mum, it was to never let a man talk to you in a disrespectfull manor. With that echoing in my mind, I slapped the man in front of me right across the face. His face went to the side and my actions received a gasp from Ellie and Kayla.

"I will not be spoken to like that." 

Steele moved his jaw and moved his hand up to the side of his face that was starting to turn red. My hand stung uncontrollably because of the slap but I didn't let it show. If I did, it would show that I'm weak, and I'm not weak. 

Steele's snake like eyes moved to me. Before I could think of what he would do next he grabbed a good chunk of my hair and pulled my face towards his. "That was a big mistake." I couldn't help but release a helpless squeal from my lips when he lifted me from the ground by my hair. "I'm going to have to punish you for that."

"Leave her the hell alone." A voice boomed from the lower level of the poorly build barn, and from the sound of the heavy boots clicking across the cement, I recognized who had just stormed in, and that was enough to let relief flood over me. 

Wow- I haven't written an author's not in a while. Do you all think they're annoying? I'm so close to 3,000 reads on this story! Words can't describe how thankful I am! I'm officially on Christmas break which is exciting. i'll have plenty of more time to read and reply to your comments now! :D

Have y'all had exams yet?
-brea