The Curse

Part 3 - The Lake

The wind suddenly picked up, causing the water to surge forward and brush across our feet, soaking the bottom of my dress. The jagged rocks in the middle of the lake looked like a warning, screaming at us to stay away. Fear shot through my bones, telling me to get the hell out of there, but the grip Emerson had on my arm was too tight.

"Come on, let's go," I pleaded helplessly.

The harder I pulled, the tighter Emerson held me. She stood there, gazing at the water, for what felt like an eternity, but was probably only seconds. Then she nodded once, and began to pull me forward into the water. I screamed at her to let me go. The other girls followed us silently. I wasn't able to see them, but I could hear them behind me. Once the water was just past our waists, Emerson stopped.

"Take off your dress," she commanded me.

I started to refuse, but the look she gave me made me think twice. I turned so she could unzip the dress in the back, then let it slip down my shoulders until it was gone, completely submerged in the rippling waters. I was left standing in my undergarments. I felt a chill run through me as the wind brushed my bare skin. My hair had come out of its clips and was hanging across my face and shoulders. I crossed my arms over my chest, and the other girls began to take off their dresses.

Soon we were all standing naked, waist-deep in the water. I wished silently that they would just let me go back to the party. I didn't know why they had brought me out here, or what they were planning, but I didn't have time to make any guesses because Emerson gripped my arm again and pulled me deeper into the water. She stopped when the water touched our shoulders, soaking the tips of my hair and covering my naked body.

Emerson released my arm, and nodded to the other girls. They created a circle around me, Analia touching my shoulder and giving me a look of sympathy as she passed me. They joined hands with me in the middle, and I heard them begin chanting. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I was able to make out my name every once in awhile.

Panic rose up inside me. Oh God. They had to be part of some cult or something. They were going to kill me. I would never marry Viktor Darke. I would never have children. I was going to die.

Suddenly, the water swirled around us, bashing me brutally. It took everything in me to stay standing, the mud in the water between my toes, occasionally feeling a rock or some kind of plant. The girls didn't stop chanting, all of their eyes were closed. Now would be the perfect time for me to escape.

I stopped trying to stand, allowing myself to slip under the water, and for the water to whip around me, carrying me out of the circle between Fleur and Gianna. I tried to swim toward the shore, but the water took me further out. I couldn't reach the bottom of the lake anymore. The water carried me further and further, and my lungs felt like they were going to burst. I was finally able to bring my face above water, and coughing, I took note of everything around me.

The wind had picked up even more than before, full on waves were crashing against the shore. The girls were still formed in a circle, but it looked like they were no longer chanting. I had been pulled toward the middle of the lake, and I noticed I was close to the jagged rocks I had first seen while we were all still on the shore. I felt another pang of fear, right before Gianna started screaming.

Her blood curdling scream pierced the air, full of agony. Next Fleur and Analia began screaming. Emerson was now the only one that wasn't screaming, and her neck snapped back, her face pointed toward the sky. She alone began chanting again, while the other three girls screamed in agony. Then all of a sudden, their hands were ripped apart by the current, and they were all pulled under water in different directions.

I wasn't able to hold myself above the water for much longer, and soon I was pulled under again, being pulled closer and closer to the rocks. An idea hit me: if I could land on the side of a rock, it wouldn't hurt me, and I could get out of the water. I was able to turn my body so I could see the rocks as I was approaching. I braced myself for impact, and finally hit one of the rocks. I felt my ankle scrape against the rock before I gained my footing. I had lost my shoes when the water pulled me under the first time, so I could feel the algae against the bottom of my feet, and had to resist the urge to jump off the rock. Crinkling my nose, I focused on surviving.

I pulled myself around to the other side of the rock, so it blocked the current as much as possible then climbed up the surface so I was completely out of the water. It was a difficult feat, because the entire rock was covered in algae, and I kept slipping and losing my grip. Finally, I was out of the water.

I was able to look around me and see Analia and Gianna had made it to the shore. They were huddled together, Gianna crying, and Analia holding onto her, rubbing her shoulder. I found Fleur being pulled towards me, and decided that I would help her onto my rock. The only person I couldn't find was Emerson. Anything could've happened. She could be dead already, hit her head on a rock or drowned.

As Fleur got closer, I shouted at her to brace herself and aim for the rock I was sitting on. She turned her body as I had not long ago, and her body hit the underside of the rock. I heard her cry out in pain, but she was able to maneuver her body the way I had, and I pulled her onto the rock with me.

Her ankle was twisted in an odd direction, and I knew it was at least badly sprained, if not broken. She took a moment to catch her breath, then burst into tears. Sighing, I realized I was going to have to get us out of this situation by myself, Fleur would be no help.

We sat on that rock for what felt like forever, Fleur quietly crying, and me trying to figure out a way to get us both to shore safely. The water eventually calmed down, and the wind slowed to a soft breeze. This is it. We could swim back. But then I remember Fleur's ankle. There's no way she'll be able to make it that far in the state she's in right now.

After weighing our very limited options, I decided the only reasonable solution was for me to swim, and for Fleur to simply hold on to me. I told Fleur my plan, and although she thought it was crazy, she agreed that it was pretty much the only choice we had. I carefully slid back into the water, and Fleur followed.

I had to hold her up because her ankle was virtually useless now that her adrenaline had worn off. Then I swam. It was a lot farther than it had felt when the water had carried me, especially with Fleur hanging off my back. As soon as I reached the shore, I let go of Fleur and laid in the sand, out of breath and energy.

We were finally safe, but Emerson was still nowhere to be found. I hated to think it, but at this point, she was probably dead. I let Analia and Gianna help Fleur as we made our way back. We couldn't go back to the reception since we weren't wearing clothes. So we went inside and found a storage closet. Fleur sat down and put her ankle up on a chair while we found clothes for everyone. I remembered that I brought a change of clothes for after the reception, so I went to my parents car and grabbed my clothes, putting them on quicker than I had thought possible. While I was dressing, I noticed my engagement ring was missing. I searched the entire car and ground, but it wasn't there.

I made my way back to where I left the other girls, but they were already gone. They probably went back to find Emerson. I searched for my ring in the janitor's closet, but eventually concluded that I had most likely lost it in the lake. Deciding to find my parents and explain everything that had happened, I made my way back to the reception. When I got there, everything was perfectly calm and normal, as if I hadn't been missing for over an hour. Fleur was sitting in a chair with ice on her ankle, and Emerson was dancing with Analia and Gianna.

When I saw Emerson, I did a double take. She was wearing a new dress, one that looked brilliant on her, and her hair looked perfectly styled in a formal updo. I thought she had been dead for sure. She never surfaced, or made it to the shore. I watched as Gianna let out a loud laugh. Confusion swept over me. Then my parents saw me.