Under the Moon

Four

"Where is he...?" She muttered pacing around the small room. Dylan had awoken her what felt like three hours ago. He told her to stay there and not to make any noise. "Why is he taking so long? He should've been back by now."

As if on cue he passed through the wall right in front of her with ten bags on his arms. He looked worn out but his smile showed he didn't mind.

"You're back!" Cassie exclaimed a bit too loudly.

"Quiet!" He hissed under his breath. "There are police out there...I had to sneak in. So we need to be absolutely silent."

The small room fell silent, again, as if on cue, a shout was heard from below.

"Anyone there? If so come out of the house with your hands up!" The voice was masculine and full of authority. Fear began to grip at Cassie, she went to ask Dylan something, but stopped abruptly as a loud crash was heard below. "FREEZE! PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" The rest of the officer's commands were muffled and incoherent through the walls.

"I'M HERE TO FINISH WHAT I STARTED! I WILL TEAR THIS PLACE APART UNTIL I FIND HER!" Another voice rang out through the house. It was much colder and full of rage with a hint of crazed determination.

A pounding sound filled the halls as someone began to run up the stairs. Only seconds later another pair followed. Shouts came from the officer as he tried to stop the man.

"We have to go. Now." Dylan's voice echoed in Cassie's head, as he began to throw clothes at her.

'Ok, thanks.' She said in her head, straining with effort to get the message to him.

"Don't worry, I can hear you. They can't. Now quickly change, I won't look." He quickly turned towards the door, going invisible.

She quickly changed into the clothes he'd bought. He'd bought her a pair of baggy black sweatpants, a grey t-shirt that was slightly too big, an extremely large black hoodie, and a pair of black Nike shoes. She didn't like all the black, but it was best for stealth.

'Done. You can come back Dylan.' He reappeared and came over to her. He grabbed the bags and flew out of the window.

"Don't worry, the coast is clear. But there's a huge jump...I think you should be able to climb down the drain. If it doesn't break."

'That's reassuring. Really reassuring.' She thought sarcastically as she shimmied the window open. 'Ok, don't look down just get out and find a safe spot.'

"You're hidden, don't worry. Also there's a tree behind you, if you didn't know."

'OMG thank you! How far away?' She was through the window and holding on for her life.

"It's not too far away. Just...um...jump back...?"

'JUMP BACK. ARE YOU CRAZY!?' She positioned herself to be sitting on the window seal and looked at the tree. It was a tall, sturdy oak tree with huge branches that stretched all the way to the house. 'Ok that not too bad. There's a branch just below me...'

"Careful...don't hurt yourself Angel." He watched her closely as she braced herself to jump off.

'Here I go.' She quickly jumped off and landed on the branch. A small crunch was luckily the only sound it made as she made impact.

The yelling from inside grew louder as the men approached the hidden room. There was a loud banging sound as the first man began to beat the walls. The police officer was at the top of the stairs, shouting for the man to give up.

"NO! NO IT'S HERE! SHE'S HERE! I KNOW IT I JUST KNOW IT!" The man shouted back. The banging grew louder and louder, suddenly it stopped.

"Cassie. Climb now and hide! He's found the room! Stay quiet!" Dylan's voice rang urgently in her head, jarring her from her daze.

'Can I hide in the tree?' She hurriedly asked, panic settling in her.

"No. You need to climb down and run into the neighbor's yard. They aren't home so you won't be seen. Go to the back yard and scales the fence. I'll meet u there." With that he vanished, leaving her alone again.

'Shit. I guess I have to climb.' She silently made her way down, slipping twice but making it safely to the ground. She ran to the neighbor's driveway and ran to the back of the house staying close to the fence and making sure to stay as low as possible.

Back at the house the man finally beat his way through the hidden door into the small room. "Where are you girl!?" He snarled.

"Why are you doing this?" The cop asked, curiosity won out and he put the arrest on hold to see what would happen.

"She's the reason my son's dead. She moved him in front of my shot. She was supposed to die. She's a hoe. A slut. A bitch. They say she's dead but I know she's alive. I heard her." He said absentmindedly, focusing on tearing the room apart. "HERE!" He held up the dress Cassie had been wearing before her escape. "This was what she had on. It's warm. She's here." His eyes bugged out a bit as a wicked smile spread across his face.

"Who are you talking about? Let me see that!" He snatched the dress from the other man, and examined it. "Wow. It is warm."

"I told you, she's here." He snarled slightly annoyed with the cop.

"I get it's a female, but WHO is she?"

"Cassie. Cassie Rascal." He spit out shaking his head as if saying her name left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Cassie Rascal...where have I heard that name before..." the cop paced, racking his memory for any hint of where he'd heard her name, "wait...she was the missing girl from that murder investigation! But she was pronounced dead! We never found a body here! Only the boy's."

"My son's. She was his girlfriend. She escaped my killer blow and let my son suffer. I want revenge. She wasn't found cause she hid here! Right beneath my nose this whole time!" He snarled, ransacking the room for any sign of life.

"She's not here now, that's for sure." The officer replied bluntly.

"I know you twit! She'd be too weak to run...so where is she? She couldn't be in another room, could she?"

"Maybe she climbed out of the window and tried to run?" He offered.

"No, no too high of a drop for her. She'd hurt herself." He sighed. "Damnit. I really wanted to...wait." He paused and ran to the window. A black form was hunched by the corner of the neighboring fence. "What's that?"

"A bush. They have a lot of them. It's probably new. Now come along, you've caused enough trouble. We'll search the area and let you know what we find." The cop placed the handcuffs on the man and dragged him away, back to prison.

Meanwhile Cassie made it to the backyard and scaled the fence easily. She dropped down to find Dylan there smiling.

"We have to get out of town. But first we need to go to a safe place in town where no one will find us to pack the bag." Dylan said focusing on nothing in particular as he tried to come up with a plan.

'How do I stay out of sight? And can I talk?' She asked itching to get away.

"No talking and we use the shadows. They don't like to be moved but I can move them to mask you. I may strike a deal with one to get you to safety." He said nodding in satisfaction at his plan.

'Ok, let's go then.' She said eagerly.

"Slow your roll Angel. I need to get the shadows attention first." With that Dylan began to pluck a shadow off of the ground. It moved away and shuddered before forming into a person.

"What is the meaning of this!? Why have you disturbed me!" It bellowed, although only Cassie and Dylan could hear it.

"We need your help. I'm trying to get my friend out of town. We need to stop somewhere safe first to make a solid plan. She needs cover and I can't do that. My abilities aren't that advanced yet."

"A girl you say?" He rubbed his chin in thought. "If you wish to have my services I'll need something in return."

"Can we strike a deal? I must have something you'd wish to have."

The creature laughed darkly, "You do."