The Queen of the Dead

8)The Hunt

 Annabelle saw that the castle broken into. She saw that her prisoner was gone. Long gone by the looks of it. She screamed in rage, and picked up a knife. Glaring at a wall, she threw the knife. The blade shattered on impact. Scowling Annabelle walked out of her castle. The hunt was on.

2.

The forest behind the orphanage was dark. It was close to midnight, so everyone wa sound asleep. Even if they weren't, the forest was to dark to see into. No one would have noticed the two girls sneaking through the trees. They were both predator and prey. Hunter and hunted. The cat and the mouse. They were hunting a demon, and said demon was hunting them. Now it was just a matter of who finds the other first.

"We need a place to rest for the night," Marilynn stated.

Annalise starred, "Are you crazy? She'll find us." Annalise's voice was hoarse, and she sounded like she had been crying.

Marilynn nodded, "I might be. But if we continue without any rest we'll pass out in the open. Where she could get us."

Annalise gulped, her eyes darting around the forest, "Well where could we go to rest?"

"A cave would be prefered. Or a hole in the ground that we can put leaves on top of. But a tree top can work too," Marilynn sighed.

Annalise pointed, "That cave work?" Marilynn's eyes widened.

"Yeah, that-that's perfect," Marilynn was in shock as she walked over to the cave, which was already hidden behind tree branches. She pushed a branch away from the entrance, and glanced at Annalise. "After you," Marilynn gestured for Annalise to enter. The redhead gulped slightly before entering. Marilynn followed, the branch snapping back into place behind her. "Well welcome to home number five," Marilynn sighed. Annalise stared at her, almost as if she had grown a third head. "What?" Marilynn asked.

"Five?" Annalise asked faintly.

"Five what?" Marilynn asked confused.

"Homes."

"Oh yeah, my house that burned down, my old best friends house, an alleyway that I hid in after the fire, the orphanage, and now here. So, yes, five." Marilynn looked at Annalise's pale face, and sighed. "Get some sleep, Annalise, you had a stressful day." Annalise nodded and lied down. She was asleep as soon as she put her head down on a rock. Marilynn sighed, she seemed to be doing that alot lately. Marilynn went to the entrance where she sat down and stared out of the cave. Beyond the branches and bramble, she could see the forest. Never in her life had Marilynn thought that this would be how she lived. She felt something rub against her, and heard a purr. Amber had crawled into her lap. Marilynn wondered what her old friend Alison would think. She wondered what happened to Alison after the fire. After she left.

"Mari," A voice said softly. So softly that Marilynn had barely heard it. She glanced up and saw a pair of glowing bronze like eyes.

"Hello mother," Marilynn greated. "Are you here to tell me more about the sacrifices I have to make?" Marilynn heard the sarcasm in her voice, and winced. Her mother had never liked any form of sarcasm or jokes. Much to her surprise, Penelope laughed softly.

"You will know the sacrifices when the time comes," her mother sounded comforting, even though they were talking about sacrifices and possible death.

"Then why did you come? You've never taken this much interest in me after you died."

"I've come with a warning. And some reasoning." Marilynn tilted her head. "The demon can be very manipulative. She is not quite the possessing type either. She also wants you dead because she is the queen, and she thinks you are challenging her rule. If you happen to die while you are battling her, and you are winning, then you will become queen."