The Mask Man In The Woods

36.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

I yawned and blinked away the tears that sprung around my eyes. I shook my head and quickly glanced over at Drakon who was also fighting to stay awake.

It was four in the morning and I turned off the engine as the car sat in front of the house. I stared at the dark house and I sighed, my breath fogging the window. I wiped it away and let my hand fall limply on my lap. I leaned back in my seat and glanced over at Drakon.

"Do you need anything from the house?" I asked. Drakon shook his head and blinked slowly.

"Are we going to Tristian's house?"

My shoulders dropped and I started the car. "No, he doesn't know we're here."

"So where are we going?"

"Do you wanna stay here or at the motel?"

"I want to go to Tristian's. I haven't seen Tom since we left."

I breathed out an "alright" and got out. I left the bags behind, taking a flashlight and held Drakon's hand as we quickly walked around the house. I glanced up at the second floor at my old bedroom's window and swallowed hard. The window was broken and the curtains were swaying through the opening. I almost imagined Harry to be standing, his black eyes fixed on me with his creepy smile. I quickly turned my head away, hoping my imagination wouldn't jinx me.

"C'mon." I whispered, tugging Drakon as I practically ran to the woods. I turned on the flashlight and headed towards the small clearing where I first encountered Tristian. I knew from there, I had to take some turns before we reached Tristian's home.

A gust of wind blew the trees and created a nice calming breeze, but I shivered. My eyes kept shifting to every noise, my heart beating loud in my ears. Drakon walked closer to me, his body practically glued to mine as he looked around us.

"Mom?" Drakon whispered and then gasped when we heard a twig snap. I crouched and quickly turned off the flashlight. Drakon stayed low and I put a finger on my lips to tell him to be quiet. Drakon's eyes glistened in the moonlight before they grew wide. I snapped my head towards the direction he was looking at but didn't get the chance to look when I was tackled.

My breath was knocked right out of me as something hard collided with me and Drakon. We started to roll down a small hill and my back hit a tree, stopping me from rolling further down.

I groaned and pushed myself up. My arms shook as I lifted myself up in a sitting position when I remembered Drakon. He was behind me. I gasped and looked down the hill, the movement hurting my aching body.

"Drakon!" I called out, my voice echoing. I waited, the silence choking me as I held my breath. I was afraid to make a sound that could mask Drakon's until I heard a shuffle from down the hill.

I called out his name again, sliding down the rest of the hill. My shirt rode up and dirt stuck on my skin as I used my hands to dig into the dirt and slowly make my way down.

"Drakon?" I whispered once I was at the bottom of the hill. It was darker here with all the trees covering the moonlight. I stood up, taking a few steps forward when I stepped on something hard. I picked it up, relieved to have found the flashlight. I turned it on and looked around.

I glanced up the hill, hoping maybe he was caught by a tree like me but there was nothing there. A muffled groan came from somewhere behind me and I quickly turned around. Drakon was sitting behind a tree, his hand covering his eyes from the flashlight.

I chuckled out of relief and ran towards him. I put down the flashlight and sat down next to him, grabbing his face with my hands.

"Are you alright?" I asked, looking over his body for any obvious damage. Drakon nodded slowly.

"My arm hurts." Drakon groaned, holding his elbow. I lightly took his hand and rolled his sleeve up. Drakon winced and I paused.

"We need to go back to the car. You need to go to the hospital. Did you see what attacked us?" I asked, rolling his sleeve down. Drakon shook his head.

"No, just a figure that ran past us and then it pushed us. I didn't get a good look."

"Looks like the thing followed us," I picked up the flashlight and sighed, "Can you walk?"

Drakon nodded. I stood up and watched Drakon as he struggled to get up. He leaned back against the tree, his legs wobbling.

"Here, let me carry you." I handed Drakon the flashlight and put one arm on his back and the other under his knees. I picked him, surprised at how light he weighed. Drakon cradled his arm and shined the light around with his fingers. There was no way I was going to be able to climb up the hill with Drakon, so I walked around it, heading back towards the car.

"Wait, we're not going to Tristian's?" Drakon asked.

"You need medical help. Your arm could be broken. Tristian wouldn't be able to fix that."

"I can actually."

I nearly jumped out of my skin and almost dropped Drakon if Tristian wasn't fast enough to catch him and help set him down. Before I was able to ask how he found us, Tristian answered.

"I was out and heard the shouts. I didn't know you were coming back today," Tristian lifted Drakon's arm and slightly bent it, "Does this hurt?"

Drakon nodded, flinching as Tristian slowly lowered his arm.

"Harry came for a visit so we ran and decided to head back. Drakon wanted to see Tom so that's why we're here," I explained, kneeling down next to Drakon, "How bad is his arm?"

"Can't say for sure. Let's go to my home. I'll be able to fix you up there." Tristian carefully picked up Drakon who made no protest. I followed Tristian and looked around.

The figure attacked us but didn't finish us off when it could've. It couldn't have been an animal so it must've been Harry. Maybe all he wanted to do was scare us, make us believe there was no escape from him. Just as the thought crossed my mind and we were out in the clearing, Harry was hanging upside down from a branch of a bare tree whereas all the other trees still had its leaves. Harry was lightly swinging and he waved his fingers at me. I stumbled over a fallen branch and bumped into Tristian.

"What's wrong?" Tristian asked. Drakon peered at me over Tristian's shoulder. I looked over and Harry was gone. The tree looked normal.

"Uh... nothing. I'm tired." I lied.

"We're close. You'll be able to rest soon." Tristian assured. I nodded and stuck closer to Tristian.

I wasn't so certain if Harry was on the bare tree or if there was even one, but one thing I knew for sure was that I was starting to lose my mind.