Eden Lake

Chapter 19

I weakly trudge through the forest, careful to not make any noise in fear they might hear me. It is terrifying, not knowing where you are, nor knowing where they are. They could be anywhere. For all I know, they could be waiting for me behind one of the trees. I've been aimlessly searching around the woods, trying to find Jenny and Steve, but I've found not a sign of them so far. Did they even manage to get away without getting caught? What if they have been found? My breathing quickens as I keep thinking about what could have happened to them. I stop and hold my breath as I hear footsteps nearing in the distance. My heart is racing as I frantically look around in order to try and find a place to hide. Realizing I'm out of time, I simply hurry and jump behind one of the many trees, still holding my breath in fear. The footsteps stop a little further from where I'm hiding.

"He better find the bitch if he wants to be a part of our gang."

I'm fighting the urge to throw up upon hearing Brett's voice and I try desperately to keep myself from breathing too loud. Who does he mean with 'he' and who wants to be part of their gang? So many questions start running through my mind, I can barely take it.

" And what about Maysa?" I hear Ricky ask.

"I'm gonna let her watch the bitch die, before killing her."

I swallow, trying to prevent myself from breaking down right here on the spot. There is so much anger and hatred in his voice. A notification sound breaks the silence and I bite my lip, wishing they'd just go and continue on their way already. "Come on, let's go." I hear Brett say, "they found her."

My eyes widen and my heart skips a beat and I stay completely still, too afraid to move or even breath. After waiting for a few minutes, just to be sure they've actually gone, I soundlessly move from behind the tree, a huge sigh of relief escaping from between my lips upon seeing they're actually gone. My paranoia almost made me think they were hiding somewhere, waiting for me to leave my hiding spot. I inhale deeply, feeling as if I can finally breath normally again. I quietly start moving into the same direction where the boys went, occasionally glancing around. They must have meant they found Jenny. My heart is beating five times faster than it should, my palms sweating and my throat dry from fear. A little voice in my head is trying hard to convince me to turn around and run into the opposite direction, but I can't stand the thought of leaving her behind. I slowly stop walking when I hear sounds and voices in the distance. I duck behind a few bushes and glance down, seeing a small clearing. My eyes widen and my stomach turns as

I see what is happening. It is gruesome and sickening, I wouldn't know how else to describe it. Jenny and Steve are both tied up to a big pile of wood. Ricky is pouring gasoline all over them, causing for Jenny to wake up. She is breathing through her mouth, gasping for each breath. She looks horrified and turns her head to see Steve tied up behind her. The boys are speaking to her, but I'm too far away to be able to hear what they're saying. But seeing Jenny looking at Steve, before crying and screaming out, tells me all I need to know. My hands move and cover my mouth to muffle the sounds of my crying, while I try hard to fight my tears, keeping them from falling.

I try and calm myself down, before wiping away the tears with my sleeve. I take in my surroundings, trying to come up with a strategy to get her out of here. There's no way I'd be able to sneak in, they've got her surrounded. I look again and squint my eyes upon seeing there's someone else down there with them. Adam.

So that's what's been going on. I start to feel furious as I realize he brought her straight to them.

There is only one thing that I can do. I can use myself as bait. That way, they'll most likely follow after me, giving Jenny the opportunity to escape. It's a long shot since there's no way to know for sure that they'd all go after me, but I really don't know what else I could do.

I take a few deep breaths and stand up slowly, my legs shaking underneath me. "Alright, here we go then." I mutter to myself, ready to go down there and distract them. But I stop dead in my tracks when I hear a twig snap behind me. I swallow in fear and slowly, cautiously turn around. But before I can even get as much as a glimpse of who or what it is, everything turns black.