The Devil’s Plaything

Chapter 10

Reese

I wait in front of the door until exactly midnight. I try to open it, but it is still locked. I go back to the screen and swipe the bracelet in front of it again, then read what it says: “Enjoy the Hunt, R.K. Remember that you must return before dawn.” I hear a small click and, after trying again, I confirm that the doorknob turns. I step outside, and the change in temperature makes me shiver. It is not too cold, but inside the cabin, with the fireplace lit, the temperature was much warmer.

I walk down the steps, looking from side to side, as if at any moment one of those hooded guys might jump out at me to stop my escape. Because that is what I am going to do, right? I am going to escape from this place. I keep moving along the path; however, I feel too exposed and decide to head in among the trees and taller grass. When I am sure I have moved at least a kilometer away from the cabin, following the direction of the moon, I become very aware of how vast these grounds are. It is as if they have no end. There are only trees, undergrowth, branches, and darkness.

“Don’t think about it and keep moving, Reese,” I murmur to myself.

One foot after the other, one step and then the next in the same direction. Every few minutes, I stop and strain my ears to listen for the engine of a vehicle. They brought us here by road, so there has to be one nearby, although it is possible that it is in the opposite direction. I take small sips from the bottle of water I grabbed from the cabin and keep walking for quite a while longer. I am about to turn back and take another path when a bloodcurdling scream echoes through the silence of the night. My heart speeds up and I stand completely still. I hear footsteps nearby. I look for somewhere to hide, but there are only trees and the grass is too short to conceal me completely. Another scream, this one quieter, and I start climbing one of the trunks.

I manage to reach a higher branch just as a girl dressed like me comes running toward me. She stops right beneath the tree I am perched in and turns around. Someone is chasing her, I am sure of it. She looks from side to side as she pants breathlessly.

“There you are.” The girl lets out a small scream and tries to run away, but someone steps out from behind a nearby tree and grabs her by the neck. From his build, I know he is a man, but he is wearing a black mask to hide his face and a hooded sweatshirt. “You can’t escape from me, b***h. You belong to me.”

“Please,” the girl sobs.

The bastard bursts out laughing and shoves her against the tree.

“That’s it, beg me.” I grip a nearby branch tightly and try not to move, but I lean far enough to see them. The girl keeps sobbing and begging him to let her go while the hooded man gropes her. I watch him unzip her coat and try to rip off her tank top. She struggles and gets slapped across the face. “Stay still, damn it! I’ll make you like it.”

Damn it, he is going to r**e that poor girl! He shoves her against the tree trunk again and she stops resisting. The guy unfastens his pants, and as soon as I see him pull out his c**k, I know I have to do something. I cannot just stay here and watch him hurt the girl. Is this what they bring us here for? I do not understand a f*****g thing!

“Hey, you!” I shout.

He freezes and looks up in confusion.

“Two prey in one night. I’m lucky.” I can tell he is smiling beneath the mask. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. As soon as I’m finished with her, it’ll be your turn.”

I glance at the girl. She seems too frightened to run even though the guy is not holding her.

“If you want a piece of me, you’ll have to climb up here and get it,” I say, narrowing my eyes.

“That won’t be a problem.” He strokes himself and looks back at the girl. “Sorry, I’m going to have to be quick. You’ve just got some competition.”

The poor girl screams again when he lunges at her.

“s**t,” I mutter and, without thinking too much about it, I jump right on top of the guy. We both fall to the ground, but I manage to catch him by surprise and get to my feet as quickly as I can. “Run! Don’t just stand there! Go!” I shout.

The girl seems to react and takes off running. I try to go after her, but the masked man grabs me by the back of my coat. I turn around quickly. He is still getting up, so I kick him in the face, right over the mask. It is rigid. As I sprint away at full speed, I hear him growl a curse. I have to get out of this f*****g place before they come after me.

I spend much of the night running. Every now and then, I climb a tree to rest and then resume my escape. When I hear the first birds singing, announcing the approaching dawn, I am sure I am lost. I no longer know where I came from or where I am going, and it is very possible that I have been walking in circles. I am exhausted, my feet hurt, and I am dying of thirst; however, I do not stop.

The sky grows lighter with every passing second. I just have to wait for the sun to rise. Then I will be able to orient myself better and look for a way out. I am about to climb another tree to rest when I hear a crack behind me. I freeze. I know someone is there, watching me.

“You’ve come a long way.” I hold my breath when I hear the rough, raspy voice of a man right behind me. His accent is not American. British, maybe? “What are you doing here?”

I take a deep breath and prepare to defend myself. I turn around slowly, my fists clenched at my sides. Another masked man, but this one is taller and also seems stronger. I can make out the taut muscles of his arms beneath the black sweatshirt. He slowly tilts his head and watches me closely.

“Go away. I don’t want a fight,” I say with all the courage I can muster.

“A fight?” He tilts his head again. “A hare doesn’t fight a wolf, nor does a mouse fight a snake. Some are prey and others are hunters. Want to guess which side of the food chain you’re on?”

Oh, holy s**t! I have already escaped from a f*****g r****t today. Am I really going to have to fight again? In my mind, I curse Rose and her f*****g adventures. What the hell is she doing coming to this place? Nothing makes sense.

“I shouldn’t be here,” I mutter, shaking my head. The masked man takes a step toward me and I step back.

“Of course not. You’ve wandered too far away from the others, but I like difficult prey.” He catches me by surprise when he lunges at me. I try to run, but my back hits the tree trunk, leaving me with no way to escape. The masked man grabs me by the neck with one hand. I try to hit him, but he uses the other to immobilize my wrist and slowly lowers his gaze toward it. “Orange, just the way I like them.”

“Let me go!” I scream, struggling.

He is not squeezing my throat, he is only holding me by the neck.

“That’s not going to happen, but you can keep resisting. You’re only making me even harder.” His hand tightens a little more around my throat and I stretch out my other arm to reach his face. I touch the mask. It is made of hard plastic with raised engravings. I try to pull it off, but the son of a b***h squeezes my neck harder, leaving me unable to breathe. I grab his forearm and dig my nails into it through his sweatshirt. “That’s it. I want to see you surrender.”

His gaze locks onto mine. He does not blink and seems to be enjoying what he is doing. I can tell when he presses himself even closer against me and I feel the hardness of his crotch brushing against my lower abdomen. In a desperate effort to fill my lungs with air, I clench my jaw and part my lips, using all my strength against his forearm.

“I… Can’t… Brea… Brea…” His hand relaxes, and when he lifts my face mask slightly to uncover my mouth, I gasp for air.

“I like your teeth. They’re white and perfectly aligned,” he whispers, staring at my mouth. He presses his face against my neck and I hear him inhale deeply through his nose. “I want to see my semen dripping from them.” I punch him in the shoulder and he suddenly pulls away. He looks toward the sky just as the first ray of sunlight illuminates the area where we are. He lets out a low growl and releases me. “Too late.” He puts his hands into his pockets while I try to catch my breath.

My legs are trembling and I cannot stop staring at him. Why did he back away? Will he lunge at me again? Is this when he kills me?

“Hey! You, over there.” I jerk my head toward where the voice is coming from and sigh in relief when I see one of the hooded men. He is not wearing a mask, only a balaclava. “What are you doing so far away? The sun is already up.”

I look back at the masked man, but he is no longer there. I shake my head. There is no way I imagined what just happened. He was here. I can still feel the weight of his hand around my throat, the heat of his body pressed against mine. He is gone. I look back at the hooded man, who is watching me from several meters away. None of his people have treated me badly, and the masked man ran off when he arrived. Right now, I cannot think of anything coherent. The only thing that comes to mind is: Hooded men good, masked men bad.

“I got lost,” I say in a faint voice.

“Come on, I’ll take you back to your cabin.”

The cabin. Right now, in my current state, the idea of being able to lock myself somewhere does not sound bad at all. I will rest for a few hours and, as soon as I can get out again, I am leaving this place forever.