Page 49 of Haunted Prey

My heart dropped, a chill running down my spine as heat trailed up my neck and face. The memory cut through me like a knife, opening the wound.

You are so delusional,a little voice griped.Loving a man who could hurt you like that.

It reminded me of Leo’s words. Still, I shoved them down, not wanting to hear them. Not wanting to listen.

I turned my attention to a small round table near the display and noticed another girl standing there, not much older than me or Lena. She, too, stared at the display, her arms crossed, one hand clutching a card. Our eyes met as she glanced over her shoulder, her blue-green hair swaying down her back.

In her eyes was a fierce yet haunted look. The look of someone who'd experienced something in their past too. Only, she seemed all too entranced by the display. Not uncomfortable like me.

I took a generous swallow of my drink to calm my nerves before I stepped over to her. I looked down at the table covered by a simple black sheet. On top was a stack of cards the size of my hand with a website and a QR code. I took one and studied it.

“Umbra. A Horror Experience,” I read aloud.

Lena joined me and reached over for her own card, flipping it front to back. “What? Like a haunted house?”

“Not exactly,” the girl said. She nodded toward the display. “In a haunted house, the monsters can’t touch you. But in a horror experience, they do whatever they like.”

Lena looked at her mortified. “People pay to let some guys like that do that to them?”

The girl smirked. “Yeah.”

Lena cursed under her breath. “I mean I don’t mind a little roleplay and I love horror, don’t get me wrong. But this is a big ‘hell no’ for me. I would slap the shit out of any guy who even teased using a knife on me.”

The girl shrugged. “Don’t knock it till you try it as they say.”

“Have you tried it…this experience?” I asked her, curious.

“Not yet,” she mumbled. “They only just started.”

“But you want to?” Lena sounded shocked.

“Yes.”

Lena gave me a look like the chick was probably crazy. I peered at the girl, seeing someone who felt empty and wanted to feel whole. Like me.

“It’s just a fantasy,” I assured Lena. “It’s still nothing like actually being kidnapped and tortured.”

The girl looked at me curiously. “How do you know?”

The memory of being tied in the dark with a madman stalking close by swam through my head. “Because in the end,” I said almost bitterly, “at least you know you’re not dying.”

The girl fixed me with a sad look as if she understood now. “Either way, it would make me feel alive,” she whispered.

I felt the hairs on the back of my neck rise. That feeling of being watched suddenly took over me.

The girl’s eyes left mine to look behind me and widened. I turned my head to follow her gaze.

A masked man stood watching us by the bar.

Watching me.

He wore a black mask, the mouth stitched into a smile from one ear to the other. His clothes were all black, tactical pants, and cargo jacket with the hood up.

He moved off into the crowd and disappeared.

The unease in my gut worsened. I placed my drink on the table. “Hey, Lena, I think I’d like to go now.”

I tried to ignore her look of disappointment. “All right, let’s head down.”

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