Shadowed

Chapter 25

I was running in blind directions screaming for help while trying to gain as much distance between me and the enraged Jace who was chasing me. Great! I'm not even heading in a good direction for help, everybody else is in the other direction!!! Dark shadows speeding past me and my heart pounded hard as I tried to think past the growing terror building up inside me and clouding all rational thoughts of survival. There was a loud roar from behind me and I sensed the flying black body of Jace soaring through the dark towards me. I quickly ducked to the right swerving to avoid Jace’s fiery anger and his deadly unsheathed claws. There was a muffled groan of frustration as Jace’s paws landed on empty earth.

I was still running when i came to realize that I could no longer hear the heavy paw falls and panted breathing of Jace from behind me. Confusion and worry settled over my mind as I gradually came to a slow. Where is he?!? I looked at my surroundings peering into the shrubbery and straining my eyes into the shadows. Where... There was then the light rustle of leaves from behind me and I spun round. I couldn’t see any sign of Jace. To my horror my cat self let out a low whine and I silently cursed myself. Shit Kaela SHUT UP! But I was beginning to panic. My gut was telling me that Jace was still out there biding his time in the shadows, but I couldn’t see him, and I couldn’t hear him. There was another rustle this time coming from my left. My head was screaming and my heart racing at twice it’s usual rate. ‘COME OUT YOU SLINKY BASTARD!’ I yelled angrily, trying to battle away my fears and not let them get the better of me. I will not be scared...!  There was a loud taunting laugh that just seemed to bounce off the walls of my head  completely distorting my sense of balance. He was obviously watching me as he must have seen me stumble slightly and gave off another laugh which pierced through my head. I shook my head painfully trying to shake it out. It was then that a cold sweat broke out across my skin which was hidden under my sleek black fur. That...laugh....his voice....no..NO! It can’t be!! It wasn’t Jace. Not even close. My eyes grew wide as a wave of pure terror washed over me drowning me with fear like a blast from the past. ‘No...’  Unwanted images flashed behind my eyes. A man with brown hair and a distinctive stubble leered at me grinning showing his pale yellow teeth. Then there was another image and red swam before my eyes.  I let out a shriek and back pedalled, then falling onto my stomach my head buried under my paws. There was a satisfactory laugh and then another rustle of leaves followed by the classic horror movie sound of a twig snapping under a foot, or should I say paw.  I leapt up onto my paws, hackles raised and lips pulled back giving him a full view of my sharp canine teeth as my eyes met with another’s. They were a cold grey blue with flecks of yellow. It was a set of eyes that were all too familiar to me, as ever since the day parents had died they had haunted me most nights. He took two steady steps towards me giving me my own view of his teeth. They seemed to have an ominous deadly glow about them that sent a fresh shiver up my spine as I unsheathed my claws and held my ground. We projected no words as we both glared at each other, me releasing low growls from the base of my throat. Neither of us moved for a while. My mind had gone quiet, no thoughts surfacing from out of the thin layer of clouded fear and distress. Not even the urge to scream for help was awakened in the almost slumbering cloud of my mind. ‘Well, since you don’t seem to want to start conversation, then I shall. ‘ Came the voice of the nightmare shifter in front of me, his worded thoughts floating through the air between us and into my mind where they were deciphered in milliseconds. ‘Hello... Kaela.’ His voice that whispered my name sent my mind almost reeling in alarm. He even remembers my name...!  He then took a daring step closer and I snarled aggressively. ‘One more step and I’ll put you back in the grave you climbed out of.’

He merely chuckled at my threat and took another step and then another. My heart pounded loudly as he got closer and my rear paw twitched wanting to take a step backwards, but I refused. ‘You don’t seem to of realized Kaela.’  He said while beginning to circle my gaze following his as I watched his every move. ‘I’m not who you think I am.’

‘Ohh, I know who you are alright! You murdered my parents!!’ I yelled loudly projecting my thoughts as loudly as I could. I resisted the urge  to smirk as I saw him flinch.  ‘Oh I didn’t murder you parents but I know who did.’ He said humorously.

‘Don’t play shit with me you bastard, I know you murdered my parents because their blood was all over you!!!!!’ I roared furiously my tail twitching eagerly wanting to take a swipe at him.

‘I would never play ‘shit’ with you Kaela, besides that’d be too fun. But I’ll give you my honest answer, I did not murder your parents.’

His eyes glinted mischievously as his eyes roamed my feline body as he continued to circle.

‘First. You murder my parents. Then. You turn up unexpectedly and lie flat out to my face.’ I said while giving him what I hoped was a threateningly deadly look. ‘ That was a BIG mistake. ‘ He managed to give me a look of mild amusement before I launched at him in full scale attack.

My claws dug into his fur tightly and he let out a roar and swiped at my chest his claws only partly unsheathed and not completely slicing into my flesh, but it still hurt like a bitch. Unlucky for him this only made me angrier and I took my first swipe at him, catching him round the ears. He growled painfully as blood began to pour from his ear.  I was bucked off from his back and then pounced on in an instant. His shear weight seemed to crush all the air out of me as he towered over me now seeming more pissed then amused. His large paws nearly covered my chest as he pinned me down, I then began to wish that I’d never pounced in the first place as it nearly always...ok ALWAYS ended with me being pinned. Fury built up like a hot volcano about to erupt as his muzzle lowered and sniffed around my cheeks. I hissed and managed to lift one of my hind legs and claw down his stomach and he roared angrily and bit down hard on my shoulder as his claws completely unsheathed themselves digging three inches into my flesh. ‘FUUUCK!’ I screamed. He laughed his jaws now out of my shoulder and his head cocked to the side as he cruelly and dug his claws in deeper watching my face as it crumpled in agony.  I cried out as he ripped his claws out flesh still hooked on the ends of his red stained claws.  ‘Now, wasn’t that fun?’  He whispered laughing. My eyes filled and I clenched my jaw tightly refusing to acknowledge him. ‘No? Hmmm guess we’ll have to find something else to some other time hmmm? See you some other time...Kaela.’ He grinned  and then before I knew what he was doing he slammed my head hard into the earth and my head swam dizzily before my eyesight faded as I fell into a deep hole of blackness.