DARK AND TWISTED

CHAPTER 20

"What are we going to do? What am I going to do?" I stood up and started pacing. "I can't just go back and tell their parents their kids are missing in a town far away from Seattle." I ran my fingers through my hair, untangling the knots.

"I know that's why tomorrow, I'm going to the forbidden cave and find them."

I stared at her, "But you said it's dangerous."

"I also said I love broccoli. That's the stuff you say to people. But about the cave, it's true," she stood up, adjusting her shirt. "That's why I'm going there by myself. If I don't come home within 24 hours, call the police. I already put their numbers in your contacts. I know you're scared of being alone but I can't let you be in a dangerous situation like that."

She snatched her jacket nearby and lumbered out of the room but I grabbed her arm, "Let me go with you."

I felt my throat closing up after tears streamed down my cheeks. Damn it, Hope Anderson, can't you just stop crying for once?

She must have felt guilty about me crying like a baby like that so she pulled my arm into a warm, comforting hug, "But it's dangerous and I need someone to tell the police if I go missing."

"I don't care if it's dangerous." Because being left alone in a house is more dangerous. It's scary.

"You can come. I won't leave you but you need to stay close to me. Okay?"

I nodded, pulling myself away because I didn't want to look like a wimp. Well, maybe she already saw me as a wimp because I cried easily.

"Do we need anything if we're going there?" I wiped my face with my sleeves.

She took a while to answer, "Yes. We do but we have to buy them. Come on."

She grabbed my wrist, leading me out. Her grip got tighter after seeing me like that. She spent more time making sure she locked the door and we walked to the car together. The apartment appear to be creepier because it was so quiet that I could hear a pin drop at that rate.

She drove us to the closest market in the neighborhood. After she found a parking spot, she got out first while I clenched my seatbelt as I chewed my bottom lip. I had a feeling someone was staring at me. It could be that man again, or in my imagination.

Nyx tapped on the window, causing me to jump, "you coming?" She shoved her hands in her pockets.

I took a few deep breaths before pushing the door open. I grabbed a handful of her jacket from behind just in case someone pulled me away and she would know it. Maybe Dan's right. I'm always paranoid about everything.

She snatched a cart, rolling it to the nearest aisle. I wasn't paying any attention because I was busy scanning my surroundings to see if that man appeared again. God, why is this happening to me? In a few minutes, she already got a new torchlight, a few batteries, and a new first aid kit inside the cart. We stopped at the meat section but I couldn't move my gaze away from the, possibly, human meat. I touched it and it sent shivers down my spine.

"Don't make it too obvious you're not from here," Nyx whispered. She went to the vegetable section while I looked around to see what I wanted to buy because she insisted I buy something.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed someone was watching me but when I swivelled my head in that direction, nobody was there. Focused on the dried fruits, my ears caught something else.

"Help!" That scream again. I shook my head, ignoring it because I knew it was just inside my mind. Suddenly, a few people yelled at the same time and in an instant, the hair at the back of my neck stood up. The scream echoed and faded away as I moved further to the next aisle. Feeling uneasy, I ran straight to Nyx.

She stared at me and pulled me close to her like she knew what had happened.