Hunted - The past that kills [COMPLETE]

21 - Game Changer

One could only hope that during her last hours alive that Amity Hastings didn't suffer, however, the ill-fated circumstances of which she died and the condition of her haunting corpse confirmed that she had in fact undergone horrific pain before her passing.

Clara could remember much simpler times in elementary school where they would run away in the trees along the borders of the school grounds, pretending to be pirates or superheroes or whatever they were on their crazy imaginary adventures. She remembered the countless sleepovers they had at each other's houses as 10-year-olds, staying up until midnight laughing, eating popcorn and watching movies, determined not to fall asleep first for fear that the other would draw on their face. She remembered when the two of them would hang out with Hayley and Nate as a dynamic foursome, shortly before they were separated from each other as Amity began attending a different high school. It would be easy to say that life got in the way and they simply grew apart and lost touch, but she had always wished they had still talked – even over text or Skype.

Thanks to social media, Clara had still seen some of Amity's life; she had gotten extremely pretty after 9th grade, in the type of way where a lot of guys secretly admired her yet never became more than friends in case they would fall out and stop talking to each other. But Amity was a free-spirit, she was independent and had no interest in relationships even as she got older. Her photos would always show her either outdoors or from while travelling, and her ambitions to explore the country and eventually the world was not hidden from anybody. If anything, Clara was envious of that aspect of her friend; that she let everything negative run off her back like water and kept so headstrong.

Seeing her body made Clara feel terrified and sick to her stomach. Blake had carefully staged her in the creepiest way possible, posing her in a way that made it obvious that she was dead, yet looked flawless like a porcelain doll. Her clothes looked very feminine and light, innocent in a way, with pastel colours used in the fabric and ballet shoes adorning her feet. Though her skin was white as a sheet, like all the blood was drawn from her body, her makeup was soft and full of colour, as were her perfectly manicured nails. Her hair flowed down her shoulders and back, barely covering deep slashes on the side of her neck and bruises from strangulation. Her eyes were glazed over and empty, yet they bore right into Clara's soul, pulling at her heartstrings and toying with her already frightened mind.

She had ceased her screaming and been reduced to a sobbing mess once Blake strolled over to her side and grabbed a fistful of the girl's hair, yanking her head back so she could see the amused grin on the older woman's face. "You know, I could see it in your eyes since the moment I saw you for the first time. You're a fighter, just like your father. I don't like fighters. Luckily I'm not one to back down or give mercy, so I'm not afraid to pull out all stocks to completely break you" she said in a low voice.

Clara blinked back tears and clenched her jaw, glaring at her aunt. "You're sick... I don't understand how we have the same bloodline, you're a monster!"

"Oh please, I haven't even started the torture," Blake said with an eye roll, letting the girl's hair go before walking away and examining the various devices on the table. Clara leaned to one side so she could see what her aunt was doing, eyes widened as she spotted a drill in her hand.

"Mmm, too scary dentist" Blake decided aloud, moving onto a pistol before quickly dismissing that option as well. For the next agonizing minute, she hummed and harred as she compared different weapons and tools to use, going through everything from simple knives to replicas of torture devices from horror films.

Blake finally smiled and nodded her head as she got out a hunting knife and a meat cleaver "Perfect. Bloody and painful, my favourite type of murder" she said with a sigh.