Fear

Chapter 1

Emily has been rid of him for ten years. Ten years without the fear of him coming to find her. Ten years in peace. It was within these ten years that Emily had graduated college, gotten engaged to her boyfriend of five years and started a career as an attorney for women who are victims of rape. She had finally figured out her life. If it weren't for him being put away, she would've never gotten this far.

It was a cool night. Nothing out of the ordinary for Hoboken New Jersey. She always admired that about this beautiful town. The cool nights always generated a feeling of calm, which she definitely needed. Hoboken was the town where it happened... and being back there wasn't easy for Emily. If it weren't for her best friend wanting to go to their favorite bar, she would never, ever, be back here.

It was exactly six in the evening. It was strangely quiet for such a busy city. Typically, there was always something going on in Hoboken, especially down-town. It was never this quiet.

Being alone in the town where it all happened did not help her nerves. The quiet just doubled it tenfold. She found herself checking down every alleyway as she passed, making sure no one was there to jump out and attack her. It was uncommon in Hoboken but after what happened, she had to be careful.

Even though, for what she knew, Felix was still in prison, she knew that there were others out there like him. In her mind, no one could be worse than Felix but she didn't want to run into anyone remotely like him.

Emily was walking for a good fifteen minutes before the bar was in sight. She let out a sigh of utter relief and quickened her pace. She kept her eyes peeled for Kat, hoping she was waiting outside but she wasn't.

When she got to the bar she walked in, scanning the room for her friends. No one was there. She looks down at her watch and notices that she was about ten minutes early. Emily groans in annoyance. None of her friends were early birds. She was always the one arriving first.

"I can't believe I forgot... geez Emily you should know this by now" She mumbled to herself. She walks over to the bar and chooses a stool close to the end of the island. She wanted to be as far away as the rest of the patrons as possible. Even before it happened, Emily had always been awkward in social situations especially when she was left alone. She just doesn't know how to make conversation.

The bartender walks over with a kind smile and hands her a tall pint of beer.

"Oh uh, I think you have the wrong person. I didn't order that or anything for that matter..." She explained but the bartender smiled.

"It's already paid for ma'am so don't worry."

The bartender leaves the drink in front of her and walks away.

Emily stares at the drink, confused why someone would go out of their way to pay for it. It crossed her mind that it could be on the house. Maybe Kat told the bartender why they were coming today in one of her previous visits and it was a gift in honor of the occasion. If that were the case, she had to accept.

Emily smiled to herself and took a sip of the beer. It was cold on her lips and fingertips, causing her to smile even more. It was surprisingly not as bitter as she expected but a bit on the sweet side.

Emily sat back in her chair and relaxed while she continued to wait. She took another sip but this time, she tasted something different...something familiar. Her heart began to race and the room around her started to spin. She couldn't tell if this was because of her nerves or because of the drug. The same thing happened ten years ago.

Everything began to go fuzzy and darken. The last thing she heard before passing out was a low, warped, familiar laugh.