The Way It Is [#OpenNovellaContest2019]

• Chapter Ten •

Robert knew what he was supposed to do.  Throw the deer head into the hungry flames of the fire. But he hesitated. This felt so wrong! Was this really the only way to escape? Suddenly he felt a knife on his neck.

"Well?" The big shadow breathed in his ear, taunting him with the glinting blade, still glistening with the doe's blood.

And suddenly there was a shout.

"Get your hands off my father!"

Faith ran from behind a huge bunch of bushes towards the big shadow, kicking him in the back of the knees and making him fall to the ground. She had seen the whole thing, and she had seen enough of it. The knife hit the ground as well, and Faith kicked it away into the darkness of the forest.

"Run away!" Faith yelled at her father as she dodged arms from various shadows, who she knew to be the other gang members.

"Faith! You don't know what you're doing!" Robert yelled, panic in his voice as he tried to pry his fellow members away from his daughter.

The big shadow rose, quickly and quietly, in front of Faith. Everyone froze, Robert staring in fear. His hood had fallen backwards, revealing his face. He had a scar going down the side of his face, and his electric blue eyes blazed with anger.

He grabbed Faith by the arms, twisting them behind her back. She gave a cry of pain, clenching her teeth to not make any more sound.

Robert lunged toward the leader, but one of the gang members pointed a loaded handgun at him, and he froze once more.

"Mark!" He yelled at the leader, his hands in the air to show the gun man he wouldn't move. "Please don't do this! I proved I am worthy, now let us go!"

Mark leered in Roberts direction. "You proved you are worthy, but she did not. As long as she is associated with you, she must also prove her worth, or leave like the rest of your family!"

Roberts face went white with dread, but he said nothing more. Then there were shouts from the shadows of the forest.

Two men were fighting over something shiny.

"Give it to me; I wanna do it!"

"No!"

Mark turned his head, confused. "What the hell?"

While he was distracted, Faith ripped her arms out of his grasp, turned around, and with all of her might, punched him right in the face. Mark fell backwards, unconscious.

The shadow with the gun was watching with an impressed look on his face, and Robert took the opportunity to kick the gun out of his hands, grab it, and point it at the shadow.

"I will only shoot if you give me a reason to. Leave, and take the group with you."

The shadow backed away slowly, and gestures to the others. They followed him into the darkness of the forest, and for a moment, it was peaceful.

Faith turned around, triumph on her face.

"We did it, Dad! They shouldn't come ba-"

Suddenly, she was pushed to the ground with a shriek. They had forgotten about the men in the woods, fighting over the shiny thing, which turned out to be the knife.

One of the men, the one that had pushed Faith, now kicked every part of her body that he could reach. Faith curled up into a ball, trying to protect her face, so it was mostly her back and legs that got kicked.

Meanwhile, the other man, the one who had managed to get the knife, lunged for Robert, trying to dig the knife into his chest. Without thinking, Robert aimed the gun, and pulled the trigger.