Beyond Her Final Breath (Book 1- Shadowland Duology) | Wattys2015

.Chapter Five.

Every sound made Nathan jump. Every shadow made him cower away.

He began to slowly back out of the forest. The edge of the woods wasn't far, and just beyond it he could see rolling hills of waving grass.

He continued along, but with every step the wind picked up. His suit jacket did little to stop the harsh wind from biting his skin.

Evelyn followed closely behind, the wind seeming to not affect her at all. The only thing that convinced Nathan that she was real was her hair whipping around in the wind.

"What's happening?" she asked.

"I really don't know."

Another loud clap of thunder echoed off the mountains. The sound of heavy rain came closer and closer until Nathan became drenched.

The rain chilled him to the bone. His clothes stuck to his skin like a second skin.

Evelyn remained untouched by the rain. It went through her like she wasn't but a shadow or cloud.

His stomach wound itself into knots and twists with every second that passed. The edge of the forest only lay another ten feet away when something rustled the dead leaves on the ground.

It wasn't the crunch of his or Evelyn's footsteps or the tumbling of the leaves in the wind. It was heavier than that, like something big was making its way towards him.

Fear, pure and ice cold, sluggishly traveled through his veins, freezing him on the spot.

"We need to get out of here," Evelyn hissed. "Something's coming."

But Nathan was paralyzed. Inside, he was screaming, telling himself to run, but his feet wouldn't obey.

The rustling grew louder and louder. It was coming closer.

Nathan's heart hammered away in his chest. It was beating so hard he was surprised Evelyn couldn't hear it.

A deep guttural groan filled the air.

"Oh god," Evelyn moaned. "Please move."

Thump... rustle... thump... rustle...

A rotting black hand with long, jagged fingernails reached out from behind a tree.

A scream of pure terror tried to rip itself free of Nathan's throat.

"Please run," Evelyn whimpered.

Adrenaline coursed through his veins, burning away all traces of fear.

Without a second glance at the hand or Evelyn, Nathan took off. He ran like he never had before.

His lungs screamed along with his muscles, begging for him to stop, but the adrenaline kept him going. The rain pelted his face like mini bullets. His bare feet sunk into the mud, making it harder to run.

"Keep running!" Evelyn ran beside him, the rain pelting through her. "I don't know what it is, but I know it's not good."

The wind whipped the grass around, and they snagged on Nathan's pants.

He ran to the bottom of the hill where the road carved itself out of a mountain side. The road was slick with water, the cars long gone.

Streams of rain water flowed down the mountain in the side ditches and road. Gravel dug into the bottoms of his feet, but he continued running. He needed to get home.

His feet hit the wet pavement with a slap, slap!

A stitch in his side was forming, and he gasped for air. His lungs burned for more air, but he couldn't get enough. Pain radiated in waves from every single muscle.

"Just a little bit more," he gasped.

He turned right on his street. There, up ahead, his house lay like a safe haven. With one last burst of energy, he crossed his yard and flung open the door. He slammed it closed and dashed up the stairs.

"Nathan? Is that you?" his father called.

He heard the soft murmuring of his sister and father and then them retreating to the living room.

Nathan inhaled gasps of oxygen. His whole body felt tired and weak. HIs muscles ached and threatened to give out on him.

Evelyn was nowhere to be seen.

He stripped off his dripping wet clothes and changed into a dry t-shirt and boxers.

His knees buckled, and his legs gave out on him. He collapsed on top of his bare mattress and curled up into a ball.

Nathan's feet throbbed and his heart raced.

Slowly, he fell into a restless sleep.

A/N

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