Chapter 4. Obedience Can Keep You Alive

She turned around and immediately looked for Mellissa; she was sitting, entranced in the music, waving her hands in the air, completely oblivious to what was happening behind her.

“She’s fine, for now. Whether or not it stays that way is entirely up to you,” he said with an amused glint in his eyes and a smolder that spoke more of his insanity than his words ever could.

“Who are you?” Lola asked. Her body was pressed against his as his hand held on her lower back.

“I’m Chuck, and you’re Lola,” he said matter-of-factly.

She wondered for the second time that week how these strangers could know her name when most people barely even knew she existed.

Upon seeing the wheels spin in her mind with the many questions she held on her tongue, Chuck smiled in amusement. Lola felt the other day, when she had first met them, that something was off. Something was trying to warn her, but she mistook danger for desire. Staring into Chuck’s taunting eyes, she felt another pair of eyes burning on the side of her face. As she turned her head, she saw the singer staring straight at her, his lips pulling up in a grin, and with the slightest move, he bowed his head in a greeting. His fingers started playing faster on the guitar, and the microphone’s sound rose. A shadow crossed her vision, and she looked in the corner where the base stood. A man was turning the volume up, drowning out all other sounds.

“What are you going to do?” Her voice was a mere whisper under the loud sounds. Only he could hear her, which was exactly what he wanted, and she knew that. No matter what happened now, nobody would hear her.

“This is what we’re going to do. You’re going to turn around and walk with me to the back. We’re going to leave the café and get in a car that’s parked by the alley. If you make a sound or in any way try to alert someone, your pretty little friend over there will be joining us in a body bag.”

Lola heaved a breath. She watched Melissa’s back, and as Melissa turned her head to the side while moving to the music, she saw the dimples that always formed when she smiled.

“Do you understand?” Chuck asked and pressed against her back.

“Yes,” she breathed, her eyes never leaving Melissa.

* * *

“We’re going to leave the house and get in the SUV outside. A nice man is going to take us to a cottage,” her father said and squeezed her hand.

Apart from a little house with two bedrooms, they didn’t have much. She shared a room with her aunt; her parents slept in the other room, and her two cousins and an uncle slept in the living room. They were a big family, all with the same outlook on life and the belief that everything was terrible and that people with money were nothing but devils disguised in human skin.

“Is Mom coming too?” Lola asked with her bag in hand.

 They had been invited by her father’s co-worker to a cottage in the woods where they would vacation over the weekend. Her parents had promised games, barbecues, and bonfires, and she couldn’t remember the last time they were all together and happy.

“Of course, she’s joining us later,” he said with a furious nod.

They walked out of the house, and she looked at the man standing outside the car with his hands clasped in his front and a worker’s hat on his head.

“Come on, honey. We have to get in the car.” Her father grabbed the bag and handed it to the man. A flick on her head caused Lola to look at the night sky. The flickering lamp by the street showed the raindrops falling heavier, and soon, everything would be soaked. The house would most likely be damaged, but all she could think of was the cottage and her family sitting together again.

* * *

Lola came to Wild Cliff to start over. A small town hidden from the roads and perfectly secluded- it was supposed to be her sanctuary, a fresh start but then how come she felt like her past had followed her here?

“Let’s go,” Chuck said and pushed her in front of him.

He nodded to his two accomplices and headed to the back of the café.

“What’s going to happen to the people in there?” Lola asked when they walked through the narrow hall filled with empty boxes that still hadn’t been thrown out. She held her breath when she saw the green door and slowly exhaled in defeat when she reached out and opened it.

The alley was dark, and the wind was still. The smell of rotten meat and sewer water was always potent in the alley behind the restaurants.

“Once you’re in the car, my friends in there will pack up their things and join us. If you resist, they have instructions to kill the brunette energy packet that sat by the counter, and if they kill her, they must also eliminate any witnesses. Let’s just say that things will get messy.”

They walked down the alley, and she saw the car standing with the headlights on by the street.

Lola didn’t move an unnecessary muscle out of place. She walked as composedly as possible and saw the ending in front of her. Everything she’d been hiding from had caught with her, and now she was placing everyone in danger.

They heard a loud creak echo in the alley, metal scraping against the stone, and boxes falling on the ground as someone panted behind them.

“Lola!”

“No,” she breathed and turned her head.

Melissa came running with her cardigan pulled tightly around her body and her nose turning red from the cold.

“You just disappeared,” she said and ran up to them.

Lola looked at Chuck, who wore an unimpressed expression, and his hand pressed harder on her back. She felt a sharp sting poking into her skin and wondered if he was holding a knife.

“You shouldn’t have come,” Lola said and looked at her confused friend.

“Why? Who is this?” Melissa asked.

“This is Chuck. He’s an old family friend. He just wanted to talk, so why don’t you go back inside? I’ll be right there,” Lola said.

Melissa wrinkled her nose and furrowed her brows while scanning Cuck.

“Are you sure? Why is there a car here?” Lola sighed and winced from the sharp pain pressing into her.

“Just go, Melissa!” she said.

Melissa stepped back, but her eyes kept looking between the car, Chuck and Lola.

“Oh, for god’s sake, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Chuck seethed. Just as Chuck released Lola and moved toward Melissa, a sudden flash of a shadow appeared in front of them. Melissa’s head was pulled to the side as a man appeared behind her. His lips were draped over her neck, and blood was starting to pool around his mouth. Chuck smiled. He turned around and saw the horror on Lola’s face.

“No, stop!” she screamed and ran over to them but was held back as Chuck reached out and grabbed her arm.

He pulled her in front of him. She was frozen in fear as she witnessed her best friend’s blood being sucked out of her neck.

“Stop it! Please, stop!” She fought to get out of his grip, but it was as though he was mounted to the spot, and no matter the kicks or the hits, he didn’t let go. He barely even moved.

Chuck’s hand came up and covered her mouth. His other hand held her arm down, and the tears that fell from her eyes were hitting the hand that choked her screams.

The door opened once more, and the third guy came out carrying the guitar. He watched what was happening and smiled as he dropped everything from his hands next to the car.

“Let me get a taste,” he said, but the man feeding on Melissa raised his hand and hissed. Lola saw the blood-red eyes and black veins. Then, Lola saw his teeth—sharp teeth that were covered in Melissa's blood.

Her breath hitched in her throat, and the third man scoffed as he stayed back.

“Guess I’ll get a taste of you later anyways,” he said and pinched Lola’s chin.

He turned around to grab the guitar. A thud was heard behind them, and Chuck turned his head.

“Where the fuck did he go?” Chuck’s grip loosened on Lola’s arms.

“Owen?”

There was no answer. If anything, it seemed like things were quieter. The silence was heavier around them than it had been before.

Chuck and Lola turned around when another whopping flash went past them. Another thud had them spinning on their feet, and Lola saw Melissa lying on the ground. Her eyes were closed, and the two puncture wounds on her neck were pumping out blood.

“Melissa,” she cried and ran over, but Chuck pulled at her waist and brought her back.

He dragged Lola screaming to the car and tried to open the door. That same shadow swished past them. It was going in circles and disappearing in dark corners. Chuck’s head was jerking back and forth to try to see where it was, but it didn’t show itself. The car door was locked, and no matter how hard he pulled, it wouldn’t budge. The shadow kept coming closer. Lola was panting as she looked around to see where it came from. When she noticed Chuck’s focus on the flashing shadow, she ran to Melissa and fell on her knees next to her body.

“Please, please,” she begged as she checked for a pulse.

“I told you to stay put,” someone hissed behind her.

Lola turned her head. Chuck’s eyes were glowing red, and two fangs were extended in his mouth. She stood up and shook her head frantically as she backed away from Melissa.

The slashing sound of something whipping through the air was getting closer, and Chuck was becoming more agitated. He hissed, grabbed Lola’s throat, and just as he was about to stick his teeth in his long-awaited prize, his body was pulled away. Lola was tossed back against the wall. Her head hit the concrete, and her body fell to the ground in an all-surrounding darkness.