The Ties That Bind
She was trapped in both mind and body. But her heart was in the hands of a monster.
Chapter 1. Into the Woods
Always remember there was nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name. -Avett Brothers
It was unseasonably cold that November night. The sky was clear and twinkling brightly with stars, but the dancing lights somehow did not bring warmth to the damp, heavily wooded landscape. The air was humid as always, but the absence of the sun made it tolerable if one were to venture outside. The roads remained lonely that night, as all the townsfolk were home, sleeping like responsible adults who had their shit together and knew how to stop blogging and turn off their damn laptops. But for one unlucky resident, rest would not come so easily that fateful night.
A baleful whine stirred Tulip from a dreamless sleep. She remained still and silent, until something heavy crawled onto her bedroll and laid its full weight on top of her, giving her no room to breathe.
"Uhhng." She moaned from under the sleeping bag, wriggling her way to freedom.
She managed to slip out of the trap and slide onto the tent floor, less than pleased to leave the coziness of her blanket cocoon. She grimaced at the furry culprit, who was now wagging the tip of his tail with no remorse whatsoever.
"I thought I took you out before bed, you heartless monster." She grumbled.
Tulip didn't care for dogs. She didn't hate them, and she didn't fear them, she just didn't like the way they slobber and the way they shed hair on everything you own, or how they poop on your new rug and chew the legs on your great grandmother's antique rocking chair and have no idea what a pain in the ass they are.
But she had been asked to take care of Milo by her older sister, who was out of town for the week with her husband and young daughter in Disneyland. Young as in infant. Too young to appreciate and too young to remember the experience and expense of the happiest place on Earth. Tulip had been the same age the first and only time she had gone, and only had grainy photos of her in the arms of Mickey Mouse himself, red-faced and crying her eyes out, as proof that she was actually ever there.
Tulip slipped on her socks and hiking boots without bothering to tie them, and crawled out of the tent. "Go pee." She commanded Milo, who happily obliged, trotting off into the dark.
As she waited, Tulip glanced at the pop up tent beside her own, wondering if her friend was still asleep. They had been planning this camping trip for months, waiting for the weather to cool down and hurricane season to taper off so they could avoid the real world for a time. Laura had just gone through a breakup with her boyfriend Matt, who had been a tremendous douche to her, so the trip had come at the perfect time to take her mind off her troubles. A few days off the beaten path, hiking, fishing, and getting outrageously high while making s'mores had become an annual tradition since high school.
They set up camp in a small clearing, a couple miles from the road. They had parked behind some bushes, covering the car with leaves for extra camouflage. Their campsite of choice was on private property, and while they had gotten away with trespassing for years, Laura was particularly cautious about staying hidden, terrified of the thought of getting arrested and losing her scholarship.
Laura would be entering grad school in North Carolina in Spring, leaving Tulip without her best friend for the next several months, making this their last hurrah for some time. Tulip yawned, and scratched her head. That was gonna suck.
It was then that she realized that Milo had still not returned from relieving himself. She glanced around. "Milo?" She hissed, trying not to wake Laura. Tulip pulled out her phone and switched on the flashlight app. "Milo!" She called again, a little louder this time. No answer.
"Well, shit."
Tulip headed off into the direction she last saw the golden retriever, calling out repeatedly, dreading her sister's wrath if she returned home without him.
She walked on a little ways, but there was no sign of him until she heard a distant barking coming back from the direction of the campsite. The little bastard was where he was supposed to be all along!
Tulip groaned and turned to head back to her tent when the sound of gunfire stopped her dead in her tracks. Immediately she dropped to the ground, listening as Milo kept barking incessantly. There was another gunshot, and she heard Milo cry out, then go silent. Her hand flew to her mouth to cover any sound that might escape. Fear crept up and sent her heartbeat racing. Could it be inexperienced hunters shooting wildly into the night, mistaking Milo for a deer? Whoever was out there may be closer than she realized, and not have realized their error.
Slowly, she bellycrawled to a large, fallen, tree and crouched beside it, making sure to keep her head as low as possible. The hollowed out log was large enough to keep her hidden in the shadows cast by the moon.
Then she thought of Laura. Had she been hurt? Was she lying low and trying to remain calm just as she was? Her first instinct was to get up and run to the campsite to check her and Milo, but with bullets flying, she could not risk getting shot herself. If they could not see her, the only way to make herself know was to let them hear her.
"HELLO?" She yelled as loud as her trembling voice could manage. "WHO'S OUT THERE?"
The was a moment of silence, followed by the sound of twigs and leaves being trampled by footsteps. The footsteps were coming from the other side of the log, getting closer. But they were slow and deliberate, like a thief sneaking through a house with creaky floorboards.
It did not occur to her until that moment that the danger she was in was in fact, deliberate, and her decision to call attention to herself might be the last thing she would ever do. It took everything in her power to keep herself from shaking and crying as the footsteps walked right past her, stopping not ten yards from where she was hidden. In the moonlight she saw a man, tall with broad shoulders, and dark hair, standing with his back to her, wielding a hunting rifle. He wore a dark, fleece-lined jacket and ill-fitting, worn-out jeans- far from usual hunter's garb.
Because he's no hunter. Tulip thought, more confused than ever. Her instincts were screaming at her to run, but the man was far too close to avoid being seen or heard. Her legs were starting to cramp up from her crouching position, but she willed herself to remain still and silent.
The man knelt and picked something up off the ground. Her phone! And the flashlight was still on! Suddenly, the distinct sound of a branch snapping drew the man's attention. He pocketed Tulip phone and quickly followed the source of the disturbance. As soon as he was out of site, Tulip took her chance and scrambled back to the campsite, running straight to Laura's tent.
The opening was unzipped and the inside was was too dark to see, even with the light of the moon.
"Laura?" Tulip whispered hoarsely, trembling as she inched closer to the dark void inside the tent. She smelled it before she saw it- heavy and metallic- the unmistakable scent of blood.
Don't look, don't look, don't look, don't look, don't look.
Hot, bitter bile rose to her throat and she doubled over, emptying the contents of her stomach. Legs like jelly, she dropped to her knees, choking on her own sobs. "N-no, no, no, Laura!"
He's coming for me. She realized. I have to get to the car. Shaking like a leaf, she slowly rose and stumbled to her tent collapsing to the ground again as she searched for her backpack.
"Keys, c'mon, where are you?" she muttered, rifling through every pocket until the sweet metallic jingle revealed their location.
Tulip stood and bolted out of the tent and to the car, when something heavy cracked her on the head. Blinding pain shot through her skull and she fell face first into the mud, skinning her hands and knees. The trees began to spin around her and her vision blurred. The assailant knelt and and turned her over onto her back to face him. Shadows flickered across his face and she finally recognized him.
"This is on you, Tulip. YOU made me do this." he spat, venomously "YOU told her to leave me. Now you have to die too."
She was paralyzed, her terror so strong that she could not will herself to move, to speak, to scream.
Matt.
Her heart pounded in her chest, through the ringing in her ears she heard the distinct sound of a gun cocking. Matt raised the rifle, leveling the barrel directly at Tulip's heart and pulled the trigger.
Only silence ensued. Both parties locked eyes, unbearably tense, as if waiting for the other to make a move. Instinctively Tulip raised her leg and kicked Matt in the knee as hard as she could, knocking him to the ground. Keys still clutched in her hand, Tulip scrambled to her feet and and ran for the road, though it would be over a mile before she would reach it. She was fast, having run track in high school and the first two years of University, but she had grown light-headed, her lungs screaming for rest, her legs now leaden and sluggish. She would never make it to the car without Matt catching up, she realized, and would have to hide. She could hear Matt calling after her, and she knew she couldn't take much more. She sharply turned left, straining her eyes through the dark for a place to conceal her presence. Frantic, she misjudged the distance of the nearest tree and caught a root with her right foot, throwing her to the ground again and splitting her head open on a rock.
The dark washed over her, and soon there was nothing. No thought, no fear, no pain.
Only dark
.
XxXxXxX
Consciousness returned to her slowly, her mind heavy and enveloped in a dense fog. Her eyes fluttered open, the her surroundings falling into focus like a camera lense.
This room… where am I?
Her limbs were terribly stiff as she sat up, wincing as a sharp pain shot through her temples. The bed she had been lying in was soft and warm, with a patterned quilt draped over her legs. The window on the opposite side of the room was covered with thin white curtains, but the light coming through the folds told her it was daytime. The room was small, and over crowded with antique furniture lining the walls
Using the side table as leverage, she pulled herself to her feet and hobbled to the door. To her great relief, she found it unlocked.
The adjoining room was a mess. Boxes and trash strewn everywhere, chairs scattered on their sides and cobwebs on every surface.
"What in the hell do you think you're doing out of bed?"
Tulip gasped and spun about. In the doorway to her left her stood a woman, with the most startling face. Her skin was waxen and wrinkled, with hollow cheeks, her thin lips dry and cracked.
Tulip opened her mouth to speak but was so parched she could only cough in response.
"There, there. You've had a hard time, haven't you? You were in pretty rough shape when we found you out by the swamp."
"The swamp…" Tulip repeated. The memories began to surface, flashes of blood and pain coming back to her. "Who...who are you?"
The woman gave an unnaturally large, yellowing smile.
"Don't you know? You're home."
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