She was frozen in place. It was him. The criminal on the plane. Bonnie had warned her that they only moved the worst of the worst over international borders. He had probably killed, raped or kidnapped. Or maybe some combination of the three? She wanted to run, but there was no place to run to. She hadn't seen anyone else yet.

He turned to face her. She felt a burning in her chest and realized she was holding her breath.

"Hello, love." He called out.

Oh god, why did his voice have to sound so beautiful? A British accent, seriously? She just looked back at the naked man in the lagoon, unable to register a response.

"Fancy a swim?" He asked again.

She finally lifted her eyes away from his chest, that toned stomach, the water lapping around his hips, and when she focused on his face he was wearing a smirk that let her knew he had noticed her staring. She cringed, embarrassed by how easily she could lose her mind to lust. She tried to keep her eyes away from him altogether.

"You're covered in cuts and scratches, might be good to take a dip, get them cleaned out." He offered.

She looked down and for the first time it registered why she hurt all over. She had cuts running all over her body, bruises starting to form here and there, an abrasion along one arm that looked like she was dragged along pavement. Her mouth tasted like smoke. Just standing up made her feel wobbly. She had somehow survived a plane crash. A crash she didn't remember, at least not after her head smacked the seat in front of her as the plane started to plummet. How had she gotten out alive?

"I.. Uh..." She started.

"She speaks!" He smiled. "I was beginning to think you were mute."

"Do you think you could put something on?" She stammered out.

"Does my appearance bother you?" He grinned. "You didn't seem to mind so much earlier."

She tried to stammer out a response, but couldn't seem to form words.

"Very well, if you insist." he shrugged, and started to walk towards the shore, the water covering his lower half sliding down his body to reveal more.

Caroline gasped and turned around. "What are you doing?" she shouted out, clapping a hand over her eyes.

"I have to get out to get to my clothes. Your request, sweetheart."

"Just, ugh! Tell me when you're decent, ok?" She said, shielding her eyes.

"You don't have to look away, I certainly don't mind."

"Well I do! Just let me know when you have clothes on."

She stood there for what felt like forever, hand clamped over her eyes, waiting for him to finish getting dressed. She could hear the waves from the beach to one side and the quieter lapping of the water in the lagoon on her other side.

Two hands wrapped along her upper arms from behind, making her jump.

"You can open your eyes, love."

She spun around and found him dangerously close to her, but at least he was dressed now.

"Did you have to sneak up on me like that?" She gasped. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"You're the one who insisted on closing your eyes."

She took a few steps away from him, trying to get a little distance. She had gotten so distracted by the sight of him, by all the unfamiliar things around her, that she had momentarily forgotten who he was. He was something bad. She didn't know what, exactly, but it had to be serious. Bonnie had said only the worst of the worst were transported that way.

He was eyeing her carefully, picking up every change in expression that registered. He could see the fear and he enjoyed it.

He took a step closer and she took two back. He took another step towards her and she looked around, as if she was planning her best escape.

"Planning on running away, sweetheart?"

"Don't call me that." She responded, trying to distract him from asking her about why she was uncomfortable.

"Call you what?" He responded, feigning innocence.

"Sweetheart. It's gross and demeaning. Don't call me that."

"Gross? I was just trying to be nice. I don't know your name after all, I have to call you something."

"Well don't. I'm not your sweetheart or love or anything like that."

"What's you name?" He asked.

"Bonnie." She lied. It had been a natural impulse, trying to protect herself in any way possible.

He came closer and she tried to back away, but her back hit a tree and she was stuck. His eyes locked on hers for an uncomfortable about of time and she felt panic rush through her body.

"No, it's not. Lets try again. What's your real name?"

She bit her lip, trying to think of another name, of a way to make it sound convincing.

He leaned a little closer, blocking her from moving away.

"Don't lie to me again."

He said it quietly, but it was soaked in dominance and power. The tone he used, barely above a whisper, suggested he might snap her neck if she lied again, and that somehow he would be able to tell.

"Caroline." She said, her voice cracking a bit from fear.

He scanned her face for a few seconds.

"Yes, that's it. Caroline." He said. "Caroline, beautiful name for beautiful woman."

She scoffed at him, and immediately bit her tongue, waiting for him to lash out at her. He didn't. Instead he smiled, as if her rebuke amused him, as if she was starting a game he had looked forward to playing.

"Although I think you might be a bit more beautiful if you weren't covered in ashes and scrapes. Are you sure you don't fancy a swim? Get all that grime off?"

She felt disgusting and dirty and was sure the flames on the plane had made her sweat through all her clothes. There was nothing she wanted more than to be clean, to rinse all of it off her.

"I'm not doing that in front of you." She huffed.

"I wasn't asking for a show, Sweetheart, although I certainly wouldn't mind if you offered."

"It's Caroline. So you can stop calling me that."

"My apologies, Caroline. I'll give you some time alone." He said, gesturing towards the lagoon, and he weaved his way through the trees.

She watched him slip away and only when she was sure he was gone did she jump in the water. She jumped in fully clothed, and peeled each layer away once she got in, scrubbing as much of the dirt off as she could before setting each item of clothing on the warm rocks that sat in direct sunlight. They would dry fastest there.

She dipped under the water, trying to get all of the soot out of her hair. She could feel the water sting her at various places on her body, where she had open cuts. She carefully rinsed them off, checking for any debris in them, but luckily they looked clean.

If this wasn't such a nightmare she might actually think she was in paradise. The foliage around her was beautiful, the water was warm and clear, the jagged rocks along the side of the lagoon were worn away by the stream that trickled down them making the most soothing noise, the crunching of leaves underfoot as someone walked closer. Wait, what? She panicked, trying to cover all her parts at once, darting behind one of the rocks in the water. Why hadn't she picked this rock to rest her clothes on?

"Still swimming?" He said as he came back. "I'd have thought you'd be done by now."

"Get out!" She squeaked.

"I'm not in anything."

"Go away! you know what I mean!" She protested, covering herself up.

He was polite enough not to look right at her, but he did glance over at her clothes on the rocks. Along with her jeans and tank top were a red lace bra and panties to match. She had been planning on surprising Tyler, and she had dressed for the occasion.

"Now how did you know red is my favorite color?" He joked.

"Will you just go already?" She yelled.

"Fine. I'll give you another two minutes. Any longer than that and I'm coming in there to drag you out."

He moved bak into the trees, calling over his shoulder as he walked away.

"Watch out for piranas!"

Caroline screamed and nearly flew out of the water, getting halfway to the shore before hearing him laugh in the distance. Of course there were no piranas. Asshole.

She scrambled to get dressed and not a moment after she had zipped her pants and pulled her shirt over her head, she heard him walking back towards her. There was no way he waited a full two minutes.

"So the lady of the lake emerges." He said. "Good. Now we can be on our way."

"On our way where?" She said, confused.

"Just, on." He said, making it clear he wasn't going to explain it to her.

She looked at him like he was insane.

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

He rolled his eyes at her and marched over, ready to grab her by the arm and drag her.

"NO!" She shouted, taking a step back. "Don't touch me, you disgusting slimy criminal."

He sighed. "So there it is. I thought you figured it out. One look at the bandage on my wrist and you about jumped out of your skin."

She glared at him.

"Who tipped you off?" He asked "You weren't part of my escort on the plane."

"I have a friend who works for the airline."

"Well let's hope she didn't work on the airplane we were just on."

"No." She said "Wait. The plane. Why can't I see anything from the beach? Shouldn't the wreckage be in sight?"

"Never mind that, lets get back to what you know. Your friend who works for the airline, what did she tell you?"

"That there would be a criminal on board. Obviously that's you. And that you were probably a murderer, rapist, or some psycho who likes to torture people. Or, you know, all three."

She felt her pulse race. She was angry, furious even that she was standing here with him. She was even more annoyed that he seemed to be playing with her, enjoying making her say things that amused him.

"Well, two out of three, I suppose." He shrugged.

"Excuse me?" She stammered. She had expected him to deny it, proclaim his innocence, tell her it had all been a big misunderstanding. He had just shrugged, like it was nothing at all.

"I said, two out of the three. I've never raped anyone. Don't really see the fun in that one."

"What?" She stammered, flustered by how nonchalant he was about it all.

"You want me to explain it? I suppose I just don't find the idea of having sex with someone who isn't willing very appealing. You see, while half the fun is the obvious, the other half is watching her enjoy it, the cute little noises, the way they claw at your back and pull you closer, the begging and pleading, please don't stop, the shaking legs, trembling-"

"OK!" she shouted "I get it, you don't need to paint a picture."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm good." She said, trying to hide her face.

"That's an adorable shade of red."

"Just shut up."

"Are you really this worked up, just hearing me talk about it?"

"Can we please talk about something else?" She asked.

"I wonder if you really do know what I'm talking about." He smirked, stepping a bit closer to her.

"I'm pretty sure anyone with two brain cells to rub together could figure it out."

"Yes, but do you really understand? You see this-" He lightly grazed his fingers along her burning cheek "Isn't the knowing flush of someone who's been there. No, this tells me that you have no idea what I'm talking about. That no one's ever taken the time to figure out what makes you fall apart under their touch, how to make you-"

"Will you cut it out! I've had sex before! With several people, ok? I said it. Now leave me alone." She swatted his hand away.

"I'm sure you have, sweetheart. I'm also sure it wasn't very good."

"The name is Caroline."

"Not denying it, I see. Would you like a demonstration? I think you'd feel a lot more relaxed."

"I'm plenty relaxed! And I'm not going to stand here in the woods with some crazy murderer who's trying to fuck me!"

"You make it sound so vulgar, sweetheart. I'm only trying to help you out, it makes me sad to hear that you've never really experienced-"

"Just stop, ok? I'm sure you're used to this being very easy for you, because of how you look, but it's never going to happen. So stop trying."

"What about how I look?" He smirked.

She bit her lip and looked away from him. Don't blush again, Caroline. Pull it together. Crazy people like him probably get off on that kind of stuff. Don't let him see that it affects you. Just get away from him. There have to be other survivors. Someone pulled you out of that plane.

She walked away, and for a moment she wondered if he would try to drag her back, hold her hostage. After all, a rescue squad would come to save them eventually, right? He would need some leverage if he expected anything other than being immediately cuffed and taken into custody. She just needed to find the others. There had to be others.

"Where are you going, love?" he called out.

"Away from you." She retorted.

He smirked as he watched her stomp away towards the beach. She had fire, and she was tightly wound like a spring. She knew what he was and while she sometimes let herself be afraid, most of the time she was mouthing off to him.

He liked her anger, the way she snapped at him and stomped her foot, crossed her arms. All it did was fan the flames inside him, the stupid burning desire to have her, to hear her scream his name, the name she hadn't even bothered to ask him for yet.

His impulse was the one thing that always got him into trouble. It was what Mikael had hated most about him, other than the circumstances of his birth. However he was very thankful for that impulse today. The logical, rational thing to do would have been to follow the plan exactly. Wait for the explosion, find the parachute hidden exactly where Elijah said it would be, strap it on, break open the door, jump. He could glide to safety that would be out of reach for any possible survivors of the crash. If the impact didn't kill everyone, they would drown before they could make it to the closest island.

His impulse was triggered by his thoughts of her. The way she walked down that aisle, the way she looked at him. He had nothing to do on that plane but sit and wait, wait for the bomb. Then she walked by. How could he think of anything else after seeing her? All that waiting was filled with thoughts of her. Her clinging to him and begging him not to stop, her gasping out his name, bouncing up and down on his lap. He needed to know what she felt like, what she tasted like.

His impulse caused him to run down the aisle of the plane before grabbing the parachute. It wasn't an easy feat, especially with the downward tilt as the plan plunged towards the ocean, the six guards that were scrambling after him. It had taken more energy than he was prepared to exert to take them all out.

His impulse made him drag her unconscious body across the plane as he slid down the aisle, hold her tight as he opened the door and the pressure sucked both of them out of the plane. His impulse demanded that she not go down with the plane. She couldn't. Not her.

It had been difficult navigating the parachute while holding on to dead weight. She hadn't opened her eyes once, not even when he landed in the water a few hundred meters away from the shore. He was certain the freezing water would wake her right up. Instead he was relegated to swimming to shore and pulling her along, careful to keep her head above water. He briefly wondered if she was dead. No one could stay passed out through all that. He had laid her down in the forrest, away from the sun that could burn her porcelain skin. He sat with her and watched her breathe. She was breathing because he took her. She should have been at the bottom of the ocean. It was the first time he had ever saved anyone other than his family. He refused to read into the act and admit to himself just how significant what he had done was. He told himself it was just because she could keep him entertained. She was just a warm body, nothing more. She was nothing to him.

He spent an hour watching her, sleeping, breathing, occasionally stirring in her sleep. There was something enthralling about her, how she captivated him, even in her sleep. He had wanted nothing more than for her to wake up in that moment. For her to realize that he had saved her life and to thank him. He would have preferred a certain type of thank you that involved her legs wrapped around him, but he was willing to accept whatever she had to offer. Instead she stayed passed out and he got sick of waiting and took a swim to rinse off all the grime from the crash and the itchy salt water.

When she woke up, it was like she didn't even know what he did for her. She was angry and defensive. She snapped back at him instead of offering gratitude or at least fear. Now she was marching away from him.

He had said too much, he had made her beyond uncomfortable. Blurting out vulgar promises, letting her know just what he had to offer. He never even had to ask, women came to him. Now he had resorted to practically begging her? Stupid, stupid. He was addicted to watching her blush and squirm, wanting to see what he could say to get a rise out of her. At least now he had gotten under her skin. There was no way she was thinking about anything else as she walked away from him.


Kol Mikaelson picked the lock and walked into the apartment. It was early in the afternoon, but all the curtains were drawn and the lights still off. The person who lived here had a more nocturnal schedule.

Kol hadn't had eight straight hours of sleep in days. His mind couldn't possibly shut off. Elijah had sent his team in for the first part of the plan, but he needed to gather his own for the pick up. Rebekah had wanted to do it instead, considering Kol botched the helicopter ride that should have taken Niklaus out of Johannesburg, but he managed to get mother to see things his way. Now he needed to wake up his troops.

Tyler woke up and moved across the hall to the bathroom, pausing when he saw the figure standing in his living room. In an instant he was behind him, arm wrapped around his head, ready to snap his neck.

He was fast but Kol was faster.

A few quick twists and Tyler was flat on his back, Kol's hands holding him against the floor. Tyler struggled to fight back for a moment before he recognized the face.

"I hate surprises." Tyler grunted.

"I'll stop planning your birthday party." Kol retorted.

The two of them laughed and Kol helped Tyler get up.

Kol scanned the apartment. The place was a dump. There were piled of dirty clothes and empty cans and bottles all over. A half eaten pizza was gathering flies on the coffee table.

"So you're the secret weapon Niklaus has been training. His little wolf pup. Eight months here and I've only met you once before now. Some things are even too mysterious for family, apparently." Kol sad, his eyes scanning over Tyler. He was wearing a stained t-shirt and sweatpants that looked so filthy that they should be burned rather than washed. "You're a total slob."

"I uh, it's not normally like this. Rough couple of days."

"Clearly." Kol mused, starting to notice how red and puffy Tyler's eyes looked.

"I got dumped the other day. It was realy unexpected. I always thought we would get married."

"You and Hayley broke up? That'll make this mission a bit awkward." Kol knew of the relations between some of the top members of the team Niklaus had been training in Johannesburg. He was well aware of the two members of The Wolf's pack that were sharing a bed. Good for them, he thought, why not mix business with pleasure?

"No, my girl from home. She doesn't know why I'm really here. Thinks I'm a zoology student at the university, working on my masters."

"Was it a dear john letter, then? A phone call?" Kol smiled, clearly enjoying Tyler's misery.

"No. She came out here to surprise me. Caught Hayley and I in bed."

"Maybe if you told her you were an anatomy student, just doing some research."

"Caroline's not an idiot. She left as soon as she came. It's probably for the best. I could never really be honest with her about all this."

"You're sure she had no idea about why you're really here?"

"None. I made sure of it. No one knows."

"So where is she now?" Kol smiled "If she's not spoken for, maybe I can take her out, show her the town."

"I don't know, she probably left, went back to Mystic Falls."

"I hope she wasn't on my brother's flight." Kol smiled.

"Yeah, I heard about the crash." Tyler said. "All over the TV. Engine failure. No survivors."

"None but the one." Kol smiled. "They can count the bodies, but with all the sharks in the water it'll come up short, they'll have to assume that some were eaten."

"You don't think they'll search the closest island, just to be sure?"

"Oh I have no doubt they will." Kol said. "We have a plan for that as well."

"So now what?"

"We wait a few days for him to get to the spot. If it all works according to plan, we'll pick him up on Thursday. I'm sure he'd be delighted to see his protege welcoming him back into the world of the living."

"Klaus told you about our training?" Tyler said warily.

"Oh, my brother told me quite a bit, I was able to fill in the blanks."

Tyler nodded curtly. He knew he would have to meet all of the Mikaelsons eventually, but he was expecting Klaus to be there with him, to tell him what he could do or say.

Kol checked his phone.

"I'm off. Lots to do. Expect a call tomorrow."


Caroline found the parachute folded neatly in the woods after a few minutes of walking. She felt triumphant. Someone else was here. Maybe the person who was in this parachute was the one who saved her. That had to be the explanation for how she got here.

There were probably lots of people from the plane who washed up here. She looked around for any sign of them. There was nothing except the one parachute.

It could have been a rescue squad. Could they have gotten here already? She didn't know how long she was out for. It didn't matter who. Someone was here.

No matter what part of the beach she went out onto, she couldn't see any sign of the wreckage, not a single thing floating in the vast expanse of water out in front of her. If the plane was floating somewhere beyond her view, there was no way anyone could swim so far. the parachute explained how they could have made it to the island. They must have evacuated the plane on the way down. There were probably more. She just had to find the rest of them.

She tore through the woods, calling out, desperate to find whoever was there. Someone had to be out there. Someone must have saved her from the wreckage. It didn't matter who it was, she needed to find them. Anyone was better than him.

She darted through the trees, calling out for anyone. Her head was turned to the side, scanning her surroundings, so she didn't see the figure step out from behind a rather large tree.

She smacked into someone and fell backwards. The impact should have knocked him on his back, but he just stood there, as if she didn't slam into him at a full sprint.

"No, not you again."

"You were expecting someone else, love?"

"It's Caroline." She grumbled. "And yes."

"Really." He said, amused. "Who are you looking for?"

"The person who saved me." She said. "I know I didn't get out of the plane on my own. Someone had to have helped me."

"They did." He nodded, serious.

"You saw?" She asked.

He nodded.

"Where are they? Are there others?"

"Just the one." He said, amusing himself with the little charade. He should feel insulted that it never crossed her mind that he could have been the one to save her, but he decided to push those feelings aside and have a little fun.

"How do you know there was only one?"

"Well, for starters, I was conscious when the plane went down."

"Fine, where is he? Or she?"

She was looking around, trying to spot her savior on the island.

"He's around here somewhere." He said, pretending to help her look.

"Do you know who he is?"

"Name's Niklaus Mikaelson. Bit of an tosser if you ask me."

"Well, no one's asking you. If you excuse me, I'd rather spend time with the person who saved me as opposed to some crazy murder torture pervert."

"Such cruel words, Caroline."

"I'm sure you've been called worse."

"But not by someone so beautiful."

"Can you just leave me alone?"

"Why?"

"Why do you think? You're creeping me out. I don't want to be anywhere near you."

"I'm not about to let you wander off alone on the island. Who knows what could happen to you. It'll get dark soon, and then what will come out?"

"I'm not going to be alone. I'm going to find this Niklaus Mikaelson and thank him for saving me, and figure out a plan to get off this island."

"I'll help." He offered.

"I'd prefer you didn't."

"Nonsense. I know what he looks like. I can help."

"You just said he was the only other one who made it. I think I'll be able to spot him without you."

He ignored her attempts to get him to leave her alone and continued walking through the woods by her side. She stayed silent, searching around everywhere she went. He enjoyed watching her, the way her brow furrowed, the brief hope that crossed her face whenever the noise of an animal scurrying through the trees caught her attention.

"So you saw it all happen? On the plane?" She asked, breaking the silence.

"I did."

"You saw him save me?" She asked.

He nodded.

"But no one else made it out?"

"It all happened very quickly. There wasn't much time."

"How did you make it out? I thought you were surrounded by guards, injected with sedatives."

"Ah, someone's done their homework." He smiled. "You're correct. However, I've been taking small amounts of different sedatives for years now, building up an immunity. And the guards aren't as much as a problem as you would think. They've got other things on their mind when the plane is rushing towards the earth."

"I didn't have anything on my mind. I hit my head and blacked out."

He nodded. "Probably better than being awake when the plane went under. Less suffering. Either way, you'd be dead with the rest of them if he hadn't grabbed you."

"Why did he save me? I don't know him. I don't even know what he looks like."

"I don't know." He answered honestly.

"What is he like? Did you talk to him?"

"Oh, yes, we had a little chat. Bit of a disagreement. He can be a little moody."

"You're one to talk."

"Careful love. You wouldn't want to get on my bad side."

"I don't want to be on any of your sides, I want to find this Mikaelson guy and get as far away from you as possible."

He held back a laugh. She was really quite entertaining. He couldn't wait to see her face when he decided to get around to telling her the truth.

"Now, sweetheart-"

"Name's Caroline." She spat at him, not bothering to look his way, distracted by her search to find someone in the trees. He had to be close. How far could he have gone? It was getting darker by the minute, and she couldn't see very far into the distance as the forrest grew grey and dark.

"Now, Caroline. I think you'll find that I'm a lot more fun than this Mikaelson you're looking for. Why not give up? Rest your feet a bit."

"No. I need to find him."

"This isn't some bloody hero thing is it?"

"What?"

"You're looking for your savior, already half in love with him for rescuing you."

"And what's so wrong with that? The guy saved my life. You wouldn't know a thing about that, since you're the type to take lives instead." She said.

She really didn't care if the killer following her around thought she was blindly in love with the man who saved her. In all honesty, she just wanted to get away from the deranged criminal, and would use any opportunity to do so. Plus he seemed to find it annoying that she might have a crush on her unknown rescuer, so she decided to play it up a bit, just to bother him.

"Already swooning over your knight in shining armor, are you?"

"Maybe." She huffed.

"And what are you planning on doing once you're reunited with your hero?"

"No business of yours."

"Are you going to kiss him?"

"What?" She looked at him like he was crazy. Kissing anyone had been the last thing on her mind.

"Isn't that what happens when the princess comes face to face with the hero?"

"You know what, yeah. I am going to kiss him. I'm going to be so overcome with joy to set eyes on a person who isn't you that I won't be able to stop myself from kissing them."

"Thinking about me makes you want to kiss someone?" He joked.

"Don't twist my words."

"You could always kiss me instead. After all, we both already know that you're attracted to me, and who knows what you'll think of the looks of this Mikaelson guy."

"I'm not attracted to you."

"I thought I told you not to lie to me again."

She spun around to tell him again that she wasn't interested, and he moved closer, his face dropping the easy smile he had only moments ago.

She didn't know what she had been thinking, spending all day spitting fire at the most dangerous person she had ever met. Something about the way he smiled at her retorts made her think she could get away with them, but he wasn't a punching bag. He was a time bomb, and he had just bottomed out.

His face grew serious and she felt a flood of panic. He had snapped out of nowhere in the middle of their friendly conversation, and now he looked like he might actually kill her.

"This has been a fun evening, but it seems that you need to be reminded of something." He said, his voice low and threatening as he approached her. She shuddered as he leaned close to her, picking up her wrists in each hand. "I am in change here. You can have your fun, but when I give you a command, you obey. And so far, the only thing I have commanded of you is that you do not lie to me."

"I wasn't lying." She stammered out.

"And there's another lie." he said. "You see, I can tell that you're used to getting away with it, you're not half bad. But everyone has their tells."

He absently stroked her wrists with his thumbs. "Your pulse jumps a bit. I can feel it now, but before, I could see it. The hitch in your breath, the flush of pink across your chest. Then there's the way your eyes dart to the left for just a fraction of a second. It's how I knew you were lying when you tried to give me a false name, and it's how I know you were lying just now, saying you aren't attracted to me."

She glared back at him, angry, embarrassed, afraid to say anything at all.

"Don't worry." He said, still with the dangerous softness in his voice that sent shivers up her back. "I'm not going to make you say it now. I can only imagine how confusing it must be for someone like you, having such thoughts about someone like me. I bet you're an upstanding citizen. Moral. You biggest run in with the law was some parking ticket. Am I on the right track?"

"It was a speeding ticket." She said.

"There you have it. You've probably never had a taste of the other side, Never wanted to take vengeance against a corrupt justice system. Never wanted to take matters into your own hands. But here you are with me, and you can't stop thinking about what it would be like, you and me. How good it would feel. You know it would be so wrong, I'm no good, but you can't stop thinking about it."

She turned to look away from him, afraid of what he might read in her eyes if she looked at him. He was vile, disgusting and horrible, but he hadn't said anything false yet. Her entire body was on fire and she kept trying to convince herself it was out of fear, but there was something else too. Something she didn't want to admit.

He kept his hold on her wrist, turning his fingers over her pulse point.

"Your heat's racing." He mused. "I wonder if it's because of my close proximity?"

"It's only because I'm afraid." She said.

"Is that so?" He said.

He moved closer so he was pressed up against her. She felt warmth shoot all over her body and she had to fight the impulse she felt to throw herself at him. It was all his fault. He had put the ideas in her head. She couldn't help it. After all, she had spent the last eight months without any contact, waiting faithfully for Tyler. She had thought that she would have finally have broken the dry spell yesterday, before she found him in bed with someone else. It had nothing to do with the deranged man looming over her. It was just pent up frustration. He was hot, so what? It didn't mean she actually wanted him.

He moved one of his hands to her neck, still holding her wrist with the other hand. He traced a few light lined over the side and she felt her breath hitch again, much to her own shame. She didn't want to give him a reaction. He dipped his head a little and traced along her neck with the tip of his nose, his lips dangerously close to her skin, his breath warming her and making her shiver at the same time.

She bunched her free hand in a ball, afraid that she might use it to pull him closer if she let herself forget who he was.

"I can smell your fear." He whispered into her neck. "That's good. You're a smart girl. I wonder if you're brave too. Brave enough to admit that fear isn't the only thing you feel right now."

She felt him slowly back away and she hated herself for wishing he had stayed pressed against her just a moment longer.

He looked her over, seemingly satisfied with how much he rattled her.

"Alright, lets go find your little hero. It's getting late. You wouldn't want to be stuck with the likes of me for the night instead."

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to compose herself, then she followed him through the woods.