PART EIGHT
SOMEWHERE IN THE FOREST 4:36 AM
Duncan felt like choking someone as he stood in front of the steep rock formation blocking the path. Courtney, Harold and himself had been running blindly through the forest, guided only by his keen sense of direction. Their destination was the dock on the north side of Lake Wawanakwa and finding north was the easy part. It was the dense forest, pitch-black sky and unexpected detours like this mossy cliff that challenged him. He took out his frustration by punching the rock face while Courtney quietly watched, hugging herself against the cold. She considered mentioning the map, but she decided that would only irk him more, knowing that they left it behind at the cabin. The brunette's thoughts drifted to the other thing they'd left behind, Bridgette, but there was almost no choice. Peering through the dense woods, she thought aloud of her bunkmate, "I sure hope Bridgette is okay."
"She's fine," Harold's voice rasped indifferently. His blatantly apathetic tone appalled Courtney, and she narrowed her gaze at the geek suspiciously. He had been getting notably nonchalant for a while now and she couldn't decide if he was a jerk, or if he had another reason. Even when Bridgette had begged them to leave her behind, he never even batted an eye.
Placing her hands firmly on her hips, Courtney decided it was time for some answers, "What's up with you Harold? You're not even slightly worried. Why?"
"I don't know… gut feeling," he answered with the same disinterest. He slouched back against a tree and gazed off into the distance, infuriating the girl further. She didn't get the chance to berate him though, because Duncan had his own little outburst, "Damnit! We'll have to go another way!"
Briskly he brushed past his two teammates, examining the landscape of trees encompassing them. Visibility was still nonexistent, the forest was endlessly dark and all the trees looked the same in the shadow. The lingering fact that the killer was out there somewhere didn't help his disposition either. He looked almost lost mumbling to himself while he pondered their next move.
Wordlessly, Duncan marched forwards into the woods again, this time without holding onto Courtney's hand. Said girl was quick to chase after the brooding teen, not wanting to chance being separated anymore than their team was. Harold sighed heavily and leisurely pushed himself off the tree to bring up the rear.
THE NORTH DOCK 4:40 AM
Guided by the map the Bass team had neglected, Gwen and Trent were quickly able to navigate towards the marked dock. The dense forest began to thin as they neared their destination, and at the crest of a hilltop, the duo paused to gaze towards the horizon. With only starlight to guide them, it was still hard to see, but Gwen was sure she saw reflection off the lake. She studied the rippling waters a moment longer and was sure that they'd arrived the north side of the island.
"We're almost there," Gwen smiled, "I even think I see the Boat of Losers."
"Awesome," Trent studied the map, than enthusiastically peered into the horizon, even though he could not see. Gwen smiled widely at the musician, her own relief and enthusiasm shining through. Abruptly Trent drew her into a victorious embrace and the girl's pale cheeks flushed red. She laughed nervously, unsure weather to hug him back or not.
"We might even get there before sunrise," Trent released the hug, realizing that his gusto might have been a little overboard. The subject of time of day was as good a distraction as any, and she questioned, "Sunrise? Have we been at this all night?"
"Yeah," Trent nodded, yawning at the thought of this sleepless night.
"None of that," Gwen playfully waved her finger in front of his nose. They hurried down the hill, picking up the pace with the thought of goal in mind. With any luck, they would get there before or at least at the same time as the Bass.
THE FOREST 4:40 AM
The Bass team continued to plow their way through the forest, Duncan leading at an aggressive pace. He swatted a branch out of his way and the rebound nearly knocked off Harold's head. The geek scowled at the back of the green hair dyed head, absolutely fed up with his fowl attitude and endless marching orders. In fact, he'd had enough of this pointless game of cat and mouse, but so had all of the campers.
Abruptly Duncan stopped and Harold nearly walked straight into him. Another obstacle lay before them, this time it was a straight drop down in the earth. Duncan figured he could have easily climbed, but he was not sure about his pajama-clad teammates. A few meters away was a fallen tree that could potentially be a bridge down, and he thought it was safer to try that first.
"Let's try getting down over there," he suggested, facing his team for the first time after he'd stubbornly marched off. The delinquent froze in place when he saw that only Harold stood with him. His heart stopped, terror welling up within him, but not fearing for himself. The pent up anger inside him exploded as he shortened the gap between himself and the geek. Lifting the scrawny red head up by his orange pajama top, Duncan roared, "Where's Courtney? Where is she?"
"I… I don't know. I thought she was behind me," Harold lost all color from his face as he struggled against his teammate's vice like grip.
"Why weren't you watching?" the teen hauled Harold even closer.
"She's not my responsibility, geez," Harold shouted back. Duncan threw the thin geek to the ground and stomped away while calling out Courtney's name. Harold readjusted his green tinted glasses, his left hand balling up into an angry fist. The missing girl's name boomed throughout the forest canopy as Duncan frantically searched. The red head just smirked to himself with sadistic pleasure, "Go ahead Duncan, let the homicidal maniac know right where you are."
ELSEWHERE IN FOREST 4:41 AM
"Dun…" she caught her herself, than whispered to herself, "Stupid Courtney. Scream out loud and lead the killer right to you."
The girl glanced down at her flashlight, realizing the light was a "come get me" beacon too and dimmed it with her hand. It seemed safer to wander blindly in the darkness instead of be an easy target as she attempted to retrace her steps. If she could find some familiar landmark or just run into the guys randomly, it would all be okay.
"When did I even lose them?" she wondered quietly. Unfortunately she knew the answer to that… because she had stopped paying attention. Duncan had been plowing ahead so fast that she and Harold had barely been able to keep up. In addition, paranoia caused her to frequently look back to see if anything was behind them. She'd even gone so far as to walk backwards.
At some point when her back was turned, they must have made a sudden turn. By the time she realized Duncan and Harold weren't ahead of her anymore; she panicked and raced forwards to catch up. In doing so, she ultimately got herself even more lost in the terrifying forest.
"Duncan, you promised not to leave me," Courtney remembered, too frightened to be angry. Her free hand hugged her arm tightly as she shuffled onwards. Relief washed over her as she heard his familiar voice echo her name.
"Duncan!" she answered gladly, her cries ricocheting in the air. They knew she was gone and had come back to look for her. He called her name again and Courtney eagerly followed the sound of his voice, he didn't sound too far away.
Courtney smiled widely as she zealously raced to be rejoined with her teammates. She'd forgotten about her down turned flashlight, and tried to discern the black shapes of the forest from anything human shaped. Her name rung out once more and she responded fervently, "Duncan, I'm here!"
Movement ahead caught the girl's attention as someone stepped out from the wall of trees. Courtney didn't doubt that it was Duncan come to her rescue. Slowing down, she observed that he moved almost casually and seemed a little too tall. Fear washed over her again and she drew the flashlight up to shed light on the figure's identity. Her brown eyes grew wide, realizing she'd walked straight into the waiting arms of the murderer.
She could not scream, but she did have the sense to throw the flashlight at his head. The flashlight bounced off the killer's shoulder as the teen turned tail and fled. She finally was able to scream as she ran, praying that Duncan would find her in time.
Annoyed, the killer picked up the flashlight she'd thrown, than eyeing his prey, gave chase. The girl weaved swiftly through the trees, spinning off trunks with her hands to quickly turn corners and gain momentum. She zigzagged randomly through the forest, hoping to make herself a harder target to catch.
The assailant kept a brisk pace behind her, not bothering to exert himself though. His quarry was fatigued, terrified and bound to slip up soon. Courtney continued to snake around the trees, ducking under a low hanging group of branches. As she rose up, her hair snagged on the limbs and she yelped as it held tight. Her need to escape greater than the pain, Courtney forcibly ripped her brown hair from its entanglement.
The delay gave her a chance to locate the killer, but he wasn't anywhere in sight. A new wave of panic burned within her as she staggered into a run. Her heart throbbed and lungs fought for breath as she continued to push through the trees. Courtney finally broke free of the dense darkness into an open patch of land. To her dismay, various boulders and high mounds of earth blocked her only chance of escape. It must have been part of the same obstruction from earlier. The girl was undeniably trapped between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Ahead there was no way out, beside her a wall of trees and behind her the killer. Frantically she spun around, looking for any sign of escape, the fear almost suffocating.
Suddenly, a hand slapped across her mouth and nose, stifling her startled scream. A hand hooked under her arm and forcibly hauled her backwards. She dug her heels into the ground and her nails clawed desperately at her assailant's skin. It was certainly the end of the line for her as she was dragged into a fracture in the boulders, consumed by the darkness.
That was when Courtney saw the familiar glint of green tinted glasses in the corner of her eye. Harold signaled for her silence, placing a finger to his lips and she nodded that she understood. It seemed clear that Duncan had grabbed her now, and her body loosened as they shimmied down the crevice. At the end lay a small dank cavern lit by the starlight sky shinning down from a gap high in the ceiling.
Duncan finally released the girl and she quickly whirled around to embrace her savior. He absently stroked her hair while she buried her face in his chest. His sights remained vigilant on the opening, hoping that the clown masked man hadn't caught their exit into the cavern.
Gently pushing the brunette towards Harold, Duncan squeezed back through the narrow opening to see where the killer was now. He immediately spotted him lingering at the forest edge, using the flashlight Courtney had discarded to meticulously search for the teens. Duncan cursed under his breath, their foe knew they were near by and could very well find their hiding place. The punk quickly rejoined his peers to report his findings, "He's still out there. He knows we're hiding somewhere nearby."
"So now what?" Courtney hugged his arm tightly. Duncan looked from one companion to the other, his brow furrowed tightly in thought. Again he gently he pried Courtney from his arms and resolved, "Harold, get her to the dock."
"Me?" the red head choked.
"No," Courtney lowly protested.
"Listen there's no way we're all getting out of here, and I've been dying to give Bozo out there the smack down. So, I'll lure him off while you two get out of here."
"No," Courtney repeated, twisting her fingers around his sleeve, "You promised me!"
"I'm sorry Princess, but it's the only way."
Duncan stood tall with his conviction, and Harold just rolled his eyes, "I'll do it."
Dumbfounded, Courtney and Duncan's jaws dropped, unable to believe Harold just volunteered. A doubtful smirk formed on Duncan's lips, but Harold continued, "I have years of experience running away from bullies. Besides, I'd make better bait than you any day."
The scrawny teen started for the exit, but Courtney held him back, "Harold. This is no time to be all chivalrous. It's not in your nature."
"I have to. Duncan is the only one who can keep you safe."
Courtney's grip loosened and Harold quickly slid out of the cavern into the open. He hesitated for a moment, waiting for the killer's back to be turned. When the coast was clear, he scurried into the tree line and ducked behind a tree. Though he could have fled at that moment, he picked up a fallen branch and snapped it in half. The sound immediately alerted the killer to his location and Harold allowed himself to be seen.
As soon as his foe started after him, the nerd screamed like a girl and made tracks into the depth of the forest. Seconds later, the killer raced past the cavern opening, wielding his knife threateningly in the air as he pursued. Cautiously Duncan drew Courtney out of the cave and led her in the opposite direction that their brave distraction had fled.
Next time on 12 Little Campers! The sun is dawning on Camp Wawanakwa, but will it really signal the end of this terrible night? Courtney and Duncan race to get to the docks, meeting with an unexpected survivor on the way. Meanwhile Trent and Gwen await at the docks for any of their friends to arrive, but how long will they be able wait? Find out next chapter!
