Chapter 9: There is No Escape

The door handle that was keeping his captive inside that dark chamber, jingled quietly as the door opened up.

Electrifying blue eyes quickly scanned the room for a sign of the girl whom he had locked up a little while ago before they landed on her sleeping form, curled up at the base of the door.

Intrigued at the site, the Horseman opened the door just a bit wider and stepped inside. His eyes were fixed on the girl's face as he silently moved around her form before taking a squatting position down by her head.

And there...he just watched her.

The woman's long, strawberry blonde hair was splayed across the floor in gentle waves. It looked as soft as silk-and almost made him want to reach out and run his hand through the red-gold locks. She was a lovely one, no question about it. With her round face of creamy ivory skin and that faint rosy blush that tinted her cheeks. Her eyes, he recalled when they were open, were a deep lavender and were framed with dark curling lashes.

Lavender eyes...

He didn't even know such a color existed. But there was no mistaking it with this woman.

And her lips...oh, full with a natural pout and pink. They looked relaxed right now and so soft.

Retaining his balance, the Horseman sat back on his heels as he remembered when he had kissed her earlier. How sweet she had tasted- just thinking about it made his mouth water and he couldn't help but shudder as the roots of desire began to sink beneath his chilled flesh.

Everything about this young woman screamed angelic; even her scent, which smelled of roses, was intoxicating. Without thinking, the Horseman reached a hand out to pull a strand of loose hair away from her face before tucking it behind her ear.

"A fine prize indeed." he told himself proudly as he stroked a single finger down her warm cheek; the young woman stirred.

Her long eyelashes fluttered delicately before her eyes opened up.

The room was dark and unfamiliar causing her heart to drop, "So this wasn't just a dream." her mind told her before her eyes landed on something else which confirmed her fear.

The Horseman was not even a foot away from where she was, watching her with a mixture of interest and slight amusement. Charlotte shrieked as she shot up from her position on the floor and scooted away as far as she could get before her back hit the wall behind her.

The Horseman's eyebrow arched at her reaction before he flashed Charlotte a frightening grin.

"Evening, Mein Liebster." he greeted.

"Wha...what do you want?" she demanded as she started to pick herself off the ground so that she could stand on her two feet. He copied her action and rose to his feet as well. His form easily towered above Charlotte's while he gave her a soft shrug.

"I was simply checking on you, Mein Liebling. Making sure that you were happily settled in and all." he mocked softly.

Charlotte's eyes narrowed slightly and her mouth turned down in a soft frown, "Will you please stop speaking in German? I don't understand it and it's a little unnerving to not always know what you're talking about!" she pointed out irritably.

The Horseman inclined his head, "Deutsch is my native tongue, Schatz." he explained with amusement.

Charlotte crossed her arms over her chest, "Well around here, we speak ENGLISH!" she snapped back with emphasis.

The Horseman threw his head back and started to laugh; it was a low rumbling sound that had a strange, velvety texture to it that sent chills down Charlotte's spine.

"And exactly..." He paused for a moment to look around. "...where is 'here', Kostbar?" he asked with enjoyment.

Charlotte opened her mouth to reply but it was then that she realized that she actually had no idea- so instead she closed her mouth and remained silent while lightly sticking her chin out in a show of defiance.

"Mmm that's what I thought." he added as he took a few steps towards the woman's form.

Charlotte naturally tensed up as the Horseman approached her; her eyes squinted and her mouth frowned deeply to give her a more fearless look but deep down, she was incredibly nervous with his close presence.

"See...around here, there is no 'we'..." he stated as he reached a hand out and lightly gripped Charlotte's throat before he pressed her back into the wall firmly, "...there's just Sie," he paused to brush his thumb across Charlotte's neck where her pulse was rapidly beating beneath it, "...and Mich." he finished.

Charlotte swallowed uncertainly. She still didn't fully understand what he was saying in German but she took a wild guess that he was referring to the two of them. Drawing her lower lip into her mouth, she bit down on it lightly, "Can you mind you distance?" she asked quietly.

The Horseman's brows rose up together this time, "Are you scared?" he asked while he let a few of his fingers stroke her neck before he pulled his hand away.

"Something like that..." Charlotte answered bravely despite the nerves that were building up inside of her.

The Horseman chuckled before he took one step back, giving Charlotte a little space to breathe her own air.

"Well you'd be a fool not to be, I suppose." he stated as he turned on his heel and walked over to the far side of the room where a black curtain hung down over a large window. He pulled the dark material back and looked outside.

Seeing the Horseman distracted, Charlotte's head turned towards the open door that was just a few feet from where she stood. With the Horseman all the way on the other side of the room, she saw her chance to escape.

Quietly, the young woman inched her way over to the door, keeping her lavender eyes locked onto the Horseman's back to make sure he remained unaware of what she was trying to do.

When at last she was in front of the doorway, Charlotte made a move to turn about and dash on out. But in doing so, she stepped on a loose floorboard which let out a noticeable creak.

The Horseman's head snapped around at the sound, his piercing blue gaze immediately landed on Charlotte's form and he knew her intention. His lips drew back in a menacing snarl as if he was daring her to carry on.

Acting on impulse, Charlotte quickly took hold of the handle and ran out of the room, loudly slamming the door behind her, hoping it would buy some time.

As she took off down the torch-lit hallway, swiftly finding the black marble stairway, she heard with dread the chamber door being thrown back open and the Horseman's heavy footsteps coming out in fast pursuit.

With her skirts grasped firmly in both hands, she tore down the stairs as fast as her legs could carry her. When she reached the bottom, she followed another hallway straight ahead till she came upon a very grand double-door. Yanking one of the doors open so fast it barely just missed her own face, Charlotte bolted outside and was instantly greeted by cool night air.

"Freedom." she thought as she continued down the short stairway that connected to a stone path that led away from the Horseman's manor.

Following the pathway, Charlotte passed under a stone archway that stood erect at the end of the road and was brought to a sudden stop as her eyes landed on something.

Or rather...it was someone.

The figure of a woman stood less than ten feet away. But she was poised rather oddly. Her back was facing Charlotte and her head hung to one side at a very odd angle. The dress she wore was practically in shreds.

Charlotte spared a cautious glance behind her shoulder only to see that the Horseman had not come outside- yet at least.

With resolution in her steps now, young woman continued on up to the woman, in hopes of finding some help.

"Excuse me, Ms.?" she called as she reached the woman's form, "Please help me, I don't know where am I... I've been taken prisoner by a dangerous man and..." Charlotte didn't even get to finish her sentence because the woman then turned around.

Charlotte paled instantaneously as her eyes widened at the sight before here. Opening her mouth, she let out a piercing scream that her own hands tried to muffle.

The woman was nothing more but a walking corpse. A deep bloody gash ran around her entire throat while her eyes appeared as two empty black sockets; the flesh remaining on her body was an unsightly grey and it was rotting right her very bones.

When the corpse reached a hand out to Charlotte, the young woman instinctively backed away. Just then, the dead woman's head fell off her bony shoulders, hitting the ground with a sickening thud before rolling away from its mistress.

"Oh my God..." Charlotte retreated back a few more steps only to have her back hit something solid. When she glanced behind her shoulder in panic, her eyes landed on a second corpse, only this one was already carrying it's head with it.

She screamed again and soon found dead people coming at her in all directions. Some had obviously been decapitated while others had died in some other terribly bloody death. All of them held a beseeching hand out to Charlotte while they moaned and grunted their inaudible pleas. Their sounds were almost pitiful, but some even came across as angry and full of resentment as they surrounded Charlotte in a circle.

The young woman was petrified. Even though she desperately wanted to move and get away, it seemed like every single bone in her body had locked up with fear-leaving the poor woman shaking from head to foot.

The corpse of a rotting man hobbled up to Charlotte, his eyes were glowing an unnatural red and saliva dripped gruesomely out of his gnarled mouth. With an outstretched hand, he snatched at the young woman. His skeletal fingers missed her neck but closed around the lace at the top of her bodice. With the fragile fabric in his grasp, he gave a wild jerk of his hand.

There was a sharp ripping sound that was followed by Charlotte's cry as she raised a hand up to cover the decent sized tear in her now ruined bodice. Next thing she knew, as if the walking deceased were playing follow the leader, dead hands from all around were beginning to take hold of her-hands that desperately slashed at her gown and skirts while clawing at her flesh as well. Their nails were long and yellow, almost as sharp as knives, as the raked themselves against the woman's skin.

Screaming loud and frantically now, Charlotte thrashed about in an attempt to fight off the band of corpses. But there were too many...poor Charlotte was being swarmed.

In the midst of Charlotte's cries, the loud sound of approaching hooves echoing off the stone road reached the her ears before a familiar, large black stallion came into view with his Master riding on top. The Horse reared up on its hind legs before it skillfully knocked away two of the corpses' surrounding Charlotte. They fell to ground in disturbing positions giving the horse and its rider a space to enter the circle itself.

Charlotte heard the Horseman's frightening battle cry before his powerful hand painfully gripped her shoulder from behind, forcefully yanking her away from the rest of the dead only to slide down her waist as he immediately hauled her off the ground.

Once the Horseman had Charlotte seated securely in his lap, he pulled out his long sword and thrust it threateningly into the night air while crying out, "She is MINE!" he roared. At his own words, the Horseman's hand tightened around Charlotte's waist quite possessively. He chilling eyes flashed ominously at the surrounding dead, daring the unlucky souls to make another move.

The crowd of corpse's shrunk away from his presence in fear.

When the undead crowd had finally backed away in defeat by his appearance, the Horseman turned his horse around and led the great black beast back up to the manor. Once he brought his horse to a stop at the bottom of the short stairwell that would lead up to his house, he efficiently swung himself down from his seat behind Charlotte and proceeded to reach up with strong hands before taking her by the waist.

He hardly had to use any force to lift her off the saddle, she practically weighed nothing to him. And before her feet could touch solid ground once again, the Horseman scooped her right up in his arms, carrying her up the stairs and back into the manor. They were inside in a matter of moments and swiftly were approaching the chamber Charlotte had just escaped from minutes later.

With Charlotte so close to him, the Horseman instinctively found himself drawing a deep breath of air in through his nose, drinking her sweet fragrance which was now tinted heavily with fear. The Horseman had to resist the primal urge to growl despite the sudden arousing sensations that were brought to him by that scent alone.

He walked deep inside the room before carefully dropping Charlotte's shaken form on the large bed. Then as a precaution to make sure events did not repeat, he spun around and walked back over to the chamber's door, only to this time, close and bolt it shut with him inside. He heard the soft rustling of fabric and faced about to see that Charlotte had risen back to her feet; her lavender eyes were wide with shock and fright. It was then that the Horseman's blue gaze swiftly began assessing the young woman who stood less than ten feet away- her long strawberry blonde hair was hanging wildly down her lower back, her blue and pale pink gown was torn in so many places, some parts of it actually hung off her body, exposing soft and creamy looking flesh.

If he studied her closely enough, he could even see some slight bruising and scratches from where she had been roughly seized by the corpses. A sudden anger and newfound possessiveness boiled up inside the Horseman causing him to snarl before he stalked over to where Charlotte stood. Reaching out with both hands, he firmly took her by her shoulders,

"What the bloody hell did you think you'd accomplish by running away, you silly girl?" he sharply demanded giving her a slight shake. Charlotte remained silent, her wide eyes staring up at the towering man in front of her before she finally answered in a soft whisper,

"Where am I?" she returned fearfully.

Her question was so innocent, so helpless, the Horseman couldn't help but soften, even the slightest, on the inside. Nonetheless, his face still bared the expression of a deadly being. Underneath his touch, he could feel her wild trembling, "Far beyond the Land of the Living." he answered coolly, "...so even if you could manage to escape from me, you'd still be trapped here." he added.

Charlotte softly shook her head and swallowed, "I don't believe you." she stated, her voice shook with disbelief.

His eyes narrowed slowly at her insubordination. The Horseman tugged Charlotte close till their chests bumped before he leaned his dark head down so that they were practically eye level, "Listen well...you belong to me now," he warned in a low voice, "...there's never going to be a way of escaping that. So no matter where you go, how far it may be, I will always be able to find you."

Charlotte reached her hands up and pushed against his rock hard chest-but it was like trying to move a boulder, he wouldn't budge.

At her attempt, he smirked softly before allowing her to be released from his hold as he stepped back a few paces, " You can run all you want Liebling, but it will prove to be futile... I'll always claim what's mine in the end." he added. Though Charlotte refused to believe his words, deep down a part of her was certain that he spoke the truth; The Horseman was never going to let her go.

German Translations:

My dear: Mein Liebster

My darling: Mein Liebling

Precious: Kostbar

German: Deutsch

Sweetheart/ Treasure: Schatz

You: Sie

Me: Mich