Chapter 25! Enjoy!

Jenny yawned, and felt her eyelids get heavily. Through her hazy gaze she saw that Audrey, Michael and Summer had taken a few gumdrops and sat a lot feet away from the fire on the grass. Jenny wanted to go with them, but sleep still evaded her, taughting her at the edges of her conscious, so instead she leaned her chin on her knees sleep fully while Dee, Julie, Zach and Julie talked around the fire. Even if they were only a few feet around the dying fire, she felt that she was in a whole other world, and maybe she was right.

"What do you think is going to happen with the next person we face?" Julie asked, quietly, her own dark head leaning to one side and her eyes half closed. "Its Lord Licorice right?"

Dee nodded. "Yeah. Who ever decided he should use black licorice was seriously demented."

"No one likes black licorice." Zach said calmly. "So obviously know one will like Lord Licorice."

Julie nodded mutely. "He'll probably just tie us up with his licorice whip."

"I'm going to hate fighting him." Dee added. "I never liked black licorice, but my mom had for years. It smells disgusting."

Jenny nodded slightly, whenever they had gone to a candy store, she would steer clear of the black licorice with a frown. But that hadn't happened since they were twelve.

Julie stood, and cocked her head in Jenny's direction. "I'm going to sleep, you coming Jen? You look dead asleep already."

Jenny nodded softly and stood, leaning heavily on Julie as she jumped to her side and lad Jenny to a spot near their other sleeping friends.

She leaned her head against a soft gumdrop and let her eyes close as Julie sat down on the ground and stared off at the horizon, an unasked question in her eyes.

"Julie?" Jenny mumbled sleepily and Julie turned, leaning down low to her friend.

"Yeah?" Julie asked softly, not wanting to wake any of the other sleepers.

"Where's the Creeper?" Jenny asked softly, and Julie shrugged, thinking about the same ting.

. . .

Walking away with someone you barley know, and have no real reason to trust was never the best situation. Even know all Emily could think of was why she had been so stupid, and why right now she was still being so. She glanced down at her hand that was held by Ben's strong one, and tried not to panic. This wasn't easy, mostly because as she saw her hand she pulled it back gently and the action caused Ben's hand to tighten on her's. She looked back up to his face, the face that had convinced her to go with this stranger, no questions asked.

"This isn't the way to my house." Emily told Ben, as she stopped walking and glared at him coldly. "Can you let go of my hand now?"

Ben didn't let go. He turned around and faced Emily, his eyes like the way they were in the coffee shop, black. "No I'm sorry I can't."

Emily repressed a sudden shudder. "Uh, yes you can. Now you better or else I'll hurt you."

Ben cocked his head to the side slightly, a cunning smile playing on his lips. "Oh will you?" He looked around them as if he was daring her too and finally she saw where she was taken. They stood in a forest surrounded by dampened trees and grass coated with moisture.

Emily gave him one swift nod, swallowing her fear and pulled her hand more quickly, but her hand stayed in Ben's tight grasp. "Let me go, right now Ben."

Ben smiled wider. "Why that's not the way to ask now is it, Emily?"

This time Emily couldn't suppress the shudder and it rain down her spine quickly. "How do you know my name?"

"I know much more then just that." Ben continued. "I know how your sister left you and your mother all alone. And you think it's your fault. That you hadn't been there for her while her father had left and how you think that she'd gone crazy."

Emily gasped; she'd never told anyone about that.

"And I know about how you cheated on Jake with Eric Michaels when he was visiting his aunt, last summer." The stranger grinned. "And then you broke up with him when he told his friends."

"I had to!" Emily said suddenly. "What I did with Eric was an accident and I doesn't matter now." She covered her mouth, and stared at Ben with wide eyes. How did he know all these things about her? Was he some kind of stalker?

"Who are you?" Emily whispered. "God what are you?"

Ben smiled and raised his hand, touching Emily's cheek softly and leaning in close to her, so that his words were only a little bit louder then a breath. "Don't you know?"

Ben pulled back and kept staring at Emily, and finally ran a hand through his dark hair. The change was nearly impossible to see, and when Emily blinked a completely new man stood before her. An older man and one that was slightly familiar.

"Who are you?" Emily asked, but in the next second a memory sparked through her mind and she instantly knew.

"Don't tell me that you don't recognize your own father." Benjamin smirked and Emily flinched back.

Her father released her hand and she hit the ground hard and dug her nails into the grass around her as she stared up at the man that had left her so many years ago.

"Look how beautiful you've gotten." Benjamin mused. "It's such a pity that I couldn't have told you sooner as you grew."

"You were the one who left." Emily said coldly, and she could tell that in some way her words hurt him. "You left us, me and Julie alone in that house."

"You think I wanted to?" Her father asked bitterly, his face a mask of anguish and pure regret. But in the next second it was washed away and now he was facing her coolly. "But that doesn't matter. We have other things to talk about, now."

"I don't want to talk to you." Emily protested. "Ever."

Benjamin sighed. "Always so stubborn, it must come from your mother you know." He looked down at his eldest daughter wearily. He had hoped that this would have been easier but slightly hoped that she would have understood. But apparently she wanted to make it more difficult.

"Fine then, darling. We won't talk." He smiled grimly. "But soon, you'll want to talk to me." He inclined his head, as a long hiss cut through the quiet forest sending another chill through Emily's spine.

Out of one of the bushes came a large black slithering creature, with silted dark eyes. The beast was coated with dark scales that shone in the now glowing sun. It stuck its tongue out as if it tasted the air and Emily cringed back, as it neared her feet. It slid by her knee now, it was huge, nearly fifteen feet long, and terrifying.

Regretfully she looked over to her father who was staring at her sadly, like he didn't want the snake to hurt her as much as she didn't want it too. She felt something touch her arm and instantly Emily turned and saw the snake wrap it's self around her arm, tightly. She looked back to her father who was taking a step back. And then she was being dragged with him, she looked over at the snake who was dragging hr by her arm painfully,

God, I'm going to die. Emily thought as she plummeted down the shadowy void.

Did you like? Back to Emily again, and I don't know why I did…just a way to keep you on the edges of your seat I guess, I'm good at that, aren't I? Review and tell me how I'm doing please.