Shadow of the Beast

The Beast in the Woods

He continued to walk closer to me. 

'Don't come any closer!' I shouted. 'I have pepper spray!' 

'No you dont' said a voice inside my head, almost mockingly. Inside my head... Except it wasn't my usual inner monologue. It was a deep, male voice.

The man came into view. He was tall, and very muscular. He wore dark blue jeans and a black t-shirt, with a sharp, leather jacket on top. He had black hair and dark eyes, and sexy stubble on his very chiseled jaw. My heart skipped a beat. I was terrified but intrigued, and my stomach filled with butterflies, as my groin filled with s****l desire. I felt so confused by the conflicting feelings welling up. 

He stared at me for a second, and then spoke, in a deep, gravelly voice. 

'What are you doing so far out into the woods at this time of the night? Don't you know that it's not safe out here for young girls?'

I took a quick glance around me, and realized that the lights of the house seemed to be far in the distance. I remembered taking a few steps into the forest, but somehow I was at least a ten minute walk away from the house. I blamed the alcohol. 

'I should ask you the same thing!' I said indignantly, trying to feign courage. 

He chuckled. 'you should get back to your party before your friends start getting worried.' 

I suddenly realized that his voice was the same as the voice I'd heard in my head. I shook it off, I was obviously drunk and he'd probably said it out loud without me realizing.

He moved closer to me and put his hand on my shoulder. I instantly felt a flush of heat, and a wave of electricity surging through my body. It felt like there was a flash in my eyes and for a second everything became brighter, and I was sure I saw his eyes glow bright red for a split second. He pulled his hand away from me, a look of disbelief on his face, his mouth open and his confident, intimidating swag completely drained. Had he felt it too? He backed away from me, and before I could say another word he turned on his heels and ran. 

I took a couple of steps forward to follow him, but his voice came back into my head, this time menacing and commanding. 

'GO BACK TO THE PARTY! NOW!' 

I felt obliged to obey, and turned back towards the lights and started a slow jog back to the party. 

Just what I needed, more unanswered questions to add to my already never ending list. Who was that? What was that? What the hell just happened? Back at the party, I didn't have long to mull it over. 

'Where were you? I was looking everywhere for you! I was so worried!' Eryn came running up to me. She wrapped me in a maternal hug. 

'I'm so sorry, I felt sick and wanted some air, I must've wandered further than I thought.' 

She looked relieved. 'How are you feeling now?' she asked. 

'Great!' I said, and with a satisfied smile she dragged me back into the house for one more dance before we left. 

That night, Eryn and I shared her double bed, and as she slept quietly, I lay awake, thinking constantly of the handsome stranger in the woods, the way his touch had made me feel, and fantasizing about all the things I wanted him to do to me. But then my thoughts raced back to the way he seemed to be able to get into my head, and how he'd first appeared. I was sure I hadn't imagined it... And then I remembered my aunt's story about my grandmother's warning. About the Beast in the Woods.