Falling With Grace

I groaned, my eyes fluttering open, then gasped.

A familiar, striking pair of emerald, vacant eyes stared back at me, a trail of blood marring the whites.

Jerking away from her mangled and twisted form, my belly shredded across the jagged rocks.

My lungs heaved, and shooting pain erupted from every nerve in my body, even when I’d settled a few more inches away from her still form.

Sarah laid an arm’s length away from me, her leg bent in an unnatural position, her arm twisted behind her back as if its new arrangement made it belong there.

A throbbing ache settled on the crown of my head, and a warm trail of viscous liquid coated my cheek and the space near my ear.

A whimper left my lips as my fingertips pulled away from the sticky mess. Dark crimson smeared my fingertips, illuminated by the full moon.

My right arm lay limp beside me, my fingers twitching. I bent my left leg, and a whetted pain radiated across my knee.

Piercing ringing violated my ears as I sat, the world tilting on its axis.

The air in my lungs inflated, causing a clicking in my ribcage. The deeper I breathed, the sharper the pain and the punchier the click.

What happened?

I glanced up the hill and stared at the distinct trail of overturned dirt, rocks, and debris leading to where I currently sat—next to the river tainted with innocent wildflowers and small gnat-like insects skimming the surface.

Headlights beamed my way, causing razor-edged pain to stab my retinas.

The rocky riverbank illuminated as Miguel’s men shouted down the ravine, their motors overpowering the thrumming in my ears.

I exhaled, the air whooshing from my lungs as I stumbled to my feet. My limp arm swung in front of me, sending needling pain across my back and up my neck.

A bleating cry drowned beneath the whir of engines coming my way as I pinned my right arm to my chest, being mindful of the broken rib, and limped down the rocky riverbank.

Tears spilled down my face as I took one last look at Sarah and caught Miguel from my periphery.

“Grace. Let me help you.”

My big toe struck a rock, and I wailed, my vision spinning.

There was no way to escape him.

He’d killed everyone.

He’d killed them all.

Jorge.

Sarah.

Little Rachel.

“Grace.”

My left knee gave out, and my right crashed into the water as he navigated the rugged terrain towards me.

Cool water stung the cuts on my knees, his footsteps falling closer as he stepped over Sarah’s body.

If he caught me, that was it. I’d never survive.

I stepped into the river, the current grabbing at my ankles like Sirens beneath the surface, beckoning me to join them.