Alla Kar - Stroke Of Fear

   He looks like a damn kid in a candy store. Give grown men hatchets, knifes and bats, and they think they’re zombie hunters.

* * *

   We start in the extra cabin. It’s already ten. We’ve been waiting for hours. Eric is playing Candy Crush on his phone while hiding behind a door. He’s cussing underneath his breath.

  “Put that away, Eric,” I hiss at him.

   “You’re just mad because you forgot your phone, asshole.”

   He’s fucking right. I did forget my phone.

   “Pst.”

   I roll my eyes. “What is it Jake?”

   “I’ve got to piss.”

   Christ. Are we the adults or do we need to go get the campers to help us? “Hold it, Jake. I told you to go before we left.”

   “I can’t. I have to fucking go, country. I’m stepping out of position. Gotta drain the pipe.”

   Fuck. What’s the use? Jake slides out from under one of the bed and runs toward the bathroom. A few minutes later I hear the toilet flush. Jake’s walking out of the bathroom when he stops dead in his tracks. A look of pure fear washes over his face. “Someone is in the fucking window.”

   My gaze averts toward the opened window to my left. The man I saw before is staring in at us, the white cap covering his eyes, a sneer riding up his lips and then he’s gone just as fast as I see him.

   “Go!” I yell. All three of us scramble to a run toward the door. Jake’s in front, swinging the baseball bat at his side. It’s so dark. I’m running, searching the ground for him. I catch a glimpse of a shadow behind the cabins close to the woods. He’s running fast. “This way,” I yell pointing my hatchet toward the gap in the woods.

   The moon is our only light, giving us glimpses of trees. My heart is jack-hammering in my chest. He’s right in our reach. We’ve got to catch him.

   “Fuck, I knew I should have been working out,” Eric yells from behind me. Creeper guy darts into the woods where a trail is and disappears. Jake looks back at me and nods. There is no way we can let this guy get away. Not with a camp full of kids running around.

   The trees branches slap at my face. I tear at them, pulling and cussing. Running with scissors is never a good idea. Running with a hatchet in the dark is a fucking stupid idea.

   “Jake!” I call out.

   “I’m on his tail. Over here.” I follow the sound of his voice and dig into the mushy ground beneath me. I can faintly see the outline of something darting in and out of trees. I’m hoping it’s Jake. Using my hatchet, I chop at the branches. All I can concentrate on is my breathing and the limbs slapping at my face.

   “Jake!” I yell.

   “He’s looping around. Go toward the cabins.”

   What. The. Hell. Turning I run smack into Eric. “Where are you…?” He doesn’t even try to finish his sentence. We’re both back on the trail and running as fast as we can. I don’t stop until the trees clear and we’re back at the camp. Searching the woods’ edge I see someone break from the barrier and take off into a full blown run.

  Jake breaks through next sprinting toward the guy. My feet are burning as I run through the camp toward him. He hasn’t stopped once. He’s in different clothes, but I can make out some kind of letterman jacket. What school is that? I can’t even make out the colors in the dark.

   The ground is slippery, and I stumble a few times before busting my ass in the mud. I have no idea how long we’ve been running but none of us have stopped. I don’t even realize where we’re at until the cliff comes into view.

   It’s so dark I can’t tell if Jake sees where we are. “We’re at the cliff. Watch out!” I’m screaming, my throat burning from running. Jake skids to a stop, sending a dust storm up his legs. That’s when I see the man. He doesn’t think twice before leaping over and diving into the rough waters. Then he’s gone.

   We walk back in silence. Jake’s face is bruised and scraped from the limbs. Something is nagging at the back of my head, but I can’t put my finger on it. How did he just jump without question? I guess he figured he’d die either way. But, no. That dive was perfect. It almost looked like he was…a swimmer.

* * *

   Aubrey and Cassie are sitting outside on their porch when we walk up. Aubrey’s eyes are wide, and she rushes toward me checking my body for injuries. “Are you okay?” she asks, holding my arms out to look.

   I nod and kiss the top of her head. “I’m fine, darlin’.” Eric rushes toward Cassie and wraps her in a hug. Even though they act like they’re just hooking up, I know they really like each other. That look is fear. Fear of losing someone.

   Aubrey’s gaze flickers from mine to Jake. His breathing heavily, watching the ground. Aubrey breaks from my grip and grabs Jake into a hug. A slight sigh releases from his mouth, and he tugs on her harder. I actually feel sorry for him.

   “You okay?” she whispers.

   He nods into her neck. “I am now.”

   Aubrey pulls back, gives him a smile and walks back over to me. “What happened? Did you catch him?”

   Slowly I shake my head back and forth. “No, he jumped over the cliff.”

   “What? You mean… he dove into the water? The winds are terrible he couldn’t have made it.”

   Jake scoffs. “I have a terrible feeling he did. He dove so perfectly. Like he knew exactly where to land. Exactly what the fuck he was doing.”

   Aubrey begins to tear up, and Jake takes a step toward her but stops. “I think I need to talk to you alone,” I say.

   Eric slaps my back. “I think I’m going to stay over tonight. You gonna stay here, too?”

   I nod. Eric’s gaze flickers toward Jake. “You want to stay over, too?”

   Swinging the bat over his shoulder, he shakes his head. “I don’t think I’m ready for that yet.”

   I know exactly what he means. He’s not ready to be that close to Aubrey and me together. I’ll be sleeping with her, I could only imagine how that would feel. “Call us if you see him.”

   He nods.

   “Hey,” I call out. Jake turns. “Thank you.”

   Eric and Cassie rush inside to take a shower and leave us by ourselves. Aubrey sits down on her bed and glances up at me. “What is it? What do you need to talk to me about?”

   “I don’t want you to freak out. I’m not sure yet. But, you said Michael was a swimmer right?”

   “State champ three years in a row.”

   Taking her hands in mine, I rub my fingertips over her knuckles. “When he jumped it seemed perfect. Not like someone freaking out and jumping over the ledge. It was a perfect swimmer’s dive.”

   Her face turns pale. She shakes her head back and forth quickly. “No. No. No. It can’t be him. He’s in prison. I called and…” She stops, breathing in and out really fast.

   “Shhh, darlin’. Calm down and breathe. We’re fine. It was just an assumption.”

   She nods into her hands and takes a long breath. “It’s just so suspicious. I saw him, Tanner. I saw his white cap—”

   “He wore a white cap?”

   “Yes.” She frowns. “Did this guy wear a white cap, too?”

   Should I tell her? My throat feel clogged. It always does when I’m about to lie. “No,” I say, shaking my head. “He wasn’t.”

   A small sigh escapes her lips, and she smiles over at me. “Maybe we’re reading too much into this. Maybe it isn’t Michael. Maybe it’s just someone else. Which still is bad but not as bad.”

   “Right,” I give her a weak smile. “Why don’t you get ready for bed? I’m exhausted. Let’s go to sleep.”

Aubrey

  Three weeks. It has been three weeks since Tanner went creeper hunting. No notes, no evidence of him in the cabin. It’s like he disappeared. Not that I’ve forgotten about it. The look in Tanner’s eyes when he told me about the dive was frightening. The look was off. It’s too coincidental. What are the chances? But, as far as I’m concerned he’s still in prison. Right?

   Cassie cusses underneath her breath while digging in her makeup bag. “You guys coming to the party?”

   I shake my head and pull on the shortest shorts I have. “Nope. We have plans.”

   Cassie raises an eyebrow and a smile tugs at her lips. “Really? What plans may those be? I mean you’re already getting used to the water again. And you’ve already gotten some Tanner loving, unless you’re going back for another round.”

   Tossing my pillow at her, I make sure my bikini strings are tight. “We’re going to spend the night alone. No campers. No distractions. Just us.”

   Cassie smiles. “I’m glad you’re happy, Aubrey. I haven’t seen you this happy in years.”

   “I know.”

   “Okay. I’m going to the firework show and BBQ. If you guys change your minds give me a call and I’ll wait for you.”

   Tucking my hair behind my ear, I nod. Tanner should be here in about thirty minutes. I tidy up our messy room and throw Cassie’s clothes into our clothes basket. I need to go to the laundry room and do some or we’re going to be wearing dresses to work in next week.

   I double check my makeup which is light and run a brush through my hair again. Its five thirty and Tanner still hasn’t called or came by. Biting on my thumbnail, I give him a call. Straight to voicemail. Weird. I shove my cell into my pocket and head toward his cabin.

   A slap of humid air rakes over me, but I’m too worried to care. Tanner’s cabin lights are on. It isn’t until I get to the porch that I realize the door is partially cracked. The florescent light shines through the opening, and I push it open with my hand. The entire place is a wreck. Their beds are flipped over, curtains ripped from the windows. My breath comes out in shaky gasps. The floor is littered with clothes, papers and… is that blood? No. No. No.