Hunted || Wesari

Chapter Twelve: Found

Olivia's nightmares had stopped; and along with them, his own. For the past two weeks, he'd been getting a full night's sleep every day.

He'd now been with Courtney and Oliva for over a month. His arm was usable, though barely, and not without a hell of a lot of pain. Courtney told him not to use it unless he absolutely had to, as it was easy to refracture and that the bone hadn't properly healed yet. Seeing as it felt like someone was cutting his arm off every time he moved it, he had a feeling that overusing it wouldn't be a problem.

The three of them were like a family. It was a joke among them; Courtney and Olivia were the parents, him the overgrown child. They supported each other, cared for each other, helped each other. Wes loved that. His real family was dead, and he couldn't go back to camp. It was nice to have friends again, to feel like he was a part of something.

 It had rained the previous night, and the ground was slick with mud. They only owned one pair of boots, and Olivia was wearing them, making sure all of the plants were alright before she'd go fishing. Wes was helping Courtney make herbal remedies, handing her ingredients and the such.

It was almost nighttime, which meant Olivia would be home soon. Wes went upstairs, to grab some blankets; it had started raining again, and Olivia would be freezing. When she returned, she'd defiantly want to warm up. And seeing as they didn't have a fireplace or any hot cocoa for her, blankets would be the best they could do.

That was when he heard the door open.

At first, he thought nothing of it, that it was just Olivia returning. Then he heard Courtney's voice, slightly panicked, asking "who are you?" 

There was a brief silence as Wes stopped moving, listening intently. What did Courtney mean, who are you? They didn't have any neighbors; there was no one out here.

"Where is he?" The other person asked. Their voice rang in Wes' ears as dread overtoke him. He recognized that voice, no matter how much he wished he didn't. The blankets slipped from his hands, landing soundlessly on the floor.

Mari had found him. Somehow, miraculously, she'd found him. He'd tried so hard to cover his tracks, to never give her a signal or sign of where he was, and yet she had found him anyways.

"I don't know who you're talking about."

"Don't give me that. I know he's here. Tall bloke, brown hair. You saved him from a bear. Does any of that ring a bell?" 

"I have no idea what-"

Courtney's voice stopped abruptly. Wes was almost about to run to her aid when she screamed, stopping him in his tracks.

"RUN!"

He stood there for a few seconds, deliberating what he should do. He couldn't just leave Courtney in Mari's clutches; she came from a group of monsters. Who knew what she would do to her.

 And where would he even run too? There was only one exit, and Mari was blocking it. The only other possible option would be to jump off the deck, and that was less than favorable.

He rushed to the staircase, determined to come to Courtney's aid. He arrived just in time to see Courtney, pressed against the wall by Mari's bat, which she had pressed against the blonde woman's chest. Courtney saw him out of the corner of her eye.

"RUN, WES!" She shouted at him. "RUN!"

Time seemed to freeze. He watched as Mari brought up her bat and, before Courtney could react, swung it into the blonde's head with all her strength. Blood flew through the air as Courtney crumbled, collapsing onto the kitchen floor.