Terror

"Excuse me," the man said as she passed. She paused to answer him,"yes," she replied softly. "I was wondering if you could point me in the direction of the nearest pharmacy" he said, holding unto his head as if to keep it from splitting apart.

Poor guy looks like he needs a hospital more than he needs a pharmacy, she thought to herself. He looks like he's going to fall apart from the pain, but then it's not my place to meddle, she thought further before replying,"You walk straight ahead then take a left. It's the first door by your left. You can't miss it." He nodded as best as he could attempt, thanking her. She waved a hand in dismissal before walking away.

He watched her walk off, the breeze ruffling her veil, her long gown trailing on the street though she didn't seem to care. She looked to be in her early twenties at least. He didn't know what he was doing anymore, or why he was there in the first place, and before he realised what was happening, he had begun to walk after her, silently. She was completely oblivious to her pursuer until he was a few feet behind her. In his muddled state of mind, he wondered if it was the sudden quiet of the alley way she had entered that had alerted her to his presence, if she would have noticed it had they been on a busier street.

She turned around and he pulled her into the corner just beside her, muffling her mouth. "I just want to talk" , he slurred, looking into her eyes. My Lord! But they're beautiful, he thought, and so full of fear. In some deep recess of his mind, he wondered how he was able to decipher that in his less than sober state. He leaned in and instead of the words he planned on speaking- he wasn't even sure what exactly they were- he started kissing her cheek, her throat, and she began to struggle in earnest, finally managing to hit him square in the gut. He let her go with an oomph, doubling over.

She took off running, realising too late that she was going in the wrong direction and that there was going to be no escape from him, yet she couldn't stop, couldn't let him get a hold of her easily, and even though she held unto a modicum of hope that she would escape him, she knew subconsciously that it was a foolish hope. She heard him beginning to gain on her and she knew that all he was waiting for now was for her to tire before he caught her, that he was in essence playing with his food, so to speak, which in itself was shocking for he obviously was not in his right mind.

Raw panic propelled her still, until she came to a dead end and there was no where left to go except the way she had come. She turned to face him then, her eyes searching frantically for a weapon she could use. She spied a steel rod and snatched it up just before he came upon her. She lifted it up and he paused, his eyes narrowed. "I'm sorry," he began slowly, "I honestly don't know what is coming over me" he added. She simply stared, cowering, the rod still raised above her head. He approached her gently, and she wondered if he was finally coming to his senses. she didn't have to wonder for long, for in a swift calculated movement, he had disarmed her and pinned her hands to her sides before leaning in to kiss her again. By this time, the tears were running freely down her face and she was begging him earnestly. She tried screaming and found both of her hands held within one of his while his other hand muffled her. "Please keep still", he begged her, "I honestly do not want to hurt you. I just can't seem to stop." She continued to struggle against him while he laid her on the ground, she struggled while he hiked up her gown, and she continued to struggle as pain blinded her. She struggled until the sweet darkness came to claim her, wrapping her in its warm embrace.

He looked down at her, not sure whether or not she was dead or alive. The struggle had led to a lot of blood loss on her part and he regretted that. He wasn't even sure whether was going to remember all this come morning. There was really nothing he could do for her. He pulled off his jacket and laid it over her still body, and with a final glance walked off into the night.

Her family spent a frantic night searching for her, all night and for the most part of the day. She wasn't found until it was almost too late, in a large pool of blood...