Jane POV

       "I just want you to be careful," he finally admitted, his gaze dropping to the ground as I heard a low grumble come from Loki.

       I could feel my heart swell with compassion and he brought his hand to my cheek tenderly. I smiled and closed the small space between us, bringing my body closer to his. Reaching up on my tiptoes, I placed my hand at the nape of his neck and softly planted my lips on his forehead.

       He sighed, "I'm right here with you."

       I nodded before turning my attention back to the mysterious figure.

       "Lucas?" Lucy's voice gave me no doubt that she was on the verge of tears.

       Instead of responding, the figure ran towards us, waving his arms. Frantically darting into a ray of warm sunlight that had somehow managed to break through the canopied treetops, I got a clear look.

       "Lucas!" I shouted and waved as I stuck my hands high in the air, Loki barking at my feet.

       "Jane! Wai-!" he called out as he stumbled and fell, rolling down the hill.

       "Lucas, oh my god!"

       "Shit man!"

       "Moron."

       "What the fuck!"

       We all yelled as we rushed to his side and I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw him whimpering, holding the side of his torso as he writhed in pain.

       "I thought you were dead," I said kneeling next to him on the ground, pushing his sandy colored hair out of his brown eyes. Loki nosed his way to Lucas's side, sniffing every inch of him and I tried shoving him away, to no avail.

       "Kinda wish I was," he choked as he struggled for a satisfying breath of air.

       I glanced up and down his body, he had various cuts and scrapes sprinkled across his face, neck, and arms. I bit my bottom lip, attempting to -literally- bite back tears.

       Lucy bent down, shifting into med-student mode, "Lucas, I think you may have bruised a rib." She extended her arm, placing her hand against his ribcage, "It only feels swollen, probably bruised, not broken," she determined, her dark blue eyes were brimming with tears.

       "We need to call the police," said Penelope, standing behind us now.

       "Dude, are you okay? What happened?" Roger asked, unmistakable concern pervading his voice.

       Loki snarled behind me, a sound I had never heard my loving dog make.

       Penelope urged, "Guys ..."

      I ignored Penelope and, confused by his growl, said, "Loki, are-" 

       "Jane," Charlie murmured, interrupting me, "You were right."

       I raised my eyes to his, currently, dark blue ones; reminding me of the depths of the ocean.

       Wonder why his eyes are always a different shade of blue... I absently thought to myself as I removed my gaze from his face and lifted my eyes in the direction he was staring in.

       "Holy shit." I froze.

       "No," whimpered Lucy.

       "What?" asked Roger, "What's wro-" he paused, swiveling his head around as he glimpsed what we were staring at. "Fuck."

       Loki continued his sinister snarls, repositioning himself so that he was standing in front of me and my friends; his fur along his back stood on end and he actually had his teeth bared.

       The faceless man stood atop the hill, his empty white face looked as if he was staring straight at us. He stood inhumanly tall and deathly thin, his arms and legs hanging so low it was like they had been stretched and flattened by a rolling pin.

       I gasped. Surprising sharp, icy air greeted my open mouth as a chilly breeze picked up and the sound of the wind trilled through the leaves above us. Loki snarled again and barked nastily at the unmoving figure.

       What the fuck? It's freezing again! I wrapped my arms around myself despite the long sleeved shirt I was wearing.

       An odd, indescribable sensation regarding the flip-flopping weather flustered me like an itch you can't scratch, and I felt a fire of hate bubbling in me. Hate towards whoever this strange man was, and an inkling that he was the cause of the abnormal weather.

       "Who the fuck is that?" asked Penelope. She turned her attention to Roger, "Is that-"

       "We need to get out of here and we're not calling the cops," I interrupted, remembering Penelope's stupid question and tearing my eyes away from the featureless face. "Lucas, can you get up?" I asked, looking back down to his pained grimace.

       He winced and nodded but Roger bent to help him up anyway, pulling him gently off the pine-needle ground as the sound of thunder rumbled across the darkening sky.

       Penelope's hands flew to her hips as she whined, "Why not?"

       I stood up and perused her, not attempting to hide my dubious expression, "And tell them what?"

       "Everything!" she shouted back at me as another roll of thunder sounded above us.

       Loki silenced his barks but growled again; at the tall man or Penelope, I'm not sure. Both, perhaps?

       "No fucking way, Penny," Roger interjected as he steadied Lucas, "We have... drugs on us..."

       She crossed her arms, her emerald eyes dazzled like a green fire. "That's not my fault," she spat. "I don't really care. This shit is too fucking crazy for me. I didn't sign up for this."

     "Fine. Good fucking luck finding service in the middle of nowhere." I turned my back on her. 

       "What the fuck ever," she said.

       "Shut up, Penelope, we need to get the fuck out of here," muttered Charlie, still staring at the empty white face that seemed to stare down at us.

       We all mumbled our agreements and the wind blew up again as grey clouds hid the sun and began to bleed a cold drizzle.

       "Loki, come." I trembled as we all huddled close together and walked in the direction we came, Lucas limping next to us.

       We trampled through the thick woods and I peeked behind us, glancing at the top of the small hill and was slightly surprised to see that the slender figure was still in the same spot, still staring.

       Another roll of thunder startled me and I beckoned for my dog, who obeyed. A shiver creeped up my spine as goosebumps prickled my arms.

       "Hurry up," I whispered, urging my legs to pick up the pace. My heart was a deafening pound in my ears and I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins as the frigid rain splattered against me and I thought about the days' events.

       What the fuck is going on? I thought as my friends and I continued our hike back to the cars. I glanced down, appeased to see Loki still by my side.

       I swiveled my head back again, squinting through the dark strands of hair that blew across my face in the arctic breeze. Of course, the tall man had disappeared, and I wasn't sure if I was relieved or terrified.

**********

       Lucy jogged ahead of us. Her short, white hair bounced as she disappeared through the trees as we neared the small clearing we entered from; the clearing where my little blue buggy was smashed into a tree.

       I sighed and gathered the rats' nest that was my long hair, quickly braiding it and throwing it over my shoulder.

       A loud crack of thunder permeated the air and Loki whined as icy rain continued to fall and I noticed I could see my breath. I couldn't believe it; it had only been half of the day and we had already experienced each season.

       Shivering and confused, I consistently stole glances at Lucas.

       "My ribs are so sore, they hurt each time I move," he groaned.

       He had dried blood stained and smudged on his face from a few cuts and scrapes. He eventually started to complain about a migraine that 'feels like someone is shoving a sharp knife into the side of my head.' 

       His words, not mine.

       "Here it is! Guys, come on!" Lucy emerged from the thicket a few feet ahead of us, distraught.

       Loki took a few strides in her direction barking and then stopped, looking back at me to wait.

       "Finally," Penelope muttered, combing her strawberry blonde locks with her fingers as she trudged a couple of paces ahead of the group.

       Lightning struck somewhere in the distance, lighting up the now dark, clouded sky and we ignored her. We broke through the trees, my car still sitting where I had left it.

       I gushed, "Thank fucking god." I ran the last few steps to my beloved beetle, my feet splashing through the wet grass; shallow puddles already forming. Loki followed close behind, standing anxiously at my side.

       In a lowered voice, Charlie said, "We can fit in my car for now, Jane. We'll come back with a tow for Beatrice."

       I felt my heart sink at the thought of leaving her here in the middle of nowhere, but I was also touched that he remembered the name I gave my car.

       "Okay, whatever, let's call the cops too," Penelope said before I could respond, "This is fucked up."

      Lucy exhaled a loud, exasperated sigh, stormed over to her and grabbed her shoulders, giving her a rough shake. "We. Are. Not. Calling. The. Police," she told her in an eerily calm, but harsh tone just as a sudden but sharp breeze blew up.

       The rain fell in slanted rows and Penelope just stared at her, clearly taken aback. She narrowed her glinting green eyes but shrugged, pursing her lips.

     "You might not be, but I am," she retorted, pulling out her cell and attempting to find service.

       I sighed, glaring at Penelope momentarily before bending into my cars already open drivers' door and reaching to grab the keys out of the ignition. I gulped and tensed up as my hand closed around empty air where my keys should have hung.

       Loki whined, sensing something amiss and nudged his cold, wet nose into my thigh.

       "Jane, you good?" Roger asked, taking a few steps closer as thunder rumbled once again.

       I spun around briskly. chewing on my bottom lip, "My car keys are gone," I said, my eyes brimming with fresh tears as another low boom thundered from the sky.

       Charlie narrowed his, now, pale baby blues, "What?"

       "My keys, they're not in the ignition anymore."

       "You're sure you didn't take them?" Lucy asked, her dark blue eyes looked desperate.

       I shook my head no, wrapping my arms around myself again as another breeze whipped up; throwing the rain in every direction, even up. Loki whined at my feet and I dropped a hand to his fluffy head.

       "Doesn't matter," Penelope spoke up, "We just need to get the hell out of here. I can't get any service." She shoved her phone back into her jeans pocket, crossing her arms over her chest.

       Another strike of lightning glowed momentarily in the darkened sky as Lucy nodded her head in agreement, "She's right, we need to get Lucas to a hospital."

       I looked at Lucas. Roger was supporting most of his weight just so he could -partially- stand straight.

       As if he was agreeing, Lucas let out a sharp gasp, choking for air.

       "My car isn't too far from here," Charlie said as he took the lead and headed us back up the road in the direction we had been driving.

**********

Authors Note

This was such a fun chapter for
me to write. I have so many ideas
and upcoming chapters already half
written out, I seriously can't wait
to share them with you!

Are you glad they found Lucas?
Maybe Penelope should have disappeared instead? 😂I hope you enjoyed this chapter! [why don't you tell me if you did?]

I edited it a few times already,
but pls, help ya girl out & point out
any errors you see! thanks for reading!
no really! it's greatly appreciated!
if you really like it, i'd really like
it if you pressed that lil 🌟!

xoxo, Neila