Chase

I thought the adrenaline would carry me farther. I shouldn't be feeling the twigs ripping into my feet or the branches scraping at my face and arms. It shouldn't be this hard to breathe. I should be propelling forward, nothing but survival on my mind.

But I'm crashing and in pain. I feel myself slowing and my limbs getting heavier. My skin burns and stings from the hundreds of tiny cuts the woods have torn into me. And I hear him. His footsteps are closer and stronger. He's getting faster - not slowing down like I am. And if something doesn't change, he'll catch me, and I'll be dead.

This should terrify me. It should fuel the fire and send me flying. But I'm just so tired...

I don't know how far the road is. Maybe if I did, I'd have the motivation to keep going. If I knew the surface would flatten out and somebody might find me, I'd rocket towards it. But I don't know where I am. I don't know if there is civilization in any direction or if anyone will ever find me. I could run until there is no more skin on my feet and there is more blood on the outside of my body than the inside, and I still may be no closer to getting away from this psychopath than I was when he had me tied up in his kitchen.

"Mercy! Mercy! You can't run from me, Mercy! You have nowhere to go!" His voice is deep and powerful, permeating the air and suffocating me. He's right. I have nowhere to go.

Do I stop? Should I try to hide? Maybe I can climb one of these trees and see if there's anything out there. I can climb to the top and wait until morning. He'll have turned around by then. He'll have had to.

I can hear how close he is. His steps are getting louder. The twigs snap beneath his boots instead of stab and maim. And I know he can hear me. My breathing is heavy and ragged. A whimper slips here and there as small rocks lodge themselves into the balls of my feet. I know I need to be silent. I am trying. But everything hurts. Every step. Every breath. It's like millions of small knives being plunged into each part of my body.

"I can hear you, Mercy! You can't get away from me! You are mine Mercy! You are mine!"

This tree will have to do. I don't have a choice. I can't run anymore. There's barely any skin left on my feet and every step has become harder and harder to take. So I climb. The bark tears at me more than the twigs did. But it's mostly my toes. I can't describe the pain. But I can handle it. I have to. I have to keep climbing before he finds me and drags me back to that place...

"Mercy," It sounds more like a taunt now. He isn't yelling. He's so close that I can smell the stench of his sweat. It's putrid and takes me back to that dirty kitchen he has kept me in.

"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy. You can't hide from me Mercy. I can hear you breathing."

I am panting, gulping for oxygen. But I can't stop. My lungs are on fire and my chest feels like it is being crushed. If I climb high enough he won't hear me anymore. He won't be able to find me in the dark. I can get away. I have to get away.

He stops. I don't hear his thundering footsteps anymore. Is he here? Is he below me? I look down, but it's too dark to see anything below my own body. But if I can't see him, he can't see me, right? Please. Please don't let him see me.

My arms are so tired. I am not sure how I'm still holding on. I grip the tree, grabbing for branches, trying to find places to set my toes. The blood on my hands and feet is slick, and I can feel myself sliding, losing my hold. I grab tighter - so tight I can feel the bark pushing into my hands, pieces of it becoming embedded.

I don't think there's any oxygen left in the air. My chest won't expand, and the fire has spread from my lungs to every inch of my body. My head has gone light and my heart no longer beats in any sort of rhythm. It's like gravity has increased, pulling me down.

Down.

I feel myself falling and I can't reach my arms out to stop it. They're no longer under my control. They've turned to stone, helping pull me down faster. All of me is stone. So heavy.

"Mercy... Mercy."

I hear him. I smell him.

And then nothing but a slight ringing as my body hits the ground. I expect it to hurt. But there is no pain. Just nothing.