Jess moved hesitantly through the trees, the beam from her small torch lighting the narrow path. It was cold, the first signs of frost appearing on the forest floor, each breath she took forming a small cloud of mist. The air smelt of damp wood and moss. Twigs cracked underfoot, and she started at the hoot of an owl. Her wool jacket snagged on something sharp and spiky. She cursed as she tugged it free, knowing that there would be a hole. Everything looked so different in the dark, but she knew where she was going, didn’t she? Of course she did, she’d been there a million times. The short, sharp, high-pitched bark of a fox sounded in the distance, and a shiver of fear ran through her, doubts starting to fill her mind. Why had she agreed to Ben’s dare to go to the old house in the woods in the middle of the night, for God’s sake? She was a sensible girl, not a risk-taker, but he’d needled her, taunted her about being a scaredy cat, and she’d snapped. He’d dared her, and she was damn well going to prove to him that she wasn’t chicken. It had always been like this between them. Ben was her best friend and nemesis in equal measure. She’d thought that they’d be an item once, but that idea had been quickly quashed. The school disco a few months ago seeped into her mind.
***
“He’ll be here,” Lizzy whispered, squeezing Jess’s hand reassuringly, as Jess glanced behind her towards the door for the umpteenth time.
Jess smiled, glad that she had confided in her friend. She’d gone into a tailspin ever since Ben said he was coming to the summer disco, planning every detail of her make-up and outfit to within an inch of her life and now, the excited butterflies in her stomach were performing Riverdance.
Ben had joined the school in the sixth form, his family moving to the area for his mum’s job. He and Joss had been partnered up for chemistry, Mr Murphy believing that boys concentrated better if split up. They got on well, and she introduced him to her friends Si, Dan and Lizzy, their gang of four expanding to a gang of five. He was sporty and intelligent, unlike the rugby boys, who were generally just sporty, or the nerds, who were just intelligent. He was nice-looking too, with bright blue eyes, sandy-coloured hair, and a fit-looking body, not that he knew it, unlike Marcus, who was modelling for H&M, and everyone knew it. He encouraged her and challenged her in equal measure. She was the best version of herself when he was around, even though he could be really infuriating. He’d never shown any interest in her other than being friends, but she secretly hoped that the disco would change that.
She took a sip of her drink, her cheeks flushing from the strength of the alcohol. The school provided non-alcoholic fruit punch, but was fully aware that small bottles of vodka would be smuggled in, no matter what they said or did. Just don’t get caught with them, Ms Brown, the hip, new Drama teacher, had said, laughing conspiratorially. Jess looked at her friends. Would things change if she started going out with Ben? She knew that Lizzy and Dan would be okay about it, as they were doing more and more things together without her and Si, and she was just waiting for Lizzy to tell her they were together, they were made for each other. She was more worried about Si. Si was a computer nerd with a wicked sense of humour, who always looked like his nan had dressed him. He had been Jess’s first friend in the infants and was like a brother to her, although she knew he felt more. She didn’t want to hurt him, but it was inevitable that she would.
“I love this one, we’ve got to dance,” Lizzy shouted to Jess as the first few bars of Dancing Queen blasted out, downing her punch and dragging her onto the dance floor. One with the beat, the girls danced, forgetting themselves in the music. They continued dancing for the next few tracks before returning to the boys. Ben had joined them, and Jess’s heart pounded loudly in her chest, not just from the exhilaration of dancing.
“Hi!” Ben said, smiling broadly as she approached.
“Hi!” Jess replied, “What kept you? Too busy doing your hair?”
She hadn’t noticed before, but standing next to Ben was a tall, slim girl with long strawberry blonde hair and beautiful hazel eyes.
“Jess, this is my girlfriend, Saphia,” Ben introduced them.
For a moment, Jess was stunned before recovering quickly with a hasty smile.
“Lovely to meet you,” She said, trying to cover her disappointment by knocking back her punch. “What a lovely dress, is that vintage?”
I’m so stupid, how did I ever think that Ben would fancy me, she thought, as Saphia explained where she got the dress, something to do with her mother’s modelling days. I wish I’d never talked Mum into letting me have a pixie cut. Of course, Ben would want a girlfriend with long, beautiful hair and not one that looks like “Elf on the Shelf”. I’m such a bloody fool. She felt sick.
“I’m a bit hot, I’m going to get some air for a bit,” she said to the gang, desperate to get away, “I’ll be OK on my own.”
Outside the school gym, she couldn’t hold back the hot, humiliated tears any longer as “It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to” filled the air.
***
She searched in the darkness for the faint glow of another torch, but there was nothing but the occasional shaft of moonlight penetrating through the thick, densely packed trees. She walked on, the noises of the wood enveloping her; the scurrying sounds of small creatures making quick excursions from and returning quickly to their burrows before they became someone’s dinner, the whispering sound of the leaves in the light breeze and the loud, fast thumping sound of her heart beating. Ahead, she spotted a break in the trees and the shadowy form of the old house. A sense of relief at reaching her destination washed over her, but it was short-lived. She was just about to emerge from the cover of the trees when a dark figure came out of the house, stopping her in her tracks. It wasn’t Ben, too tall, and she was momentarily angry that he had insisted she had to come alone, even though he clearly had not. She watched as the figure climbed onto what looked like a dirt bike, fleetingly glimpsing the stranger’s face before the engine roared and they were gone. Who was that? She thought as she emerged into the clearing, still no sign of Ben, an uneasy feeling starting to take hold.
“Show yourself, Ben,” she shouted. “I’m here, so there’s no need to play games.”
He’d better not have chickened out, she muttered under her breath.
She walked slowly towards the house.
“You can come out now.”
She forced the door of the house open with a shove of her shoulder. The smell of damp and mould hit her.
“Where are you? It’s not funny.”
She made her way systematically through the empty rooms at the front of the house, sweeping left and right with her torch. The place was empty as always, no sign of Ben. She stopped to listen, straining to hear any sound of him.
“You’re scaring me now, enough’s enough.”
She entered what had been the small kitchen at the back and stumbled, the torch slipping from her hand. As she reached to retrieve it, she saw him.
Ben lay lifeless, his face looking up at her as pale as a ghost, thick red blood oozing from the back of his head.
Jess stood momentarily frozen before her body began to shake uncontrollably, and she vomited violently.
As she sat by her friend’s body, waiting for the police to arrive, not wanting to leave him on his own, the stranger’s face loomed large in her thoughts. She felt uneasy. There was something familiar about them, but who were they, and why had they killed Ben?
“I will make you pay for this,” she screamed into the darkness.
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