Excerpt 3:
Before Lucas could make another attempt at her, she raised her axe and swung it.
She hit her target and the axe made a deep cut on Lucas’s hand.
He let out a scream.
The machete quivered in his grip, but he managed to regain a firm hold on it.
Mia dodged Lucas’s next swing and wielded her axe at his face, making a deep cut on his cheek.
Lucas screamed once more. His voice was full of pain but also wrath. He wanted to kill Mia more than he had ever wanted to kill anyone.
Sheila saw the blood pouring from Lucas’s face and began to feel hope blossom in her.
Jany and Nancy kept watching the fight, terrified still.
Oliver looked at Mia, the woman he loved. Then his stare became fixed on Lucas.
Mia was watching Lucas hissing in pain while touching his hand to his wounded face. He slowly dragged his hand away, red with blood. He switched the machete to his other hand and tightened his grip.
His eyes were red in fury.
Mia sensed another attack coming as he raised his machete.
She tried to raise her hand to retaliate.
Oliver’s eyes widened, sensing the Ripper could succeed in this attack.
Alarmed, he leapt forward and grabbed Mia’s shirt, pulling her back.
Lucas’s weapon passed a mere inch away from her, making a slashing sound in the air.
Surprised, Mia jerked hard and pushed Oliver away from her.“Why did you pull me away from him?” she raged.
Oliver tried to get a hold of her again, but she pushed him away once more.
She shifted her look back to Lucas and swiftly stepped forward, keeping the axe near her chest, and then swung it up with all her might, twisting her wrist as she did so. It made a deep cut on Lucas’s elbow, and he screamed in pain.
The machete fell from his hand.
Keeping his head down and clutching his elbow, Lucas turned and ran away from them up the hill.
Enraged, Mia followed him.
“Stop!” shouted Oliver, running after her.
“Stop following him,” shouted Jany, running after Oliver. “We must leave here now.”
“He has killed so many innocents,” yelled Mia. “I can’t let him escape.”
Lucas glanced behind and then increased his pace. Mia was close behind him and he could see the others following after her. He pushed on, running even faster.
Mia increased her speed, but before she could reach him, Lucas turned right after a gigantic tree about twenty steps away from her.
Mia ran past the turning point, then turned back to follow him. Oliver reached her and forced her to stop.
“Please leave here right now,” he said, shaking her by the shoulders. Blood from his wound was staining his shirt red.
“No. I want to kill him today,” said Mia in fury.
“This is his land. We don’t know where we are. He has disappeared—”
“I saw him turning right.”
“I saw him, too,” added Oliver quickly. “But it’s too risky to follow him. He may have hidden somewhere, waiting to ambush us.”
“I’m ready for him.”
Jany reached them, and Nancy and Sheila after her.
“We have a chance to escape! Stop following him! We need to leave here right now!” said Jany.
Sheila and Nancy stood there, breathing heavily.
“If we continue straight, we will find the path to the correct trail after about half an hour or so,” said Nancy. “We came from that way.”
“Did you listen to her?” said Jany quickly. “Let’s go!”
“If you guys want to leave, you’re free to go,” said Mia. “I’m following this Ripper to end his terror.”
She turned right where Lucas had just turned a few minutes ago and slowly walked farther on that path, glancing around as she went.
Oliver watched Mia walking away, his face wearing a blank expression.
Jany glanced at Oliver and then sighed in disappointment.
Sheila and Nancy exchanged a look of worry.
Then Oliver walked after Mia.
Jany stepped forward and stepped back in an instant.
“What’s happening?” asked Sheila.
“We can escape. I so desperately want to run away from here. However,” said Jany, “they saved my life. I don’t want to leave them with the Ripper. I think we should stay with them. At least, together, we may defeat the Ripper.”
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