The Big Bad

The Lair and The Liars

Earphones blasting in my ears and lost in my thoughts, I realise that thoughts aren't the only thing I'm lost in. I take my earphones out, letting them hang from my chest, and stop to look around. Nothing is familiar about the surroundings, but what do you expect from a new town. I should of never gone for a run with only a day of living here. I look at my watch and am surprised to see that I'd been running for almost two and a half hours. Hoping to end up back at my house, I decide to run the direction I came from. But as I run I am stopped by a little opening in the forest a few feet ahead of me. Seeing the opening, my adventuress side dominates my concerns, as only the sharpest eye would be able to see this opening. As I grow closer, it is clear that the opening is man made, but made to look natural, making my curiosity grow by the second. I crawl through the little opening, struggling to squeeze through. Once I'm through, I am able to stand up, but am stunned to see footprints in the wet mud. I can feel the fear behind my adventuress side, as I'd heard the stories of this mysterious town, Rosewood. But I ignore the fear, too curious to stop now.
I follow the foot prints, but when they disappear no place or change in location is seen. Telling myself that the remaining footsteps must have been swept away, I decide to turn around and go back to where I found the secret opening, disappointed in never finding something to quench my thirst of adventure. But as I take my first step, I am tripped over by a stick and fall on my ass and get covered in mud. "Gross," I say as I begin to drag myself up off the ground, but half way up I am shocked to see something that I swear was not there before. My falling must have moved something because just where the footprints disappear is a trapdoor, coloured to camouflage to the surroundings.
"What the...?"
I pick the rest of myself off the ground and hover over the trapdoor, deciding whether or not I should open it.
"Uh?" I say as I look around, wondering if there might be someone near. I walk back following the footsteps, but pause and look back at the trapdoor, conflicted. Scared of what might be down there, but also curious. I start to pace back and forth biting my nails, unsure of what to do.
But then I hear something, the sound of footsteps coming towards me. The fear rising up and dominating me, I run straight to the trapdoor, open it and climb down the narrow ladder. I am engulfed in nothing but blackness as I climb down. I am startled as the hidden floor suddenly grasps my feet and lights begin to light up, a narrow hallway becoming visible. "Woah," I say shocked. I stand stunned at the building under the ground. But I hear the trapdoor open and close and the shock is replaced by fear. I run down the hallway and end up in a giant room. On the walls of the room are six large pictures. Pictures of six girls with names on the bottom of the picture that reads "Spencer, Aria, Hanna, Emily, Alison and Mona." Bellow these pictures are even more little pictures with arrows and question marks on them. With a picture at the very top, the largest picture of all, of a blonde girl with crosses drawn over her eyes and a name at the bottom "Cece". I hear the the footsteps grow closer and run to one of the three doors in the room. I open it and walk in. It's a small room with I assume is clothes hanging down. The room is dark so I take out my phone from my back pocket and turn the torch on. "AAAHHH!!!" I scream in terror as the light shines on a face with no eyes. But I calm myself down as I realise that it is only a mask. The door swings open and I am pulled out of the closet, my phone falling out of my hand and crashes to the ground. I shouldn't of screamed, now this creep is going to kill me.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry please don't kill me."
I open my eyes and see an old man. But as I look closer I can see that it is a mask.
"Who are you," he asks in a hushed tone.
"Um, uh my name is Lexa," I tell him. He grabs me by the back of my shirt and opens one of the doors and throws me in there. I can hear him locking the door and walk away. I scramble to stand up and turn around. "Oh my god!" I scream as I see that I'm not the only person in here. Two of the girls in the pictures on the wall, Hanna and Aria, are here.
"Who are you?" Hanna asks.
"Lexa, what is this place?"
"This is A's secret Lair, he took us here because he thinks we killed his PRECIOUS CECE!" she yells the last part out.
"Hanna be quiet, you know he's capable of murder,"
"No I'm not going to be quiet Aria, I've been quiet long enough. We've been sitting in this horrible smelly room trapped like rats, all because he thinks we killed her. WE. DIDN'T. KILL HER!"
"Hanna look, you're scaring her," Aria says pointing at me. I didn't notice until now, but I'd been watching Hanna with a look of fear spread across my face.
"Sorry," Hanna says. "I don't know what you guys are talking about. I only just moved to Rosewood yesterday."
"How did you find this place?" Aria asks me.
"I was just going for a run and got lost and stumble across this place."
"Well we were kidnapped," Hanna says.
"Why?" I ask.
They look at each other, wondering if they should tell me, but then Aria nods and they both look at me again.
"It all started when our friend Alison faked her own death." They tell me all the gory details of how they have been stalked and tortured and now after five years of silence, Alison's sister, Charlotte the person that stalked and tortured them, was murdered, for real, and it's happening all over again.
"This new person, that put you in here, thinks we killed or know who killed Charlotte. That's why he put us in here," Aria states.
"Why does he want to find the killer?"
"We don't know," Hanna says.
"Do you know who this person is?" I ask curious.
"No we were blind folded when he got u- wait you saw him, didn't you?" Aria asks a glimpse of hope in her eyes.
"No. I'm sorry he was wearing an old man mask when I saw him."
"DAMN!" Hanna yells and bangs on the wall and the hope in Arias eyes quickly vanish.
"Hanna stop," Aria says. Hanna ignores her and keeps on smashing the wall, blood starts to drip from her knuckles.
"Ouch!" She says clutching at her fist.
"Are you okay?" I ask her.
The door suddenly swings open and the man with the mask steps inside. He stares at Hanna.
"Let us out of here!" Hanna yells at him. He doesn't say anything, just stares at her. "WE DON'T KNOW WHO KILLED HER!" She screams at him. He walks over to her towering her and looking down at her. Hanna tries to keep her stern face, but he grabs her and pushes a cloth to her face.
"STOP!" Aria yells. But before she can do anything Hanna's body goes limp and slumps to the ground. Before exiting the room, he stops to look at me and Aria, warning us. After he leaves the room Aria and I hurry to Hanna's slumped body. "Shit! Is she okay?" I ask Aria.
"Yeah I think so, she's just unconscious."