Into the Woods

Chapter 9

Suellen
**Trigger Warning**
Violence

I'm not sure which is worse, my ankle or my heart. I can't erase the image of my good friend's bloody, mutilated body out of my mind. Charlene has released me and is now several feet away, vomiting. Poor Charlene. She and Julie were just as close as Deanna and me. Steady streams of tears pour down my face.

Once Charlene pulls herself together, she wipes the tears from her eyes and returns to my side. She's the most muscular and put-together woman of the four of us. She doesn't waste time getting down to business.

"First and foremost, we need to splint your ankle."

She looks around the area until she finds two wood pieces that she believes will do the job. She kneels beside me and gently places my lower leg across her lap. She puts the wood on both sides of my ankle and calves and removes the scarf, holding her blonde hair away from her face. Her hair cascades around her angelic face as she secures the wood into place.

"Do you think that you can move? We have to make it to the road to wave down help." She looks at me with her ocean-blue eyes.

"I think that I can."

Charlene stands and offers me her hand. I take it, and she helps me to my feet. I wince when I put weight on my ankle.

"Shit! I can't put weight on it." I look to my friend.

"That's okay, Suellen; you can put your weight on me."

She places her arm under my arm, and I put my arm around her neck.

We begin to make our way out of the woods. We go in the same direction that Deanna disappeared in only an hour ago. We don't get far when I trip and fall over a small log hidden by leaves.

I'm so frustrated that I sit there in the middle of the woods and cry like a damn baby.

"Come on, Suellen, we have to keep going," Charlene begs me as I feel sorry for myself.

"Go! I'm only holding you back. Run. Run as fast as you can, and get us help! Please!" I cry, and I see her contemplate my demand.

Tears well up in Charlene's eyes. "I can't leave you!"

"Yes, you can." I try to think of how I can convince her to leave me. "We're both going to die if you don't run! You have to go!"

"NO!" she screams.

I think of another way to make her go. "Hide me."

"What?" Charlene looks at me as if I lost my mind. Maybe I have, but I know that we're both dead if she doesn't get out of here. I know it.

"Hide me, Charlene. Hide me, and run like hell!"

I see her mind working. She's mulling around my suggestion in her mind and starts looking around for a place to hide me.

"Okay." She finally gives in, and I take a deep breath of relief. "Come on."

This time, when she reaches down to me, I take her hand, pulling me onto my feet.

"There's some deep brush about ten feet away. Do you think that you can make it there?"

"Yes." I once again lean on her for assistance.

We slowly make our way to the bushes. She helps me to the ground, and I move as far into the thick brush as possible.

"Can you see me?" I ask.

"No, I can't," she responds.

"Run!" That is all that I say before she takes off through the words.

I lay there silently for what seemed like hours and prayed that Charlene made it to the road and flagged down a vehicle for help.