Page 3 of The Last Feast
As we get deeper through the trees, the soft laughter of Felix’s group tapers off as they slip through the trees, followinga scarecrow. My unfortunate partner tugs on my hand as she plasters herself to my side. “This is so creepy.”
I just hum.
She’s not really afraid when she’s always loved things like this. When we were kids, Odette was the first person to run into the ghost rides at the fair. She’d even go in them alone, only to leave cackling at the different jump scares. It’s because of her that it’s became a tradition for the three of us to attend different haunted houses.
But she continues batting her lashes at me and pushing closer into my side.
A group of three is safety. There’s someone there to witness things and stop any questions. Now, Odette and I are alone, she’s going to pry into why I don’t visit home. Between travelling and depleting my energy by being social, I don’t think I’ll be able to successfully lie anymore.
The hairs on my nape stand on end as we get deeper through the wooded area towards the aged board nailed to a tree, pointing to the maze. The low lights make it difficult to see anything in front of us as the trees close in. Odette takes it as an opportunity to touch me further. She strokes down my arm as she turns to walk in front of me then curls her fingers over my belt.
Her voice drips with sex as she huskily whispers, “Have you ever touched anyone in public?”
“You were touching me outside,” I deadpan.
“No, silly.” She giggles, high pitched and fake. “I meanreallytouched.”
“Answer her,” a delicate voice says from behind me.
I look over my shoulder to see the woman with the ax. She’s short, barely five foot three to my six foot two, so I have to look down at her as she rests the ax on her shoulder.
“You’re not very good at your job,” I say instead. “Aren’t you supposed to jump out at us instead of creeping up to eavesdrop?”
“I was curious.” She shrugs as her eyes sparkle. “So answer her. Have you ever touched anyone in public?”
I don’t look at Odette, who grips my belt harder, attempting to pull me to her. I answer the stranger who intrigues me. “No. Have you?”
One side of her lips lift, bringing the white teeth painted on her skin with it. “Does it count if it’s myself?”
I slowly shake my head.
“Well then, I guess we have the same answer.” She lifts her hand, slowly bringing her fingers down in the creepiest wave I’ve ever seen as she walks through the gap in the trees.
I can’t help the disappointment when she leaves my sight. There’s something about her that scratches an itch I’ve never had before. Unlike when she passed while queuing outside, I’m not drawn to the skull painted on her face. It’s like I want to sit her in presence and study her to find out how she carries herself so easily.
Odette tugs on my belt as she snaps, “Who isshe?”
“Probably someone working here.” I shrug as I hold her wrist to remove her touch. “Why else would she be dressed up?”
An ear-splitting scream vibrates through the air from the direction the others went, and I laugh to myself. The lights are next, increasing the volume of my laugh as Odette tries to reach for me, but I step back so she collides with a tree trunk. The sound of her hitting it is satisfying; maybe now she’ll understand I don’t want her to touch me.
My laugh dies in my throat as a breeze tickles my nape, and the back of my t-shirt is lifted. The knife I took from the forest has warmed against my skin, so the air is even colder as the metal slides out of my jeans.
“What will it take for you to scream for me?” the delicate voice whispers as she trails the tip of the knife down my lower spine.
3
OFFERING
Afeast isn’t only a reference to food. That’s why Hana followed Auguste through the town as she hid her bloodied hands. No, to feast is to gorge on all desires. From the moment he took her knife, she has wanted him. At first, it was to reclaim what he stole, but now, as she smells the clean citrus clinging to his skin and tastes the sweet cake of his voice, she desiresmore.Especially when his breathing shallows, and the goosebumps dotting his spine graze the back of his fingers. She traces his delicate skin with the knife, resisting the urge to plunge it into his back as he holds still.
Halloween was always going to mark the end of her life, just as it marked the beginning. She decides she will experience every desire before the bells toll on her existence.
The woman screams in the dark as she calls out for help, so Hana increases the pressure of the blade against Auguste’s skin. She moves closer to him, tempted to sink her teeth into his tense back until his blood spills over her tongue to remove the taste of Odette’s voice.
Instead, she leans up on her toes and whispers, “Run and hide, sweet thief.”
His breath shudders in his chest as he whispers, “What happens if I don’t?”
