The crack of thunder startled Jessie. The scream stuck in her throat, and then she saw him, his sinister face, lusting eyes, and sheer size. She screamed, dropped her keys, and ran realizing too late she was running towards the graveyard and the wooded area just beyond. Too late to run to Matt now. She gasped for breath, heart pounding in her ears.
Making it through the graveyard to the trees, Jessie ran along them, hoping she was headed back towards the church and lighted parking lot. He was closing in fast. Tripping over a tree root she pitched forward into the darkness sliding sideways down a deep embankment grabby at the muddy grass. She chocked off a cry as she fell several feet to a ledge below, hitting her head on something hard.
She lay winded on her back, struggling for breath, looking up in the mesmerizing light show as a fork of lightening unfolded across the sky. On any other night it would have fascinated her, but now it was like a scene from a creepy movie. As she breathed in and out her racing heart started to slow down.
“Jessie, sweet Jessie…” The man’s mocking voice floated down to her. “I’ll be back to play another day.”