Hunted

Leo began to do a head count, he counted seven.

"Where's Jake?!" Leo asked panicked.

Everyone looked around freaked out, Leo muttered under his breath and opened his closet quietly. Revealing a hidden cellar, he opened the hatch ever so quietly and looked back to his group.

"Get in, if I'm not back in a few moments lock it and don't open it for anything!" Leo said quickly as he kissed Christine.

"But baby-" Christine started.

Leo cut her off as he picked her up and set her on the ladder going down the cellar, "GO!" he snapped.

She nodded teary eyed as she climbed down with everyone else following her, she got to the bottom and pulled out her phone flashlight looking around. There was a TV and a couple of gaming consoles around the room. There was only one way out, the hatch. Meanwhile Leo walked out of his room to see the front door was open, he cursed under his breath and called out Jake's name.

"Jake where are you buddy?" He called out.

He heard a padding sound to his left and turned his head to see a black figure lurking in the shadows of the kitchen. He held his shotgun closer and crept into the kitchen, the room growing quiet. He steadied his heart rate trying to control his breathing, he was scared out of his mind. He crept further into the kitchen as he looked around for Jake. A dreadful stench caught his attention as he got closer to the bathroom. He froze trying to stop himself from gagging.

He walked up to the door and opened it; Jake was passed out on the floor. Leo walked over to his best friend, that's when the smell hit him. A coppery smell. Blood. His friend was bleeding. He quickly checked over his injuries, after making sure it was safe to carry his best friend, he picked him up. He carried him out of the bathroom and walked silently to the kitchen, that's when he heard it again. That same padding sound as before, he looked to his left to see the same shadowy figure as before. It was at least 6 feet, Leo gulped as the creature lifted its head from the bag of food it was eating out of.

Leo gripped his gun and stood still, waiting, the creature let out a small grunt as it went back to eating. The creature had no interest in them. Leo knew there was more nearby, he carefully crept to the back bedroom. Not wanting to lead any of these beasts to his girlfriend and friends, he silently shut and locked the door. He leaned Jake against the wall before he pushed the dresser and nightstand in front of the door, before turning and leaning the mattress in front of the windows. He then pushed the bed frame against the mattress to keep it flush against the wall without it falling.

He turned on the lights and set his gun down to his right before turning his attention to back Jake. Checking over his injuries, he noticed his blood-soaked shirt. He cursed and dug through the nightstand, finding a pair of scissors, before grabbing the first aid kit from the closet. He then found a bottle of rubbing alcohol, ripping off a part of his shirt and drenching it in the cold liquid before cutting off his friend's shirt. His heart dropped as he saw just how bad his friend's injuries were. There were three deep gashes along his chest. He ran the cold damp cloth over his friend's cuts, his friend gave a faint look of pain.

He tended to his friends' wounds, carefully stitching the deeper gashes, before disposing of the blood-soaked clothes before putting a pair of clean clothes on his friend. He didn't enjoy changing his friend, but he was willing to do whatever it took to cover up as much of his scent as he could. He sighed and dug through the closet, he lifted up the carpet and opened a trapdoor. It led to a tunnel in the ground. He sighed, hoisted Jake up, and carried him down the ladder. After setting him down, he secured the cellar door and locked it behind him.

He descended the ladder, hoisting his friend up as he scanned the area. He was certain a flashlight was nearby. He was sure there was a flashlight around; his family always kept one here for emergencies. After several minutes of searching, he finally located it. He switched it on before venturing down the dark tunnel, familiar with the path ahead. Knowing all the other entrances were locked or barricaded put his mind at ease. He took a deep breath and, still cautious, continued to walk further down the tunnel. After distancing himself a few feet from his previous path, he began to hum a soft melody. Meanwhile, Christine was pacing among the others.

"He should have been back by now," she said in a panicked tone.

"I'm sure he's fine Chrissy but don't forget what he said." Chris said as he walked to the trapdoor.

"I know..." She said as she watched Chris close and lock the entrance to the cellar.

Christine sat down sadly as she began to think the worst, her boyfriend could be dead. What if those, monsters, got to him? She began to cry as she heard loud steps overhead, the creatures had gotten into Leo's room. They had closed the door just in time, Christine's heart dropped. Leo was still out there; she began to sob as Lillian tried to comfort her. Suddenly, a loud, blood-curdling scream echoed from above, unrecognizable to the teens. It wasn't that of Leo's or Jake's, everyone froze as they heard the cries of a young women.

She cried as the sound of ripping flesh could be heard from above, everyone was frozen in fear. Not wanting to make a sound, Christine began to wonder who the girl was. All six of them were here in the cellar but Leo and Jake, who else was here? Meanwhile Leo had made a turn just as the scream sounded through the air. Recognizing the scream a tear streamed down his face; he had forgotten that his sister was going to be joining them.

He knew the worst had just happened; he had no idea how he was going to explain his sister's death to his parents. As he came upon a locked door in the tunnel, he dug through his pockets for a key. After a few moments of searching, he found it and fumbled to unlock the door. The door swung open, and he walked into the dark room, he shut the door and locking it behind him. He walked deeper into the room, there was no lights on. His heart dropped; this was the room his friends were in. So why were there no lights on?

"Guys?" He asked softly.

He leaned Jake against the wall, and looked around.