Mortified

Zia opened her eyes slowly. Painfully, she began trying to blink. Her head was throbbing, and the room was spinning. Her body felt numb. She lay covered under the black covers in the dark room.

Blinking her eyes repeatedly, she looked around the room. The man was gone. What happened last night? How long was I asleep? She thought.

Lifting the blankets, she searched her body. She wore the lingerie without the cover up in bed. Sitting up in bed she searched the other side but nothing and no one was there. Why can't I remember anything?

The last thing Zia remembered was sitting on the couch, talking to the stranger. She felt panic arise inside of her as her thoughts flooded her mind. "What have I done?" She whispered.

Zia looked over at the table and couch that her and the stranger sat at. His book was open on the table near his glass that still contained the remains of his drink. His cigar had died and rest in the ashtray, nearly completely burned away.

Zia's cover up lay on the couch neatly. She felt sick to her stomach. She hopped down from the huge bed, dragging the thick blanket with her. Her legs were in pain. Each step felt like heavy weights dragging her down.

Walking over to the table, she picked up the stranger's book and began turning the pages. As she turned the pages, money began falling out of the book. Zia felt frightened.

What did this mean? Why was there money in his book? Did he forget it? Did he leave it here for me? She began feeling nauseous. Did I do something for this money? Why can't I remember the evening? She thought as her eyes began to burn.

"Someone is finally awake." A familiar voice said. Zia dropped the book. "Damien." She said, startled. "I…I..uhm…" The words wouldn't form. She quickly picked up the book and pulled the blanket over the money that dropped out of it so Damien wouldn't see it. She held the book behind of her with one hand as she pulled the blanket over her with the other.

"You made a really good impression on my client. He was very happy with your service." Damien said with a grin. "I wouldn't be surprised if he comes back again very soon, maybe even tonight." Zia felt mortified.

"Wh..what did he say happened?" She asked.

"Oh, don't act innocent. Whatever happened, he is a happy man, and I am a happy business owner. Good Job." He said, with a little too much pep for Zia's liking.

We have to get out of here. You need to get ready for the show tonight. I want you to do something extra special this evening, so start thinking about it," Damien said.

"What time is it?" Zia asked. "3:00 in the afternoon. You slept all day. Last night must have been really tiring." He said with a wink. "But I…"

"Hey, I knew you had it in you. You are the prettiest one here. It's time I make some real money off you." He said walking away, through the door.

Zia bent down and picked up the money, quickly stuffing it back in the pages of the book and followed Damien.

"Do me a favor, make it back to the circus before nightfall. The dark stalkers are closer than they need to be, and I need to know why. Until then, you must move early. Instead of the cabin, you guys will stay in the circus dressing rooms, so pack a bag of things for the next couple of days. I set up bedding for you all." He said, walking away hurriedly while Zia followed quietly.

The pains in her legs slowly began to fade the more she walked. "Damien." Zia asked, pulling the blanket tighter around her as they walked out of the office into the field. "What?" He replied. "

"What is the man's name?" She asked.

"Wow, you must have had a wild night if you don't remember his name." He said, never answering the question.

"I'll see you later." He said, walking away.

Zia stood in the middle of the field and dropped to her knees, then sat backward with tears in her eyes.

Her head ached and her body was sore. She pulled her knees into her chest and covered herself with the blanket as she sobbed. "What is happening?" She cried.

Zia sat there for a moment, then stood up. She turned towards the path and made her way to the cabin. She needed to leave this place fast. She would rather take her chances out there than in here, no matter how dangerous it was.

The pathway seemed quiet and peaceful. The sunlight shone through he trees allowing Zia to see far beyond what she saw last night. The forest looked happy and inviting, not dark and terrifying. Where do the dark stalkers come from?

When Zia was barely a teenager, she had a run in with the dark stalkers. They almost took her away. She was in the forest alone at sunset and she wanted to play and follow butterflies.

Zia had no friends her age at the time, so she made her own fun. She went further into the forest than she should have but no one was watching her, so she was free to explore.

The darkness rolled in like a wave in the sea. Suddenly, she was surrounded by a dark mist and rustling trees. She began hearing the growls and panting.

Zia tried to run but the mist was too thick. As the creatures grew closer, she began seeing red eyes through the darkness.

A breeze unexpectedly blew behind her. She could see one of the creatures in the corner of her eye. There was no define shape just a form moving quickly. They grew closer and closer. They could sense her fear.

Swiftly, something dropped to the ground. Its wings were large and covered her completely. She could hear the dark stalkers squealing at the restrictions placed before them.

The creature lifted her off the ground, into the air, through the trees and took her to the lake near her cabin.

It dropped her away from everyone but close enough to the light and flew off without ever showing its face.

When she told Ansel what happened, Ansel cried and held her tightly. "Don't you ever go into the forest alone! Do you want to die, Zia?Those creatures are the deadliest creatures you will ever know in your life. " Ansel explained frantically.

Damien warned that they could leave a complete body in a pool of blood, revealing only bones in just minutes.

There were ways to keep them at bay, but the stories were not always clear. Damien told her he used a dark witch. The old witch cast a spell on the barriers surrounding the Circus and gave him a mixture to sprinkle around the barriers.

The dark stalkers couldn't break the borders easily. However, spell was not permanent, and the witch was expensive, so he needed to find another way.

A large black and gold butterfly distracted Zia from her thoughts. She looked at its beautiful, fluttering wings and smiled at the magical being.

Zia didn't realize she already made it to the cabin. She stood outside the door, staring at the entrance.

"Time to get out of this." She said as she turned the knob and entered the cabin to pack her things and plan her escape.