Chapter 4

HANNAH POV

The day of the ritual arrived faster than I was ready for. I woke up with a heavy feeling sitting in my chest, I still couldn’t talk myself out of the ritual.The room felt quieter than usual, and the walls felt like they were about to close on me. I stood up from the bed and went to get ready for the ritual. They didn’t give a particular dress code, so I decided to wear something random. 

After dressing, I went to the kitchen the prepare my mother tea and her drugs as usual. 

My mother was still asleep by the time I reached her room. 

I stood by her door longer than I needed to, watching her chest rise and fall unevenly. She looked smaller somehow, fragile in a way that made my throat tighten. I wanted to wake her up. I wanted to tell her everything. I wanted her to tell me not to go, but I already knew she would. So I stayed quiet. 

I dropped her tea and pills on her bed stand, and left the room.  

I moved through the apartment carefully, getting dressed, packing nothing but my phone and the small necklace she’d given me years ago. My hands shook as I clasped it around my neck. It felt like the only piece of home I could take with me. 

Valerie called just as I was about to leave the house. She wasn’t fully in support but I had already made up my mind and she couldn’t change it.

“Hannah,  you don’t have to do this.” she said softly, 

“I do,” I replied, my voice steadier than I felt. “Promise me you’ll look after my mum.”  There was silence on the line, then a shaky breath. “I promise.”

That was all I needed to hear.

The location they sent was far from the city. By the time I arrived, it was already 5:30pm. I was 30 minutes early. A few other girls stood nearby, strangers bound together by fear and curiosity. I knew some of them from the city. 

No one spoke.

Once it was 6pm, some convoys came over and the people that came out of the cars introduced themselves as the leaders. We were instructed to line up and hand over our phones. I hesitated before letting mine go, a strange sense of finality washing over me as it disappeared from my hands.

You can still leave, a voice in my head whispered. But I didn’t move. I wasn’t about to back out from this. This was the only chance I had to ensure my mother lived longer and healthier. 

They took us into the forest, blindfolded us one by one and left us there for some mimutes. The world went dark instantly, my heart pounding loudly in my ears. Someone guided me forward, their grip firm but not rough, until my feet stopped moving. “Face the tree,” a voice instructed. I was so scared, but I listened  and faced the tree. 

The air felt colder here. The forest was unnaturally quiet, no insects, no birds, nothing. I could hear my own breathing, uneven and shaky. Something sharp pressed against my palm. I gasped. 

“Hold still.” Pain flared briefly as my skin was cut. Warmth followed. Blood. I clenched my teeth, refusing to scream. I wasn’t sure how long I stood there. I was already feeling dizzy, but I refused to die like this. I kept on biting my lips till I felt blood on it. I had to be strong for my mum. 

Time blurred into fear and silence. Minutes felt like hours. I literally lost count of time. My legs began to ache. My head ached so badly and I thought I was going to die. Was this  how it was going to end for me? Alone, Unseen, Forgotten. Or as the daughter who failed to protect her sick mother. So many questions were running through my head, but I did not have an answer to them. 

I thought of my mother, Her smile, Her tired eyes, The way she always said my name like it was something precious. Then it dawned on me. I can’t die here. I have a promise to keep. I couldn’t just give up like this. 

A sudden wave of energy flowed through me, and I knew my survival instinct was kicking in. Time went by again and I was already exhausted and at this point, giving up felt like the best thing to do. Just as the thought crossed my mind, a gentle tap landed on my shoulder. My breath caught. My body went still.

“Hannah,” a voice said softly behind me. I didn’t turn right away. My hands were shaking and my heart felt like it was trying to break free from my chest. I was afraid that if I moved, whatever was happening would become real and I’ll see my body on the ground. 

The blindfold was lifted. Night light hit my eyes and I squeezed them shut, trying to adjust to the night light. When I opened them again, I looked at my surroundings. The moonlight looked so beautiful at this time of the day. But while looking around, confusion washed over me. The forest was empty. The girls who had stood beside me moments ago were gone. No footsteps. No whispers. No signs that anyone had ever been there.

My chest tightened, and I asked the first thing that came to my mind. “Where are the girls?” I asked. My voice came out small.

Cold air brushed against my skin. The torches that had lit the clearing earlier were out now, thin smoke rising from the ground. Panic settled deep in my stomach. I turned slowly and that was when I saw them.

Men dressed in black stood a few steps away, quiet and still. Their eyes were fixed on me. I suddenly felt exposed, like I was the only thing left in the world. Looking at my dress, I realized they must have changed what we wore while we were blindfolded, and I felt so small. 

Suddenly,  one of them stepped forward. I took a step backward instinctively.  “The ritual is over,” he said. My throat burned. “Over?” He nodded. “You survived.”

The words didn’t make sense. My knees felt weak. “And the others?” I asked. 

Well those who made it alive, have been sent to the hospital for checkups. 

“Those that didn’t make it alive, what happened to them?” I asked, getting scared. 

“Well I don’t think you need to know about that.” He looked at me with a silent gaze in his eyes, and I knew better than pressing the conversation further.

Then I noticed the car behind them. A black limousine parked between the trees, its door already open.

My heart sank.

The man looked at me again. “You’ve been chosen.”

The world seemed to tilt. I stared at the car, knowing that the moment I stepped inside, my life would never be the same again.