His Rose

A/N: Dang! Thanks for all the reviews, guys, I really appreciate all the feedback. Here's a new chapter for you all, hot off the presses. Hope you like it. :)


As soon as she could no longer see him through the trees, Rose went inside the cabin to await Jason’s return. She tried to be patient, tried to convince herself that he would be back soon, but the fear still crept back into her mind. She sat on the couch and pulled her knees up to her chest, trying very hard not to think of anything except Jason coming back. It didn’t help much.

After an hour of sitting on the couch and fidgeting, Rose went into the kitchen. Crossing to the sink, she splashed some water on her face and took a few deep breaths. Her heartbeat quieted enough that she could finally hear the sound of birds out in the trees, and she smiled.

Suddenly, through the open door, there came a sound like the jangling of a very un-melodic set of wind chimes. Rose poked her head outside, curious. She didn’t know what would make that noise, except Jason, and it seemed a little soon for him to be back. Her eyes fell on the string of bells he had set up before he left, just as it shook and jangled again.

Rose panicked. She slammed the door and locked it, running around the house to close all the curtains. She didn’t know what the string of bells was hooked up to, but Jason had agreed that it was like an alarm. Did that mean someone was coming?

She peeked out of the kitchen window, barely shifting the curtains out of the way so she could see. Where was Jason? Was someone coming? If she hid, would they just leave? She could feel herself really beginning to panic now, her heart thumping wildly in her chest and her breath coming in short, quick gasps. Dropping the curtain back into place, she hit the floor and crawled over to the corner by the sink. She wrapped her arms around her knees and huddled there.

Two full minutes passed in silence before she heard the sound of a car coming up the gravel road. She squished herself farther into the corner, holding her breath and straining her ears for another sound.

The sound of the car’s engine got a little closer, then shut off. She heard a car door opening, then slamming shut again. The sound reverberated off the walls of the house in the suddenly silent clearing. Then there were footsteps. She counted fifteen soft thumps, before the sound changed to indicate that whoever it was had hit the porch. There were two more footsteps, and then the person was right outside the door.

Rose pressed a hand over her mouth, smothering a quiet whimper of fear.

The person knocked loudly, twice.

“Hello? Anybody home?”

The voice was male, deep and strong. It carried just the hint of the elongated vowels of a country accent. Rose squeezed her eyes shut, smothering another whimper. The man outside her door shifted, and there were several minutes of silence. He knocked again, startling a quiet squeak of fear out of her. She clapped both hands over her mouth, terrified that he might have heard it.

“Hello?” he called again. “Is someone there?”

The footsteps moved over near the window above the sink, then back the other direction to the other window. She heard the sound of a foot hitting the aluminum leg of the cot she had set up for Jason. After a moment, the man clomped his way back to the door and knocked again.

“Miss Williams, you home?”

How did he know her name? She bit her lip hard, thinking. He wasn’t going to give up and leave. If she could sneak out the bedroom window in back, she might make it to the forest before he noticed her. Once she was there, all she would have to do is run until Jason found her or she found him. The forest was a big place, but Jason always seemed to know everything about it. She was sure he would find her.

Shifting her weight onto her hands and knees, Rose maneuvered her way out of the corner, avoiding the squeaky boards in the floor as much as possible. She made it all the way across the kitchen without making a sound, and was halfway across the living room when the man knocked again. The sound made her jump. She lost her balance, only managing to keep herself upright by hitting her hand on one of the squeaky spots on the floor.

“Miss Williams, I know you’re in there. Can you please come out? I just want to talk.”

Rose panicked. Losing all thought of being quiet, she leapt up and raced to the back of the cabin. In a flash, she had the window up, and was halfway out before the sound of footsteps crossing the porch registered.

She dropped to the ground and sprinted for the woods. As she hit the tree line, she glanced back. A large man in the tan uniform of a country sheriff rounded the corner of her cabin as she did so. She saw him look at the window, then at her.

“Hey, stop!”

Rose doubled her speed, dodging quickly through the underbrush. The leaves crunched and rustled under her feet, and she had a sudden, terrifying flashback to the last time she had been chased through the underbrush. Behind her, she heard the man coming up fast. He was quicker on his feet than her, or perhaps only more used to running. Rose was quickly panting, but the man behind her seemed to be breathing fine.

Making a quick decision, Rose darted right, ducking under a half-fallen tree and jumping a rock sticking out of the ground. She heard the man curse. She pushed her legs harder, begging her body for just a little more speed.

The trees ended abruptly. Rose paused for a moment, trying to get her bearings. She was on the road that led to her cabin. How had she gotten there? Glancing behind her, she saw the man only a few yards behind her, fighting his way past a tree. He called out to her, but she turned up the road and ran.

She only made it about fifty yards before she heard the man hit the road behind her. She could feel her legs aching, her lungs burning. Uselessly, she tried to go faster, but she knew he was gaining.

“Help!” she screamed with all the lungpower she had left. “Jason! Help!”

It was too late. The man was right behind her. He reached out and grabbed her arm, dragging her to a stop and holding her there, despite her struggles to get away.

“Let go!” she yelled desperately. “Leave me alone!”

“Miss Williams,” the man said loudly. “Miss Williams, stop it!”

He seized her other arm, forcing her to stay in place and face him no matter how hard she fought. She kicked him in the knee, causing him to grunt in pain, but it didn’t make him let go.

“Miss Williams, it’s alright!” he exclaimed, giving her a little shake. “I’m a police officer, it’s okay. I won’t hurt you.”

In her mind, Rose saw the other man, lying on top of her and holding her to the ground. She heard his voice saying, “If ya don’t fight, I won’t have ta hurt ya,” through the sick leer on his face. Jason had saved her that time. Where was he now? She went limp and sobbed.

The officer misinterpreted her response as relief. He pulled her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her in what was meant to be a comforting hug. Rose’s muscles went tight and useless with fear, and she sobbed harder, trying to push away. This man was going to hurt her. Where was Jason?

“It’s alright,” the officer said soothingly, then grabbed her upper arms and held her away from his body. Rose tried to push his hands away, still crying, but he didn’t let go.

“I came here looking for two local boys who went missin’,” he explained. “People said they were set to deliver food to you. Did something happen?”

Rose just sobbed, brushing away tears of fear from her eyes so she could see. She pushed at his hands again and he finally let go. She turned away and tried to run into the forest, but her legs were too shaky with fear. She made it only a few steps before she hit the ground on her knees. She heard the man come up behind her.

“Jason!” she yelled again, her voice desperate.

“Come on,” the man said, grabbing her arm and trying to pull her to her feet. “We’ll go back to the station and talk, alright?”

She shook her head, trying to pull away as the man dragged her upright and started to pull her along the path. Rose dragged backward against him, scanning the trees desperately as he forced her to follow.

The first time her tear-blurred eyes ran past the half-fallen tree, she almost missed him. She wiped her eyed on the back of her free hand, looking again. There, half behind the tree trunk, was Jason, his machete already in his hand.

“Jason!” she cried, yanking on the man’s grip.

The man heard her cry, and turned. He saw Jason among the trees much faster than she had. In a flash, he dropped her arm and shoved her behind him, trying to shield her with his body.

“Hey, who’re you?” he demanded.

In three long steps, Jason was out of the trees and on the road. He stood for half a moment, his single visible eye enraged. He had been on his way back to the cabin when he heard Rose’s faint cries. He had dropped everything, sure that something was wrong, and rushed to the cabin. But Rose hadn’t been there - all he could see was the back window open, an intruder’s car off to the side, and footprints leading into the woods.

His mother’s voice had come to him then, screaming at him in a way she never had before, yelling at him to protect his good girl. He needed no urging.

Rose shoved past the man, desperate to get to Jason. He held out a hand to stop her, but she darted around it. When she was close enough, Jason grabbed her by the arm and pulled her behind him. Rose hid behind his large frame, still afraid but secure behind her savior.

“Look, I don’t know who you are, but that lady has got to go to the station with me,” the officer said, taking half a step back. His eyes finally fell on the machete in Jason’s hand. He looked back up at Rose, eyes narrowing in what looked like suspicion, flicked his gaze to Jason’s hockey mask covered face, and slowly reached for the gun on his hip.

His hand never made it. Jason stepped forward and sliced it off at the wrist on his upward stroke. The officer had just enough time to register the loss before the blade of the machete bit deep into his collarbone. Blood spurted everywhere, and he was dead before he hit the ground.

Jason heard the sound of the body falling to the ground quite clearly through the silence in his mind. He paused a moment, realizing that his mother had been silent throughout the killing. He hadn’t even noticed when she stopped screaming.

Rose touched his arm gently, bringing him back to the present. When he turned to look at her, she crushed her body to his. Her arms wrapped around his waist so tightly she didn’t ever seem likely to let go, and she pressed her face against his blood-spattered chest.

“Jason,” she sobbed, the last of her fear vanishing as she pressed herself against him. “Oh, Jason.”