Tracy's POV
The storm hadn't let up. My dress hugged to my legs, every step I took was a battle against the weight of soaked fabric. My raw wrists burned with each movement of the swing of my arms. The road stretched endlessly ahead of me, slick and glistening in the flashes of lightning.
I could not tell how long I had been walking. Every part of my body ached with every movement. My thoughts kept circling the same fragile promise— just until dawn… go home at dawn. But dawn felt like a cruel joke, something forever just out of reach. I wished it would come so soon.
My legs buckled, and I sank to my knees in the mud. The cold seeped through me, bone- deep, numbing. I pressed my arms tight around myself, rocking slightly, like a child trying to soothe herself.
That's when I saw it.
Headlights.
At first, I thought I was imagining it. Two faint, glowing orbs in the distance, growing larger, brighter, cutting through the sheets of rain. My heart lurched into my throat.
A car. At last!
I scrambled to my feet at once, nearly falling again. I shot my hands out, waving frantically. My voice cracked, but I screamed anyway, the storm tearing my words apart.
"Help! Please—help!"
The car slowed- slowly. For a breathless moment, I thought it might keep going, like so many others might. My chest tightened, my hope flickering. But then— it stopped. I breathed out a Thank You.
The beams of light fell over me, blinding. I raised an arm to shield my eyes from the light. The sound of the engine idling filled the air, steady and real.
A door creaked open.
"Lord have mercy…" a woman's voice, soft but sharp with shock. She came out from thhe car.
Suddenly I froze. My body screamed to run, but my soul begged me to stay.
What if this was another trap? What if they'd come back for me?
What if she was one of them? I didn't think of that before waving my hands to stop her.
But then she stepped into the light— an elderly woman, wrapped in a raincoat, her umbrella clutched tight against the storm. Her face, lined with age, was pale with concern.
She couldn't be one of them, right?
"Child… what happened to you?" she breathed.
My throat closed. No words would come. Only a broken sob. I never knew it was waiting for this moment.
She hurried toward me immediately, her shoes sinking in the mud. When she reached me, her hands— warm, trembling— touched my shivering arm. I flinched, every nerve raw, but she didn't let go.
"You're freezing." Her voice shook, but it carried a motherly firmness. I remembered my mother. "Come now, you'll die out here."
"I— " My lips trembled. The words tangled in my throat. "Please… don't hurt me." I wasn't sure yet if I was really safe with her.
Her eyes softened, glistening even in the storm. "Hurt you? Oh, child…" Her voice broke. "No one is going to hurt you. Not while I am here."
Something inside me cracked. I leaned forward, collapsing into her embrace. Her arms, fragile yet firm, wrapped around me. She smelled faintly of lavender, soap, and something safe. I sobbed against her shoulder, the sound raw and unrestrained. This was something I had really needed.
"There, there…" she whispered, stroking my tangled hair in a soft manner "You are safe now. You hear me? Safe."
When she pulled back, her eyes scanned me— the ruined gown, the mud, the cuts on my wrists. Her face hardened with quiet fury, but not at me. "What monster did this to you?"
I shook my head violently, unable to answer. Too much. Too soon.
She nodded, as if she understood. "It's alright. Don't say a word. Let us get you inside first."
She guided me gently, one arm around me, leading me to the car. The warmth inside the car wrapped around me like a blanket as soon as I sank into the seat. The smell of old leather and faint peppermint filled the air. My teeth chattered uncontrollably.
The woman shut the door carefully, as though afraid I might break. She hurried around, climbed into the driver's seat, and turned the heat on full blast.
I sat curled against the seat, arms hugging my knees, staring at nothing. My mind- almost blank. My reflection in the rain- streaked window startled me— wild eyes, pale face, hair plastered with mud and rain. I looked like a ghost.
The woman's hands gripped the wheel, knuckles white. She glanced at me, then back at the road. "I will take you home, child. Or— if you can't tell me where that is, then at least somewhere safe."
Home. The word stabbed me. I swallowed hard, my chest tightening.
How much were they looking for me right now?
"I… I want to go home." I whispered, my voice hoarse, breaking. "But… I don't know if they'll believe me."
Her gaze softened again, filled with something I hadn't felt in hours— faith.
"Then we'll make them believe."
My lips parted, a sob caught in my throat. For the first time since the morning, I felt a flicker of something I thought I had lost entirely.
Hope.
The car moved forward, headlights cutting through the storm. I leaned against the seat, trembling, but for the first time that night, I let my eyes close. Not in surrender— but in fragile trust.
Beside me, the woman whispered, almost like a prayer:
"You're safe now, child. Safe."