The rude arrogant way he spoke to her was gone. Now instead he asked her to do things politely, even sometimes going so far as to show her how simply so he would have an excuse to touch her and press his body against her once more.
That night as she was driving home from the laboratory along a long stretch of road through the woods, she saw Stephen standing in the middle of the street.
Cassie slammed on the brakes to keep from hitting him, her headlights flooding him with light. He stood motionless, his posture hostile with his hands out to the side and his head tilted down. It was almost as though he was glaring at her.
“Stephen?” she called out after rolling down her window. “What are you doing here? I thought you were still at the lab?”
Then, looking around, she noticed there was no car anywhere near the road. Stephen walked around the side of the car to her door and pulled it open.
“Come with me,” he said.
“Wait,” she said even as he reached in and unbuckled her. “What’re you doing? How did you get out here?”
“I have something very important I have to tell you. Come with me.” His hand clamped around her wrist like a vise, and turning, he dragged her from the car as he walked into the forest.
“Wait, Stephen, I don’t understand. What’s happening?”
“I have to tell you something, but it’s important that you come with me.”
“Tell me what? Why now?”
Instead of answering he merely continued tugging her behind him. Every time she lagged a step he would jerk on her wrist to send her forward a few quick steps.
The warmth he’d had just earlier that day seemed to be gone. Even the mysterious way he held himself had vanished. Now there was just this overpowering man forcing her deeper and deeper into the woods.
When he did look back at her, the only thing she could see on his face was lust. The lick of his lips, the way his eyes shamelessly looked to her breasts or legs. They’d had a beautiful moment before, but now he was practically assaulting her just by the way he looked at her.
As they passed between the branches of the trees, in a flash of moonlight, she caught a glint of grey in his eyes. Didn’t Stephen have blue eyes?
Finally they reached a cabin. Without any pomp or ceremony, he opened the door to the cabin and shoved her inside. Cassie stumbled forward a few steps and caught her balance against the back of the couch. Behind her, the door clicked as Stephen locked it behind him. Again, his eyes roamed her body as though he was already taking her.
“Prepare yourself.”
“For what?” she asked, unconsciously covering her lady parts with her arms as though it would stop the way he looked at her.
“I’m claiming you tonight.”
“Stephen, I don’t understand. What’s happened to you?”
Stephen tossed his head back and laughed as he began taking slow steps towards her. “What? Did you truly believe I had feelings for you?”
“Well, I…” she moved away from him, taking a step back with every step he made forward. “I thought, I mean when you touched me...”
“Stupid humans and your emotions.”
“Humans?” she asked, confused.
“So na?ve. You’re only here to be used. Used for pleasure. That’s what you’re here for now.”
“That’s it,” she said, stomping a food for emphasis. “I’m done listening to you. Let me go, now!”
Again Stephen laughed, dark and cruel. “You can never leave here.”
All of the happiness she’d felt just moments before turned sour inside of her. It had all been a trick to lure her here? Refusing to just let him do all of this, Cassie ran to one of the windows of the cabin and tried to open it.
Suddenly the glass turned black as shadowy tentacles reached out for her. Cassie screamed and recoiled away even as Stephen laughed.
When he took a few quick steps to advance on her, she threw a book from a nearby shelf at him and ran for the door. A wall of electrical exploded in the air near her forming a wall.
Unable to stop in time, she touched the wall and a shock went through her arm. It wasn’t enough to injure her, but she knew that if she tried to force her way through it would do a lot of damage.
Slowly she turned toward Stephen and his laughter. “What are you?”
Grinning evilly, he raised a hand and slowly closed the fingers into a fist. As he did, the light in the cabin dimmed to almost nothing. His eyes, once grey, now glowed purple in the darkness.
“I…” he began, but then the door behind her exploded.
She screamed, throwing up her arms to protect herself, but all of the splinters stopped in midair and formed a wooden ball that fell to the side. In through the open doorway stepped… Stephen?
He stood, his eyes glowing blue in the darkness, his white lab coat flowing around him.
“Stay away from her!”
The evil Stephen spat out something angrily in another language. “The female is mine. I shall impregnate her and make her mine.”
“What is going on?” Cassie shouted, looking from one to the other.