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ECHO: JANE DOE

He’s going to kill me.

There’s not a single doubt in my mind that I won’t live to see another sunrise. Unless, of course, I’m granted a miracle. I pump my arms faster even though every single muscle in my body aches from being hit by that car.

How I walked away from that, I have no idea. I do know, though, that if I’m caught, I won’t be walking away. Not this time.

A gunshot rings out, and I stumble, slamming my knee into a rock. I choke on a scream. I can’t let him know where I am. It’s dark now, and the shield of trees is keeping me relatively hidden. Out of sight, out of aim.

Another shot. Wood splinters off the tree beside me, and I fall once more, shredding the hem of the t-shirt I’m wearing. It tears as I push up from the ground. Every move is agony, but I keep going. Keep running.

I have to keep running.

Ahead, headlights illuminate the highway as cars pass by. Hope fills me with renewed strength. If I can get up there, I can get into a car before he reaches me. Then I’ll be able to survive. Then, I can get help.

I push harder. Faster.

Until—I slide to a stop at the edge of a river.

Water roars, blocking me from the highway. Thanks to the heavy rains we’ve had over the past couple of days, there’s no hope of me getting across without being swept away. Still, maybe?—

“I told you I’d find you. I will always find you.”

Dread coils in my belly as I turn to face my attacker. His smile is sinister, his eyes dark. “Please, let me go. I won’t say anything.”

He raises the gun and levels it on me. “It’s too late for that, darling. You know that.”

A gunshot echoes through the trees, and the bullet tears through the flesh of my abdomen. I fall backward. Until icy cold envelopes me, dragging me down to the depth of darkness.