The ride home was filled with humming and vibing to the songs playing in her earphones. Upon reaching her apartment, Tara collapsed onto her bed with a sigh. Curling into a ball, she allowed herself to sink into the comforting softness of the mattress, seeking solace in its embrace.

Soon, her phone rang, and she grimaced, dreading the cheerfulness she had to fake to deceive her parents.

Once the call ended, Tara sat up and stared at the device. Her finger tapped against the screen as she pondered her next target. After scrolling through their social media profiles, she stood up and stretched.

"Nathan Anderson," she yawned, deciding on him. Dragging herself to the kitchen for an early dinner, she retrieved the fresh meat she had bought. "No need to stalk you, my sweet lamb. You'll come to me instead."

Tara sat behind the wheel of a car she had rented for tonight, parked at the edge of the forest, her nerves coiled tightly like a spring. She glanced at herself in the rearview mirror, adjusting her hair and checking her appearance one last time. The heavy layers of make-up covered her taut features, providing a protective mask.

Suddenly, headlights pierced through the darkness, and Nathan's car emerged from the shadows, pulling up beside hers. He rolled down his window, his face illuminated by the soft glow of the dashboard lights.

"Hey, Alex," he greeted with a lopsided grin. "Where's your friend?"

Tara snickered inwardly, enjoying his obliviousness to the origin of her fake name. Alex was dead, but at least his name shall be used for a good cause. Her practiced smile grew when he didn't recognize her.

"She's already waiting for us," she replied smoothly, her voice betraying none of the tension swirling inside her. Instead, it was dripping with suggestive undertones. "Just follow me, and I'll lead you to the spot."

She had promised him three days of nonstop fornication at her rich best friend's cabin in the woods. Everything was on them, all he had to do was participate. It was a tempting offer no one could refuse, especially not a threesome fanatic such as him. All Tara had to do was call him and pretend to be a friend of Ethan's who appears to have been their matchmaker...or pimp. Then, as she purred and spoke seductively, he was already in the palm of her hand.

He didn't even care that his friend, Alex, had only died a few days ago.

"Okay, lead the way, sweetheart." Nathan nodded, a smirk playing on his lips as he revved the engine. 

Tara drove ahead, cringing at his antics, and muttered, "What's with all the endearments? Yuck!"

Her heart pounded harder the deeper they went along the forest road. Initially, Tara had thought of using his car. However, she needed a safety net and a means of escape. Phantom pain shot through her core, and she squeezed her thighs together. She didn't trust being alone with him. Out of the five of them, he was the most violent.

After a little while, she abruptly pulled over to the side of the road, her hands trembling on the steering wheel. "Sorry, Nathan," she called out, her voice strained. "I really need to relieve myself. Can you wait here for a moment? We still have some time before we reach the cabin but I can't hold it in anymore."

Nathan chuckled, his guard down as he waved her off. "Sure thing, babe. Take your time."

As soon as Tara stepped out of the car, a rush of adrenaline surged through her veins. She moved quickly to where she had stashed her tools, silently retrieving them before circling back to Nathan's car. His window was still rolled down, and he sat drumming his fingers and humming along to a song on the radio.

She stood outside his door, her gaze piercing as she stared into his soul. It was as ugly as his smirk, his eyes shamelessly undressing her right then and there. She had purposefully chosen a mini skirt, recalling how he had paid extra attention to her legs.

Her knees threatened to buckle, but Tara steeled herself, her grip tightening. "Like what you see?"

"Very." Nathan licked his lips. "When you suggested meeting in the forest, I knew you were wild, Alex." He palmed himself with a groan. "Pick a tree, baby, and I'll quickly fuck you against it before we-"

Tara had enough of his nonsense.  Before he could finish his sentence, she aimed a bottle of chloroform at his face and sprayed him until it was empty. Nathan recoiled in shock and pain, his hands flying to his eyes as he gasped and coughed, overwhelmed by the intense burning sensation.

"What the..." he choked, straining against the seatbelt. His body convulsed in a desperate attempt to escape the overwhelming stinging.

Tara wasted no time as she flung his door open, grabbed a large red can, and swiftly doused his writhing form with gasoline.

"No, no! Hey, stop," Nathan spluttered, his throat raw from coughing. "Stop!"

But she remained unmoved, her eyes cold as she poured the flammable liquid over him, her grip steady despite his frantic pleas for mercy. Once done, she stepped back, watching his slippery hands fail to free himself. Chloroform had dulled his senses as well as weakened his muscles.

"How does it feel to be tied without any ties, Nathan?" she taunted, her laughter cutting through the tension like a knife. "How does helplessness feel?"

"Fuck you, bitch!" he rasped, his hands shaking when he blindly reached for her. "Fuck you!"

Tara's smirk widened as she lit up a match and tossed it inside the car before shutting the door. In an instant, flames erupted, munching on his clothes before nibbling on his skin. Nathan screamed, flailing around uselessly while the fire devoured him.

"Oh, but you already did," Tara replied, chillingly calm. "You fucked me over, and over, and over again." Her voice rose with each word until she was yelling at the top of her lungs. "Even when I said no, even when I screamed and begged, even when my body could no longer take it." Each yowl of his made her shout even louder. "None of you heard me. None...none of you stopped. That's why you will die just like Ethan and Alex."

Silence met her words, Nathan Anderson no longer able to retort. As he trembled harder, groaning and whimpering, the flames licked at his face before engulfing his head. Tara's chest heaved with the rage that roared within her, and as the blaze howled in front of her, she screamed. Her anguish and fury echoed through the trees, blending with the inferno of vengeance devouring its sacrifice.

"I hope you rot in hell," she whispered into the wailing, hot wind surrounding her. "All of you."

After tossing the burner phone she purchased to contact him into the fire, Tara retrieved a spray can, hastily scrawling: 3/5 on the rear windshield. Red dripped down the glass, mournful droplets of an innocence she could and would never get back. Her heart stuttered, struggling against the onslaught of vicious memories and consuming misery.

Everything ached as she turned around, the crackling of the fire echoing her inner turmoil.

Heaving a sigh, she headed to her car and sped to a hill deep within the forest. There, she sat atop the hood, watching the smoke rise into the air. The fire cast warm, cozy hues throughout the desolate forest as it consumed Nathan's vehicle.

Not long after, firetrucks and blaring ambulances approached the scene, their flashing lights piercing through the darkness. The firefighters worked swiftly, extinguishing the flames and extracting the charred remains of one stubborn monster.

"He's still alive," one paramedic shouted as they swiftly strapped Nathan onto a stretcher before rushing toward the waiting ambulance.

"Hopefully, not for long," Tara muttered, climbing inside her rental. With the lights off, she drove away slowly, disappearing into the darkness of the night.

Word count: 1339.

Total word count: 15530.

Tara keeps losing herself with this blind, fury-driven vengeance. Yikes. 

Just a lil reminder: this is truly inspired by a real story. The main events are accurate but everything else is my work/imagination, of course.