In the last few moments of her life, Alice realised three things.

One, this man was familiar. Not familiar in the way of an old friend or acquaintance, or even a brief encounter at a party. No, this man was familiar like a shadow. Was he the man who stood a little too close behind her at the coffee shop? Perhaps he was the man whose gaze lingered a little too long at the park? It was hard to say. The only thing she knew for sure was that she had passed him on the path not too long ago.

Two, the stranger was confident. His stance alone indicated this, his feet set wide in the gravel track, his arms set firmly at his side, the smirk laying faintly in his lips, not entirely reaching his dark eyes.

Perhaps he knew this path led to a dead end. Had he taken a chance that no-one else would walk this way or did he know how quiet this part of the woods was? Alice certainly didn’t. She had simply taken a wrong turning, though she didn’t know when. She had only walked home this way a handful of times, and the unfamiliar tracks felt like a maze to her, especially alone.

Finally, Alice realised this would not be a funny story to recount to her mum later tonight. She would not call her this evening, just as she has done every night since she moved here. She would not tell her about the guy who flirted with her at work, the boss who laughed when she tripped and grazed her knee, the older woman who helped her to her feet and cheered her up with a cup of tea. She wondered if any of them would be concerned tomorrow, if they would call the police or roll their eyes and tut at the irresponsible, lazy new coworker. Would her mum wait up for her tonight?

Suddenly her naive optimism for this new life was gone. It didn’t matter that she had left her old home, her old job, her old life. She had run from the arms of one dangerous man into the path of another. The circle of life, she supposed.

Aware of the inevitable end of this interaction, Alice adjusted the bag on her shoulder and walked briskly forwards, her head lowered to avoid his gaze. He called out to her as she approached but she couldn’t make out what he said, her heartbeat deafening in her ears. She guessed it was not something she wanted to hear anyway.

She could see the man moving in the corner of her eye as she kept her eyes fixed on her only exit behind him.

As she neared the figure she could see the track stretched out behind the stranger, and she almost believed that he would let her pass.

Then, the man grasped her arm tightly and pulled her back, holding her body against his. He was not much taller than her, but he was stronger, and had no trouble holding her in place. She closed her eyes tightly and held back a scream.

The last thing she felt was his breath on her neck and a cold, sharp pain on her throat.