The monster was so tall that the top of his head touched the ceiling. His skin was grey and covered with scales, and he had black claws on his hands and feet. His mouth was open wide enough for us to get a perfect view of his sharp, white teeth. He glanced down at us, and one of the girls screamed, which got him angry.

"Get them!" Liam commanded. "Capture all of these pathetic humans and do not, I repeat, do not eat their souls."

A loud roar escaped from deep within the creature's throat. Ariana, Derek, Bridget, and I had to cover our ears, and I watched the monster bending over and reaching for something. His thumb and fingers were outstretched. I realized what he was doing. He was making a grab for my girlfriend!

"Ariana!" I yelled. I got ahold of her wrist and pulled her off the stage. "We need to get away from here as far as possible, Ariana."

"What about our friends, Daniel? Our classmates?"

As much as I did not want to, I overheard the screams and crying of our classmates as we and the good ghosts exited the gym and made our way down the hall. We could have gone back in there and rescue them, however, there was a huge chance of us losing and getting captured by Liam and his monster. He would then eat our souls and possibly force Laila to do the same. Liam wanted me and Ariana the most and would not kill our friends until we were out of the picture.

My car was parked in front of the school. I pushed the double doors open, and Ariana and I stumbled out and to my car and climbed in. We were in the front, and Derek and Bridget were sitting in the back. My girlfriend and I buckled up, and I started the engine and drove down the road.

Ariana leaned back in her seat and rolled down her window. "Where are we heading to, Daniel?"

"That I am unsure of," I confessed. "I do know that my house and the orphanage are out of the question. Liam will definitely search for us in those places."

"I say that we leave Forlot and hide in the next town," Bridget suggested. "Or we could hide in Forgotten Forest until we have a plan. Then again, you humans will forget about the plan and who you are if you are in that forest, so..."

All of a sudden, I could hear heavy footsteps not far from us. I asked Ariana, Derek, and Bridget to check our surroundings because I had to keep my eyes on the road. They did without hesitation, and Ariana screamed bloody murder.

"That cannot be good," I said.

"It is the monster, Daniel!" she proclaimed. "The monster is on our tail, and Liam is on his shoulder!"

I tightened my grips on the steering wheel and did something that I thought that I would never do. I broke the law by passing the speed limit. I slammed my foot on the gas pedal, and the car sped faster.

"I hope that we do not get stopped by the cops," I muttered to myself.

"Daniel, you need to go faster than that," Derek stated.

"Is the monster catching up to us?"

"No, but—"

The sounds of the car interrupted him. The creature had picked it up by the hood and brought it to his scaly face. Ariana and I hugged, and Derek and Bridget did the same. Well, Bridget hugged Derek.

"I was going to say that the monster has long arms," Derek said.

Liam tossed back his head and laughed. "Daniel and Ariana belong to me and Laila now."

"That is where you are wrong."