With vampiric speed, Frankie launched herself at Ivan, fangs bared.

Ivan's hand shot out, catching Frankie by the throat. Electricity crackled between them as he shocked her repeatedly. Frankie thrashed and screamed in agony.

"Let her go!" Damon yelled, grabbing a thick branch and swinging it at Ivan's head.

The branch connected with a sickening crack, but Ivan didn't even flinch. He tossed Frankie aside like a rag doll and rounded on Damon.

"Dumb ass," Ivan snarled, electricity arcing between his fingers. "This will teach you!”

"Jessica, please!" Salina begged, tugging frantically at Jessica's arm. "We need you! Go kick that Frankenstein’s Monster wannabe’s ass!”

But Jessica remained frozen, lost in her own private hell of memories and terror. Ivan advanced on them, a sadistic grin spreading across his grotesque features.

"Time to finish what I started all those years ago," he growled.

Just as Ivan reached for Jessica, Salina thrust her hands forward. "Caecus Malum!" she shouted.

A blinding flash erupted from her palms. Ivan stumbled back with a roar of pain and rage, clawing at his eyes.

"I can't hold him for long," Salina panted. "We need to run. Now!"

Kevin and Salina hauled Jessica to her bare feet. Damon scooped up the barely conscious Frankie, and they all sprinted into the dense jungle. Behind them, Ivan's enraged bellows echoed through the trees.

They ran until their lungs burned, crashing through the underbrush as the storm raged around them. Lightning illuminated the treacherous terrain in stark flashes, followed by deafening cracks of thunder.

"There!" Damon shouted over the cacophony, pointing to a rocky outcropping. "I think I see the cave entrance!"

They stumbled towards it, the wind and rain lashing at them mercilessly. As they neared the cave mouth, a massive bolt of lightning struck a nearby tree. It toppled with a thunderous crash, narrowly missing them.

The group tumbled into the cave just as Ivan's silhouette appeared through the curtain of rain behind them. With a snarl of fury, he fired a blast of electricity at the cave entrance. The rock face exploded, sending a shower of debris raining down. When the dust settled, the entrance was completely sealed off.

Darkness enveloped them, broken only by the occasional flash of lightning through tiny cracks in the rubble. For several long moments, the only sounds were their ragged breathing and the muffled howling of the wind outside.

"Is... is everyone okay?" Kevin's shaky voice finally broke the silence.

A chorus of groans answered him.

"I think so," Salina replied. "Hang on, let me try something. Lux Fiat!"

A soft glow emanated from a stick in Salina's hand, illuminating their battered group. Damon cradled Frankie's limp form as he widened his eyes at Salina’s glow.

“Wow! How did you do that?” He asked.

Salina sat next to Kevin, and she smiled at Damon. “Oh yeah, I’m a witch by the way. Still teaching myself some new tricks from a Latin spell book. It isn’t easy.”

Damon chuckled. “Damn, you’re all full of surprises.”

Kevin nodded. “Except me. I’m the normal one with these two girls.”

Jessica sat with her knees pulled to her chest, rocking back and forth. Her eyes glazed and distant, her lips moving in a silent mantra.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

"Jessica?" Salina approached cautiously, reaching out to touch her friend's shoulder. "Are you with us? You were fine until Frankie fought that freak.”

Jessica shook her head. “I'm sorry… I just couldn't fight him… He was supposed to be dead.”

"What a lame excuse!" Damon's voice was sharp with anger. "While you were having your little freak-out, Frankie nearly got killed trying to save your ass!"

"Damon," Kevin warned, but the surfer continued his outburst.

"I thought you were supposed to be some badass werewolf," Damon continued, glaring at Jessica. "But the second things got real, you froze up like a scared little kid. Some hero you turned out to be."

"That's enough!" Salina snapped, stepping between them. "This isn't helping anyone."

"No," Jessica's quiet voice silenced them all. "He's right. I... I let you all down. I'm so sorry."

She looked up at them, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Please understand… When I was little, he sneaked into my house and caught my mother in the kitchen. By the time I checked… She was already dead beneath his boots. I ran quickly to hide while he hunted me like an animal.” Jessica shivered as the dark memories resurfaced in her mind. “By the time he caught me…”

Jessica's voice broke, and the tears finally spilled over. Kevin moved to comfort her, but she waved him off.

"I thought I'd put it behind me," she continued, wiping roughly at her eyes. "But seeing him again, hearing his voice... it all came flooding back. I was that helpless little girl all over again."

“It's alright, Jessica,” Kevin whispered. “Whatever he did to you and your mother, you're still here, alive and strong as ever.”

Jessica wiped the tears off her wet face. “But how can I face him now? If it wasn't for my dad rescuing me before that monster slit my throat, how can I face him again?”

A tense silence fell over the group. Even Damon's anger seemed to deflate in the face of Jessica's raw pain.

Frankie stirred in Damon's arms, her eyes fluttering open. "Wha... what happened?" she mumbled.

"Easy there, Surf Vamp," Damon said gently, helping her sit up. "That zombie Frankenstein did a number on you."

Frankie winced, rubbing her throat. "Feels like I got hit by a freight train. Where are we?"

As the others filled Frankie in on what had transpired, Jessica retreated further into herself. The weight of her failure pressed down on her, threatening to crush what little resolve she had left.

"So what do we do now?" Kevin asked once they'd all caught up. "We can't stay in this cave forever."

"We need to figure out where Ivan came from," Frankie said, her voice still raspy. "And how the hell he came back to life in the first place."

"I think I might have an idea about that," Damon spoke up. "I've heard rumors from some of the resort staff about an abandoned government lab hidden somewhere on the island. Supposedly they did all kinds of crazy experiments there, including stuff on dead inmates who were executed on death row.”

Kevin's eyes widened. "That fits with something Ivan said earlier - about having new friends who experimented on him. I don't know why he called them friends, but it made sense. You think he might have been one of their dead test subjects?"

"It would explain a lot," Salina mused. "But how did he end up free? And why come after us now?"

"Maybe he escaped when the storm hit," Frankie suggested. "All that chaos would have been the perfect cover."

As the others continued to speculate, Jessica's mind raced. An experimental government lab... it was almost too fantastical to believe. And yet, after everything she'd seen and experienced over the past year, was it really so far-fetched?

"We need to find that lab," Jessica said suddenly, her voice stronger than before. The others turned to look at her in surprise. "If that's where Ivan came from, there might be something there we can use against him. Some way to stop him for good this time."

"Whoa, hold up," Damon protested. "You want us to go looking for the creepy murder lab while Electro-Zombie is out there hunting us down? That's insane!"

"Do you have a better idea?" Jessica shot back. "We can't just sit here and wait for Ivan to find us. At least this way we have a chance."

"I hate to say it, but Jessica's right," Frankie sighed. "As much as I'd love to get off this island and never look back, we can't leave Ivan out there to hurt more people. We have to stop him."

One by one, the others nodded in reluctant agreement. Even Damon eventually conceded with a grumbled, "Fine, but if we all end up dead, I'm totally haunting you guys."

"Alright then," Kevin said, a hint of his usual enthusiasm creeping back into his voice. "I guess we're off to find the secret evil lab. Should be a walk in the park compared to some of the stuff we've dealt with, right Jessica?"

Jessica managed a weak smile at her friend's attempt at levity. But as they discussed how to navigate the cave system and find a way out, doubts gnawed at her.

What if she froze up again when they encountered Ivan? What if her friends got hurt - or worse - because of her weakness? The nightmares that had plagued her childhood came rushing back, vivid and visceral.

Jessica closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She couldn't let fear control her, not again. Too much was at stake. Somehow, she had to find the strength to face her demons - both literal and figurative.

A gentle touch on her arm startled Jessica from her brooding. She looked up to find Salina watching her with concern.

"Hey," Salina said softly. "I know you're beating yourself up over what happened back there. But you can't let it consume you, Jessica. We need you with us - all of you."

"I don't know if I can do this, Salina," Jessica whispered, voicing the fear that had been steadily growing inside her. "What if I freeze up again? What if-"

"Stop," Salina cut her off firmly. "You are not that helpless little girl anymore, Jessica. You're a freaking werewolf, for crying out loud! You've faced down a werewolf and a vampire. Ivan Stone may be your personal bogeyman, but he's just another monster. And you? You can eat monsters for breakfast."

Despite everything, Jessica felt a spark of her old fire ignite at Salina's words. Her friend was right - she had come too far, overcome too much, to let Ivan destroy her now.

"Thanks, Salina," Jessica said, squeezing her friend's hand. "I needed that kick in the ass."

"Anytime," Salina grinned. "Now come on, Wolf girl. We've got a lab to find and a zombie to fry."

As they rejoined the others, Jessica felt a new resolve building within her. The fear was still there, an icy knot in her stomach, but it no longer threatened to overwhelm her. She would face Ivan Stone again, and this time, she would be ready.

"Alright, gang," Jessica said, her voice steady and determined. "Let's figure out how we're getting out of here. The sooner we find that lab, the sooner we can send Ivan back to whatever hell he crawled out of."

The others nodded, a spark of hope kindling in their eyes. As they huddled around Salina's magical light, plotting their next move, none of them noticed the faint scratching sound coming from deep within the cave's shadowy recesses.

Something was coming.