Kidnapped [Part 10, FINAL]

It wasn’t until then that I realized I must be past the six hour mark. I felt the influence of her memories and will over my own.

She didn’t want me to hurt them. Her body remembers her soul as being far purer than mine and is trying to transform mine to match hers. This usually begins about six hours after the initial transfer and is complete after twelve.

And it could not have started at a worse time.

Her muscles tense and seize as I attempt to thrust the stake into the side of the first silhouette. The resistance slows my movements down almost to a halt.

I couldn’t overcome her.

The tip of the stake hardly touches the mass. A hand shoots out and grabs it, tearing the weapon from my fingers. I try to back away but her ankle makes escaping difficult.

Hands wrap around me in seconds, incapacitating my already limited movements.

Shit.

Hot breath near my ear as a low voice whispers amusedly “Thought you could beat us did you?”

The leader.

The amusement was clearly fake, something he’d been working on since the last time. It was much more convincing and sinister than the first time she’d heard it.

His arms wrapped around her torso, locking her in a frozen, helpless position. Her body went limp, unable to resist as a sense of hopelessness spread through her.

It was heavy, weighing her down as he dragged her body up the stairs. I was forced to fight against both him and Louisa but the most I managed was a few weak kicks and a half-hearted twist.

He carried me back into the main room and sat me down next to the staircase. I shivered as my back touched the cold wood.

His two companions had joined him but they kept their distance. He stood right in front of me and stared at me for a long, strange moment. The mixture of emotions in his eyes was hard to read but I thought I detected a hint of sadness buried beneath everything else.

“Is everything ready to go?” he asked his companions without taking his eyes off me.

“Yes sir.” said the skinnier one. This was the first time I really saw him with my own eyes and nobody could call him eye candy. He had broad shoulders that stood disproportional against a narrow waist and short, stout legs. His arms were obnoxiously beefy from years of steroid abuse. His pock-marked face was complimented by beady black eyes and fat brown lips split in the middle by a scar. His hair was short and almost dripping in grease.

The other one strongly resembled Louisa’s dad; tall and rectangular with an oval face and a receding gray hairline. Stubble covered his oval chin, reaching out to his large elephantine ears.

He spoke next. “Where are we going to…” he looked at me and stopped.

“Not here right boss?” The other piped up.

“Of course no dumbass.” The leader snapped, turning towards him for a brief second. Then, with a forced, malicious grin he turned to me and continued “I know the perfect place, far away from anyone that could hear you.”

I shivered but didn’t say anything.

Louisa struggled to keep back her tears. They sprang into the corners of my eyes and I knew with a sense of resignation that she was growing even stronger.

We must be nearing the seven hour mark.

I had to work faster.

I forced my mind to focus on my peripheral vision so that I could scan the room without them noticing. I saw the illuminated squares that I could only assume to be windows on my right. The front door stood a dozen feet away on my left.

And the stairs sat patiently behind my aching back.

Three possible escape routes.

Reduced to two as one of the henchmen shifted towards the door as if he had read my thoughts somehow.

The two possibilities ran through my mind, fueled by Louisa’s rekindled desperation. For once we were on the same side. She was against fighting and injured the attackers (probably linked to her strong belief in karma) but held no qualms against escaping.

My first thought lingered on the windows, which surely led to a backyard. If I could get out there, I would be as close to civilization as I could be. I could alert the neighbors if I screamed. That way, if I couldn’t escape, at least there was a chance somebody could contact the police. At least I’d have a chance of being rescued.

But that hardly seemed possible. The panes were most certainly thick and would be hard, if not impossible, to break in such a weakened state. And who knows how hard they might be to open? The lock could be rust of the crevices could be painted over.

I could waste precious seconds trying to push the first pane up and ultimately be taken away by one of the men before I get so much as a breath of fresh outside air.

No, the windows were far too risky.

The only chance I had left lay up a flight of stairs.

I waited for one heartbeat. Then two. None of the three men in front of me moved. The leader was still studying me but his eyes had acquired a faraway glaze. The other two were useless puppets waiting for something to pull them into action.

If I was going to do something, I had to move now before it was too late.

Subtly I shifted my weight onto her bad side so that I could shoot out the good leg, quickly shift my weight back over and stand with as much speed as the high dose of adrenaline would offer me.

Then, before the shock could register on their faces, I pivoted around, grabbed the banister and swung myself to the front of the stairs.

The wood protested loudly despite her paltry weight. Arrows of pain shot through her leg and I ignored it adamantly. Nothing would slow me down now.

Surprised cries followed me as I hit the second floor landing a few seconds later. I heard the pounding of their large feet following me. Louisa began imagining the large, beefy hands reaching for her back, surely only centimeters away from the soiled fabric of her shirt.

She spun us around the corner and scrambled down the hallway, nearly losing her balance on the uneven boards. Piles of dust scattered as she sprinted, leaning against the wall and awkwardly stumbling every few steps.

Louisa chose the second room on the right side, ignoring the series of closets and cupboards on the left. There was one larger room but the door was closed.

She slammed her shoulders into the door, only seconds after entering, forcing it shut and leaning her weight into it to keep it from being opened again. Her hands shook so badly I had to take over to lock the door.

And not a moment too soon. The doorknob jiggled violently only a millisecond after the click.

Voices began shouting from the other side but she ignored them, tuning them out to the point where I could not hear them over her resistance. The pounding on the door soon became secondary to her heartbeat.

The room we stood in was almost completely bare. Evidence of furniture was present in patterns and shapes left on the dusty floor. Certain spots were darker and cleaner than the rest, having been protected from sun damage and dirt by whatever stood over it. Deep scratches were etched into the floorboard where something heavy had been dragged around.

Two windows stood on the side opposite of the door. The glass was streaked and dirty but unfortunately intact. Empty curtain rods above them, rusted.

She understood as well as I that there was only one thing left to do. There was only one chance to escape from this prison.

As we approached the windows, I noted the pinkish tinge the sky had adopted as darkness began creeping in from behind this house. I remembered the sun being high noon when I awoke yet now it was setting.

At least seven hours had passed. I only had five hours left to complete my job and be pulled out of her body before it completely overpowered me.

The process is one commonly referred to as “soul corruption.” It happens when the revived corpse recognizes the presence of a soul and assume that soul as its own, rewriting the memories of the dead person into the new vessel. If he doesn’t pull me out in time, I will cease to exist.

I shuuden at the thought of my eternal death.

I must hurry.

Her hands press against the smooth, cool glass. I see her reflection for the first time and feel her repulsion towards it. Truly the sight is not a pleasant one.

Bruises create patterns on her almost gray skin. Her lips are stained crimson with that same blood dried unevenly around the edges. Her left eye droops terribly and the skin around it is nearly black.

She shudders and averts her gaze downwards, focusing her attention on the windowsill instead. The first thing she tries to do was dig her nonexistent fingernails into the space beneath it to try and force the window open.

Knowing instantly that this wouldn’t work, I pressed the palms of her hands against the glass panes, squatted slightly, and pushed upward with the base of her palms. It took a long moment and a low, strained grunt before the window gave way and pushed upward.

The noise it made was enough to awaken half the country.

So much for discretion.

I knew as the pounding and shouting stopped that I had very little time to execute the rest of the plan. I had to somehow escape and hide before they could exit the house and catch me.

The impossibility of the plan astounded me greatly. It watered as tears in her eyes.

I had lifted one knee onto the windowsill and was leaning forward when I saw it.

My escape.

With renewed vigor I pushed my other foot off the ground and gripped the top of the windowsill. Twisted. Butt hanging perilously in the open air; only my hands and feet remained in the room. All my weight rested on her good ankle.

With swift, deft movements I switched my grip from the upper inside windowsill to the outside. Then I reached up and grabbed the edge of the roof.

Pushing with my legs and using my arms to pull, I slowly lifted her body up towards the roof. Her good ankle supported us easily, easily working as a lever to push us upward to the roof.

Within seconds my waist was pressed against the edge of the roof. I pulled one arm up and rested it on the crumbling orange shingles. The jagged edges dug into my weak flesh. I gritted my teeth against the pain.

The rest of my strength disappeared as I finally lifted her legs up and over the edge, rolling myself a couple feet up the roof to stay out of sight.

A loud creak told me they’d opened the door.

Tucking my arms in as best I could, I rolled upwards despite gravity’s best attempts to pull me back down. The shingles dug into my flesh and a few loose ones threatened to fall but somehow everything held.

Their voices followed me to the peak of the roof, threatening my survival.

Leader: Where is she?

Henchman 1: I don’t see her.

Henchman 2: She couldn’t have gotten far. I’ll check the backyard.

Henchman 1: I don’t see any movement in the trees and there’s no one behind the bushes.

Henchman 2: She’s not hiding back there either boss. What do we do?

Leader: Shit. She must have gotten to the main road and been picked up by a car.

His voice had taken a slight vibrato, betraying his fear.

I had just scrambled over the peak of the roof when the slap of footsteps echoed around me.

Leader: Anthony hit the right, Bill go left. Stop any cars you see. Find her.

I rolled down the roof a few more feet to ensure I was truly out of sight.

A multitude of slams. The cacophonous rumble of car engines. The squeal of tires disappearing into the distance.

And with that they were gone. I was alone and safe.

The euphoria of this realization was felt by both of us.

Yet it was short-lived.

Crushed.

I should have been withdrawn right then and there and her body should have returned to being a lifeless corpse. The kidnappers would be caught so my mission should be over.

Only it isn’t. Because I suppose they won’t be.

There is still something I need to do.

I have to lure the police over to rescue me like in the original plan. And for that Louisa needs to stay alive a little longer.

I wait a moment, ensuring that I was truly alone now. Hearing no other sounds, I force her physically exhausted body to sit up.

Below me sits the backyard. Dried yellow grass occupied the small rectangular space. The tallest weeds attempted to climb the unwashed brick wall farthest from me.

Just beyond the sunkissed barrier sat the neighbor’s quaint beige house.

Two small windows faced me but the blinds were drawn on the first one and the room beyond the second appeared vacant.

Any hopes of someone glancing out their window and noticing me quickly deflated.

I had to think of another plan.

There had to be some way to draw public attention to myself.

Above the windows something bright and metallic captured my attention. The neighbor’s satellite dish reflected the sun’s rays straight through my weak eyes.

And gave me an idea.

Three feet diagonally up and to my left stood an identical satellite dish. From here I could see that the edge were thoroughly caked in dark brown rust.

This gave me hope.

I crawled up to it, grabbed the edges of the circular disk with one hand on each side, and pulled, shifting my weight back as far as I dared. The satellite dish groaned and bent towards me. For an agonizing moment it seemed to pause at a slight angle.

Then, with little warning, it snapped away in my hands and I fell back, hitting my head on the roof and dislodging a few shingles.

The metal plate was heavy and covered in thick patches of rust but enough of it had escaped battering from the weather to be useful.

Feeling the small amount of time that remained ticking away, I struggled against her to angle the satellite dish so that the sun reflected off of it and onto the dry grass closest to the back wall of the house.

Her arms ached and she wanted nothing more than to sit down. I feared she may have become sentient enough to be aware of me and the time limit before I would disappear forever.

I forced her to continue holding it up though I could feel myself losing control. Her memories and fears became more prominent and real than my own. When I tried to recall the faces of my parents I saw hers instead. My thoughts followed her line of logic, her desires. Mine were growing smaller and insignificant.

A thin ribbon of pale grey smoke streamed up towards me. I watched it dissipate in the air above my head. Instinctively our head turned around to check for signs of anyone else coming to see it.

I could only pray that, as it grew stronger, the firefighters would be notified before the kidnappers do and rescue me.

I watch the growing flames inch towards the house. The red and orange entity licks the wall, hesitant at first then, as though it likes the taste of plaster, begins to consume it. The plaster darkens and crumbles to the ground.

I hug my knees closer to her chest, hoping that I’ll be safe up here. She whimpers at the thought of burning to death when she had finally found freedom once again. Her heart pounds a mile a minute in her sore, bruised chest.

A nearly inaudible beeping tells me the fire alarm activated. The firefighters must be on their way over here now. They’ve been alerted and will soon arrive and rescue us.

Her ears strain to search for the melodious wail of sirens but she is quickly disappointed.

Instead dread fills her as she hears the rumble of an engine nearly lost in the popping and roaring of the fire. Her breath stops in her throat, as trapped as she is.

Gravel. For a brief second she thought she heard the crunch of tires on gravel.

But all was silent.

She crawled up the roof and peeked over the edge.

Empty.

Time ticked by. I wondered if this would be enough to escape her body. She wondered if she would ever see her family again.

Finally the sirens materialized in the distance, faint and fragile, nearly swallowed by the wind, but definitely there. Help was on the way. She was finally going to be saved.

Yet I remained.

As tears of relief sprouted in the corners of her eyes, I knew something was wrong. There was still a possibility that the kidnappers wouldn’t be caught.

Of course. The firefighters might not find or be able to identify her corpse until long after the kidnappers would have left the area. To ensure their capture and the end of my mission, I’d have to literally drop her into their arms.

With fading strength I made her crawl back over the peak of the roof. Deep inside in a place she couldn’t consciously reach, she protested the action, longing to stay safely hidden out of sight.

She needed to be seen as soon as the firefighters arrive. She needed to be rescued instantly if I want even just a chance of being pulled out in time.

And thankfully, at least this time, my will was strong enough to overpower her.

Or perhaps the word I should have used was “unfortunately.”

Only seconds after I had pulled her body over the top and roller down a few feet, the screech of tires ran up the driveway,

They’re back.

I didn’t have time to think, let alone react. A strangled cry escaped her parched throat.

The leader got out of his car and walked towards the house.

He looked straight up at us and said, “Thought you were pretty clever, didn’t you? Sending us on a wild goose chase.” He shielded his eyes from the sun. “But it’s too late for you Louisa. You’re never going back. My little girl never returned so why should a bitch like you?”

And with that he disappeared, heading into the burning house.

The sirens had come closer. Her eyes scanned the horizon as she pulled herself backwards up the roof. I no longer had the energy to control her.

I could only watch from somewhere far away as the following events unfolded:

The fire truck finally arrived, cutting through the lawn to avoid the car parked in the driveway. At the same time the leader emerged from the house, unscathed.

A few of the firefighters rushed to help him but he pushed them away. He walked straight into the middle of the driveway, standing in front of his car.

One of the firefighters took notice of Louisa, pointing and shouting for a ladder. Most of the others were busy unrolling the hose and turning on the water to douse the flames.

The leader turned around to face the house. Something gleamed in his hand.

The firefighters leaned the ladder against the edge of the roof.

Leader raised a jet black pistol, aimed at Louisa.

Someone shouted.

Louisa rolled downwards.

He pulled the trigger.

A firefighter tackled him.

The bullet lodged itself into the shingles on inches away from the top of Louisa’s head.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

The top of the firefighters head poked up over the edge of the roof. Sunlight bounced off the yellow and white helmet.

And suddenly I knew this was my final mission. I was never meant to return. Louisa’s life was so similar to my own that by giving her a new life and bringing closure to her family, I was concluding my own.

The firefighter took my hand.

I let him lead me away into the darkness of eternal slumber.

[Author’s Note: As I said in my last post, I won’t be posting anything for the next three weeks. I’ll see you guys with a new story when I return to America! 😀 Happy Holidays everyone!]

Kidnapped [Part 9]

Several hours passed before the leader finally returned, henchmen in tow. From my position in the darkest corner of the room, I saw their shadows before them. The dark, elongated shapes crawling across the walls were disturbing on their own.

I waited until the light creak of the trapdoor cut off the last sliver of outside light before springing into action.

With the meager strength I could muster, I chuck the heaviest piece of wood I could find at what I believed to be the right angle. My mind replayed all the failed attempts as a silent prayer escaped through her chapped lips.

Slow motion. The dark mass inched upward through the air, leaving an invisible trail in the midst. My eyes follow it in a useless attempt to find the angle of its trajectory.

A crash.

Darkness.

Elation.

It worked. My plan worked!

My eyes had already adjusted to the lack of light and watched the confused and somewhat frantic movements. They didn’t understand what had happened until they heart the hollow sound of the chunk smashing into the floor.

But it was too late. I was already on the move.

Ignoring the new pain in my shoulder, I limped over to them as quickly as her body would allow, occasionally wincing at the sharp spasm of pain shooting up her leg. My bare feet made no sounds on the cold ground.

I tightened my grip on the hastily fashioned stake.

As I approached them, ready to stab the inky silhouettes anywhere I could reach when the unthinkable happened.

Louisa fought back.

Kidnapped [Part 8]

Countless thought ran through my mind. I knew from the sound of blockade scraping against the ground that I’d never be able to lift that door. Her memories recounted all the desperate yet futile attempts she’d made to push it. The only result was a bruise on her right shoulder.

No door.

No windows.

No escape.

Shit.

I needed another plan, another way to beat them.

My eyes roamed around the room, mesmerized by the stains on the wall, and quickly found the perfect solution.

Kidnapped [Part 7]

Threatening to kill her now meant that he actually planned to kill her later. He was waiting for something. Something important enough to keep her alive at least a little bit longer. Something that would buy me more time to formulate a plan and escape.

Perhaps I still had a chance.

The rest of the living room passed by me in a dim blur. He pushed me through the crumbling door frame and down a narrow hallway. Bare white walls. Popcorn ceiling.

Led me to a dark room. Through the shadows I could see faint rectangular outlines. Something silver shone against the walls.

Knife.

I shivered.

He had brought me to the kitchen.

Her memories appear intrusively into my mind.

One of his lackeys stood inches from her face. His thick, beefy fingers wrapped around the worn black handle of a rusty steel knife.

She took small, careful steps backwards until her lower back found the edge of the counter top. Her fingers confirmed it was made of marble.

Carefully she let her hands inch backwards. Fingers splayed.

He snatched the knife before she could reach it. The fluorescent lights above his nearly bald head shone off the clean blade, matching the malicious glint in his large grey eyes.

The mole on his cheek shifted upward as his face twisted into a sickeningly evil grimace. “D’ya I wouldn’ see that?” Decade of smoking had taken it’s toll on his breath and coarse, rumbling voice.

Her slurred his words slightly. Drunk off his ass.

A trembling hand aimed for her shoulder. She ducked at the last possible second.

The knife lodged itself deep into the wall and had remained there ever since.

Her face throbs at the residual sting of the slap he’d dealt her for resisting.

My feet found the edge of the trapdoor he’d opened that first night. The crevice in the floor was a thick line, slightly crooked from countless chips over the years. A metallic noise echoed around me as I took another step forward, gently nudging the handle.

“You know the drill,” he said in a thick, irritated voice. “Get down there or I’ll throw you myself.” I could hear the way his lips twitch as he forms the words quickly. Anger laced the syllables.

A creak told me he’d opened the trapdoor. It echoed around the room, slicing through the dry air.

Her bare feet remembered the texture of the moldy boards. They’d been neglected for years, abused by water over time and never properly cleaned.

The basement sat in a similar state of disarray. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light from the single bulb in the middle of the decaying ceiling, I saw the peeling yellow paint on the crumbling plaster walls. In one corner sat the pieces of a wine rack. The thick slabs of wood were thoroughly cracked, a few were snapped in half.

The rest of the room was empty save for cobwebs in the corners and rodent droppings along the walls. It smelled damp and musty.

He closed the trapdoor behind him. Scraping crossed the ceiling above me. A groan as the trapdoor was hunkered down by the weight of something heavy.

One heartbeat. Two.

I limped back to the stairs. On hands and knees I crawled up each of the steps and listened carefully. Her ears could pick up no sounds on the other side.

Alone.

Kidnapped [Part 6]

His smile widens. “Or should I even call you Louisa?” He says, confirming my suspicions. The glimmer in his eyes has transformed into one of malicious amusement.

Darkness lurks beneath the bright, lively scenery beyond the windshield. It swallows the car, me, and the last fragment of hope I’d clung to.

Pushing past the lump in my throat I croak in my best impression of her, “What do you–” before breaking off into a coughing fit. Her body is prone to adverse reactions to any kind of stress.

“Don’t play dumb with me. I’ve heard of your services.” Venom laces his words. His voice is lower and thicker than before. Each word seems like a struggle, as though he is trying to keep himself calm.

My mind whirs frantically but can’t conjure any viable explanations. There is something hidden deep beneath his voice, something weak and emotional that seems to be trying to break out. His struggle is evident in the thick creases of his eyebrows cutting his forehead into strips.

The car slows to a stop as gravel crunches beneath it. I look through the windshield to discover that we have arrived at the house. The cream-colored walls are exactly the same as they’d been only two days ago.

I search the windows for a sign of life but all is still and silent, both upstairs and down. The house must be deserted this time, dashing the last of my hopes.

The solitude closes in on me as he steps out of the car and slams the door shut behind him. He walks over to my side and wrenches me from my seat, holding my hands behind my back as he pushes me towards the porch.

My head snaps upward to look at the blue sky. Usually this is a sight I revel at as it is one I rarely saw in my own life but today is different. Today the blue sky reminds me of my endless solitude, trapped here with nobody to help me.

Once again God has abandoned me.

Her feet stumble clumsily over the gravel as he pushes us forward with a hard shove. The stiffness of his fingers tells me he’s trying hand to contain his anger.

Her dry, chapped lips open to scream but I bite it back, tearing up at the pain in her broken ankle. I refuse to let out a sound, fearful of how he would react.

The sounds of birds chirping disappears as he slams the front doors shut behind us. The freedom of the outside world is lost in this cage, trapped behind thick plaster walls.

The air is dusty and humid, even harder to breathe than before. She breaks into another coughing fit though I can’t tell whether this one is caused by stress or allergies. She doubles over and loses her balance, falling to the hardwood floors with a resounding thud.

The impact gives me a headache that matches tempo to the beat of her heart. The vibrations beneath the floor tell me it’s hollow.

If I was in my previous body, a bodybuilder who died of a steroid overdose one month after his 37th birthday, I’m sure I could easily break through the creaky boards. Oh how I long for his strength; he surely wouldn’t even have been fazed by the ankle injury.

My fists clench but I know how they are useless. There’s no power in them.

He walks in behind me, his shadow cast over mine on the ground. I force myself to turn around and face the real thing, cowering slightly beneath his tall, overpowering frame. Light spills out from behind him, casting his face in the same shadows that haunted her dreams that first night.

“But you’re not going to come back next time, Lou-i-sa.” Agony. There was agony beneath his voice. She felt it as strongly as I did. A sympathetic twinge afflicted her hammering heart.

I could hardly comprehend her desire to understand and comfort the monster that wants nothing more than to kill her.

As if equally disgusted by her naivety, he walked around us, took me by the hair and pulled me to my feet. My instincts reacted before I could counter them and attempted to support all her weight on her bad yet dominant ankle.

She screamed. The sound echoed in the small space.

He threw her back down. He was on top of her before her body could settle on the ground, legs straddling her hips, hands around her throat. “Did you really think screaming would help you?” His voice slithered from his lips, as cold and smooth as ice. “If someone comes I’ll kill you, right here and now.” His hands tightened a moment as if to emphasize his point then released.

The air that poured into her lungs was sweet despite the dust.

He used her arm to pull me to my feet this time. I hardly noticed.

My mind had wandered elsewhere. His words repeated over and over again.

Halloween Week Story 5

Author’s Note: This was actually my submission for this years “Last Line” issue but it didn’t get in so I’m posting it here instead.

Snake Eyes

The whole room fell silent, eyes shooting towards Elizabeth. Burning questions glazed over their pupils but fear paralyzed their bodies.

The words kept tumbling from her painted black lips, stumbling over one another like raindrops melting together into a thin stream. Nonsensical syllables echoing around the room, merging with those of a voice that sounded almost identical to her own.

In the doorway stood a woman in a short black dress with flowing lace sleeves. The straps of her sandals snaked up her legs, matched in length by her curly auburn hair. Large blue eyes shone from a pale freckled face, separated by a thin nose. Her voice escaped low and harsh, incongruent to her soft pink lips and gentle features.

She took a step forward, eyes transfixed on her nearly identical twin. The people around her shifted uncomfortably, shrinking towards the wall as though she carried the plague on her slender shoulders.

Elizabeth raised her voice, surging through the crowd that parted like the Red Sea. She commanded the room in a way nobody else could, immediately drawing the attention back to her. Several people dropped their drinks as they saw the transformation inching across her skin.

Scales grew to replaced the short white hairs covering her limbs. Black as night they covered her entire body as her eyes rolled back into her head, leaving pure white orbs in place of her cyan irises. Instead of words her tongue now spewed hissing noises, low and soft and threatening. A dark aura followed her as she approached the door, seeping into the flowered wallpaper and wine-stained oak floors.

Both froze as the clanging of church bells outside invaded the room, crawling in from the doors and windows. The room fell deathly quiet.

Then the lights went out.

Nobody dared to move. Not a soul spoke. Eyes roamed in the dark, searching for the slightest movement where the two had stood.

Elizabeth and her twin stood outlined by the dim moonlight seeping in from the windows. Seconds ticked by as neither moved, still as statues.

Then, as though propelled by an invisible force, Elizabeth lurched forward, arms outstretched towards the other figure. The two moved too fast for eyes to follow, squirming on the ground. Elizabeth appeared to remain on top, legs locked tightly around the small waist of her counterpart. Her arms moved in sharp, blurry jabs, the silver watch around her wrist reflecting the pallor of the moonlight.

A scream broke the silence for only a second before almost instantly melting into a low gurgle then dying completely.

Only then did the lights return, revealing a pale Elizabeth with snow white skin and blue eyes straddling the lifeless body of an enormous black snake with dull copper scales atop its head.

Elizabeth stood, inky blue blood dripping from her hands. She looked around at the frightened, judgemental eyes of the people she had once considered friends and knew with a gut-wrenching certainty she would never fit in with them again.  

It was hard to accept that from now on everyone would look at her differently.

Halloween Week Story 4

Author’s Note: This one is more of a vignette than a story but I wanted to include it.

She padded into the room on bare feet, her ginger hair leaving a trail of fire in her wake. Innocent jade eyes roamed the bare wood walls. Painted pink lips parted to release a long, shaky breath that transformed into white smoke.

She stood still, floorboards whispering beneath her paltry weight. Cobwebs lined the edges of the room, tracing intricate patterns in the shadows. Wind howled through the cracks in the ancient walls, disturbing the spiders from their home. They crawled across the silken threads, silent and observant, thousands of eyes fixated on their mistress.

She walked forward with eyes cold as stone. Her black blouse clung to her skin, shielding her from the gelid atmosphere. Her eyes searched the world beyond the window for solace but found none. Loneliness pushed down upon her shoulders, a weight she could never lift.

Her delicate fingers touched the cracked glass, numb to the cold of the surface.

The numbness was the only thing she felt as she turned to face the door. Crimson eyes gazed at the innocent child with the ginger hair, watching her fade into oblivion.

As the queen of spiders had taken her place.

Halloween Week Story 3: Stalker

She tucked the chopped remnants of her hair behind her ear, shielding her eyes from the fluorescent lamplight. Her irises had long since disappeared within the dilation of her pupils.

With a limp she meandered towards the bus stop. Cold was all she felt on that frigid night, unable to recognize the sensation of tears on her face.

He sat there with a phone in his hand, blasting heavy metal though painted black earbuds. His hair was streaked with colors he didn’t even like. With a flick of his ringed thumb he scrolled through the Facebook feed of his now ex-girlfriend,  lamenting in the loss of her love.

The wind distributed the threads hanging from the edges of his hastily ripped jeans, wrapping them around his skinny legs.

He looked up and scowled at the empty street, noting the appearance of a plane near the horizon. It blinked as brightly as the stars on this cloudless twilight.

It was the fourth time in the last hour he had checked and there hadn’t been any changes. Of course there wouldn’t be.

With a sigh to the sky he turned off the device, shoving it back into his pocket without catching even a glimpse of the twisted reflection.

She sat beside him on the bench, scrutinizing his face. She scowled at the stubble that was stabbing through the otherwise clear skin of his chin. The bags under his eyes were also as prominent though she was accustomed to that. Like many nights, his makeup had worn off and worsened his complexion with the uneven streaks of eyeliner.

She waited for his acknowledgment, words painting her lips crimson. Each of his facial movements caught her attention but her persistence was futile.

The last bus of the night appeared in the distance, headlights illuminating the uneven asphalt beneath the slightly deflated tires.

He stood, adjusting the waistband of his jeans beneath his studded black belt. She shot up beside him, lips parted to speak but the words never came. She couldn’t voice her desire to get back together, to be forgiven and forgive him at the same time.

The doors opened before the bus reached him. He showed his bus pass without meeting the driver’s eyes and walked down the carpeted aisle.

Blue-clothed seats lined both sides of the vehicle, mostly devoid of people. A short and stout woman followed him with her judgemental gaze as he picked a seat towards to middle of the left side.

Nobody sat in front of in back of him. The row across from his stood empty.

No other passengers entered the bus.

Nobody moving into the aisle.

He watched the door close at the end of the vehicle before pulling out his earbuds. Music reverberated through his head, drowning his depression in loud, discordant words.

He stayed in the seat closest to the aisle, a habit that was hard to break. She stepped over his bony legs and plopped down beside him, making no sound on the worn leather. She couldn’t even feel the fabric beneath her hands.

Streetlights flashed outside the window, casting shadows across his intertwined hands. He turned towards the window and froze.

The reflection staring back at him was not his own.

A jolt. A skipped beat. A scream.

He fell out of his seat, scrambling backwards across the aisle. The other passengers, especially the short woman towards the front, peered out and shot him disgusted glares, assuming he was high.

Oh how he wished he was.

The face in the reflection turned away from the window. Black eyes were replaced by a gaping, raw hole surrounded by a shock of matter black hair. The exposed neck sported a long slash that revealed the vertebrae.

A burning sensation consumed first his mind then his body. The pain stole his breath away and left him dizzy, unable to comprehend the sight before his eyes.

Hayley.

His dead girlfriend.

Materializing before his eyes. Solidifying the malevolent aura in the surrounding space.

Her eyes bore holes into his, digging straight into his vulnerable mind. Her crimson lips twisted into a grimace, the sweetness of her old smile lost alongside her life.

The life that meant little to her now. She saw him as her final, tangible desire. Memories faded behind the need for revenge instead of forgiveness.

She would avenge the life he had taken from her in order to continue the life they had lived together. The life he had ruined.

She stood, head lolling to one side as if it was too heavy to support despite having no physical weight. Her twisted foot took a step towards him.

He froze.

Peripheral vision saw only walls, both visible and invisible. The bus faded until just the two remained, trapped in petrified equilibrium punctured by his heartbeat.

The weight of sorrow and fear on his chest made it almost impossible to breathe. In short gasps the breaths came, billowing out in front of him as her soulless eyes sucked the warmth from the atmosphere.

The other passengers felt the sudden drop in temperature too, shivering and pushing up their windows. From the front the bus driver muttered, “Blasted AC,” and fiddled loudly with the various switches and buttons on the dashboard.

The sound of another human voice was enough to break her hold on him. He felt himself instantly pulled back into the world around him. Twisting he scrambled off to the side, reaching up for the seat closest to him and pulled himself to an unsteady stance. His knees shook, threatening to give in to the weight of her malevolence.

She watched him stumble towards the front, screaming “Stop the bus! Let me out, please!” at the driver.

The stout woman with the square jaw curtaining a double chin cast another judgemental gaze towards him before sticking out her heeled foot as he passed. In slow motion he hit the floor, hands shooting out to cushion the fall. His parted lips released a scream as a loud crack thundered from his wrist. As he lay on his side, moaning, the woman muttered, “ Serves a druggie like you right.” Then, with a curled lip, “You make me sick.”

That comment was the last she would ever make.

Hayley disappeared from her spot in the aisle, leaving no trace to suggest she had ever existed. The air warmed a few degrees, a change that made little difference to Scott but evoked contented sighs from the sparse other passengers.

He had just managed to sit up, relying solely on his left arm to support him, when the woman turned to him again, her head moving in a quick, jerky manner. He averted his gaze until she murmured “Scott…”

In Hayley’s voice.

While wearing Hayley’s face.

The woman’s beady eyes had been replaced by Hayley’s wide black ones, pupils as overly enlarged as they’d been when the car hit her. Her lips were split and caked with dried blood that left streaks down her double chin. Hayley’s sharp cheekbones jutted out from beneath the woman’s jowls.

“I loved you, Scott. I want to be with you again, Scott. She’ll pay for hurting you Scott. Just like you’ll pay for hurting me.” The last venomous words were emphasized by a loud snap as the woman’s head spun backwards, severing the spinal cord before she could utter a sound of her own.

She slumped backwards in her seat, limp and lifeless as her features reverted back to normal. His eyes remained glued to the fresh corpse as his brain struggled to comprehend the last few seconds.

The realization hit.

He screamed, his shrieks melding together with those of those other passengers. The three remaining riders shot up from their seats, sprinting towards the front of the bus.

The driver slammed his palm on the door button while simultaneously slamming on the brakes.

Scott had barely managed to stand when the tall man seated in the back barrelled past him, knocking his back to the ground. He swallowed another scream before pulling himself back up and following the stragglers.

Cold night air felt welcome on his burning body. The bus driver and the few riders scattered,  each throwing a glance back towards Scott. They didn’t dare to confront him for fear of being the next victim.

Guilt followed him as he ran towards his home, desperate to escape the murder scene before the body was discovered and he was inevitable blamed.

His thoughts had disappeared in a futile attempt to shield himself from the horrendous reality of what had occurred. He ran on pure instinct, memories flashing through his mind.

He saw Hayley before the accident, exuberant and full of life. She brought out the best in him, gave him a reason to get up in the morning.

Only then she changed. She became jealous, obsessive even. They fought more and more until he considered breaking things off.

He had stormed off after a particularly heated argument. She had followed him.

His foot touched the curb of the sidewalk across from her house, forsaking the gelid asphalt for the safety of new cement. Music blasted through the earbuds she’d bought him for Christmas.

He didn’t hear the screech of tires or her cry for help. He saw the flash of headlights, felt the rumble of the engine sending vibrations through the ground. His body turned around but his mind lingered elsewhere. Far from the nightmares playing out before his eyes.

Her body, limp and fragile, sent flying, skidding across the ground like a mere plastic bag on the wind. Blood pooling around her from the hole in the back of her neck as the car, perhaps black perhaps blue, screeched away down the street.

He tripped over a loose chunk of cement at the edge of the sidewalk and fell, throwing his knees forward and torso back to protect his arms. He skidded to a stop then quickly picked himself back up, ignoring the blood streaming down to his ankles.

He didn’t know where to go but kept running regardless. Feet pounding roughly on the pavement, breaths escaping in short gasps he didn’t dare look behind him for fear of what he might see.

She heard the whisper of the wind in the dying leaves above her head but could not feel the cold night air. Her eyes followed his shrinking back, keeping the side of the bus in her peripheral.

Why was he running away, Why was he abandoning her again?

Anger gathered around her, clinging to her raw, intangible skin. She felt it in her very soul, the residual sensation of an elevated pulse and shaky limbs consuming her. It propelled her forward at an inhuman speed until she stood directly in front of him.

She watched as his eyes widened and he froze, pushing against the force of his own momentum to bring himself to a stop only a centimeter away from her.

In his head he heard her voice.

“You’re mine Scott.”

Her lips never moved.

“Keep your promises, Scott.”

Each time she repeated his name it felt like jab to the heart.

“I want us to be together Scott.”

His ears rand. The world around him spun on its axis.

“Come back home with me Scott.”

The edges of the world around him went black. Colors faded into monochrome. He felt his heartbeat slow as she siphoned the life out of him.

HONK.

Vanished. His vision reverted to normal. The ringing in his ears stopped.

He could breathe again, huge, cold breaths of the most refreshing air he had ever taken.

“Scott is that you?” the voice that filled his ears was so familiar and comforting it brought tears to the corners of his eyes. He turned to see the blue Honda Civic with the dent on the driver’s side from the one and only time he had ever borrowed it. Seated behind the wheel was the only friend who he’d kept in contact with after middle school.

“Kevin you have to help me.” he said, stumbling out into the street. “It’s Hayley she–”

“Woah, how drunk are you?” Judgement melted into concern and his face softened as he said, “Hayley died a week ago.”

“I know.” His hand fumbled with the handle on the back door. “Just — Just take me home. Please.” He seated himself directly behind his friend, leaning sideways to meet his eyes in the rearview mirror. He felt nauseous and dizzy and his pale reflection hid none of it.

“Alright…” Kevin raised a bushy black eyebrow but started the engine without further protest. His hair was spiked so high it brushed against the ceiling despite his short stature. On any other night, Scott would have found this immensely amusing.

“You really shouldn’t drink so much,” Kevin said.

“I’m not drunk.” Scott kept his eyes on the scenery passing by his window. His legs shook uncontrollably despite his best attempts to clamp his hands over his knees.

“Okay…” Kevin didn’t question the subject further but it was clear from the pity in his blue eyes that he didn’t believe Scott at all.

The rest of the ride passed in silence.

Scott’s mind shot through a hundred possibilities as Hayley’s words repeated in his head over and over again.

“Come back home with me Scott.”

He thought of his mother and his little sister, sitting peacefully at the dinner table. Their faces melded with Hayley’s, eyes turning black and skin tearing away, leaking inky blood.

The small, humble home came into view ahead of them. Before Kevin could even bring the car to a full stop, Scott had already pushed open the door. His foot touched the curb and he took off running, ignoring Kevin’s warning.

The rumble of the car engine as his only escape drove away was the last thing he heard as he crashed through the front door.

Freshly changed bulbs bathed the short entryway in a warm yellow glow. The atmosphere contrasted the fear that pulsed in time with his heartbeat.

His mud caked shoes left a trail as he sprinted towards the living room.

On the couch the say, his sister on the right, leaning on the armrest, his mother on the left in almost the same position, watching television.

With Hayley between them.

Three heads turned to look at him as he stood frozen in the doorway.

Hayley’s grin said it all.

Before hi mother could utter a single word he screamed “Get away from them!” and ran towards the couch. He leapt onto the supple red leather, passing harmlessly through the air Hayley had just vacated. His sister’s wide childlike eyes followed him as he frantically scanned the room.

“What’s wrong Scott?” his mother’s voice trembled. She looked down as his arms as though trying to see through the dark fabric of his jacket. “You didn’t –” She couldn’t bear to finish the sentence.

“It’s Hayley.” he said, still searching. His eyes squinted at each of the shadows, searching the obscurity for her pale flesh or crimson grin.

“But Hayley’s –”

“Dead, I know.” Nothing. His hair fell in front of his eyes. “Only she’s back. Not alive, just back.”

His phone buzzed violently in his pocket. The ringtone blasted through earbuds he forgot he’d been wearing. He had closed his hand around the cord when he heard it among the chimes.

Her voice.

“I’m here, Scott.”

He yanked the device from his pocket, eyes instantly fixed on the screen. Her face took up every pixel on the screen. The strands of black hair plastered across her grey forehead looked almost real enough to touch.

“You will be mine Scott.” This time the voice came from beside him. He turned towards his sister, pleas dying on his lips as he saw Hayley’s face merge with ehrs as she’d done earlier with the woman on the bus.

He shook his head, afraid that his sister would share the same fate. His mouth opened and closed repeatedly but the words to stop her never came.

Hayley laughed, a maniacal howl that echoed around them, bouncing off the white walls and mahogany floors. The sound sent a chill down his spine.

He closed his eyes against the pain of reality.

“We’ll always be together Scott.” This time the voice came from his mother’s mouth. He couldn’t bear to look. “Just like we were meant to be.”

“Mommy?” his sister’s voice was small and shaky in comparison to Hayley’s booming confidence. He felt small, shivering hands closing around his wrist. “Scott what’s going on?” The words escaped as hardly more than a whisper.

He couldn’t look meet her eyes. The fear in his own was something he wanted to keep to himself. “Go to your room,” was all he could utter while trying to keep his voice steady. His mind had already come to terms with what was going to happen yet his body refused to cooperate.

“But–”

“Go!”

He felt the pressure around his arm release and heard her soft footsteps disappear from the room, followed by the light creak of the stairs.

He still did not open his eyes.

Hayley’s presence sucked the warmth from the room but he did not shiver.

Seconds ticked by in silence. His broken wrist throbbed painfully. Thoughts had abandoned him.

With a deep breath he opened his eyes. The living room was the same as always: bookshelves lining the back wall filled with magazines, encyclopedias, and DVDs; the maple China cabinet wedged in the middle displaying the finest dishes amongst the small collection of porcelain figures; the flat screen television behind him with the gaming consoles nobody ever used.

And yet everything had changed. It felt as though the warmth had not been sucked out of only the air but also everything in the room. The welcoming atmosphere had been replaced by a coldness commonly found in the morgues.

He didn’t look at his possessed mother as he sighed and said, “Do with me what you want.” Inside he had grown colder than Hayley’s decaying corpse.

She pounced on him, still wearing his mother’s body, and knocked him to the ground. The back of his head narrowly missed the edge of the glass coffee table as he smashed into the floor.

He didn’t even possess the energy to flinch.

She straddled his legs and pinned his arms down to keep him from getting up. He lacked the will to resist anyways. His body and mind had already resigned to paying the price it took to protect his family.

Ultimately he was fulfilling the final promise he’d made to his late father.

“You’ll love me forever, right Scott? Just like you promised?” For a moment Hayley almost seemed like her innocent old self, before she became increasingly jealous of anyone who laid eyes on him. “We’ll be together forever. Won’t that be simply wonderful?” A flash of childlike glee. Then completely serious, “Forgive me Scott, I’m only doing what is necessary, for us.”

She looked sad.

Her hands lifted from his as her legs tightened their grip. She hesitantly reached for his throat, slowly wrapping her fingers around the hot, vulnerable flesh. He couldn’t fight without hurting his mother. His hands remained limp at his side as black spots appeared and consumed his vision.

The last thing he felt were hot tears on his face.

But did they belong to his mother or Hayley?

Halloween Week Story 2: Shadows on a Subway

The dull thumping of the gears against the rails combined with the dim lighting had lulled most of the subway passengers to sleep. I stood by the door, leaning against the pole that held me up. My eyes wandered to the window above the blonde head of a pregnant woman reading a maternity book.

Lights sped alongside the tunnel walls, their monochromatic illumination casting the shadows across the carpeted floor. The movement hurt my eyes within seconds, forcing me to look elsewhere.

My hand automatically reaches into my pocket for my cell before remembering that it’s dead. Dropping it into a toilet tends to do that, or so I learned this morning.

The P.A. system cracked to my right. As the automated voice began announcing the next stop, the lights cut out, plunging the entire car into inky darkness teeming with the nearly invisible faces of the other passengers. I could almost make out the large nose of the elderly man seated beside me.

Until it disappeared.

And the lights came back on but the voice did not return.

And neither did the old man’s face.

My knees gave out as my body flung itself backwards in a desperate attempt to escape. Shock waves ran up and down my spine from my tailbone hitting the door but I hardly noticed. My senses were too overwhelmed to process the pain.

Blank.

The faces of each and every passenger had gone horribly blank. No noses, eyes, mouths, cheekbones, dimples, eyebrows. Nothing. The colors of their skins swirled in the space, as though some kid was playing with a picture on photoshop.

One by one they turned towards me. One by one their nonexistent gazes shifted to look at me. I could feel it.

The shifting of the lights on the carpet stopped abruptly as the train lurched to a stop. The screech of gears grinding against the rails was the last thing I heard before silence consumed the space. My heartbeat became thunderous yet for a moment I fear it would stop.

Breaths froze in my lungs. The pressure on my chest cut off my air supply. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the people around me, especially the pregnant lady. There was something absolutely eerie about the lack of emotion above the bulging stomach being caressed by a soft, gentle hand.

In a flash she disappeared along with the others. Emptiness stole their place though the memory lingered in the forefront of my mind.

The solitude amplified my heartbeat as my sweaty hand reached out to the pole on my right. My legs shook incessantly as I kicked and scrambled to stand.

The floor was stable beneath my feet yet the room spun. Grey seats hung from the ceiling above my head and white lights stood beneath my feet.

I took a step and fell into one of the seats, sending the world spinning back into position. My head felt clouded by the impossibility of the reality and my eyelids threatened to fall over my eyes.

Seconds tick by. For a moment reality feels far away, concealed behind a thick wall of smoke.

Then the buzzer shattered my eardrums, bathing the space in a dull red glow. The doors across from my rattled open, revealing the dark tunnel outside.

My legs leap out before my mind can even stand. I land hard on the edge of the rails, the impact sending jolts of pain through my legs.

Fall. Roll. Turn around.

Nothing. The lights in the subway flicked then turn off.

I blink.

Blood drips from the open doorway, glistening as it splatters to the ground. Shrouded in gray smoke.

Something slumps forward in the doorway. Big nose, small eyes, grey hair. The old man who had been sitting beside me lay on the floor, blood lining his face as the red light washed over his wrinkled features. Blank gaze fixated on me.

A scream tears from my throat. My body scrambles backwards over the fingers digging into the loose dirt. Legs flailing wildly I try to put as much distance between the subway and myself.

Dread wrapped around my limbs for a few slow, horrendous seconds I could not breathe. I could not move. Paralyzed.

As frozen as the old man’s dead eyes.

Then it broke.

And my hand found the back wall. I pulled myself up and wrenched my body to the side, facing the nearest station. The lights hardly illuminated the front tip of the conductor’s car.

Stumbling on numb legs I sprinted towards it. The atmosphere was cold and thick around me, clinging to my skin and weighing me down. The passing lights on the walls slowed to a painfully sluggish pace.

I didn’t dare look behind me. The fear of something lurking behind me was enough to lock my eyes directly in front of me, fixated on the edge of the tiled platform ahead of me.

I arrived at it after what felt like an eternity. My hand reached for it on its own. Fingers outstretched the tiles felt smooth against my skin.

I hardly had the time to catch up to my hands before they were pulling me up onto the platform. The headlights of the subway behind me illuminated the empty lobby, the thick rectangular pillars casting deep shadows across the dirty tiles.

My own shadow danced along the wall as I sprinted towards the steps. Black as night and just as sinister I couldn’t resist glancing towards it.

And instantly wishing I hadn’t.

Black tendrils slippery like ink crawled across the advertising posters. I couldn’t tell if they were real or imaginary.

The stairs lurched before me, mostly hidden in darkness as little light trickled in from the outside. I took them two at a time before making the mistake of looking back.

And seeing them all.

In a row they stood, faces horribly blank once more with one small difference. Thin streams of blood descended from their foreheads down to their chins, tracing the facial features that had become invisible to me.

None of them moved. They merely stood, facing me with blank, eyeless stares. I stared back at them, unable to tear my gaze away. My own movements felt controlled by the somehow, as though they were keeping me locked in this equilibrium.

Shadows leaked out from beneath their feet. They inched towards me, creeping up the stairs. The black mass was only centimeters away from my feet when the spell finally broke and I fell backwards, scrambling up the steps on my hands and knees.

I felt the fresh air of the world above the ground on the top of my head first and that was enough to lift me to my feet, sprinting into the cold wind.

Buildings rushed past me as my feet slapped against the pavement, footsteps echoing in the crisp night air. The road sat devoid of cars and no people walked beside me. It was as though the entire town had disappeared — vanished into thin air.

My apartment was only a few blocks from the subway station, a fortunate coincidence that sent a surge of hope and adrenaline pumping through my veins. My legs were moving so fast I could hardly keep up. My body overcompensated in leaning forward and I tripped, shands shooting out in front to catch me.

The impact sent convulsions through my body as I rolled over my right shoulder, wincing at the pain in my twisted ankle.

The world spun. I tried to stand only to fall back down. The pounding in my ears obliterated my hearing, only furthering the sense of panic in my veins.

Blurred vision frantically surveyed my surroundings. The utter lack of movement in the windows to my left and the lifelessness of the street to my right served as cold reminders of my solitude.

I felt something touch my foot. A cold sensation shot up from my heel to my hip like a bullet of ice.

I turned around to the see pregnant woman’s fingers wrap around my ankle. She pulled, drawing me closer to her and the thick black mass writhing behind her.

I kick and twist but her grasp held strong. Blood spews from a gaping hole in her stomach, soaking through the hem of my trousers.

I felt the malevolence saturating her aura and that awakened something in me. A surge of power course in my veins and I wrenched my leg away, scrambling backwards until I managed to stand.

I took off running and never looked back.

The apartment door slammed behind me before I could feel the exhaustion weighing me down. The air was hot and stale but it had never tasted so sweet.

I sank to the ground, leaning against the door. A humorless laugh escaped from deep within my throat, clashing with the tears streaming down my face.

By the time I’d calmed down I wanted nothing more than to go to bed and sleep away the remnants of this nightmare.

I stood and limped to the bathroom, wincing at the pain in my ankle. The mild throbbing was the only concrete reminder of the incident but even that would fade soon enough. Then I’d be able to pretend that none of this had ever occurred.

Though I’m definitely not taking the subway ever again, I thought with a light, nervous chuckle. I’d just take a cab to and from work or carpool or something.

I turned the lights and the water on simultaneously the second I entered the bathroom. The rush of water mesmerized me, the sound a welcome change to the silent atmosphere I’d endured.

Cold and refreshing the water felt so soothing against my burning face I hardly noticed the stinging of my raw palms. I let my thoughts drown in the mundanity of the task for a moment before reaching for a towel.

My eyes wandered up to the mirror.

I froze.

Behind me stood the conductor of the subway.

Faceless and bloody.

Shrouded in black.

Kidnapped [Part 5]

My mind scans through her memories of the house they’d taken her to.

It had two floors and a basement. They’d dragged her through the entryway and left her lying half asleep on the floor near the staircase. They hadn’t bothered to tie her up but her limbs were too heavy to move.

She could only gaze longingly at the door partially hidden behind her feet and dream of the freedom beyond the thick slab of oak.

Her eyes wandered up to the second floor. She thought she’d seen a shadow. Her deafened ears thought they’d heard a sound: a voice perhaps?

One of the men had returned at that moment. He’d stood at the foot of the stairs and said something but she couldn’t understand what.

Then he’d returned to drag her away. Down into the basement.

Out of sight.

Her mind lay stagnant while mine churned rapidly, sifting through possibilities.

Could someone be residing on the second floor? Someone who remains oblivious to the crimes?

Someone who could help me?

His eyes caught mine in the rearview mirror. They were black and cruel, just like Louisa had originally perceived them, only now they was also a glint of amusement tucked away into the corners. He had the same eyes as a hunter playing with its prey moments before the kill.

“Don’t glare at me so harshly Lou-i-sa.” He holds each note in my name out a moment longer than he has to and for some reason his intonation changes. His voice is almost a little higher. It makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on edge.

Suddenly the walls were closing in on me. I felt the ceiling being pulled down towards me, inching closer and closer to the top of my head.

Caving in.

The same invisible pressure that affected the ceiling simultaneously pushed my heart down into the pit of my stomach. It settled with an uneasy heaviness.

One beat. A moment.

Two.

With widening eyes the reason for his change in demeanor rushed through me like a cold wind on a scalding summer day. I shivered despite the intense heat produced by the adrenaline in my system.

He knows.

Somehow…

Somehow he figured out what I am.