Page 41 of Like A Moth To A Flame

That wasmy ownvoice.

I could feel the blood rushing out of my face and away from my head, and beginning to pool in my arms and legs. My fingers and toes began to tingle and ache, and my thighs shook and jumped. I gasped for breath, feeling as if all the air had been sucked out of the room, leaving me struggling for scraps.

I wanted to run, but I had nowhere to go.

It was a voicemail.

Myvoicemail.

He was calling me usingmyphone.

Gently, I placed the receiver back on the cradle and turned from the room, my stomach twisting and flipping. If I had eaten anything since this morning, I’m sure it would have ended up on the floor at my feet. I moved up the stairs and retreated into the guest room. This time, it took me several tries to push that old dresser in front of the door.

11

So touch me again, I feel my shadow dissolving. Will you cleanse me with pleasure?

Moth

Ididn’t remember falling asleep. I remembered laying down on the bed after moving the dresser, still fully clothed and wiping tears from my eyes, but I didn’t remember anything else.

But I must have, because now, something had woken me up. I wasn’t sure if it was a noise or something else. I lay on the bed just the way I’d slept, afraid to move. Outside the window over my head, I could hear the wind rattling the windows, the rain pelting against the glass. After a moment, I heard the growl of distant thunder, and I released my breath in a shaking whoosh.

It was only a thunderstorm, nothing to worry about. I was fine. I was safe.

The weight of dread sat heavily on my chest, bearing down on me before I even remembered why I was scared. An icy chill slicked over my bare legs, bringing goosebumps crawling over my thighs.

Something wasn’t right. Something felt wrong.

I lifted my head, blinking as I fought the fog in my brain and the mist in my eyes. I could see the low, square shadow of the dresser against the door, right where it should be. A flash of lightning lit up the room, and something dark caught my eye, something near the closet. My breath caught behind a wall of apprehension in my throat, and I struggled to pull in another breath.

Had I left the closet door open? Why was I awake? Had it been a bad dream, a sound in the darkness, or the storm?

Possibly, could it have been something else?

I didn’t even know how long I had been asleep. A few hours, maybe? All I knew was it was still dark. I shouldn’t be awake yet. Maybe I needed to pee?

I relaxed against the bed, waiting to see if that was the culprit.

No, nothing.

I was a little hungry, but nothing that couldn’t wait until morning.

Thunder exploded outside the window, hard enough to shake the glass in the window, and I jumped, my heart exploding to life in my chest.

That was it. That had to be it. I had woken up to the storm, and now I was confused. I was fine. Everything was fine. I had just moved to turn over and go back to sleep when another streak of lightning lit up the room, and the dark shadow near the closet caught my eye again, except it was on the other side of the door now.

It had moved. There was no denying it now.

I lay on the bed in the darkness, my brain suddenly kicked into overdrive. The way I saw it, I had two options. I could runand hopefully move the dresser before whoever it was reached me—not likely.

Or I could stay on the bed and hope my mind was playing tricks on me.

I heard the creak of a floorboard, and my mind was made up for me.

My mind decided to run.

I launched myself out of the bed and across the room, slamming into the dresser and fighting to push it. My fingers found the smoothed edge and shoved against it, but before I could even budge it, the warmth of arms slid around my waist and lifted me off my feet.

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