Page 23 of The Haunting
“The handle’s gone.”
“What? Don’t be stupid,” Chance declared. He repeated Drake’s actions as the sticky blood washed over his arm. He pulled back, pale.
“There’s no handle. In fact, I can’t even feel a door,” Chance said. As he spoke, the blood slowed its torrent, and to our horror, we saw an untainted, simple wall, no exit at all.
“What the hell?” Daniel demanded. His unshakable air was finally shaken.
“Calamity,” I murmured, and he held me tighter. Frightened, I shook in his arms. We were actually living a real-life horror movie.
“Let’s find a window we can open,” Vladimir said, and as he uttered the fateful words, slams bounded throughout the house as the shutters slammed shut over every window in the entrance hall, or so I guessed.
I could only watch in horror. Kate’s squeal of fright told me the same was happening in the sitting room.
Lucian and Inglorious swapped glances and stormed forward. Together, they tried wrestling one of the shutters open, but it was locked tight.
“Let’s try another,” Inglorious suggested, and they moved to the next one. For several minutes, they wrestled, trying to find an opening, but to no avail.
“We’re trapped,” James called out, and I noted that the sitting-room door was open, so James could hear what was happening.
“There has to be an exit,” Drake muttered.
“Nobody goes out alone,” Chance snapped, and Drake nodded.
“Who’s staying with the women?” Lucian asked.
As much as I wished to be an independent, strong woman, I wanted a couple of the guys to stay. Our men would break their backs protecting us.
“Obviously, me,” James called out.
“No offence, but it should be at least two who are able to walk. One would need to carry James if the need arises,” Inglorious muttered.
“Heard that asshole,” James shouted irately.
“I’ll stay,” Vladimir offered.
“Me too,” Daniel said after swapping a glance with Lucian.
Drake, Calamity, Inglorious, and Chance swapped glances. I knew what they were thinking. They wanted one of them to remain, too. Chance pointed to Inglorious, who looked grumpy but nodded in response.
I relaxed knowing that we had one of the presidents with us. Inglorious would lay his life to protect the old ladies. He’d never stand for a woman being hurt in front of him.
“Break into teams. I’ll go with Calamity and Daniel,” Drake offered.
“Leaves me and you,” Lucian said to Chance.
“Not a problem,” Chance replied.
They escorted us back into the sitting room, where James was sitting upright with Kate next to him.
“Go find an exit,” James ordered.
Drake nodded. “We will.”
Jacques
The screams from the part of the house where we’d left our unexpected guests died down, and I guessed their men had found them. I gritted my teeth. The enemy was gaining strength. As night closed in, he grew stronger. If he were able to sacrifice those below me, he’d be alive again, and his evil would know no bounds. I reached out searching for any loose ally and found none. I couldn’t even sense a Vam’pir or vampire nearby.
“He’s locked them all in,” Eden said, approaching.
