Page 31 of The Haunting
The hair on the back of my neck and arms stood up.
“Fuck you!” Drake declared loudly, breaking through my fear. Amused, I chuckled as we continued down the stairs. Vladimir and Daniel were following, and I heard their laughter too. We’d left everyone in the sitting room to move furniture for the mattresses.
Drake was still shaken by what had happened to Phoe and needed to stay busy. I did too; seeing Phoe hurt had been upsetting, and I wasn’t ashamed to admit that. She was one of the most genuine people I knew, and it was a travesty to harm her. Everyone was on edge. Several wished to know where Jacques and Eden were hiding. Our mysterious hosts were completely absent, yet they should have come running ages ago.
A part of me wondered if they were behind this shit. If they were, we’d make them pay. Nobody hit out at one of us and walked away.
“She will die. They all will die,” the voice taunted, and we swivelled our heads looking for the owner.
“As I said. Fuck you, asshole,” Drake spat back. “Wanna be a man and face me or be a coward and hide?”
A low, spine-chilling laugh rang out.
“Flesh and bones can be ground to a pulp,” the voice replied, and I shivered at the malice in it.
Usually, I wasn’t naturally spooked, but this place was doing a number on my nerves. It was also playing havoc with my self-control. Not that I wanted a drink; more like I needed to punch the hell out of somebody. Somehow, through sheer willpower, I’d swapped my alcohol addiction for Nanci. Nanci was a much healthier and more fun option than a bottle of whiskey.
We carried the mattresses in and placed the bedding on top of a sofa before heading back upstairs. As I followed at the rear, someone pushed me hard, and I fell forward into Vladimir, who caught me and looked over my shoulder. His eyes widened, and I twisted my neck and wished I hadn’t.
A dark shape flew up the stairs, and I yelled, “Run!”
Drake turned and gaped as Daniel shoved him into motion. Our boots thundered along the hallway as we headed for the next bedroom, which happened to be mine. We slammed the door as we entered and stood staring as something barrelled into it.
“Where’s Daniel?” Drake hissed, and I finally noticed the man was missing. Shit. We swapped wide-eyed glances as my gut sank. How the hell had we lost him?
Daniel
We raced along the hallway with me in front. I headed for my room and suddenly heard a door slam. I twisted and saw that the others had disappeared. Damn! I slowed my pace, intending to go back when the shadow appeared. Two red glowing eyes gleamed as I sank into the shadows and held my breath. The creature attacked the door, making it shudder in its frame.
At first, I’d thought it was an indistinguishable blob. Now I realised it had the shape of a hunchbacked male. In hate, he battered at the door before turning his head ninety degrees to stare at my hiding place. The eyes glowed brighter, and he began moving towards me.
In fear, I raced off. There was no denying what he had done to Phoe, and I didn’t want to be his next meal.
A cackle of laughter surrounded me as I raced along hallways, knowing he was on my heels. I was the prey and was being successfully hunted. Lost, I turned a corner and hit a dead end.Spinning to retrace my steps with fear flooding me, I discovered my escape route was blocked.
“Suck the marrow from your bones,” the creature gloated as he came closer.
Wildly, I looked around and spotted a rapier hanging on the wall. I grabbed it and lunged forward, stabbing into the darkness.
To my horror, the rapier pierced straight through as the body parted like smoke, and as I drew back, the shadow pounced. Out of my comfort zone, I backed away.
Hands gripped my throat. Scared, I fought to remove them, but mine passed through his like he was vapour. But his grip left no doubt he was real.
“Your flesh makes my flesh.”
Did he mean? Did he mean to eat me so he could take my body and merge with his? Oh, hell no. Determined to live, I struggled, but there was nothing to fight against. His face lowered, and his mouth opened. Jagged teeth gleamed dully in the faint light coming through a window, and a tree crashed against the glass, adding to my fear. Lips closed over mine and sucked; something deep inside me responded.
He was sucking my soul out! Anxiously, I punched and kicked, making contact with nothing as my soul fought to stay within me. Decay and dampness overwhelmed my senses, and I knew the stench came from him. Nausea welled alongside grief. Nobody knew where I was, and I was going to die a second time.
Sabine and our children sprang into my mind, and I shoved back hard. Maybe I couldn’t physically fight it off, but spiritually I could. Stubbornly, I gathered my faith and held strong as the mouth once more sucked at mine. My soul jerked again, and something inside me moved.
No, this was my life, my soul; it couldn’t have me.
A silent battle raged, but I was beginning to lose. I was mortal with a human’s strength; this was pure evil and paranormal. He would win eventually. Still, I refused to give up.
An annoyed sound bounced off the walls, and I was picked up and thrown against the wall. My head hit hard, and I slowly slid down into a heap.
The shadow grabbed hold and slammed my head into the floor, and he climbed up my body.
