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“I’ll be back in about two hours. Hunter should be home within the hour.”
I take a deep breath, hoping to steady the unease dancing in my stomach. The sun has started to dip behind the mountains outside, meaning it will be dark soon, which frightens me.
“Okay.” My voice is barely a whisper.
May exits through the back door, and I stay settled on the couch. I catch a red truck leaving and driving up the long driveway. Now alone, I’m left with my unsettled thoughts.
Deciding a bath might calm my rattled nerves, I lock all the doors to the house and go to my bedroom, checking that my sliding door is locked as well. The unease starts to calm now that I am locked inside, making me feel safe.
After stripping off my clothes while the bath fills up, I add some scented salts from the neatly set display on the counter. The lavender scent fills the room, the aroma instantly calming.
Glancing through the doorway, I notice that blackness has coated the patio and the view of that dark forest beyond.
Don’t worry. Hunter will be home soon.
I step one foot into the shin-deep water, and everything goes black.
What happened to the lights?
My heart rate accelerates, and I instantly pull my foot from the tub. In the movies, if people go looking for the source of the power outage, they end up dead, but I’ve barricaded myself in with no way out. Which means no one should be able to get in.
I grab my towel and wrap it tightly around my trembling body. The tightness in my chest continues to make my breaths shorter and quicker. I know if I keep this up, I’m going to hyperventilate, but being submerged in darkness is only making it worse.
“Come out, come out wherever you are, dear sister.”
16
The hand of dread reaches into my chest and squeezes my heart, turning my blood cold. The hairs on my arms rise, and my fingers clench tighter around the towel.
What am I going to do?
I race over and steal a peek into my room. A silhouette strolls past the doorway, making me duck back into the bathroom.
“Hiding will do you no good. I’ll find you,then I’ll kill you.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping this is all a dream. When a door slams, I jump out of my skin. Then I hear the click of another door. I take that as an opportunity to run. Peering out of the bathroom into my bedroom, the moonlight shines through my open curtains.
“Well, well, well.”
I freeze at the sound of the menacing voice in my doorway. Flicking my head toward it, I back away, my back hitting the cold glass, sending a bitter chill down my spine. I swallow the concrete which has formed in my throat. “What...what do you want?” My voice is so high-pitched I sound like a frightened mouse.
I try looking around the room for something to use as a weapon.
“What do I want?” he shouts, followed by maniacal laughter, sending shivers down my spine. “I’m your little brother, and I’ve come to kill you so I can run our family business.” He takes a step closer, and my reaction is to try to move back, but I can’t.
Panic seizes my fight-or-flight reaction, and I do neither.
There is no way out for me. Is this how my life is going to end? By the hands of my own brother?
“You’re M-Miles?” I tumble over my words.
I can’t see him clearly enough to make out his features. The moonlight hits his face lightly, and it’s as though his eyes are as dark as onyx.
The eyes of death.
“Ding, ding, ding.” He holds up his hand like he’s ringing a bell. “Wow, you’re a smart one. They kept you hidden well. Dear old Granny, keeping her girls safe.” He cackles.
Clearing my dry throat, I say, “How did you know I was here?”
