Children of Darkness by Courtney Shockey

Author:Courtney Shockey [Shockey, Courtney]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3, mobi
Tags: Halloween novella
Publisher: Courtney Shockey
Published: 2015-10-24T23:00:00+00:00

I search through the house with Max’s collar in my hand. Was I in a dream? Where is Max? I look through every room and call his name over and over. There is no sign of him.

Nothing is out of place. There is no sign of struggle anywhere. The only sign of Max is in my hand. I stumble into the living room and sink to my knees as a strangled cry of anguish escapes my throat. Max is gone. This isn’t a dream. Tears drop to the floor as I carry myself to my phone to call Coby.

He answers the phone and all I could say was Max’s name.

“What’s wrong with Max? What happened? Janet?”

I couldn’t answer. Sobs are the only sound on my end of the line.

“Don’t move. I’m coming.”

He hangs up and my phone slips out of my hand as I unlock the door and move to the couch, clutching the collar in my other hand. The minutes crawl by as I wait for Coby to come. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t speak. The only thing I could do was stare at the collar in my hands and cry.

The front door slams open and I hear Coby calling my name as he runs to the living room. He is by my side in a flash and takes my face in his hands.

“Janet? Can you hear me? What happened?”

“He’s gone. Max is gone,” I whisper.

“Where did he go? Did he run off?”

It was then that Coby saw the collar in my hands. He opens my fingers and strokes the collar.

“Janet. I need you to tell me what happened to Max,” he said.

“They…they took h-him,” I reply.

Confusion fills his beautiful eyes. He looks at the collar and back at me. “Who took him?”

“The children…” I said on a sob.

He sits back and stares at me.

“I’ll explain, but not here. I need to get out of this house. I need to leave!” I scream hysterically. Frantic is the only word I can use to describe my thoughts as they dart all over my mind.

“Shhh. Baby, calm down. Let’s get you some clothes and I’ll take you to my house.”

At the thought of going to my bedroom closet, I can’t breathe. Coby sees the look on my face and takes my hand into his.

“I’ll go with you. I’m here, Janet,” he soothes.

My entire body shakes with fear and I can’t seem to stand. Coby takes my hands and guides me to my room. As we near, my limbs grow heavier. Each step toward my room is more and more difficult.

Coby wraps his arm around my waist and ushers me into the bedroom. A shiver skids up my spine as we cross the threshold. I look over at Max’s mat and my knees wobble. The closet door is now in front of us.

“Turn on the light,” I whisper.

Coby walks over and flips the switch. I expected to see children in there, but find only clothes and shoes. My hands go through the motions of picking something to wear like it was any other day.

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