The Haunted by Michaelbrent Collings

Author:Michaelbrent Collings [Collings, Michaelbrent]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: Michaelbrent Collings
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

14

The Third Day

2:22 am

***

Cap pulled the door shut and locked it, then stared at it in terror, as though the wood of the door had been replaced by a six-foot-tall block of C-4 that was primed to explode at any moment.

Given what had already happened, the thought wasn’t entirely unreasonable.

But what had happened? What was going on? When had reality disappeared, replaced by a nightmare so black and evil that only Satan himself could have dreamt it?

He could still hear the chanting, even with their bedroom door shut, but it was a bit quieter. He was glad of that. He didn’t know how much longer he could have put up with that sound, that hideous noise. It felt like someone physically punching him, stabbing him. Trying to force him to leave.

Cap didn’t want to leave. Not just because this was his house. He wanted a place of his own, but he wasn’t about to risk his safety and the safety of his family over something as banal as pride of ownership. But he suspected that to leave would be worse than to stay. The chant wasn’t simply a warning, it wasn’t trying to keep him from somewhere dangerous. He knew instinctively that it was a trap. A siren song, pushing him to dash his soul upon black rocks that would tear him apart and leave behind only the barest traces of existence.

He couldn’t leave. He couldn’t let Sarah leave. He had to protect her.

Cap clung to that thought. It was all he had. His life didn’t matter. Only Sarah’s. Only the baby’s.

He tore his eyes away from the bedroom door. He looked at Sarah. She was shaking, her teeth clicking together as trembling wracked her body. He touched her shoulder. She jumped away and looked at him with wide, frightened eyes, the gaze of a small creature cornered by a wild beast of prey.

“Just me,” he said, raising his hands in front of him.

Sarah stared at him dully, as though she didn’t know him. Lightning flashed again, brightening the room. The light washed across her, making her face for an instant as gray and lifeless-seeming as the ghoulish faces of the ghosts he had seen downstairs.

He blinked, trying to chase away the image. But it wouldn’t leave him. It felt like a premonition, a prophecy of doom. He was going to lose Sarah.

No. He shook his head. He wasn’t going to lose her. He wouldn’t let anything come between them.

He looked at her again and was relieved to see that the lightning was no longer touching her with its deathly hues.

“What now?” said Sarah.

Cap put a finger to his lips, signaling for silence. He thought he heard something. Not the chanting, not the crash of thunder. Something else.

Sarah nodded. She put a hand protectively over her belly. Cap ached for her. He couldn’t imagine what she must be going through right now.

He pushed that thought away. It led to stultifying fear, to giving up. He wasn’t going to give up. He was going to fight.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.