The House on West 10th Street

by Helen Phifer

  There was movement in the corner of the room, she didn’t dare to open her eye. She waited for him to come closer and wondered if he had an axe and how much it was going to hurt. A loud, long scratching noise filled the air and a vision of Freddy Krueger who’d scared her shitless as a teenager filled her mind. The sleepless nights she’d had because of those films were too many to count and now some maniac was going to kill her. She was too scared to move. The only thing she could do was headbutt him if he got near to her and hope she could untie herself in record time. She waited, not daring to breathe out. The scratching didn’t happen again, but the smell seemed stronger, more potent and it made her eyes water. After a few minutes she gently tugged her arms against the rope, there was a little movement. If she could work up a sweat, she might be able to make her skin slippery enough to pull her wrist free. She was glad of the gag in her mouth because it stopped her crying out in pain at the friction burn the rope was causing. She paused when she heard a low growl that sent a shiver down her spine, it sounded much bigger than a dog. She carried on, writhing both wrists against the rope, the soft, tanned skin of her wrists was now a burning, red mess. Any minute now she would break the skin and the blood would begin to seep through. She didn’t care, if it gave her enough moisture to pull her wrists free she would deal with the mess later. Friction burns were the least of her worries; a homicidal maniac was her main priority. She tried to remember the layout of the apartment. There was a kitchen, living area not too dissimilar to hers. The bedroom was off the kitchen. This was a top floor apartment, it would have to have a fire escape. If she could make it to the window and climb through, it would be okay. She had no weapon on her, but if she had to she would fight with her bare hands until she found something suitable to kill him with because he wasn’t getting away a second time. This time she would finish it for good. No more women were going to be killed in this apartment. A door closed from elsewhere in the apartment and she felt her heart skip a beat. If he was outside the bedroom who the fuck was inside?

  Chapter Forty-Four

  October 1952

  They watched from the window, their hands clasped in each other’s, as the police entered the house opposite, guns drawn. In turn every single light was flicked on as they searched each room. Emilia knew it was pointless, the cops would never find the thing that was hiding in there. It didn’t care about their guns or harsh language, they would come out of there scratching their heads and rolling their eyes at the two crazy broads who’d over-reacted to a noise. The house was lit up like a beacon, every window glowed brightly, casting out the shadows. Mr Smith was watching in fascination from the front step. Mrs Smith whispered, ‘As soon as the cops leave, I’ll take you both back over.’

  Emilia released a small cry and she felt the warmth of Mrs Smith’s arm as it wrapped itself around her.

  ‘I know you’re scared, but I can deal with this. I can send it back to the dark, depths of hell, but I need your help. So I need you to be brave, the cops will never find it in a million years. They won’t be looking for it, they’re looking for a man made of flesh and blood. Not a monster made of smoke and shadows.’

  Missy looked at the woman to see if she was teasing them and felt relieved to see her face was as serious as hers.

  ‘You can’t tell Mr Smith what is going on though. He will be mad and I don’t want to upset him. Father Morgan might help us, but don’t rely on it.’

  Emilia asked. ‘Who’s Father Morgan?’

  ‘The priest who came to visit you, they’re very good friends and normally I wouldn’t ask because the church is a pain in the ass when you need instant action. They have more pull than the Whitehouse, yet need everything in writing, so I’m not holding much hope. It might just be us girls.’

  The officers spewed out of the front door, faster than they went in. Their faces confused, they shut the door behind them and scrambled to get onto the sidewalk. As far away from the house as they could. Mrs Smith watched them and nodded. ‘Uhuh, something went down in that house, but I bet your bottom dollar they won’t spill.’ She left the two women and they watched as she marched down her steps to where the cops were standing. Emilia turned to look at Missy.

  ‘I’m scared.’

  ‘Me too, but we have to do what she tells us otherwise we won’t be able to live in the house and we can’t let it scare us away. That’s what it wants. Didn’t she say they live off fear? Well maybe it’s time we took a stand.’

  ‘You think so? You think that we can fight a monster made of smoke and shadows, Missy?’

  ‘Yes, I do. We have to.’

  They waited for Mrs Smith who was pointing her fingers at the chest of the cop in charge. It was Mr Smith who ran over and grabbed his wife’s arm, gently pulling her away. Missy watched them for a little while and then turned her full attention back to the house, all the while they had been arguing the lights had been turning off, one by one and the top two floors were all in blackness even though the house was empty. They went back inside to the safety of Mrs Smith’s house and waited for her to call the priest.

  When Mrs Smith entered the room, she had Father Morgan behind her, but there was no sign of Mr Smith.

  ‘Father tell these poor, terrified ladies what you told me?’

  He looked as if he wanted to be anywhere other than standing right here, he glared at Mrs Smith.

  ‘Well, I, um, I’m not sure that I can do anything to help tonight. I need to speak to the Archbishop, this isn’t something I can just go in and flush away.’

  ‘Basically, he’s saying he’s a coward and won’t do anything unless he’s been given permission.’

  ‘No, not at all. It’s just… you know Amanda that it isn’t that straightforward, there are certain protocols that have to be followed.’

  ‘For Christ’s sake Charlie, grow a set of balls and help these girls out will you? Look at their faces, how can you turn your back on them?’

  He shook his head. ‘I can’t help, you know that and neither should you.’

  ‘Right, well the least you can do is to keep Mr Smith entertained whilst I go and do it.’

  ‘Amanda, you promised no more.’

  ‘I did, until it happened on my own doorstep. Charlie, you might be afraid to break the rules, but sometimes they must be broken. I can’t ignore it and besides, I kind of feel as if it’s taunting us, taking up residence in the house across the street.’

  He shook his head and left them to it, Missy expected to see him leaving and walking down the street as fast as he could. He didn’t, instead she heard the muffled voices of him speaking to Mr Smith.

  Amanda turned to them. ‘I was wrong, we can’t wait until the morning. We must fight it now. Give me a few minutes, I need to call on all of my spirit guides to help me with this and it might take a little while for them to get here.’

  She sat down on a chair and closed her eyes, Emilia wondered if they were in a strange dream. She didn’t have a clue what a spirit guide was, but it sounded very important.

  When Amanda opened her eyes she nodded. ‘They’re here, all of them which is a relief and they agree with me. We can’t wait any longer, it needs to be brought over here, out of it’s hiding place to be sent back to hell. Once that’s done we will go to the house and seal the portal.’

  Missy looked at her. ‘What do you mean it needs to be brought here, how do you do that and isn’t it dangerous for you? What’s a portal?’

  ‘Well, I’m not going to lie. This is very dangerous, but I’m afraid it’s our only option. If Mr Smith knew what I was about to do he would probably divorce me, he would be that angry. I’m going to draw it in. It won’t be expecting a house full of guides and angels. That’s good though, we’ll have the element of surprise. A portal is a doorway between our world and another, in this case between our world and hell.’

  Emilia shook her head. ‘You can’t do that. What about you and Mr Smith? You’ll be putting yourselves at risk.’

  ‘Honey,
it won’t be the first time and it won’t be the last. Besides Mr Smith is oblivious to any of this, he’ll be watching that television set we paid an arm and a leg for. He plays along with me, but he thinks I’m a little bit crazy.’

  Missy wondered if the woman was nuts, but what choice did they have?

  She stood up, clasping hold of their hands. ‘Whatever you do, don’t break the circle, keep tight hold of each other’s hands.’ She began to pray. When she’d finished she went to the dresser and pulled open a drawer. She returned with two sets of rosary beads and placed a set over each of their heads.

  ‘Do you believe in God and all things good?’

  They both nodded.

  ‘Then we’re ready. Now this might be easy and it might go without a fight because sometimes they do. When they realize there is someone who isn’t going to let them through they cower and back down. Others, who are stubborn, will hang on for dear life. Are you both ready?’

  The horror which filled Emilia’s veins turning her body into a quivering wreck was too much to comprehend. What choice did they have? It was unlikely they would ever find another person so kind and brave to help them. She nodded. ‘Yes, I’m ready.’

  Mrs Smith smiled at her. ‘Demon, I command you to come to me. I know you can hear me, I’m sending a beacon of light for you to follow. I have the girls, they are waiting for you.’

  Panic filled Emilia as she tried to pull away from Amanda, she was offering them up to that monster.

  Amanda had such a tight grasp on her arm she couldn’t move. Looking at her, shaking her head she hissed. ‘Don’t break the circle.’

  Missy who had never been so scared closed her eyes, she didn’t know if Amanda was a crackpot. What if she really was offering them up? Her fingers, which had gone numb they were so cold, began to tingle as a warm feeling began to spread up them. It felt nice and as the heat spread up her arms and began to envelop her entire body she felt calmer than she had done in months. She opened one eye to peek at Emilia who had the same blissful expression on her face that she was sure if she looked in a mirror she would see reflected back at her. Amanda smiled and called out again.

  ‘Demon, you have been called. It is your duty to come out of the shadows. I command you to show yourself.’

  The light in the room began to dim, getting darker by the second and Missy’s heart began to beat faster. The air in the room was getting heavy, oppressive. A huge thump on the floor in front of Amanda made the floor shake. Missy looked around. She couldn’t see anything, but she could feel, hot, fetid breath on the back of her neck. The smell of rotting flesh was over-powering and her knees began to buckle.

  ‘Tell me your name, demon? I’ve invited you into my house so you have to tell me your name.’

  It growled, a sound so low and guttural that it made Emilia squeeze Missy’s hand so tight she thought it was going to fall off.

  ‘Are you shy, demon? You are not welcome into this house or the house you’ve just come from.’ Amanda paused. ‘Ah, I know you. I don’t need your name, I already know it.’

  The room was so dark that Missy could no longer see Emilia or Amanda even though they were standing inches from each other. There was a roar so loud that Missy’s instinct was to cover her ears, but Amanda wouldn’t let go of her hand and then a blinding, golden light filled the room. Clearing the darkness, it was so bright and warm it felt as if the sun had just risen inside the parlour. The feeling of love and warmth that enveloped them was enough to make Missy’s eyes fill with tears, it was so pure and beautiful. Amanda whispered.

  ‘Thank you all so much.’

  She let go of Missy’s hand and turned to Emilia. ‘You can open your eyes now. It’s gone. Back to hell. You’re safe.’

  Emilia stared at her. ‘How?’

  ‘I had a lot of help from some special friends. Now you have to go and seal the portal before it comes back.’

  ‘But, how do we seal the portal? I don’t understand.’

  Amanda gasped. ‘Oh my.’ As her hand reached for her chest, Missy managed to catch her as she collapsed into her arms. The weight of her was too heavy to bear and she began to fall towards the floor, doing her best to keep hold of Amanda who was dead before they hit the floor.

  This time Emilia began to scream so loud that it brought Mr Smith running from his room to see what had happened.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Frankie was pacing up and down the hallway. While the CSIs were working Maria’s flat, the elevator doors opened, and he saw the huge bunch of white roses before he saw who was holding them and knew it was Harrison Williams. He ran towards him, barrelling into his chest and crushing the roses. Harrison yelled as he was pushed back into the elevator. Frankie had his elbow pushed tight against his neck, choking him.

  ‘I swear to God if you’ve hurt her I’ll kill you with my bare hands. Where is she asshole? I’m giving you thirty seconds before I haul your ass in for kidnap.’

  Harrison’s face paled visibly as he tried to shake his head. Frankie moved his elbow so he could speak.

  ‘What are you talking about? Where is she? I haven’t seen her since this morning. My driver brought her here, I’ve been in meetings all day. Jesus Christ, I wouldn’t hurt her.’

  Frankie stepped back, the roses which were now a squashed mess of petals and leaves were all over the floor. He ran his hand through his hair.

  ‘I don’t know, she’s gone. There’s broken glass and blood in her apartment.’

  Harrison pushed Frankie out of the way and ran towards Maria’s apartment where he was greeted by an angry looking CSI.

  ‘Buddy, you can’t come in here it’s a crime scene.’

  ‘I need to see.’

  ‘No, you don’t. If you trample over my scene I’ll shoot you. If you care about Maria you’ll let us do our job. If you compromise any forensic evidence then you’re going to slow down any chance of us figuring out what happened.’

  Harrison’s shoulders sagged, he turned to Frankie. ‘What can I do? I have people I can contact. What do you need?’

  Frankie grabbed his arm. ‘How fast can you get a cell site analysis?’

  ‘I need to go to my office, I have a tech guy there. He knows how to do all sorts of stuff.’

  Frankie ran towards the elevator. ‘Come on then.’

  As Harrison ran towards the limousine Frankie shook his head. ‘No way, we’ll go in my car. That thing is way too slow.’

  Frankie ran towards his car, pressing the fob to unlock the doors. He threw himself in, Harrison followed suit.

  ‘Buckle up, this won’t be no fancy, slow ride.’

  Harrison tugged the belt across his shoulders and pushed it into the clasp. Frankie did a U-turn and sped off down the street to a symphony of blaring horns. Harrison pulled out his cell and began talking to his guy on the other end. When Frankie screeched to a halt outside the Manhattan Media Corporation he heard Harrison mutter ‘Thank Christ we’re here in one piece.’ They ran into the building and past security, but Harrison didn’t stop at the bank of public elevators, instead he ran towards a smaller set of doors at the end of the corridor and pressed his thumb against the keypad. Frankie watched in awe as the doors slid open to a much smaller, more intimate elevator. Harrison shrugged.

  ‘Private elevator, perks of the job. I haven’t got time to make small talk with everyone who works for me. Don’t get me wrong I do talk to them, just not first thing in the morning. I hate small talk at the best of times.’

  Frankie looked at the highly polished cherry wood and brass fittings and felt a grudging respect for the guy standing in front of him. Frankie didn’t do small talk either, except with Maria – he would talk about anything with her. A sharp pain tugged at his heart at the thought of her name. For a moment he’d forgotten about her. Now it was back, the churning stomach was on double time and he felt queasy. The ride up was smooth and fast, Frankie felt his ears pop and knew they were high. The doors opened into a large room filled with p
eople, computers and television screens. Nobody looked up from what they were doing, they knew better than to speak to their boss unless he spoke to them. It was how he liked it; this was where the behind-the-scenes magic happened. Frankie looked around then, realising Harrison was moving again, he followed him. Through a set of double doors to a smaller metal one, he pressed his thumb against another scanner which opened the door, it was a small office with almost as many computer screens as the huge one. This room had a kid who didn’t look any older than twenty typing away on a keyboard. His fingers were flying across the keys so fast Frankie got dizzy just watching him. He looked up at Harrison, his shaved head and Breaking Bad t-shirt made him look like an extra off Prison Break.