Dark Ends: A Horror Collection

by Sara Bourgeois

  “Not completely sure. I’ve heard rumors that it’s riot gear.” Susan said and quickly continued when she saw Sammy’s face go bleach white. “Don’t worry. It’s just a precaution. I seriously doubt we’ll ever need it.”

  Chapter Two

  John was asleep on the sofa when Samantha got home. He had to be at work at six in the morning but that never stopped him from trying to wait up for her. She would wake him up just enough to let him know that she’d made it home safely and then cover him with a blanket. It was their little ritual. Most of the time, Sammy grabbed two blankets and slept on the sofa adjacent to the one John occupied.

  They’d decided not to share a bed until they were married, but neither one of them really wanted to sleep in separate bedrooms anymore. The couch arrangement seemed as good a compromise as any other. Even on the nights, Sammy didn’t work, they typically fell asleep in the living room watching a movie.

  She wanted to wake him completely and share the news of her promotion but decided in the end that was unreasonable. Even though she had the day off tomorrow, he still had to work. Anyway, he’d be off by two, and they could have a celebratory lunch.

  Sammy wasn’t sure what she was more excited about. The promotion was a great step in her career, but the raise that accompanied it also meant that they could finally begin the renovations on Overwatch House.

  After grabbing a pillow from the hall closet, Sammy settled in on the sofa to sleep. Tut, the cat, jumped up moments later and nestled into the crook behind her legs. She laid on her side watching John sleep and lulled herself by attempting to match her breathing to his.

  In just a few minutes, her eyelids became heavy and started to close. She didn’t fight it. As Sammy drifted off, she heard the sound of agonized wailing in the back of her mind again. It started so softly that she thought it was the sound of the guinea pig making noises in the dining room, but it quickly grew to a deafening roar.

  Before the adrenaline rush could fully take effect, Sammy found herself completely paralyzed. She couldn’t move any part of her body except her eyes, but her heart beat so hard in her chest that she thought it would burst. Tut’s sleepy purring reached her ears, but Sam could no longer feel the cat pressed against the back of her thighs.

  Sleep paralysis.

  She remembered studying the phenomenon in one of her psych classes. Some people had claimed that they saw shadow people stalking them or aliens watching them as they lay helpless. Others had said that it was nothing more than the paralysis and that those claiming demonic or foreign presences were making it up for attention.

  Sammy comforted herself with the thought that those people were attention seeking. She told herself that the paralysis was the worst of it and that if she could just take a few deep breaths, it would pass.

  As she struggled to draw a deep breath against what felt like a boulder sitting on her breastbone, the shadows in the corner of the room caught her eye. At first, they flickered as if candlelight filled the room, but there were no candles. The sole source of light was what made its way into the living room through the dining room and hallway from the kitchen.

  The flickering turned into what appeared to be swirling, but terror seized Sammy’s chest as she realized it was more like dancing. The ragged, jagged shape of a tall, thin man danced its way out of the corner. At first, it just turned and stared at Sam from across the room.

  For what felt like hours he stood there as his gaze bore down into her. What struck her as particularly frightening was that the shadow man had no eyes, but she still knew it glared at her. She could feel the hatred sinking into her skin like acid.

  Then, it slowly moved toward her. Each step took minutes as the thing crept in slow motion without ever looking away from her paralyzed and completely exposed body.

  When it finally had made its way all the way to the sofa, the shadow creature crawled up onto the arm and perched there like a demonic cat lording over prey before going in for the kill. It reached one long, thin arm out toward Sammy’s face, and she could feel the breath being sucked out of her lungs.

  The pain was intense as her lungs shriveled without air. She felt her chest ripping but couldn’t scream. Darkness mercifully closed around her and Sammy’s vision went black as she slipped into complete unconsciousness.

  Sammy sat bolt upright so fast that she sent Tut scurrying off the couch and into the dining room. Morning light flooded through the curtains, and she sighed with relief. There was a note on the coffee table from John, and Sam quickly reached out to grab it. Her arm met resistance as she realized that the blanket covering her was plastered to her skin with sweat.

  She shoved the blanket off and felt goosebumps form on her bare arms as the morning chill hit her damp skin. With that, Sam was able to swipe the note off the table. She rubbed one eye with the back of her hand to clear her vision and stretched before bringing the small piece of pink paper back down to eye level.

  Take it easy today. You look like you had a rough night. I’ll bring home something to eat. Love you. – John

  She usually made a late lunch for the two of them when she had a day off, but it was thoughtful of him to offer take-out. Sammy was also thankful for the washer and dryer he’d installed upstairs in the spare room. She’d thought he was nuts at first, but John used the plumbing from the bathroom to turn the extra room into a laundry room. She gathered up the sweat-soaked blanket and cushion covers and hauled them upstairs.

  It wasn’t exactly taking it easy, but the last thing she wanted to do was let the dirty stuff go sour. Since she was home alone, she stripped her clothes off while she stood in front of the washing machine too.

  After grabbing a fresh pair of underwear and bra from the basket of folded laundry she hadn’t put away yet, Sammy went into the bathroom and turned on the shower so it would get hot while she retrieved a pair of jeans and t-shirt.

  The bathroom was full of steam when she got back, and as she closed the bathroom door behind her, Sammy’s heart about stopped. The mirror was already steamed up, and in the center, was a dripping handprint.

  She put her hand to her chest and felt the thunderous beating of her heart while trying to take calming breaths. Sammy chuckled to herself thinking that John had done it as a joke. He’d put his hand on the mirror that morning while he got ready for work so it would show up later when she took a shower.

  But, why would he think that was funny? After everything they’d been through already in this house, why would John believe that a joke like that was okay? It was then that she realized the handprint couldn’t be his. It was too small, and it had to be a woman’s hand.

  A wave of nausea hit her with the terror, but Sammy’s mind wouldn’t let her be scared. Her thoughts raced as her brain tried to find a way to rationalize what she was seeing.

  “I must have put my hand on it without thinking about it.” She said aloud to no one but herself and maybe the cat.

  That thought was sufficient enough to stem the panic attack. Despite having a logical explanation for the handprint, Sammy couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was behind her, watching her every move, for the entirety of her shower.

  When John came home from work that day, Sammy could smell the take-out from upstairs as soon as she heard the front door close. John had stopped at her favorite restaurant. The scent of homemade chicken noodle soup reached her nose as her fiancé walked toward the kitchen where she was finishing up with washing the dishes.

  "Did you get a large soup? Please tell me you got the big soup." She said as she placed the last fork in the drying rack.

  "I did even better than that," John said, and Sammy could hear the smile in his voice. "Not only did I get you a large soup, but I also got you a turkey and bacon club."

  "Anything else?" Sammy asked with a raised eyebrow.

  "One oatmeal raisin cookie and, I also got you an extra soup so you can heat it up tomorrow. Well, that's assuming you don't eat them both right now." John teased.

&
nbsp; "You better watch yourself, mister." Sammy crossed the kitchen and pulled John into her embrace. "Thank you. Oh, and it's good that you got my favorites because we do have something to celebrate."

  "Oh yeah. What's that?" John said as he set the soup containers and sandwiches up on the kitchen table.

  "I got promoted at work." She said with a huge, beaming smile plastered across her face.

  Sammy had been apprehensive about the promotion up until that moment. When she told John about it, though, she realized how excited and proud she really was.

  "Really?" John said excitedly. "That's so awesome. So, you got the RN position?"

  "It's even better than that. John, they're making me the charge nurse for the second shift on the new wing."

  "Oh, wow. That's amazing." He said and pulled her in for a long kiss.

  "It's even better than I was hoping for." She said when they parted.

  "I'm so proud of you."

  "We should celebrate with a trip to Home Depot," Sammy said.

  "Can we? That would be totally awesome." John's face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning.

  The parking lot was practically empty when they arrived. John pulled into a space far away from the building even though most of the spots close to the doors were still open. Sammy liked to make sure she got plenty of walking in, so she prided herself on sneaking it in whenever she could. If he even tried to park close, John knew she'd protest. And, he knew she was right, so he'd stopped arguing about it long ago.

  They walked up to the doors hand in hand with the future possibilities buzzing between them. After the pair had decided to buy the house on Overwatch, they'd both had their doubts about the decision. After everything that had happened there, Sammy and John had to wonder if they were trauma-bonded with the house.

  Now, the realization that they had made the right decisions all along was sinking into their hearts and minds. Every step had led them to that moment, and it felt good.

  The automatic doors opened, and cool air rushed out. "Let's do this," John said with unwavering excitement.

  Sammy grabbed a cart, and they headed to the bathroom fixtures. John wanted to redo the upstairs bathroom, and once they’d knocked down the wall dividing the house, he’d also remodel the bathroom on the other side.

  John had spent a lot of time in this store because of his work. Usually, the company he worked for sourced their materials from a wholesaler, but sometimes they needed an item fast. Or there was a particular fixture a client had found while shopping that was only available at Home Depot. In those instances, he or one of the other guys would come in here and make a purchase.

  He’d been in the bathroom section numerous times and had most of the sinks and faucets memorized. Above the sink and faucet display was a giant wall of mirrors that extended from the top of the highest sink to the ceiling. Each mirror had a number next to it so that you could tell the sales clerk which one you wanted and they’d retrieve it from the back of the store.

  It had never bothered him before, but for some reason, as he stood there staring up at the ocean of reflections, he could swear he saw someone other than Sammy standing just behind him. Normally, in a large store like Home Depot that wouldn’t be strange, but this woman was right behind him.

  He whirled around, and there was no one there. John sucked in a deep breath, and then looked back up at the mirrors. He was able to convince himself in moments that it had just been a trick of the light caused by the mirrors and the boxes of plumbing fixtures on the other side of the aisle.

  About the time he was going to begin laughing at himself, Sammy came around the corner pushing a cart. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Sammy chuckled when she saw John’s stricken face.

  He didn’t know what to say. Sammy had taken the whole haunted house thing in much better stride than he had. When John had first agreed to buy the duplex and renovate it, he’d convinced himself that it would be okay. But just then, he realized that his anxiety increased every day.

  Why was he so jumpy in a Home Depot? It didn’t matter. The house was what Sammy wanted, so John pushed those feelings down and told himself that it was stress from work getting to him.

  Chapter Three

  The renovations got underway as John and Sammy spent their free time tearing down the wall that split the Overwatch house into two parts. While the couple was hopeful that the final results would be amazing, they had to admit that their home had turned into a disaster zone.

  John had done his best to clean up after the demolition work, but Sammy could see, and feel, that dust had worked its way into every crevice of the house. In between helping him haul chunks of plaster and wood out to the dumpster they'd rented, she scurried around the house in a vain attempt to keep the ever-present layer of dust from growing a life of its own.

  There was one small section of the wall that still needed to be knocked down, and Sammy begged John to let her have a go at it. She'd been watching him swing the sledgehammer and do all of what she perceived as the fun parts of the demolition on his own.

  Confident that she'd be able to knock down the plaster and desperately craving the satisfying crunch of the sledgehammer, Sammy put her hands on her hips and gave John her best death glare.

  “You’re going to make my life miserable if I don’t let you do this, aren’t you?” John asked.

  “You betcha. Also, I feel like we need to have a discussion. Like, I’m not sure that I should have to ask for your permission to do this.” Sammy responded.

  “I’m just trying to protect you.” He said sheepishly. “Besides, you can’t deny that you can be a bit clumsy.”

  “You’re going to wish I was just clumsy when I’m through with you,” Sammy said playfully.

  “Fine. In the interest of living to finish this project, I’ll give you the sledgehammer.” John said and handed it over.

  Sammy took a few swings at the plaster, impressing John with her strength. She loved the feeling of demolishing the wall and briefly wondered if she’d gone into the wrong line of work.

  “I like this.” She said before she took another swing. “Maybe I’ll come work with you.”

  “You’re stronger than I thought,” John said with a chuckle.

  “Nursing is hard work.”

  The wall needed one last whack to come down completely, but this time when Sammy hit it, something crashed above their heads in the attic.

  “What was that?” Sammy asked and quickly handed the sledgehammer back to John.

  "It sounds like you broke something in the attic. Maybe I shouldn't have given you the sledgehammer. I didn't realize you were going to hulk smash the house." John teased her.

  "Should we go up and check it out?" Sammy asked with loud swallow.

  "Yeah, we should probably make sure you didn't do any permanent damage. I'm sure something just fell over. I've meant to go up there and sort through all of that stuff." John said. "You don't have to come with me."

  "I'll go," Sammy said with a smile. "I've wanted to do a little exploring up there, but I was too big of a scaredy-cat to go without you."

  "I don't blame you for that," John said.

  "Let's not talk about it. We'll just freak ourselves out."

  The attic stairs creaked loudly with every step. It gave the impression that someone was following John and Sammy up the stairs. She kept casting glances over her shoulder, but there was never anything there.

  Sammy breathed a sigh of relief when the lights came on after John hit the switch. The attic was a large open space, but in some places, it felt cramped because there were large stacks of items in random places.

  "You okay if we split up and look around?" John asked.

  "Yeah, as long as you stay up here," Sammy replied. "Why, are you scared?"

  "I'm going that way," John said and pointed to Sammy's left. "You go the other way and just call out if you need me. Or, if you happen to find the source of the crash.”

  "You got it, dude," Sammy
responded and then wandered into the maze of boxes and furniture.

  She did note to herself that John had chosen the side of the attic with less stuff piled up, but perhaps he'd heard the crash better than her. Maybe he knew that the loud noise had come from that side of the space.

  Immediately after the demon was expelled from the house, Sammy had thought she'd be okay. The air felt clear, and nothing seemed amiss in the house. It wasn't until later that Sammy realized she'd been on an adrenaline high.

  Shortly after they'd purchased the house, Sammy's elevated mood crashed. Sometimes she felt sad, and she'd developed a distrust of people around her. It wasn't something Sammy admitted to anyone. John always talked about how strong she was and how in awe he was of how she'd handled things. Sam couldn't bring herself to confess that she'd been struggling.

  Something at the end of the attic near the single window caught her attention. Sitting on top of an old steamer trunk and propped up against the wall was a large mirror in an ornate wooden frame.

  Sammy got closer and ran her fingertips over the dark wood. Her heartbeat picked up a little, and she couldn't tell if it was from fear or excitement. It was strange that something like a mirror, as beautiful as it was, would elicit such a reaction.

  "It's magnificent." She said to herself.

  "What's that?" John called from the other side of the attic. "I couldn't hear you."

  "Come here and look at this," Sammy called back loud enough for him to hear.

  "Did you find what you broke?"

  "No, it's something else. Something I think we can use in the house." Sammy said cheerfully.

  John made his way over to where Sammy stood. He noted that just beyond the object that had transfixed her was a pile of boxes that had fallen over. It was most likely what had caused the ruckus, but Sam had been derailed in her mission by the ornate mirror.

  He let his eyes linger over the overwrought frame, not exactly sure why Sammy liked it so much, or why she thought it would be a great addition to their home. They didn't have a particular theme per se in their house, but it certainly didn't mesh well with a huge antique mirror that looked like it belonged in a long-abandoned castle.