“Eloise, what are you doing here?” Amelia followed her from the kitchen. She glanced up at Sean as he descended, her expression worried. “Shouldn’t you be… safe at home?”
“I can’t forget. Don’t let me forget,” Eloise said, and took Amelia’s hands.
“Forget what?” Amelia asked.
“How did you get here?” Sean scratched his ginger stubble.
“I fixed the bedroom lock so the bolt didn’t find its way home. Harold thought I was having one of my episodes, and didn’t pay enough attention. Plus, he had that silly woman with him. He doesn’t notice much when she’s about.”
Amelia and Sean exchanged worried glances.
“Extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures,” she continued. “I smashed a window and made my escape. And now I need your help.”
“Escape? But why?” Amelia asked.
“I saw something, earlier on…” Eloise released the other woman’s hands and cradled her head. “I had to remember something important, so, so important.”
“Be calm,” Sean said. “What was it about – Harold? Tonight? Do you know what’s going to happen at midnight?”
Eloise’s eyes widened as the fog in her brain parted, and the image of the peacock girl strutting down the yard came to mind.
“There’s an extra person in the cottage.”
Amelia gasped. Sean sat heavily on the stairs.
“There’s another thing. The girl is pregnant – heavily so. I heard Kellie tell Harold she thinks the girl is due soon, any day now.”
“But… how?” Sean ran his fingers through his hair. “We’re always so careful – how did this happen? Was it Pete? Is he to blame?”
“I don’t know. I think she arrived a few hours after Pete brought the man here. I was watching the sun set…” Eloise grabbed Amelia. “What should we do?”
“There’s only one thing to do,” Amelia said, and made for the stairs. “I’ll get changed.”
“Why? What…” Eloise tried to hold onto Amelia as she clambered past Sean.
“Sean, you go and distract Harold. Eloise and I are going to rescue the girl.”
“Shouldn’t I be the knight in shining armor, rescuing the damsel in distress?” he asked.
“She’s a pregnant girl, you silly oaf. And certainly no virgin.” Amelia checked her watch. “Now hurry up. There’s less than ten minutes until midnight.”
Sean parted from Eloise and Amelia at the back door. The women ran out to the woods, Amelia taking Eloise by the hand to hurry her. Sean marched back across the lawn. He glanced back before rounding to the front of Harold’s house. The women were completely hidden within the shadows, hopefully moving fast through the undergrowth. He gave a silent prayer for them and their mission before walking up to the door.
He took a deep breath, then slammed the knocker down three times.
“Harold, Kellie,” Sean said, opened the door and strode straight into the house. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, letting a pregnant woman be sacrificed?” he said, slamming the door shut. The house was quiet, empty. Sean set off to search for them.
Amelia dropped Eloise’s hand, and grabbed her by the arm instead. “Come on.” She checked the lawns before breaking from the cover of the trees. “We’re not going to make it,” Amelia said, and pulled Eloise into the open.
“Hope will save us,” Eloise said.
“Stop talking nonsense and move your feet!” Amelia ran faster. “We’re going to be late. My watch says it’s almost midnight. For heaven’s sake, move faster, woman!”
The pair jogged across the lawns, around the rear of Sulham Farm, and up to the back of the cottage. All the lights were out. Amelia ran towards the bedroom window, the older woman somehow getting ahead in the last moment.
Eloise tapped on the glass.
“Only four minutes left,” Amelia said. “This is no time to be tickling the window, for heaven’s sake, knock properly!” She elbowed the Eloise out of the way, and banged three times.
Inside the cottage, the women heard a loud thud, followed by a man swearing.
“I think that worked,” Amelia said, and rapped again.
“Three minutes to go,” Eloise said. “The peacock girl is going away soon. Need to hurry if we are to have hope.”
“What the hell is wrong with you people?” Mark shouted as he threw the curtains open.
“You need to leave, now!” Amelia shouted and bashed on the glass.
“No, you need to leave. Get the hell away from us!”
Behind Mark, Louisa sat up on the bed, the t-shirt she wore tight around her stomach, her brown and purple hair tied back into a ponytail. “What on earth is going on now?” she asked.
“Open the front door, and run. You’ve got to get out. Now!” Amelia shrieked. Seconds were ticking by.
“In less than three minutes, you and your peacock girl are both going to die,” Eloise said. “Save your lady. Send her outside.”
“You people are all insane!” Mark gave both women a confused, almost disgusted look, and re-drew the curtains.
“What do you think, Mark, should we listen to them? What if they’ve discovered the body? What if Pete is really insane, and they found out and they figure he’ll kill us for it?” Louisa’s muffled voice filtered through the window. “Did you see the expressions on their faces? Especially the old one. They know, Mark. They know about the body!”
“We’re going to run?” There was a pause. “You’re going to run? And where exactly are we going to go at this time of the night – and in the middle of the fucking woods?” Mark shouted.
“I’m sorry, none of this is my fault.” Louisa’s voice now barely audible.
“Get back to bed, I need to think.”
“There’re people surrounding the house and you want me to go back to bed? Are you insane? Talk to them, for God’s sake.”
“At midnight, this cottage will fill with the ellyllon, and they will take you!” Eloise shouted through the glass. “Amelia, do something, make them listen!”
“Go away!” Mark shouted.
Amelia glanced at her watch. Not long, the creatures would be here soon. “One minute!” she called out in a shrill voice.
Inside, someone paced up and down.
“You’ll all die!” Eloise banged on the glass with both fists. “Please, you must leave!”
The curtains were yanked open a second time. Mark loomed over them, his cheeks red with anger, his brow furrowed. He flicked the lock on the sash, and jerked the window pane up.
“What is wrong with you people?” he spat the words at them. “Is it because we’re homeless, because we’re dirty and drunks?” He stared at Amelia and then Eloise.
“No. We want to save you.” Amelia said.
“Because this elli…?”
“Ellyllon,” Amelia repeated.
Mark let out a low roar. “Because some creatures I’ve never heard of are going to ‘take me’.” He laughed. “Fuck off.” He threw the sash down again, hard enough to rattle the glass.
“Maybe we should listen to them,” a tone of desperation had entered Louisa’s voice. “What about the scratching in the cupboard?”
“What? You as well? Believing in bogey men?”
“Please leave!” Amelia shouted through the glass.
“Surprise, ladies.” A male voice spoke out behind the women.
Eloise bashed on the window. Amelia spun around, the blood draining from her face.
“Pete,” she whispered.
“You know what time it is?” he asked. A smile grew on his face, his eyes narrowed into slits. “Midnight.”
Louisa grabbed the duvet around her, and watched through the window as the old woman tried to dodge around Pete. He grabbed the hem of her shirt, and she tumbled up against the younger woman.
“Where do you think you’re going, Eloise?” he asked, and shoved her against the wall and out of view.
The younger woman feigned to go left but made fo
r the right, neatly avoiding Pete.
“Amelia!” he yelled. Pete checked his watch. “You know what, go on. Go. And you too, Eloise. It’s too late to do anything now.”
The old woman passed in front of the window, briefly glancing in before disappearing out of sight once more.
“Powerless!” Pete shouted. “Go on, run!” he yelled. “You’re too late, they’re coming.” He turned from them and pressed his face against the glass. The frustration at losing the women forgotten, his frown lines softened as a smile grew. His eyes wide, wild – Pete stared into the bedroom at Louisa.
“Close the curtains!” Louisa shouted, waving her hands at Mark. He took a step towards the window then stopped as someone banged on the front door.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Whoever it was wasn’t going to stop any time soon.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Go get the door,” Mark said.
Louisa climbed off the bed, looking back at Mark before leaving the room. He took another step, but stopped again. Distinct scratching noises were coming from the cupboard. He cocked his head, listening to the sounds, his hand outstretched, ready to open it up. Beyond the window, a shadow could be seen beyond the curtain: Pete, and he was practically jumping up and down.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The banging at the door was getting louder, the scratching from the cupboard more persistent. Pete started chanting, “Yes! Yes! Yes!” as Mark’s hand got closer to the handle.
“Stop!” Louisa yelled.
Mark lowered his arm. “Something’s in there,” he said in a quiet voice.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Open up!” one of the women shouted. “Let us in!”
Louisa turned and left the room, one steadying hand on her belly. She opened the door. The woman Pete had called Amelia stood on the path. Behind her the older woman, Eloise, paced up and down. She hung her head, focusing on the ground in front of her feet, muttering about hope.
“Too late, too late,” Eloise, pacing, pacing.
“It might not be. Please, come outside,” Amelia said. She peered into the doorway, not crossing the threshold. Maybe she heard the scratching as well, as the woman took a deliberate step backwards.
“What is going on?” Louisa said, and searched Amelia’s face for answers. She thought about asking if this was about the body. Instead she called for Mark.
She’d left the bedroom door wide open. Mark suddenly appeared in the doorway, his face had gone white.
“Something’s trapped in the cupboard,” he said.
“Come on!” Amelia yelled for Louisa’s attention, made to grab at her arm, but seemed unable to bring herself to cross the threshold, even with just her hand.
“I can hear scratching,” Mark said. He disappeared from view. “There’s something in here…”
“Don’t open the door!” Amelia shrieked. “Get out of there now!”
“What the hell?” Mark appeared in the doorway once more, this time as he backed away from the cupboard.
The sounds had increased. Louisa heard distinct scraping, followed by a couple of small bangs.
“The handle’s moving.” Mark glanced at Louisa. “What the hell is going on?”
“Why are you just bloody standing there?” Louisa waved for him, “Come on, come on, come on!” Louisa held out a hand for him, refusing to move closer.
Eloise was still pacing up and down the garden path. The old woman’s chattering had increased in volume to almost a shout, “Too late! Too late!”
Amelia’s hands had dropped to her sides, her face expressionless. Quietly, she repeated over and over, “They’re here, they’re here, they’re here.”
Louisa covered her ears, spinning wildly towards the bedroom. “Mark!” she screamed.
Mark seemed frozen to the spot, almost into the hall, his eyes fixed on the corner of the room where the cupboard was located.
“Something’s coming out,” he said, his voice small, almost apologetic. And still, he didn’t come to her.
“Get out!” Eloise screamed from the end of the pathway. Her incessant pacing stopped, she looked about to run off.
The heaviness in Louisa’s feet, the lead weights keeping her stuck to the same spot in the hallway, finally shifted, and she moved towards the front door. Halfway over the threshold, she glanced back.
Something small darted into view from the direction of the cupboard, and launched into the air.
Mark staggered back, his mouth open, a strange gurgling shout escaping as the thing landed on his arm. The beast was cat-sized and covered in shaggy brown fur. Sharp elfish ears poked out of the fluff, the thin flesh nicked and scarred. Oversized hands with claws for nails grabbed onto Mark’s forearm. For a second, the creature turned to face Louisa. And smiled. Slowly it opened its mouth, revealing rows of white pointed teeth before it bit down.
Mark shrieked, shook his arm and smashed the animal against the wall.
“Get it off!” he yelled, and stumbled out of the bedroom. The creature was still attached. Blood dribbled out of the corners of its mouth. The bright green eyes of the beast gave the impression of a grin, and even from where Louisa stood, half out of the cottage, the sound of its swallowing was clear.
“The ellyllon are here,” Eloise said.
Mark bashed his arm against the hall wall repeatedly and the animal loosened its grip, and fell to the floor.
“Crush it!” Louisa shrieked, and cowered against Amelia. Mark glanced at her, a wave of confusion passing over his face. The creature rolled over and jumped back onto its feet. Without pausing for breath, Mark kicked the beast back down. He lifted a bare foot and placed his sole on the side of its head. Louisa saw him brace, and then press down. A sickly crunching sound filled the air, and the ellyllon’s head flattened. Blood squirted out across the floor and between Mark’s toes.
“Oh God,” Mark said. He held his wounded arm with his other hand, and staggered towards the front door.
“Mark,” Louisa shrieked, and jabbed a finger towards the bedroom.
A second creature appeared. This one bounded into the air and landed on his thigh and sank its teeth into his flesh. Mark howled, and lurched towards the women. Two more ellyllon appeared in the doorway. Their round faces gave them a feline appearance. But they stood like miniature men. Both grinned before they darted towards Mark, their mouths open and filled with an insane amount of pointed teeth.
“Help me.” Mark turned away from the ellyllon, hunching his shoulders, but the creatures latched onto his back, little bubbles of blood spraying out where they tore through his shirt. Louisa backed away, as a fourth ellyllon came into view and jumped up onto Mark’s chest.
Mark threw himself against the wall, smashing back three times until one of the creatures fell off. Its body twitched, and then stilled. Blood dribbled from the side of its mouth.
“Get them off!” Louisa shrieked. She grabbed an umbrella from a container beside the front door, and took a swing. The end connected with the ellyllon on his front, it flew through the air, smashed into the wall and slid to the ground. Mark bashed against the wall again. The last ellyllon squealed and fell off.
“Come on,” Mark wobbled on his feet for a second. Blood was pouring from his wounds, and he held onto the flesh on his chest. More blood gushed out between his fingers.
“Oh my God.” Louisa backed away from her man. “Run, Mark!” she yelled, and fled from the cottage.
Behind Mark, five more ellyllon had gathered, their wide faces drawn into manic grins. Their eyes gleamed in the half light, like cat’s eyes. If Louisa forgot the lower half of their bodies, she could almost believe they were cats, their ears drawn back in a silent hiss. The last thing she saw as she tripped onto the garden path was all five creatures as they launched themselves past the bedroom door.
Mark screamed, and staggered back into the hall. “Run!” He bounced against the wall and fell to the ground. One creature dropped off, but four more appeared in the doo
rway launching into the air as they caught sight of him.
“RUN!”
Chapter 11
“Eloise!” Amelia shouted. Just as one of the ellyllon hissed in her direction, she reached in and pulled the door closed with a slam. “Eloise take the girl.” She pushed Louisa up the garden path. For a second, she dared to put her ear to the door and listen.
There was thud, then a squelchy sound followed by a wet splat against the glass panel. Amelia jumped back. Red streaks dribbled over the bumps and bubbles of the opaque glass. Mark screamed a blood-curdling scream and she tripped backwards, landing hard on the gravely path.
My God, what have we done, she thought, and scrambled to her feet.
Halfway down the yard she made out the dark shape of Eloise kneeling beside a shadowy bundle on the road. Louisa had collapsed, her arms wrapped around her belly. The girl panted hard, turning her head as Amelia approached, her eyes wide and scared.
And all the while, Mark screamed solidly. No breaks. No stopping for breath. A continuous scream of death.
“What’s happening to Mark?” Tears flooded down her face. “Someone needs to save him!” She gasped as pain coursed through her. She caught her breath and said, “I need to go back and help him, let me go back!”
“We need to get you away from here.” Amelia turned to Eloise. “Help me get her to my house.”
“He needs help,” Eloise said. She let go of the girl and turned towards the cottage.
“The shock’s kick-started your labor.” Amelia knelt beside the girl and grabbed her by the arm and tried to pull her up.
“My baby,” Louisa said in a small whimpering voice.
“We’ve got to get her away from here,” Amelia said, and glanced back over her shoulder. “Could be a chance…” her voice faded, but her attention remained on the cottage.
“He’s going to die,” Eloise said. The old lady backed into the darkness, her hands clamped on the sides of her face. Maybe there was a shriek inside, ready to come out. “Why does he keep screaming?”
“Sacrifice night.” Amelia grabbed the girl’s arm again. “Eloise.” Her tone was sharp. “Get back here and help me.”
Eloise cautiously returned, her hands moved around to her ears, her wide eyes on the cottage. Mark’s screaming reached a crescendo, the cries coming in pumped bursts as he tried to catch his breath. Shouldn’t be too much longer now, Amelia thought.
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