by Dixon Lee
Chapter 8
Stephanie Clifford
Yes, the demon - or whatever it was, was without a doubt, Lillian White. It all suddenly made so much sense. That was why Tony had wanted me to leave his apartment, because he probably came to the same conclusion I did, about the vase. He didn’t want me knowing because he knew that I wouldn’t approve of the two of them meeting. That’s also what had happened to him while he was asleep, she was manipulating his mind and attempting to kill him. Oh my god, that hole in his chest! That was her… And at the store, when he was flirting with her, that was because of her ability to beguile. It was all beginning to add up in her mind, and the more pieces that came together, the more frightened she became. If she had done all of these things, then she had to know that one of us would figure her out, which means…
The door leading into the stock room creaked opened at that very moment, the sound of which, caused Stephanie to jump out of her skin. She whirled around, praying to see the shop keeper, but was instead met by someone much graver, but expected. Lillian walked into the room, she was beginning to look even more horrendous than she previously had. Her pores were leaking with something yellow-ish and her eyes, which were laying on Stephanie, had sunken in further into her head.
It took all of her will and might to not run out of the store, but she knew that she was Tony’s only hope of living and she refused to let him down.
“So you found that book,” Lillian spoke, sounding oddly normal for someone who knew that the person standing in front of her knew the truth about who she really was.
“Yeah, I did and I know everything about you.”
“Good, then that means you know that I cannot be stopped or killed, that I am on a whole other level of power compared to you, a mere mortal. I can control your mind with ease, or maybe I can even deliver you to the same hell your dear boyfriend is currently trapped in. I think that would be fun, I could bring you there and kill you in front of his very eyes. I believe that it would utterly crush him, which is saying something considering he’s already begging for death. I’ve done this to thousands of people but none have given up hope as quickly as he has. I do believe that he simply just wants to die, and I will have the honor of granting him his wish.”
Stephanie stood, facing her, shocked. She had known that Tony struggled with feelings of low self-worth, but she could never have guessed he could be this bad. What the hell has she done to him in there?
“Leave him alone, he never did anything to hurt you.”
“Maybe not, but neither did anyone else who I’ve had the pleasure of consuming over the years. A girl’s got to eat, after all.”
“You’re sick,” Stephanie spat, which drew a chuckle out of her enemy.
“Oh honey, you know nothing of what’s sick and twisted, but I promise you that you will soon.”
“Please just let Tony go, we’ll leave you alone. I’m sure you can find someone else to eat, but I need him…”
“As adorable as that is, I don’t think I will. However, if you truly need him and can’t live without him, then I guess I’ll just have to kill you too. Problem solved.”
That was when Stephanie fully realized that Lillian was never going to let Tony go, and now she was going to take her life, as well. She had a choice to make - two options, both equally traumatizing and horrible. On one hand, she could try to save him by taking on this demon, and pray that her plan works, while on the other she could simply leave. If she turned around and ran out of the shop, then she could disappear. Neither she nor Tony had any family nearby, so she could change her name, move, and never be found again. The thing was, her retreat meant sure and painful death for who she believed to be the love of her life, and could she really forgive herself for that? She didn’t think so - it would follow her around, forever, lurking in the shadows. Yes, she had two choices which boiled down to her death or his death, which one would she possibly have enough guts to choose? Her heart was beating fast in her chest, as she watched Lillian begin to change her shape in front of her eyes. It’s her feeding form. Whichever she decided on, had to be made then as time was running out. She bit down hard on her lip, drawing out hot, sticky blood. How am I supposed to choose? She sighed and cursed herself out because deep inside she knew that she truly only had one real option. I love you, Tony, never forget that. With those final thoughts, she took a small step forward, rolled up her sleeves, and prepared to fight the beast.
Chapter 9
Tony Preciado
Once again, he awoke in a new location. Consciousness arrived gradually, but as soon as it did he found himself rushing to make sure that all of his body parts were still attached - which they were. Thankfully. However, a small part of him wished that where he had come from had been the end of this nightmare. That small part of him was beginning to grow, and he knew that he wished he was dead, even if it was only a little bit. His eyes were foggy, but they soon cleared to reveal to him his surroundings. The air was dark and musty, and the only light came from a tiny barred up window on the other side of the room. At this point, he didn’t even bother teasing himself with the fiction that he was awake - he wasn’t.
He crawled over on all fours to the window. The blaring light blinded him while his eyes tried to adjust so that he could see the outside world, but once they had, he almost wished that they hadn’t. Through the glass he could see himself, but not this version of himself. No, this was the real him, the one that lived and existed in the actual world - not this fake one created in his subconsciousness. He was laying on a hospital bed in a painfully empty room, there were no flowers or pictures on the walls, there was absolutely nothing. But, then again, who was he to complain about the lack of decor if he was the one in the coma? How did I get into the coma in the first place?
He pondered these questions for a short while before all of the memories came flooding back to him as if a floodgate in his mind had been opened. The vase! The dream with the stringy creature, who left a hole in my chest! The way I acted to Stephanie just after (no wonder my brain portrayed her in such a way)! Lillian at the antique shop, wait, no… she was there when I went into a coma. She was there when I got hit by that car! Was she the one responsible? Or was she the one who called the ambulance? Either way, there’s definitely something wrong there.
That was when something on the other side of the window caught his eye: on his forehead was a long jagged scar, stretching from one side to the other. That must be from when I was forced to slit my head and wrists… but does that mean? It had to. Underneath the blanket which concealed his hands, he was missing a finger. That cut in his chest was still there and everything that he had went through while stuck in this coma was very much real, whether he fully remembered it or not.
The picture in the window was beginning to get blurrier until he could no longer see himself through it. Instead, a new image was forming, on that sent shivers down his spine. He could see Stephanie, presumably the real Stephanie, preparing to face off against what looked like Lillian. The pair exchanged words, but he was unable to hear them from where he was trapped. None of what was going on made any sort of sense in his mind. Why is Stephanie with Lillian? Did she find out that she had something to do with the accident?
He doubted that this was the case, although he was unsure why but his skepticism was soon proven to be accurate. Tony continued to watch from the window as the two seemingly got ready to fight each other, that was when he noticed something strange about Lillian. She was slowly transforming, much like dream Stephanie previously had, into a demon-like being. Am I watching another version of a dream?
He prayed for that simple thought to be true, but he was smart enough not to believe it was. From where he sat, in what appeared to be a dirty attic, he had to watch his girlfriend battle against a being who he was beginning to understand was far more than she had originally let on and there was nothing that he could do to save her. That image didn’t stay long, however, and the last thing he saw was them exchanging
last words before the window went black. He waited a couple of minutes for another picture to appear, but a noise behind him drove away his attention from it.
It sounded like the quick suttle of feet on the creaking wooden floorboards, and since there was almost always a threat, he decided that it would be better to be safe than sorry. His eyes scanned through the darkness of the room, and dread was creeping its way up to his body and into his mind. He wasn’t alone.
Tony stood up, as much as he could in such a short space, and began making his way around the attic, looking for anything out of place and the instructions. But, something about this time felt different, maybe even wrong. Yes, something about this world felt utterly and completely wrong and it wasn’t until he had made it all the way to the back wall that he realized what it was.
Etched into the thin wood paneling, with what appeared to be blood (whether it was his or some other beings, he wasn’t sure), was one single word. One word. Three letters. Die. There was no other option, no way out, just a single ominous warning of what was to come - what was planned for him. He had played the game long enough and whoever was on the outside controlling it, had grown bored and was ready to simply do away with him. This meant that this was the very last dream world he had to endure, and then it would all be over. Thank god for that. Tony decided then and there that death didn’t so all that bad, compared to what he had just ‘lived’ through, although mutilating himself just to die anyway was kind of discouraging. However, if he was supposed to die here that meant he wasn’t alone and that dreadful feeling quickly returned. It didn’t matter how prepared he was for death, the thought of his body taking on even more pain was unbearable and he wanted to be prepared for it, so he once again started wandering around.
After some time he began to foolishly believe that he was alone, and he carried this fantasy until he saw her. She was draped in shadows, but her two large, round, blue eyes shone through the dimness. This girl took a step forward into the light allowing him to see her better. She wore a smile on her plastic face and her air was neatly tied back in two pigtails. She was no more than two feet tall, yet wielded a knife in her left hand. The knife was covered in dripping, gooey blood. As soon as he laid eyes on it, horrible images from his childhood flashed back to him - his sister had a similar doll and she was carrying it when she was hit by that car. Ever since that day, he purposefully stayed away from girlish aisles in stores, because they brought back memories that were still all too raw. So seeing the exact same doll - covered in blood from head to toe was a little more than just traumatizing for him.
“Do I remind you of anyone, Tony?” it asked in its creaking voice, the same one that he remembered from all those years ago.
“Why are you doing this to me? If you want to kill me then just do it, but not this. Do anything but this…” he cried out in tears, fighting back the current that was begging to be let out.
“You see her when you look at me, don’t you? What does she look like? Do you see what happened on that day? It doesn’t feel so long ago, now does it, Tony? All you had to do was watch her while she played around outside, but you still managed to get distracted and she paid the price. Do you remember what it felt like, to look up from what you were doing and see her like that? Her face was smooshed into the pavement and red was trickling out of her broken nose. I remember because I was with her. She clutched onto me as that car sped right through her, not even bothering to stop after the crime had been committed.
I had to watch as her short life was stolen from her body and there was nothing I could do to save her, because, after all, I am just a doll. However, you, on the other hand, could have done something, you had so many different options to choose between, yet she still ended up dead. Do you still blame yourself, Tony? Because you should, everyone else does - it was all your fault. It used to keep you up at night, but does it still do that or have you finally moved on? You have a hot girlfriend now, after all, can’t have her seeing you wet the bed in a panic attack, but do you really believe you deserve love? Do you really believe that you deserve to live a life? Your sister didn’t get to live out hers, so why should you? You asked why I was doing this to you, Tony? It’s because you’re guilty and it’s time you paid your sentence.”
“I know you’re not real, so get the hell out of my head,” he snarled in return, body shaking.
“What a smart boy you are, truth is, you’re not special. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time and we just so happened to cross paths.”
“What are you talking about, we’ve never met.”
“But my dear, we have. Don’t you remember?”
He thought it over before settling on a realization that shook him to his very core.
“You’re not…”
“Oh, but I am.”
“Lillian?”
“Sort of, but that doesn’t really matter at the moment, now does it? The second I saw you, you were marked and therefore destined to die. Originally, I planned on devouring you when you came to see me at our planned meeting, but the night before, with the monster I projected into your head, I saw everything. Normally I don’t like getting to know my victims on a personal level, but something about you intrigued me. I have to say, I’m quite happy that I did have that little look around upstairs because you have some interesting ghosts in your closet.”
“I was young and dumb, and I lived out every day regretting not being there for her.”
“And now you’ll spend every moment in hell doing the same, only now you’re going to have another skeleton.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked worriedly, although a part of him already knew what she was going to say.
“Right now, in the real world, I’m having a nice conversation with your dear little Stephanie. She believes that she can kill me and, therefore, free you but I think we both know that that isn’t going to happen. It’s a matter of moments before she’s rightfully dead and it’ll once again all be your fault.”
“Please just leave her alone and take me instead! I’m begging you! Please…” he whispered, scared to hear her answer.
“I don’t think I want to do that, but I do really have to be getting off now. She’s waiting for me and I can sense the eagerness and fear beginning to eat poor Stephanie up inside. This little chat was quite nice, but I’m afraid I really must leave you alone now, but just know that I’ll be watching from the other side. Oh, and don’t worry, my friends in here will finish you off quite nicely, but I do have to tell you the more you struggle - the more painful it will be for both you and her. Goodbye, now.”
With those final words, she was gone, but the doll was still there. It stood across from him, lifeless and empty. Somehow seeing it like this was far worse than when it had been possessed. Despite this, he still wasn’t alone. Something else was in that attic with him, and it was watching him. Scratch that - it was hunting him.
Scraping noises echoed around him, making it impossible to pinpoint their origins. All he could do was rotate in a slow tight circle, and hope to eventually lay eyes on whoever or whatever was creating such a god-awful sound. This, as he quickly found out, was a hard task and he would sooner become dizzy and clasp to the ground, then complete his mission. Since passing out was a sure way to end up dead, he knew that stopping his constant turning was by far his best option.
As soon as he halted, the noises ceased and the room descended into utter silence. He could hear his heart beating in his chest, in fact, that was the only thing that he could hear. It was unnerving and the suspenseful, putting him on edge. Every creak of the floorboards brought forth a jump from his uneasy body. He preferred hearing his predators around him (at least that way he knew that they weren’t too close), but now he was completely unaware of their whereabouts. Where are they?
The sinking suspicion that they were surrounding him, closing in tighter with every second passed, settled into him. He was filled to the brim with fear, yet, there was something else he was feeling to
o. Hope. He was desperate, yes, but he was also quite hopeful. He almost had to be - Stephanie needed his help. Maybe if I find a way to defeat whatever is in here with me, I’ll finally be able to wake up. The thought was comforting, but he knew it was a long shot. He was going against someone of unbelievable power in his own head, so what were the odds that he was able to make it out alive? Not very good, but a small chance was all he needed.
With his newfound inspiration, he stood up a little straighter and prepared himself for the fight to come. His heart might have been racing and his breath may have been passing by a little too quickly - but he knew that he was going to be alright. What other choice did he have?
He stood completely still towards the back of the attic, praying for something - anything to happen. But everything stayed seemingly quiet. Nothing moved but him, shaking his feet to keep them awake. By now, he wasn’t sure how much of his time had been spent waiting, but he was growing tired and impatient.
“Come on!”
His voice bounced off of the walls, begging for another noise to accompany it, and surprisingly, one did. The quick scuttling of feet returned, but this time it sounded from much closer. In fact, it surrounded him, from in the roof to the flooring, even on the ground around him - he was met by the threatening music of squeaking. He immediately knew what was causing such a noise and felt his heart completely stop. Rats. Their red, glowing eyes, pierced through the darkness. There were hundreds of them, maybe even thousands, and they all stood eagerly awaiting their upcoming feast. Incoming light bounced off of their razor-sharp teeth, as they ran their thick tongues across them. He took this not as a warning, but as a promise.
Their black fur was puffed up, defensively, as were the hairs on the back of his neck. They could sense his discomfort, which riled them up with excitement. Whatever was currently holding them back from attacking them, wouldn’t be able to for much longer. They were starving for human flesh and he had just enough of it left to satisfy there needs.