“Perfect,” Two purrs. “I’ll treasure this.”
He’s fucking insane. They all are.
“Can I come out yet?” Three questions. “I’m feeling left out.”
Three is the one who makes me most uneasy. Perhaps it’s his obsession with screaming. They’re all dangerous, but he seems to be in another league.
“Not today,” One says. “But soon.”
I sigh in relief, but my minute motion doesn’t go unnoticed.
“Don’t you want him to join us?” One mocks. “I’m not keeping him away for your sake.”
“When I come for you, Little Ghost, I’ll make you beg until you have no voice left,” Three warns. “I promise I’ll steal that pretty scream of yours. By then, begging is all you’ll be able to do.”
“If you’re going to kill me,” I say, “then do it already and make it quick.”
Two snorts in amusement. “She’s exactly what we’ve been waiting for.”
“Tell us your name,” One orders.
“Wendy,” I lie, picking the first one that springs to mind.
A firm hand locks around my jaw, smothering the bottom part of my face. Fingers squeeze hard and push my cheeks together.
“Lies! Lies! Lies!” Three choruses. “Lies! Lies! Lies!”
“You will regret lying,” One says. He’s the one holding my face hostage, and he moves it left to right like he’s a puppet master pulling my strings. His body closes in, and he whispers, “We’ll make sure of that,Erin Acacia.”
He drops his hold, and my head flops.
“How do you know my name?” I stutter. “Why ask if you already knew the answer?”
The shadows slink away silently, scampering back into the dark abyss.
As soon as I’m sure they’re gone, I slide down the door, pulling my knees up to my chest to hug them, and listen to them crawl away, leaving the lingering smell of danger behind. Those three monsters somehow knew who I was all along.
Hours pass.
I keep expecting them to return, but they don’t. Perhaps the possibility alone is even worse. Mice scuttle around my ankles and strange noises, wails, and groans reverberate all around.
Finally, a rattle from outside brings me out of my daze.
The chains.
I stagger to my feet, ignoring the pins and needles tingling through my legs. I almost fall but catch the wall. Seconds later, the door opens and Dad stands in the doorway.
“Come, Erin,” he says, moving aside to let me pass. “It’s time to go home.”
I hobble out, refusing to look back at that hellhole, and follow Dad silently to the car. I don’t look up at the windows, but I feel their stares watching me. I won’t give them the satisfaction of seeing my face.
Dad hums under his breath while we walk. Unlike last night, his simmering anger has subsided. He opens the car door for me, as opposed to throwing me in like a piece of trash.
After fastening his seat belt, he turns to face me. Despite his smile, his eyes let me know that my unacceptable behavior hasn’t been forgiven.
“I hope you learned a valuable lesson last night,” he says.
“Yes, sir,” I reply, dutifully hanging my head in submission.
