“Did you think that the woods was the last time we’ll play? How about another game right now?”
Jamie grabs a bat—laughable. As if wood can stop what’s coming.
I wait. Breathe. Smile.
Then, slowly, deliberately, I kill the lights.
The house plunges into darkness. Silence thick enough to taste.
I pull the mask over my face.
It’s time to claim my prey.
Let the games begin.
Then I move.
The hall is mine. Silent footsteps. Each one measured, precise. I feel him before I see him—the subtle shift in the air, the quickening of his heartbeat echoing against my own.
He senses me.
I step into the hallway where he stands frozen, breath shallow.
Another buzz.
He looks at his phone.
“Tonight’s game: hide and seek. If you get caught… well, princess, you better not think what I’ll do to you then…”
His eyes go wide. Fear, panic, disbelief.
And then he runs.
Down the hall.
Through the living room.
Stumbling over rugs, sliding across polished floors.
I chase after him.
Quiet. Fast. Efficient.
My boots make no sound. Shadows cling to me.
“Stop!” he shouts.
His voice cracks like glass.
“Stop it!”
I don’t.
He rounds the corner into the stairwell, bat swinging wildly. I sidestep it, let him taste the failure. His terror tastes sweet in the pit of my stomach.
Up the stairs. Second floor.
He dashes down the hallway, feet pounding the hardwood. Breath ragged, heart hammering, the way it always did when I cornered him before—when I made him helpless.
