If he wasn’t a literal demon then I’d suspect why he wanted me, but seeing as he’s a blood sucking, probably dead man—Julian said he was dead but I’m not convinced—then us being together makes a lot of sense.
I move the blankets and quilts to the side and pick up the sheet, shaking it out to put back on the bed. Before I can get to work I hear the sound of a doorknob turning and then thecloset door behind me swings open. I freeze at the sound of the creaking hinges.
Someone is in the room with me.
Motherfucker.
I wait for a footstep, a sign that whoever is behind me in the bedroom is about to make their move on me but nothing comes. The longer that I stand still the more my brain reminds me that it was exactly in a situation like this that I slit Mike Sheeps’ throat. I stepped up behind him and slit his throat.
Turn around or you’re next. Turn around, turn around, turn around. The old me might have stood there finally accepting that it was my turn. That I wasn’t going to get out of this but she’s not in charge anymore. That was before Julian. Interesting how life changes when you feel like you have a reason to live. That’s what he is, isn’t it?
A cure to the depression, anxiety and despair that made the end seem inevitable. I’m not ready to go now. I want to stay with him. I’ll kill whoever thinks they’re going to take me away from him. I wait half a second more before I make my move.
I whirl towards the sound with the sheet stretched in my hands like a rope, ready to fend off an attacker but when I turn there’s no one there. In front of me is the open closet door. It’s dark inside of it, but I can see the outlines of shapes from the fading daylight. The sun won’t be out for much longer. Maybe another hour or two. I watch the outlines and shadowy shapes to see if anything moves, but there’s nothing. It’s still and quiet.
No one’s there.
I let out the breath I was holding and slowly walk towards the door. It opened. Something opened it. I heard the doorknob turn, hadn’t I? I approach the door cautiously. Someone could still be in the closet hiding. I stop in front of the door and look at the doorknob. I touch it and try to jiggle it. It doesn’t feel loose or like it was just a freak accident that made it the sound. I crouchdown and turn the doorknob. The sound it makes is exactly what I heard. Something did turn the damn thing. I peer into the closet but the shadows inside don’t look like they’re changing. The longer I stare, though, the more I think there is something inside the closet.
“Fuck,” I whisper when I see a slight shift in the back corner. The corner that I used to run to as a kid, the one that I ran to last night. I blink and force my eyes to focus. Whatever is there doesn’t vanish.
“Who’s there?” I ask like an idiot. It’s not going to answer you, Maris. It’s hiding in a fucking closet. “Come out and-”
There’s a crack. The sound of glass fracturing. I scan the room from where I’m still crouched and try to find the source. Another snap of glass comes. What the fuck? Where is it coming from? I’m about to stand up when I see a hairline crack appear in the glass window in front of me.
The windows? I look at the others and there, like spiderwebs, cracks spread across them. The glass is breaking. I barely have time to process what I’m seeing before everything goes to shit and the windows explode. The windows aren’t the only thing with a mind of their own. The door slams forward and hits me so hard that I’m thrown back towards the closet. I land on my back with a groan. Pain explodes from my shoulder and collarbone where the corner of the door hit me. I’m lucky the fucking doorknob missed me, even if I did get hit in the face. White hot fire spreads up my leg. I look down to see that I’ve mostly landed behind the door but one of my legs didn't quite make it. From my knee down to my foot, glass hit me. The dress I wore is shredded at the bottom where the glass sliced through the material. I’m lucky I was still wearing my shoes. Boots this time. Most of the glass is stuck in the leather but I can feel some sharp pieces that got through at my ankle. I drag my leg back towards me and wince as blood blooms across my skin.
I have to stop the bleeding. I’m going to fucking bleed out here. I force myself to my feet and hobble towards the bedroom door. There’s glass embedded in the walls, the doorframe. Shards of it sparkle like diamond on the floor. How did this happen? I stop and look back towards the windows before I leave.
There’s someone at the window.
I blink and open my mouth to yell at them but before I can, they’re gone. Were they ever there in the first place?
I shake my head. “No, no don’t.” I press my fingers to my temples and keep shaking my head. “Someone was there. Someone was there,” I whisper. I’ve been alone with ghosts for so long in this house that I’m seeing things.
“Someone was there.”
I know what I’m saying sounds crazy. I’m on the second floor. How could anyone be here at all? They’d have to float to be able to do that and humans don’t fucking float. I turn away from the room and limp towards the stairs. The more I move, the more blood comes, which is a problem. I have to either go up the stairs or down. There’s nothing stocked in the bathrooms here. In the end I decide to go down. If I pass out from blood loss at least I’m closer to getting somewhere I can be found.
It’s when I get downstairs to the bathroom and open the medicine cabinet that I realize the supplies I have aren’t going to cut it. I used the gauze on Julian last night.
“Godfuckingdamit.”
I used my first aid supplies on a vampire who doesn’t even bleed and now here I am bleeding out from my leg. I fall back against the bathroom wall and lift up my leg to look at it. There’s so much glass embedded in it. I pick out the bigger pieces but there’s smaller ones that I’m scared to try moving. Blood drips onto the floor and I shove myself away from the wall and start limping towards the front door. I have to get to my car and to thehospital. There’s no way in hell I’m calling the ambulance. Not when I know they won’t care to come as fast as I need them. I’d rather faint in my car and drive off the road like my parents did than risk passing out in a pool of my own blood for Julian to find because the EMS workers think I deserve what’s coming to me. I grab my keys off the hook by the door and drop them. My hands are slippery with my blood and when I pick them up I nearly drop them again.
I take a deep, steadying breath. “Get it the fuck together, Maris. Now,” I order myself. I’ve fought for my life and won. I can handle a fucked leg and a drive to the hospital. I summon the evil she-bitch inside of me and yank the door open to go to my car.
“Found him wandering on Hwy 80. It’s…well, you know the road.”
Fuck.Brian. I forgot about him. I look around the yard while I limp down the sidewalk towards my car. I manage to make it to my car when I hear Mrs. Bernaden's grating voice.
“Maris?”
I sag against the side of my car and nod at her. She’s standing on the sidewalk with her daughter Jane. They’re both dressed in what looks like either their Sunday best or a fucking tea party get up. Jane even has a lace fascinator. It’s pastel pink and makes her head look like a piece of bubble gum. What the actual fuck are they wearing?
“Interesting choice,” I tell Jane and point at my head. She blushes and looks away. Jane absolutely didn’t pick that headpiece. Poor fucking girl.
“W-what’s going on? Why are you bleeding?” Mrs. Bernaden takes a step towards me and looks towards my house. “Did you have another accident?”
