"Looking for monsters under the bed?" There is a wry mocking in her tone.
"Just dust bunnies," I say, heat rising to my cheeks.
I grab my caddy and head into the bathroom. My clothes and hair already reek of astringent bleach and lemon cleaners that sting then numb my senses.
Part of me considers finding another John or Jimi to take home tonight, but it’s too dangerous to try again.
I don’t want to put anyone else in danger.
Still, I need Shadow to come back and explain. Maybe he’ll come back if I leave his favorite snack? After all, it used to work before he disappeared four years ago. But getting what he needs isn’t pleasant.
I’d get it if it meant I could get him to return to my bedroom tonight.
Being alone has made me mean—maybe cruel. If he understood that, maybe he’d agree not to leave me again?
Or maybe he’d seemeas the monster?
I sit in the corner of my room, waiting. Knees drawn up into my chest, they are tucked inside my oversized tee. I don’t bother with pants tonight as the warmth practically smothers the room.
Despite the frigid winter temperatures, my thermostat erratically swings from freezing to sweltering hot, no matter howI set it. I’m not allowed to turn off the heat because the pipes could freeze, and it would be grounds for eviction. With every bead of sweat and thump of my heart, I literally feel my limited funds drain away into the muggy air.
I found the shirt at Goodwill, attracted to the picture of a frog and a margarita. A logo for a place I’d never been, but I liked how soft it was. It also made me think of sunshine-filled vacations where other people made your bed and there was nothing but the sound of crashing waves.
Not that I’d know what that sounded like in real life. I’ve always lived in the city. One day, I planned to take a bus to the shoreline, but usually by the time my days off come, exhaustion has set in and I don’t have it in me to do much more than take advantage of extra sleep and necessary errands.
The plate sits on the floor a couple of feet away from the bed. On it sits a thick red organ. A cow’s heart with a couple of chickens’ feet on the side. The butcher gave me the side eye as he asked what I intended to do with the unusual order. I didn’t have an appropriate answer, so I didn’t give one.
Eleven p.m. came and went, then midnight, until it nearly ticks two a.m. Still, I wait for him.
My chin jerks off my chest. The quiet yet unsettling sound of sharpened claws dragging against old, dry wood floors tickles my ears.
"Shadow?" I whisper. My voice shakes as anticipation rises in me. Sweat pops out all over my body and I flush then turn cold in feverish turns.
The plate clatters loudly, causing my heart to take off like a racehorse.
The cow’s heart is gone, and one of the chickens’ feet has ended up on the side of the still-wobbling plate.
I am not alone.
Matured by the Monster
Adrenaline pounds through me as I spring to my feet, hands clenching into fists. "Don’t you dare eat and run," I grind out through my teeth. My heart thrashes so hard, I fear it will burn a hole through my chest so it can escape my body.
"What you did was foolish." Shadow’s voice holds more roughness than I remember. Or is it filled with pain?
I blink and the chicken foot is gone, plate clattering loudly again as if it had been smacked in the process.
A long black hand claws its way out and then another. Shadow pulls himself out from under the bed in slow motion, like from a horror movie. Normally white misty eyes now burn red with the fire of a demon.
Shadow and sinewy muscle emerges in unnatural movements until he fills the room.
"Wh—what’s wrong with you?" I ask.
I’ve seen his eyes turn red only once before. The last time I saw him, four years ago. A shudder of revulsion rolls through me even as I try to push that night aside.
He doesn’t answer my question. Instead, he clings to the other side of the room, eyes burning into my skin.
I start toward him.
