With a violent jerk, Read pulled free. Phoebe looked ready to grab him again, but bit her bottom lip and stopped.
Vibrating, Aidan sounded indignant. “Trespassed? This is Birket property.”
The shiny, black hair that fell over the man’s forehead shook and he motioned to the marble door. “This is my place. The doorway to my world.”
He was darkness. I could feel it. I was certain he was responsible for the wind, what else was he capable of? He’d paralyzed my body, forced words out of my mouth and basically scared the crap out of me. What could we possibly do about him?
“You opened a forbidden gateway.” He said in a low rumble, practically a seductive purr.
“We didn’t know.” Robin’s usually loud voice was numbed.
“Yes, I see that. Now, you will have to come with me.”
I shook my head and noticed everyone else was too. “You can’t make us,” I said. It sounded feeble, even to me. Of course he could make us. We were helpless flies in honey.
The man in black laughed, actually threw his head back and laughed for several heartbeats. “If you stay, you’ll starve.” He swiped his hand as if he were decapitating all of us with his fingers. “I’ve given ample warning.”
Blinking away the numerous questions, I focused on one. “What warnings?”
Phoebe’s arms slapped to her sides. “Oh God.”
I thought she was going to mention the messages I had received, but instead she said. “I’m so sorry, I thought I was just imagining things…”
Read grabbed her shoulders, facing her before demanding. “Imagined what?”
“I thought…” Phoebe swallowed so hard I could hear it.
“When I got up here and shouted for you guys, I thought I saw myself, sitting in that chair.” she pointed to the one Cody had fallen in when we’d first arrived. “I was strapped in and there was blood.” She rubbed her forearms and hands. “And the writing on the wall…” her eyes shifted to me.
Read glanced at me before saying. “It’s ok, Phoebe, you didn’t know.” Turning his attention to the man in black he tried to take charge. “We didn’t know, alright? Just let us go, we’ll never come back, I promise. We’ll board up the room and never come back.”
Nodding in unison, our little group tightened together.
The hungry smirk on the beautiful man’s face gnawed at my insides.
“It’s too late for that,” he said. “Not only did I give a standard warning…”
“A standard warning?” Phoebe’s hands dropped from her mouth, her eyes filled with flames. “That was terrifying!”
Calmly, as if he hadn’t been interrupted, he continued. “A standard warning in accordance to the rules. Also, some of you sensed the doorway the minute you stepped into this room, my room.”
The dizziness and nausea…
I glanced at Cody who returned my pointed stare, affirming my suspicions.
“Then my grandpa didn’t write those words on the walls?” Aidan asked under his breath.
“Let me get this straight!” Phoebe’s demand overrode. “We opened a doorway to your world and now we have to go with you because of some rules we don’t know or even care about?” She paced the room but kept a safe distance from the shadow-man.
His eyes stalked Phoebe’s every step. “Because you opened the door you must face the Challenge.”
“A challenge?” Aidan repeated, strained.
The man in black nodded, his hair sweeping across his low brow as he did. “If you win, you can return home safe and sound. If you fail, you belong to me.”
“To you?” Aidan asked.
I twisted to see if Aidan was trying to piss him off. Instead I found myself staring at someone entirely different.
Aidan’s eyes were glassy. His mouth hung open and his already pallid skin had been drained of all conceivable color, including his lips.
“Yes, mine for eternity.”
“Yours?” Aidan’s echoed so soft that I barely heard him.
“Aidan?” My hand touched the top of his fingers and I prepared myself for the tingling sensation. When it didn’t happen, I curled my fingers around his hand, waiting for the sensation to shoot up my arm like before. I didn’t realize I was squeezing until he flinched and looked to me. Those vacant, pale blue eyes didn’t seem to be seeing me though.
My heart plummeted. Pulling my hand away, I forced myself to look at the man in black. “You didn’t answer my question about who you are.”
To my sickened horror, I realized he had been watching me before I’d turned. “I am the darkness between worlds.”
Something about those words rang a warning in my head. My eyes flickered to the words, Dismal is the Demon’s Grave behind him. Dismal and dark…
I had heard this before. But, where? It was like the day I found the note. There’d been a cold chill of recognition but in my mind the memories remained misty.
“You’re from the Demon’s Grave then.” I pointed to the messages. “We’re the braves?” I hoped not. Offered death for once the brave.
Phoebe snapped. “But, that still doesn’t tell us what you are.”
That cold stare left me, finally. “What could possibly live in a Demon’s Grave?” He mimicked her tone.
It was shocking to hear something so perfect say something so condescending and so…human.
“A demon,” I blurted.
Phoebe whirled to face me.
The demon clapped his hands two or three times, beaming at me as if he were a proud teacher and I his pupil.
The demon gestured to the marble door at his back, seemingly bored. “In each world there is a doorway, but not everyone can enter. You cannot.”
“This is bullshit, we weren’t going to anyway,” Phoebe hissed, glancing at the rest of us.
Somehow, the demon had heard. “I am also someone you don’t want to upset.” Despite the calm politeness there was a black inferno in those eyes.
Phoebe snapped her fist up with a single distinctive finger ready.
“Phoebe, don’t,” Read jumped forward and clasped her wrist, swinging her around to face him.
She stopped on command and her gaze fell on Read, eyebrows furrowing. “We can’t just go,” she whispered. I could see the worry sinking into her, inch by inch.
My hands balled into fists. If this were all in my head, then I should have some control, shouldn’t I?
Before I could think through a plan of action, his voice interrupted my thoughts. “If you don’t go and take your chance, you forfeit and lose.”
A chance to promote my delusion. I hid the smirk behind my hand. Feeling a little giddy, I held back the laugh. I really, really just wanted a hysterical release.
I bit down on my lips harder, praying the pain would take the hysterics away.
I glanced at Robin. Her face was buried in the crook of Cody’s arm and she was holding very still while I was vibrating on the inside.
“What do we call you?” Cody spoke for the first time.
Sighing through his nose, shadow-man finally said. “Call me Damien, for now.”
Like the little demonic kid in The Omen? Of course I’d pick that name for a demon. That movie scared the crap out of my sister and me as kids. And against my protests she named her stuffed bear after him so it wouldn’t scare her anymore.
Read’s grey eyes narrowed. “Why should we be ready? No one else got these warnings.”
Damien gestured to the wall. “I sent these, to be specific.”
Phoebe glanced at me again. “What if only one of us got them?”
Sucking my cheeks in, I tried to will her eyes away from me.
Damien raised his straight eyebrows. “You all received the messages. The subconscious is a path of communication.”
I wondered which was more impressive; the part about everyone having nightmares or the part about different worlds.
Phoebe’s eyes were trained on me. “And what about people who saw them without dreams?�
�
Damien’s eyes followed Phoebe’s to me.
The hysterics were shattered by the wrecking ball that was his stare. I coughed to try and hide my unease.
“What exactly is the Challenge?” Phoebe continued.
Read was still holding onto her arm, but neither seemed to notice. They were a pretty couple, I decided. The exact height and nearly the same build. Phoebe with her full lips and flawless olive complexion and Read with chiseled cheekbones and thick, dark hair. An hour ago they would have barked at each other rather than be that close.
Just another pair who had someone to lean on, I thought and glanced at Aidan who was still looking stunned. Nuh uh.
“It is simple.” Damien said, gaze sweeping. “You survive six Challenges and you’re set free. If you fail, you’re trapped.”
“What kind of challenges?” Read and Phoebe asked together before glaring at each other.
“Once you pass through this door, your thoughts will be open enough for me to know certain…” he paused, taking a moment to gauge us, “…nightmares and longings.”
Snorting, Phoebe was already shaking her head. “This is disgusting.”
I tried to give all the information ample time to sink it, but it wasn’t absorbing well. It had hit us so fast. We were having a good time just a half an hour ago and now…Now, I’d gone off the deep end. This couldn’t be real. A demon, a Challenge and a secret doorway in an attic. Yeah, right.
I wonder where it started? Was I hurting people outside of my mind right now? My stomach clenched at the idea. I tried to plead with Phoebe with my eyes. Please, knock me out, throw me out of the house, tie me down, take me into the hospital—anything to make this stop.
“Join the Challenge or die here.” Those were his last words. As swift and smooth as his former shapeless shadow, he faded out of sight.
I gazed into the darkness of the small doorway. Sometimes lightning would flash through in purple, blue and yellow colors. Soundless bolts without a pattern, without thunder.
“What do we do?” Aidan croaked.
When no one answered, I replied. “I don’t think we have a choice.”
Phoebe started cracking her knuckles and was the first to move. Shuffling closer to the door she stopped cracking long enough to extend one hand, palm open to the darkness beyond. Legs bent, she positioned herself into a fighting crouch.
“What are you doing?” Read hissed, embarrassed. He always hated it when she showed off her fighting poses.
She turned back to us and attempted a confident smile, “The Challenge.” Before anyone could protest she bent at the waist and launched herself into that darkness. It swallowed her whole, leaving no trace. I couldn’t even hear the sound of her footsteps.
Robin gasped so sharp and hard it could have been mistaken for a shriek.
“Where’d she go?” I demanded. “Why’d she do that?”
Read took two rigid steps forward. “We can’t just let her go in there alone.”
“Yes we can,” Robin squeaked.
“The demon said we’d starve waiting here,” Read flung his arms up. “If these Challenges are based on our nightmares, do you really want to go in there weak and starving?”
Flinching, Robin pressed herself harder into Cody. If she wasn’t already crying, she would have started.
“Ease off her,” Cody’s low voice held no room for an argument.
Looking up at Cody, Read shrugged. “What do you want me to say? You want to leave Phoebe out there?”
“What if we get separated?” I asked.
“We already are,” Aidan said.
No one could argue with that.
Read started toward the doorway again and glanced over his shoulder at us, fear glistening in his eyes. “For the record, I think we should have stayed here.”
“I can’t believe that we’re doing this,” Aidan mumbled to me.
Shivering against the warm breath at my neck I held out my hand to him. “Come on, Aidan. It’ll be over soon when they give me drugs.”
He stared as if I’d offered a hand grenade. After a hesitant pause he took the two steps toward me and took it. Again, no charge coursed through us. In fact, the hum that I often felt whenever he approached wasn’t there either.
“What do you mean, ‘give you drugs’?” Aidan asked in a low voice.
Poor Aidan, he was hoping for a great weekend party, one that we would all enjoy, but it turned around and blew up in his face. Well, rather, I blew up the party. That’s me: tick, tick, tick…
Robin was peering up at Cody. Her fingers had knotted themselves in his shirt. “Go?”
Lost for words, Cody returned her gaze, helpless to answer.
Read came around us and took my other hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
I squeezed back, feeling how sweaty both of our palms were, while Aidan’s fingers were ice on my other hand.
“You guys coming?” I asked Cody.
Cody jumped when he realized I was staring at him . Beads of sweat frosted his forehead. “If I stay here do you think something will happen?”
“Yes,” I answered as honestly as I could. “And I don’t think it would be good. The Challenge might be my only way out of this mess.”
“Our only way out of this mess,” Aidan corrected, eyeing me incredulously.
“And Phoebe’s in there,” I added.
“We can’t just leave her there,” Read said.
Robin whimpered and peeked at the door through splayed fingers. “Let’s just stay. Maybe he can’t force us in. He could have been lying. Anyone consider that?”
Cody patted the bricks where the door leading downstairs used to be. “They’re right, we have to go. We’ll just be trapped here instead.”
Courage, remember these people need a leader, I thought, though it felt foreign. Phoebe shouldn’t have gone so quickly, she was the brave one.
I nodded to Read. “Robin, take Cody’s hand and Read’s. We’ll all go together.” At least I wasn’t doing this alone.
Robin reluctantly peeled off Cody’s chest, gripping his hand already. Taking small, uncertain steps, she drew closer, assessing the dark doorway.
With a deep breath she looked to the three of us and slapped her free hand into Read’s as if it was a last minute decision.
“He said if we could beat him.” She said, her voice cracking in experimental optimism.
Smiling as best as I could, I felt Aidan tug to lead the way. I realized how grateful I was that I didn’t have to head into the dark first.
Aidan glanced back as he reached the door. “Duck.”
I gripped Read’s hand tighter as Aidan slowly melted into the darkness. The colors in his face and half mingled with the inky black before fading into it, almost looking as if he were being pulled apart, like the shadow-man had done.
Hunching over to fit through the door I hesitated, my face inches from the black pool.
Aidan’s hand pulled on mine and I let it inch into the dark.
It was chilled, but not cold. The air felt thick, like walking into a mist except it wasn’t damp. Taking a deep breath I inched forward and felt Read squeeze my hand again.
“You’re doing great,” he said, pressing close from behind. He was warm against my hip and shoulder but so close I didn’t dare look back.
Be brave, I thought, like Phoebe.
One cautious step was all it’d take and I closed my eyes to do it.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Pins and needles prickled every pore.
Overwhelmed, my eyes snapped open and I found myself staring into darkness.
Wiggling my fingers to adjust my grip on the hands, I realized I couldn’t feel them. I tried to turn my head, when the sensation of weightlessness hit me like a baseball bat. I couldn’t feel the floor beneath my feet. It was like I was floating.
Parting my lips I realized they felt fat and fragile, as if too much movement may cause them to explode. No sound escaped as I
tried to form Read’s name. Something had stolen my voice again.
I had been so relieved before we stepped through that doorway that I wouldn’t be alone and here I was, alone.
The panic didn’t have enough time to take root when a pale light flashed in the distance. Am I dead? I wondered. Wasn’t this what people saw before they died? The white light at the end of the tunnel? This wasn’t much of a tunnel, just an endless stretch of darkness, but the light was at least a destination.
Somehow I was gravitating to the glimmer.
As I drew closer I could make out a room within the light. Grey walls, green floors and people were beginning to form through the warbled film-coated entrance.
I recognized two people. Phoebe was awkwardly holding Robin, who was crying. How had she gotten there before me? I wondered. I couldn’t see Aidan, Cody or Read in the room yet.
I drifted into the light, my limbs were still numbed when I reached it.
Pitching forward onto a green carpet, I felt myself jolted into reality. My cheek pressed to the carpet and I took several panicked breaths before I could compose myself.
I shifted my arms and could feel the warmth of my skin. The prickling sensation subsided, allowing me to sit up without grimacing. Read and Aidan had been behind me, I wasn’t sure if they followed me through or had been there the whole time.
Read stood up in alarm, wiping sweaty palms on his jeans.
Aidan sat closest to me. “Is everyone okay?” He asked, his voice gruff as if he were fighting a cold.
There was a muttered reply amongst us few, each struggling to clear the cobwebs.
I stood up and Aidan followed, standing very close to me as we both inspected the cramped little room. There was a horrible, dirty, thin, green carpet at our feet. I wiped my face as I could still feel it there. The four walls held no entrance or exit, trapping us within. I turned to see if the portal to the room was still there, but it was nowhere to be seen.
Aidan leaned closer to me and whispered. “Where’s Cody?”
I hadn’t realized he wasn’t in the room with us.
“What happened?” Read asked.
Robin tilted her head up. Her face had lined itself with blackened tears from her mascara. “Cody, never came through. It’s all my fault!” Sobbing between each word she managed, “I didn’t believe him when he said he got that message.”
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