Page 39 of Love at First Fright

But Brad was still on the other side of the bookcase. I could hear him muttering, scratching notes.

Nothing grabbed my leg. Nothing stood near me.

Just empty air.

My pulse thundered in my ears.

Then—pain.

Horrible. Hot. Piercing.

Something bit into my calf, teeth puncturing fabric and skin.

I screamed. Kicked out. Hit nothing.

The pressure released.

I stumbled backwards, gasping, fingers scrabbling at my jumpsuit leg.

Two puncture marks. Small. Precise. A bite mark.

Blood welled up, trickling down my shin.

No no no no no—

Another giggle. Closer this time.

Behind me. To my left. Everywhere and nowhere.

Run. I needed to run. Needed to get out of this room, out of this house, out of this nightmare.

I bolted.

Through the doorway, down the corridor. My trainers slapped against the floorboards. The giggling followed, multiplying, bouncing off the walls.

Two voices now. A boy and a girl.

Laughing.

Chasing.

The staircase loomed ahead. Grand. Sweeping. Too many stairs. Too steep.

A vision flashed through my mind—tumbling down, neck snapping, body crumpled at the bottom like a broken puppet.

They’ll push me. They’ll push me down the stairs and I’ll die here.

I veered left. Grabbed the nearest door handle. Wrenched it open.

A cupboard. Tiny. Empty except for a single broken shelf hanging at an angle.

I threw myself inside. Slammed the door.

Pitch black.

No giggling.

My breathing rasped in the confined space. Too loud. Too fast. I pressed my hands against my knees, tried to slow my heart.