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A voice similar to mine calls back Syd’s name, over and over, until it disappears. Something constricts the back of my throat. I open my mouth to scream. Only choked cries come out.
“Daddy! Mummy! Help!” Snot and tears stain my face.
I lift a shaky hand in front of me but see neither my flesh nor the doll. My sobs grow louder. So loud that the voices mimicking mine erupt in terrifying screams.
A shadow with no eyes emerges from the ground in a grey halo. I flinch, my cries become hysterical.
Incapable of moving my frozen feet, I punch the approaching figure with my free hand. My fist connects with thin air.
A similar shadow surfaces. And another.
Before I can count them, I’m surrounded by eyeless ghosts, like in the photo from the magazine Syd read to me last week. She said they’re not real, so why are they here?
They’re going to eat me.
My knees buckle, and I fall to the ground. I squeeze my lids shut, holding my legs and doll to my chest. Wetness seeps into my fingers as I shake from the force of my sobs. That doesn’t stop the ghosts from flying around me. Non-stop. Their unintelligible murmurs echoing in my ear like a broken record.
I don’t know how long I remain that way. My limbs turn numb, but I don’t get accustomed to the darkness.
Light tickles my lids. I seal them even tighter. What if a ghost is prying them open?
It’s shaking me. It’s going to eat me. It’s...
“Mae! It’s okay, baby girl. Daddy’s here. It’s okay.”
. . . . .
Present,
My arms press tighter around Aaron’s neck. I hold on to the safety of his embrace as my only lifeline.
I know he isn’t Daddy from sixteen years ago.
Worse, I’m well aware that he’s my stalker slash captor slash psychopath.
Yet, I can’t help hugging him. As long as he has warm skin, he’s a better choice than the monsters in the dark.
He said he wanted to see how far I would fall. I fell too deep, my wings broke, shattering my will into unredeemable pieces.
Aaron gets what he wants. I won’t attempt to run again. My fear of darkness is greater than my yearning for freedom.
Not long after I jump him, he pries my hands from around his neck. He nudges me backwards with a soft yet a firm touch that refuses any struggle.
With an indecipherable face, he stands, leaving me in a heap on the tiled floor.
I push off the ground. My wobbly legs barely keep me standing, screaming at me to sit down. Their little strength is enough to drag my body to the bed.
I slump in a sitting position, my tortured skin thankful for the soft cotton material.
Aaron stands at the foot of the bed like a statue. One hand in his black trousers’ pocket, the other resting by his side. My gaze travels up his navy blue shirt to his expressionless
face.
The man is a damn blank board. I can’t detect anything from him. Aside from the serial killer vibe, of course.
Deafening silence dominates the room, accentuated by Aaron’s unmovable stare. I hold eye contact for a few seconds before cowering away.
If his plan is to mould me into a nervous ball then he’s certainly achieved it.
