Shadow Born

“Ergh..” I groaned. I heard a chair scrape around me. I’m going to keep my eyes closed and pretend that everything that happened yesterday happened because I was tripping on acid. Although, I don’t do acid or any other drug so that’s highly unlikely. I heard voices, but couldn’t make out what they were saying. My head was swimming and I tried to open my heavy eyelids. My head lolled to the side and I made another caveman sounding noise. What do they have me on?

“Uhm, can you hear me?” a voice asked uncertainly although clear as day. I could hear him fine I just needed to figure out a way to respond while I fought with drowsiness. Slowly, but surely, I came to and fluttered my eyes open around me. I felt the soft pillow beneath my head, and the fine down feather quilts sewn intricately with royal looking designs. I felt like I was waking up in a fairytale. I was thankful for the dim lights as I slowly looked around taking in my surroundings.

“Hello? Over here,” the voice said. Shocked, I quickly looked over to a young guy who appeared to be a little older than me. But now I was wishing I hadn’t because my head began to spin. I closed my eyes and took deep breaths before opening them and looking at the spot where the guy who had been talking sat motionlessly.

“What?” I asked hoarsely. I needed a drink. The back of my throat was dry. The guy handed me a glass of what appeared to be water. I drank it all not worried about it being poisoned. I mean, if they wanted to kill me they would have let me die, right?

“Okay look, uh, whatever your name is. Apparently, since I saved you I have to take care of you and baby sit. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m sure you’re great or whatever but I don’t want to watch your every move. So keep quiet, stay in this room, and don’t cause trouble. I have a life and I don’t exactly want you to be a part of it. I don’t like seeing people die and I thought you’d be on your way after you healed but for some reason Ryoho is keeping you around. So I’ll check on you later in the day, if I remember. See ya,” asshat concluded as he walked out and shut the door behind him.

Honestly, what was that? I just got called a nuisance by someone I don’t even know. Boys, I swear. I blew out an angry huff of air. I’m not sure if I’d rather be dead. I slowly pulled the blanket off of me assessing the damage. I realized I was in clean clothes that weren’t mine, meaning someone had undressed and dressed me. That is an issue I’ll come back to later. I ran my hand over the bandages I swear could be a second skin. It covered most of me anyways. The bandage wrapped completely around my upper torso and over my right shoulder. I also had another bandage around my thigh from were Damien has originally clawed me. I could feel the dull aching pain in my sides and even a bit on my back; probably from where the brick hit me. I’ll be black and blue for days. I groaned and tried to piece together names from last night. Seeing as he said he saved me, I’m going to assume that’s Fang, aka Toto. Unfortunately, there was no food on the tray so I laid back again still tired. I did notice the T.V. hanging from the wall in front of the bed and reached for the remote on the dresser. I switched on the T.V. and flipped through the channels until I found Boomerang, of course playing the cartoons I loved when I was just a little kid. Johnny Bravo was on so I closed my eyes listening to the voices as I fell back asleep. I had a feeling I was going to be out for awhile but at the moment, I couldn’t care less. I let the darkness enclose around me once again as I fell into a fitful sleep.

I woke up completely rested, and saw it was night time. Or at least, I think it was night time. I wasn’t even sure the sun rose in this place. Holy shit, I need to pee. I lifted the blanket up sliding my legs to the edge of the bed slowly to make sure I wasn’t overestimating the range of motion I was allowed to do. I lower my legs to the ground, stiffly standing up trying not to bend my torso. I think my ribs were broken but hey, I was no doctor. I shuffled my way to the bathroom door which was on the adjacent wall of the left side of the bed. I opened the door to a luxurious bathroom which seemed to date back to the renaissance era, although looked more or less like replicas. The bathroom was surreal. Everything was black, yet accented in gold, just enough to bring the features out. The black tile floor was outlined in gold as well as the black bathtub with intricate designs. Even the shower was black with elaborate decorations using the gold color. The bathroom seemed to be dark yet bright, because of the florescent lights above. It hardly seemed like a dark and grungy place. There was a skylight window with the light of the crescent moon shining in as well. This place isn’t too shabby. I carefully shuffled over to their toilet, which thankfully had cushioning and slowly sat down. I finished up my tinkle, flushed, and made my way over to the sink to take a closer look at my makeover. I washed my hands and splashed my face with water, welcoming the idea of a clean face. As I drew deep breath and finally took a good look at myself I grimaced. It wasn’t the worst I’ve gotten but it sure would take a few days for my face to look somewhat normal.

I had claw marks going down the left side of my face but they weren’t deep. They’d just scab and peel off after a while. I had a few minor cuts and scrapes but all in all I’d be able to use some sort of foundation to cover up some of this stuff in three or four days. That is, if I even get a chance to get makeup. I could definitely live without it but sometimes it’s good to have handy. I limped back to the room expecting to die of boredom until Fang came back, if he ever remembered, until a girl who looked about thirteen years old, had big brown eyes, and a face so innocent you couldn’t find one better on T.V., had come bounding up to me.

“Is it true? Did Fangy really save you from the stray Zoany?” she asked excitedly. I wasn’t quite sure what I was supposed to say, And Fangy? Really? I think Toto sounded cuter but whatever.

“Uh.. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch you name,” I replied back. “Who are you anyways? And what is this place?” I decided to add on. I needed questions answered and I couldn’t quite remember the name of the guy who was in charge so asking her was the best I could do.

“Haven’t they told you anything yet? I mean sheesh, isn’t that rude. Don’t worry. My name is Elizabeth, but I prefer Elli. Fang is my older cousin but we don’t have any other related family besides ourselves so we do our best to take care of each other. He’s more like an older brother to me than a cousin. And this lovely, gothic place is called the Wind Haven Manor. It was chosen by our forefathers a few generations back. Supposedly they were air shape shifters such as bat, birds, pterodactyls, and other flying things hence Wind Haven. Are you sure Ryoho didn’t tell you all this? That’s very unlike him,” Elli finished.

“That’s what his name was!” I exclaimed. “He hadn’t told me any of this because I needed to get to the infirmary first. He said to come find him after so he could answer my questions. I don’t suppose you could help me out and find him?”

“Of course. I know you must be so lost as to what is going on. You seem to be handling it pretty well, surprisingly. How long have you know about us?” Elli asked, intrigued. Us? How many more were there?

“Just under a year I’d say. My now EX-boyfriend, thank god, is one of you guys and he’s the reason I look the way I do. I found out a few months after we had been dating and I was much more freaked out but it’s not as surprising now. Still weird, but not surprising,” I ended.

Elli led the way to Ryoho while we made small chit chat along the way. She was super sweet and I found out she really was thirteen, making her four years younger than me. It was a bit of an age gap but she was mature and I could definitely see her as a friend. She seemed to like to dress a bit on the eccentric side, which was fine by me. She made it work. She was wearing a purple tutu with black leggings and flip flops. She also had on a zebra print shirt that was purple and black with a black tie, which I wanted to steal very badly. Elli led me through a long corridor pointing out rooms and places I was going to forget anyways but I let her have fun playing tour guide. At the end of the corridor were two large doors with the same special gold pattern traced into it except it was accenting a red color this time. On the door a drawing of two wings over a city was shown, I assumed representing the Wind Haven Manor. Elli pushed open a door leading me inside what seemed to be rows and rows of books, artifacts, and scrolls. At the back of the room sat Ry behind a desk on his computer looking utterly bored. He perked up as Elli and I walked in. Well I limped and she walked. Ry came strolling over to us at a quick pace helping me along to his desk and sitting in a chair. Elli sat down next to me and waited for the questions and answers to begin.

“Thank you Elli, that’ll be all,” Ry said narrowing his eyes at the curious girl. She huffed at him, turned and smiled at me, before walking out the way we came.

“She’s something else isn’t she?” Ry asked.

“Yeah, she’s adorable. I like her,” I replied.

“Right then, down to business. Questions and I’ll do my best to answer them filling in spots you miss out on.” Ry said placing his head in his hands.

“Okay,” I replied uneasily, “Let’s start with the basics. What are you guys? Like, werewolves, right?”

Ry cracked a smile as if he expected me to say that. “No, we’re not werewolves although people thinking that helps us keep our species unknown to the world. Much like your species is human, ours is zoanthrope. Very uncommon to hear about us but it gets thrown around occasionally,” he finished.

“Alright, so you turn into wolves but you’re not werewolves, you’re zoanthropes. What’s the difference?” I asked confused. I mean if it looks like a duck, acts like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it has to be a duck, right? Maybe these guys just thought they were better than normal werewolves. Those nubs.

He laughed as he read the look on my face before adding, “Now, I’m not going to go into detailed pasts or anything but you’ve got your ‘mythical’ creatures wrong. A werewolf is forcibly changed into a wolf from a human during a full moon. A lycan, what you’re referring to, is able to change from wolf to human and back whenever it pleases. A shape shifter, in essence. We’re closer to lycans, but our difference is much greater. Yes, we shape shift into wolves, but we’re not limited to it. As years go by, the time we spend honing in on our ancestry, pays off. The more meditation, practice, and will power you have, the more animals you can turn into. Although, we can’t turn into every creature, it takes a year or so just to accomplish one, we do have a choice of which being we think would be most helpful. A majority of us can shift into wolves, simply because it’s generic in our blood and one of the easiest. The bigger and more complex a creature is, the longer it takes to master it. Even if we learn how to become something else, we still have to train until we can change back and forth whenever the situation seems fit. Sometimes, you can only turn into a newly learned individual when you’re under a lot of pressure, or near death experiences. Just so you know, it is possible to morph into other mythical creatures but that takes years of extensive training. We can even change into things we might see in a book, such as a nine-tail fox, but again it takes training. Once it’s been done, many continue training and modifying the things they turn into. You met Fang as a black wolf with yellow eyes. Originally he was gray, with black eyes, and a bit smaller. We are a very special species, and not many of us are still out there. We do our best to keep our race alive,” Ry ended with a solemn expression. Holy shit this is a lot to take in. So, they can transform into just about anything, it just takes awhile to do it.

“So, how long is a normal life span for you guys?” I asked.

“Well I guess the normal life span is about 300-320 years. Longer than any human, but we do in fact die of old age at some point,” he tacked on. Okay, so I was nearly killed, was rudely dumped by Toto, stumbled across a new species, and what else? There’s something else I want to know.. but what is it? Oh! Fail. I know what I want to say.

“So when can I go home? I mean, Toto chased Damien off, so I should be fine. I don’t exactly fit into the picture here and I’m kind of confused as to why you told me all this when I could have went back without a clue. Oh my go- don’t tell me you’re about to kill me. That would be so stupid,” I narrowed my eyes at him. Again, if I was ever to go down, I’m not going down without a fight.

He laughed. I mean, really laughed. Was my demise really that funny? I think not. He settled down and replied, “No we’re not going to kill you. You can relax, honestly. I told you you’re safe and I meant it. I also told you all of this because you can’t go home. It’s not safe and I’ve been alive for too long to not know when something of value is in my face.”

“Something of value? I’m an average human with a shitty life. I don’t have money, nor friends and I have no family. I’d kill myself before I became some type of servant. What could I possibly offer,” I laughed at the idea.

“Well, look at it like this; Say you have this dog and he runs away and you just so happen to find someone trying to buy your dog off of you with a great sum of money. Wouldn’t that raise suspicion?” he asked.

“Well I guess, but I really wouldn’t look into it,” I replied honestly.

“And that’s where I’m different. That dog could turn out to be the rarest dog in the world and it could go for billions,” he said. I saw where he was coming from, but how does that relate to me? No one’s trying to buy me, and I’m not a dog so where does that leave me?

He clearly saw that I was still lost. “Damien is a stray zoanthrope; however, stray zoanthropes don't usually interact with humans. We prefer to keep to ourselves. Due to this, I believe that he kept you around for a reason, but that reason wasn't because he wanted to, which is easily proven by the fact he was going to kill you. Because he kept you around unwillingly, it leads me to believe that it's because he was told to by someone he's working under. That someone must be very powerful. I, unfortunately, don't know why they want you. So for your safety, it is required that you stay here. I’m sorry, but this is for a greater purpose than your comfort,” he said regretfully. I mean, I understand where he’s coming from, I just wish I knew why I was important. Why did they want me of all people?

Ryoho spoke up again after the intense silence. “If you’d like, I can show you around and introduce you to some people,” he said smiling. Hell, what have I got to lose? I’m stuck here for who knows how long, I might as well make friends. Funny word. I guess there might be some good things to come out of this after all.

“Sure, but can we start with the kitchen? I feel like I haven’t eaten for days,” I said chuckling.

“That’s because you haven’t. You’ve been out for three almost four days,” he replied, smiling at my shock. “Don’t worry, we’ve been providing you with enough nutrients through machines. Although it’s not your average fast food, it kept you from starving to death. I’m sure a real meal would help for a speedy recovery though, eh?” Hell yeah a speedy recovery. I need food. If I could choose between food and air, I’d pick food. As far as I’m concerned, food IS air.

He led me to a big stone kitchen that seemed to be up-to-date with an antique look. Whoever decided to design this place really has a knack for it. In the kitchen there were a few people buzzing around eating little snacks and behind a wall with open area you could see through, was a large stove, oven, and other restaurant style utilities. My mouth dropped as I watched a few chefs stir what seemed to be pancake batter, except there was tons of it. I followed Ry over to a guy about my age that must have sensed us, and looked up from his phone. It was weird knowing that mythical creatures had phones like normal every day people, but I guess it makes sense.

“Ah, someone I think you would get along with very well, Xavier. Xavier this is.. I’m sorry but I never got your name,” Ry said horrified as he realized he never asked. I forgot about it myself, too.

“Oh, uh, I guess Anastasia. Some people called me Ana at one point,” I said nonchalantly. I wasn’t really a huge fan of my name but it wasn’t the worse thing in the world, I suppose.

“Right. Again, sorry about the name thing. Xavier this is the incredibly, lovely and irreplaceable Anastasia; Anastasia this is Xavier,” Ry smiled.

“Well hey there beautiful, come here often?” Xavier said winking.

“Nah, just thought I’d pop in and see if there was anything I liked,” I replied casually. He was cute, but I wasn’t about to drop my panties for him.. yet.

“Oh? And do you?” he asked putting on his best flirtatious look.

“Yeah, and I’m looking right at it,” I said before picking up the sandwich in front of him and taking a bite. Then I laughed, at his fallen face, covering my mouth. I put his sandwich back and smiled after I finished my bite. That was a damn good sandwich.

Ry laughed. “I’m sure you two will get along well. Xavier, do you mind showing Anastasia around? I just remembered I have some paperwork I need to mail out. Introduce her to some people and make her comfortable,” Ry said as he sent me an apologetic look. “I’m sorry to be off like this, but Xavier will take care of you I’m sure.” He walked off, and I sat in front of Xavier still looking at his sandwich.

“Do you want one or something?” he asked laughing. “You’re staring at the thing like you haven’t seen food in a year.” Hell it felt like it.

“Well I haven’t been able to get any real food for a few days, so yes I want one. Can you show me where the stuff is?” I asked.

“Nah just sit, I’ll get it. And don’t miss me too much, I’ll be back soon,” he said jokingly.

“Yeah, yeah. Just get in there and make me my sandwich woman! And make it snappy,” I replied smiling after scratching my belly like a hillbilly. He came back after a few minutes with a sandwich much like his own and set it down in front of me.

“Want anything to drink before I sit down?” he asked.

“Umm, anything except diet soda, pretty please,” I said with my mouth already full. I don’t think anything has ever tasted better. He walked away towards one of the three giant stainless steel refrigerators and returned with lemonade. I nodded in appreciation before scarfing down the rest of my sandwich and downing it with my drink. I leaned back in my chair, still slowly as not to upset my injuries, and sighed contently.

“So, not to be rude or anything, I’m just curious, but why are you here? You’re human, right?” Xavier asked. Damn, was it that easy to tell?

“Well to be honest, I’m not exactly sure myself, but Ryoho says it’s best if I stick around and what the man says, goes. Plus, my good friend Toto brought me here,” I said with obvious sarcasm dripping from my voice.

“Toto?” he asked confused. Man it was really going to be hard calling jerkface by his real name.

“Fang,” I clarified. “I met him as a wolf and didn’t know his name. Since I was in Kansas and he was a relative to a dog I nicknamed him Toto like in The Wizard of Oz.”

Xavier laughed. “You’re an interesting girl. Let’s go explore and see who we can find. We might even run into Toto if we try hard enough,” he said adapting to the nickname. I thought it was fitting.

Xavier walked me out of the kitchen and to the right, down a small corridor that led to a larger opening. The back wall was actually glass doors outlined in what seemed to be steel looking out into a starry night and a large pool that looked like it had no end. In front of that, inside the house, were a few lounging chairs, a couch, and T.V. mounted on the wall.

“I guess you could call this the pool area. Lounge inside for awhile, go swimming, dry off, and come back here to relax,” he said. He led me past it to the other wing of the manor and opened the door at the end. It was also an antique look but very much up-to-date. This room was about the size of the kitchen, maybe even bigger. There were large T.V.’s on either side of the room with a pool table in the middle. Game systems up the yin-yang sprawled out by the T.V.’s and chairs strategically placed all around the room. There were places for board games and an air hockey table. Through a small archway was an arcade room for arcade machines, Dance Dance Revolution, and pinball. This place was heaven for any gamer, really. There was a stereo playing some funky music with no words but a good beat and 7 or 8 people already here.

“Dude, this place is my new home. I don’t think I ever want to leave,” I said looking over the room.

Xavier chuckled. “Yeah, it’s where most of us go when we have free time,” he said.

“Hey, X who’s the noob?” some guy said walking up to us glancing at me before facing Xavier. I responded before he had the chance to.

“Excuse me, but I have a name and it’s not noob. You can call me God though, because that’s all you’ll be saying when I whoop your ass at one of these games,” I said stepping in his face. I heard Xavier laugh.

“She’s a feisty one, definitely not one to be messed with,” he said still chuckling. “Anyways, Alex this is Ana. Ana, this is jerkface Alex.”

“Pleased to meet you jerkface,” I said smiling. There seem to be a lot of cocky guys around here.

“Whatever, if you’re still up for it, I’ll take your offer at being able to beat me at one of these games,” he said.

“Deal. You pick,” I replied. I smiled internally knowing I had this in the bag. I was a professional gamer. Not much you could do when being held captive by an abusive boyfriend who wouldn’t let you leave the house. While I’m here, I might as well hustle some money out of this, right?

“How about we take it back a little, huh? Try some first shooter games. ‘Left 4 Dead’ sound okay to you?” he asked sliding the disc into the Xbox 360 console. I was about to rape this guy at the game.

“Alright then, so we’re just going to be shoot zombies and making it across the map. Sounds easy enough. Why don’t we put some money down, huh? Unless you’re chicken,” I said tauntingly. “Twenty bucks to the winner.”

“Deal, little one. Prepare to get your ass kicked,” he said as I pretended to fumble around with the controller. I let him think he won twice.

“Alright you owe me forty, noob,” he said. I pouted pretending to be upset.

“Okay I owe you forty, but how about another round? If I lose I’ll pay you quadruple the amount I owe, plus what I owe now, making that one hundred in twenty bucks in your pocket. But if I win then.. then you pay me the one twenty and you fix my plate for breakfast. Deal? I think I’m starting to get the hang of this,” I said acting like I almost knew what I was doing. I played the worst I could, reacting slow, missing kills, and acting scared. I could see him believing I really sucked that bad.

“Alright deal. Let’s hurry this up because I could use some new jeans,” he said.

We played one last campaign in the game and by the time it was over his mouth was open and hanging on the floor.

“That’ll be one hundred and twenty dollars and I like my pancakes with a light spread of butter doused in syrup please,” I said haughtily smiling.

I hung out in the Rec room for awhile, made a couple acquaintances, and then Xavier told me breakfast was about to start. I hadn’t realized it was morning. The sky wasn’t a normal shade of dark blue; instead it was purple. I followed Xavier back to the kitchen yawning. I know I had slept for a long time but I was feeling a bit tired. He took me through the kitchen and past a swinging door that led to a dining room hall with a long table down the middle. Most of the seats were already filled with people chatting to their friends. I even saw Toto there, practically raping some girl he was talking to with his eyes. I don’t think she really noticed. Xavier and I walked down to the end of the table where we took our seats to the right side of the head of the table. Shortly after, at about 9 a.m., Ryoho walked in and took the seat at the head of the table.

“Welcome to another lovely breakfast,” he started, “provided by our fantastic chefs. Before we eat, I have something to say. We have a newcomer here, although you probably already know, and I’d like you guys to make her feel at home. She’s going to be with us for some time and I’m pretty sure she’s already made some new friends. Ana, if you’d stand.” I stood up awkwardly and afraid. I didn’t like large groups of people staring at me.

“Everyone, this is Anastasia. She is not to be messed with. I’m sure she can handle her own but I, personally, will not tolerate it. That’s it. Enjoy your breakfast,” he finished with a smile.

I took my seat and looked across the table at Alex. He was 3 seats down, but still close enough to talk to. I smiled sweetly at him and pointed to my empty plate.

“C’mon man, I’ll go with you,” Xavier said getting his plate. I waved to him as they left and turned to Ryoho who was eating and talking to another person to his left. I didn’t have much to do. I need to get a job, some money, and buy some stuff. Like a phone and an iPod. I hate being somewhere social not doing anything. I looked back to Ryoho who seemed to be finishing up his conversation and tapped him on his shoulder.

“Any chance I could go out and get a job or something?” I asked.

“Why would you want a job? And certainly not before you heal,” he said.

“I don’t know. I guess I just want some cash to get clothes, an iPod, and a new phone. But I’m broke at the moment,” I replied.

“You know we can get those things for you without you having to work, right? Tell you what, write down a list of anything you need by tonight and I’ll send someone out to get it for you, okay? You’re not going anywhere until you heal and even then I’m not so sure I want you out of this house,” he reasoned. I guess he was right. And it’s not like I’m going to go crazy and ask for everything I ever wanted. I’m stuck here after all so I deserve to treat myself a little, right?

“Alright, fair enough,” I smiled. Xavier and Alex returned with their food and Alex set mine down in front of me. I smiled sweetly at him again.

“No hard feelings? I’m sorry, but the opportunity was just sitting there. Forgive me?” I asked as sweetly as I could.

“Yeah, yeah. No hard feelings,” he said glaring but then smiled. As he walked back to his seat, Xavier and I began eating our food. Soon after we finished, I yawned and asked to be taken back to my room for a nap.

Xavier stood up and looked at me. “Well, are you coming or what?” he asked laughing.

“I’m too tired. Piggy back ride?” I said sleepily. He was built and it wasn’t like I was a cow or anything. More on the other side of that spectrum.

He grinned before squatting with his back facing me. I got on and held my arms around his neck and he stood up. Wow, he’s more muscular than I thought. I felt all this muscles contracting and releasing against my stomach. Very nice build, if I do say so myself. He walked us down the hall, made a few turns, and stopped before a door. He went inside and laid me on my bed.

“Is that all, your highness?” he asked, bowing before me.

I grunted in response before turning over. “Come get me after lunch or so, please,” I said. I’ll get in a quick nap and by the afternoon, I’ll have enough energy to make it through the rest of the day.
I closed my eyes, letting the drowsiness take over me an- Fuck. My door swung open without so much as a knock and Toto came in.

“What the fuck was that?” he said angrily. What?

“That was me about to fall asleep before you busted in like some rampaging mother who wants to give her child a tick bath. Why do you ask?” I said yawning. I’m too tired to put up with bullshit.

“Wait, be quiet. Do you hear that?” he asked suddenly on the balls of his feet, “Listen, we’ll talk about this later. For now, I need you to stay here. Keep the door locked, curtains closed, and stay away from the windows. Lock yourself in the bathroom, if you have to. I can’t explain right now, but for your safety it’s best you stay like hiding,” Toto rushed as he was already halfway out the door and then he slammed it shut.

What was that? And what in the hell is going on? I walked over and locked the door as he said and closed the curtains. I couldn’t hear anything, so what is he smoking? I sat on my bed in a ball and waited. Then I heard yelling and things crashing in a way that told me something bad was happening. Very bad indeed. The shouts grew louder as more people became aware and an apparent battle waged on. I swear I heard a voice whisper in my ear to hide.. but that couldn’t be right, I was just imagining things. Although, it couldn’t hurt, right? I slid off the bed and crawled under it and pressed myself to the back wall. It was a little dusty but I could manage. I didn’t see or feel any spider webs or bugs which I was very grateful for. I would have blown my cover in an instant. I giggled to myself softly over the thought that I freak over bugs but not shape shifting humans.. animals.. whatever.
Suddenly, the door was kicked open. I scooted farther to the other corner away from the door and stayed still. I slowed my panicked breathing and strained to listen and follow the intruder’s location. I could still make out the heavy looking boots from under the bed and watched as they disappeared to the left of me. I heard them stop and I made sure I stayed as quiet as I could. The footsteps retreated and walked out of the door.
I let out a small sigh of relief still cautious. I checked around the bed to make sure no one was still lurking around the room. I slid out, head first, on the side of the bed opposite to the door. I quietly stood up but something felt wrong. My blood ran cold as I turned around slowly and faced.. an empty bed. Relief washed over as I closed my eyes for a brief second before exhaling and shaking the fear off. Man, I really know how to spook myself out.

I turned back towards the bathroom door and within that brief second my eyes widened, and I started to scream.

That is until his hand covered my mouth tightly while the other went around my throat.

“Hello, again, Ana. I’m so glad to see you..” he said smiling wickedly.