I ran through the constricted corridors, the walls closing in, trapping me in this fortress of torture. I could see nail marks, frantically scratched through the bloodstained carpet. I couldn't even support my own weight; fear had gnawed into my soul, throwing my insides about like an internal earthquake. I stopped suddenly; a creaky floorboard. If anything was inside this house, it certainly wasn't alive. But I did know one thing for sure; it had heard me.
* * *
From the moment I woke up I knew this day would be different; the atmosphere of the day passed by solemnly; the mood of the people plagued with that of the mood of a funeral. The Nevadan sun was not liberating cheerful rays as usual; it was dull, and seemed to be fighting a losing battle against the clouds. The dusty evening air relentlessly smashed against my face, whispering curses through the desolate treetops, as I walked back to the refuge of my own home. After saying goodnight to my parents, I couldn't rid myself of the feeling that was going to be the last time I would ever see them again.
I woke with a jolt. Beads of sweat seeped onto my ivory white face. My eyes nervously scanned the surroundings. This wasn't my house. The walls were blank, ready to paint the picture of my midnight nightmare. Or so I thought. I pinched my fragile skin hard. I wasn't waking up; this was no nightmare, it was reality.
An icy chill possessed the atmosphere. I stopped and took a deep breath, trying to prevent the fear from tearing my self control in half: moans and screams reverberated around my skull; confusion flooded my own sanity. Where was I? I carefully moved across the floorboards, saturated in bloodstains, dodging the crystallised spider webs that hung proudly like chandeliers from the damp roof. I flinched at the silent atmosphere being suddenly broken; I had just trodden on a creaky floorboard.
My heart pummelled my organs like a drum. A minute of deathly silence settled the raging, roaring ...
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An icy chill possessed the atmosphere. I stopped and took a deep breath, trying to prevent the fear from tearing my self control in half: moans and screams reverberated around my skull; confusion flooded my own sanity. Where was I? I carefully moved across the floorboards, saturated in bloodstains, dodging the crystallised spider webs that hung proudly like chandeliers from the damp roof. I flinched at the silent atmosphere being suddenly broken; I had just trodden on a creaky floorboard.
My heart pummelled my organs like a drum. A minute of deathly silence settled the raging, roaring oceans of fear into cool clear pools of tranquillity. I exhaled with relief. I was ecstatic that the crumbling floorboard hadn't uprooted whatever sadistic character was present in this house...
I had spoken too soon; a hand clamped my shoulder and spun me round before I could process the horror that was about to unfold. Unexpectedly, a deathly white woman was stood there. Her distorted face told me she was not here to help me; she was here to kill me. Her thick coarse eyelashes were crooked like the branches of the trees that taunted me with their freedom through the windows. A smile played around her pale lips; her enjoyment increased at my mounting despair. I feebly rose up my fist and swung it round with all my might. My delicate hand jolted her head and a crimson red cut emerged from her blank face. I turned, and ran...
I entombed myself in a hole in the decaying walls. My hand, which was still stained with the blood of the beast that just attacked me, covered my mouth, trying to hide the sound of my breathing. My whole body went numb as I heard her furiously slamming doors, searching for me like a deranged, starved animal. My fingernails dug into my hands with terror. Suddenly there was a door creaking; I felt like screaming but I didn't want to suffer more pain than what was already surging around my body. She entered the annexe I was hiding in, and slammed the door behind her. I was terrified the sound of my pumping heart would snatch her attention, let alone my breathing. I squeezed my tear-filled eyes shut and prayed for an end.
After an eternity of wishing, I opened my eyes. My heart stopped dead; her emotionless, dead face was just inches from mine. I tried to produce a scream but all my effort was turned into tears. I tried to hit her again, but she had learnt my every move. Her bony twig like fingers crushed my hand. As my vision swept up her long, emotionless face, I saw her eyes. The pupils were gone; just a white canvas lay below her wrinkled eyelids. Intensified pain and screams were the last things I can remember before I entered an eternity of black. Helplessly, I drifted between life and death, each minute merging into eternity.
* * *
Scratchy sand tickled the scars on my face; a patchwork quilt of memories I wish I could forget. My frail hands rubbed my sore eyes. My mind confused... reality or dream? Alive or dead? I used every last ounce of energy to heave myself up. I still had no idea where I was; I opened my eyes slowly to fully take in my surroundings. I recognised the arid land I was lay upon; I was in the Nevada waste-land just a few miles from my home in Las Vegas. I had always wondered how the environment of the flamboyant Las Vegas could contrast to the barren land of the desert just a few miles from the city, and remembered how I'd come here every autumn with my brother, mystified by the endless sand dunes, stretching into eternity without trace of a living soul.
I paced towards the main road, still cautious of every move, every rustle in the bushes. After miles of torturous walking, I reached my home town. I used my last bit of energy to inch my body down the street, extremely confused by the solemnity in my neighbours. They didn't acknowledge me, but I guessed that maybe they didn't know I had disappeared.
I was stunned by the sight I saw; my old oak front door slowly opened and a gleaming coffin was silently brought out. I ran over to my dad, crazy thoughts bounding around my hollow mind. I announced "Dad, I'm home, I'm ok!" but he did not reply. He didn't even look at me. I tried again, "Dad! Look at me! Somebody look at me!" I screamed. He didn't flinch and neither did the three other men supporting the deathly black coffin. I was smothered with emotions: confusion, anger and fear. I ran inside my house, tears escaping down my face. My mum was sitting dressed in black, crying hard. I sat down next to her:
"It's OK mum! I'm alright, I'm home...why are you crying? Who died? Mum, answer me!" She didn't stop crying, or even turn to look at me.
Delicate flowers were strewn across the living room mantelpiece; I was utterly confused. I noticed a small cutting of newspaper on the windowsill. I warily moved towards it, afraid to read it. I gasped at what I read:
"BODY OF MISSING GIRL FOUND: Girl, 17, reporting missing in the middle of the night last night, has been found murdered, in an abandoned house just a few miles from her own home."
It all became perfectly clear; the coffin was mine. I knew what had happened that strange night. My midnight nightmare was in fact, reality.
Cathy Wrigglesworth
