I shook with fright underneath the sink cabinet. The cabinet was completely cramped, so full that it barely could contain me inside. My small frame pushed against a giant bottle of bleach, my shoulders squeezing in between the water pipe and wood, and many of the other chemical products near my ankles threatened to spill out and reveal our location to that madman. Lori held onto my right wrist, her grip tight enough to nearly halt the flow of blood to my hand. The nerves in my wrist screamed in response, howling to my mind to protect myself, yet I knew my pain paled in comparison to Lori.
Lorelei Mae, the loving spouse of Hector Mae, mother of a six month old boy, and my cherished neighbor, was bleeding on the black and white tiles of the kitchen floor, slashed in the abdomen by a quickly drawn knife and a cold hearted predator. Even with her grieving pain she did not show a single sign of fear or displeasure. Under these grim circumstances Lori smiled, the kind of smile that would make children forget about fear and believe in hope. This peaceful smile was one only a mother could show her child, and even if I was not her own, she shared the same love she gave Lil Joseph.
I used to laugh at the late night horror flicks on TV. I took delight in watching cheerleaders be gutted like a fish and bleed out fake blood, sometimes Tim Burton orange, sometimes even black cherry syrup. However, delight was the farthest thing from my mind as I witnessed the real thing seep out of Lori, its red color corrupting the tiles. Just looking at the pool surrounding her made my stomach knot tightly, and if it wasn't for that smile, I'd have vomited my stomach clean in a matter of seconds.
"Stay here Aisha," Lori spoke softly, still maintaining her motherly instincts. "Whatever you do, do not leave the cabinet. Everything will be alright."
Choked up with fright, I could only respond by quickly nodding my head, snot and tears streamed down my cheeks. Lori gave a hopeful smile for my sake before closing the cabinet door before me, shutting away the veil of light and trapping me within discomforting darkness. Any moment now the killer would come downstairs and finish us off. The floor upstairs was silent, and all I could assume was that Mr. Mae had finally fallen victim. I clung onto the words Lori said earlier, repeating the line over and over in my head, and even though it was a lie, I still wanted to believe her. I truly wanted to believe that everything would be alright.
*thump... thump*
Footsteps approached from upstairs. Each step boomed in the silence, echoing throughout the house and into our displeased ears. Eventually the stairs began to creak as that man descended down, taking his time to meet his next victims. Anxiety filled both myself and Lori, the air around us growing colder with each passing step. The fear within us began to stir, growing and spreading its toxic thoughts to our now distraught minds. Our time had run out, and there was no longer anything else we could do to hide. From the small opening in the cabinet, I could see Lori's black dress shimmering in the dim light, the tight material hugging her body and the moist blood on her abdomen glistened like distant stars in the night sky. Lori was unfortunate, spending precious time in hiding me that she had no time to hide. Her only line of defense was the kitchen counter in between the sink and the entrance, a poor place to make a last stand.
Escape was impossible. Every window and door to the outside could not be opened, no matter how hard Mr. Mae yanked the windows. The doors were just as resistant to Hector's brutal kicks; even the glass door to the yard did not crack when he grabbed his prized bowling ball and tossed the five pound orb directly at the center. We were all trapped against our will, as if some magic kept us in. None of us at the time knew that there was a madman inside, not until Lori opened the cellar door. From within that darkness he came, coming up the stairs and striking out at the closest person near him. The gash on Lori's stomach was the result of that encounter, and she barely escaped the dark stairway to warn us.
Soon, the footsteps pounded their way into the kitchen, stopping only for a moment as the man scanned his surroundings. Heavy breathing filled the room, feeding our growing anxiety. Seconds passed by and the madman pressed on, stepping deeper into the kitchen and approaching the counter at the center of the room. Lori's breath grew with intensity, her body quaking with fear as she realized the scenario that would soon befall her. Knowing her imminent demise at his hands, she stood up from behind the counter and scrambled to reach the knife holder, her hands in dire need of a weapon.
Just as her fingers clutched the black handle, a hand latched onto her right arm, halting her from retrieving the knife. Lori screamed and squirmed with all her might, violently attempting to shake off the madman's grasp with no luck. She had been caught, her bravery rewarded with misfortune, and her only hope was in between her slender fingers, the black handle of the kitchen knife dangling in the air. Peeking through the opening, I watched the madman clutch Lori's throat, lifting her squirming figure with ease. Lori fought even more violently, her body knocking over the flower vase and fruit bowl on the floor, glass and clay smashing against the tiles.
*Snap!*
In that instant, Lori ceased moving, and I forcefully held down my own screams. The knife she held between her fingers dropped instantly, clattering around on the floor. I wanted to scream, my lungs were burning just holding my voice back, but I still kept every bit of fear and anger from escaping my lips. Shortly after her passing, the madman dropped her lifeless body like a rag doll, her body impacting the tiles with a heavy thud. Lori's gaze was locked at my position, her brown lifeless eyes became too painful to look at. Closing my eyes for a brief moment, I stayed silent for my safety , even going so far as to biting my lip shut before opening my eyes to the scene.
The madman looked down at the body, taking a moment to appreciate his kill before stepping over her, crouching down between Lori's legs. His hands reached down on her dress, yanking the cloth until it began to tear like cheap paper. Eventually, Lori's body was stripped of all clothing, and the man began to spread out her limbs outward, forming her body in the shape of an X.
At first I thought he was going to violate her body, and disgust began to knot my stomach tightly, the thought of Lori's body being soiled by his touch was mortifying. Luckily, I was wrong, but what that man did next was much more cruel. Pulling a surgical knife from his pocket, he pressed the clean cold steel against his flesh, cutting open his right index finger and then proceeded to writing on her body in blood. I could not see what he was writing, but when he had finished scribbling, the madman clutched the surgical knife once more and pressed it against her abdomen, the steel piercing through her flesh as he began humming a dark low chant.
" Knochen, Blut und Seele. Ein leerer Behälter. Leere des Lebens ..."
Unable to take the scene, I turned my gaze away from the body. If I watched a second longer and I would have surely vomited on myself. My whole body trembled in fright, and I desperately tried to hold myself together to keep from crying. Lori's body was being cut up in front of me, and I could do nothing to stop it. Tears streamed down my face in frustration, simply remaining a bystander as he continued cutting away at the body, his dark chant ever present.
Biting my lip again, I glanced out at the opening once more, my eyes catching the sight of a silver object shining in the dim light. A black handle and a long silver edge, it was the knife Lori held, just barely in front of the cabinet. Thoughts stirred in my mind and my body ceased to shake. I could only imagine grabbing the knife in my hand, ready to dig its edge deep into that mans heart. I despised this man for killing Lori, Mr. Mae, and possibly even Lil Joseph. Hate filled my body, and I knew this was the moment to take action. If I passed it up, I'd be dead. No... I was going to die anyhow. It was only a matter of time before he found me hiding here. I needed to attack first while he was distracted.
*Crack!... Snap*
When I heard the sound of bone snapping from the body, my mind grew hot, blinded by boiling anger. I pushed the thought of death from my mind and kicked my feet forward, diving out of the cabinet with my right hand stretched out and snatching the knife quickly before rolling back on my feet. My sudden leap certainly would catch his attention, and without a second to lose I closed my eyes and lunged the blade to the pitiful man. I could only hope that in the next instant my knife would hit its mark.
Resistance. As if my prayer had been answered, my attack managed to hit something. Quickly opening my eyes wide, I could see the knife penetrating the left side of his neck, the blade pushed up against hard spinal plates. My stomach knotted as I began to feel molten blood flow down onto my right hand, the red fluid burning my skin with corruption.
"Hnn! Aghh!" The man groaned, surprised at my attack. It was pure luck that I managed to hit such a vulnerable and fatal spot, my body shaking violently at this miracle and nearly ready to collapse. Just before I could revel in my success, movement caught my eye. The man shivered as he moved his left leg up, his knees shaking under the strain. The wound should have been enough to send any normal man down in pain, hell even paralyze if she damaged the nerve, yet this madman was defying all expectations. A single fatal strike wasn't enough to kill him.
Without much thought, I yanked the knife out of his flesh and clutched the handle with both hands, crying out ferociously as I stabbed down. More. More, more, more! I stabbed him four more times, yet I could make out his anger as he began to prepare to stand up. Still filled with burning conviction, I continued my relentless attack, stabbing his back in an attempt to end his life.
By the seventh attack the man's knees buckled to the floor, his hoarse breathing continued to echo in the kitchen. Yanking the knife out of his flesh, my veins filled with adrenaline, I slammed the sharp edge down onto his skin once again, splattering blood aimlessly throughout the room. The blood staining my hands still burned with hateful corruption, and the drenched knife clutched in my hands would never be clean again, forever tainted by his existence.
Losing count to how many times I had stabbed him, I backed away for a moment, shivering from the blood rolling down my arms. Still holding the knife in my right, I gazed down at figure slumped below me, the madman still attempting to get away. From the holes in his coat I could see large scars on his back, and on closer inspection I made out crude stitching and various colored pigments. Peach, tan, olive, and many others in between. He was a monstrosity made of human skin. Only a monster could ever hope to survive such an assault.
Raising the knife with reinvigorated strength, my eyes focused onto the top of his shaggy head, where not even his jet colored hair could hide the massive scars along his cranium. "HAAHHH!" Crying out once more, I slammed down the knife with every ounce of my strength, ready to deal the killing blow. He needed to die for everything. He needed to die so I could escape. His existence was a cancer, and each second he still breathed was another second I became tainted.
Just before my attack could reach its mark, the madman's body jerked to counter, and the knife sunk into something other than his cranium. His quick reaction had saved his life, the blade burying deep in his left shoulder and shortly snapping in between the bones. Only clutching a broken handle, I dropped to my knees in disbelief, not realizing the man began to gather himself quickly, towering over me like a hulking giant.
Barely keeping himself standing in place, the foul man reached out his right hand under my chin and lifted my head up, my body standing up, ready to run. Just before I could move back a step, our eyes meeting for the first time and a trance washed over me. In this moment of eternity I stared deep into his dark brown eyes, searching for anything vaguely hinting guilt, only to find none. Guilt, remorse, compassion, none of these emotions could be found in him. This man truly was far gone into his madness, simply an abomination kept together by stitches and grafts.
I felt drained and tired. I could not budge an inch back and my eyes still were locked into his cold gaze, as if some unnatural force kept me from looking away at this terrible being. Weakly, I could hear him chanting something, but my focus was numbing too quickly to understand. I was becoming so drowsy and weak that I could collapse at any given moment, yet his words kept my gaze locked into his and my conscious thoughts vulnerable. Moments into his chant, I felt a chill run along my spine, warning me to flee and causing my stomach churn in discomfort. It was too late to run away.
Something began to slither around my body, tightening around me with dark conviction. My eyes could not see anything from the peripheral, completely invisible to my eyes. It felt like a phantom serpent was slithering up my body, constricting tightly and not willing to let go. Fear welled in my thoughts, unable to perceive the serpent visually, but I knew it was there. Moments after the snake reached around my head did pain hit my psyche, immaterial fangs sunk into my skull, releasing toxic venom in my mind.
I was finished. The poison wasn't physical, but I knew what the purpose of the attack was. Possession. This immaterial snake began spreading its atrocious venom, and I could feel that foul man's consciousness slowly flooding in my head. I'd soon lose everything. My body, my sanity, and myself. I could not help but cry, knowing that I would die without much of a struggle, cursing my own weakness.
*Crying*
A babies cry came from upstairs. Lil Joseph was crying, woken up from the commotion downstairs. Joseph was far more helpless than I. He was a baby vulnerable to every danger the world could offer, with no hope of ever defending himself. Hearing his own cries triggered a burning thought in my mind, filling me with disgust and anger. I could still fight. I could still get away. The fact I submitted to this man was revolting. I could almost taste the bile burning in my throat and the churning of acid in my stomach. Anger filled my mind quickly, burning the incoming venom and gaining control. With newfound strength welling in me, I raised my left leg high and kicked as hard as I could muster, digging my shoe under his left armpit with tremendous force.
"Ack!" The chant was stopped, the pain made him lose his concentration and the chilling serpent dissipated. The venom in my mind began to recede as I regained full control. I dropped to my knees shortly after, barely focused long enough to see the man drop into silence. I was overwhelmed with exhaustion, and I fell to the checkered tiles below. Even as I lost consciousness, I cursed that man. I could never forgive him. I would always despise him for this. For everything he's done.
