Dark Dream

4. Boneyard III.

Once he felt composed enough to return, he slipped out of the bathroom, feeling the darkness of the room outside as if it were awaiting his return.

Fear blossomed in his paranoid mind as he rushed through the cluttered interior.

He found the door still locked. Not real, he thought with relief, thinking about the long-fingered creature that had stood behind him in the mirror.

A rustling noise came from behind.

The key slipped from his hand and he bent down to find it. His hand searched blindly along what he knew to be worn linoleum and he prayed it hadn't slid under the door.

The worst thing would be for him to knock it under the gap of the door in panic.

He'd never live it down.

Working slowly, his fingers blindly brushed across the floor and finally found it.

Unlocking the door, he darted through, just as he heard his name whispered from within.

His heart pounded as he went through the same gut-wrenching process of locking it behind him. Sweat beaded his forehead.

With his brow pressed firmly against the solid door, he heard a scratching noise that sounded like a frustrated teacher clawing their nails down a chalkboard.

"Charley!"

Charley jumped, despite himself.

It was Steve, one of the other bouncers. "Do you have to sneak up on people, Steve?"

"Sorry, mate, this place gives me the creeps, too!"

"I hear there's bodies buried under the main dance floor."

Steve gave a matter of fact look and pulled his shoulders back in readiness for an expected argument.

Charley always thought Steve's bouncer suit looked a couple of sizes too small.

Maybe it was the biggest size the management could find for his overly large build or he'd found himself caught out in the rain while wearing it.

"I wouldn't believe everything you hear," he said, noticing the echo of his voice and not quite believing his own words as they came back at him.

There probably were dead bodies in here, as well as in the grounds outside.

How they'd acquired a license to turn a church or chapel into a fetish club was a mystery to him. He'd heard that it had just been a standard nightclub at first, so he guessed that it was a natural progression to turn the place into a fetish club.

Seeing a church converted into a mere playground must have been quite a draw. They were a colourful lot, always looking for something new and exciting to satisfy their jaded tastes.

"Jennet sent me to find you." Steve said, looking around as if expecting to see a ghost.

"And now that I have, I think I'll take a leak. Do you have the key?"

"Sure." Charley retrieved the key from his jacket pocket, noting that his hand still had a slight tremor.

Steve took the key and opened the door.

The darkness was the same, with no boxes out-of-place that he could see.

"Someone needs to fix that light, someone's going to trip and break their necks one of these days."

"See you in a bit."

"Yeah, take care in there, Steve."

"Hey, maybe they ran out of space and put some bodies under that floor too?"