•Illumoria•

CHAPTER THREE

"Thank you," I said with mock formality, tossing my bag at her. "You get the salt and lighter. I'll grab anything else connected to her—clothes, personal junk, whatever I can find."

We moved fast—me shoving cracked photo frames and stained scraps of fabric into my arms, Olivia rummaging through my bag.

"Uh, Parker?" she called.

"What?" I said without looking up.

"Funny thing..." She scratched her cheek and avoided my eyes. "Imayhaveforgottenthesalt."

I blinked. "You may have what now?"

"I. Forgot. The salt."

My jaw dropped. "You FORGOT THE SALT?!"

I didn't have time to keep yelling—because the next second, an invisible force slammed into my chest, hurling me backward into the wall. The impact knocked the breath clean out of me. My skull rattled, my vision blurred, and for a second, I wasn't sure which way was up.

"Parker!" Olivia's voice cracked.

I groaned, rolling to my side, clutching my shoulder. "I'm fine... I think. Pretty sure my spine's not in the right spot anymore, but... fine."

The air went glacial in an instant. My breath puffed out in quick, ghostly clouds. Olivia yanked her jacket tighter, her eyes wide and darting toward every shadow.

"Okay, nope. Nope, I'm done," she said, grabbing my arm and hauling me to my feet.

I winced but stayed upright. "We're not done. We regroup, get to the car, grab salt, and then we come back and finish this."

Olivia blinked at me like I'd grown two heads. "You seriously want to come back here?"

"Yeah, I'm not letting Casper's psycho cousin win."

We made it to the hallway, quick steps echoing off the peeling walls. I was two strides behind her when she reached the door. Her hand hit the knob—

BANG!

The door slammed shut so violently it shook the hinges—right between us. I barely got a glimpse of her startled face before the lock clicked, trapping me inside.

"Parker?!" Olivia's panicked voice was muffled through the wood.

I spun around, slamming my shoulder into it.

"Come on, damn it!"

"It's stuck!" Her voice cracked.

"It's not stuck—it's being held," I hissed, already backing up, scanning the room for anything to use. "Listen, burn the journal. Salt or no salt—maybe it'll work!"

I stayed at the door, bracing myself—when something icy and strong clamped into my hair and yanked.

"Parker!"

The force ripped me backward so fast my boots skidded across the warped floor. My nails scraped uselessly at the boards, leaving thin red streaks. I twisted to see a tall, skeletal figure in a stained lab coat—eyes hollow, face twisted in rage.

"It's not the nurse..." I gasped, my voice breaking. "It's the damn doctor!"

He dragged me down the hallway, each pull tearing at my scalp. My hand smacked against something cold—metal. Hoping to hell it was iron, I swung it back hard. The doctor hissed, dissolving into smoke.

I staggered upright and bolted for the door. "Olivia! Journal's useless—it's him!"

"Then what do I burn?!" she shouted through the wood, panic bleeding into her voice.