Dark Desire

3

Theme Song: Avenge Sevenfold - Scream

3

Amanda stood behind the closed front door, listening to the shrill ring of the bell as someone impatiently leaned against it. Something in her hesitated to simply yank it open to see who was on the other side. It was as if there was something or someone warning her against it. Her fingers barely brushed the doorknob but it felt as if a strong, powerful jolt of electricity shot through her. Biting her lip to keep from crying out at the numbing pain, she carefully took a few silent steps back, instinctively avoiding the creaky floorboard just inside the entry to the kitchen. Along with that jolt of electricity, she had gotten a flash image of who or what was standing behind the door. The tall frame of a man dressed entirely in black from head to toe loomed just beyond. It wasn't the creepy appearance that had unnerved her. It was the force of his presence. When the figure moved to press the door bell once more, the sleeve of his coat shifted, revealing an intricate tattoo on the inside of his right wrist. It was a rune of some kind, but it lacked the detail of the one she now bore on her thigh. It was different, almost simplistic and yet nearly as intricate as hers. Instinctively she knew that this man was not tied to Pennywise. Perhaps this was one of the men that the Clown had claimed was seeking to destroy him.

She turned on her heel to move quietly back up stairs to gather her clothes when she noticed movement at the door that led to the small backyard directly off the kitchen. Another tall shadow loomed beyond the door. Her gaze traveled down to the doorknob as it began to turn. Thankfully it was still locked from last night. Fear, none-the-less, threatened to take over. Somehow she knew that these men or whoever they were meant her harm. Backtracking, Amanda carefully made her way up stairs. She stripped her bathrobe off and quickly pulled on whatever she happened to pull out of her drawers. Thankfully, it happened to be a plain black long sleeved t-shirt and a pair of worn jeans that had probably seen better days. She tugged on the first pair of shoes she stumbled over which happened to be running shoes. She grabbed her cell phone and headed straight for the basement with its hidden bulk head.

They found you.

The suddenness of Pennywise's voice in her thoughts nearly made her jump. She slipped quietly down the stairs, keeping to the shadows as best she could. She watched the man that had been testing the kitchen door move around the side of the house to join the other man at the front door.

Yes. There are two of them at my front door.

A furious growl echoed in her mind.

Where are you?

The basement. I am hoping to give them the slip. I had a sense that they meant me harm.

The Clown was silent for a moment.

I am surprised they found you so quickly. Once you escape unseen, come to the abandoned house on Neibolt Street. I will await you there.

Amanda nodded once, though she knew it was mostly to herself than to affirm any kind of plan of action. He knew as well as she did that she would be there. He had the answers to the questions she so desperately wanted answered. She moved through the shadows easily and to the door that would lead her outside and to her chance at freedom. She watched the windows, waiting until she saw the last of the man's shadow disappear around the corner. She opened the door silently, knowing that the lock she had installed was not rusted and would barely make anything more than a whisper of a sound. She pulled it open and was greeted with the stench of damp air. She popped open the bulk head just enough for her to slip through. The coast was, so far, clear. She carefully and as silently as possible, closed the bulk head door. She could hear their muffled whisper of conversation but couldn't make out the words. She didn't wait and stick around to try to make heads or tails of what they were discussing. She bolted across the back yard and limberly hopped the fence separating her yard and the next. It was only three feet high. Anything taller and she would have likely broken her neck vaulting over it. She crouched down for only a moment before sprinting across Mrs. Richard's flower garden.

Neibolt Street was only a half mile away. Ten, perhaps twenty minutes depending on if she ran there or walked. It was a freaky enough situation and would probably be best to get there as quickly as she could. Thankfully she had put her running shoes on. Taking one last glance over her shoulder, Amanda took off running as fast as her legs would carry her. The burn from the wound at her thigh was nothing in comparison to the fear she felt if these men were to catch up with her, and that was not something she was about to let happen. She took a right at the end of the street, disappearing around the corner just as the two men came into view of the main road. She had just missed them by mere seconds. Despite being in the clear, she didn't stop. Not until she took the left directly onto Neibolt.

I can ssssmeeelll you, Precioussss.

Came Pennywise's nearly taunting whisper.

Amanda breathed a sigh of relief. Her gaze locked onto 29 Neibold Street. An abandoned Victorian that sat nearly alone at the end of the road. Large sun flowers sat in the yard, quite possibly dropped by passing birds. A large gnarled and twisted tree stood nearly in the corner of the front yard, giving the boarded up house an ever creepier feel. Though the atmosphere, the very presence of the house itself seemed to scream terror, she found a strange comfort in it. She stopped for a moment just at the font gate that was wide open and inviting. She took a deep breath and walked up the pathway that led to the small front porch and partially broken door. It swung open on it's own, almost as if some unseen hand had pushed it open for her. She stepped over the threshold, barely jumping when the door itself slammed shut behind her, narrowly missing clipping her backside.

"You are bleeding."

She whirled around at the sound of his voice. He stood in the doorway that led directly off of the kitchen and to quite possibly another room. His looming stature and presence would have intimidated or perhaps terrified anyone that encountered it but to her, it felt safe.

"I ran all the way here." She admitted, noticing the blossoming stain forming on her jeans. She sighed softly, pushing a hand through her still semi damp hair. "I grabbed my cell phone and nothing else."

"You are safe here." He informed her, moving towards her with predatory grace. Each movement almost seemed practiced and yet held an unpredictability that made it hard to guess what he may do next.

"Who were those men?" She inquired sitting herself down on the broken remains of what had once been a small table. She would have to re-clean and bandage the wound at her thigh, otherwise it would only continue to reopen nearly every time she moved.

"They are those who are hunting me." He replied simply.

She had assumed as much. "Are they part of some kind of cult? I noticed a tattoo on the right wrist of one of them men. A rune of some kind."

Pennywise stiffened, standing nearly up straight to his seven foot tall stature.

"The Cult of Chud."