Theo felt uncomfortable. To his left stood his girlfriend, one hand on her hip and her smile non-existent. And to his right was the still-fuming Kay, who eagerly awaited a response.
The lad sighed. 'Kay, I'm sorry. I can't even remember getting home last night, never mind witnessing Eddie ride your mechanical bull. Hell, I haven't even heard from him.'
Kay wasn't impressed. Then she pointed at the opened box and smiled wryly. 'Did you know that sheep shears can cut through almost anything? Sure, bones can be tough, but muscle? No problem.'
Once more, the lad peered into the open box, somehow expecting to find a piece of his friend wrapped up like a present. Instead, the box began to rattle, and its soggy bottom slimed across the floor with every jolt.
Stacey took a step back into her kitchen, running her hand over the counter, fumbling, until she found the knife rack. As if that would help her.
Thin black tendrils climbed from the lid of the box. First, one, then seven more appeared, much like a spider crawling from the crack of a wall.
This time, however, its actions were more controlled. It didn't slash through plaster and wood, only Kay who'd been unlucky enough to have stood closest.
Or perhaps it was more than that. For a second, Theo could have sworn that the darkness bore a face between its tendrils, one that'd been focussed on his neighbour, as if it somehow knew her.
Tendrils wrapped around Kay's throat, causing her to choke. Then, while weakened, they restrained her arms as the 'face' sunk into her back and disappeared.
'What the h-'
The neighbour was now motionless, her eyelids shut and the tendrils around her neck were as solid as metallic costume jewellery. Of course, that's if such jewellery came in the form of pulsing black veins.
'Push her outside!' Whispered Stacey, clutching the knife in both hands.
Theo gently shoved her arm, but she'd somehow planted herself firmer than an ancient oak tree. Then her eyes shot open to reveal bulging black orbs, her eyeballs were so full of fluid they looked as though they could burst at any moment.
Kay's jaw dropped, clicked back shut then opened again, the spasmodic movements weren't intentional, but they were terrifying.
Every few seconds there came another click, then she screamed, although the sound seemed to come from the back of her throat.
Theo wondered what Kay was doing when she swung about and stumbled towards the box. Her strides were long, and because her back was arched forward, she almost ran into the doorframe.
Stacey followed the creature's gaze and dove for the still-rattling box. Closing her hands over the thing, she almost jumped when the darkness was sucked back inside. Like an extractor fan to end all others. It was weird.
But sure enough, Kay looked the pair up and down and frowned. 'What happened? And why do I feel like I've swallowed a load of cat hair?'
Unsure of how to answer yet another awkward question, Theo said the first thing that came to mind. 'Dry heat.'
Another frown. 'Dry heat?'
'Yes,' chimed in Stacey. 'The building's rife with it, but get a glass of water and you'll be fine.'
Kay rolled her eyes. 'What were we discussing again?'
'The parcel,' Theo interrupted. 'It went to you by mistake.'
'Right. Well, make sure they have the correct address next time, will you.'
The lad nodded, not quite able to believe he'd gotten away without getting at the least, another bag to the face. But he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth and quickly waved the confused lady off as she moved to tackle the stairs.
'Lucky.'
Theo was white as a sheet. 'Lucky that we're not dead, maybe.'
Stacey gripped the parcel tighter.
'What the hell did I buy last night?'
She felt the red, wet cardboard and grimaced. 'A murder weapon. Cursed object. Take your pick.'
'Whatever it is, it's going back.'
Stacey nodded. 'Did you recognise anything about the seller?'
'He had dirty boots and a rugged beard.'
'Well, that narrows it down. What about his vehicle, maybe a registration plate?'
'Nope. His truck was rusted red with a weird decal on the back bumper. A duck carrying a rake, I think.'
Stacey dug into her pants pocket with her free hand to get her mobile phone. Its screen was cracked across the middle where the tempered glass had failed to do its job, but the touchpad worked, for the most part.
'What's that face for?'
Stacey shook her head. 'A lesson. Never search for the words duck with a rake. There's some weird shit on here.'
'Nothing useful then.'
'I didn't say that,' she held up her phone and zoomed in on an image. 'There's a farm shop a few miles away. Is this the decal you noticed?'
Theo grinned. Finally, something good had happened. 'The Raking Duck, farm and shop.'
'We'd better leave now to beat the lunchtime traffic.'
Stacey wagged her finger before climbing to her feet. 'We're taping this box back up first. The last thing we need is you hitting a pothole and this monster jumping out the window to snatch Lollipop Lady Linda while she's doing her rounds.'
The duct tape she grabbed from the cluttered kitchen drawer was so old, its sides were frayed and the adhesive strip was covered in cat hair. Theo didn't even own a cat, so it must have been passed down.
As Stacey added one final layer of tape, the box began to shake and bleed as though it held an injured beast, desperate to escape. Then she had to let go when the shears stabbed a hole in the bottom to aim for her leg, and then the box too began to bulge and expand.
Seeing no other options, Theo darted to his bedroom to grab a rucksack that might have a slightly better chance of holding the object. But after only a few seconds, that too resembled a cheese grater full of holes.
'Get the door! We have to leave right now.'