"Did you hear that?" Alex said, somewhat in a whisper. A shiver ran down her spine, her mind in panic. She hadn't expected to run into this fix where she found herself.
They all pulled close to each other, standing back to back. Everyone stood on edge, listening to hear what it was. Their breaths came out in short gasps as their eyes roved about, their heart rattling against their rib cage.
"Vengeance is mine," came a hoarse voice from nowhere. They all heard it clearly; like it had been said directly into their ears and it made Chris' lips tremble as he let out a whimper. Hands tight on their weapons, the two detectives tried facing their fear even when their minds seemed insane. Alex's heart banged hard, like it was going to rip open in the next instance.
"Justice must be served," the voice came again, making them reposition with fear, "justice...will be served."
The same creepy breeze swept around them before Mr. Jones materialized just a few inches from Alex's face, his darker-than-night eyes buried deep in his grim face. She screamed at the terrifying image, her voice synchronizing with the banging sound of gunshots which rang in the silent night like a hundred detonated warheads.
Alex fell to her knees, her hands covered against her ears as tears broke from her eyes against her will. Chris got down beside her, he pulled her close to his shivering body and whispered to her that everything was okay-that was something he knew they both had a better idea of.
"We need to find Professor and Henry," Chris said, almost stuttering.
"There's no way we'll make it out of here," Alex cried, her face was buried in Chris' arm which wrapped around her. They all glanced at her, she was probably right and Mr. Jones seemed to be driving his point home.
Fear had taken dominance over them, their heart beat wildly in their chest and their mind turned frantic and sensitive to everything happening around them. Detective Miles' eyebrows remained furrowed, his facial expression was a cross between surprise and anger and still hetried pushing off Maloney's idea that this was beyond their league.
~*~
Professor Parker's eye shone in shock, his heart beat flew up several paces and his breath paused for a moment there when the gunshots rang across the cemetery. He stopped digging, his gaze met with Chris whose heart felt like it was about to explode and their thoughts ran in the same line. Mr. Jones.
"Wh-" Henry throat tightened and he gave out short gasps, trying to catch his breath. "Wh-Wh-What was that?"
Professor remained silent, his eyes still fixed in the direction from which the shrill cry and gunshots had come from. He tried convincing himself it wasn't what he was thinking but he knew better.
"Alex," he muttered to Henry in a low tone like the mention of the name was forbidden. Henry's breath paused with the hair at the nape of his neck standing on edge; his expression mirrored Professor Parker's.
"How'd she-" Henry didn't need to finish his sentence for him to get an answer to what it was. Chris. She must've convinced him to bring her to the cemetery and that's why he had called earlier. Without a word, Professor threw down the shovel he had been using, tore a piece of his shirt and filled it with a handful of salt.
"What do you think you're doing now?" Henry asked, his mind being absolutely shaken.
"My daughter's out there," Professoranswered; he picked up one of the flashlights they'd been using and then started off in the direction the cry had come from. "Just keep digging, I'll be back," he called out as he disappeared into the night.
Henry pushed down the bile in his throat and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand as he breathed through his lips, getting a firmer grip on the shovel in his hand. Professor had said he'll be back, Henry got back to digging, mustering all the strength he could. He'll be back.
Professor ran through columns and rows of graves, his chest tightened as he gasped for breath as he ran, led by the beam of torch's light in front of him. Sweat dripped fromhis face, his breathing harsh and his heart beat almost audible. He'd never forgive himself if anything happened to Alex, how'd he even explain it to Lara and convince her that he hadn't been the one that had compelled Alex to come to the cemetery too. The guilt, if he ever made it through the night without Alex, he'd die of it, of the guilt.
His mind became elated when he finally saw a group of people skulking around in a distance. They seemed to have seen him too as they halted. Exhausted, he started into a jog in their direction.
"Dad," Alex called out in a teary voice as she broke out from the group, heading for the approaching Professor. She fell into his open arms, streams of tears flowing down her eyes once more. Professor planted a kiss on her head before looking behind her to see the others who had been with her.
"Professor Parker," Chris said, his head still uneasy after seeing the apparition earlier. Professor acknowledged him, unable to respond in words.
"Can someone tell me what the hell is going on here?" Detective Miles started, his fury was on full display as he spoke the words.
"You pulled yourself into this Detective," Professor answered. "I hope you're not regretting it now."
"That doesn't answer the damn question."
"There are two options you have," Professor said, his eyes fixed on the furious Detective. "One is that you keep whining here until our end meets us. Two, you shut up...and listen closely."
Detective Maloney stopped his partner from saying any other thing, "you saw what happened out there man, let's listen to him."
"We located the apparition's grave and if we're ever going to see daylight again, we have to work together."
"What about Henry?" Chris asked.
"At the site, digging."
"Digging?" Detective Miles asked, eyebrows raised in a perfect arc of surprise.
"Digging," Professor replied in affirmation. "We should hurry."
With that said, they all looked at each other momentarily and with Professor and Alex in front, they all started out with brisk but careful footsteps into the dark.
They hadn't gone far when an ominous shiver ran down their spine. Chris looked to his side and his eye met with Maloney's who seemed to have known that bad feeling too, understanding what that absurdly chilly wind meant. They both urged the rest to hurry as their brisk walk turned into a slow jog and seconds later, their heart was pounding against their chest as a mist formed around them, clouding their sight.
Detective Miles fell to his knees, holding on to his neck as if wriggling with something clutching to his throat. He fell to the ground and struggled to get back up with one hand on the ground as support and the other squeezed against his chest. Drawing in a long breath, Miles finally got himself again, unable to explain what had just happened.
Chris watched with eyes wide open in shock. Mr. Jones. They all took to their heels once again, their heart rattling like a caged bird trying to break free. The breeze swooshed past Chris' ears, his pulse beating in his ear and his breath, harsh.
Maloney's yelp and grunt caught Chris' attention, he turned behind him to see Maloney had been knocked down by something and he had been thrown into one of the gravestones as he got on his knees and his hands was over one side of his torso like he had smacked his ribs badly.
Distracted, Chris felt a sharp pain jolt through his body from his left leg as he fell face first to the ground. He shut his eyes tightly and grunted in pain, turning to his back after running into one of the low gravestones. The world spun around him for a moment and as he got himself back together, he felt goosebumps rise on his skin. Alex's scream was somewhat faded in his ears as he opened his eyes and standing over him was his worst nightmare. His face was unbelievably pale with green lines like veins sprawling from his neck to his lower jaw and chin.
Chris was scared out of his mind, his breath hitched and his chest tightened as he had come face to face with his end. Throwing his hand over his eyes, Chis gave a maddening scream. His heart fluttered when he felt something sprinkle on his body and he believed it had to be his blood which had spattered on him.
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