Page 35 of Dead By Dusk

“I’m not anyone else.”

Our standoff lasts far longer than it should as she scrutinizes me. A look that promises death, so much so that, even though I stand taller, I feel much smaller as she looks down upon me. “Well, out with it then. What happened?”

I continue to drown within her emerald isle eyes for a moment longer, allowing my thoughts to wander further than is appropriate before bringing myself back to reality.

“You were right. Someone got in. They went straight for Carmen while she was scrubbing the past few days off of her jacket. Nate and Adonis were in other rooms when it happened, I guess.”

She nods her head, looking at everything but me while taking in the words that I’ve said before waving me on.

“Adonis got to her first. Nate and I showed up just in time to see him bashing the guy’s head in…it was strange.”

“Why was it strange? He’s more than capable of handling things, wouldn’t you say?” Her voice isn’t soft and inquisitive like I thought it would be while discussing the matter revolving around her friend. Instead, it’s cold and hard. Calculating like I know she can be, but wasn’t expecting her to be at this moment, suggesting she has a theory of her own that she has yet to share. That isn’t surprising though, not when she likes to be certain before speaking of uncertainties.

“That’s not what I’m saying. It’s just that he hasn’t killed anyone up until this point. There was something about the way he did it that just felt…off.”

“But why?”

Again, she demands an answer to a question I’m not sure of yet. I don’t know why it didn’t feel right. I don’t really know much about anyone here other than what I’ve seen. I have barely remembered anything that doesn’t revolve around the frustrating woman in front of me. Quickly brushing past her, I take soft steps toward the stairs, watching which board I step onto not make any noise. I want to make sure no one has made themselves busy by listening to our conversation.

When I’m convinced no one is in sight, I stalk back toward her and push her own body against the wall, resting my hands against her shoulders, despite there being no need for them to.

“Anger, Silene. He seemed possessed by it. There were other ways to do what he did, but he opted for the messiest option. We had to pull him off the man to get him to stop. Had to move Carmen to another room so she wouldn’t have to look at what was left of the man.”

Gone is the cold calculated look, as hesitance settles on her features before she looks away from me and shakes away any lingering thoughts. She doesn’t voice them.

“Okay well…let me put on some clothes, and then I’ll head downstairs. You don’t have to wait for me,” she says while taking a small step to the side to try and escape my hold, but I drift my hand to the side just enough for a few strands of her long hair to weave between my fingers. A small cough tears my focus away from the dark chocolatey strands, and I step back far enough for her to walk around me.

I’m not sure how long I linger. Not sure if she closes the door as soon as she enters the confines of the bathroom, or if she looks back and waits for me to return her stare. I’m not even sure why I stay unmoving in the dark, empty hallway, but I wait until light outlines my skin and the creak of the opening door tells me she’s dressed and ready.

“You waited.” Her voice is hushed and raspy with disbelief, though I’m not sure why she doesn’t understand. I shift my weight for a moment before turning to face her. She’s wearing a black sports bra and running shorts. Her feet are bare against the hardwood floor, and her towel is hanging over her arm as she runs her fingers through her long hair, curls already forming despite her lightly combing through them.

“Always,” is my only response as I continue staring at her. I’m not sure if she heard me, but the way she immediately stiffens and turns away from me is evidence enough that she most likely did.

“I was wearing these under my clothes,” she says in explanation as to why she’s wearing so much less than what she showed up in. “I thought maybe it was still decent enough while the rest of my clothes dry off a bit more.”

I go to say something but stop the incoherent ramblings that threaten to spill from my lips. Truthfully, I don’t really know what to say right now with her standing in front of me. Not when I said all that I did yet still know nothing from her end. Not when she’s staring at me as if she’s waiting for me to say something that I myself am unaware of.

So I say nothing. I dip my chin and clear my throat as I walk past her and toward the stairs. Each step down is slightly more daunting than the last as the light flickers around us. The closer we get, the louder the sound of arguing becomes, and the more I slow my descent. I’m straining to hear the words being said, praying each step I take is lighter than the last. No attention is given to Silene as she presses close behind me, and I assume she’s doing the same as me.

Each word is harshly whispered, and I’m unable to tell who is saying what, but the anger echoing in one voice is unmistakable as I see flashes of blood and bone across the floor that splits the kitchen and living room. Flashes of torn flesh and thumbs pressing into dead eyes embed themselves into the deepest parts of my mind as I listen to the harsh tone disrupting the hushed conversation already taking place.

If it weren’t for the last step onto the first floor, maybe she and I would have made it unnoticed long enough to decipher the words beyond us. But we don’t. Instead, my weight gives us away and our three acquaintances fall silent. Their gazes bore into ourown as their postures straighten. None look surprised by our presence.

“What’s going on?”

I look to Silene as she asks the question and then look back toward the others.

“Nothing. We’re just trying to figure out what to do. We didn’t think there was any other way in or out of here. Now we know there is but don’t know where. We thought a discussion was necessary. Wouldn’t you think so?”

As expected, it’s Nate who answers. The man who has played mediator and leader for the duration of this nightmare. But I didn’t just watch him as he spoke. I watched Adonis as his own stare pierced through me. Watched him move to a more defensive stance, while Carmen stands rigid and wide-eyed. Similar to how one would look if they had just been caught red-handed. But her eyes have me wondering if that’s actually the case for her because they are filled with a searching sincerity. Filled with an unknowing desire. But for what? For the first time, I wish I could be inside her head and learn what exactly is going on in there. I know it’s not intrusive thoughts of guilt, but those of a lost hope whose remnants have lingered longer than they were ever meant to.

It’s the same hope that wraps itself around bones and convinces her to keep moving despite the fact that she, of everyone here, doesn’t seem to belong. Whispers to her soul the names of those she should stick by and heed warnings she’s not sure she even believes. She may be a mystery among us, but the facts are obvious in her actions.

“The answer is obvious. We tear that fucking door down. There’s no discussion to be had over the matter. I’m not waiting any longer.”

I feel the loss of heat from her before I hear the sound of loud steps rushing up the stairs. By the time I turn, she’s over halfway there and everyone is rushing to follow.

“Silene, what thehellare you doing!?” Nate booms from somewhere behind me, and I only continue forward so as to not get trampled, but once I make it to the second landing I step aside watching Adonis and Carmen shoot in the direction Silene had gone. Once they’re past, I swing my arm out and catch the sleeve of Nate’s sweater and pull his body toward me. The sound of his head slamming into the wall behind him is a dull roar compared to the way I feel as my hand grips his neck.

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