Imminent Past (Chapter 4)

~Chapter 4~

A man was walking towards me.

He had a very wide smile that exposed a row of gleaming white teeth, long dark hair swept back into a ponytail, and alluring black eyes that seemed to draw you in even if you weren’t gazing directly into them. His sharp features became more refined in the rays of sunlight glittering over him, and I could see he wore a white lab doctor’s coat. He wasn’t very old, maybe in his late twenties or early thirties.

Before I could open my mouth to ask why he was here, in the middle of the desert, he grabbed my hair and jerked my head back, his eyes turning a glowing, deadly red. His handsome features twisted with rage and he let out a menacing laugh, holding something sleek and silver up so I could see it. The sunlight gleamed onto the metal and I noticed with a shock it was a knife.

I opened my mouth to scream but nothing came out, he held me tightly, lowering the blade over my neck, and I felt the cold metal touch my skin. My heart thudded dramatically, my limbs kicking and flailing to get out of this insane man’s grip. With a swift movement, he made a quick slice across my neck.

I sat up, breathing drastically, clutching my searing throat with both hands, which felt like it had been exposed to fire, looking around with wide eyes.

I was back in my room. Everything was dark; the only light was the glow of moonlight outside my window. I ran a hand through my hair and touched my neck again. No wound. I took another deep breath, reaching over to grab the glass of water on my bedside table and draining the glass in one gulp. My hands were shaking so badly I dumped half the glass over myself. I lied back onto my bed, staring up at the ceiling. The intense pain in my neck was fading now, very feeble so I could hardly feel it, but I couldn’t deny that that nightmare had been extremely vivid.

I turned over in my bed, reminding myself that was all that it was—a dream, nothing more. But after a few minutes of lying there, counting my frenzied heartbeats, I stood and headed over to the bathroom.

I flicked on the light—and gasped.

Though there was no open wound, there was a thin pink line on my neck, reaching from one side of my neck to the other. I gaped at my white-faced reflection for a moment, terrified. My eyes raked over the line on my neck several times, as if willing it to disappear. Then, after limitless minutes of standing there, the line faded and turned the creamy color of my skin.

Taking a shuddering breath, I turned from the mirror and left the bathroom, still stunned and confused, and moved towards my room and climbed into bed.

* * *

“Audrey, are you okay?”

My head snapped up at the mention of my name, and my eyes settled on Noah, who sat in front of me with his eyebrows drawn together and an expression of concern masking his dark green eyes.

“No—I mean yes,” I sighed. “I’m fine.”

We were in an ice cream parlor; Kennedy was at the counter, looking over the various types of ice creams while Noah and I sat at a table by the window, gazing at the oncoming customers. I didn’t notice he’d been staring at me until he’d said my name.

“You keep doing that,” Noah murmured.

“What?”

“Touching your neck.”

As soon as I realized I was doing it I hastily shoved my hand in my jacket pocket. I stared out the parlor window, breathing somewhat irregularly, though that might’ve just been because of Noah’s penetrating gaze. I swallowed hard and tried to think about anything but what was bothering me.

Noah leaned in and lowered his voice. “Are you sure you’re okay? You seem a little... pale.”

“Pale?”

“Like... spooked out.”

I shook my head. “No, no, Noah I’m fine. I just—didn’t get much sleep last night,” I responded, stopping myself just in time.

He frowned. “You’re not enjoying yourself.”

“No—everything’s fine,” I told him, willing the words to be true.

Still cautiously staring at me, he leaned back onto his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. I let out my breath.

Last night’s dream had really shaken me. Not only was it awfully vivid, but when I’d woken with that mark across my neck... Unless I’d imagined that too, something was wrong. And as hard as I tried to put it from my mind it continued to enter my head. I’d tried desperately to distract myself with Noah and Kennedy, who seemed to be having a much better time than I was, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the dream, and the man...

Most of the day I’d been distracted with Noah’s presence and was able to forget about my nightmare, but now that I had time to think I was recalling everything.

“Do you want to go home?” Noah asked softly.

I looked up and shook my head quickly. “No, not yet.” I wasn’t lying; I desperately needed a distraction and Noah was a very good one.

I knew Noah wanted to ask what was wrong; the words were clear in his eyes, but he resisted the urge and finally tore his gaze from me to look out the window.

Kennedy approached with an ice cream cone stacked with three scoops of chocolate ice cream. Sitting down beside Noah, she seemed to take no notice of my traumatized persona today; she’d been more than oblivious while her brother was just the opposite and wouldn’t look away from me.

“Where’re we going after this?” Kennedy asked, looking up at Noah.

Noah shrugged and looked at me. “Maybe the music store? It’s just down the street,” he suggested.

I shrugged and glanced out the window at a man with a suit who was gibbering away on a cell phone. His hair was slicked back with hair gel and he had a prominent chin and a hard gaze. His expression was livid; he looked like he was shouting into the speaker of his phone.

He darted past a car, and suddenly there was a girl I hadn’t noticed before standing there. She looked around eleven or twelve years old and had locks of auburn hair and was very pale; she was wearing a lacy white dress and her expression was blank, almost zombie-like. There was a red bow in her hair.

She was staring at me.

My breath caught in my throat as I stared back, stunned. She looked almost secretly angry, but the eerie zombie look overshadowed that; her eyes were very dark and also empty of any emotion.

“Audrey.”

I stared at the girl; she stared back coldly. Her gaze was drawing me in like a magnet; I felt myself wanting to go outside and speak to her... a strange feeling of recognition was flowing through my veins...

“Audrey, where are you going?”

A warm hand that sent a jolt of electricity through my body caught my wrist, and the trance was broken; I had my head back and was shaking it numbly; I could look away from the girl and up at Noah.

He looked puzzled and concerned. “Audrey, what is it?” he whispered.

Heart thudding hard from the scare of the girl and the pull of Noah’s stare, I looked back to where I’d seen her, standing unmoving right in front of the car, but she was gone.

I craned my head to see over the people approaching; some of them looked at me like I was a freak but I didn’t care... She was gone. How was that possible? Hadn’t I just seen her standing right there? Again, my eyes drifted to the spot but saw nothing but the sleek tan car parked in its spot.

Someone shook me. “Audrey.”

I glanced up at Noah, shaking my head vaguely. “Nothing...” my voice was a bleak whisper. “Nothing... I—I thought I saw something.”

“Come on,” he said, leading me out of the parlor, Kennedy looking puzzled but following behind. Noah led me to his car and opened the passenger door for me; I slid inside dazedly and stared impassively out the windshield. Kennedy got in the back seat while Noah climbed in the driver’s spot.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go home?”

Trying anxiously to clear my mind from the dreading images that were threatening to plague me, I shook my head again, this time more violently, and closed my eyes, putting my face in my hands.

Noah waited patiently for my answer; after a few moments I lifted my head to look at him, hoping my voice didn’t shake.

“I’m sorry, Noah... I thought I saw someone, that’s all.”

Noah nodded slowly, distress lighting up his eyes, and put the car in drive.

* * *

The sun was bright and high in the sky, illuminating the stretch of houses that lined the block. The grass was dry and yellow but still it didn’t take away from the beauty of it all.

“Marge!”

I turned to see Mother running towards me, her eyes full of worry. She sighed in relief when she recognized me by the tall Oak tree, sitting on the tire swing under the shadow the tree provided.

She flitted to a stop in front of me.

“Oh, Marge, dear, I couldn’t find you. We’re going to meet Mr. Barnes today, dear.”

I felt the fear swell inside of me; Mr. Barnes had frightened me since I’d seen him moving in while I sat on the terrace.

“Do we have to?” I asked in a whisper, hoping Mother wouldn’t take my request as something offensive to our new neighbor. He simply made me uncomfortable.

Mother took on a curt look. “Yes, we do, Margaret. Come.” She held out her hand and waited patiently for me to place my hand in hers, and then towed me along to the large wooden house next door. I felt the anxiety escalate as we approached the old house and felt my hand tightening around my mother’s as we stepped onto the wooden porch. I almost stepped in front of her to prevent her from knocking, but that would’ve been extremely rude.

I waited, anticipating the thought that maybe Mr. Barnes had gone out or didn’t want to answer. That would’ve suited me fine.

But after several long seconds the thick door swung open and there stood Mr. Barnes, dressed in the same white lab coat I’d seen him in when he moved in. His long dark hair was tied back at the nape of his neck, and it was smooth and silky. His eyes were deeply black and stabbing through me when his gaze met mine. A shiver rose in my spine as he turned his attention upon me: the twelve-year old girl standing with her mother on his front porch.

“Hello,” he said, speaking in an attractive voice similar to the seductive purr of a cat.

“Hello, I’m Anna,” Mother told him. “This is my daughter Margaret. We just stopped by to welcome you to the community.”

The man nodded thoughtfully, looking like he was very deep in thought. His eyes fell over me again and I felt the impulse to hide behind my mother like a small child.

“Very nice to meet you,” Mr. Barnes purred.

His eyes met mine again—and this time something flashed through them. Resentment? Desire? I couldn’t tell. All that I could tell was that it raised another shiver up my spine and caused me to avert my gaze. Something was wrong with this man. His eyes were black as coals and though I’d just met him, I knew they were cold and cruel. I didn’t want to be here.

I wanted him gone.

I jerked upright, snapping out of unconsciousness, my forehead coated with sweat and my breathing irregular. I stared around me at my night-dark room, assuring myself that it was only a dream, that I’d been here the whole time.

But it had seemed so real.

Just like the first dream, like the many dreams to follow after that. This one seemed so real I felt as though I was put in the girl’s place. Those coal black eyes had stared back at me like two bottomless pits of nothingness. I felt another shiver rock my shoulders as I recalled the look the man had given me. That look of greed, curiosity.

Ever since I’d found that strange velvet colored book sealed in that coffin, these dreams had ambushed me whenever I lost consciousness. Every time I closed my eyes, the sinister man with the sweeping black hair and pearly pallid skin was staring back at me. I felt as though he was after me, not this Margaret.

Who was she anyway?

I was just about to deliberate that when another sound interrupted my train of thought. A strange, scraping sound, coming from somewhere downstairs. Like someone dragging something along the ground.

I sat up, listening. The sound continued, that ghastly scraping noise against the wooden floor. It raised gooseflesh on my arms.

“Jill?” I called down the hall, trying to assure myself it was her.

No answer.

I stood, my bare feet cold against the wooden floor as I walked towards my door, arms crossed over my chest. I held my breath as the silence returned, but momentarily the scuffing noise returned, making me jump. It was down the hall.

I followed it. The darkness made this abnormally large house seem eerie. Every little sound made me jump: a floorboard creaking, a branch against a window, a little animal scuttling around outside.

“Jill?” I called again, my voice echoing through the empty space in front of me. I was in the living room. The couches and furniture looked older and dustier than I’d ever seen it at this time of night. It was probably one in the morning.

The grating sound continued.

It came from the other staircase, the one tha led to the attic. I swallowed and stared up at the empty space above me, wishing I had someone here with me. the darkness had always frightened me. Noah popped into my mind. I thought about asking him to come with me, but he was obviously asleep at this time of night.

What was I thinking, anyway?

I was being ridiculous. I should just go upstairs and fall back asleep. But the very thought of sleeping—which was sure to bring another nightmare—made my stomach churn. I took a deep breath and started up the stairs, thinking I was being ridiculous. I stopped at the door and held a hand out until I felt my fingers come in contact with the smooth brass of the doorknob.

I pushed the door open.

Moonlight filtered in from the little circular window into the room, casting ghostly shadows against everything. There was nobody here, and the scraping had stopped.

I really was losing it.

Aunt Jill’s words flashed through my mind and I felt extremely pathetic.

I was about to turn and head back downstairs but a shape by the window caught my eye. The little velvet journal. I’d left it there when we’d cleaned out the attic. For some reason, I wanted to go to it.

I walked over and picked it up, running my fingers along the smooth cover. I flipped the pages, but they were still blank. Still, that strange feeling of recognition stole me over. I looked inside the cover. The name was still scrawled along the inside corner.

I looked out the window, feeling insane.

A dark shadow was moving inside the window of the house next door. I stood there, immobilized with fear, my heart pounding in my chest as adrenaline flooded through my veins.

Hadn’t Noah said nobody had lived in that house?

I stared at the window, at the dark shape moving behind it, and felt a sudden dread. The person’s back was to me, and I could see he was clothed in a white outfit. It looked like he was searching for something.

That’s when I noticed the room didn’t look as I remembered it; instead there was furniture inside, actual furniture that hadn’t been turned over.

Then he turned.

Instantaneously I recognized him. It was Mr. Barnes, wearing the doctor’s coat, his hair back in a ponytail, his eyes gleaming with hatred. But instead of being the coal black I remembered, they were a glowing, crimson shade of red. His mouth opened in a grimace of detestation and he bared his rozr-sharp teeth.

I felt the world spin as I fell to the floor, and everything went black.

“Audrey, Audrey!” someone was shouting.

I didn’t know who. They were too far away. My whole body felt sore and my neck felt stiff. My throat ached and there was a piercing sound that wasn’t letting me think.

“Audrey, stop screaming!” the voice screamed again, frantic.

Then I understood; I was the shrieking noise.

I stopped once I realized it and my eyes flashed open to see Aunt Jill standing before me. We were still in the attic, and it was dawn. I sat up quickly, looking for the man or the little velvet book. Aunt Jill was staring at me.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” I breathed. “I’m fine.”

But Jill continued to stare at me like I’d just grown another arm.

“I’m fine, Jill,” I told her again, feeling irritated. “Really. Just a bad dream.”

“What were you doing in the attic?”

I struggled to find a believable lie, but didn’t have the brain to make a good one up at the present moment, so I settled with whatever came out of my mouth. “I was looking for something. I must’ve fallen asleep up here.”

Her eyes tightened and after a second she nodded stiffly, obviously not believing my bluff, and helped me to my feet. We didn’t speak again as I followed her out of the attic. I smelled coffee wafting upstairs and headed down to the kitchen with Jill, but I didn’t want to hang around for her questioning. I grabbed a slice of bread and a glass of milk before Jill could ask me what I was planning to do today.

* * *

I couldn’t sleep.

I twisted and turned in bed, trying to find a comfortable position, but it was no use. My mind was more conscious than anything else in my body. I sighed and flipped onto my back, staring up at the black ceiling.

Shouldn’t I have been grateful for this? I couldn’t fall asleep, which meant no nightmares, no haunting little girl or terrifying evil man slitting my throat tonight.

I turned my head to glance at the clock. 3:15 a.m. Jill was snoring, probably.

I pushed myself out of bed and dragged my feet downstairs, ignoring the peculiar sounds of my hundred-year old house. I went straight to the kitchen and pulled open the fridge, searching for the sleeping pills. The light from the refrigerator startled me; I blinked, adjusting my eyes to the light.

I searched for the pills, and finally noticed the box in the corner. Jill always kept these in the fridge. I pulled the box open, and sighed angrily.

It was empty. I’d used the last of them probably yesterday. I threw the box back into the fridge and shut the door, then looked around the gloomy kitchen. I wondered if I’d get any sleep at all tonight. I headed towards the living room, but noticed something on the kitchen counter.

I paused, glancing at it. It looked like... a photo? I went over and picked it up.

Yes, it was a photo. A photo of the house next door, a shot of the window. I was confused. Had Jill taken a picture of the house? Why?

Shaking my head and feeling disoriented, I dropped the photo back onto the counter and trudged upstairs.

Once in my room, I knew something was different.

I could see a light shining in through my window. Curious, I ambled over, wondering where the strange light was coming from when it was three in the morning. I looked out the window.

The light was coming from the house next door. There, through the window, I could see a figure pacing in the room. Outside it was light, the sun bright in the sky, which puzzled me. Was I dreaming?

Leaves fell to the ground, indicating it was late fall. It was a little foggy and the trees were swaying with a light wind.

Then the figure in the house next door turned, and my breath caught. It was him again. The handsome, cruel-looking man was looking speculative, his lips pursed. He continued to pace around his room.

I sat down on my bed, forgetting everything, watching the scene in confusion and fear.

The room consisted of a long, white table that reminded me of the beds used in hospitals. It was covered with a white cloth—but something was under it. The familiar curves of the thing underneath had me staring in shock. That was a body under there.

The man continued to pace. His eyes flickered from the body underneath the cloth to the floor and the walls, out the window, and back again. he looked like he was thinking something over. It seemed like he was pacing for hours, and then, finally, he turned, his back to me, and looked down at the body on the bed. It looked like he was uncovering the body, I couldn’t see well. I couldn’t see who it was when he did so.

And then the man grabbed a sharp object from the side table and pierced it through the unconscious body.

“No!” I gasped, and I was suddenly on my feet.

My head was spinning. I dashed downstairs, nearly tripping over myself. The racket was sure to wake Jill, but I didn’t care. I was breathing frantically by the time I reached the front door and lurched it open. I ran outside onto my front yard, watching the house next door.

In my rush down here, I’d been oblivious to the darkness that had surrounded me. The darkness that reminded me that it was still three in the morning, not mid-afternoon like the strange hallucination had tried to convince me. I gazed up at the window.

It was empty inside. I could tell from down here. There was no evil man stabbing an unconscious person. It was all in my head.

As soon as I realized this, I sunk to my knees. I wondered how this looked from the outside. A crazy girl sitting in the middle of her lawn at three in the morning, staring at a hideous house next door. A wet moisture touched my cheek, but I wasn’t crying. I looked up at the sky and frowned when I noticed it was starting to rain. I dropped my head, uncaring.

“Audrey!” Jill’s voice came from the open door of our house. She rushed towards me. She was still in her nightgown.

“Audrey, what’re you doing here?”

She helped me to my feet and tried to brush the dirt and grime from my pajamas, but I brushed her hand away.

“Nothing,” I murmured.

“Come inside,” she urged, and put a comforting arm around me as she led me inside our house. She shut the door behind us.

“What was that about?” Jill demanded.

“I thought I saw someone out there,” I muttered, wishing I wasn’t so gullible.

Jill shook her head in bewilderment, giving me that look that said I can’t believe we’re related.

“I’m going to take a shower,” I mumbled, and lumbered upstairs, my soaking clothes dripping all over the floors. But I was beyond caring.