Places to Hide
3.
Eleanor heard the first scream and rolled out of bed, immediately realizing the absence of her husband. She pulled on the robe from the foot of the bed, and ran to the window, padding softly on the cold wood. At the window, Eleanor looked out and was uncertain for a moment what she saw. Then the image made sense.
Eleanor made the second scream herself.
At the doorstep, lying on his side, her husband twitched, bathed in blood. The hunched figure next to hump walked with a limp, clutching his side. The blood from his side mixing with the Ernie's, mixing in an expanding crimson puddle, saturating the snow illuminated by the moonlight.
The man looked up from the side of her husband and grinned. Eleanor watched the man withdraw a knife from the back of her husband, and plant it firmly in his neck. Ernie shuddered finally, a final movement in his ending life span, and died on the ground.
Eleanor screamed and ran out of her room.
She flew across the carpet of the darkened hallway, flinging herself at the phone sitting on the hallway pedestal. Her outstretched hand knocked the phone out of her reach and the pedestal, phone, and her body went crashing to the ground. She clenched her teeth and lunged at the handset, pulling the phone towards her as she began to rise into a crouch.
Bang.
"Hello?" The number had not dialed. She pressed the buttons again and again, to no avail. There was no familiar dial tone in the back of the battery operated touchtone beeping.
Bang.
Eleanor scrambled to her feet, running low past the stairwell towards her sons room. Reaching the end of the hall she pressed herself into the door, frantically turning the handle. It was locked. "Hide!" she screamed through the door. Turning around, she looked for objects to defend herself with. Her thoughts seemed hopelessly blank for a second, but then the fire-prod in her bedroom leaped to mind. Eleanor tore away from the wall, before lurching back as if she had just been pulled by an invisible force.
Bang.
Eleanor realized, for the first time, that she was crying. "I... I love you..." Eleanor breathed in a sob and began to cry out her sons name.
Bang.
She was startled and she flew backwards into a stepping stool she had fashioned to combine a book rack. A man was standing in the now open door at the base of the stairs, and was beginning to step through the moonlight and towards the stairs where she stood.
"No!" Eleanor cried out, grabbing the stool, and hurdling it at the man. It crashed down hallway, and the man pressed himself out of the way as the stool rolled by. Eleanor and the man paused for a second, eyeing each other, and then they both ran.
She ran down the hallway, brushing out of the way many of her own creations, looking back to see the man round the top of the steps, charging toward her. Eleanor's foot caught on the telephone cord she had knocked to the floor only moments before.
"No," she gasped as she toppled to the ground.
Eleanor rolled onto her back in time to see the man raise his fist into the air, before crashing it into the side of her head. Her vision blurred as the impact rocked her sideways, and she felt the weight of the man on top of her. The second blow felt softer, and eleanor clung to her consciousness as best as she could, the corners of her sight beginning to disappear.
As if in a trance, she felt the man loosen on top of her, his hands moving away from around her throat. As she sunk further and further in reality, desperately trying to bring her hands to her defense, she felt her robe slip off as rough hands moved up her thighs.
"Ernie," she managed to call softly, as the last of her surroundings faded into darkness.
*** Wow! That took way too fucking long to write. The fourth and final part of places to hide, however, I will try to put up by the end of the night. But, no promises.***
Eleanor heard the first scream and rolled out of bed, immediately realizing the absence of her husband. She pulled on the robe from the foot of the bed, and ran to the window, padding softly on the cold wood. At the window, Eleanor looked out and was uncertain for a moment what she saw. Then the image made sense.
Eleanor made the second scream herself.
At the doorstep, lying on his side, her husband twitched, bathed in blood. The hunched figure next to hump walked with a limp, clutching his side. The blood from his side mixing with the Ernie's, mixing in an expanding crimson puddle, saturating the snow illuminated by the moonlight.
The man looked up from the side of her husband and grinned. Eleanor watched the man withdraw a knife from the back of her husband, and plant it firmly in his neck. Ernie shuddered finally, a final movement in his ending life span, and died on the ground.
Eleanor screamed and ran out of her room.
She flew across the carpet of the darkened hallway, flinging herself at the phone sitting on the hallway pedestal. Her outstretched hand knocked the phone out of her reach and the pedestal, phone, and her body went crashing to the ground. She clenched her teeth and lunged at the handset, pulling the phone towards her as she began to rise into a crouch.
Bang.
"Hello?" The number had not dialed. She pressed the buttons again and again, to no avail. There was no familiar dial tone in the back of the battery operated touchtone beeping.
Bang.
Eleanor scrambled to her feet, running low past the stairwell towards her sons room. Reaching the end of the hall she pressed herself into the door, frantically turning the handle. It was locked. "Hide!" she screamed through the door. Turning around, she looked for objects to defend herself with. Her thoughts seemed hopelessly blank for a second, but then the fire-prod in her bedroom leaped to mind. Eleanor tore away from the wall, before lurching back as if she had just been pulled by an invisible force.
Bang.
Eleanor realized, for the first time, that she was crying. "I... I love you..." Eleanor breathed in a sob and began to cry out her sons name.
Bang.
She was startled and she flew backwards into a stepping stool she had fashioned to combine a book rack. A man was standing in the now open door at the base of the stairs, and was beginning to step through the moonlight and towards the stairs where she stood.
"No!" Eleanor cried out, grabbing the stool, and hurdling it at the man. It crashed down hallway, and the man pressed himself out of the way as the stool rolled by. Eleanor and the man paused for a second, eyeing each other, and then they both ran.
She ran down the hallway, brushing out of the way many of her own creations, looking back to see the man round the top of the steps, charging toward her. Eleanor's foot caught on the telephone cord she had knocked to the floor only moments before.
"No," she gasped as she toppled to the ground.
Eleanor rolled onto her back in time to see the man raise his fist into the air, before crashing it into the side of her head. Her vision blurred as the impact rocked her sideways, and she felt the weight of the man on top of her. The second blow felt softer, and eleanor clung to her consciousness as best as she could, the corners of her sight beginning to disappear.
As if in a trance, she felt the man loosen on top of her, his hands moving away from around her throat. As she sunk further and further in reality, desperately trying to bring her hands to her defense, she felt her robe slip off as rough hands moved up her thighs.
"Ernie," she managed to call softly, as the last of her surroundings faded into darkness.
*** Wow! That took way too fucking long to write. The fourth and final part of places to hide, however, I will try to put up by the end of the night. But, no promises.***