Making a Monster

This is a short story I wrote in high school and have now rewritten it. I always liked it especially in high school, I had positive feedback even back then, the surpise ending was most favorable. This time around I made it less of a surprise though, givin

 

            Bella was starting to come too, but there was a loud thunderous roaring in the room. As she slowly moved her fingers and limbs she realized the pounding sound was inside her own head. It felt as if every part of her brain was crashing against itself, making it very difficult for Bella to open her eyes or lift her head from the soft down pillow she was laying against. She laid there briefly trying to regain her wits and cleared the cobwebs from her mind: she had a vague remembrance of a soft voice, a stinging sensation at the base of her neck, and large black damask curtains.

 

            After so many minutes Bella managed to open her eyes and look around at her most immediate surroundings; the curtains hanging from the canopy above the bed were the said same black damask curtains she vaguely remembered touching earlier. She was thinking how soft they were for how heavy they appeared to be. The curtains matched perfectly with the bedding and the dark mahogany four poster king sized Elizabethan bed that she lay swimming in. Bella realized she was lying in the center of the bed surrounded by the pillows; cushioned by the thick down comforter. The curtains were tied back to each post with long black tassels that tangled in a slight breeze. Slowly Bella turned her head taking in the look of the room; from the furniture to the wall hangings the room was beautiful, and mysterious.

 

            The room was breathtaking; the furniture was dark cherry mahogany which was aged and antique looking. When Bella was able to sit up on the bed she could hear loud rustling sounds and faint voices speaking and calling out from somewhere in the house. As she eased her feet to the floor, she found she needed to take an extra moment for her head to clear; the act of sitting up and placing her feet on the floor made her dizzy. Bella’s neck was throbbing as much as her head; she was trying to remember what happened the night before. Her memory was shaky and spotted.

 

            Finally Bella was able to stand up and walk the few feet across the room to the door. As she turned the door knob she had a memory flash in her mind from the night before, she remembere3d walking part way into that particular room; more correctly she remembered being carried into that room. She remembered the arms that had held her were strong, hard and cold as well as the feeling of not being able to lift her head or move a limb. Thoughts of illegal drugs and illicit acts were starting to invade her head as she pushed open the door and came into a dark inner room. There was no light at all in the room, but she let in light from the back room towards the center of the inner chamber. There appeared to be a large box laying there in the dead center of the room.

 

            Bella took some slow steps into the room, as she eased passed the open door it seemed to move without any help slamming shut behind her. The sound made Bella jump as well as make her heart race; the effect leaving her completely in the dark. As she took a moment to catch her breath and calm herself down she started to have that creepy feeling of not being alone. “That wasn’t box; it looked more like a coffin!” as that thought sank in Bella felt the urge to run as far from that room as possible. There was something at the back of her mind that was screaming for her to move quickly to the other side of the room and run for the front door.

 

            Bella hesitated only a moment before rushing forward and pulling open the door that lead to the hallway and the a staircase. Instead of taking her time once she made it through the door she no longer held any curiosity as to where she was and how she got there, Bella wanted out of that house immediately. While taking the stairs two at a time she noticed that some of the windows on the second floor were covered not allowing any view of outside in. By the time she hit the first floor she saw the lower windows were uncovered and the sun was still up in the sky. It appeared to be late afternoon some time around 4:30 or 5ish. The sun was going to be up for much longer and from the looks of the surrounding grounds outside she was going to have to hike to find civilization.

 

“Okay so the day isn’t over yet, but how do I get out of here?” Bella thought to herself as she scanned the first floor for a front entrance. AS she started forward she heard loud banging and faint voices again. She had heard a similar sound when she had first woken up. Instead of heading for the door she started back into the house through a dinning room towards what could have been a kitchen. She was trying to decipher the sounds, and voices she heard as well as where they were coming from. Before entering the kitchen she found a open doorway to a sitting room and library there was a second door in the room that was partially open and the voices were louder and seemed to come from the door. Bella decided to open the door and see if the owner of the house was the one who was calling out. Hoping to figure out how she came to be there and what had happened the night before she started down a flight of steps towards what was the basement.

 

Bella found a light switch the wall to her right as she went down which switched on the lights in the basement. This effect had caught the attention of whoever was down there. The voices were distinctly female and male; two of them. When the light came on they had started yelling for help, which pushed Bella to move faster down the stairs. Bella realized she knew the voices they were friends of hers Ally and Mike. Both of them were tied up and languishing on the basement floor with blindfolds on. Bella quickly ran to untie them and help them to their feet. Both of them were exhausted, dirty and very confused. Ally and Mike like Bella were confused and could barely remember anything from the night before. They too had Swiss cheese memories regarding how they ended up in the basement, blind folded, and tied up. After stretching their limbs the three of them decided it was in their best interest to head straight for a door and get away from that house as quickly as possible.

 

Mike led the way back up the stairs towards the first floor of the house. As Ally was turning to follow him Bella noticed two puncture marks at the base of her neck and a trail of dried blood around them. Before Bella could point out the cut marks to Ally the three of the started to hear a loud rustling noise that seemed to make the house vibrate. Mike started forward at a faster pace telling them to hurry up. As they weaved their way up the steps and into room the house seemed to shake and tremble more. There was a loud sound that seemed to touch them physically causing goose flesh to ripple across their skins and a shiver down their backs. The sound also made Bella feel like it was at a distance and was getting closer and growing as it did. Bella put her hands over her ears as they tried to hurry through the first floor rooms towards the front door of the house. The sun was still in the sky but was very low and soon would be setting. Bella had the feeling they would end up running from the house on foot in the dark.

 

            Mike reached the door first with Ally close to his heels, and Bella was fumbling a few feet behind, as she drew closer to the door it was becoming harder and harder for her to move. Ally helped Mike unlock the many bolts and chains on the large front door. Bella came to a stop a few feet behind them        and passively watched them undo the locks and get more and more nervous as the noise seemed to get louder and louder. Still unable to discern what it was that was coming towards them, Ally covered her ears as Mike threw open the door.

 

“Bella” whispered a taunting voice close behind her ear, “where are you going Bella?” She looked around but saw nothing near her. She turned towards the windows at the sun which was still in the sky and realized the glare was bothering her eyes; her skin was starting to tingle and itch. She stumbled backwards away from the front door and the windows. Mike and Ally were yelling over their shoulders for to follow as they ran out onto the front porch and down the steps into direct sunlight. Ally turned back to call out to Bella to hurry, her feet hit the gravel driveway as her skin started to tingle. Instead of yelling hurry she started to itch furiously at her skin. Instead of speaking or yelling Ally started screaming as her skin starting to turn black ash. Mikes screams drowned Ally’s out as his feet were engulfed in fast burning flames.

 

Within moments the sun set behind the trees and there was nothing left of Mike or Ally; not even the clothes or shoes they had been wearing. Bella moved forward slowly and held onto the door. Her memory came back to her; there was no more questions as to what had happened to them. She was no longer groggy or clouded. Bella’s mind was crystal clear and her vision sharper than ever. She remembered his hands and his eyes burning into her skin from across the room. He had moved without trying he appeared and disappeared before she could blink. When he had touched her she had submitted without even thinking. Bella leaned against the doorway as the wind cleared away the smell and traces of her friends.

 

He was no longer upstairs in the dark room, inside the box, but slowly descending the front stairs behind her. “Bella close the door love.” His voice seemed to be inside her head rather than behind her. She turned her head to the side and closed her eyes as if listening to the most blissful music. Bella closed the door and bolted it tight, when she raised her eyes up and at him they were no longer her own, but jet black pearls and there were sharp fang teeth when she smiled at him.

 

 

The End…