I opened my eyes. Darkness was strangling me. I didn't know where I was but I knew it was a small room.
A million questions ran through my mind but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think clearly. Panic was setting in. It was like all the air in the room was being sucked out. Finally I gave in. I started screaming so loud that my throat started to burn. I took in a deep breath, that's when I heard him...
He was speaking in barely a whisper, in fact I wasn't able to make out half of what he was saying. He sounded distracted, almost like he was speaking to himself. He kept saying something about panic and he smells the fear in you voice.
Obviously this guy was crazy. I stopped making noise and strained to listen. He said it 3 times before I could fully make out what he was saying. "He gets his power from fear, panicked screams call him. He can smell the fear in your voice. He will feed off it, then he will feed off you".
I didn't understand, but before I could ask. The man went silent. Soon after I heard footsteps. A man was whistling Mary had a little lamb while walking through what sounded like a corridor. I realized that the man who spoke to me must have been a captive as well so swallowing the plea for help, I moved to the back corner of the room and stayed quiet.
From underneath the door I saw light as the whistling man walked past. On the far end of the corridor a woman was now screaming. He was walking towards her. I heard a door open, her scream became louder and then silence. I covered my mouth in order to muffle my tears. The door shut and footsteps made their way towards me again. They stopped outside my door. I heard a key slide into the metal keyhole. I heard the lock click and I held my breath as light started to fill the room. My eyes burned from being in the dark so long but when they finally adjusted I was met by the embodiment of horror itself. The man was tall, skinny and looked like he had no face. Only he did. He had opened his mouth inches from my face. The sharp inhuman like teeth and his big mouth left me mortified. I couldn't speak. Tears were rolling down my face. Terror was their cause. Like the man in the room next door said... This thing knew I was afraid. He licked the tears off my face. Gave me a smile and backed away on all fours.
I took a look around the room. I saw a bed, toilet and basin before the door closed. I also noticed that I wasn't alone in the room. The people who lived here before me were still here. Or at least what remained of them.
I made my way to the bed and cleaned it off... feeling my way through the dark. I memorized the room. It was a jail cell or what used to be.
Suddenly I remembered how I got here. My friends and I were exploring an abandoned prison. People believed it was haunted because most people who entered never returned. Those who did were never the same again.
We were stupid for going somewhere that was known for people either going crazy or missing. We had been ambushed walking in the cell block area and the next thing, I woke up in here.
I knew I had to get out, but how? Did the creature lock my door again, I don't remember if it did. To think of it, I never heard the lock click. The man next to me was whispering again. "Don't go out, it likes to play with it's food. He tasted your fear and not locking your door means it wants more. Stay here"...
I decided it was time for some answers. "Who are you?" I whispered back. "My name is Steve Maddock. I used to be the warden of this prison" I wondered how he was still alive, the prison was abandoned 6 years ago. As far as I know, water was cut off and no food was being delivered here.
"How have you survived this long?" I asked a little louder than I intended to.
"That thing likes fresh meat, I'm old and sick. He feeds us his scraps." I nearly got sick thinking about what he meant by that.
"You see when you get close to death, when you have no fear left and he has enough to eat, he lets you go.Thanks to you kids, I'm the next one out of here. He will be coming for me soon, you might be able to run if he forgets to lock your door, if he does, make sure we have gone. Then run and don't look back. He likes you, he's not going to give you up easily."
"Why are you helping me?" I asked when I finally found my voice.
"You sound like my daughter Jena, I was about to give up and die, then I heard you. You gave me the will to live"
I was stunned. "Is your daughter's name Jena Fryer?" I asked, a little hopeful. Could this be my grandfather?
Before he could answer the whistling man was walking down the corridor again. Silence filled my ears as I listened to his footsteps stop. He opened the door next to mine and kept walking, opening up doors one by one.
People started emerging from their cells, their shuffling walks started fading to the far end of the corridor. I sat in silence until I heard the whistling man make his way past my door, and back where he came from. I got up and realized that Steve never left his cell. He whispered "yes, that's her name, Alice is that you." He asked. Tears welled up in my eyes. It was my grandfather. "Yes" I whispered so quietly that it could hardly be heard.
"Run" was all he said. I opened the door and followed where I thought everyone else had gone. I ran past some of them who were unable to walk anymore. I run until I made it to the street.
Then I ran until I reached the police department. I told them everything that happened. They just laughed, then locked me up and sent me to a psych ward...
I'm in a padded room now. Sometimes I still hear the whistling tune of Mary had a little lamb followed by footsteps that end at my door.