37. Camryn

THIRTY-SEVEN

CAMRYN

"Dominic?" My eyelids are heavy. I'm disoriented. "Dom?" I try to push up on my elbows, but my head is pounding too much. I press my palm to my temple just as my eyes open. It's so dark that I can't even see my hand.

I become aware of crumbling soil beneath my fingers and scurry back, releasing a startled scream when my hands connect with something cold and hard. I can't gain my bearings, and when I try to sit up, my head knocks against a solid surface. I reach up to touch it, sliding my fingers over the uneven finish. It feels like wood. It must be. It has the same kind of grooves. I push against it, but it refuses to budge. I try again, but all it does is to tire me out. I still haven't recovered fully.

I try to think back.

What happened? How did I end up here? Wherever here is?

I woke up, and there was someone by my bed. It's filled with nothingness after that, almost like I blacked out, or my memories were wiped.

I'm starting to feel claustrophobic. I can't sit up. I can't see. The air is damp and smells of dirt. I'm sure that's what it is. It clogs underneath my nails when I drag my fingers through it.

Rolling over onto my stomach, I crawl forward blindly. There must be a way out.

I jerk back when I feel something cold and hard. It's round, almost smooth, except for the crumbling sensation of dirt beneath my fingers. I trail my hand lower, unable to stop the rising panic. I jerk my hand back, certain I just touched bones of some kind.

Collapsing onto my back, nausea churns my stomach, and I wait for the wave to pass. I'm in a hoodie. Dominic's hoodie. I can faintly smell his leather and citrus scent.

I bury my nose in the fabric, pretending for a fragile second that I'm safe in his arms. I would do anything to feel him hold me. My hands reach into the front pocket as I try to steady my trembling chin. I don't want to cry. Tears won't help me, but trust them to fall when I need to stay strong the most.

My thoughts come to a grinding halt when I discover something in my pocket. It's small and made of metal. I pull it out, flicking the lid open with my thumb. It's Dominic's Zippo.

I quickly light it, seeing the orange flame dance in the darkness. I've never been happier to see fire. Is this how the first humans felt when they first sparked a flame?

I move it around the space, trying to see beyond the darkness. I'm under the floor. Above me are wooden floorboards.

I turn to the side and push up onto my elbow. But then my eyes widen, and a scream lodges in my throat. Bones. Human skeletons. I scramble back in fear, extinguishing the flame and losing the lighter in the process.

"Shit…" I drag my fingers through the soil in my hunt for the Zippo, two seconds away from a panic attack, my heart hammering. I almost cry tears of joy when I finally find it.

A flame flares to life with a strike of my thumb, and light floods the small space. I barely notice my filthy, bare legs or the dirt beneath my nails as I scan the skeletons. They're lined up in a neat row, with me in the middle, almost like this space was reserved. The thought has what feels like spiders crawling up my spine.

I count five bodies in total. One was a small child, half in size to the other skeletons. But what makes me pause is the axe, carefully tossed onto the skeleton beside me.

A rusty, old axe.

"What will it take for you to listen to my warning about these woods?"

I'm suddenly cold, my cheeks wet with tears. I wipe them clean, sniffling as more fall, fingers smelling of dirt and decay.

I reach out to touch the axe, feeling the wooden handle against my palm, the ancient binding symbol carved into the wood. No wonder why it's so important to him. He hoped to kill the demon. I need to get out of here somehow. There must be a way out. I raise the Zippo, scanning the floorboards. They extend the room's length, but I can see no visible point of entry with the dim light.

"Hello?" I call out. "Can anyone hear me? Dominic? Gwen?" Resting on my elbow, I place the Zippo in my free hand and then bang the floorboards as hard as I can. "I'm down here."

But where is here ? Am I even at the house, or am I somewhere else entirely? No, I must be at the house. The demon wanted me to return here. Everything it set in motion was to bring me back.

"Home."

I gasp at the whisper, then raise the Zippo as I stare beyond the dancing flame at the shadows. "Who's there?" I barely dare breathe. My hand trembles. I grab the axe and hack at the floorboards, but it's difficult at this angle. I fail to get any power behind the blows, and all it does is stir the dust. Coughing, I cover my mouth with the back of my arm.

How the fuck am I going to get out of here? I drop the axe and lie back before driving my bare foot into the floorboards. A frustrated scream rips from my lips. I kick again and again. When that doesn't work, I swap feet. There must be a hatch somewhere.

I give up on kicking and dig my palms into my eyeballs. I don't want to fucking die down here. How long can a human live without food and water? But surely, the demon didn't kidnap me from my bed to leave me in the crawl space beneath the house? It must have a different motive.

I lost the Zippo somewhere in my struggle, so I try to find it now. I'm growing more desperate by the minute. Breathing is harder, too, but I know it's only in my head. I'm starting to panic, and that's never good in dire situations. I need a level head. I need to get a grip on my anxiety, or I'll remain trapped here. But it's easier said than done.

When my fingers finally brush against the Zippo, my only light source, I almost sob in relief.

My racing thoughts grind to a halt when I hear a whine somewhere nearby. What was that? A part of me is almost frightened to light the Zippo because I'm not sure I want to face what's out there.

The whine comes again. It's nearer now, and something tickles my feet. Realization dawns on me as I pull back on the Zippo.

"Bruno?" I release the sob I held back and then place the Zippo down before scuttling around the tight space. Bruno's fur is matted and smells of a wet dog, but I've never been happier to bury my nose in his damp fur. "How did you get down here, boy? Is there a way out?" I scratch behind his ears while tears stream down my cheeks. If he's this dirty, I can only imagine the thick layer of grime on me.

I cry harder as he nuzzles my face and licks my cheek. I normally find it gross, but now I'm so happy to see him. At least I'm not alone anymore. "We need to find a way out, buddy."

Dominic

Hot pain sears through my side, but I'm lucky it's only a shallow cut. I jump back, out of reach. Lily's face contorts in pain as she clutches her bleeding stomach. "Go, Dominic. Run!"

"I can't leave you here," I grit out.

Aron circles me with the knife. His movements are slow, and his eerie grin could rival Pennywise's on the creepiness scale. One thing is obvious: the demon is enjoying the hunt.

"Dominic…" Lily looks down at her hands, whimpering at the sight of the blood seeping from between her pale, trembling fingers. "Listen to me," she says, lifting her gaze. "This thing?—"

A harsh laugh rips from Aron's lips. "This thing ?"

She ignores him, determined to make me see reason. "You saw how fast it travels between bodies just now. It's toying with you." She winces with pain. "You're not safe in here."

"Oh, but our friend here has a conscience," Aron says, pretending to feel sorry for me. "If he walks out, you die."

"If you touch a fucking hair on her head..."

Aron's smile grows impossibly wide, but it's not warm or comforting. His eyes are black as night, and his grin is hair-raising cold. It's difficult to look directly at him because you know you're staring into the face of evil. "You humans," he says, sounding almost friendly. "You're so loyal by nature. It's very intriguing but also extremely pathetic."

"Yeah? How so?" I ask to keep him talking and buy us time. There has to be a way out of this situation. Some way to defeat him.

"Because you all die in the end. What's the point of love when it's so fragile and temporary? Love will eventually kill you." The gleam in his eyes darkens. "In fact, why don't we up the stakes?"

"Up the stakes?" I glance at Lily.

"Yes," he replies, drawing the word out, and something about the purr in his voice coaxes my attention back. "You can save one of them."

I stiffen as he walks across the glass-covered floor to Lily, who whimpers when he rounds the couch. He leans over the back of it and looks at me as he smiles against her cheek with the knife pressed to her throat. The threat is clear. He'll kill her if I don't distract him somehow. I try to steady my heartbeat so he can't feed on my fear, but I know he can sense it.

"What if I told you that I have a proposition for you? Play your cards right, and you can save your precious girlfriend."

Hope flares at the mention of Camryn. I inch closer despite myself. "Camryn is alive?"

Bait dangles between us while Lily cries softly. The demon breathes her in and then shushes her. He looks at me again. "I'll let her live if you kill this one."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. I'll leave you two lovebirds alone and never return."

I know it's bullshit. I'm feeding out of his hand. "You'll leave us alone?" I inch even closer. Glass crunches underfoot.

"And never return." His smile is back, and he drags his forked tongue across Lily's cheek, making her cry harder. She tries to stay strong, but her chin wobbles. "Delicious," he whispers, feeding on her terror and pain.

"You promise to leave us alone if I kill her?"

He straightens up. "You have my word, human."

I walk closer, avoiding looking at Lily.

"If you love the girl as much as you claim, this should be an easy choice."

"In our world, we have empathy. Taking a life is never easy."

"And yet," he hums. "You're all so quick to do it in the face of death."

I ignore his statement. "Where's Camryn?"

"She's somewhere…around."

"What did you do to her?"

He walks around the couch. "I brought her home, Dominic."

I glance at the bloodied knife in his hand, my own T-shirt damp with blood. I won't be so lucky a second time if he attacks me, but I refuse to move. The demon feeds on fear. Maybe he can sense it seeping from my pores, but I won't let him see it too.

"Here," he says, surprising me as he offers me the knife. I stare at the handle between us. It feels like a trap, but like a fool, I reach out to take it. His eyes flicker, and shivers crowd my spine. "The knife is yours," he says. "Feels good, doesn't it? All that power in your hand. All it takes is one slash in the throat for it to be over. One cut, and Camryn walks free."

Lily is looking at me now, and I turn to face her on the couch. Her hands are soaked with blood. She clutches her injured stomach and stares up at me with eyes filled with tears. She trembles. I like that.

As if the demon can sense these dark thoughts, he walks up behind me. I'm vaguely aware of his soothing voice. "She's a beauty, isn't she? They always are when they're dying. It's a shame she's so weak."

More tears fall as she stares up at us. I reach out to run my thumb beneath her eye. "Sometimes those who seem the weakest are the strongest." I cup her quivering chin and guide her eyes to mine. She's pale beneath the blood and grime. "And sometimes those who seem the strongest are the weakest." Before the words can sink in, I spin around and drive the knife into Aron's side. Pulling it back out, I grip his shoulder as I stab him again. I sink the blade deep, and is eyes blow wide. I already know as I yank it back out that the demon is gone, because I can feel it stand up from the couch behind me. It's jumping between bodies and playing a game of hide-and-seek. Lily's menacing snicker crawls up my spine.

Running for the door, I skid across the floorboards in the hall before crashing into the family photographs on the opposite wall. I don't have time to look behind me. There's no time to think. I turn to run, when I hear faint shouts coming from the kitchen.

It's Camryn.

Lily enters the hall, leaning against the doorframe as she watches me head for the kitchen. Her voice rings out behind me. "What are you going to do, Dominic? There's nowhere to hide. Your friends are slowly bleeding out, and when they're dead, I'll let you watch the girl you love die at your own hands. Isn't love poetic, Dominic? Till death do us apart, right?"

I stumble into the kitchen. "CAMRYN?"

"In here." Her voice is faint. I spin around, searching for the source. "Camryn? I hear you, baby. Where are you?"

"DOMINIC!"

I swivel. She's in the basement. Lily's voice drifts closer to the kitchen while I sprint across the floor. I tune her out, throwing open the door.

There's so much adrenaline rushing through my body that I lose footing and slide down the steps, pain ricocheting up my spine as an agonizing groan reverberates through my chest. Climbing to my feet, I sway into the wall. "I'm here, baby."

"Dominic… Oh, thank god." Her muffled voice comes from somewhere beneath me. I can barely see a thing. The sun has almost set, and the cloudy, small windows near the roof barely let any light in. I search for a switch or something. Anything.

I eventually find a pull string. A fluorescent flickering light floods the space to reveal a hoarder's nest. There's everything down here, from an old mannequin to a brown box TV, a box with knitting needles, and a baseball bat.

"Fuck," I grunt when I accidentally kick something, which rolls across the floor—an old glass jar.

Despite the muggy summer heat outside, it's cold, so I rub my arms and stomp on the floorboards. There must be a hatch somewhere. "Where are you, Camryn?"

"I'm down here," her voice sounds to my left.

I walk over to where a rocking chair sits. "Creepy," I mutter, pushing it away and kneeling to remove the old rug. Once it's shoved aside, I see it—the latch.

"Dominic," Lily calls out from the top of the stairs. "You really shouldn't disturb the past."

Jumping to my feet, I reach down to grab the latch. It's stuck, or it's being held down on purpose. Lily's tinkling laughter drifts closer. I pull again, roaring with the effort. It still won't budge. I'm panting now, heart galloping, and Camryn is banging on the floorboards. I glance behind me when Lily walks down the steps, a nefarious smile curling her lips as she comes into view. How is she still alive? Her bare legs are soaked with blood, and her lips have a blue tint. "Oh, Dominic. Pathetic little human. Still trying to save the girl even when all hope is lost."

While she laughs, I pull on the latch. But no matter how much effort I put in, it stays locked.

Something hard strikes the floorboard from beneath, and Camryn screams with frustration. I peer at the demon through sweaty strands of my dark hair. It's over. Camryn can't leave the crawl space until the demon lets her. It's really that simple. It has played with us all this time, from the moment we set foot in this town. Maybe even before.

"You brought her here," I say, straightening up, lifting my shoulders in a defeated shrug. "Why?"

Lily drops her gaze to the floorboards, and the look on her face can only be described as ‘longing.' It dawns on me, then. The demon has a weakness—desire. Maybe not of the sexual kind like us humans, but it still desires what it can't have.

"You're unable to possess her," I say, watching the demon as it inches closer to the latch. "Oh, c'mon…" I throw my head back and laugh. "You're supposed to be this powerful demon from Hell, but really, you're just as weak as the rest of us." My smile falls. "Pathetic!"

Those black eyes snap away from the floorboards, and Lily—the demon, or whatever the fuck it is—cocks her head to the side. "I like this game. Usually, they scream and cry, but you're feisty." She walks closer to me, and I back away.

"You hate it, don't you?" I taunt. "You can't see inside her like you can with other humans. You can't see her desires or her worst fears."

"What game is this, human?"

"It's not a game." I step over a rake. "You went through a lot of steps to get her here. You even went as far as to enter my father. Why?"

"You're inquisitive."

"I'll tell you why," I say, ignoring its observation of me. "You wanted to taste her, didn't you? And since you couldn't enter her mind, you invaded her body the only way you could—through my father."

A delighted gleam enters her black eyes. "Are you jealous, Dominic?"

I swat away the cruel jab like an irritating mosquito, but it still hits home. "You possessed my father and fucked her. But it wasn't enough to quench the desire to acquire what you can't have, was it? You wouldn't go to these lengths otherwise. That's also why you possessed and killed her friends. Through us, you gain more of an insight, more of a taste, of Camryn. I'm curious. What is your plan now? If you kill her, you'll never be able to possess her body and join with her the way you desire."

"Even the strongest of minds eventually break."

A loud bang sounds from the floorboards, and the demon looks away. It's the opening I need to grab the baseball bat leaning up against the wall behind me. I swing it at her head, and she collapses to the floor with a hard thud.

Whatever hold she had on the latch must disappear, because it opens this time when I pull. Camryn's grime-smeared face and matted hair come into view, and I help her out. We collapse on the floor in a heap of tears. I crash my lips to hers, stroking the dirty strands from her cheeks. It's an all-consuming need to ensure she's real.

Her fingers tremble on my scruff, and then she breaks away and looks down at the opening. "Bruno is down there."

I kneel and duck my head into the hole. "Bruno, come here, boy." I whistle, but there's no sign of him. Camryn joins me. "Bruno?"

"There must be another way out." I help her to her feet. "C'mon, we need to leave."

Lily begins to stir on the floor as we rush to the staircase.

"The axe with the binding symbol is down there. I forgot to bring it," Camryn says, out of breath.

"There's no time." I pull Camryn in front of me at the bottom of the stairs. "Hurry, I'll be right behind you."

She follows my line of sight. "What, no. Are you crazy? I'm not leaving you here."

Lily is rising to her feet now. She presses a hand to her forehead and grimaces in pain. We're running out of time.

"Now, Camryn," I bark, and she clenches her jaw.

"But the axe. We need it?—"

"I'll get the axe, okay? Just go!"

She wants to argue, but then she turns and runs upstairs.

Good girl.

Once the door is shut, I grab a claw hammer off the workbench and turn to face Lily. "Let's finish this."

Those black eyes flick back up to my face, and its forked tongue darts out to taste the air like a snake. With a hiss, she walks closer.

I stumble against the workbench out of instinct. The hard edge digs into my back as she cocks her head to the side in a quick move. "You think you can defeat me, human? Think you can outsmart me? Even now, you reek of fear." She breathes in the air and then focuses her attention on me again. Her smile chills me to the bone. "No one defeats me."

When her black eyes slide past me to the workbench, I follow her line of sight. A handsaw lies amongst the scattered content of an emptied toolbox. "I wonder," she muses, "if you would pass out before you saw yourself in half."

I snap my head back to her, and she raises an eyebrow. "Shall we test that theory?"

Something strange happens—my hand moves, and I watch in horror as I drop the hammer and pick up the handsaw. I'm powerless to stop it. I'm nothing more than an observer, the hacksaw trembling in my hand, a sweat breaking out on my forehead. I'm fighting against some invisible force. I can sense the demon. It's inside me, but it's inside of Lily. It's in us both, powerful enough to spread its energy.

"Yes…" she whispers, staring at me intently when I place the serrated blade against my side. "I like this game."

Sweat trails down my temple. I'm panting, pushing against the pressure on my hand. But my brain is not in control. I release a roar.

"Are you having fun yet, Dominicus?"

"Fuck you!" I sneer.

She smiles slowly and whispers, "Dominicus Domini."

I buckle to my knees, the serrated blade dragging through my T-shirt and flesh in a long sawing motion before pulling back and sawing deeper. I think I scream, but the pain is blinding. Through the layers of fear and agony, I'm vaguely aware of the demon walking closer, bare feet wading through the pool of blood spreading out around me. "Dominicus Domini," she hisses again, and white, obliterating pain sears my side.