47. Radimir

47

RADIMIR

Normally, I come awake slowly, shaking loose the monsters that try to drag me back into my dreams. But there are some sounds that have me instantly awake: a gunshot, a siren, the sound of a door being broken down.

That night, I discovered a new one: Bronwyn’s scream.

It was loud enough that they must have heard it in the other villas, loud enough that it hurt. I sat bolt upright, but she’d already shot from the bed, moving faster than I’d ever seen her go. She flattened herself against the wall next to the bed, panting in fear.

“What is it?!” I jumped out of bed and padded over to her. “What’s wrong?”

She couldn’t speak. She pointed to the end of the bed, still heaving for breath.

I frowned and took a few steps. Was someone there? An intruder? I squinted through the darkness, but I couldn’t see anyone. All I could see was a black electrical cable hanging out from under the covers. Had Bronwyn left a hairdryer in the bed?

Then the cable slithered onto the floor and into the shadows.

I jumped backwards. Chyort ! A snake! “Did it bite you?” I demanded.

She shook her head, white-faced.

How the fuck did a snake get in here? I shook my head. Hotel security could deal with it, or they could call Animal Control or something. “We’re getting out of here,” I told Bronwyn. Keeping one eye on the patch of shadow where I last saw the snake, I grabbed one of Bronwyn’s dresses and tossed it to her, then her shoes. I scrambled into my pants and a polo shirt. Where are my shoes? Fuck, right where the snake is.

I grabbed our passports and my wallet, too, because no way was I coming back here. Why is it so dark? Shouldn’t there be some moonlight coming in through the windows? I wished I could turn the lights on, but I was too far from the bed to reach the light switch, and the other one was over by the door. “Come on,” I told Bronwyn, taking her hand. Barefoot, I took a careful step towards the door…

And saw movement in the shadows, right in front of us. Fuck. How did it get all the way over there? We couldn’t get to the door. “Back up,” I murmured, trying to keep my voice calm. “We’ll go out through a window.”

We backed away, then turned and headed for the far side of the room, where the windows were. I went fast, knowing the thing was safely behind us.

A noise made me freeze. A noise I’d only ever heard in cowboy movies, a dry, fast rattle. And it came from in front of me.

There’s more than one snake.