Chapter 80 PHOBIA - SCREAMS
Giselle paused mid-step, fishing out her buzzing phone from her back pocket.
\[Downtown Abby, room 12, just the two of us\]
The message pulled a small, secret smile across her lips. Carter finally texted.
She strode to her car, slipped into the driver's seat, and pulled out of the mall parking lot without a second thought. But then a flicker of doubt buzzed in her mind. Wasn't Carter already in Hawaii?
She grabbed her phone again and typed:
"Aren't you in Hawaii?"
Three dots danced on the screen.
"Actually, I leave at 9:00 for the flight. Just told everyone I was already there to dodge those contract signings. Besides, it's my free month."
She read it, smiled wider, and fired back: "Get a shower."
Then she switched off her phone, tossed it onto the passenger seat, and cranked the radio. She lip-synced to the song, licking her lips, tasting anticipation.
Finally, she pulled up to the building and parked. She stepped out, eyeing the place. It looked... okay. Not flashy, not popular. Perfect, really—he probably wanted to keep things private. After all, she was the famous one. She smiled at his thoughtfulness and cat-walked inside, her heels echoing down the empty hallway like gunshots in the silence.
Room 12.
She whispered the number, flashed a low smile, and pushed the door. It creaked open. She stepped in and froze.
Pitch black.
The darkness swallowed everything. For a heartbeat, her legs refused to move.
"Carter?" Her voice came out smaller than she wanted.
Nothing.
Her hand fumbled along the wall, searching for a switch. Nothing. The dark pressed in, thick and cold, and her old phobia clawed its way up her throat.
"Carter, turn on the fucking light!" she called, sharper this time.
Silence.
She couldn't see her own hand in front of her face. Just black. Endless, suffocating black.
She backed up, heels scraping, ready to bolt..but then-
Bam.
The door slammed shut behind her.
It took a second for the sound to register. Then panic exploded in her chest.
"Help!" she screamed, pounding on the door with both fists. Her eyes squeezed shut even though it didn't matter; the dark was already inside her.
She clawed through her bag for her phone. Nothing. The bag slipped from her shaking fingers and hit the floor with a dull thud.
She dropped to her knees, crawling, feeling along the cold ground.
Fuck. She had left her phone in the car.
"This isn't funny," she stammered, her voice cracking.
Then, a soft hand brushed the back of her neck.
She froze, every muscle locking.
"Who's there?" she screamed, the words ripping out raw.
Drip. Drip.
Water echoed somewhere in the distance.
"Stop it—I get it!" she begged, but the dripping kept going.
Scratch.
Sharp nails grazed her skin.
Giselle scrambled backward, crawling blindly, staring into the void.
"Giselle..."
A whisper. Soft. Trembling, haunting..
She squeezed her eyes shut. "It's nothing. I'm hearing nothing," she muttered, her lips pressed tight, tears burning behind her lids.
"You killed me."
Her eyes snapped open. Hot breath ghosted across her face.
"You murdered me."
The voice was right at her ear now, cold, intimate. She shivered violently.
A faint light flickered, just for a second, but it just was enough. A twisted face, drenched in blood, hovered inches away.
"Ahhh!" She screamed, stumbling to her feet, backing up, her hands shaking, tears finally spilling.
"I fucking..you deserved it!" she shouted, raking her fingers through her hair, trembling uncontrollably.
The dripping grew louder, harsher.
She tripped over something and crashed to the floor. Her head smacked hard; the world blinked out for a moment. Just the pounding of her heart in her ears.
She groaned, pushing herself up. Her palms spread on the ground and she froze.
Warm. Thick. Wet.
She lifted her hands, staring blindly, trying to understand.
Thump. Thump.
Heavy footsteps, or something..coming closer.
She shuffled sideways, her eyes wide, lips clamped shut. Shadows moved in the dark. She could feel them.
Then her ankle snagged. Something wrapped around it.
She reached down, her hands guiding her, and touched...flesh. Warm. Mangled. Smashed.
A bright light suddenly flared, blinding her. She threw up a hand to shield her eyes. The beam swung down to what she'd touched.
The body.
The man she'd run over.
Her breath caught, ragged and sharp.
"No—no—no. They buried him. Stop playing with me!" she screamed.
The body twitched. A cold hand clamped around her wrist.
"You bitch. You killed me."
She collapsed backward as the human dragged himself closer, climbing onto her.
"I'll kill you," he growled, his fingers closing around her throat.
She thrashed, choking, then suddenly, nothing. No weight. No grip.
He was gone.
She sat up slowly, tears streaming, her heart hammering with terror and fury.
Bam.
Something slammed into her from behind. She hit the ground hard.
"Help!" she screamed, but the word just echoed back.
Sharp nails raked up her wrists, her legs: slow, deliberate.
"Help!" she cried again, sobbing, clawing at the invisible hands. They were too strong.
Fingernails hooked into her thin dress.
Rip.
Fabric tore away. Claws dug into her stomach, scraping, peeling.
She screamed until her throat bled, staring up at the black ceiling as her skin burned like acid.
"You killed me."
"You pushed me off."
"You cut the brakes on my car."
"You told me I was nothing... I jumped off the rooftop that day."
"You ran me over with your car."
The voices crashed over her, layer after layer of rage and pain. Everything hurt.
Then—silence.
The voices vanished. Giselle lay there, naked, shaking, her chest heaving.
Grab.
Her hair yanked back...hard, like someone dragging a carcass.
"Ahhhhh!" she howled, staggering to her feet, ripping free.
She spun in circles, muttering nonsense, her voice hoarse and broken.
The air turned ice-cold. She hugged herself, trembling violently.
"Help..." she whispered, her eyelids fluttering.
Splash.
Freezing water slammed into her like a wave. She collapsed to her knees, curling into a ball on the wet floor.
"H-help..."