Quiet.
Not one tiny sound to be heard.
Still.
Nothing moving.
Dark.
No light, no color, just darkness.
I gazed out the window, into the empty field. I could barely see it through the night’s black fog, but I knew that a forest lay just beyond the field, the only thing separating my small house from it being a chain-link fence. I was surprised by the silence, knowing that the forest sprung to life at night, due to the coyotes and other nocturnal beasts.
But they were nothing, compared to it.
Its only happened twice. Two years back, I saw the shadow of one man killing another. The strangest part about the murder was the killer. I couldn’t see much, nothing but his bloody silver knife.
A few months later, I saw something again. A dark, shifty man, just outside the fence. He had disappeared before I could investigate, though.
But this was the past.
I’ve been trying to hunt him, but no luck.
Now I sit at my window each night, trying to see if he’ll claim me as the next victim.
Tonight was just as successful as any night, though.
The empty silence was actually boring. I had no hobbies, games, or any other forms of entertainment. All I did each night was look out the window and search. I know what you’re thinking, why don’t I just sleep? Well, how good would you sleep, knowing that there’s a crazy murderer that wandered about, less than five minutes from your house? Not a very sleep-inducing thought, right?
I began creating the log for this hour.
Each night, starting at 10:00 p.m, I watch closely at the field and the forest. After each hour passes, I write what i’ve seen in a black notebook, which I keep hidden. I began reading through this night’s logs.
11/26/16. Log #701.
10:00 p.m – 11:00 p.m: No suspicious signs to report, besides the drug dealers. Pathetic b*****ds.
11:00 p.m – 12:00 a.m: Halfway through the hour, the night grows very silent, and the drug dealers begin running away. Maybe a cop?
12:00 a.m – 1:00 a.m: About ten minutes after the hour begins, it gets darker than usual, and a thin layer of fog rolls in. Still no sign of nocturnal creatures, drug dealers, or other human or nature interferences. I think the cold and fog has forced them to retreat. Either that, or something’s got them spooked…
I erased the last sentence, figuring it was kind of stupid. However, now that I think about it, the coyotes always passed by around this hour, no matter what the weather was. I picked up the binoculars I keep on the windowsill, then began looking closer, trying to spot the coyotes.
No sign.
I zoomed in on the entrance of the forest, trying to find the glowing yellow eyes or the small bodies. I thought I saw movement, but the creature was a lot bigger than a coyote. I could tell by the fresh marks in the tree. They were in a strange fashion, though, so I adjusted the lense to see more clearly. I realized that it was a message, which was spread across four different trees.
let me in
Black.
I could barely see anything through the lenses but blackness. The small lines and small hints of white indicated that this could be a hand that was covering the lenses…I was afraid to pull the binoculars down.
What if it’s the killer? What if I look, he’ll kill me? What should I do? Should I close my eyes then drop them? Should I just be prepared for death? Should try talking? Should I grab my knife then attack him?
Confused and scared, I took a deep breath, then pulled away the binoculars.
Nothing.
All I could see was the forest and the field. No sign of a killer.
After seeing the view, though, I realized how ridiculous I was for worrying. My room was on the second floor, where some person couldn’t even reach the window. Not to mention, I had put up certain forms of security to keep the killer from coming into the house. Not only did the chain-link fence have barbed wire on it, but, even though it was currently off, the fence was obviously electrified, so that if I saw anything suspicious, I could activate it.
I pulled a small lever that was on the desk next to the window, and activated the electric fence.
Stupid.
I had just realized how dumb this idea was. If the killer really was right here, like I thought he was, then I might’ve just trapped him inside the fence. My dumb-a** is always thinking of stupid ideas, and I just pulled another one, one that might also get me killed.
“Maybe he ran off before I activated the fence?” I asked myself, looking down from the window.
Nothing.
The night was silent…too silent, again. I realized that something was off about the encounter, though.
There’s a ladder on the side of the house that allows you to go on the roof. Maybe…maybe he went to the roof, then pulled that little trick from there?
“S***.” I told myself. I got up, then went to the dresser, avoiding looking in the shattered mirror that was on the wall in front of me.
Confused by that? I hate looking at myself. Even though my black hair covers it, my one white eye was always there, and I could feel it mocking me, whenever I saw it in the mirror. I’ve tried removing it, which didn’t help. Now the iris was white, while the rest of the eye was red. I concealed the beast within, by hiding the eye, only letting the world see my dark brown eye. But i’ve noticed that in every outburst, attack, and anything else like that, my evil eye would show me the fear, anger, and sorrow; which is why I win almost every battle.
So I’m not going to lose to some creep.
I finally found the lighter I kept in my drawer, then lifted up my mattress, which revealed a few weapons that I found and hoarded throughout the years. You can tell that i’m prepared for any…incidents.
The knife is more stealthy and silent, but it doesn’t do much damage if I don’t hit the right spot, and it’s only for close range, since I s**k at throwing it. I glanced at the pistol. Loud, heavy, but causes a lot of damage and is good for long range.
“Note to self; find a silencer.” I picked up the knife.
With the knife in one hand, and the lighter in the other, I quietly opened the door to my room. I noticed a very small, black shape on roof.
The camera.
I forgot about my surveillance system. It’s terrible quality, though, and there are a few of blind spots to hide in…What the hell, it’s better than possibly confronting something that may or may not be in the house…
Outside my room, a long hallway spanned left and right. I was still questioning whether to go right (the staircase) or left (the surveillance room).
I took a deep breath, then silently walked down the hallway. I ended up in the surveillance room.
Once inside, the computer and small flashing lights lit up a small portion of the room. I closed the door behind me, trying to keep quiet.
I looked at the monitor, which was now displaying infrared pictures of every room in the house. There were six. Cam.1 showed the front door and main entryway, Cam.2 showed the living room (which was actually more of a library), Cam.3 showed the staircase, Cam.4 showed the upstairs hallway, Cam.5 showed my room, and Cam.6 was placed just outside my window, showing a small portion of the field, and anything below or above my window.
After looking through them all, I realized that there was nothing in the house.
Just my luck, he’ll be in one of the very few blind spots. I decided to stay and watch the cameras. I had brought my black notebook with me, to record what happened.
After thirty minutes of no sound and no movement on any camera, I began recording the hour’s log.
1:00 a.m – 2:00 a.m: One hectic hour. After inspecting the reason to why there was no usual sign of the coyotes, there was a message carved into the trees at the edge of the forest, and it was obviously written with a blade. ‘Let me in.’ After I found the message, someone’s hand covered the lenses of my binoculars, but the thing disappeared as soon as I put them down. There’s no sign of intrusion on the cameras.
Closing the notebook, I watched the monitor more closely. I was surprised, realizing how tired I was. Usually, I didn’t even need sleep. I’d get two hours after every two nights, then I was perfectly fine. Now, though, I was exhausted, even though I had gotten my two hours just this last night.
Did he drug me somehow? Am I going to die if I shut my eyes?
Moron. That’s what I called myself after hearing my thoughts.
But I was immediately wide awake.
Cam.1 was showing nothing but a static screen.
I rubbed my eyes, then glanced again. The static had stopped, showing a dark human outline in the entrance to the library. Cam.2 showed the same figure, but he was still only an outline.
Am I hallucinating?
He suddenly sprinted down the hallway, going too fast for my cameras to catch him.
I just remembered. The fuse box was in the hallway.
S***! S***! S***! Not good! Not good!
BANG!
After the loud sound had occurred, the screen went black, and my only source of light (a small, dim table lamp) had stopped working.
I flicked on the lighter, then quietly ran to the door, locking it. I then slithered beside it, placing a small box in the way, so the door wouldn’t crush me incase he got it open.
Thump…thump…thump…thump…
The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs.
It proceeded to the hallway.
Soon enough, I could make out the heavy breathing that came with the footsteps.
Right outside the door.
The doorknob jiggled for a few seconds, then it slowly turned, and the door creaked open.
Concealed behind the door, I could make out the killer’s appearance slightly better now.
A seventeen or eighteen year old, male human. He wore black pants and a black hoodie. Thick black hair and the hood kept most of his face concealed. I could only see the most disturbing trait. This boy’s mouth had been sewn shut.
“Why are you hiding from me?” He asked, pacing and searching the room. “Always at the window, never in your bed. I’ve been watching, and as soon as I say ‘hello’, you cower from me? Some way to treat a guest…”
What the f**k?! How is he talking without a mouth? He’s not even moving his lips, but I can hear him! Am I hearing his thoughts?! I was confused. He was getting closer and closer to finding me.
The beast.
My white eye began throbbing.
The instinct was starting to show.
My sanity temporarily fading.
No.
The innocence begged me to stop, to stay hidden.
But my demon was getting stronger.
The left eye’s throbbing got to the point where blood began running out of it like tears.
Stay, stay, don’t attack! This is a human!
Kill, kill, don’t stay here! He wants to murder you!
A deadly debate in my own mind.
Innocent or guilty? Common sense or instinct? Kill or be killed?
“Let….me…in!” I heard the killer say, revealing me from my hiding spot.
A smile, its teeth and lips painted in blood from the bite mark in my tongue, appeared on my own face.
The beast was unleashed.
Before the killer could sink in his knife, I blocked it with surprisingly quick speed, shoving him to the ground.
“Kill or be killed…I finally let it answer for me.” I held the knife to my dark brown eye. “No one can escape it, not even me.”
I sunk the blade into the eye. Once I felt it go deep enough, I yanked it back out.
The brown eye. It had been torn away.
No hesitation. No regret. No sanity.
I looked at him, then spoke, aiming the knife at his right eye.
“Show me…..What kind of beast lives within you….