Nina's eyes creak open, her vision blurry like wet glass. She rubs them slow, trying to shake off the exhaustion that weighs heavy on her body. But when her sight clears, she's met with a horror show: a skeleton's skull, dressed in old, tattered clothes, stares back at her with empty sockets that seem to suck the life out of her.
She screams, her voice like a razor, and scrambles out of her hiding spot into the living room. The room's like a graveyard, quiet and still, except for the corpse hanging from the chandelier like a macabre decoration. Nina's eyes go wide, her mind reeling like a car spinning out of control.
Footsteps echo through the hallway, heavy and deliberate. Nina dives behind the couch cushions, her heart racing like a wild animal. Jayjay's voice booms through the door, "This hammer's gonna break this door, no matter what!"
He's like a man possessed, navigating through the sea of corpses on the floor. Esther's crying, her voice shaking like a leaf, as she stares at Tonia's lifeless body. "She didn't deserve to go like this," she chokes out, waving away the flies feasting on her friend's corpse.
Kalu's voice cuts through the gloom, "None of us deserve to die like this." Jayjay's hammer hits the metal door like a drumbeat, echoing through the desolate space. Hours pass, but the door won't budge, yet Jayjay won't give up.
Then, a tiny voice pierces the air, "Who's seen the bride?" Nina's heart skips a beat, her mind racing like a runaway train. She knows she's the bride, and the weight of that knowledge crushes her. Why do they need her alive? The question haunts her like a ghost.
The living room became very tense as a strong, evil presence filled the air. The adults, already scared, felt a chill run down their spines. The little girl's voice echoed, "And one kills the other," followed by a creepy laugh. She appeared on the stairs, and her scary presence made the adults tremble with fear.
Jayjay fell to his knees, as if an invisible force pushed him down. His eyes turned black, and dark veins spread across his face. He stood up and walked towards the adults, but they didn't notice him. They were too scared of the little girl.
"Jayjay, what are you doing?" Kalu asked, noticing Jayjay's strange behavior. But before he could get an answer, Sonia screamed, "Kalu, run!" She saw that Jayjay was no longer in control of himself. His eyes looked empty, and he moved like a zombie. A dark force had taken over his body.
Sonia, Esther, and Frank fled in terror, abandoning Kalu as he desperately tried to stop Jayjay from unleashing his fury. But Jayjay was unstoppable. With a swift and merciless swing, he struck Kalu's head with the hammer, watching with a twisted grin as his friend crumpled to the ground, writhing in agony.
"What have you done?" Kalu gasped, choking on his own blood as he struggled to speak. But his words were cut short as Jayjay delivered a fatal blow, striking Kalu's eye with the hammer, silencing him forever.
Nina, hidden in the shadows, witnessed the horror unfold. Fear gripped her heart as she realized Jayjay might discover her. She took flight, dashing out of her hiding place as Esther, Frank, and Sonia slowly backed away, their eyes fixed on Nina's fleeing figure. They turned and scurried after her, fleeing the living room into the dark, winding hallways, with no clear direction in mind.
Jayjay unleashed a blood-curdling growl, charging after them with an inhuman ferocity. His high-pitched screech echoed through the hallways, accompanied by his heavy panting and labored breathing. The group could feel his hot breath on their heels as they desperately sought escape.
But fate had other plans. Esther's feet tangled with a ceramic pot of flowers, sending her crashing to the ground. Her vision blurred, and she struggled to open her eyes. As she finally focused, she saw Jayjay looming over her, the bloodied hammer raised high above his head. She shut her eyes, unable to bear the sight of her impending doom.
"Crash..." The sound echoed through the hallway, followed by a heavy thud that made Esther's heart skip a beat. She slowly opened her eyes to find Jayjay lying lifeless on the floor, surrounded by the shattered remains of the flower pot. The pieces were scattered all over the floor, like a puzzle that would never be whole again.
As she struggled to process the scene before her, she heard soft gasps coming from the corner of the passageway. Her gaze shifted to Nina, who was wiping blood off her face with her now dirty pink sleeping dress. The sight made Esther's blood boil.
"Ni...na," Esther stuttered, her eyes narrowing into slits as she glared at Nina. "You killed him," she accused, her voice trembling with rage.
Nina looked up, confusion etched on her face. "I had no choice," she mumbled, as if trying to justify her actions.
Esther's anger reached a boiling point. "Stay away from me, you murderer!" she yelled, grabbing a broken piece of the flower pot and hurling it at Nina. Nina dodged the projectile, but Esther's words cut deeper than any physical attack.
Without another glance, Esther turned and fled, leaving Nina's pleas behind. As she walked, she thought to herself, "If anyone needs to die, it's Nina." She and her fiancé had been playing dirty games with them, and Esther had had enough.
Esther walked silently along the corridor, her torchlight casting eerie shadows on the walls. She approached a wooden door at the end of the hallway, which reflected the light and piqued her curiosity. She pushed the door open, and a cloud of dusty air enveloped her, making her sneeze into her palms. As she entered the room, she wondered what secrets it held.
Esther looked out the window and saw a way to escape. But then she heard a growl behind her. She turned around slowly and saw the ghost of the dead teenager. The ghost looked disappointed.
Esther tried to run, but her feet felt heavy. The ghost appeared above her, holding a bloody knife. Esther felt a sharp pain in her stomach and looked down to see blood spreading across her clothes. Her intestines were coming out.
Esther knew she was dying. She should have known there was no escape from the house. She thought about all the strange things that had happened and how she should have listened to her instincts. But now it was too late.
In her last moments, Esther remembered all the warning signs she had ignored. She realized the house was haunted and she should have left when she had the chance. But now she was paying the price.
*. *. *.
Nina sprang out of her hiding place, her heart racing, as she recognized Esther's blood-curdling scream echoing from the other side of the hallway. She sobbed silently, her mind reeling with the thought that they were all doomed. There was no escape from the dead house, no respite from the horror that lurked around every corner.
As she turned to face the darkness, a faint, unearthly voice whispered behind her, sending shivers down her spine. "You have something that belongs to the house." Nina's breath caught in her throat as she spun around to face the ghostly apparition.
Before her stood a petite lady in a tattered white gown, her eyes black as coal, her voice barely above a whisper. Nina's voice trembled with fear as she asked, "And what is that?"
The ghostly lady's gaze fixed on Nina's hand, her eyes burning with an otherworldly intensity. "Take off the ring," she commanded, her voice like a sigh from beyond the grave.
Nina's eyes widened as she stared at the ring on her finger, the symbol of her engagement to Michael. She had forgotten it was there, forgotten the terror it had brought her. Now, it seemed, it was the source of the house's wrath.