Vivian would
approve.
“ Can you test this—” She
indicated the tangled piece of flesh. “—at the hospital? And find
out who it belongs to?”
“ You don’t seriously think
someone dragged you out here for an umbilical cord, do
you?”
“ I’m not dismissing the
possibility. Also, I don’t believe this is a token from a weird
admirer. I have my suspicions it’s someone related to me.” Vivian
balked at the notion.
“ That can’t be possible.
You said yourself that the Vesely bloodline is six feet under.
You’re the last remaining heir, so to speak.”
“ Then how do you explain
the article about the Magdalene asylums in my apartment? And now
I’m being directed to an umbilical cord related to my origins.
There has to be some rhyme or reason to this madness.”
Vivian’s eyes narrowed in the strange
light and the cord seemed to pound under her gaze. The musical
ambience swelled around them.
“ You think it could be
yours?”
Camilla didn’t answer. She hastily
picked up the appendage and wrapped it in satin.
“ Please do me a favor and
find out if this belongs to me.”
“ This is so screwed up,”
Vivian said, accepting it. The music disintegrated.
They turned around to see a man
standing in the dark. The light illuminated his face for a second,
but it was just enough to ingrain the horror in memory for the rest
of their lives. Black eyes bulged from a sunken face that clearly
never saw the light of day. His mouth resembled a laceration that
cleaved his nose and split his cheeks. Skin was stripped from
around the mouth to form a raw cavity with teeth.
Vivian didn’t remember screaming.
Suddenly she was catapulting across the gallery with Camilla,
running through the tinted corridors.
The man streaked after them and
overturned everything in his path. They heard the mannequins flying
against the walls and feet with long nails scrabbling on the floor.
The guttural noises coming from its throat cut right through the
disorder.
Its hands outstretched toward Vivian’s
hair as she fled, barely catching a few strands attached to her
head.
She dove to the floor and ploughed
under the security gate, scraping the skin on her knees and chin.
Vivian turned around to see Camilla flat on her belly, wedged under
the gate.
Just as she squeezed free, her pursuer
flung himself at the gate. His gaunt arms jutted through the bars
with crusty nails tipped in blood. He squealed ravenously at the
sight of them, as if nothing could sate his hunger quite like
tearing them apart.
After another spittle-filled scream,
he retreated into the shadows, leaving a bewildered Camilla and
Vivian to catch their breath.
The sunset had departed, extinguishing
the last of the crimson light dousing the Black Atrium. Camilla and
Vivian clutched each other tight as they stumbled through the
darkness. An hour must have passed as they searched for the
exit.
Their brains were wired and
edgy despite the exhaustion. Every rumble sounded like that thing was lurking only a
few feet away, ready to pick the flesh clean from their
bones.
“ Where the hell is
it?”
“ I hope you’re referring to
the exit, not that man.”
Breathless, the girls shivered as
glass crunched under their feet like ice.
“ This is it. The door
should be here,” Camilla said, running her hands over the surface
before a sinking realization punched her gut. “It’s been chained
shut!”
“ I’ll be damned if I’m
spending another minute in this hellhole. Find me something to
break it down and let’s get out of here.” After a few minutes of
scavenging, Camilla found a rusted pipe jutting from the
wall.
Vivian wasted no time laying into the
door that barred them from the streets. Prague’s city lights
twinkled through the crack in the doors, motivating her to ratchet
up the pressure.
With mounting frustration, Vivian
switched tactics and attacked the hinges, hoping it would provide a
softer target. The surface began to chip away under the
approve.
“ Can you test this—” She
indicated the tangled piece of flesh. “—at the hospital? And find
out who it belongs to?”
“ You don’t seriously think
someone dragged you out here for an umbilical cord, do
you?”
“ I’m not dismissing the
possibility. Also, I don’t believe this is a token from a weird
admirer. I have my suspicions it’s someone related to me.” Vivian
balked at the notion.
“ That can’t be possible.
You said yourself that the Vesely bloodline is six feet under.
You’re the last remaining heir, so to speak.”
“ Then how do you explain
the article about the Magdalene asylums in my apartment? And now
I’m being directed to an umbilical cord related to my origins.
There has to be some rhyme or reason to this madness.”
Vivian’s eyes narrowed in the strange
light and the cord seemed to pound under her gaze. The musical
ambience swelled around them.
“ You think it could be
yours?”
Camilla didn’t answer. She hastily
picked up the appendage and wrapped it in satin.
“ Please do me a favor and
find out if this belongs to me.”
“ This is so screwed up,”
Vivian said, accepting it. The music disintegrated.
They turned around to see a man
standing in the dark. The light illuminated his face for a second,
but it was just enough to ingrain the horror in memory for the rest
of their lives. Black eyes bulged from a sunken face that clearly
never saw the light of day. His mouth resembled a laceration that
cleaved his nose and split his cheeks. Skin was stripped from
around the mouth to form a raw cavity with teeth.
Vivian didn’t remember screaming.
Suddenly she was catapulting across the gallery with Camilla,
running through the tinted corridors.
The man streaked after them and
overturned everything in his path. They heard the mannequins flying
against the walls and feet with long nails scrabbling on the floor.
The guttural noises coming from its throat cut right through the
disorder.
Its hands outstretched toward Vivian’s
hair as she fled, barely catching a few strands attached to her
head.
She dove to the floor and ploughed
under the security gate, scraping the skin on her knees and chin.
Vivian turned around to see Camilla flat on her belly, wedged under
the gate.
Just as she squeezed free, her pursuer
flung himself at the gate. His gaunt arms jutted through the bars
with crusty nails tipped in blood. He squealed ravenously at the
sight of them, as if nothing could sate his hunger quite like
tearing them apart.
After another spittle-filled scream,
he retreated into the shadows, leaving a bewildered Camilla and
Vivian to catch their breath.
The sunset had departed, extinguishing
the last of the crimson light dousing the Black Atrium. Camilla and
Vivian clutched each other tight as they stumbled through the
darkness. An hour must have passed as they searched for the
exit.
Their brains were wired and
edgy despite the exhaustion. Every rumble sounded like that thing was lurking only a
few feet away, ready to pick the flesh clean from their
bones.
“ Where the hell is
it?”
“ I hope you’re referring to
the exit, not that man.”
Breathless, the girls shivered as
glass crunched under their feet like ice.
“ This is it. The door
should be here,” Camilla said, running her hands over the surface
before a sinking realization punched her gut. “It’s been chained
shut!”
“ I’ll be damned if I’m
spending another minute in this hellhole. Find me something to
break it down and let’s get out of here.” After a few minutes of
scavenging, Camilla found a rusted pipe jutting from the
wall.
Vivian wasted no time laying into the
door that barred them from the streets. Prague’s city lights
twinkled through the crack in the doors, motivating her to ratchet
up the pressure.
With mounting frustration, Vivian
switched tactics and attacked the hinges, hoping it would provide a
softer target. The surface began to chip away under the
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