As she did, she lost her footing and went sprawling backward onto the bloody tile floor. Momentarily dazed by the impact, Ava opened her eyes to find the previously still form of her mother lunging toward her. Scrambling away, Ava kicked out frantically, making contact with her mother’s leg and further off-balancing her. A small window of opportunity opened as her mother teetered unsteadily to one side. Rolling forward onto all fours, Ava scurried past as she tried to recover from the kick. Turning, Ava stood to face the monstrosity, scanning the room for any possible avenue of escape. Finding none, her gaze came to rest on the wooden knife block that held an assortment of kitchen knives on the counter. She grabbed the handle of the closest blade, and in that instant, her fear for her own life overrode any thoughts of what she was going do with the knife.
Advancing once again, the infected thing closed the distance to the little girl cowering in the corner of the room. Light reflected wildly off the finely honed blade of the knife that shook violently in Ava’s hand, making it seem as though a disco ball hung in the room. Through blinding tears and cries of terror, Ava pleaded with her mother to stop, “Please, Mommy! No! Stay back! Leave me alone!”
Despite her adamant protests, the grotesque thing continued its slow, relentless advance. Ava shrunk deeper into the corner with each advancing step, as though propelled back by the magnetic force that exists between two identical poles. When her spine pressed against the wall and she could retreat no farther, she closed her eyes and prayed.
Ava felt cold hands, viscid with coagulating blood, groping for her. Unbridled fear surged through her body as ropy fingers tightened around her throat. Struggling to pull oxygen through her constricting airway, the rancid smell assailing her was fouler than anything her young nose had previously experienced. With the wild-eyed confusion of someone being drowned, Ava lashed out blindly in a final desperate attempt to restore her ability to breathe. A halting thud reverberated through her arm, causing her to let go of the blade. The murderous grip around her throat loosened almost instantly. With great reluctance, Ava opened her eyes and saw the horror that used to be her mother’s face less than a foot in front of her. The menacing black knife handle protruded from her mother’s left eye socket, a near-translucent gel oozing from around the hilt.
As though a switch had been thrown, the thing’s malicious movements ceased abruptly. Propelled only by its previous momentum and the force of gravity, it continued forward, slumping against Ava before falling to the floor in a lifeless heap. She felt its cold skin against her own as it slid to the ground.
Ava stared wide-eyed, transfixed by the sight, and completely unsure of what to do next. The barrage of conflicting emotions surging through her mind did little to alleviate the paralysis she felt. When she finally came to her senses, she leaned forward and vomited.
Part of Ava’s flummoxed mind wanted to go to her mother, to check on her. The other, more rational part reminded her that the thing on the floor—no longer her mother—had just tried to kill her. Eyeing the backdoor beyond her mother’s desecrated body, Ava saw her chance to escape from all she had seen and all she had been forced to do.
* * *
After running from her house for what seemed like days, Ava found herself in a stranger’s backyard with the infected all around. She saw several bad ones tearing into something, or more likely someone, but thankfully the surrounding shrubs largely obscured the gory details. As she crouched between two bushes, she was paralyzed by the gripping fear that she would be the next one lying there on the ground. Rooted to the spot, Ava could not avert her eyes from the horror before her. A gentle breeze wafted through the air like the wake turbulence from the wings of an angel,
Advancing once again, the infected thing closed the distance to the little girl cowering in the corner of the room. Light reflected wildly off the finely honed blade of the knife that shook violently in Ava’s hand, making it seem as though a disco ball hung in the room. Through blinding tears and cries of terror, Ava pleaded with her mother to stop, “Please, Mommy! No! Stay back! Leave me alone!”
Despite her adamant protests, the grotesque thing continued its slow, relentless advance. Ava shrunk deeper into the corner with each advancing step, as though propelled back by the magnetic force that exists between two identical poles. When her spine pressed against the wall and she could retreat no farther, she closed her eyes and prayed.
Ava felt cold hands, viscid with coagulating blood, groping for her. Unbridled fear surged through her body as ropy fingers tightened around her throat. Struggling to pull oxygen through her constricting airway, the rancid smell assailing her was fouler than anything her young nose had previously experienced. With the wild-eyed confusion of someone being drowned, Ava lashed out blindly in a final desperate attempt to restore her ability to breathe. A halting thud reverberated through her arm, causing her to let go of the blade. The murderous grip around her throat loosened almost instantly. With great reluctance, Ava opened her eyes and saw the horror that used to be her mother’s face less than a foot in front of her. The menacing black knife handle protruded from her mother’s left eye socket, a near-translucent gel oozing from around the hilt.
As though a switch had been thrown, the thing’s malicious movements ceased abruptly. Propelled only by its previous momentum and the force of gravity, it continued forward, slumping against Ava before falling to the floor in a lifeless heap. She felt its cold skin against her own as it slid to the ground.
Ava stared wide-eyed, transfixed by the sight, and completely unsure of what to do next. The barrage of conflicting emotions surging through her mind did little to alleviate the paralysis she felt. When she finally came to her senses, she leaned forward and vomited.
Part of Ava’s flummoxed mind wanted to go to her mother, to check on her. The other, more rational part reminded her that the thing on the floor—no longer her mother—had just tried to kill her. Eyeing the backdoor beyond her mother’s desecrated body, Ava saw her chance to escape from all she had seen and all she had been forced to do.
* * *
After running from her house for what seemed like days, Ava found herself in a stranger’s backyard with the infected all around. She saw several bad ones tearing into something, or more likely someone, but thankfully the surrounding shrubs largely obscured the gory details. As she crouched between two bushes, she was paralyzed by the gripping fear that she would be the next one lying there on the ground. Rooted to the spot, Ava could not avert her eyes from the horror before her. A gentle breeze wafted through the air like the wake turbulence from the wings of an angel,
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