Chapter 5- Then and Now

SCARLETT 

“You need to go…”

Papa rasped, panic bleeding through his voice. His eyes locked onto mine– wild and desperate.

BANG!

The front door rattled on its hinges.

Papa flinched toward the sound, His body tensed.

“Scarlett..” his voice cracked, torn between the door and me “Go…”

But I couldn't move.

Fear rooted me to the floor, coiling around my limbs.

Another blow!

Harder.

The hinges groaned under pressure.

“Papa…” My whisper caught in my throat. “What's happening–”

He turned back to me. The door groaned again then– BANG!

Papa acted fast, he shoved a heavy chair against the door. It barely held.

Whatever was out there struck again– hurling him backwards.

He crashed into the fireplace.

“Papa!” I screamed. 

He staggered to his feet, gripping the edge of the fireplace for balance. Blood soaked through his shirt, spreading fast across his side. Every breath he took made it worse.

He turned to me, face pale and grim, 

“Listen to me.” He gasped. “You have to survive this. You hear me?”

Another crack on the door – louder, angrier.

The whole house shuddered.

I shook my head, choking on a sob. “I can't –”

“You have to.” His voice was rough. Urgent.

 “For me. Please.”

He pulled me close, kissed my forehead with trembling lips.

“Basement. Wardrobe. Hide there. Don't come out, no matter what you hear.”

BOOM!

The door split down the center, the chair snapping like a twig.

Papa shoved me behind the banister, shielding me with his body.

The door exploded inward.

And the nightmare stormed through.

A shadow– huge, wrong, inhuman– burst in, it slammed papa so hard, sending him flying across the room.

I screamed– loud and piercing.

Papa hit the wall hard enough to leave a crack.

He tried to get up, reaching for the fireplace poker.

The thing moved too fast.

Too strong.

It stepped into the light, and I saw it.

I choked on my sob.

It wasn't human. It looked wrong.

Just the shape of it made my heart stop.

It towered over papa.

Its limbs bent too far. Its body rippled like smoke over flesh– fur clinging in patches, talons dripping with something dark.

Its face twisted in a permanent snarl.

Fangs bared.

I stumbled backward, my mind rejecting what I saw.

Papa swung once. Missed.

The beast caught him by the throat.

Slammed him into the floorboards with a crack that echoed through the room.

“No…” I shrieked, shaking.

I stumbled backward, crying. 

I looked around for anything– anything to save papa.

But I couldn't stop him.

The beast raised one clawed hand–

And tore into him.

The sounds– 

meat splitting, bone snapping.

I will never forget.

Papa's scream echoed off the wall– then cut off, too fast, too final.

Tears streamed down my face, blurring everything.

I trembled, my heart pounding so loud.

Then– a wet thud resounded.

Silence.

I stopped breathing.

Stopped moving.

My world just… stopped.

The beast stood over papa’s crumpled body.

Blood seeped across the floor.

Into the remains of my birthday cake.

A low laugh– beastly and cruel, rang out through the room.

I looked again. At papa. At what was left. At what wasn't.

He was gone.

A whimper rose in my throat…

The thing turned– suddenly with an unnatural jerk of its neck.

It tilted its head at me, slowly, like it was savouring the moment, its eyes never leaving mine.

I gasped. Heart pounding.

Was I next?

I scrambled backwards as it started taking steps towards me.

It stopped right before me.

The stench hit first– foul and rotting, so thick it burned my throat.

Its voice was low, and rough.

“What's your name?”

I pressed into the wall, my entire body trembling.

I shook my head.

It clicked its tongue. Tilted its face closer.

 “Scarlett…”

My heart dropped.

How… How did it know my name?

It chuckled, low and dark.

“Happy birthday…”

Chills raked down my spine.

I whimpered, without meaning to.

“Who- who are you…” I gasped.

The thing grinned, a terrible stretch of broken teeth and flesh.

“Your worst nightmare.”

And then–

It vanished.

Gone into the howling storm outside like it was never there.

Leaving only blood.

And silence.

I stayed frozen.

Staring.

At Papa’s lifeless face.

At my shattered cake.

At the dark, growing pool of blood.

Minutes passed.

Or hours.

Or a lifetime

I didn't move.

Didn't speak.

Not until something inside of me cracked open.

And, I screamed.

Loud.

Raw.

Devastating.

–

And woke up–

Gasping.

Chest heaving. Drenched in cold sweat.

Rain tapped against the window.

I blinked, trying to catch my breath…

The interior of the dark Uber came into focus.

“Ma’am?” The driver asked, glancing nervously over his shoulder. “You okay?”

My hand trembled as I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead. I nodded.

A lie.

Because I wasn't okay.

I hadn't been okay in years.

Ten years.

And the nightmares still hadn't stopped.

If anything…

They were getting worse.

I exhaled shakily.

The sound of the rain felt too loud now– too sharp.

It always came back on nights like this.

The storm.

The memory.

The scream I couldn't unhear.

The night everything shattered.

The night papa stood in the face of danger–

and left me with nothing but grief… and a thousand unanswered questions.

I shut my eyes, desperate to shut off the memory of his last breath.

But all I saw was the monster's face.

Those claws.

Those…

My eyes snapped open, heart pounding so hard it hurt.

Ten years later, I still didn't know what that thing was.

Or why it took Papa.

I stared at the rain streaking down the window, trying to anchor myself to the present.

But I could still hear it.

The sound of papa's neck snapping.

That thing calling my name.

A chill sank deep into my bones–

Was it still out there?

Waiting?

Hunting?

No.

I pressed a hand to my chest and forced a breath.

Slow and shaky.

Maybe if I exhaled enough, the memory would slip away.

“We're here.” The driver said gently.

His voice cut through the chaos in my chest.

I blinked, dragged back to reality.

The house outside the rain-slick windows stared back at me.

Porch light glowing. Cold.

Still waiting.

And just like that, the illusion shattered.

The reality of my life seeped in.

The party was over.

The vibrancy that came with letting loose, breaking rules–

Gone.

That was the thing about parties.

They made me forget.

For a while, anyway.

The drinks, the music, Archer’s mouth on mine, reckless laughter in dark corners–

They were my escapes.

My getaway.

But none of it lasted.

Because no matter how far I ran, how deep I sank into the life of the party, the night always ended the same way.

I always came back here.

Back to the house that never felt like home.

Back to the memory that refused to stay buried.

I let out an exhale and eventually gripped the door handle.

Pushing it open, I stepped out into the storm.

The cold air hit me like a slap, sharp and unforgiving.

Rain po

ured down, washing away the glitter, the kiss. The mate bond. The breakdown.

All of it. 

I shoved away the chaos– to the back of my mind just for now.

It was time to face what waited on the other side of the door.

Not comfort. Not chaos.

Just silence and the woman who barely looked at me anymore.

Welcome home.