Chapter Thirty-One #2
I caught a flash of movement from the corner of my eye.
Kassie, wielding an iron skillet like a weapon, ready to crack it against the Slenderman's skull.
My heart squeezed at the sight of my match ready to defend me, but I knew better.
The pan would slice through his incorporeal form as if striking fog, leaving him untouched and her vulnerable.
“Look at me!” the mayor snarled.
That was when I unleashed my high-pitched scream; a sound like metal tearing against metal, vibrating at a frequency that made the air itself seem to ripple around us.
The windows shuddered in their frames, hairline fractures spiderwebbing across the glass.
My throat burned as if I'd swallowed molten steel, but I couldn't stop.
I feared for my match's ears—imagined her delicate eardrums rupturing from the sonic assault—but if I didn't break free from the Slenderman's vice-like grip, Kassie's fate would mirror my own: trapped in an endless nightmare until madness claimed us both.
The Slenderman released his grip with a violent jerk, clawing at his own ears as if trying to tear them from his head.
His mouth rippled and sealed itself shut like a wound healing in reverse, leaving only smooth, featureless skin where it had been.
He crashed to his knees, his elongated limbs folding at unnatural angles beneath him.
The currents beneath his skin slowed to a sluggish crawl, but I didn't trust this apparent retreat of his monstrous nature.
I poured every ounce of my strength into my scream, feeling it tear through my throat.
I lunged toward Kassie, bracing myself for gore—ruptured eardrums, crimson trails down her neck. Instead, she stood unaffected, head tilted slightly as she prodded at one ear with her fingertip, her expression more curious than pained.
“You sound like a squeak,” she said over my scream.
Windows shattered inward, spraying glass across the room as cabinet doors banged open and mason jars detonated into glittering shards.
“You should stop,” Kassie said in a normal voice. “I think it’s over…”
My scream died in my throat as Kassie's words registered. I kept one arm extended across her body, shielding her from the crumpled form on our floor. The mayor remained motionless, but rage bubbled up inside me like magma. The sanctity of our home… violated, the safety of my match… threatened.
By our own leader, no less.
Homes of the monsters who lived here were sacred. It was our peace, our solace, our safe place.
It didn’t make sense that he would; the most level-headed male of the entire town.
Kassie clung to my arm, her body pressed against me in a way that made it hard to focus. Even in this dire moment, I couldn't help but react to her closeness, my breath catching despite the danger surrounding us.
“Didn’t you say that he has to drink that water every day? Has he drunk from it yet?”
My antennae quivered, sampling the air for traces of the sweet water. I detected a faint residue on his clothing—he must have had his daily dose not long ago.
The Slenderman groaned, and I backed Kassie away, for both of our sakes.
“I-I did drink.” He rolled into the fetal position.
My stomach twisted at the sight of our dignified mayor reduced to a crumpled heap on our floor.
This was the monster who stood between us and chaos, who maintained order when others would surrender to their base instincts—felled by my scream alone.
The power vibrating in my throat was both blessing and curse; I hated using it, but for Kassie, I wouldn't hesitate to unleash it again.
His voice emerged as a ragged whisper, sandpaper against stone. "Something... overtook me. Please accept my apology." He swallowed hard, the movement visible along his throat, as though he'd been the one screaming instead of me.
Kassie grabbed hold of me and hid behind my body. “When you attacked, it was when I made a comment about Harlow.”
I whined to signal that I would put the Slenderman down again.
He nodded. “Yes, it appears so.”
Kassie hummed. “You were jealous, then? Upset she would dare look at someone.”
The Slenderman growled.
“Right, let’s not talk about that.” I laughed nervously. “What did you come to say about the fox shifter? Did you have any other news?”
Glass crunched beneath the Slenderman's feet as he rose unsteadily.
"The fox shifter has vanished," he said, his voice still raw.
"Even the wolf pack couldn't track his scent.
We've found evidence he visited your former residence, Kassie.
" His featureless face turned toward her, and though he had no eyes, I felt the weight of his gaze.
"For your safety, consider that place forbidden. "
He walked to the door, his back behind us.
“What about Harlow?” Kassie called out. “Will she be safe? I need to talk to her!”
The Slenderman, who appeared weakened, stopped at the doorway. “Don’t worry about Harlow. She is safe, and I will be sure to protect her with my life.”
He began walking again, then paused. “Sorry about making you clean up the mess.”
He lifted his hand, and we watched as the glass began to levitate, appearing to move backward in time. It sped up as it reached the window, sealing itself back into place as if nothing had ever happened.
I turned around and saw that even the mason jars had put themselves together and were back in the cabinet.
“Woah,” Kassie said. “That was crazy.”
We both turned around and began to say “Thank you,” but at that point, with the door still left open, our mayor was gone.
I pulled Kassie closer to me, the reality settling in that we faced whatever came next alone.
The monster who governed our town, I couldn't think of him as "mayor" anymore, had revealed a dangerous weakness.
His composure had fractured at the mere mention of Harlow, and that unstable connection between them threatened all our safety.
Something needed to change, and quickly.
For the time, my priority remained Kassie's safety, though she seemed unaware of the danger. She slipped from my protective grasp and drifted toward the nearest window, pressing her palm against the newly-restored glass as if testing it were real.
Kassie traced her fingertips over the seamless glass. "It's like it never broke at all," she whispered, then turned to me with wide eyes. "But what if the fox shifter finds us here? Could he do something like this—fix things with just a gesture? Or is Gideon the only one with that kind of power?"
I couldn't help but smile at her intuition, even as concern gnawed at me. She should be more frightened than curious. Fox shifters were notorious for their cunning, and I had no idea why this one had fixated on my match, of all people.
Well, she was stunning, amazing and had the best bosoms ever.
I did know one thing for certain, and that was he wouldn’t touch her. Not then, not ever.