Chapter 13 #2
My fingers tapped the keyboard, quickly flipping through the feeds until I found Lavender.
She was in the main dining area of the pizzeria, slowly creeping through.
I knew it was hard for her to see, even with the dull neon lights.
Thankfully, Crissa and her rats were nowhere near her.
“Keep going, Lavender.” I checked her path ahead, flipping through another monitor.
“You’re almost there…” Static ripped through the screens.
“Shit.” My fingers hit the keyboard as I returned to the live feed from the kitchen. But Crissa wasn’t there.
Oh shit!
Frantically, I searched the monitors for any sight of her.
“Where are you? Huh? Where did you go?” I noticed Lavender was still alone, her path still empty.
“But if she’s safe, then…” Crissa’s distant laughter echoed through the back of the pizzeria, making its way through the opened security room door.
It was pitch black outside it, but I could feel something coming.
“Fuck.” I checked the nearby cameras and found her.
Crissa was standing at the end of the hall, smiling up into the camera, waving at me with ripe enthusiasm. It was a fucking creepy thing to witness, her eyes fully blacked out and her teeth long and sharp, like an animal’s. She opened her jaw and mouthed slowly, ensuring I could read her lips.
“I—see—you.”
What?
Just then, a rat squeaked. I shot my head to the doorway to see it standing there, staring at me.
“Oh shit!” I ran from the monitors and slammed the door shut, locking it in a hurry.
The monitors all fell into a rippling static for a moment before resuming.
And Crissa was gone. “No,” I breathed, rushing back to them.
“No, no, no!” I panicked, unable to find her.
Fuck!
“Mon–tey.” My body froze at the sound of my name being sung from the other side of the door. “Mon–tey,” she sang again. “Open the door, Montey.” Her voice was sweet and innocent which frightened me more.
I stepped back, looking around the office for some way to defend myself. But aside from the food trash and monitors, there wasn’t much.
“Open the door, Montey.” Her voice became more stern and had an altered depth to it. Crissa hit the door, making me jump. “Open. The. Door,” she growled, sounding absolutely demonic. My heart raced, knowing she’d force her way in eventually.
Crissa hit the door again. And again. And again, until what sounded like just her fists hitting it, turned into full-on body slams. “Let me in!” The door ripped off the hinges and she came crashing in, followed by a few rats.
“Aha!” She tossed her head back and laughed before glaring back at me.
“No where to hide now, Mon–tey. It’s just you and me, big boy. ” A low snarl vibrated from her.
I slowly backed away from her as she stepped further into the security office, keeping the distance even between us. “Crissa, please.” My back hit the two-way mirror, and I knew I was fucked. “Please,” I breathed.
Her arm raised high, the green hue of the monitors drenching her bloodied body as her claws flexed. “I’m afraid dear Crissa isn’t here right now,” she spoke in a deep, altered voice. “But even if she were, she’d be filled with glee at the thought of me killing you!”
My arms raised in a defensive way as I prepared myself.
“No, she wouldn’t! Crissa, Crissa I know you’re still in there!
” She swung, slicing my arm with her claws and knocking me against the mirror.
Blood seeped from the wound, smearing along the glass while I clenched my teeth, biting back loud moans.
I clutched my arm tight, but it just kept bleeding. “Fuck! Crissa please! Listen to me!”
“Crissa please,” she mocked before sticking her tongue out in disgust. “Pathetic human! You can scream her name, calling out to her all you want, but she will not hear you.” She grinned. “She doesn't want to. And I wonder why.”
Doesn’t want to? Wait, that means Crissa was still inside her body…somewhere. And wherever she was, she could still hear me.
She swung her arm again, the tips of her claws running across my face. I cried out, grabbing it with my hand. A few rats ran to my legs and began to crawl up them, biting and gnawing at me. “Get off!” I kicked them away, falling over. “Fuck—get off!”
Crissa erupted into laughter. “Such useful little vermin, are they not? It's no wonder Crissa preferred them over humans.” She then stepped over me and fell to her knees, pinning me between her thighs as she forced my arms to my sides and dug her claws into them, seeding me to the floor. I tried to move, but she was so strong…so unnaturally strong. “It’s useless, Montey,” she whispered.
“My demonic strength is far too much for you, or any human to handle.” Her tongue extended from her mouth, dripping with blood and spit as it glided along my face and licked away at the large gashes she left behind.
“Mmm. You taste so splendid, pretty boy.” She took a deep breath, gasping into a faint moan.
“Oh, you smell divine! Fear, lust, regret, shame—it’s such a range!
” Saliva dripped from her mouth as she cackled. “Oh! I simply cannot wait to eat you!”
“Crissa!” I groaned, tugging my hands. Her claws tore into my flesh, ripping it as I struggled. “Please—stop this! I know you’re still in there! Please, squish! Listen to me!”
She ignored my pleas and her mouth began to widen, stretching wider and wider, her jaw separating as it expanded large enough to fit my head. It was one of the most horrifying things I’d ever experienced.
No…I won’t die like this. I can’t!
My muscles bulged in my arms, adrenaline surging through my veins as I used all my strength to try and free them.
Come on!!
Crissa’s teeth dripped as her tongue extended from her mouth and flailed about, licking more blood from my face.
My hands tore some more, loosening her grip as she lunged her back and thrashed it forward.
“No!” I ripped my hands free, deeply slicing them with her claws as I blocked her bite just in time.
“Ugh!” A loud groan filled my mouth as I struggled to hold her back, her teeth sunk deep into both my forearms. She pushed her weight against me, glaring into my eyes while pressing her jaws tighter.
The flesh of my arms squelched as blood seeped from them and dripped down along my face.
“Cris—sa!” I shouted through clenched teeth.
“Please! Listen to me! It’s me, Montey!”
A menacing growl rippled through my arms and vibrated my bones.
“Please! I know you’re still in there! Don’t do this, squish! I’m sorry, for everything! We fucked up!” I continued to groan, weakening with each passing second. “But this—this isn’t right! Killing us, killing me won’t make any of this right! Please, squish! I—I love you!”
Crissa immediately froze at my loud statement.
“M–Montey?” Crissa’s usual voice called out from deep within her throat, her teeth still implanted in my forearms.
“Squish! Is that really you?” I tried to look for her, but struggled to see through the blood that dripped from my arms and along my face. “Where are you?”
The body of Crissa remained on top of me, growling as her voice spoke again. “Montey…Montey, it’s me! I’m in here!”
“Crissa,” a second voice growled her name as her mouth moved, releasing my arms. “What do you think you are doing?” Her head raised as she leaned back, speaking to the air. “I am in control here!”
“Please,” her normal voice shot from deep within her throat. “Let me handle this, Zeth.”
Zeth? Wait… is that this thing’s name? Which means, I was right. It never was Crissa! I knew it. I knew she couldn’t do those things.
“You’ve had your fun, now let me handle this, Zeth.”
The demonic version of her growled and snarled, annoyed by her demand. “Fine…but get the last one.” He must’ve meant Lavender, who was hopefully finding her way to the exit soon. “You are lucky Crissa has a soft spot for you, pretty boy.”
Within the blink of an eye, Crissa’s blacked-out eyes and sharp teeth vanished, her usual human-like features returning.
She was covered in blood, staring at me with her brown irises, her face in horror.
“Montey?” she cried out, tears filling her eyes.
“Montey! Oh my god!” She pressed her hand against my arms, trying to stop the bleeding.
“I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry!” Crissa cried, still straddling me.
“Squish,” I breathed with a smile. “It's you…it’s really you!” I lunged forward and pulled her close, squeezing her tight. Crissa cried into my chest, tugging at my shirt.
“I’m so sorry,” she sobbed. “I-I don’t know what happened!
One minute, Sybil was stabbing my hand and the next—” She swallowed as I pulled back and cradled her face.
“It was so dark. But then, I heard your voice.” My thumb wiped away her bloodied tears.
“I reached out and clung onto it, and the next thing I knew, I was here.” Her eyes moved around the room.
She looked over to the two-way mirror, pulling away as she stood and walked over to it.
“Oh my god,” she gasped, covering her mouth. “What did you do, Zeth?”
There was that name again.
Taking my time, I slowly stood up and walked to her side. “Who is Zeth?” I asked.
Crissa placed a hand against the mirror and laid her forehead against it, sighing as she fogged the glass.
“He’s the demon I summoned…the one inside of me.
” Her hand slid, leaving behind a bloody handprint as she spun towards me.
She stared down at her body, rotating her hands, taking in everything.
“I–I did this…it’s all my fault. All of it!
” Crissa fell against my chest sobbing and I held her tight, trying to comfort her.
“I know I said I wanted revenge for everything, but not like this! This wasn’t what I meant! I didn’t want this!”