Ensnaring Darkness

XXVII. In which his anger rattled Sans Soleil

Sans Soleil had always been a lively place. In the account of excited screams and merry laughter. The place had given entertainment and unbeknownst to the public had taken countless of lives and dreams. But today, what was hidden brimmed in the surface. The sound of terror, spine-chilling screams and undisguised malice was prominent in the northern part of the park.

From the haunted house, a guttural cry of pain echoed and spread out, raising goosebumps to whoever heard it.

Almost altogether, the laughter and merry music stopped. Everyone was aware that such a sound was out of place.

The tall and lanky worker who was in front of the entrance felt a chill he couldn't described. The anguished cry had long past yet it seemed to echo in his ears. He couldn't even move to alert the boss of what happened. He glanced around and saw the horrified expression of the couples queueing up, the visitors who were looking curiously towards the haunted house, as well as the other workers who were frozen in deep-rooted fear.

He met the eyes of another lanky guy and a silent understanding crossed between them. The other guy immediately ran away towards the South. The Boss should know that someone is threatening them. Of course, this had happened before and they've dealt with it so he could still keep some kind of calm.

The young woman from the registration booth walked up to him with an anxious but innocent face. His eyes flashed to her nameplate -Jenny. This one is the human recruit and she wouldn't know the true meaning of the scream. At most she would think that an accident happened inside. Only he knew it was not an accident but possibly a murder.

"Hey Tony, do we need to send someone in there? What if something bad happened to the visitors?" Jenny asked anxiously.

Tony forced a smile that did not reach his eyes. "No worries darling. I've sent Shawn to check the surveillance first. At most, it might just be a malfunction of the sound systems." The lies slipped out smoothly from his lips. But Jenny was not fooled.

'Malfunction, my a$$! It sounded like there's a dying monster in there'

But Jenny couldn't refute his words. She'd notice it before but Tony and some others felt different. But when asked what feels different, she wouldn't be able to explain it. She shook the feeling away and forced a smile. "It's better to pacify the visitors then."

She said and promptly turned around to announce that everything is fine and it's just a malfunction with their sound systems. Seeing her lively and smiling expression, the visitors relaxed and as if it never happened, the fun started back up again. The merry music blasted around the park as if to cover the macabre leaking within.

It was only Tony who felt danger approaching. His face stiffened more as he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. It was akin to the sound of a clock ticking away the last minutes of his life. Sweat lined his brow as it grew louder that even the queuing visitors and Jenny could hear it too. They all peered towards the entrance. Who is coming?

Tony felt the ice-cold chill before he saw the person approaching. His whole body trembled as his eyes met with a pair of stormy gray eyes emitting a feeling of extreme danger. He unconsciously took a step back and averted his eyes. Even just a second more of staring at those eyes and he felt like he'll be frozen.

A second later, a tall man with cold gray eyes stepped outside. Everyone who saw him held their breath for inexplicable reasons. In the man's arms was an unconscious blonde man whose face was pale and cold. A tremor filled their hearts as they saw the tall man's eyebrows scrunched into a frown.

However, this kind of pressure was bearable compared to what Tony was feeling at the moment. His knees shook and he eventually fell down chest heaving.

The tall man glanced at him expressionlessly and without a word walked towards the tent where the other visitors were resting.

When Kayla saw his approach and the unconscious man in his arms, she immediately lurched forward from laying down the mattress.

"Here, lay him here!" she said enthusiastically.

The tall man nodded and lay down the blonde young man in the mattress. His gentle movements did not escape Kayla's or the visitor's in the tent. Knox gently moved a strand of hair from Julien's forehead, his frown deepening. Kayla wanted to snap a photo! This picture really is so moving! The tall one is definitely worried for his lover!

'Ah-ah!' Kayla felt like she'd been forced to eat cotton candy.

"Excuse me, but what happened here? Was he so scared he fainted?" Kayla's boyfriend, James asked curiously. Of course, his girlfriend was almost scared to death but fortunately, she just fainted for a short while.

Knox straightened up and looked him in the eye. He unconsciously took a step back as he felt anger and irritation in that gaze. It only lasted for a second and Knox's expression had become nonchalant but James trusted his instinct and ignoring his girlfriend's protests, he pulled her away.

"We should give them privacy." He said out loud and the visitors gawked at him as if he'd lost his mind. 'What privacy! This is a public resting place!'

It was then that a group of amusement park workers came and started to barricade the haunted house attraction.

"An accident happened inside. The haunted house will be close for now! We will give you back your money! Please line up here!"

Two men immediately took Tony away leaving Jenny and the newcomers to deal with unsatisfied visitors. In her six months of working here, this was the first time Jenny saw the workers who came. Her gaze was drawn to the couple who came out and saw just in time when the young man opened his eyes and immediately sat up in bed. His blue eyes were wide and unfocused but when he saw the tall man next to him, tears pooled in his eyes and he quickly embraced him.

'Ah, I need to get myself a boyfriend!' she thought bitterly seeing the sweet sight. 

A/N: Super grateful to Richbill Pedrosa for the wonderful digital drawing of Knox in the book cover. Thank you <3