Sapphire Blue [The Grim Reaper Chronicles, #1] (Editing)

Chapter Seven

Few days ago. 4:56am.

Everyone but her was asleep. She just couldn't close her eyes and drift away into the wonderland like others were doing presently. The sleep wasn't coming and she felt the sudden urge to do some chores before everyone woke up. Some kitchen work would do. She thought inwardly as she dressed up, and when she was done, walk to the big kitchen down the hallway.

She emerged at the kitchen and turned on the lights. Looking around the four corners of the room, she thought on which chore to settle on. There were several chores that could be done: the dishes had not been washed, the floors needed polishing, and the dirt bag had to be moved out because it was full. She decided to do the dishes. Only the plates used to have dessert were kept in the sink as the others had been washed the day before. And if she set to work at once, she would be done in no time, plus her work for the day would be done already. She wouldn't have to go through stress when she wanted rest. With a light yawn, she walked over the sink and turned on the water. It was even much more better being alone while working. The kitchen's temperature was neither cold or warm, and it wasn't too bright or overly dark in. Here was the peace and quiet she desired.

She was up cleaning the bowls in the Kitchen, earlier than usual when she heard something howl faintly outside. She stopped and listened carefully, trying to guarantee herself a safe condition. It was definitely the wolves or stray dogs in the deep woods since the orphanage building was close to it, and any animal sound could be heard directly from a safe distance. She thought and went back to work. She was only kidding. There couldn't be wolves or stray dogs, she had only misinterpreted a child's loud cry.

She was at the edge of dry cleaning the last couple of bowls when she heard the howling sound again. This time around, more closer and clearer that it almost seemed like the sound was coming from inside the building or even the hallway. This discovery upset her stomach, and it churned.

Her stomach tied into a knot as she stopped what she was doing in a growing panic and grabbed a knife from the kitchen counter. A wild animal could have barged into the building without anyone noticing. What was she to do now?

Slowly, she tiptoed out of the kitchen, into the hallway with the sharp knife in one hand and the other with the torch she had brought along with her to the kitchen. She wasn't an experienced fighter and couldn't guarantee her own safety if the animal was to attack her at the moment. All she could do to help herself was to calm her nerves and focus on the animal's movement, and dictate its next step in order to stage an attack once she laid her eyes on it.

With a skeptical and fearful mind, she walked down the almost dark hallway with pessimistic steps. Thankfully, some lights were seeping in through the big windows in the hallway, but was barely enough for her to see any weird movements forming in behind or in front of her. She was the only one available to do this, and could not just run back to the room out of fear even if her instincts told her to.

There were hundreds of innocent kids sleeping in the building presently, unaware of what was happening at the moment, and it would really seem uncaring if she ran away and left them all to their fates. All she owed them was to protect their lives from danger even if it meant to sacrifice hers.

She wasn't even sure she would want to. It wasn't like she had plans to die beforehand.

Suddenly, after walking a few steps further, a long and dark shadow appeared at the end of the hallway, engulfing the serenity of the place with its dark and undefinable silhouette. It was quite tall; almost like a human shadow and nothing like the wild animal that she had pictured in mind earlier. And it was standing rooted there, like it was observing a scene, utterly unsure of its next step. It was only the she spotted, and nothing else. Then a scratching noise sprang into the air.