Dark Secrets [COMPLETED]

Chapter 22: Last Sacrifice

When I awoke, I was in a dark room. I tried to turn my head to look around, and hissed at the sudden sharp pain in the side of my head. I tried to take deep breaths, but my chest felt tight. I peered down at my body, only to see that my arms and legs were bound by thick ropes. My clothes were gone, in their place was a thin white gown.

I tried to take in my surroundings, but the room was too dark to make out anything. I felt a hard, flat surface below me. It was either the ground or the slab from downstairs. The thought chilled me to the core, and I struggled to try and loosen my binds. No such luck. The ropes pinched my bare ankles and arms, and the skin around the areas felt rubbed raw. I whimpered and flopped back against the slab, defeated.

I was tied up like a prize animal waiting to be slaughtered. Was I really going to die down here? Did Carlos even know where I was? Or Dad? Roger? Was I going to be buried in a hole in the ground like Meredith and Virginia?

I closed my eyes and waited for the end.

A familiar blue light appeared behind my eyes and I opened them. Meredith hovered over me with a look of pity on her face. "Please..." I whispered, "help me."

She looked over my bindings, and reached out her ghostly hands. The cords snapped, freeing me. I sat up hurriedly, rubbing my wrists.

Meredith stepped back and floated towards the wooden door to Robert's laboratory. "He's coming," she said. "You must run. Escape this hell while you still can!"

I obeyed and climbed off of the slab. I ran for the door, my feet slapping against the damp stone floor. Grabbing the metal handle, I pulled.

Robert stepped out, and I leapt back. "And where do you think you're going?" He exclaimed, his syllables rolling with a thick Spanish accent. He'd dropped the Englishman act, it seemed. He wore an open black robe over his slacks. The deep purple scar on his chest was on full display, and in his right hand, he held a silver ceremonial dagger.

I held up my hands, as if they would protect me. "Get away from me!" I shouted. "Don't come any closer!"

His eyes shone with malicious glee, and he laughed heartily. "I don't think so," he purred. "You were made for this. You were born to fulfill me, Calista. You are my ticket to another hundred years!" A mad giggle escaped his lips as he grinned and raised the knife. "¡Ven aquí, mi corazón!"

The image of Meredith's death flashed through my mind, and I bolted to the left. He followed after me, grabbing me by the arm. I screamed.

Meredith's blue apparition appeared behind him and somehow grabbed him by the throat. He froze, stunned, giving me the chance to yank myself free. Then I ran around him and through the door. I raced through the lab to the other door, and booked it down the cavernous passageway to the stairs.

I managed to make it partway up before something grabbed me by the foot and dragged me down. Robert had caught up with me. I screamed and kicked at him to get his hand off of me. He snarled and I felt a series of sharp stings as he slashed at me with the knife.

My foot managed to connect with his face, sending him falling backwards down the stairs. I freed myself and scrambled to my feet. I limped quickly up the stairs, taking two at a time.

"You can't escape me!" He bellowed from below. "When the moon rises tonight, you will be mine!"

I reached the top of the stairs and started down the passageway. When I stopped at the holes in Carlos's bedroom wall, I took a brief second to survey the damage to my left leg. My calf was covered in thin lacerations, but luckily I was only bleeding slightly.

I continued down the narrow corridor, making note of the different rooms I passed as I went. Five minutes later, I passed Carlos's room again, and stopped, confused. Didn't I just come through this way? I got an idea and reached out for the nearest hole. I pinched a piece of the wall between my fingers and tore it off. It left a mark on the wall, and I made a mental note of it before continuing my trek down the hall.