The Cabin

Chapter 52

The smell of damp and blood hung thick in the air as AJ cautiously made his way through the hidden corridor. In the dim light coming from somewhere around a corner ahead he could make out the silhouettes of insects as they skittered across the cracked tile floor and along the walls. The space around him was silent. He could no longer hear the screams and movement coming from upstairs. If there was anyone else in the corridor with him, they didn't make a sound.

He cringed and froze as his shoe crunched over one of the broken tiles, certain he had just made his presence known to anyone nearby. He waited, holding his breath and silently willing the sound of his own heart beat to quiet so he could hear any potential threats around him.

The seconds ticked on, but no one came around the corner to see who had made the noise. He carefully lifted his foot and placed it back down on a more stable tile, then continued making his way to the end of the corridor. He pressed himself against the wall, straining to hear any movement around the corner, but there was still no sign that anyone else was there. As carefully as he could, he peeked around the corner, silently praying he would remain unseen.

He found himself looking into what looked to be an old clinical room. There were half-melted stick candles in candelabras on the walls, their flames providing a warm illumination throughout the room. The main source of light came from a single oil lamp hanging from the ceiling above an old wooden examination table, on top of which lay Melanie's lifeless body.

AJ tensed and broke into a cold sweat. His immediate instinct was to run to her, but it also felt like a trap. He looked around the room, half expecting to see the demon watching him, but Melanie seemed to be alone. Upon closer observation, AJ noticed there was a decorative stone basin beneath the table and a dark liquid was dripping from the bottom of the table, slowly pooling into the centre of the basin.

He took a few tentative steps into the room, his muscles tensed and ready to defend himself if anything were to jump out at him. He half expected Melanie to jump up and run at him, but she remained motionless.

As he got closer to her, he could see the open cuts in the crooks of her elbow. Blood was slowly dripping from her arms and trickling down thin metal plates into the basin beneath her. Her shirt had been removed, leaving her dressed in nothing but a bra and joggers.

"Take her!"

AJ spun around, holding his fists up to strike whoever was behind him, but no one was there. He quickly turned back to Melanie, still not trusting that she wasn't luring him close in order to attack him. She didn't seem at all threatening in her current state. She was pale and she seemed to be struggling to breathe, her chest heaving to take in shallow breaths.

Going against his instincts, he quickly approached her, grabbing a roll of gauze and some cotton wool from one of the nearby cupboards and wrapping her arms in an attempt to stop the bleeding. He watched her closely, expecting her to lunge at him, but she remained unconscious.

"Don't you dare do anything scary!" AJ threatened shakily, staring at Melanie's face as he tied the gauze tightly around her arm.

Now close to her, he could see her lips were bluish and her skin was extremely pale. She had dark circles under her eyes and her face was gaunt. Still unsure if she was alive or dead, he pressed his fingers against her wrist, searching for a pulse.

"Get her out of here!"

AJ cursed and turned to find Dr. Sauer standing next to him. He nodded toward Melanie, staring intensely at AJ.

"Quickly!"

AJ nodded, turning back to Melanie and sliding his arms under her shoulder and knees to lift her. There was some resistance as he tried to move her and she groaned, her brows furrowing. He pulled his arms out from under her and looked her over to see if she was tied down anywhere. He knelt down and looked under the table, seeing a number of holes dripping blood into the basin beneath the table.