Blood and Snow

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Not again..." Belle mumbled as she covered her face. Even though she's only had a few of them since she'd arrived at the warehouse, she was already starting to get sick of these nightmares. They'd never been this horrible before. Nor did they happen this frequently. Mostly, she'd just dream about courtrooms and clients who were facing several charges. It would be her job to defend them and it was always a fifty-fifty ratio of whether or not she won the case. There were also strange dreams where she'd be drowning in the ocean or falling off a skyscraper or burning alive. Once she had frozen to death in the snow, somewhere out in the woods. Then there was a reoccurring dream that she'd genuinely like because it took place in a bright, happy future. She would be at home, in a place that was to the north. Why it was up north, she didn't know. But she'd enjoy looking at the snow. There was a little boy with black hair who would run circles around her, giggling as he held one of her books. "Max, stop please." She'd tell him, "You might fall. Then your father will think someone hurt you, and he'll get all worked up about it."

"Sorry, Momma." He would respond, "But this is fun!"

The dream would spiral out differently from that point, but they were always happy. Unlike the dark corridors that now loomed around her. "C'mon, wake up!" She said, trying to smack her face as hard as she could. "Don't wake up crying again! Wake up!"

Something snarled at her from her right, forcing Belle to look up. Her eyes widened with horror. It was a monster. It had the head of a black bear, with wires and claws and blood smeared all over it. The body was animalistic, but she could see human body parts sticking out here and there. It had a big, golden star on its chest. The creature stalked towards her, keeping its amber eyes on her. "You thought you could escape me, didn't you?" it chuckled darkly. "You thought you could get away, just like you did all those years ago. But I'm not that easy to get rid of. I will get you. You will be mine. And when I'm finished with you, I'm going to dismember you. Lillian will never find you. Mason will never find you. Only I will know where you are."

Belle started backing away, terrified. "Wh—what?" She asked. The creature roared and charged at her. It was the same roar from the other nightmare, the one where Lillian was disemboweled. She screamed and turned around to run, but she tripped over her own feet and fell to the ground. Belle immediately tried to scramble to her feet and stumbled again. She looked over her shoulder. The monster had jumped in the air and was about to land right on top of her. She slumped the ground in a fetal position, ultimately accepting what was about to happen. She waited for a few moments, then half a minute.

It was quiet. Nothing happened. For a moment she believed that she might have woken up. She peeked one eye open, then the other. She sat up and looked around. It was gone. Not just the monster, but the hallway as well. Everything was gone. She was drifting above an endless abyss. The same one she was in before. She blinked and repeated, "Wh-what?"

She didn't try to get up, afraid that she might tumble downward if she moved. "How did I get here?"

"Because I brought you here."

Belle twisted her body to look behind her. She almost couldn't believe what she saw, but kept in mind that she was still asleep. "You... you're a bear!"

"Indeed, I am." He said. The bear was anthropomorphic, with purple fur and black eyes. He wore a black top hat and bowtie, and his voice was deep, almost mechanical in a sense. He tilted his head at her, "Do you remember me?"

Belle regarded him for a moment, then shook her head. "N-No... Sorry."

"No need to apologize. You were fairly young when we last spoke." He said. His ears moved around as he talked. When his mouth opened, Belle could she the white teeth and pink tongue inside, both glowing. She slowly turned her body around to face him and the bear stood up straight again. "You can stand up," he said, "You won't fall."