Shadows of a Quill

© 2008 L.B. Johnson

CHAPTER ONE  -DARKNESS-

The lights of the passing city of Raleigh began to fade as soon as Abigail got into the cab. Abigail closed her eyes to fight the tears she had been holding for what seemed like eternity. The darkness seemed to grow colder, and so dark that there was not even a hint of light anywhere. Drifting, Abby now stood in the center of what felt like a room, that is, the floors were cold as stone, and she could hear her movements echoing off of the stone walls. Abby felt chills run up her spine, and she could hear the sound of quick short breaths that rose faster and faster like the swells of a tide. She realized that the breathing was her own, but the darkness of this room seemed to swallow her whole, separating her breath from her body, and capturing it in the stone cold walls.

Abigail was unable to move her eyes from straight ahead, so she could not tell what she had on, although by the shivers running through her body, she would have guessed herself without any clothes. The chills grew in strength along with her breathing, until Abby was trembling uncontrollably. Eyes still fixed straight ahead, she thought she heard another sound, not as loud as the erratic breathing or the thunder of shivers that now engulfed her, but the sound of the darkness moving behind her. Then she stopped breathing all together, as she heard the slow purr coming from the darkness, like an animal, only much deeper.

As the darkness pressed against her back, Abby realized that she was mistaken, there was no purr coming from whatever it was behind her; what she heard was a growl. The air came out of her all at once in a gust of wind as she exhaled after holding her breath. The deep slow methodical growl of her predator grew steadily louder, a ready display just before its next kill. Fear devoured any hope of survival that lingered deep in Abby. Abigail Donnelley stood there frozen and afraid, afraid to face her enemy, afraid to move, simply afraid… of the dark.

Abby felt her hair brush across her back, and with horror realized that the growl was close enough to her face that she could feel its pulse on her skin, although she was still unable to see her predator. She struggled to close her eyes, suffering defeat, as she realized that she was completely paralyzed, and unable to move any part of her. Then, as if her eyes were adjusting to the darkness she began to make out in front of her two pupils, slightly darker then the black sludge of the surrounding room that was swallowing her. The pupils slowly moved closer, and as they did, Abigail could see its eyes, red and pulsating with the darkness. The red of this creature’s eyes was the most disturbing thing Abigail could ever remember. It was such a deep shade of red, that it was strikingly similar to the color of blood. Abigail felt a scream of terror rising through her gut, and into her chest as the creature moved slowly close enough to smell her breath, which betrayed her by a shaky impulsion as her teeth chattered in fear.

Suddenly Abigail felt a rush of cold air, and saw the orange glow of the afternoon through the covers of her eye lids, as the cabbie held the door open for her. He had already taken her suit case out of the trunk, and was giving Abby a look of frustration as she sat inside the cab disoriented, trying to escape the trembling that still captivated her entire body.

“Sorry, how much?” Abby whispered, almost too quiet for the cabbie to hear.

“Fifteen.” he replied with annoyance in his voice.

Abigail dug a twenty out of her pocket book and handed it to the driver. He got back into the driver side of the cab without another word while Abigail stumbled out of the back seat and closed the door. Before she could turn to thank the driver, the yellow cab was half way down the street.