Ander - Part 5: Subchapter 55
55
"- animal. You got that, Tim? We're dealing with an animal, so don't think of it in any way other than that. It's not a big black Fox, it's not an intelligent Soul, it's just a stupid animal and it's got our sister. Understand?"
Tim nodded, shivering like crazy. They were both pretty much covered in a fine white powder from their little dive out of the second story window, but at least neither of them had twisted an ankle or anything major. After that they had fetched the axe from the shed, and now they were huddled together, their backs propped up against the house right underneath the living room window. There was a faint glow coming from inside, spilling over the snow in a stuttering, orange square of light. Luke gripped the axe handle in the gloom, but it did nothing to reassure him. He could barely even feel it through the gloves.
He could hear them in there. He could hear Valery weeping, and he could hear Dad still trying to reason with a monster, his voice muffled by distance. Banno's voice, however, came through loud and clear. He must be very close to the wall, but Luke didn't dare take a look.
Just listening was terrifying enough.
"You still don't understand, James, and you never will! If you really love your daughter like you say you do, then let me do right by her! Go back to your room and let me taste her death! If you want, I'll come up and taste yours when I'm done, although I'm not sure you'll go to the same place as her. You're two totally different creatures. Valery is like me, while you're no different form an owl or a toad."
Dad said something that only made Banno laugh.
"Oh that's right! I almost forgot about the brats! Tell you what, if you back off and let me do what I need to do, I'll make it easy on the smaller one. 'Tim', right? I'll rip his throat out first, so that he doesn't need to watch his brother suffer. Normally I'm not that fond of useless torture, but for him I'll make an exception. That pest has been nothing but a thorn in my side since I got here, and I think he owes me a scream or two, wouldn't you agree?"
Luke clutched the axe to his chest, trying his very best not to freak out. This dinky little thing seemed so tiny in his hands compared to the words coming through that plate of glass. Words. They were just words, and yet it felt like some part of him was already being torn apart, just like that abomination was no doubt imagining right now.
How? How were they going to get through this?
Tim placed his hand on Luke's knee. "Banno's trying to make Dad mad. He wants him to come charging in, and with those super long arms and the poker he's got the reach advantage. Dad won't even come close."
"I don't think Dad'll do that if he's still got Val. Much too risky."
"What are we gonna do, Luke? We've come this far, but I don't know what comes next."
Luke couldn't answer that question, because he didn't know himself. Ideas paraded through his head, each more stupid than the last. Maybe they could cause some kind of distraction? What if they climbed up to the roof and dumped snow down the chimney? That would kill the fire, and Banno was all crazy about cold and - No! The dark would only make things worse! Much worse! Maybe he should just break the window and - No! Busting in through the window brandishing an axe would only get Vee killed. He felt so useless! Still, he'd rather be out here in the freezing cold, holding this axe, than cowering up in his room behind a locked door waiting for something to happen.
"I think... we have to lure him to the window. And then, when he gets close enough..."
"Do you think you can do that?"
"Honestly? I have no idea. But right now I don't think 'can' and 'cannot' really matters. I have to. It's our sister in there, and our Dad. They need our help, so we have to."
Tim swallowed hard and nodded his head. "Just be really careful. I don't think Banno actually wants to hurt Vee, at least not with that poker, but if you startle him anything might happen. You'll only get one shot, so it has to be a killing blow."
"I know." Luke readjusted his grip for the thousandth time, moving his hands up and down the handle, opening and closing his numb fingers. No matter how hard he tried, it didn't feel like he was holding the damn thing right. It was probably just his imagination, though. His insides felt weird, like he had swallowed a bunch of needles and they were constantly poking him from the inside. His heart was beating so fast he could actually hear his blood pumping through his ears, making a sound like a bellows that had sprung a leak. He couldn't stop shaking.
I have to. I have to. I have to.
He got up on his haunches, careful not to make the slightest sound, turned around, and peeked over the window sill, keeping his ears flat against his head so they wouldn't give him away.
He could see Banno standing inside their living room, holding that iron poker to Valery's throat. He could see the puncture marks where his filthy teeth had sunk into her neck, staining her sunflower fur the deepest of reds. The collar of her night shirt was soaked in it. She was scratching at his forearm, tears spilling down her cheeks, frantically trying to get away. Her lips were moving, begging Daddy to come and save her. Dad was standing near the door, one hand clutching the kitchen knife, the other outstretched, palm out. He was saying something, and although his voice was muffled, it was easy for Luke to hear the urgency, the pure desperation.
Just let her go!
It doesn't have to be this way!
I'll patch up those burns, stitch up that cut, anything you want, just let my Valery go!
Put down the poker and we can talk about this! I'll put down the knife, just please...
Let her go!
It was no use. Banno was like a deep, dark, empty pit, and all of Dad's words were just tumbling down, unheard. Even his shadow was strange. It didn't just stick against the wall, it engulfed it, darkening the whole thing. No...
It _ate_it. Wherever it fell, everything just disappeared beneath it, like it had taken a great big bite out of reality itself, tearing into it with invisible teeth.
Luke clutched the axe so tightly it felt like his knuckles would crack under the pressure. He knew he was just psyching himself out, seeing things that weren't really there, blowing the whole thing up in his mind to ridiculous proportions because he was so terrified of what might happen.
Maybe, on some level, he was actually trying to scare himself. Maybe, if he got scared enough, he could run away without looking back, without feeling guilty.
No, I have to do it. I have to. I have to.
Banno was standing near the fireplace, where it was still warm. He had all those crazy ideas rolling around in his head about what was real and what was not, about hot and cold and life and death.
Maybe Luke didn't need to do anything flashy or drastic to get his attention. Maybe all he needed to do was...
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