Stranger h.s

VIII

"Open the door now!" He yelled into the quiet night but you stood defiant on the other side.

"I'm not opening the door until you calm down." You said back as your hands shook while holding the curtain. You watched as he paced back and forth before coming back to bang on the door more.

"Open this fucking door." He said menacingly and you stood still before you slowly brought you hand up to the knob.

"If I open this door you're to stay outside until I can say you can come in," you spoke and you heard a loud laugh come from the other side.

"What am I a vampire waiting to be invited in? Just open the door now." He jingled the doorknob again and you finally opened the door. He didn't listen as he barreled forward and grasped you in his arms. This wasn't what you were expecting at all.

"You are not to be in this house alone do you understand me?" He hissed in your ear and it sent shivers down your spine as he pressed his lips to your hair and then forehead. He held you tightly as he explained that he was responsible for you and should anything had happened in that small amount of time he would blame himself.

"I'm going to bed now." You stated and you pulled away from his embrace but his hands latched onto yours and held you in place. A grin came across his face and he pulled you slightly closer to him.

"I'll be in the guest room if you get scared." He pressed another lingering kiss to your forehead before dropping your hands and leaving you in front of the slightly opened front door. The cold air was making its way into your foyer. You shut the door loudly and latched it up, making sure it was all tightly locked before making your way upstairs.

The guest room's door was closed and the lights were off though it was pretty early in the evening.

You shrugged it off and walked up to your own room and shut the door quietly. You walked over to your window and looked out it. The moon was rising and its light illuminated Harry's rose garden that lay directly in its path.

You shut the white curtains and went through the nightly routine quickly. Finishing up and lying in bed you fiddled with your phone.

Your phone dinged signifying an email had come through. Opening it up you skimmed the contents and gasped as you shot up and one hand came to your mouth.

The email was vague, straight to the point, blunt. 'It's best you do not contact me again. Stop asking questions, let it go. Things need to be left alone. Don't trust him.'

This had been the best lead and slowly you were losing confidence as you read it through yet again. Why even respond then?

It didn't add up, this reply. Not at all if you thought about it. And by the 'him' they spoke of you thought it had to be Harry. That would be the only him plausible but if that was the case then how would this person know about him?

You had sent the same email to multiple people but this person knew more. You checked the person who had sent it and the name was Lucy Banks.

You shut off your phone and placed it beside you as you thought about the email and more about Harry. He wasn't right and you knew it. You didn't feel safe with this man in your house and it didn't make you feel any better knowing your parents were under his spell.

As you lay there in silence thinking about the situation at hand you heard rustling coming from the house. There was shuffling about and even from as high in the house as you were you could still hear it clear as day.

You got up from bed and grabbed the heaviest object your eyes on, a trophy that rested on your dresser, and climbed into your closet. You thought it better to hide from him then pretend to be asleep.

He would figure out where you were, he was good like that. He would have waited until you were calm and not expecting such an act to occur. He was clever in that sense.

You had to stifle your scream as you heard footsteps coming up the stairs to your room and you felt the air rush out of your lungs as the door opened slowly.

Loud boot steps stopped right in front of where your closet was and you could hear the exhale of breath.

"Come on love, the closet really?" The doors were slowly opened, and there stood the man you hated most. Your heart was drumming in your chest as you sucked in a deep breath and held it in.

"It's very rude to hide from your lovely neighbor." He had on a large smirk and his hands were behind his back.

"Come out now." He backed away and walked from in front of the closet to the window where he opened the curtains and peered down at his roses.

You stood up and tried to be as relaxed as possible as you held the trophy tightly. You stepped from the closet quietly and raised the trophy as you got closer to him.

What happened next happened quickly. The trophy was pried from your grip and you were held tightly in his grip. You kicked him and screamed. He wasn't having any of that as he backed you up to the window wall and started to speak to you, yelling. He was closer to your face and he was angry. You began to panic and your breathing picked up.

You felt yourself becoming more and more lightheaded as he yelled but you blocked it out as your eyelids fluttered and your breathing becoming quicker and quicker.

You didn't know what happened nexe.t but as you came to your senses you were being carried out of your house and across the yard to his home.