Dear Friend of a Friend | THE SANDMAN

No Longer Bothered

Saundra slowly woke up to the sound of water being poured into the tub in the bathroom. The flow of water hitting the surface of the metal tub confused her. She lightly rubbed  her eyes, waking herself up.

Saundra climbed off her small bed and slowly walked towards the bathroom.

The room was dark without any candle light, but at least one corner of the room was lit by soft moonlight.

Saundra reached her hand out over the bath and felt warm steam rising against her hand.

It didn’t make sense. Why was there warm water in the bath she didn't use that night? She was exhausted after the hunt for information and The Sandman showing up, ruining all of her hard work.

She can understand, he maybe thought she was in trouble and wanted to help but she has been working too hard and losing too much sleep just to lose a lead like that. It just made her lose her temper filter.

Saundra looked around the bathroom, checking the windows, they were all locked. She walked out of the bathroom to the front door, the door was locked and the self-made alarm, she made with a broomstick, untouched.

“That won’t keep you safe from me.” A slow, slimy voice said and it came from the bathroom, Saundra realised as she sprinted to her bed and pulled a dagger out from under her pillow and ran to the bathroom door. She stopped just by the edge of the entrance, hiding next to the door.

“Did you miss me, Child?” The voice asked. “You’ve been busy.”

Saundra listened and tried to pinpoint exactly where the voice stood in the dark. “Why were you so busy, I wanted to come and visit you? Why would you take that pleasure away from me?” The voice kept on talking and it gave Saundra more than enough time to figure out where in the room the voice came from.

With quick movement she stepped out of her hiding spot, stepped into the bathroom entrance and threw the dagger in the direction where the voice came from.

She heard the dagger swiftly moving through the air and then it hit wood, the wooden wall.

She stepped further into the bathroom, confused about how she could have missed such an obvious target.

“Did you really think that would have worked?” The voice asked rhetorically, but it surrounded her, coming from all directions.

“I thought you’ve learned your lesson from my previous visits. Your weapons never work on me, Child.” The voice slow, slimy voice said as it walked out of the shadows, in front of the bathroom door, placing her body in between Saundra and the door.

Saundra’s heart began to gallop in her chest and her breath got more out of control as soon as she realised what was happening. She was having one of her unforgettable nightmares again. Jude haunting her once again.

Without thinking she pulled the dagger out of the wall and threw it again at the nightmare but Jade turned into shadows just before the dagger could hit her. Saundra bolted for the exit but the door shut with a thunderous strike.