A Monster Inside - Book of the Amulet - ITV's Jekyll and Hyde

2 - Welcome to the Puzzlebox

The familiar walls soared high as mountains above her, the heat melting whatever held them together and making it roll down the stone like grey sludge. "Oh, this bloody dream again", Lottie murmured to herself.

"Afraid not this time", a voice replied. Lottie got up, rubbing her eyes free from any tiredness, and then saw where the voice was coming from. It was a man, with olive-tanned skin, dark hair pulled back from his forehead and piercing brown eyes, so fair they were almost gold. He had on loose, black trousers with pieces of beige fabric wrapped around his waist, grey Guayabera shirt and black cloak, with its hood trailing down his back.

"Is it really you?" she asked quietly, blinking her eyes to make sure she wasn't dreaming. She leapt up from the ground like it was made from hot coals, which it wasn't far off. Walking towards him cautiously, she angled her face to see him in the light. Answering her question, she smiled and hung her arms around his shoulders. "What took you so long, Dad?" He gently placed his hands on her back, pleased that he finally had someone in this lonely labyrinth to cherish.

"Oh, you know", he whispered. "Got sealed in an unnavigable maze. Same old story".

"But, Olalla, she said you were dead", she bellowed, making him jump back. "She said she saw your name in the Tenebraen records".

"Might as well have been. I've been trying to navigate this place for three years. God knows what Tenebrae have been doing in the mean time".

"It's been so long, Dad. I've..." she started, tilting her head to the side. "I've missed you".

"I've missed you too. I've missed you all in fact, and I would have come back sooner, but I", he replied, pausing to find an ending to his sentence. "Couldn't".

"Why not? I mean Maggie talks about you all the time and it always seems like you can come back whenever you-"

"I just...couldn't". She knew where her place was, so decided to quickly change the subject.

"Is this the Puzzlebox?" she asked, and she noticed that she could see Robert in his dark, curly hair, Olalla in his prominent jawline and cheekbones, and herself in his curious, yet determined eyes.

"Yes", he answered, and he scanned the area behind her. "How do you know of this place?"

"Dance, Captain Dance, he warned me of it. Said that I'd become familiar with it soon enough". Louis scoffed slightly, then heard a rumble on the atmosphere, freezing at the sound of it.

"Dad? Dad, what is it?" He reached for his belt, pulling out a short blade from it, that looked like it had been made from a bounded animal tooth. Though it would have had to be a pretty big animal.

"Don't be afraid, walk slowly towards me, and don't ask questions".

"Wha-?"

"Do as I say and we won't get killed". His tone was fast and anxious, so she did as she was told, though she could feel something breathing on the back of her neck. He didn't take his eyes off whatever was behind her. "It feeds on fear and the more it feeds, the more it grows. I know it's a big ask, but be brave".

"What is it though?"

"Turn around and see for yourself". Calmly, she gritted her teeth and turned around. There, half-in and half-out of a wall was the face of a man, wounded in places and his eye sockets were dark and almost hollow. She could see the taupe colouration of the wall behind his face, and his white-blonde hair was messily thrown from his face. "What is it?"

"Surely you have seen a ghost before, with all the bedtime stories I used to read to you. Charles Dickens was your favourite author back then", he murmured, the realisation about how long it had actually been since he had seen his children. "It's a Shadeface. A spirit in your terms".

"Of what?"

"The last person that was in here. Seems that even after death, the Puzzlebox never sets you free; just forces you to stop other people from getting out".

"Has anyone ever done it? Gotten out I mean".

"There were rumours of a woman who got out once, but she was said to have cheated the course", he replied and stepped backwards. The Shadeface had grown slightly, its face becoming distorted as its various limbs grew in size and power.

"But I'm not afraid. It's only a harmless spectre".

"There's two of us here. And the one that is afraid has seen what they can do". She looked to him, slightly confused, but it all came clear when she saw the pure terror in his eyes. This wasn't just a man who had been loitering around in a maze for a while, this was a man who had seen sights that no one should.

"What was their name?" she asked, following his lead in backing away from the creature.

"William Bailey, he was in here before me and we made friends. But he didn't see the Shadeface coming up behind him; ripped him in two", he sighed. "But we mustn't dwell on bad times, because after all what way is that to live life". He turned, walking away from the creature.

"Aren't we going to do something about him?"

"You choose. You going to be merciful, or you going to stab him dead?"

"Pardon?"

"That used to be the whole point of this place. They used to lock criminals in here, hoping maybe the mercifulness of it all would help them see the wrongs of their actions. And now look at it; knew Brant shouldn't have given it up". He reached for his knife, and gave it to Lottie, her eyes slightly disbelieving as the choice he was giving her.

"I don't want to. He has done nothing wrong, therefore he doesn't deserve punishment". He half-smiled, sliding the blade back into his belt and starting to walk away. There was a looming door, dark wooden and studded with metal. He pulled on the handles, so they flew open. Behind them was the same corridor of pale stone and she could hear crackling, almost like logs in a fire. It didn't faze Louis, he had obviously been this way before.

"And that's why you're more like your mother than me".