Work Text:
Did not provided the character's description below, so here they are:
Leigh hadn't planned on waking up to chaos, but the emergency call dragged her out of bed before dawn. Now she stood at the bus stop - cold, tired, and already late. Rain poured from a sky that had ignored every forecast, soaking the street and finishing the morning off with one final insult. But the beginning of this day was completely normal and didn't foretell anything like it.
Evening before, she'd returned home from a long-term shift. Taking her favorite cup, filled with lemon tea, she allowed herself to sigh in relax. The weekend lay ahead, and Leigh intended to make the most of it.
By which she meant: sleep.
She was a lead logistics coordinator. A pretty solid position for Leigh's 26 years. But everything has its price - it was one of the most nerve-wracking jobs imaginable. There was a time when midnight calls didn't bother her, but as time passing, it became more and more draining.
Today, she had made no plans.
Leigh had dropped onto the couch, stretching her arms, then folding it behind her head. Unfinished tea sat quietly on the near coffee table.
“Unbelievable,” - she muttered. - “Weekends my beloved.”
Without noticing it, she fell asleep almost instantly.
**
The quiet of the apartment was shattered by a ringing phone. Leigh jerked awake. Without opening her eyes, she reached blindly for the phone on the table and answered.
-...Ye, Sean?
-Hi. Really sorry to wake you, but we've got an emergency.
-...what?
The person on the other end of the line said that her replacement, Nick, had come down with the flu. Leo was on vacation. Evelyn was still on maternity leave. There was no one else to work today.
-You know the boss will pay for the extra day, as always, - Sean continued, - Listen, I understand that today is Saturday, but we've already got two road trains stuck at the base. We need to reschedule all the cargo and routes. Time is money.
Leigh sighed.
-Okaay.
-Perfect. We'll need you at the office in half an hour, tops. Departures can't go later than 9, maybe 9:20. Bye! And thanks.
The line went dead. Leigh let her arm drops limply, phone still in hand.
"Time is money... Time is... Uh oh..."
With great efforts, she opened her eyes and finally managed to look at the time. The clock on the opposite wall showed almost exactly 8 am.
"Oh.. OH NO."
The last traces of the sleep evaporated instantly. Leigh jumped up, cursing silently at the flu, the road trains, and the ruined weekend. In minutes, she'd brushed her hair, thrown on clothes, stuffed a protein bar into her mouth, and bolted outside.
The warehouse was far from the city center. Getting there in thirty minutes was impossible, not with weekend buses.
Now Leigh stood at the bus stop, soaked, irritated, and nearly vibrating with frustration. Thinking that any bus would arrive so early on a Saturday, and the taxi would not get there on time too, she was angry.
-Hello, Miss Lawrence!
She clenched her jaw and rolled her eyes. This day couldn't get worse, but apparently, it was going to try.
-Finally decided to start an active lifestyle? Morning jog? As far as I know buses aren't running right now, so you'll have to walk to your destination.
A car stopped next to her. Ray looked out of it, smiling completely shamelessly. She gritted.
Ray Everett was her neighbor. And Leigh had never met someone so thoroughly annoying before. Having moved in less than a year ago, he had wasted no time getting on her nerves with snide remarks and endless, smug banter every time they crossed paths.
He was always there. In the hallway, in the elevator, leaning on the mailbox. And every time he had something to say. Leigh had pegged him early as one of those people who never took anything seriously. Always smiling, always relaxed. Also there was something too smooth about him - like someone who'd been in trouble before and learned how to hide it.
But somewhere deep inside Leigh keep thinking that she is wrong about him. Honestly, he didnt do anything really bad to her or other neighbors. In fact, she vaguely remembered he helped plant trees in the park next to the building six months ago.
However, Leigh was still irritated. She didn't know exactly who he was, whether he even had a job, or whether he was not on the cops' radar. She didn't like the unknown, even in such small things as neighbors. Living in the world of schedules, spreadsheets, and strict deadlines, she needed things to be organized.
And now this slap in the face of the system was smiling widely at her from the car window.
-Need a ride, ma'am? - he asked casually, - I assume there's a reason you're out here getting drenched at this ungodly hour.
-Not your business. Go and bother someone else, - she spat.
Ray's grin faded a little. He sighed, seeing her in such nervous state.
-Okay, maybe it was too much. Seriously, if something happened, I can drive you anywhere if you want.
Leigh was about to throw "no" right in his face. But then thought again about time. No bus. Taxi wouldn't cut it. But asking help from Ray was unthinkable.
On the other hand - if she got there too late, she wouldn't have time to rework the routes. That could drag the entire schedule into the evening.
She sighed.
-Do not think that I'm as happy, as you about it. Try not to kill us.
Ray's grin returned instantly. He got out, moving with irritating confidence, and opened the door for her.
-Can't promise...!
**
To Ray's credit, he got them to the office incredibly fast, somehow managing to catch every single green light, without breaking a single rule.
When he stop, she jumped out of the car, rushing toward the dispatch building tucked between hangars and warehouses. Her mind was already racing, calculating cargo distribution. She was relieved to have arrived on time. And, to her surprise, Leigh even felt a small sting of guilt for not thanking him.
It took her about two hours to reassign all the day's deliveries. Once the most urgent routes were handled, having delegated the rest to the dispatcher on duty, Leigh could finally go home with a clear conscience. The hardest part was over, and anything else could be solved remotely, if needed.
When she stepped outside, she blinked in surprise. Ray's car was still there. He was leaning against the side of it, hands in his pockets, staring off into the mist. At the sound of her steps, he turned.
-All done?
-What are you still doing here? - she frowned, - Weren't you supposed to leave?
-I could've. But then I wouldn't be a gentleman. Well, shall we head home?
Leigh sighed again. She considered waiting for a taxi. But the thought of her bed waiting at home overpowered her.
-Yes. Fine...
Ray drove more slowly this time. Whether he'd decided not to annoy her or had simply run out of sarcasm, he stayed quiet. Leigh leaned her head against the window and tried not to fall asleep. But the foggy day and the hush of the outskirts road kept lulling her deeper and deeper.
Outside, a dense mist was covering the road. The rain had stopped, but a pale white haze was still rolling in thickly from the fields.
Ray eased off the accelerator again. He was quiete experienced driver, but the visibility was down to barely ten meters. There was no point rushing.
The car rolled forward in silence. Between the quiet hum of the electric engine and the soft hush of the fog outside, the world seemed to fall away. Leigh was starting to feel than nothing exist around them.
Just her, him, and the cozy mist.
After a while, however, the silence was broken by the sound of scraping metal. It came so sharply and rapidly so Leigh shuddered and raised her head.
-What is it? Did something br-
She didn't finish. Suddenly, the source of the sound shortened the distance between them. First something flashed past the window on Leigh side. Then again on the other. And then, across the road, just a few meters ahead, something leapt through the fog.
Ray reacted instantly. He twisted the wheel, avoiding the collision and changing lanes. Leigh screamed and ducked, covering her head, certain they were about to crash in the next second.
But the impact didn't happened. Ray cursed under his breath as he slowed and pulled over to the curb. The car stopped. Leigh, still trembling, lowered her arms and pressed her hands to her chest.
-Wha... What was that?
-No idea, - he muttered.
Ray stepped out and scanned the road behind them. It was empty. Still wrapped in fog few meters forward, but it seems like everything was okay.
-Was that a deer? - Leigh asked as she followed him out, - Did you hit it?
-I don't think so.
They climbed back into the car.
The rest of the drive passed in tense silence. Ray kept his eyes sharply on the road.
She hadn't really seen this creature properly. But he had. Of course, it might be deer, but he keep thinking about unnaturally long limbs and strange joints on it. For a moment, he even thought it looked like a human.
Ray decided to kept this guesses for himself.
**
Two weeks passed sinse the road incident. Leigh had nearly forgotten about it, drowning again in the routine of the days.
Until one night, it happened again.
She was standing on a stool, adjusting the wall clock when the phone rang. With the clock still in her hands, she stepped down and grabbed the phone. It was Sean, the department manager. Again.
-Hello?
-Hi. I'm really, really hate to ask, but our night shift manager can't make it. Can you cover? Just help set the schedule and supervise the loading and departure. The dispatcher can handle the rest, you know how it goes.
-Uh. Okay.
She stared at the wall clock. It read 9 p.m., fifteen minutes slow. Leigh grimaced and squinted at the clock, as if it were personally responsible for another emergency, then hang it on a wall and went to get ready.
Ten minutes later, she was out the door, clutching an empty coffee cup. The thought of another sleepless night was dragging her mood down fast.
As she stepped out of the building's yard, she spotted Ray, bent under the hood of his car. Hearing her behind, he turned.
-Another troubles, Miss Lawrence?
Leigh groaned.
-Don't start. I don't know what you do for a living, but apparently, I'm indispensable, - she smirked, - Not that you'd understand.
-I'm, at least, not defected by this horrible dark circle. It doesn't suit your eyes, by the way.
-Unemployed
-Nasty
-Useless
-Oof, - he winced with a chuckle, - That's one was unfair. All right. Where are we going?
Leigh folded her arms.
-What do you mean "we"?
-Oh, come on. I'd be a terrible person if I let my friend wait for a taxi again, on a cold night, while heading to another soul-sucking shift, - he said, shutting the hood and walking around to open the passenger door, - Your carriage awaits, ma'am.
She looked at the car. Then at him. Then back at the car again. And sighed.
-Well. Do something useful and don't speed up this time. I still remember what happened a week ago. And we are not friends!
**
They reached the base without incident. Leigh tried to do everything faster this time, but when she finally finished, the clock showed half past midnight. She walked down the steps of the office building, yawning.
Ray, as always, was there, waiting.
-So, how was it? - he asked, turning the key in the ignition, - Did you defeat all the Excel sheets?
-It's much harder than your think. And far from "only-table-work".
The remark about difficulty of her work sting Leigh harder that Ray thought. He rised his hand in surrending gesture.
-I won't argue.
-Smart choice.
The ride back was blessed by the silence again. Occasionally a night shipment truck passed them in the opposite lane. A few late travelers overtook them, but not many.
Leigh leaned against the window, propping her cheek on one hand. The dark highway stretched ahead, the headlights casting soft beams across the road, hypnotizing her.
Until the night was tored by the phone call once again.
-Yes, Sean? Did I forgot to do something?
-No, no, just a quick question, - came his voice, - Do you remember, did all the trucks leaved the base a hour ago? No one stayed behind?
Leigh frowned, thinking.
-Hm? Yes. I would've known if someone hadn't. Something wrong?
On the other end of the line, Sean could be heard clicking his mouse quickly. Then he answered.
-Not quite wrong, more like strange. Remember the run #5594147? The truck RLF-6728. Alberta plate.
-Let me think.. Yes, I know, - she replied, - It's Meison's truck. He departed second or third.
According to the sound - Sean shuffled some papers and tapped at the keyboard again.
-The problem is - he is no more on the radar. His GPS signal is gone. I tried calling, but he's not picking up.
Leigh sat up straighter.
-I thought you might know something, - Sean continued, - If it emergency, I'll have to call the police at the last known coordinates. But you know how it is - boss doesn't want police involved. He thinks it'll make the company look bad, even if it's just a misunderstanding. But here I disagree.
-Okay. Wait. I remember he said that the truck he drive had a problem with the engine. He said it might die mid-route and need to be started manually. Mechanic checked it before departure and said that everything should be okay, but it was flagged for repair after.
-It is so?
-Yes. Maybe he just broke in the middle of the road and if it's a no-signal zone, he wouldn't be able to call. Where did he disappeared?
Sean clicked again.
-A half-way between Looma and Beaumont. Wait, closer to Looma.
-Hmm. A half-way..
Leigh glanced at the road signs ahead. They weren't far.
-Sean, listen. I'm quite close to it. I can check. If he is here somewhere on the roadside, I can see what is happened and what we can do.
-You sure?
-Yes.
-Okay. Then I'll wait. But if I didnt receive a responce in a hour, I'll call police and 911.
-Got it.
She hung up. Ray asked, without taking his eyes off the road.
-We're changing the destination, eh?
Leigh sighed.
-If you don't want to, I'll pay for gas, or call a taxi. I'm not going to persuade you.
-No need, - he smiled, - I'm not going to let my beloved friend disappear on a road in the middle of the night. Alone.
-Wait, you heard the whole conversation?
Ray turned to her, pointing to his head.
-Got a pretty good ears.
-Ugh.
**
There was no one on the road now. The drive between Looma and Beaumont normally took no more than ten minutes, but Ray had slowed down. Leigh kept trying to call the driver, her phone pressed to her ear as her eyes scanned the dark fields and sparse patches of forest lining the road.
No responses.
She continued to peer into the darkness on both sides of the road. Now there were almost only fields and small forest areas. And no signs of missing truck.
A light appeared ahead. Probably a gas station - or so she thought. But as Ray slowed down even more, they saw the truth: a single lantern shining in the yard of what looked like a farm or warehouse. The area was surrounded by a low concrete fence. The gate's barrier arm was up.
Suddenly, Leigh leaned forward and tugged his arm.
-Wait, stop! Here!
Ray stopped and reversed a little. In the warehouse yard, she spotted a truck. She recognized it.
There was no sign of anyone around. Ray parked the car next to the fence, studying the yard with narrowed eyes.
-I don't want to doubt your confidence, Leigh, - he said slowly, - But doesn't this seem a little suspicious to you? Like the beginning of a cheap horror movie. Just see: no people around, the darkness of the night, the (charming) stranger, the-
Leigh didn't wait for him to finish. She opened the door and stepped out, heading toward the barrier. Ray sighed.
-Okay...
He reached under the seat for something, then pulled the keys from the ignition and followed her.
Leigh had already passed through the barrier and was standing near the truck. The cabin was dark. There was no light anywhere, except for the lone streetlamp near the entrance of one of the buildings.
-So, what are we have here?
Leigh tilted her head, then turned slowly to scan the area.
-I dont understand... Meison is supposed to be here. But what even is this place? This is clearly not the destination point. Hmm.
There were several buildings on the property. One, a small three-story structure, stood to the left near the yard entrance. Another, more like a hangar or technical building, stood farther back with a wide side entrance. A security booth sat just inside the barrier, and beyond the yard's far edge began a thick forest.
Suddenly, a wave of dread washed over her. It could be a hijacking. It is. She felt a sudden, freezing panic, as she realized how reckless she'd been. Went to search a missing person, in the middle of a night, far from main roads. She felt eyes on her. Whoever do this, they could still be here somewhere. They could saw her and, and...
-You okay?
Ray's voice pulled her out of it to reality. She shuddered.
-You stared blankly into space like you saw a ghost there. Hey? Leigh? - he asked more softly this time.
She flinched and finally turned away.
-Yes, yes. Listen, Ray, we need to call the pol-
She stopped.
Her eyes caught movement. At a long distance from them, in the hangar opening, Leigh saw a human figure.
It was Meison. Leigh immediately pushed away all thoughts that seemed so stupid to her at the moment. Well, yes, it was him. The truck is broke, he found this place looking for help, of course.
Meison slowly turned his head.
She was about to call him, just inhaled and prepared to wave. And the hand clamped over her mouth.
The panic she felt just a minute ago filled Leigh again with a horrible intence. Another hand wrapped aroung her torso, pinning arms to the sides. It was Ray. She kicked, tried to scream, but his grip didn't loosen - he was dragging her toward the security booth behind.
Ray pulled her inside in seconds then drags to the corner. He sat on the floor, pressing her closer to him as possible.
-Shut, - he growled to her ear, - It can hear us.
This words pierced throught the shock and fear, but Leigh didnt payed attention to it. The only thing was running through her mind now - what a worsted mistake she made. Trusted the random person, got in a car with him, in the middle of the night.
"OH GOD, HE'S JUST A MANIAC!"
Leigh kept struggling, kicking and thrashing. But Ray held her tighter, his grip growing painful with each attempt she made to break free.
Then she heared a sound. The familliar one.
Outside, then noise of scraping metal was approaching them. Not loud, but enough to attract attention. Leigh heard it before, a week ago on the road, when a strange deer had jumped in front of Ray's car.
Behind her she felt him almost stop breathing. She kept fighting. He pressed her tighter, forcing her still.
What happened in the next few moments made Leigh freeze and stop believing her own eyes for the rest of her life.
The sound approached and stopped. She felt a presence behind the wall of the booth.
Then the thin surface of the wall was pierced by the claws. The claws. Black and dreadfully huge, the size of the shortswords she saw on the history books in school long ago. There was no way to tell where they began. It was as if these blades were one with the hand? the paw? of the creature they belonged to.
Leigh's body went limp and silent in Ray's arms. She freezed and stared at the holes. From their angle, she couldn't see the creature through the bent edges of the metal.
Scraping sound was repeated again, short and quiete. Then began to move away until it died completely.
Ray held her for a while longer, until the silence settled again. Then, slowly, he loosened his grip a little to not strangle her.
-Listen, - he whispered to her ear, - I am sorry to do this. But you... You saw it, right? I'm not going to hurt you, never, I just didn't got time to warn. I had to act fast. So, I'm going to let you go, just don't scream, okay? Here.
He removed his hands from her mouth and arms. Leigh recoiled immediately, gasping for breath.
-R-Ray-
-Shhh. I do not know what it was. But I suspected something like this.
Now they were sitting on the floor of the booth. Leigh pressed both hands to her heart that pounding like insane. After a minute, she managed to breathe properly again. She turned to him, shaking.
-You said... What do you mean "you suspected it"?
Ray nodded, speaking slowly, trying to not scare her more.
-Remember last week? When we ride back and almost hit that deer on the road ten kilometers from here? So. It wasn't deer. It wasn't also an any animal.
Her blood ran cold.
-What do you mean?
-I replayed dashcam record, - Ray continued, - I examined every frame and can told you that it wasn't deer. It looked like it, but not completely. Better say - it tried to looks like a deer.
The words barely made sense. Leigh stopped understand anything. This day and night began to feels like a fever dream.
-How?
-I don't know. The only thing we need to know that this is a threat. But, - he added, seeing her panic rise again, - We will escape. I'm not let anything happen to you. Look, this is dangerous, yes, but we'll make it out. Just stay close and you'll be okay.
Without waiting for her answer, trying not to make a sound, Ray stood up, crept to the small window and peeked through. Whatever he saw made him drop immediately and return to her, crouching.
-W-what did you see? - she whispered. Ray glanced toward the window, then back at her.
-It's still out here, on the yard. We can't leave through the barrier. There must be the other way.
**
Ray glanced out into the yard a few more times. She was still sitting on the floor, struggling to gather her thoughts.
"This is can't be real, not possible. In any way - this is not possible. It doesn't happen like that..."
For a few moment, Leigh thought that she is just didn't slept well so it is just her hallucination. She wasn't even confused by the fact that Ray, a completely real person, also became a witness of it.
And saved her life.
Leigh shuddered and tried to stand up. He immediately heard her movement, turned, and motioned for her to stay still and silent.
A few more minutes passed - minutes that felt like eternity to Leigh - before he finally turned from the window and approached her.
-Generally speaking… - Ray began, his voice low, - Judging by everything, we won't be able to leave the same way we came. It will spot us the moment we step into open space. We need to go around.
Seeing she looked steadier, he began scanning the room again. It was dark outside, but the nearly full moon and the faint glow from a distant streetlight allowed him to spot a second door in the wall behind Leigh.
-Can you move slightly?
She shifted, and he tried the handle. It wasn't locked. The door creaked as it opened, making him instantly glance back toward the window. Leigh froze. Making sure that the creature did not heard that, Ray opened the door wider, pulled her in, and smoothly closed it behind them.
The door clicked shut. Still holding her hand, he pressed his ear to the surface, trying to tell whether the creature had heard them or not.
Leigh looked around. It was much darker here. A narrow corridor stretched ahead, with only one window at the far end. The light didn't reach this part of the building. She groped for a wall and leaned against it, trying to breathe quietly, but it was hard after what she'd just seen.
A few tense moments passed. Ray finally stepped away from the door and turned to her. Leigh could barely see the outline of his face in the dark.
-You okay? - he asked. He released her hand and placed his palms gently on her shoulders, - Good.
She just nodded, unable to speak. Her eyes flicked toward the window at the end of the corridor. Ray followed her gaze, narrowing his eyes, thinking. He tried to reconstruct the building's layout in his mind, recalling it from the car window.
If they could reach the window, they might be able to climb over the fence from there. A tall square container blocked part of the view from the yard, so if the creature was still lurking outside, it wouldn't see them escape through the side.
Ray hummed in thoughts. There was one more fundamental problem.
The car.
He parked almost in front of the barrier. They'd need to be extremely quiet and quick to get to it, start the engine, and drive off before it noticed.
The sound of scraping metal was heared again, somewhere outside. It pulled Ray out of his thoughs. He took Leigh's hand again.
-Hey. Here, listen, we needs to reach the window, - he began, - I go first, then you follow me, step by step. Try to step exactly in my footprints. It'll minimize the chance of making noise.
-But… I can barely see anything. How-?
-I'll guide you, try to do this. I don't know what's on the floor. One extra step to the left or right - and something might fall or rustle. It can heard.
Leigh shivered again. She swallowed hard.
-Okay...
-Very good.
He turned to the window again. Carefully, trying to blindly feel his way in front of him, he made a first step.
The corridor was narrow and not too long. There was a doors on the both side walls, some of them open. But Ray didn't bothered himself to look inside. He continue moving.
It took them over two minutes to make it halfway. Ray would freeze every few seconds, heart racing, when he thought he heard the creature.
Then, just two meters from the window, Ray's plan get shattered like glass. Shattered with the sound of scraping metal, rapidly approaching. He barely had time to take a breath when the dim light from the window was half blocked by a huge black void.
-HERE! LEIGH, GO, DO NOT FREEZE!
He shoved open the nearest door and pushed her inside. Leigh let out a scream - a sharp, piercing sound that rang in his ears. At the same moment, something crashed through the glass behind them.
Jerking the door shut behind them, Ray scrambled for the lock in the pitch black and turned it just in time. Then quickly pulled his phone and switched on the flashlight.
-Leigh?
She sat on the floor, her eyes wide with terror. The sudden beam of light made her flinch and shield her face as she backed into the wall, crawling away blindly.
The door behind Ray was struck with terrible force. Leigh screamed again as the creature's sword-claws tore two holes in the door. Ray staggered back. If he had been half a second late, one of the claws would have pierced him through the chest.
He turned quickly, scanning for any way out. They were in some kind of windowless technical room.
"Bad. Very bad."
Then his flashlight swept over something in the floor: a trapdoor, half-hidden in the corner beneath dust and grime. It might lead to the basement.
The door was pierced again. This time creature screamed in fury, it's voice was feeld like scratching the brain. Without wasting a single precious second, he pulled her in and slammed the hatch closed behind them - just as the door upstairs exploded inward.
-Move! - he barked to her, - It's coming!
Dragging Leigh with him, he made his way past scattered crates and fallen cabinets. Ray spotted a higher stack of boxes, tugged her behind it, and dropped into a crouch.
They both froze. The trapdoor dropped with a crash and fell inside. The creature was in the basement.
Leigh pressed both hands to her head, trying to make herself small and disappear. Ray turned off his flashlight and slipped the phone under his hoodie to hide its glow.
Both held their breath.
Creature stormed into basement. Leigh could hear how it screams, throwing the scraps and boxes chaoticly. She could even have sworn the creature was cursing at them. The small box flew above her head. Leigh jerked her hand and bite it, holding the scream that could break throught.
Time stretched. Five minutes? Ten? An hour? Leigh couldn't tell. It felt like eternity in the blackness, trapped in a forgotten underground room with something out of a nightmare.
The creature wandered around the basement for a while. Finally, judging by the sounds, it left through the broken hatch. Still, Leigh couldn't believe it was gone. Her whole body trembled. Ray listened. After waiting a few more minutes, he decided to check to be sure.
It was the most dangerous moment. If the creature still here - it'll see the light and attack. There be no more chance on survival in that case.
Ray took a breathe. Taking the phone out with one hand, and putting the other behind him, he raised up and peeked above the pill of boxes.
Leigh looked too, and what she saw startled her enough to forget the monster for a second. Ray's hand was on the grip of a handgun, half-drawn from a holster tucked into the back of his belt.
"He have a gun? Why so?" - she though, baffled, - "We are in the safest country, why he need it? Or... Or he's really a maniac and I'm just drugged?"
But the panic about the creature quickly drowned those thoughts. She shook her head, and the dizziness returned. Nausea crawled up her throat. She clutched her temples.
Meanwhile, Ray, assured that the creature is left, lowered back with a sight of reliefe.
Leigh understood without a word.
And suddenly she couldn't hold it anymore.
A short moment of safety made her nerves drops. She covered her face with both hands and started crying. Ray crouched closer at once.
-Leigh? Are you alright? A dumb question, but it leaved, we safe for now.
She couldn't answer throught the sobbing and tears, shoulders shaking. Adrenaline and shock held her previously, making her move and run, but now the payment came.
Leigh curled in on herself, hugging her knees and burying her face in them. She couldn't stop cry, even knowing that any extra noice can lure the creature back.
-Leigh. Oh.
She lifted her head slightly. Her eyes were red, cheeks streaked with tears.
-Leigh, look at me.
He crouched more closer. Slowly, he reached out and placed his hand over hers. She shuddered and wiped at her face with her sleeve, but the rough fabric only smeared the tears.
-Let me help.
He let go of her hand, pulled his own sleeve down, and carefully dabbed her cheeks dry. She didn't even fully realize what had happened.
-There. Better. Talk to me, Leigh. You can now, just not too loud. Seems like this thing is above us now. On the first floor. So we can't use the hatch yet.
Leigh let out few more sobs, when the voise is returned to her.
-I, I... Ray, how it just happened? - she whispered between gasps, - I stuck in the middle of nowhere, with... With I dont even know what! Ray, what do we do?
She swallowed.
-Sean… he didn't get a reply from me. Maybe for a whole hour now? Or… less? I don't know anymore. Maybe he called the police. Maybe they're already looking. That's our hope. Right?
She sobbed again. Ray ajusted the light to not point it in her eyes and took her hand again.
-Easy, easy.
-Or not? - she continued, - What if it attack the police? What if it kill them? Ray, we doomed, this is the end, Ray-
Before she could finish, Ray leaned forward and pulled her into his arms. She gasped.
-We're not going to die, - he said, firm but low. - Leigh, I will do everything - everything - to get us out of here. I swear to you. I promise.
She shudder. But he didn't let her go. The weight of his body around her and sudden warm grounded her like nothing else could in that moment. Leigh remembered how he always was found a way to poke her with the comments, tease her, annoy so much that she wanted to throw something at him without thinking about consecuences.
But now Ray was here, holding her, shielding against the darkness of this world. She sobbed again. He tightened his arms around her.
-I promise.
**
Making sure that the creature won't come back at least for now, Ray stood up. There was no question of exiting through the hatch; in the narrow corridor above them, they'd have no chance of survival.
He scanned the basement. The creature had flung boxes all over the room. All of them were empty. Ray bent down, picked one up, and examined the logo printed on its surface.
Behind him Leigh stood up too and stepped closer to him. She looked more calm now, but sobbed automatically when tried to speak.
-If I was a designer, I'll create emblem like this for some post company, - she said, looking at the image of stylized airplane with two additional bird wings above it, from behind his shoulder, - But I do not know it. My company works with many post firms, world and local, but this one I see for the first time.
-Hmm.
Ray turned the box over once more, then set it down and swept his flashlight across the room. Deep claw marks gouged the far wall. Leigh flinched again, imagining the strength it must have taken to carve into concrete like that.
The beam moved toward the corner, where the creature had hurled most of the boxes. The claw marks ended there. Now it was Ray's turn to shiver - only two meters separated that corner from where they had hidden.
He shifted the light. Amid the clutter, a shape jutted from the wall.
-Leigh, if you can, help me move it away.
Together, they cleared the pile of boxes, revealing a sealed metal door embedded in the wall. Leigh blinked in confusion.
“What the hell is a hermetic door doing in the basement of a postal hub?”
Ray didn't answer. Frankly, it was the least strange thing he'd seen that day.
The door had been secured with a combination lock, but the creature's claws had torn the panel apart. Ray grasped the handle and turned it. It creaked open.
Ahead was only darkness. He aimed the flashlight forward and caught a glimpse of steps leading down to a second door, but without a lock. It was slightly open and a thin strip of light was pouring out of the crack in the door.
Ray took one step forward, then paused. Leigh hadn't moved.
-Come on, Leigh. It's our only way, - he said gently, holding out his hand, - You can do this.
Hesitantly, she reached for him - and together, they stepped into the dark, closing the door behind them.
**
Behind the second door was another staircase. An emergency lantern flickered on the ceiling, casting a dim, yellowish glow over the concrete walls. In its light, they turned off their flashlights and descended the steps, which twisted down with two narrow turns. The last flight of stairs led them into a strange room.
Leigh looks around. The room they walked in was looked literally like a place from odd horror movies. It sligtly reminded her about hospital, somehow.
Low ceiling, bare concrete walls, and pale tiles stretched beneath their feet. Dark, dried smears stained the floor. The air carried a faint scent of mold and long-decayed chemicals. Two dim emergency lights buzzed weakly overhead, doing little to comfort the scene.
-A lab, - Ray concluded, as if reading her thoughts.
He stepped forward, his eyes scanning every shadow. Named it "the lobby" silently, Ray looked around, trying to find something that could help them escape.
There were metal tables lining the walls - one of them overturned - and shards of glass scattered across the floor, possibly from shattered overhead fixtures. Near another wall stood a single chair and a tall cabinet, its drawers hanging open, ransacked long ago.
Two doors stood at opposite ends of the room. Near one of them, on the wall was a red-painted
emergency kit cabinet.
Leigh continue looking around, trying to figure out why there's a lab under the strange post hub. The initial shock had dulled into a numb sort of unease, but her hands still trembled slightly.
Ray opened the emergency cabinet and rummaged inside. A few moments later, he returned and handed Leigh a flashlight.
-Here. Better than the phones, - he said.
She took it silently.
Inside the cabinet were also two bottles of water and dry biscuits, all expired. But more importantly - there was an emergency crank radio, boxy and orange, with a tiny solar panel on top and a USB port for charging phones.
Ray turned it over in his hands, checking the back.
-Hmm. Well, didn't work, guess we got unlucky this time.
Leigh pulled out her phone instinctively. Seeing this, Ray sighed.
-No. I already tried. No signal up there, so underground this is completely useless.
-Does it... Ray, we couldn't call for help, oh.
-Don't, - he interrupted gently but firmly, - Don't think about that right now.
Leigh lowered the phone.
-We need to keep moving, - he said, - This place isn't going to help us. And I'm not sure we alone down here.
**
They had been walking through the lab for about fifteen minutes. The corridors were endless - some narrow, others wide, and the rooms, once sterile and clinical, were now decayed ruins. Most doors were locked or sealed shut, and several halls were littered with broken tiles and pieces of crumbled concrete slabs.
Yet nothing offered any real clue about what this place used to be.
Leigh walked beside Ray, gripping the flashlight. She keep thinking about how strange it all was. The man who once seemed like he didn't care about anything in life, changed to this.
"No" - she corrected herself. Leigh's life experience told her before that people do not change.
"He was probably always like this."
"..."
"However, it still doesn't excuse laughing at the bags under my eyes"
They continued in silence for a while. Whether from adrenaline wearing off or the lack of sleep catching up, Leigh felt her energy fading. Her limbs were heavy, her steps slower. Ray noticed.
Without a word, he stopped.
She sank down onto the edge of a dented metal cabinet, catching her breath. Ray leaned back against the opposite wall, near.
-Um, Ray? - she asked quietly
-Hm?
-I wanted to ask you something. I meant to do it earlier. Back there… about what you saw.
He pushed off the wall, listening.
-That thing- Leigh continued, - That looked like Meison. How. could you tell it wasn't him in the dark? It was a split second.
Ray didn't answer right away. He tilted his head slightly, eyes studying hers.
-Remember the time when I told you that I replayed the records from dashcam? And said that the thing that almost lead us crush was not a deer? This is it.
Leigh shuddered.
-And...?
Ray hesitated. He really didn't want to scare her, but there was no choice. The more she knew, the better her chance of survival. He sighed again.
-I mean exactly that. It tried to looks like animals or people. When we stood on the yard, I saw this before you do. You just didn't have time to notice too long arms for a human and strange-formed head. Probably it trying to took the shape of it's victims. The weird mimic.
-Oh. Oh, God...
Leigh brushed her forearms as if cold, and hugged herself. Her coworker, the man she always saw around, cheerful and simple, was dead. Actually dead.
If he'd died in a car crash, she would've mourned him - felt sadness and grief. But this would be a basic life occasion. Leigh tried not to imagine how he actually died. It was wrong. Abnormal, unnatural and frightening.
"People shouldn't die this way. Just not. Please, if it all a dream, I want to wake up."
She tightened her grip around forearms so nails pressed into the skin despite the thick fabric.
"I want wake up."
**
Turn after turn, one scattered hall after another their trip continued. According to Leigh's clock - two hours passed sinse they stopped near this ill-fated place. She keep thinking about Sean. He supposed to call the police long ago. Leigh wondering, what is going on up outside. Maybe the rescue is near.
Or not.
Leigh tried to push aside the gnawing thought of what that thing might done to the officers. They had no idea what they were dealing with. She wasn't even sure what could harm it - but she had a strong feeling that guns wouldn't be much use. That thought made her glance back at Ray.
He walked a few steps ahead, illuminating the path from the dark part of the corridor. Then, abruptly, the passage ended in front of a heavy hermetic door.
Turning the handle, Ray cursed under his breath.
Leigh stepped closer, examining the door.
-Locked?
-Ugh. A grinder tool would be handy this time, if we had one, - he replied, irritated. Then he paused, scanning the wall, - Hmm. Wait.
To the right of the sealed door, half-buried under a collapsed pile of debris and broken furniture, was another, smaller door. Ray hadn't noticed it at first.
-Lemme-
Carefully, and quietly - still unsure where the monster was or whether it could hear them - he began clearing the trash. Once the way was free, he pried the door open. Leigh swung her flashlight beam into the room.
Ray let out a low whistle.
-Whoa. That's something.
Leigh tilted her head, looking around the room they stepped in.
The room had clearly been visited by the creature: there was a gaping hole torn through the concrete wall on the far side. Again, Leigh wondered what kind of strength, or sheer determination, it would take to break through solid concrete like that.
The space itself was a server room. Leigh had something similar in her office, but on a much smaller scale. Ray rubbed his hands.
-Well... time to figure out what the hell they were doing here, - he muttered to himself, gesturing for Leigh to stay put.
She nodded and stepped aside, walking slowly to one of the undisturbed tables and leaning on it. Her thoughts wandered again. One of them keep scratching her mind, digging deep down.
"What if this place will be my ...grave?"
Leigh felt the tears is running again on her cheeks. She was still too young to even think about the time when she was supposed to left this world.
Somehow, it made her angry.
Leigh wiped the tears away with the sleeve of her jacket and clenched her jaw. Her fingers curled tight against the edge of the table. It was enough. She didn't want to just stand around and wait anymore.
While Ray, cursing, was trying to coax at least one of the computers to life, she walked around the room. Examining the remains of racks and furniture, Leigh was didn't looking down and got herself slipped on something on the floor and almost fell.
Bending down to see the cause, Leigh was quite surprised.
**
Ray looked over his work again, frustrated. Then he sighed. None of the remaining servers or PCs were going to work, even with the power still running through the complex. He rubbed his chin, thinking.
As they had made their way down the corridor to this part of the complex, Ray had heard the creature moving somewhere high above them. If it caught them in this narrow, enclosed space, it would be over.
He supposed to get them out here, and faster.
-Hey, Ray? You need to see this.
He turned toward the voice. Leigh was bent over a table, examining a stack of papers. He came closer and leaned in.
-Here, - she continued, - Seems like we can leave this way. Or, uh, this. Wait, there more than one floor?
She tilted her head, studying the map she'd nearly slipped on earlier. Ray immediately zeroed in on it.
-No, this is it, - he said, gently nudging her aside without taking his eyes off the map, - There. We need to return to the last turn of the hall, then go upstair on the side ladder and there be the hatch.
He rotated the map in his hands, scanning it again.
-Moreover, the exit will be outside the yard. See, in the bushes on the other side of the road.
"Near the car!"
This was the good news. Leigh turned to him, her eyes first time from the moment in this nightmare sparked with hope.
-Ray, this is just perfect! We need to go, right now, Ray, we can live! ...Ray?
To her surprise, he didn't even looked at her. Instead, Ray pulled another map - this one was displaying Canada - from the heap, and stared at this for too long.
Suddenly, he sweared.
Leigh flinched.
-Ray? - she asked, stepping closer, - What is happened?
-Damn it, Leigh. I knew that something was wrong. I just knew it!
He flung the map aside, his breathing heavy. Leigh had never seen him like this - truly angry at something she couldn't even guess.
Ray planted his hands on the table and cursed again.
-God damn it!
The outburst was so out of character and strange that Leigh didn't dare touch him at first. She waited a few seconds, then decided to come closer.
-Ray?
He jolted, pulling away from the table as if remembering she was there at all. Ray looked back at the map, then at her, running a hand through his hair.
-Oh. Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you, really. Ugh.
Ray sighed.
-Maybe, you have many questions. And had them for a while long. Like, who I am, eh? Where I came from? Why do I have a gun?
-Honestly, yes, - she admitted, hesitating, - But if you didn't want to tell, don't do this. You're annoying little devil, - Leigh added with a narrowed glare, but she wasn't really angry, - But I owe you my life. And if you have secrets, keep it for yourself, I never going to push you.
He looked at her with a sudden softness in his eyes. After a final glance at the map, Ray set it aside and stepped toward her.
-Thank you. But there's still the things you need to know.
Ray sighed again.
-Bet you thinking about that I some kind of criminal, isn't it? Can assure you - the things are more boring that you imagination drawing for you, - he said, with his smile back.
Then he began the story.
-Long time ago, in the other life, I was a cybersecurity student. I didn't liked it very much, but, honestly, this was almost the only option to build the future, as I thought before. And thoughts like this always are leading to the one way - the burnout. This is how I ended up in the depth of Ontario's forests with a shotgun, radio and no people around in a dosen of miles.
Leigh was clearly surprised.
-So you was like a ranger, or something?
-Exactly, - Ray nodded, - Patrolling trails, monitoring wildlife, educating rare visitors. As always. It was a peaceful life. Until the one of the tourist group disappear.
He paused, his eyes distant. Leigh hesitated, then slowly reached out and laid a hand on his forearm.
-What happened next?
Ray flinched at her touch but didn't pull away. After a breath, he went on.
-This was something I didn't understand until today. As one of the staff responsible for visitor safety, I explained everything about their route. They were led by the most experienced guide in that part of Canada. My closest friend, Shimon, who got me a job there. He knew this part of the forest like the back of his hand. He had walked this route many times, so I didn't suspect anything this time either. But they didn't returned.
He paused.
-The rescue mission searched everywhere in the forest. Personally I examined every centimeter of the ground, every grass, pebble and leaf, but found nothing. They were just… gone. Like a dream you wake up from but can't explain. There was simply no place to disappear on the territory, no dangerous animals, no bogs, no rivers that could took your body miles away, nothing. But they vanished. I was sure I'd go to prison, but in the end, it was ruled an accident. No evidence. No suspects. No answers.
Pieces began clicking together in Leigh's mind. Her chest felt tight.
-I couldn't stay there any longer. The sight of the quiet forest that swallow my friend and his group took away my peace. I moved to the city, remembered the profession I had studied for. And meet you.
Ray smiled wearily.
-See? Nothing extraordinary.
Leigh stepped more closer, so now she could hear his breathing. She tightened her grip on his forearm.
-Oh, Ray. I'm so sorry for what is happened. And now you think that...
-Yes. It was this. Here, look at it.
He led her back to the table, retrieving the crumpled map he'd thrown earlier. Spreading it open, he pointed to a spot in northern Ontario.
-Seems like it's the map of all of the labs. This is the zone of my responsibility, - he said, drawing a square on the map, - And there the second lab. Right here, near the small lake that I checked twise. Possibly - the entrance was below the water, or in the caverns nobody know exists.
He tapped the map again, his expression darkening.
-There's even a third site, out in the Yukon. Damn whoever orchestrated all of this.
Above them, a low, guttural screech pierced the silence. They both froze. It was close.
Ray's eyes flicked toward the hallway. Then he turned to her and gently gripped her shoulders, steering her toward the exit.
-Well, enough talking. We need to get out here.
**
The coveted exit was almost within reach. After turning several times, they found themselves in a narrow corridor. At the end of it, a metal ladder was built into the wall, going up into a shaft that ended in a hatch.
Gesturing her to hold the flashlight still, he climbed up and tried to open the hatch. It didn't give in right away, but eventually it creaked open.
Ray scanned the space around the exit before waving her to go up. Around them everything was densely overgrown with cinquefoil bushes and small trees, making unable to get where was the road. Leigh climbed out of the hatch and looks around. There was no way to tell which direction to take - but somehow, Ray seemed to know.
-This way. And do not make any sound.
Leigh crept through the bushes behind him, flinching at every sound. Trying not to think about how many spiders were probably tangled in her hair was almost impossible.
She pushed her head past the branches to peek forward.
Her heart jumped.
The car. It was near, around a ten meters in front of them. A hope burns brighter in her chest - It was the rescue. Just reach the car and this nightmare will stop. Just..
-Sit.
Ray placed a hand on her head and pushed her back into cover. Following the direction of his gaze, Leigh saw it too.
The creature. Despite the darkness, she finally could to see it properly. In the dim light of the single lamppost, it stands. "Or better to say "float"" - she thought for herself, feeling how her blood rans cold.
It had no clear shape. A black, tar-like void - shifting, quivering, pulsing like a wound in reality itself. It twitched with erratic, jerky movements, as if struggling to stabilize its presence in this world. Leigh's stomach churned.
From this distance, and in the dark, she couldn't see clearly how it constantly summoned fragments - grotesque echoes - of the victims it had consumed.
Right now the creature seemed busy. It was rippening the surface of the truck, didn't looking in their direction. The fence that bordered the road was shattered, likely destroyed during a blind rage after it lost it's trail.
Ray's thoughts raced. Even now, he had to admit the awful truth: their chances were still incredibly slim.
The car was close - less than ten meters. But even if they reached it, started the engine, and drove off, would they get far? He didn't know how fast that thing could move. Even with a distraction, there was no guarantee it wouldn't chase them.
Slowly, Ray exhaled.
-We're heading back.
-What??
Leigh turned to him, eyes wide. But before she could protest further, Ray continued.
-I said - back. We get as far as we can until we have cell service. Then we call 911. I'm not sure it won't catch us if we try to drive.
-But, Ray, there are an open field behind the overgrown! If it decided to go this direction, we do not get the place to hide! - Leigh hissed, her voice quick and panicked. She could feel the last of her hope slipping through her fingers, - This is very bad idea.
Panic clawed its way up her chest. Her breath came in short gasps as she whipped her head around, trying to find any solution, while her body was screaming for run, just run until she broke throught the veil of this terrible dream and wake up.
Ray was still staring ahead, watching the creature rip apart the truck. He needed to come up with an escape plan, and fast. Leigh's observation was right - staying in the open field meant certain death. He was already considering going back down to the lab when a faint smell of acetone hit his nose.
-Leigh?
She jerked.
-Huh?
-What is in the truck?
-I-uh-oh. Chemical supplies. For a city mall in Red Deer. Two crates of chlor, five of soap powder, three with alcohol, and seven with technical acetone.
The usual task of counting products pulled her slightly out of the rising panic, but not completely. She clenched her hands so tightly that her nails dug into her palms.
Ray thought for one more minute. Then he turned to Leigh and took her hand. With the other, he pulled out his gun.
-Quietly. Do not stand up, to the car.
Incredibly slowly, crouched so that they wouldn't be seen behind the car, they walked forward. The fact that the creature had destroyed the fence made it much more difficult. Now there was nothing between them and the creature except Ray's car.
Leigh's nerves were on edge. Like taut bowstring. So were Ray's. Every meter forward feels like a mile.
And in the single moment everything crashed.
The flashlight, which Leigh had not let go of, fell from her hand. She had been clutching it so tightly that her hand had cramped and refused to obey her. It fell with a clang on what must have been the only stone in the field.
The creature turned to them.
Leigh gasped for air.
Ray raised his hand with the gun.
And the seconds turned into eternity.
He had planned something like this. However, his idea was to scare the monster away with gunshots after they reached the car. But now, there was no time. Ray fired almost without aiming - not at the monster, but at the truck's trailer.
The acetone vapors from the brocken containers was filled the air aroung the truck. Ray fired three times. The first two bullets flew too high, but the last did the job. It collided with the trailer's metal frame, causing sparks, that ignited the vapors.
The last thing Leigh felt before the night turned into bright day was Ray's hand, yanking her down, and his body over her, shielding from explosion.
There came a detonation, so powerful that Ray was scared for a second. His car, next to which they lay, shook so violently he thought it might flip over and crush them. But it held.
The air around them was filled with the shrieking screams of the creature, burning alive. Ray no longer had the strength to raise his head and see what is happening there. Debris and glass were falling around them. The creature was screaming. It seemed to him that he was in hell.
"And if I'm so scared," - he twitched, - "then how is she now?"
He held her tightly as the awful screeching began to fade. They stayed like that for several long minutes, motionless, until at last, Ray stirred. He forced himself to rise and take a look.
The yard was unrecognizable. Half the warehouse was rubble. The facade of another building had collapsed. Scattered debris still smoked - what was left of the truck barely recognizable.
Ray took a breathe. Then exhaled slow.
-It is gone.
-...gone?
Leigh rose beside him. She looks very bad, but, at least, unharmed. Barely standing straight, tilting from shock, she stepped closer.
-It's... gone? - she repeated, not quite able to process it.
Ray managed to pull himself together. Even a smile flickered at the edge of his mouth.
-Ye-ah, - he drawled, - We did it. We are safe.
-Ray...
They stared at each other. She was about to cry again. The shock had emptied her out.
She didn't realize what she was doing, when came closer and wrapped her arms around his torso. Ray returned the hug.
They standed like this for a while. Then Ray took a step back, his hands now restin on her shoulders.
-Now we're free to go home. Wait-
He looked past her. His expression changed. A sigh escaped him, long and exhausted.
-Or we not.
Cars were pulling up on both sides of the road, blocking their way. From one of them, a man in a suit with an impassive expression stepped out and started walking toward them.
Ray instinctively shoved Leigh slightly behind him and turned to face the man.
-We intercepted the police call, - he begans, without greetings, - Seems like you was the victims of the private goverment program of the...
-This is you responsible for creating the underground labs with the monsters inside? - Ray interrupted him.
-You could phrase it that way. On behalf of the company, I must apologize. I'm also here to inform you that you are required to follow us to complete a non-disclosure doc-
Ray gave him a short punch to the jaw. His nerves finally gave away. Behind him, Leigh yelped. She grabbed his arm, shouting something she wouldn't remember later, while people rans towards them from the other cars.
**
...She was running. She had never run this fast in her life - but now, everything depended on it. The corrirdor after corridor, in the narrow maze without end. She turned her head back to see where is the danger, but didn't held the balance, stubmled over something and fell. The creature caught up with her in two leaps. Leigh gasped.
And woke up.
Instead of the tiled lab halls there were a familliar walls of her cozy apartment. Leigh sighed. Then stretched her arms. She knew - after all what happened, this dream would follow her for a long time.
But all things were temporary.
It was nine o'clock on Sunday morning. She get up and lazily walked into the kitchen. Reaching for the coffee jar, she saw it was almost empty.
-Uhh.
She quickly combed her hair and threw on a jacket. The nearest store was five minutes away, but now she even regretted it. Leigh wanted to take a longer walk, so the remnants of the terrible dream would evaporate faster.
After leaving the house, she'd only managed to walk a few meters when a familiar voice called out behind her:
-Miss Lawrence, you're kinda late today.
Ray caught up with her. Now they were walking side by side.
-I can be late whenever I want. I’m on vacation all next week.
-Oh, I almost thought that you lost your favorite job.
Leigh gave him a light elbow to the ribs. Ray sighed in mock pain.
-However, - he said, - Since you're on vacation, I have a proposal.
-Go ahead and surprise me.
Ray grinned, showing all his teeth.
-Did you even wanted to see the endless green expanse of Alberta's forests? The mirror lakes far from civilization? Mm? Bet you've never even left the city since you were born.
She stopped.
-Ray??
He lifted one hand and tilted his head.
-I can assure you, this time - no monsters. And yet, if you with me, y'know, you are more than safe.
Leigh narrowed her eyes.
-I almost got killed by an undescribable horror being! Watch out, If I get eaten by bears or drown in a river - you'll be responsible!
He chuckled. Then wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Leigh flinched, but didn't resist.
-Deal.