“Dad, what’s going on? Who was that?” Jordan rushed to my side and grabbed my arm, his voice trembling.
“I don’t...” I swiveled my head to the left and right. The man was gone.
“Honey!” Madi yelled.
“Give me a moment!” I grabbed Jordan by the shoulder and pulled him in so he looked me in the eye. “Get your brothers and meet me in the backyard. I’ll get the girls. If you guys see anything before I get there, lock yourselves in the shed. There’re tools you can use to defend yourself with if it comes down to it.”
Out of the corner of my eye, another distortion flickered. Time slowed as some sixth sense pulled my gaze to the side of the couch. Bony arms ending in long claws pulled two beach-ball-sized bodies through the new folds in space.
Sickly green skin, a pudgy head connected to a smooth round body without a neck, and two arms twice its height thunked to the ground like a bag of flour. The creatures flailed around for a moment before propping themselves up on their hands as if they were feet. Four small black pits for eyes examined us. In unison, their lips parted into smiles too large for their faces, revealing rows of stained, jagged teeth. They were a demonic mix of a snowman and Mike Wazowski from Monsters, Inc. Gurgling as if they choked on their own saliva, they climbed up onto the arm of the couch.
A high-pitched scream sparked me into action. I chucked the can of soda and nailed the closest creature’s open maw, knocking it off the couch and into the wall. The second monster, bending both of its leg-arms, jumped forward, claws out first as if it wanted to latch onto me. I grabbed a nearby pillow and swung it up in time to catch the flying beast. I charged forward and pinned the creature between myself and the couch.
“Go find your brothers and get out of here!” I screamed through clenched teeth. The monster squirmed beneath me, struggling to break free. My heart pounded in my chest. The fear of fighting an actual monster scattered my thoughts.
What do I do?
The creature paused its struggle and sharply shifted to the side, its round head wriggling out from beneath the pillow. Like a savage animal, it devoured the edge of the cushion, shredding it to bits.
What do I do?
What do I do?
What do I do?
A sharp spike pierced my chest, and I gasped. The creature froze. Its beady eyes peered up at me. The tip of its claw had pierced my skin. It scraped its claw across my chest again, and I grunted.
The creature released a wet giggle and scraped the claw back and forth across my ribcage. Fire spread through my chest. I pressed harder into the couch. My mind looped.
What do I do?
What do I do?
What do I do?
A shrill scream cut through the pain, forcing everything to the back.
Madi!
My eyes zeroed in on the two mocking black pits. Pulling my arm out from under me, I reached over the creature’s mouth and palmed its scalp, its skin rough and leathery. Grip secure, I arched my thumb and jammed it into the creature’s right eye.
The monster released a high-pitched gurgle like a woman screaming underwater, jerking and thrashing with wild abandon. I pressed and pressed until I met resistance. The orbital bone stretched. I leaned into my thumb and screamed. The bone deformed until it popped, my thumb jutting deep into its skull. The creature spasmed for a second before falling still.
Breathing heavily, I dislodged my finger from its face and stood. I took a shaky step back. Blood dripped down my chest and soaked my shirt. My heart pounded in my ears. The room spun. My fingers trembled at my side.
The girls are in the kitchen.
We’ll meet the boys out back.
The world snapped back into place, and I barreled down the hall into the kitchen, calling Madi’s name. She sat against the fridge, holding up one creature by its armpits as it attempted to claw at her face. Another creature gnawed on her leg, both hands gripping her calf.
Letting out a war cry, I grabbed the frying pan on the counter and smacked the one on her leg into the cabinets. The creature’s claws ripped from her calf, and Madi cried out in pain, dropping the one she was holding. I caught the creature as it fell and flung it against the far wall.
Standing over my wife, I turned to face the monsters. Their deformed, squished bodies returned to their original round shape as they stood as if they were made of rubber.
Remembering the one I killed, I searched the counter for something sharp. I switched the pan to my left hand and grabbed a steak knife from a wooden block. My eyes locked onto the two creatures. I bent my knees and waited for them to make the first move.
The back door slammed open. Alan, Brandon, and Jordan burst in screaming at the top of their lungs, each holding various yard work tools. A mixture of fear and determination gripped each of them.
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What are they doing?
I told them to get out!
They stormed past the kitchen and up the stairs. The two creatures turned to follow the boys as they ran past.
“No!”
I charged with a roar and backhanded the closer of the two with the pan, knocking it to the floor. I held the creature down with my knee and pressed the knife into the crack where its head met its body. The tip of the blade met the familiar initial resistance, followed by a short stretch and release as the knife punctured the rubbery balloon beneath the monster’s skin. The creature spasmed, choking on its own blood.
I swung the pan blindly at a sound to my right and caught the other creature mid-jump, sending it flying. Leaving the knife embedded, I left the dying monster and rushed over to the other. Finding it face up, I sat on its chest and used my knees to pin its arms to the ground.
I slammed the pan into its face. With a growl, the creature snapped at the pan. Its fangs pierced the metal and ripped half the pan away, swallowing the chunk whole. Raising the jagged half-pan, I reversed my grip and thrust the new tip into the creature’s chest with both hands. I pressed until the same release as before happened, the pan slipping several inches into its chest. The creature twitched a few times before falling still. I wiped a few flecks of black blood from my cheek and rushed over to Madi.
“Madi! Madi! Can you walk? Are you bleeding?”
“I-I’m... I’m okay.” Madi’s eyes fluttered open. They rolled around until they locked onto mine. “Dan. Where are the kids?”
I froze. The house was deafeningly silent. Madi pushed herself into a better sitting position against the fridge, smearing the floor with blood. Other than the maimed leg, she seemed fine. I stood and drew another knife. “I’ll be back.” I stepped toward the stairs.
“I... I love you, Dan,” Madi said, barely above a whisper.
I stopped. My heart pounded in my chest. “I love you too.” Stepping over the dead creatures, I made my way up the stairs.
Three doors. The one on the left was bashed and broken. The door at the end of the hall had an obvious dark smear—Aurora’s room.
Why aren’t they...
I refused to let myself finish that thought.
Step by step, I crept closer, knife at the ready. I should have been storming down the hall, desperate to save them, but deep down I already knew what waited for me. I paused at the door. The silence screeched in my ears. The pungent scent of blood burned my nose. I swallowed the bile in my throat and pressed the door open.
Jordan’s mauled body slid free from where it leaned against the door, landing face up with a glassy-eyed stare. I bit my cheek and blood gushed into my mouth. I clenched the knife, digging my fingernails into my palm. My entire body shook.
Gore covered the room. Alan lay curled up in a ball against the crib. What could only be Brandon lay sprawled face down in the middle of the room, a gory mess. Two creatures also lay still, but only that they were unmoving flickered through my mind.
I stood there, taking them all in. Each breath felt like moving a mountain and echoed in my ears. I felt everything and nothing at the same time. I couldn’t think, yet thoughts kept forcing themselves into my mind.
This can’t be real.
“Dad...” Alan wheezed, “Dad, is that you?” Heavy breathing broke up his words.
What?
Alan?
Alan’s pained words tore me from my downward spiral. I rushed over and knelt by his unmoving body. “I’m here. I’m here, Alan.” Despite finally turning seventeen, he was still my little boy. He needed my help. I could grieve later.
“I-I’m so... I’m so sorry, Dad. I told them... not to come with me, but... they didn’t listen.” Alan groaned, and a few drops of blood dribbled from his lips.
“It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. Where are you hurt?” I held my shaking hands over his body, searching for where the blood came from.
“It... it was Brandon... he realized... one for each of us.”
“Shhh, it’s going to be okay.” I carefully pulled him into a sitting position. In his arms he held Aurora, sound asleep.
“I... we had to save her.”
I looked at my two boys and then back at Alan. “Oh.”
“It should have... just been me. I’m sorry, Dad.”
“Hey there.” I wrapped Alan in my arms and pulled him in close. A thick stream of blood pulsed from a wound beneath his ribs.
That’s...
That’s a lot of blood.
Too much blood.
“It’s not your fault.” Tears threatened to burst from my eyes. “They were heroes. You’re a hero. You all saved Aurora. I couldn’t be prouder of each of you. Now let’s get you downstairs and patched up.”
“Dad...”
“Yes, Alan?”
“I... I don’t think... I’ll make it downstairs,” Alan said in a hoarse whisper. “I’m not going to make it.”
My chest burned. “Don’t say that. I’ll bring the first aid kit upstairs and get you patched up.” I started to stand.
“No!” Alan just barely managed to shout.
Conflicting desires warred within me. Returning to Alan meant I’d given up hope. I’d accepted his fate.
“Don’t leave me.”
“O-Okay...” I settled back down next to Alan. Minutes passed in silence.
“Don’t worry, Dad. I’m not... afraid to die. I’m a... hero, remember? What better time to die... than now?”
I shook as I pulled Alan in close. This time, I couldn’t stop the tears from flowing freely down my face. “I love you so much, Alan.”
“Tell Mom I love...” his words faded into a quiet mumble.
He didn’t say anything else after that. I sat there, listening to each breath come slower and slower until they stopped.
With shaky hands, I removed Aurora from Alan’s embrace and lowered him to the ground. I stood. “I’ll be back, my heroes. I need to check on your mother.”
A small pink blanket flecked and smeared with small red and black dots wrapped Aurora head to toe. Exposing her face, I held my finger below her nose, stomach in my throat. A faint exhale brushed against my finger and sent shivers through my body. Tucking her tight in my left arm, I made my way back downstairs.
I stepped into the kitchen with a splash. A puddle of blood covered the tile floor, spreading out in a circle from Madi.
I stared at her still form, slouched against the fridge. I blinked. The storm of emotions that had threatened to overwhelm me drained in an instant. I was empty.
Madi, you were just...
Why are you...
Leaning down next to Madi, I reached out to check her pulse. My fingers froze an inch away from her neck. Blood and the black tar-like substance that filled the little monsters covered my hand. Her face and neck were spotless. She could have been sleeping. I wiped my fingertips on the cleanest spot on my pants I could find and checked for a pulse.
Nothing.
I ran my hand down her body, searching for what I had missed. A short, deep gash pierced the inside of her right thigh. A small trickle of blood still leaked from the wound.
I stood and took in the bloody kitchen.
I...
They...
I...
I fled to the hallway bathroom, locked the door, and sank to the floor. Pulling Aurora close, I stared at the far bathroom wall and breathed.
They were all gone.
I couldn’t save any of them.
It wasn’t my fault, but I should have been able to save them.
Why didn’t I save them?
Accusations and excuses chased each other in a circle in my mind. Some rational part of me screamed to do this or do that, but I didn’t have the strength to follow through on any of it.
I couldn’t even tune them out.
All I could do was breathe.
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