Дмитрий Леонтьев – The evil will come for you (страница 3)

“No, please! I beg you!” she cried out into the darkness.

CHAPTER 5

Ismat was already in town.

“Am I too late?” he muttered to himself.

He reached over to the passenger seat and grabbed his mobile phone.

“The connection is not available,” the screen displayed.

“What the hell!” he yelled. “I’d better hurry!”

The car rolled down the empty street. Every building or house looked abandoned, and the main road lay eerily deserted. It was already dark, and the fog hung thick in the air.

“Holy crap!” he cursed again, pressing the accelerator to reach his mother’s house as soon as possible.

Ismat was an excellent driver. In about ten minutes, he was parking in front of his mother’s house. First, he turned off the engine and then got out of the car.

The front door was slightly ajar. Still, he decided to ring the doorbell. He waited patiently for a moment, then pressed the button again.

No one came out to meet him.

“Mom? Are you home?” he called, then pushed the door open.

The hallway was pitch dark. He fumbled for the light switch, but in such darkness, finding it was impossible. Ismat returned to the car and grabbed a flashlight.

Even with the beam cutting through the darkness, he couldn’t see much down the corridor. “Mom? Are you okay?” he called again.

He began to walk slowly down the hallway. Suddenly, the flashlight illuminated a series of strange-looking, dirty footprints on the floor. They didn’t look human.

It seemed someone had been here recently. Ismat followed the footprints, leading to his mother’s bedroom.

“Mom? Are you there?” he called out loudly. No reply.

“Mom! I’m coming in,” he said, shining the flashlight ahead as he entered the room.

From afar, the creak of wooden floorboards echoed.

“Is anyone here?” he asked again, his voice trembling.

Walking cautiously, the flashlight revealed some clothes scattered on the floor at the far end of the room.

Ismat frowned at the sight but took a careful step forward. Halfway there, he felt something sticky under the sole of his shoe. He stopped, standing on a creaky floorboard, and looked down to see green mucus.

He lifted his head and moved toward the clothes.

“Oh, Jesus,” he whispered when he recognized his mother’s clothes. He sat down and noticed they were stained with green sputum.

“What the hell is this?” he muttered to himself, shining the flashlight over the clothes.

“Jesus,” he breathed, swallowing hard as a lump formed in his throat. His fingers trembled slightly as he touched the fabric.

“What the hell is happening here?” he asked aloud.

He scanned the room several times, then threw the clothes aside.

“Jesus!” he shouted, stepping back.

Overcome with rage and fear, Ismat grabbed his head with both hands, spun around, and shouted, “Who is this? What is happening here?”

“Damn! Damn! Damn!” he yelled, pounding the floor with his right foot.

Suddenly, he turned sharply and ran out of the bedroom.

CHAPTER 6

Fear. It was irresistible, inscrutable fear. Desperation over his inability to save his mother, hopelessness from the eerie emptiness of the abandoned town, and misery weighing heavily on his heart.

Ismat fled the house into the yard as rain began to fall.

“Moooom!” he shouted into the dark night. Only his rapid, ragged breaths answered him.

He scanned the surroundings, hoping to spot someone alive. Occasionally, he grabbed his hair and moaned in anguish.

“Where are you?” he screamed. “Is anyone alive? What the hell is going on here?”

Ismat shone his pocket flashlight everywhere, rushing about in desperate hope.

He ran out onto the street and stood near the gate, looking for some sign of life.

There was no one. Only the hiss of the wind.

“Damn! Damn! Damn!” he shouted.

“Is anyone hearing me?” he called out. His voice echoed back at him.

He decided to run, fighting off the creeping madness while lighting the path ahead with his flashlight. Soon, the rain poured down heavily.

On the roadside lay scattered human clothes. Moments later, Ismat was already sprinting deeper into the town. It was pitch dark, and he could barely see the road, running blindly. No lights shone from the windows. It seemed the town had been asleep for a long time.

From time to time, Ismat glanced back and saw horrible figures trailing behind, but they stayed further and further away. It was likely just his imagination, fueled by overwhelming dread.

Abruptly and unexpectedly, Ismat stumbled on a slippery, muddy patch on the road. The raindrops pelted him so hard they stung his head and shoulders. He dislocated his shoulder badly.

“F*ck!” he shouted in sharp pain. He tried to pop his shoulder back into place but couldn’t.

Something on the muddy path caught his attention.

He shone his flashlight on it with his free hand. Those were human clothes and old rags. He frowned and stepped closer. Scattered everywhere along the roadside were these items – and strange mucus.

“What the hell?” fear and bewilderment filled his eyes.

He began to back away slowly, but when he heard an odd noise nearby, he looked to the side with wide eyes – then ran away.

CHAPTER 7

At last, Ismat reached his car. The rain was pouring so heavily that the mud was extremely slippery. He opened the door sharply and plunged inside.

The engine didn’t start at first. Ismat took his mobile in his trembling hand and tried to turn it on. The screen was black – it was dead.

“Holy…” he began hysterically. “F*ck you all!”

Overwhelmed by nerves and fear, he threw his phone down and quickly shifted into reverse, not wanting to waste time. He made a sharp maneuver onto the road, then switched into first gear and began to leave that strange place.

Ismat pressed the gas pedal hard with his right foot. He wanted to get out of town as fast as possible.

At the first crossroads, he slightly adjusted the rearview mirror . He shivered when he saw his pale face staring back, eyes red and rimmed with exhaustion. Several gray hairs stood out on his head.

The car passed down the empty street. The buildings still looked abandoned, and the main road was again eerily deserted.

Ismat stared at every house, hoping to see someone alive.

Suddenly, through a broken window on the first floor, he spotted a figure stepping out.

It looked like a male silhouette or maybe just a shadow cast by the car’s headlights. It all happened so fast that Ismat thought it might be his imagination running wild.

Suddenly, his car struck something. Ismat’s eyes darted to the road.