I waited for tears to come, for him to yell or scream, to hit something, but nothing came. He just sat on the step, shaking like mad. I moved forward (to do what, I’m not sure) just as the doorbell rang.
Ash froze. “Don’t answer it.” He stood up, suddenly alert.
“Why not?” I asked confused.
“Shit keeps getting worse, Z. You can’t trust anyone.” He eyed the door cautiously.
“You worry too much, Ash,” I said. “Neither one of us is sick. There is no reason for anyone to hurt us.” I stepped toward the door as the bell rang again.
Ash grabbed my arm and pulled me back. “I’m serious. Don’t. At least, let me do it.”
I rolled my eyes. I didn’t know how to feel about this Ash, a determined, protective Ash, but he wasn’t crying, and he wasn’t thinking about his parents. There was nothing that could be done about them, not right now, not ever, most likely. “I don’t need you to protect me.”
I went to the closet and pulled out the case that was stuffed in the corner. I punched in the code; it was my parents’ wedding anniversary, another sign that he’d never really moved on. I pulled out my dad’s handgun, making sure there were bullets in it.
The person at the door had switched from ringing the bell to pounding on the door.
Ash raised his eyebrow at the sight of the gun but didn’t say anything. I walked back to the door, the gun gripped tightly in my hand. I opened the door, slowly, peeking around the door to see who was standing there.
I gasped, terrified. I spun on my heel, slamming the door behind me. My fingers fumbled with the locks, my heart pounding in my chest. I’d imagined it; it couldn’t be real. She couldn’t be real. Lack of sleep was making me see things. Bandit started barking from where he was locked in the basement.
“What? Who is it?” Ash said, looking alarmed.
I looked at him, my chest heaving. I was going insane. “Madison.”
His eyes widened, locking on mine. “Madison is dead,” he replied, in a relatively calm voice.
“Zoey? Zoey, let me in.”
We both froze as the voice drifted through the door. It was thicker, a bit raspier but there was no mistaking it—it was Madison’s.
“Zoey, please. I’m so hungry.”
“She’s dead,” I said, looking at Ash, whose face had gone pale white. “I’m hearing things.”
“Then we’re both hearing things,” Ash whispered. He brushed past me to the window. His fingers shook as he slowly moved the curtain aside. He yelled, stepping back.
Madison’s palms were pressed against the glass and she looked awful. Her beautiful straight black hair was in a tangled mess, and her eyes were wide, wet and crazed. The same outfit I had last seen her in hung loosely on her impossibly small frame. But the strangest thing…her skin was a pale but distinct shade of blue.
“Aren’t you going to let me in, Zoey? I’m so hungry. Please. I’m starving,” she said, sounding like she was in pain.
I was having a hard time keeping a grip on the gun in my sweaty hands. “You’re dead. You died,” I said, my voice shaking.
“Who told you that?” she asked, sounding more like herself. There was a distinct tone of surprise in her voice. “They lied.”
“Madison, you were really sick,” Ash said, slowly, looking like he was going to be sick at any moment.
“I’m fine. I’m perfect,” she said, happily, a broad smile on her face. I shuddered at the sight of it. Each one of her tiny little teeth had been filed to a point, making her smile look scary as hell. She looked like a vampire, or a monster. I crept closer and noticed that her eyes were black: the pupil, the iris, and even the whites of her eyes were completely blacked. I bit on my wrist to keep from screaming.
I reached for my phone and remembered I had left it upstairs. I inched closer to Ash, hoping to take his phone out of his pocket.
Ash misunderstood. His arm came out and wrapped around my waist, pulling me tight against him. I was annoyed that he was constantly trying to protect me, but I couldn’t deny the warmth I felt coursing through the side that was pressed to him. I did feel kind of protected.
Madison’s creepy smile grew wider, and I had a sudden urge to bury my face in Ash’s chest. He looked down at me, the same shock mirrored in his own expression.
“You guys are so cute together. I’ve been saying it for years,” she said, clapping her hands together. They were covered in dry blood.
“You should go home, Madison,” Ash said, loudly. “Everyone thinks you’re dead. You should go see your parents.”
Madison’s face fell. “Don’t you want to see me, Zoey? Ash? Didn’t you miss me?”