Something killed her that day. I don’t know what, but I was the one punished for it.
I was put in prison that day. Maximum security. I was the only one on the cameras. But I didn’t kill her. It killed her. I wouldn’t do that. I know I saw it kill her. I saw it dispose of her. Throw her out, like trash. I don’t know what it was, it hurts too much to describe. It’s what killed her. It wasn’t me. She was my everything, my daughter, my baby. I loved her, I wouldn’t have killed her like that. It was horrible.
I will find whoever, or whatever, did that to her.
I got out.
I was able to escape. I got out. Now I just need to find whatever did that to her. But, I don’t know where to begin.
I know there’s an abandoned manor nearby, I always heard people talking about it, either how their kids kept going to hang out there, or how it should be fixed, restored to be something again. But they aren’t going to attempt to fix it. Too much water damage. Thought the amount it would cost to repair wasn’t worth how much it’d be sold or rented for. It would probably be a good temporary place to stay.
I start walking there, being very careful of anyone nearby. I see it. Whatever it is. The thing that killed her, that killed my girl, it’s standing in front of me. I rub my eyes, trying to see if I’m hallucinating again or not. I look around, and it feels different. It’s that day. The day she was killed. The sun is down, the streetlights flicking on. I can see her, I can see my girl. I can tell it’s her, but I can’t see her face. She’s standing so close to it. I try to yell or move, try to warn her, to tell her not to go with it. I can’t. My legs don’t walk, my voice doesn’t speak. I watch as it pulls away, pulls her away, down an alley between 2 buildings. I rush over to where they went once I can move again, and they’re gone. I brush it off as me being stressed. Anyone would be stressed in this situation.
I keep walking down to the building, trying to ignore what I had seen. I check if anyone is hiding out there, and if there’s somewhere safe and hidden I can stay. My girl and it are there. I try to get closer, try to yell again, but just like before, I can't. I watch as she looks up to it, taking its hand, following it. They move into a room. I rush after them, but they’re already gone again.
The entire room is covered in dust and webs. All that’s there is a small book on the ground. I run my hand over the cover of the book, trying to find the imprint of the title, or any details on the cover. It’s blank.
Seems like no one else goes in here, it would probably be a decent place to stay. It’s pretty hidden away too. I decide to rest until it’s light out, so I could read the book, and I end up falling asleep.
I get woken up by her sobbing.
“Hey, hey, you alright, what’s wrong?”
She just keeps sobbing, seemingly unable to speak properly. I lean to turn the light on to see her properly. She's bleeding. A giant wound in her side, blood splattering, but not touching me. As if there’s a barrier of some kind between us, preventing it. I pull her to me and press my blanket to her wound, trying to stop the bleeding.
I wake up in a sweat, breath heavy. I brush it off as stress once more, and grab the book, now that it’s bright enough to see. I put it on my lap, and start to brush through it. It’s a book of myths and legends. I don’t find anything useful, until I see it. The name is scratched out, but the picture is identical. Slick, almost like it’s made of tar. Tall, lanky. The next page is ripped out. I go back through, and the names of all the other myths and legends are scrubbed out, leaving nothing behind, vanishing without a trace.
I don’t know where to go from here, but if this book was found in the building, the page must be in here too. I search around, checking the other rooms in this half of the building. As I walk, I hear heavy, sticky footsteps behind me, heavy, shaky breaths on the back of my neck. I turn to it, but there’s nothing there. I shiver, but end up ignoring it. I go into one of the rooms that seems to be falling apart.