Shadows

• Stella Sloan, Grade 5, St Joan of Arc School
• Short Story
• 2016

Excellence Award in the 'Top Secret 2016' competition

Rain pounded.
Adeline lay in bed under the roof of her new house, as she watched the raging storm pass outside. Wind howled, lightning lit up her room and thunder rumbled like a giant had a tummy ache. Adeline lay, stiff as rubber underneath her dusty old sheet that was donated to her family. For she knew there was something out there in the dead of night, something that shouldn't be. Suddenly an ear splitting noise came from her next door neighbour’s house, like a glass window shattering into one million pieces. Sirens went off and smoke from the house next door was visible. A black blur darted past by her window. Then it started to wonder back to where Adeline's window was. All Adeline could see was a great big pair of blood red eyes…

A man stood over Adeline. He was drenched in sweat and had bucket fills of cut’s and blood all over him. He bent down and shook Adeline awake. Then he grabbed his knife. “Get to work,” he grumbled, and with that he walked away like an old grandpa. How did I get here? Adeline wondered.“Where am I?” Cried one terrified Adeline.
The man spinned around, frowned, and replied “In the house of Laracoss. Follow me and I’ll explain everything.” The man led Adeline up a winding staircase. When they finally reached the top of the staircase they entered a cave-like room. The man sat down. Adeline led by his example and sat down opposite him.
“Ok. So do you remember how one month ago you saw that monster?” The man started but was cut off.
“WHAT, that was one month ago?” Boomed Adeline. “Yes! Anyway the thing that you saw was not any ordinary monster, it was the Laracoss. It destroyed your entire village, most of them were killed by him or his hunters.” An icy cold hand grabbed Adeline’s heart and yanked it down. However then she realized something.
“What about my parents, were they killed to?” A dark shadow passed across the man’s face.
“That depends,” he said, “Their names?”
“ Shawn and Hailey Roger,” Adeline said with tears streaming down her face.
“Why yes, they were,” The man answered with an evil grin on his face “I killed them, as I am going to do to you.”
He grabbed his knife as the words echoed inside Adeline’s head. She stood up as the cold hand rushed down her body and numbed her insides with coldness.

She rushed out out of the room, but when she opened the door there was not a stair case as there was before. Instead there was nothing but plain emptiness. She looked behind her and saw the man charging at her with his knife pointing at her. And she jumped for her life.
The fall only lasted for a few seconds, but when she landed with a thud she found herself in her bed with her parents smiling down on her… and her heart warmed.