It was Sunday morning. My family and I were all dolled up to attend church service, as usual. I donned a pale blue dress with white stockings, paired with Dr Martens boots. As for my hair, I tied it up into a ponytail.
As I lightly powdered my face, my Aunt Inara barged in. "Hurry up, Bugsy," she pestered. "Your brother and sisters are waiting for you."
I rushed outside my house and found them waiting for me. "Finally," Em groaned. "You were taking years to get ready."
What do you expect? I thought. I just want to look my best for the church. You can't blame me for trying to make a good impression. We left as we set course to our destination. I held Em and Carter's hands, as usual. My Aunt Inara was pushing Kim's stroller while Grandma held Pearl's hands.
We arrived at the church and took a seat in the 8th row. As I opened my Bible, the priest, Father Conrad, stood on the podium. Father Conrad was well-known and respected in Slaborough. People in town admired him for his good deeds. He was friends with everybody, including Aunt Inara and Grandma. Despite that, I always felt uneasy around him. Let's just say he's a bit handsy, especially towards young girls like me and Em.
He gave his sermons to the people of the church every Sunday. Today, he preached about resisting the Devil's temptation. "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head and thou shalt bruise his heel," he quoted, from Genesis 3:14-15. I concentrated on my Bible, not looking at Father Conrad.
Then, I noticed Em and Carter were not in their seats. I looked around. They were nowhere to be found. My heart raced as I stood up slowly and tiptoed away from the nave. "Em, Carter," I called out. "Where are you?"
I entered the vestibule. Not a single person on sight. I left and continued walking a little faster. Maybe they could be playing around outside. I ran outside the church and found Em and Carter. I wiped my forehead. "Having fun?" I snarked.
Em and Carter gasped. "You knew we were here?" said Em.
"Yes, now get back inside or I'll sell your toys," I threatened them. They sulked and nodded as they walked inside the church. I followed better to make sure they didn't try any of their children when I heard a thud.
I ignored it and continued behind when I heard it again. Thud, thud, thud. My breathing became rapid as I was drenched in sweat. Whatever it was, I didn’t like it. It could be a nun who must have dropped something, I thought. Or maybe there's something sinister. Waiting to pounce. Unable to fight my curiosity, I decided to check it out.
I took the stairs which led me towards the basement. My hands were shaking as I opened the basement door. It was pitch black. I couldn't see anything. Frantically, I felt the walls of the basement, hoping to switch on the lights. As I searched for the lights, I tripped and fell on the concrete floor. I felt the wounds burning through my skin as I got up. Then, I heard it.
Thud, thud, thud.
In a moment, I bolted through the door, and closed it behind me, only to bump into Father Conrad. I gave a slight bow. "I'm sorry, Father, "I apologized. "I heard something in there and it was horrible."
He glared at me. "You made a huge mistake, Meredith."
With a baseball bat, he hit me on the head. My visions went black. I opened my eyes and tasted something metallic in my mouth. I spat it out and saw blood on the floor. I found myself tied up, unable to move. In the dim light, I saw Father Conrad, reciting something from a book, in a language so foreign and unheard of. "Let me go," I demanded. "Or I'll tell Aunt Inara and Grandma."
He laughed mockingly. "Your Aunt will never believe you, Meredith. She'll think you lied to her and will make you apologize to me, the most honourable priest."
"It's Bugsy," I retorted. "No one calls me Meredith. Not even my own mother."
He leaned closer to me and untied my blonde locks. "It's a shame that you couldn't even talk politely to me, a priest."
He took a step backwards as he clapped twice. Suddenly, I heard a loud screech from the shadows. It sounded like a hyena. As I tried to untie myself, it emerged from the shadow. No eyelids, no skin, and razor-sharp teeth. It screamed as it bit my left leg. I yelped in pain as it spat out my shoes.
I felt my left leg was pulling my limbs apart. Holding on the pain, I kicked the beast's eye with my right foot, causing it to wail. Its eyes were boiling red as it chomped on my left toes. I cried in agony as blood flowed from what's left on my left foot. My head spun as I puked on my dress.
Father Conrad clapped once and it ran towards the shadows. "This is what happens if you defy me, Meredith," he pointed out.
“You monster," I shouted. "You don't deserve to be a fucking priest."
He squeezed my chin and gave me a tight slap on my cheeks. "Looks like I have to get rid of you."
He drew a pentagram in front of me and chanted. "Hail Satan, hail Judas. I offer you a virgin as a sacrifice."
My eyes widened. Father Conrad is in league with the devil. What a fucking hypocrite. All at once, I heard the door burst open. It was the Slaborough Police Department. "Freeze," they said. "Put the book down, Father."
Father Conrad zigzagged his way through but the police grabbed his arms and handcuffed him. One of them, a woman officer, untied me and escorted me outside the church. Aunt Inara rushed through the crowd of murmuring townsfolk and embraced in a hug. "I was so worried about you," she sobbed. "We had to call the police. At least you're safe now."
I glanced at my left foot, with only three toes remaining. I took a step forward, only to land on the grass. Aunt Inara held me on her shoulders as we both walked towards Slaborough Hospital to receive further treatment.
Since that day, I had to wear toe fillers so that I could wear my shoes. The church population eventually dwindled until it was abandoned by the nuns and clergyman. No one dared to step into the church compound, as it was reported, heard a deafening scream from the basement.
ns 18.68.41.140da2
