“So what’s the plan?”

Caleb continued to tear filled pages out of the notepad, discarding them in a drawer as Christa held the flashlight for him. “It might be scary.”

“More scary than anything else that’s happened so far?” she chided, the locked office door and boarded windows providing enough security for her to relax. They’d managed to collect all the necessary items without running into the masked man- she’d learned the basics fairly quickly- and her initial adrenaline had finally worn off.

“Well...” He halted his ripping just long enough to plant a seed of worry before continuing. “We’re gonna bring a monster here.”

Christa faltered. “Oh, I see... How are we gonna do that?”

“With this.” He reached into the pocket of his gown, producing a handful of candy. “His smell is super good. If we leave these on the floor, he should follow them here.”

It was probably best to trust the expert here, but she couldn’t help being a bit troubled. “Won’t he attack us?”

“He might try. That’s-“

They heard a stomp far off in the distance, their voices dropping to quiet murmurs. “That’s why we have the bell. Once the mask guy goes upstairs...”

Christa leaned down to listen as he whispered into her ear.

They waited- Caleb patiently, Christa less so- for their visitor. She took the time to look over their setup again; the notepad was open in the middle of the room, highlighted by the flashlight. Outside, they had left some unwrapped hard candies in a trail along the floor. If the one they were waiting for didn’t find it, she would conclude that he was an idiot not worth worrying about.

Nothing happened for a while- twenty-seven minutes, as a matter of fact, but who was counting?

Then a shadow drifted across the window, barely visible through the cracks between the boards. Unlike the first creature they’d encountered, this one was completely silent. If they didn’t have their eyes fixed on the spot where it passed, they probably wouldn’t have noticed.

She held her breath, a sudden feeling of dread creeping into her chest as she shifted her gaze to the locked door expectantly. Sure enough, the doorknob quivered and turned, and there was a telltale click. This was the moment Christa confirmed that locked doors would not protect them from this enemy.

It creaked open.

If she wasn’t terrified before, she certainly was now. Despite her trembling hand, she managed to resist the urge to tilt the flashlight up, keeping its rays fixed on the notepad.

From the shadows emerged a humanoid figure, crouching on all-fours like an animal on the prowl; a position which felt fitting once he got close enough to the residual light for her to see the thin tail swaying behind him. It was eight feet long, give or take, lined with bristling, needle-like spines and ending in a smooth point.

Adding to her unease, they locked eyes. Well, she was only met with one- the rest of his face was wrapped in off-white bandages- but it was more than enough to convey his predatory instinct. He was searching for prey, and he’d found it.

Now, there’s a popular belief that dilated pupils are ‘cute,’ a sign of affection and innocence. If you’ve ever watched a cartoon, you’ve probably come across a scene like that; a girl watches a butterfly or the stars or someone she looks up to as her irises become engulfed by the black circles in the middle, filling with spots of light just to make sure you know how she’d never dream of hurting anyone.

Christa knew better.

He was compensating for the dim lighting that was made darker by the contrast the beam of light produced. He was ignoring the book at his feet, staring into the blackness, focusing his vision to get a crystal clear image of his target.

Making sure he wouldn’t miss as his tail coiled overhead like a scorpion’s, ready to shoot forward and puncture through whatever or whoever was in its path.

His stance shifted. His eye refocused. His tail quivered.

DING-A-LING.