Chapter 10

   The Wolf stood there between Tony and the boy holding the blade in its teeth, growling at him as it stared at him. It's saliva trickling down the edge of the blade, clenching his bleeding left arm sneered at the wolf. He started towards them slowly, then he suddenly stops and glances to the side.

"What is it now, I'm busy here," he said to the air as though someone was next to him.

A few moments pass by and he spits some of his black blood on the ground apparently annoyed about something.

"Can't you handle that yourself dumbass," he says while looking back at the wolf with the blade in its mouth.

He curses under his breath and glance at Tony, "you and your mutt are lucky that I am needed elsewhere"

He then thrusts two fingers into his bleeding arm, causing black blood to splatter across the ground. It then began to bubble and froth as if being heated in a pot, then many blood soaked hands began to emerge from the blood as though there were people trying to save themselves from drowning. He then turns to the wolf and snaps his fingers, causing the blade to dissolve away from the wolf's mouth. It then reappeared on his back, then walking to the puddle of bubbling black blood in which the hands seemed to know someone was coming they began to grab him and pull him into the blood.

"Oh and big brother," He said while turning slightly to look at Tony.

"I'll be back, and once I do" he smiled sinisterly "we shall be one"

He then disappeared into the blood and hands, then the blood began to spread towards the remains of Bonzo and his gang. The hands then grabbed their remains and dragged them into the blood. Tony and the wolf watched as the last of them sank into the black blood, and the blood began to dry and fade away. As it does so the wolf began to head to the forest

"W-wait where are you going, what are you." He called after, it but to no avail.

The wolf just faded into the forest and disappeared, Tony wondering what it really was and why it had come and gone so suddenly. Not only that, but it had also protected him from whatever that boy was. Then realizing that it was starting to get dark due to the sun setting within the trees, Tony turned to his front door. Making a mental note to have is staircase repaired due to seeing it in ruins due to his attack he hopped onto the low porch and opened the door and went in.

He flipped a switch on the wall near the door and the lights came on from the main hallway, two twin light fixtures on the ceiling of the hall lit the hall with their soft clear yellowish-white glow. A small table in the hallway on the side against the wall with some flowers in a light blue vase. Next to it, was a small picture frame with a family photo of Tony with his mother and father. He looked at it and smiled.

"Mom dad, i'm home" he said to the picture.

He continued down the hall, getting to an opening that led to the family room and kitchen. The TV above the fireplace across from which was a rectangular coffe table. on three sides of the coffe table were three couches, two small recliners one on the left and right of the table, and a long 7 foot couch in front facing the TV.

To the far right there was a guitar in the corner and three feet to the right of it was a window looking out to the front of his property. The sun, now a nice soft orange shining through the treeline cating shadows upon the grass of the shadowy lawn. He then turned around and walks back into the hallway, he locks the front door and goes up the staircase on the left in the hallway. Boards of the staircase creek with each step, he gets to the landing and turns right. There are five doors, all but one were a creamy soft yellow. The door that was st the end of the hall was the only one that was different than the others. it was a dark solid oak door, reinforced with a strange metal and even the frame was made from the same material that reinforced the door. It had and old blackened door handle with a large keyhole and a large old lock on it as well.

Tony looked at the door for a moment then turned away and sighed as he opened one of the four other doors. the one he opened was between the strange door and the one closest to the stairs. He walked into the room and closed the door behind himself.

As the he closes the door he looks at his half made bed, he then looks out the window to see that the sunlight still barely poking through the trees. the light of the setting sun a beautiful blend of soft orange with saphire red illuminated his room as he goes to his dresser and takes out a pair of pajama pants for himself. the then changes to the pants and tosses his clothes into his dirty laundry bin next to his closet. He then places the small stone from his pocket on the nightstand next to his bed and gets in pulling the covers over himself.

"Goodnight Mom, goodnight Dad hope your doing well up there." Tony says as he turns over and closes his eyes to sleep.

the light of the sun finally fades away completely as the moon begins to rise casting a ghost like glow upon the trees and their shadows cast upon his bedroom floor. The shadows seeming to slowly slither like snakes and converge where tony was sleeping and about to make contact but suddenly shrivel and shrink away, as the small stone on his nightstand begins to give off a soft glow as if warding off the shadows. As if telling them to keep their distance from him.

The night settles and is calm and the stone's soft glow fades away.

(Authors note)

this is something I have been writing since high school. I put it on pause when I lost inspiration for it a couple years back not wanting to ruin the story. then I got married to a beautiful woman in 2019, and now I have my first child and im happy and it caused me to become inspired once more to write the rest of the book. I am happy that you enjoy it. I just ask to be patient due to myself becoming a father and husband, there will be delays for the chapters to arrive on occasion. thank you.