Chapter 58: The Unknown Horror

Ellie's breath hitched as the whispers grew louder, weaving through the darkness like a swarm of unseen insects. The air around her felt thicker, almost suffocating, as if something ancient and hungry had awakened.

This isn't Victoria.

That realization sent a cold shudder through her bones. Victoria's presence—though terrifying—had always been filled with raw emotion, vengeance, heartbreak.

But this?

This felt like pure malice.

A low growl rumbled in the void, vibrating through her skin. Something was watching. Studying. Waiting.

Ellie spun around, heart hammering. But there was nothing to see—only blackness.

Then…

A footstep.

Not hers.

Slow. Deliberate. Close.

Ellie froze, her pulse a wild, erratic drum against her ribs. The sound came from everywhere and nowhere.

"Who's there?" she rasped, voice barely above a whisper.

No answer.

Only another step.

Then another.

And then—

A horrid screech tore through the silence.

Ellie clapped her hands over her ears, but the sound clawed into her skull, twisting through her brain like a jagged knife.

RUN.

Her body reacted before her mind could. She bolted into the darkness, feet pounding against nothing, her breath coming in short, desperate gasps.

But the footsteps followed.

Faster.

Closer.

She felt it breathing down her neck—something cold, ancient, and inhuman.

Ellie tripped—her scream ripped from her throat as she tumbled into nothingness.

The darkness swallowed her whole.

And for the first time since this nightmare began…

She wondered if she would ever wake up again.