After rushing inside, Lynn ventured into the living room with a heavier heart. However, something stood in the way. Its yellow eyes caught hers in a stare that made her pause, and she fell captive to the strange glint again.

The cat wagged its black tail; like a broken clock trying to move forward only to flick backwards, stuck. Ignoring the questions from her friends, Lynn furrowed her eyebrows and observed quietly. There was a terrifying amount of intelligence in the way the cat watched her — something that shouldn't be there.

It blinked, breaking the eye contact, before turning on its paws and trotting away. Before disappearing around the corner, however, it tilted its small head to glance at her.

In the dark shadows of the hallway, its eyes glowed like fireflies.

Without hesitation, Lynn followed it. Its black shape moved soundlessly along the wooden planks, and a grimace formed on her face as the first step protested beneath her foot. She walked past the drawings of the lake and up the stairs towards the third floor, stopping only when the cat did.

It turned to look at her, then. Her lips pursed; its opened to let out a demanding meow.

"Are you talking to the cat?"

She ignored Oliver's question and sighed in defeat. Her hand curled around the doorknob and twisted it, which seemed to attract the attention of the cat. The small animal slipped inside the room, leaving Lynn to her fate.

A hand stopped the door from opening completely, and she almost jumped in the air. His blue eyes met her startled expression, but Andrew made no attempt to move away and let them in.

"Are you done trying to kill me?" he asked in an aloof voice.

Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

"Look, I really don't know what came over me. So I apologize for that," she snapped, surprising even herself. "Now, you can stay here and mope about it. Or you can let us in and tell us the whole story about this monster so we can find a way out of this fucking nightmare."

It was like a flame coming alive inside of her; burning through her veins and growing bigger with every breath she took. Her emotions joined hands, moulding into the strongest weapon of all. For a moment, the hole in her heart was forgotten and the warrior in her awoke to take the reins. She felt her body shake with an energy she thought lost after receiving so many hits; yet there it was, sending sparks to her muscles and clearing her mind.

A hand fell upon her shoulder, and she met Oliver's eyes with determination. "I'm done standing still while this thing feeds on our suffering." Her voice was thick with emotion. "It killed our friends! And it won't stop, will it?"

Her question was directed at Andrew, who watched her with renewed interest. He didn't need to reply, however; for she already knew the answer.

"Is there a way out?" Oliver asked while lifting his eyes to give him a wary look.

Lynn waited for him to speak, observing the mysterious man with unwavering determination. The hinges creaked slightly as the door opened to reveal his towering form, but Andrew remained still. His eyes held an emotion she couldn't decipher, and she arched an eyebrow in expectation.

And then, his lips twitched and he shot a glance over his shoulder. "I see now," he mused to himself before stepping aside. "You need to know the rest, but there might be one — if you don't lose that fighting spirit."

With a slight smile, she walked in and was followed by her two friends.

"I actually need to lie down, if you don't mind," Nick slurred while approaching the bed with wobbly feet. "This looks comfy enough for my face."

He fell on the mattress right afterwards, earning himself a few gasps.

"What the hell?" muttered Andrew as Oliver rushed to the unconscious man.

Lynn craned her neck in an attempt to catch a glimpse over his broad shoulders. "Let me see him."

"Don't worry," Oliver said before moving the man so he was lying on his back. "He's just asleep. Do you smell that?"

Taking a whiff, she scrunched her nose and sighed in exasperation. Closing the door, Andrew approached and frowned. "What is it?"

She glanced at him before stepping away to lean against a wall, making sure it was far from the window. "Weed."

"It's how he deals with his pain," Oliver intervened, not looking at her.

"Well, he can afford taking a nap for now," said Andrew while sitting on a chair opposite to the woman.

Lynn crossed her arms over her chest. "What do you mean?"

His eyes flickered to her before glancing out of the window.

"Kristine won't be coming near the house for a few hours. I've been watching her, trying to learn her patterns... Draining a soul takes time, and it seems to be a priority for her." He paused and leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees. "Kill the body, take the soul — it's what she does."

Her jaw locked as her stomach twisted, but she swallowed her distress. Glancing at her unconscious friend, she noticed he had started snoring and wished she could do just that; sleep her worries away.

"How long have you been here?" Oliver asked from his spot by the bed.

Andrew pressed his lips together. "Time works differently in this place. My body hasn't aged at all, but I know I have been here for years." He took a deep breath, then turned to her and revealed, "You're just one of the many groups that have fallen prey to Kristine. I've watched people of all ages die in all imaginable ways; some succumbing to the fear Kristine implanted in their minds and killing themselves, others believing her lies and murdering their friends."

A soft meow rang in the air, causing her attention to drift towards the strange cat for a fleeting moment.

"For too long I tried to warn each of them, to help them overcome their fear and convince them to fight back," he added while looking at the cat, as if deep in thought. "But it never worked; if anything, my unexpected presence only served to drive them more insane. Eventually, I gave up."

Lynn mulled over his words and was unable to dodge the wave of sympathy that filled her, but suddenly, she frowned. Something didn't add up; she recalled him coming to her rescue a few days ago — or had it been longer than that? — and saving her from drowning that very same night.

"What's different this time?" she wondered out-loud.

Much to her surprise, Andrew shrugged and pointed at the black animal. "My friend here, Molly, appeared the day after my grandmother... died. She wandered around the house, and then went to sleep under one of the beds that we have downstairs."

Lynn arched an eyebrow, not fully understanding.

"Sorry, but I fail to see the connection," Oliver pipped in, voicing her thoughts.

"All these years, she has been sleeping. And a few days ago, I heard her trotting about outside this room," he explained while tapping his knee with his slender fingers. "She rushed in when I opened the door. Ran up to the window and sat there for long minutes."

With a shake of her head, Lynn lifted her hands in frustration. "I still don't get your point."

As if on cue, Molly made a noise and approached her. Surprised, the woman stared into her expressive eyes and tilted her head.

"She was waiting for you," Andrew spoke in a murmur. "Ever since you appeared, Molly has been following you around. I imagine there must be something special about you that made her wake up after all this time; it's why I decided to give you the benefit of the doubt."

The cat sat down next to Lynn, and her left ear twitched as she drifted her yellow eyes towards a spot on the carpeted floor. As Lynn stared at the curious animal, images of specific moments in that house flashed in her head.

Andrew sent her a knowing look. "There's something about her that seems to keep Kristine at bay."

There had been something under her bed that very first morning, as well as in the bathroom during that time when Dana had been showering. She remembered the unexpected presence of the cat in both situations, and it made sense now.

"She was trying to protect us."

Oliver looked at her in disbelief and muttered something inaudible under his breath. His reaction made her frown; even if she understood the whole situation felt very surreal, it was not the time to show scepticism but to open their minds to the supernatural and form a plan together.

"Your grandmother;" she suddenly said, "she's the one who brought us here?"

Oliver stiffened, for they all knew what that meant.

"Not really," Andrew replied with a slight shake of his head. "When you found the advert, there was still someone here. It's part of the process; a group of people show up, and before the last victim dies, Kristine controls them and sends out a message to find another group."

"But I still met with her at a café."

His lips formed a sympathetic smile.

"No, you came here and fell into her illusion. She probably made you think you were in a café, talking to my grandmother about this place."

"How are you so sure of that?" Oliver asked while crossing his arms.

"Because I saw her."

Lynn felt a wave of anxiety crawl towards her heart at the mere thought. "What exactly did I do?"

He glanced outside, probably out of habit. "You sat outside, facing the lake. After some minutes, you slipped your hand into the water. That was it. Then, you went back to your car and left. With the house keys."

A cold shiver rolled down her spine, freezing her on the spot. She had no memory of that; the details of that afternoon were so vivid in her mind, as if painted by an artist's hand. But at the same time, she had no reason to doubt his words; after having lived through so many illusions, she was aware of how real they could feel — to the point where they were no different from reality.

"You said there is a way out." Oliver interrupted her train of chilling thoughts, taking the conversation back to its initial course.

There was a strange glint in his blue eyes as Andrew looked away, and Lynn watched him fidget. He clenched and unclenched his hands, avoiding her inquisitive gaze but obviously feeling it by the way his eyes flickered to hers for a fleeting second.

"There's a possibility," he muttered in a taut voice. "My grandmother brought Kristine back with a powerful spell that bonded them together. After my parents were murdered, she started looking for a way to undo the spell and send Kristine away. She found it."

Her stomach churned as a thought crossed her mind.

"How did your grandmother die?"

"She jumped into the lake," he said with a distant look in his eye. "By... killing herself, the bond was broken and Kristine's soul was ripped from her body. But her spirit never left, as you can tell."

A bit shaken, Lynn swallowed. "What do we do, then? How can we escape?"

"By destroying what keeps her here." He stood up. "We need to find her body."

The wind howled outside.

▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂

What are your thoughts? Too much information? Is it confusing? Let me know, please!