Chapter 25


    Heavy smoke gradually filled up the hallway, which made it harder to breathe. I covered my nose and


    mouth partially while leaning into the side of Teddy’s arm. He was immovable, however, perfectly still as


    he waited for the presence of this fiendish ghost. If it was in fact his mother that haunted the house, it


    would exin a lot about his behaviour over thest several days. His tiny mentions of his mother, and


    the way the house was set up in a way that would please her. I suddenly recalled the conversation that


    he must have had with her, realizing that she was defensive of me being in the house with him from the


    very start. Was she jealous of his affections for me? Or was there something darker, and more rooted


    in evil than that? Was it her voice that I heard from the cers? Was it her that was calling him from


    upstairs? I stood there absolutely bbergasted, stunned with the knowledge that a ghost had been in


    his house all along. I could picture the sketches he made in his secret book, the self-portraits of him


    throughout the room with a shaded patch of grey always beside him. Was that the reason he often


    looked over his shoulder in worry? The reason he was so determined to not have me in the house for


    too long? The very reason he feared to touch me or kiss me, because she was somewhere in the


    house the entire time?


    “Teddy,” filled the air all around us, like a soft gust of wind. “You said you would protect me.”


    Her son stepped forward with a great heaving of his chest. “And I will.”


    “Protect me,” sounded from upstairs to drift down to the hallway where her son stood. The narrow


    hallway was steadily bing darker, my hand pressed tighter against my nose and mouth because


    the smoke was making it so hard for me to breathe. If Teddy and I stayed here any longer, we could


    suffocate to death.


    “I will protect you,” Teddy reassured her, after he bravely took a step forward. “But I have to live my life


    too. I can’t always be here.”


    “You must stay.”


    “I will stay,” he stated with a firmness to his voice, while looking straight ahead of him as if she was in


    front of him all along. “But my father is dead. He cannot harm us anymore.”


    The chains to the door shook heavily from the kitchen, a grave reminder that the ghost in the cer still


    wanted to be set free.


    “He died,” Teddy articted in a clear voice. “He cannot harm us. I’ve done my share of protecting you


    and bringing your house back to its former glory. I’ve done everything for you!” He stepped forward with


    more determination this time, letting go of my hand in the process. “But now it is time for me to live my


    own life!”


    The hook next to the cer door broke free with a violent blow, following with the ttering of chains


    that crashed to the floor. Teddy stepped back defensively and immediately grabbed a hold of my hand.


    “Run!” he yelled over his shoulder. He sprinted down the hallway with me close at his tail. I looked over


    my shoulder to see a shadowy grey form whizzing in my direction with a deafening scream. I ran as


    fast as I could into the cloud of smoke, following the ominous glow of the back of Teddy’s white t-shirt


    that shined in the density of the smoke. He dove to the left, and I soon followed, crashing into his back


    immediately with a hard stop. “Move!” he roared, and used his hand to shove me aside before I heard


    the door violently shut behind him. “The window.” He ran over to it, and found that it was tightly shut as


    well, but that did not dissuade him. “I need your help.”


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    I joined his side and grabbed the end of a wooden bench that he kept under his desk. “What now?”


    “Hit the corner of the ss where it’s weakest,” he instructed in a breathless voice. “Ready?”


    “Yes.”


    He hurled himself forward and I soon followed, until we struck the heavy object into the ss. There


    was a sound of cracking instantly, a good sign since this part of the room was being filled up with


    smoke as well. “Again!” We moved backwards slowly, for we were exhausted at this point. “Now!” he


    yelled out, and then we ran forward to bang the hard edge of the bench into the ss yet again. The


    crack rang more clearly into the air, a hopeful sign that made a smile spread across my face. “Maybe


    onest time,” Teddy pondered aloud. “Let’s move further back.”


    I was just stepping back even more, when I felt something wrap around my legs that made me scream.


    A hard yank seeded, sending me into the air and hard upon the floor with the flying bench just


    nearly hitting my head. “Teddy!” I cried out in terror. Something was wrapping around my leg, growing


    tighter by the second. I looked down at my legs to see something resembling rope tightly wrapped


    around my ankles in the moonlight. “Teddy!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, because the thing


    around my leg was quickly growing in strength to the point that it was starting to hurt.


    “Oh my God,” he uttered out in disbelief, and quickly lowered his end of the bench toe over to me.


    “Hold on!”


    He was just reaching out for my hand when the rope pulled me backwards, slipping me out of his arm’s


    waypletely. I screamed aloud while dragging my nails into the wood, trying to find anything to stop


    me. Teddy ran after me, hands outstretched to take a hold of my hand, but thankfully my feet mmed


    right into the studio door. I recoiled my legs upwards, bending myself enough to try and untie the rope


    around my feet. The material felt so real I was certain none of it was my imagination. Teddy took a hold


    of my waist and hoisted me off the ground, taking this small window of opportunity to pull me away from


    the door.


    “Stay here,” he urged, and ran back to his desk to my surprise. A small wooden stool was lifted above


    his head, and with all his strength he crashed it against the ss. Shards flew everywhere, scattering


    across the outsidewn to leave Teddy mostly unharmed. He tossed the stool out the window for extra


    measure, before sprinting towards me. He reached for my waist to tug me away, knowing that he


    couldn’t go far before the rope would yank me back to the doorway again. He looked aghast as he


    uttered: “It’s rope.”


    “I think it’s real,” Imented in a shaky voice.


    “She used rope for a reason,” he hushed out with despair. “It’s a message for me.”


    “For you?”


    “She doesn’t want to let you go,” he uttered from the corner of his lips. “But I have a say as well.”


    He yanked at the rope to my surprise, fighting back with this unseen being that held the other end. “Let


    her go!” he yelled out in anger. “Please!”


    The rope was tugged on the other end, slipping me across the hardwood floor at a quickening pace. I


    could hear the roaring of the mes on the other side, like the deep caverns of hell that awaited to


    consume me. Charcoal grey smoke slipped through the narrow crack underneath the door, billowing its


    way over to me until my eyes began to sting.


    “Please!” Teddy screamed at the top of his lungs. “You have to let me go!”


    The tug was so tight around my leg that I began to grit my teeth in utter anguish, it felt like she was


    trying to squeeze the life out of me.


    “I am sorry I wasn’t there that day,” Teddy bellowed. “I wasn’t there to stop him. You were alone, and I


    know I should have been there. What could we do?” Teddy stepped forward to stand right in front of the


    door, letting the moonlight from the open window illuminate his tall form. “He beat you,” Teddy spat out.


    “He beat me too. What could we do? There was no one there for us. We were alone, just the two of


    us.” Heid a hand against the door, as if he was touching his once alive mother. “Always the two of


    us,” he added in a broken voice. “But you have to understand that I love her. I can’t let you do this.” He


    banged his fist against the door, for rage had suddenly consumed him. “She will nevere in


    between us!” he roared out. “Please, let her go. I won’t let here here anymore. She didn’t know


    about you. Honestly!” He bent down on his knees, with his hands braced over the door that must have


    been hot in temperature because of the fire that was steadily engulfing the whole house. “I never told


    her about you. I was afraid. I know you don’t like others around here, but I couldn’t help it…” He looked


    over his shoulder at me with glossy eyes. There was pain radiating there, a world of sorrow as if he


    feared that this would be ourst time together. “Mother, please,” he continued, once he turned his


    head to the closed doorway. “I can’t live here alone with you for all my life. At some point, you have to


    let me go.”


    For half a second I thought his sincere pleads would be enough to save me. The rope began to loosen


    around my legs, enough to let out a relieved sigh to gather Teddy’s attention.


    “She listened to me?” he muttered out in disbelief. His eyebrows lowered suddenly, and then he


    stepped closer to me with a look of distrust. “Or did she?”


    The end of the rope suddenly darted at my face like a viper ready to strike, and it nearly wrapped


    around my throat before Teddy snatched it in mid-air.


    “Run!” he ordered, which immediately sent me off the ground. I poked out thest of the shards of ss


    with the blunt end of a brassmp before tossing it to the ground as well.


    “Teddy!” I yelled, while signalling with my hand that the area was free. He was fighting hard to be rid of


    the rope that was now trying to cling to him as well.


    “Go!” he roared, while the end of the rope slithered across the floor like a venomous snake behind him.


    I immediately ducked forward and slipped through therge crack of the window to get out of the


    house. I fell into a flower bed where the sharp scent of gardenias instantly flooded my nose. I crawled


    out of the thick bush, brushing the glowing white flowers aside to make enough room for Teddy as well.


    I heard a deep groan once hended in the bush next to me, a painful one that made me think he was


    hurt.


    “Teddy?”


    “Keep moving,” he grunted, while pulling himself upwards. He was the first to rise off the floor; a slick


    wet hand reached for my arm to pull me upwards, and when I caught sight of his hand in the moonlight


    I realized it was covered in blood.


    “Teddy?” I shrieked out in rm, for I was fearful of the amount of blood dripping down his arm.


    “Let’s go,” he warned, before he looked over his shoulder at the open window that still meant we were


    in danger. Steadily he walked backwards, taking in the sight of his home that was now engulfed in


    mes. Once we were at a safe distance we simply hastopped and stared, watching the wooden roof


    that was now beginning to crumble downwards. Teddy was too stunned at the sight to move any


    further. “My home,” he uttered in pure sorrow, as the creaking of the wood signalled the end of his


    estate. “My work.” He took a step forward, almost tempted to save it all. “My mother,” he whispered


    under his breath, as he realized she would finally be gone forever. We stood there in silence for several


    minutes, watching Teddy’s entire world crumble and burn away under the churlish mes. He


    eventually looked downwards to see his once white dress shirtpletely soaked in blood. He must


    have been cut at the side by the ss, for most of the blood was on the right side of his body.


    “Teddy,” I hushed, which made him turn his head in my direction. “You need a doctor.”


    He nodded his head stiffly in silent response. “I’ll call the firefighters,” I informed him, before I stepped


    away with slow, lethargic movements. It would be a long night for Teddy, and none of his haunting


    childhood memories would go away anytime soon, even if thest of it was being scorched by fire.