Jessie finally wasn’t scared about being followed home by the Night Butcher, even during the solitary, cold walk home from the campus centre after her evening class. She had all but forgotten about waking up at 3a.m. to check the deadbolt, until she reached the chipped green door of her apartment and found that it was open.The ominous black line between the frame and the door threatened of an intruder. News reports flooded back into her imagination: “Random victims, multiple stab wounds, dismemberment, and cannibalism.”Jessie whipped her little pack from behind her back, unzipped and fumbled for her cell phone. She was about to dial Mum but hesitated.“Stupid, stupid baby”, ran the thought. “You always cry to Mummy at any trouble in the night”. …show more content…
“You rushed out and left the door open,” she scolded. “And it wasn’t the first time, either.” Filled with enough courage to put the cell phone away, she swallowed to drown the thumping in her chest, pushed the door and stepped into the darkness of her living room. “I’m home!” she yelled, then went dead silent. The street lamp outside created menacing, bulky figures out of the furniture. The stillness revealed nothing.Jessie slid her pale, slender hand along the wallpaper until she felt the light switch and flicked on the overhead lamp. Jessie’s gaze took in every lurking shadow; shadows cast by the flat screen television and the towering bookshelf. There was the familiar green recliner and the ugly beige couch with a guilty coffee stain.The kitchen tucked itself anxiously into the left corner. The floor tiles glowed an eerie amber. The countertops were spotless but crowded with the toaster, electric sandwich maker and key bowl cluttered with receipts and junk