The blood drained from my cheeks and before I even knew what I was doing, my feet were pounding across the dining room floor. I could feel my eyes widen and pulse quicken, my heart racing like a freight train as I flew into the foyer. Clutching the doorknob, my hands fumbled with the handle of the screen door. The deafening sound of Bubba's screeches echoed out behind me, growing louder and louder telling me he was coming closer.

I threw the door open and got a foot out on the porch, the path out of here and freedom in my sights. His presence was at my back, and his bulky arms coiled around my waist, lifting my feet from the floor. A piercing scream tore through my lips like a shard of glass as I flailed my arm and legs around, desperately trying to wiggle out of his hold.

"Let me go!" I screamed, clawing at his arms as he drug me back inside. The door fell closed right before my eyes, shutting me away from the outside world and in with this family of killers.

Loretta stormed to the doorway of the dining room with her hands on her hips, a deep shade of red sprawled across her face.

"Take her downstairs until she can learn to behave 'erself," she said, wagging her finger. The tone of her voice was surprisingly calm considering the look on her face.

Nubbins must have remained where he was, but that didn't stop him from cackling like a witch and shouting jests at me.

"You're all crazy!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

He tightened his grip and carried me back down the basement stairs. I clawed at him and ripped out handfuls of the thick dark hair covering his forearms. He cried out, dropping me on the concrete floor, groaning as he rubbed his battered arm.

Crawling across the floor, scrambling away like a spooked cat, I found a small niche between two bookshelves and wedged myself in the tight space, my knees pinned to my chest. He followed, dropping to his hands and knees and peering in at me.

I snapped my face away and buried my head in my knees. I couldn't stand to look at him anymore. All I could see now was the face of one of his terrified victims staring back at me and a possible foreshadowing of my eventual fate.

"Please don't h-hurt me," I begged. "I-I don't w-anna die!" I could barely utter a word through the torrent of tears streaming down my face.

He shook his head violently back and forth, making his usual grunting sound.

"Safe," he signed then pointed his index finger at me. "You safe."

"Liar!" I yelled not caring about being on my best behavior anymore. "You kill people! You and your whole crazy family are murderers!"

A whimper slipped through his quivering lips, tears filled his eyes as if my words had actually hurt him. He's a liar! A murderer! I meant nothing to him; just another future bowl of soup for his maniac family.

His hand crept inside my hiding place, moving slowly, attempting to reaching out to touch me. I cried out hysterically and slapped him away, my body stuck in fight or fight mode and at that moment, I chose to fight.

Bubba jerked back, falling flat on his backside with a look of shock in his eyes. He rubbed the slightly reddened spot where I had struck him. A deep throaty growl emanated from his throat. He crawled back over, reaching out for me again. His whole demeanor had changed into one that filled me with horror.

I felt like a cornered mouse, frozen in fear just waiting for my predator to catch me.

I'm about to die, aren't I?

"Bubs, git up here and finish yer supper," Loretta called from the top of the stairs, her appearance a saving grace.

He paused and jerked his head towards the stairs then back to me as if he was debating whether or not to go.

I squeezed my eyes closed and whispered a prayer under my breath, too afraid to look anymore.

The sound of heavy footsteps on the rickety stairs and the soft click of the door closing told me someone was either coming or going. I prayed harder, harder than I ever had in my life. My body trembled in absolute terror.

Besides the drum-like heartbeat pound in my chest surely loud enough for anyone to hear, silence filled my ears. Absolute stillness. Even the sound of my breaths seemed to dissipate as soon as it left my lips.

I opened one eye halfway, peeking out from beneath my eyelashes, only to find the room completely empty with not a soul in sight.

Holy crap, I'm not dead. He didn't kill me. But that doesn't mean he won't. I bet they're upstairs right now deciding on the best recipe to use me for. What have you gotten yourself in to, Tilly?

I struggled out of my cubby hole and rose to my tingly feet, numb from the way I was crouched. How the heck did I even manage to fit in there in the first place?

I have to get out of here or at least find a way to defend myself.

Raving around the room, I turned over crates and pulled open drawers, rummaging through the contents and finding nothing of use.

My eyes landed on the mystery metal door in the corner. Flinging it open, I was met by a tiny bathroom consisting of a disgustingly dirty toilet and a chipped pedestal sink full of murky brown water. If I had anything in my stomach, I'd probably have been throwing it up right now.

I leaned against the doorway, clutching the molding to steady myself as my eyesight blurred in and out of focus and the floor seemed to sway beneath me. I rub my eyes and took deep breaths, exhaling slowly until my vision regained its clarity.

Something strange caught my eye. Something I hadn't noticed before.

A small beam of light filtered through a tear in one of the animal skins hanging on the wall, casting a dot of golden sunlight on the floor about the size of a quarter.

My heart leaped with excitement as I pushed a crate against the wall, beneath what might be a potential escape passage. I climbed up on shaky legs and ripped the fur from the wall, tossing it in a heap on the floor. A narrow rectangle window was hidden beneath the animal skin.

Stretching up on my tippy toes, I peered over the ledge. The glass had been busted out and in its place, thick wooden planks boarded it up from the outside. I shoved at the boards with all my might, but they wouldn't budge. Either they're really nailed down or I waa just extremely weak. It waa probably a mixture of both.

I hopped down and my knees buckled beneath me, but I quickly regain my footing and dashed to the vanity. Plopping down into the rickety chair which I wasn't sure would hold my weight, I dug through the junk scattered across the table. Endless spools of thread and sewing needles litter the surface, old and broken compacts of makeup and tubes of lipstick, as well as a severed mannequin head with another mask stretched over its face; this one with short fluffy black curls and heavy makeup painted across the eyes, lips, and cheeks.

The sight of it made me shudder. What that poor woman must have gone through before she died. I didn't want to end up like that. I couldn't.

I tugged open one of the drawers where I had seen Bubba pull the bandages from earlier. A pile of handkerchiefs and torn scraps of fabric filled the square space along with other random items like a few toy cars and an old tin of hair pins. Useless junk.

I dug through the contents until my fingers ran across something long and sharp. Unburying the object, I discovered a pair of fabric scissors.

I held them up in front of me and ran my fingers along the rusty blades and across the dull tip. It wasn't not very sharp, but it'd do.

I caught a glimpse of a face in the smudged up mirror before me. One with familiar features, yet almost unrecognizable. The face in the mirror was my own and I hardly recognized myself.

Red rimmed eyes stared back at me, the formally hazel orbs now seemed a murky gray. I tucked the stringy locks of hair sticking to the perspiration on my forehead behind my ear and wipe away the tears rolling down my ruddy cheeks.

What did I ever do to deserve this? One minute I'm off to start my new life full of hope and excitement and now I'm fighting for my life! And not only mine, but Matt's as well. If he's even still alive. I shake the thought from my head. It's too morbid.

I stumbled over to the bed and pushed myself into the corner. My whole body tremble, but I couldn't tell if it was because the room was suddenly freezing or because my nerves were shot. Maybe it was due to the fact I hadn't eaten in days.

My legs decided they couldn't hold me anymore sending me crashing to my knees. Thank God for the nest of pillows breaking my fall.

The room span again and black splotches clouded my vision like a burning polaroid. I blinked rapidly to keep my eyes open, too petrified to let myself fall asleep.

What if he comes back? I have to stay awake to defend myself. This might be the end of me, but the least I can do is go out fighting.

The feeling in my body ebbed away as my vision flickered into darkness. The last thing I remembered was my head hitting the pillow.