Chapter 6
It was eerily quiet in the hallways. A silence shrouded over Candace, wrapping her like a cold blanket. The only sound was the cracking of the floorboards as she made her way across the hallway.
Now, she was on the other side of the school, and what a dramatic change it had been. Before, the walls were creaked, broken, worn, and rusted. On the other side, the walls were clean, pristine, well taken care of. How was the east side of the school in such good shape? Why was the west side disgusting and worn? Candace didn't really want to think of the answer. Whenever she thought, here, the answer was usually something you did not want to hear. With her curiosity at its peak, she decided to head over to the principals office.
I don't even have a clue as to where it is... She sighed. Even though the town itself was pretty small, the school was huge. Candace had nearly gotten lost a couple times, going around in circles. Most of the doors were locked; part of her didn't want to see what was on the other side. The only good news was that she hadn't run into any more of those.. things.
All Candace knew was that she had to find that man. If he was still alive, he may be her only chance of escaping this nightmare. If not... well, she didn't really want to think about if not.
The intercom's static rang in her ears again. It had been going off every now and then, driving Candace insane. This time, no words could be heard over it, only the static. Groaning, Candace covered her ears and stopped at a dead end.
"Where now?" she asked no one. Turning to her right, she entered a wide-open door that had many jagged holes in it. She walked into the room that was pitch black.
"Dammit." Candace muttered as the light switch nearby didn't work. Instead, she flicked on the flashlight that she received from Earl. It flashed a few times before buzzing to life. Although the light was dim, it gave her just enough to see the room.
It was a small classroom, probably only around fifteen seats or so. At the front of the room was an oak teacher's desk, and the years of damage were clearly visible. Behind that was a completely black chalkboard. She never shined her light on it.
Candace stepped inside and walked between the seats. Some old Math papers and folders were scattered on the floor. She looked inside the desks as well; empty. Shutting the last desk, she turned back around towards the back of the room. An old nursery book was lying there... its page opened to-
"The Itsy-Bitsy Spider..." Candace's hair stood on edge. Gulping, she turned back around and finally shined her light on the chalkboard.
ThE ItSy-Bitsy SpiDeR CRAwled UP thE SPoUt aGaIn
Candace tightly held onto her flashlight to keep it from dropping. A sudden ear-splitting buzz filled her head. This time, it wasn't from the intercom.
She tightly gripped her head and dropped her flashlight. "Make it go away!" She screamed and repeated. It only became louder the more she struggled. Finally, after was seemed like endless hours, the buzzing stopped. A numbness overcame her ears, and she felt like she couldn't even hear. Calming herself, she loosened her grip and breathed heavily. She reached down to pick up her flashlight when another roar came. She turned her head and flashlight towards the classroom door. Something was up against it; she could tell from the holes. Suddenly, the door came flying off its hinges, and another thing came through. It looked as if it had fur black as night, eyes a blood-red, and what seemed to be saliva dripping from its mouth. A red hourglass was imprinted on its belly.
A black widow.
But at the same time, not a black widow.
Candace flinched and ran to the back of the classroom. She pressed herself up agains the wall, trying to find a way out.
"No! No!" she screamed as she banged on the wall. The Spider kept crawling closer, its saliva-dripping fangs now revealed. With a desk in its wake, it quickly snatched the desk in its powerful jaws and through it aside. The "saliva" seeped into it, melting it.
Not saliva. Poison.
Candace clipped her flashlight to her shirt, hoping it wouldn't fall. She reached for her pistol, when a sudden jerking feeling over came her. A long, string line attached to her waist. It pulled on her, ripping her grip from her gun and dropping it to the floor. The Spider pulled her closer, and Candace reached for a desk. She held on for dear life, but the string kept pulling.
"NO!" She shrieked and grabbed a piece of paper. She threw it at the Spider, although it did nothing. It didn't matter. She was desperate.
Finally, the line snapped, and Candace was released from her death grip. The Spider flinched and stepped back, trying to real the line back in to cast a new one. In this moment, Candace dove for her gun and hid behind a row of desks. She quietly breathed in through her nose, hoping the Spider would leave. A few moments of silence, and Candace sighed. It was gone.
She was suddenly jerked from above. The Spider had crawled onto the ceiling and was spying her from above. It pulled her up towards it when Candace pulled. A loud bang reverberated throughout the room. The Spider spewed green blood and crumbled to the floor. Candace screamed as she collapsed onto a few desks, cracking her back. With the fear greater than the pain, she jumped to her feet and dashed for the back of the room while the Spider laid on its back, having trouble rolling over. Candace took that moment and raised her gun.
BAM!
BAM!
BAM!
Three gunshots echoed past one another and found their ultimate target. The Spider stopped struggling and relaxed. The green blood oozed around, forming a puddle. Candace stood there, her hands and knees shaking like jelly. She dropped the pistol and breathed deeply.
"Ha. I can't take my brothers, but I can take a ten foot Spider?" She chuckled to herself, not at all in the laughing mood. Looking at her hands, she wondered, What did I just do? She knew, but at the same time, she didn't know.
"One thing's for sure. That stupid nursery rhyme is no longer my favorite." She sighed, picked up her gun, and walked out.