Chapter Twenty-Four

In the Dark of the Night Part 2

"Lexis, how did you get here?!" Kai exclaimed. "Where have you been, girl?"

Lexis swished her tail and paced around Kai. She huffed and grunted as she poked his arm with her snout.

"Still can't talk, I see," Kai said as he got to his feet. "Looks like we're both in a tough spot".

A rustle came from the brush. Kai looked past Lexis' head.

"Don't tell me you found a friend," he said.

Out stepped another dog, a husky-looking breed with a dark grey pelt. It stared at Kai and cocked its head, remaining motionless.

"Hey, buddy," Kai whispered. "You Lexis' friend?"

The dog lowered its head and slowly made its way towards the two. Lexis turned and gave a grunt which made the dog ease its shoulders. It padded across the dirt and nosed Kai's hand, then gave it a lick.

"Good," Kai chuckled. "You're a friendly-"

He took a glance underneath the dog.

"-boy," he finished. "Oh. So, you're Lexis' boyfriend!"

Lexis sneezed and poked Kai in the chest with her snout.

"You don't have to hide," Kai chuckled as he ruffled Lexis' head, "I know what's up!"

Lexis let out another grunt and then prodded her right paw against Kai's foot. A thought suddenly dawned on him.

"Wait a minute," he said. "What are you doing out here?"

Lexis remained silent as she turned her head toward the running water. The babble of the current whispered in the night as Kai's thoughts raced in him. He felt like an idiot for thinking about it, knowing especially that Lexis would not be able to respond if he asked.

"Can you feel it, too?" Kai whispered. "It's like she's here".

Lexis whimpered, and the male dog trotted over and gave her face a gentle nuzzle. Lexis turned and sniffed at the ground, then gazed at Kai. Kai, confused, gathered himself and made his way over to where the dogs stood. In response, both Lexis and the other dog trudged against the dirt and followed the river upstream. Kai hung close behind keeping his guard up.

"Where are you guys going?" Kai asked.

The two dogs huffed but continued their pace up the river. The air hung still and with a chilly breeze. The leaves on the trees surrounding him rustled with the slight wind that blew through. Everything seemed as if time had stopped. It was just him and earth that surrounded him. Kai took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, listening to what was around him.

The dogs halted in their tracks and Kai felt his knees bump against something hard. His eyes shot open. A wall-like structure stood in front of him. The darkness gave no clue to what it was.

Kai reached out with his hands and felt the texture. It was rough, firm. A sandpapery feel pricked his skin. He moved to the side while running his fingertips along the wall. A bump hits his hands. Moving his palms across the edge, he could feel a disfigured piece of the wall, as if a piece of it had been ripped off or destroyed.

"Weird," Kai whispered.

He continued to move and soon noticed that the dogs were nowhere in sight.

"Lexis?" Kai called out. "Where'd you go girl?"

Kai felt his way around the corner and stumbled into another damp area of dirt. Keeping his hand on the structure, he moves across the squishy earth and soon feels his hand make contact with another surface. This one joined the previous structure to make a corner. He continued and quickly found the adjoining part of another surface.

A room? Kai thought.

He must be in someone's house, but what kind of house had a part of the wall missing?

"Wait a minute," Kai spoke. "I'm such an idiot".

He raised his palm out in front of him and out flickered a flame. The flame grew in his hand until there was enough to illuminate the sight in front of him. He was right. It was a room or at least what was left of it.

The wooden floorboards were partially missing and exposed the dirt that was beneath them. He turned and saw that the wall he had originally bumped into was missing a portion. As he took a closer look he noticed blackened edges leading out to the rest of the wall. It was a charred, burnt giveaway that led Kai to believe that the house had caught fire.

A bark interrupted the silence making Kai jump. The flame he had started in his hand snapped away.

"Lexis," Kai called out.

He stood and started a new flame in his hand to guide the way. The room he was in connected to a hallway which led him to another room. It was bigger than the one he had previously set foot in. This one had once been decorated with bamboo furniture and a wooden wrap-around counter.

The remains of the furniture were left scattered in the debris that was spewed across the floor. Everything had either been consumed by the flames that once were or left battered in the attack of the fire that did not destroy them.

Kai's hair stood on end as a chilly breeze blew through the room. A sudden slam on the opposite side of the wall in front of him made Kai extinguish his light. Lexis' growls erupted through the silence followed by the sounds of thrashing.

In a flash, Kai took off down the hall towards the sound feeling his feet collide with various objects. It caused him to stumble slowing down his speed. The adrenaline pumped through him increasing his anxiety. When he was able to break through the clutter he sprang up and crashed in front of the only door in the hallway. It wouldn't budge.

Kai threw his weight against the door until it broke off from the frame. He ignited his fire again and saw the two dogs in a frenzied state.

Their fur stood prickled and they each let out a low, rumbling growl. Lexis turned and glanced at Kai then refocused to a window in front of them. The male dog curled back his lips and exposed his white fangs. At that moment he looked like a feral wolf in the middle of a standoff.

"Hey," Kai whispered.

The dogs did not move. Their stance remained firm and their gaze fierce.

"There's nothing there," Kai assured.

He ignited his flame brighter and gave a once-over look around the room. There was no sign of fire damage to any part of the room. All of its furniture had been left intact including the drapes that still hung from the window.

The dogs slowly began to back up in unison. Each one ended up on either side of Kai: Lexis to his right and the male dog to his left. Kai reached out to touch the top of Lexis' head. She lets out a rage-like rumble from the back of her throat. Kai jerks his hand away, afraid to touch her.

"There's. Nothing. There," Kai repeated.

But as he uttered those words again, something felt different about the room he was standing in. A chill crept inside sending shockwaves throughout his limbs. The dogs growled again and Kai soon realized what was happening to them. He had seen it before almost a year ago.

They were not alone inside that room.