Zenon's Game Chapter 244

~Zenon's POV~

Nine chances out of ten, the intruder was not an intruder at all.

Could be her family or a tree branch scraping the window outside. Candy has a flare for drama but the fear in her voice is what shook me.

I've never felt as worried as I did then. Feeling her fear was worse than my own. Even with a low chance, I'd do anything not to risk it.

"Lock your bedroom door," I told her, jumping out of bed with the phone in my hand, "And don't hang up on me. I'm coming."

My girlfriend found a dead cat outside her bedroom door. I hadn't been able to prevent it then, but I wouldn't forgive myself if I can't protect her now.

I ran faster than any race I've ever ever been a part of. My body slammed against the wall as I tried to make an abrupt turn without slowing. I raced down the staircase, skipping steps at a time.

I jumped the last six and almost tripped over as I ran towards the door.

I didn't think about how I was only in sweatpants. I didn't have time to think of shoes before my feet hit the icy pavement.

I kept running.

I saw a yellow light across the street: the front door to Candace's house was slightly ajar.

And that one chance in ten just became more likely.

"CANDACE!"

~Candace's POV~

Zenon's voice was the only thing that kept my mind in the present. Terror had frozen my body and my mind was trying to cope by going off into its own imagination.

"Lock your bedroom door," he'd told me through the phone.

If my front door doesn't have a lock, what makes him think my bedroom would have anything like that?!

I was hiding behind my vinyl player, crouched in a ball. I put my phone on the floor, screen facing down and picked up a record in my hand. Slowly, I applied pressure on both sides, and it cracked.

Sorry dad.

These records were like his children, but he abandoned them too.

I heard a noise outside my door and movement stopped. I poked my head out from my hiding place and saw a shadow linger in the gap between my door and the floor.

The intruder was here.

Outside my door.

The doorknob slowly twisted, and I retracted my head back into my hiding place. This wasn't a great spot. If this was a game of hide and seek, I'd be sought.

I knew I wasn't safe for long but how long does it take Zenon to get here?

He runs fast but, this time, he can't run fast enough.

The door creaked opened and footsteps entered my room. I squeezed my eyes shut, though I wanted to scream out of instinct. My heart was beating so loud, I wondered if the whole world could hear it.

Slow steps, taking their time, as they came further into my room. Like it was their own. I tried not to peer out of my hiding place, but after a few moments, I could see black boots press down against the carpet as they approached my bed.

Who was the face of evil?

Who could be so twisted to be so calm as they invaded my space?

Suddenly, a voice yelled out through the house, "CANDACE!"

A relief spread through me.

I've never considered Zenon's voice as angelic, but he sounded like an angel now. This was his way of warning me, of warning the intruder. I was going to be ok. Zenon was almost here.

The intruder froze in their tracks.

I tried to keep my breath in check, since my body was tempted to collapse in relief. Hurry, Zenon.

My relief turned into glee, knowing the intruder hadn't expected this little twist. Finally, the odds had flipped in my favor.

Two against one. We could take this one on.

But, unexpectedly, he/she/they started to run. My glee turned into panic. They were making a run for it and now I was afraid they would get away.

If we didn't catch them, they would return.

I don't know what came over me, but I stood up from my hiding place and threw one half of the broken record at the fleeing intruder. It missed and I chucked the other.

Yes, this was my back up plan.

Shockingly, I hit my target. The jagged side of the broken record sliced into the back of the intruder's leg. They pulled it out, limped but continued to run. A few drops of blood landed on my carpet.

And that's the second time blood was shed in my room.

I stood in the darkness of my bedroom, waiting for the sound of Zenon. The adrenaline was rushing through me as I replayed in my mind what had just happened.

Should I have done more? I didn't know if they were armed.

A second later, Zenon was at my door, hands gripping the frame as he called my name. He'd raced up the stairs to my room and found the door ajar.

My ears could barely process it, but instinctually I ran towards him and leapt onto him. He wrapped his arms around me and I felt his cold and bare torso.

Zenon stepped forwards with me in his arms, gripping the back of my head with one hand as he scanned my room.

"What happened?" he whispered to me, holding onto me, "Are you OK?"

I'm OK now.

Oh how I could tell Zenon how much I loved him, how relieved I was to see him, how he was crazy for coming into the danger...

Zenon was looking around my room, where nothing seemed out of place. It was as if nothing had happened.