CHAPTER FIFTEEN

15

I shot up from my bed, instantly regretting it. The pain in my right ankle was agonizing. It was difficult to breathe, I cried out in pain. Danny gently pushed my shoulders back down and laid my head back on the pillow. “What?!” I looked at him with tears of pain in my eyes.

“Remember when we went into that Haunted House yesterday?” He looked at me solemnly, I nodded slowly, “Well, we had a blast, making fun of the ‘scary’ decorations in the house but I constantly kept losing you, then when I finally found you one last time, I saw you walking out into the road. I tried to run after you, I called your name several times, but it was like you were in a trace. but by the time I got close . . .” he pressed his lips together and a tear fell out of his eye, “A huge semi ran straight into you.” His voice was breaking. “Oh, Phoenix, I thought I lost you!” Tears started to fall from his eyes, something I haven’t seen happen since Maw Maw died. 

I squeezed his hand, which hurt my hand a little bit. “Daniel, always and forever, remember?” My voice was gravelly. I looked into his teary eyes and weakly held up my pinkie.

He looked at my finger with a puzzled look on his face. I slowly lowered my hand and moved my eyes to the floor. Why didn’t he link? 

I tried smiling the best I could, My face muscles were sore.

I didn’t remember doing any of what Danny said we did. There was something seriously off.

“Daniel,” I croaked.

“Yeah?” His emerald green eyes were rheumy, bloodshot from the tears.

“I love you,” I confessed, “thanks for always being there for me when I need you,” I said sincerely. He picked my hand back up and squeezed. He gazed into my eyes for a second. I inhaled deeply, trying to breathe in his familiar smell. Then I realized that I couldn’t smell him. “Daniel, did you take a shower here? I can’t smell you anymore.”

His body started to twitch. “What, What are you talking about?”

“Your Apollo Axe spray and Old Spice deodorant, your signature scent. I can’t smell it.”

Then his body started to shake violently. “I, I, I, don’t wear cologne.”

I tried raising my neck and twisted my head to look at him. “Yes, you do.” This took so much more effort than you’d think it would. It was like I was in sleep paralysis, I could barely move, I could barely breathe. I started to freak out, the EKG started beeping faster. Was I really in a hospital? Was this real? What’s happening? What’s wrong with Danny? Was he having a seizure?

“DANIEL!” I squeaked. “Danny are you okay?!”

He stopped twitching. He sits erect, staring me in the eyes. I looked into his emerald eyes. Trying to focus on the tiny pupils in his eyes.

He had no pupils.

He opened his mouth as wide and as round as a bullhorn and these words came out:

“PHOENIX RIDE PARKER, YOU HAVE BEEN SUMMONED TO FIX THE HAUNTED HOUSE. YOU MUST FIND ELIZABETH JAYCE LOUIS BEFORE TIME RUNS OUT! SHE HAS CONTAMINATED THE HAUNTED HOUSE . . .” His mouth wasn’t even moving, It wasn’t even Danny’s voice. Not my Danny. It was a robot man’s voice.

But that wasn’t the voice coming out of him earlier.

The Haunted House wasn’t over.

That wasn’t Danny.

I wasn’t in a hospital.

I was still in the Haunted House.

And I wanted out.