The rain poured heavily outside. Thunder shook the chandelier in Tina's room, and a strong lightning flashed, snapping a sycamore tree's branch. It made a loud noise which made Tina look up from her laptop to her window.

"Oh, my." She set her laptop to a side table and got up.

"Shit."

Tina grabbed her phone and dialed a number fast. It rang once, twice, before a man finally picked up.

"Tim-"

"Honey, I'm trying. They won't let anyone travel to the island. The waves are so strong. They think the storm is going to last till tonight, I'm going to have to sleep at the pier..." Tim sounded tired.

"Yeah, yeah it's fine. Just want to let you know, the sycamore tree just broke."

"What?"

"Yeah, it-"

"What do you mean broke? You mean snapped, fell down?"

Tina looked outside the window to check. "A lightning s-struck it, I'm afraid it blocked the driveway."

She could hear Tim groan on the other end.

"Okay, I'm going to have to request a repairman on the way."

"You think they'll be able to get the branch out of the way?"

"Yeah, just...Tina honey, I know things didn't go as planned, but I will be there. A little late, but can you please just stop calling every five minutes, I really need to rest here at the pier. The drive from the city was..."

"Yeah, yeah I know. I understand. This will be the last time. Have a good rest."

"Okay."

"Text me if you get in any trip tonight."

Tim sighed. "I will, honey."

"Okay."

Tina looked at the heavy rain making puddles on the ground as strong winds swayed the trees.

She looked at the clock. It was almost seven in the evening.

Hungry, she went downstairs to the kitchen.

Tina was alone in the large lake house she and Tim rented a few months back for their anniversary. It was expensive, and had all the quiet and luxury they can get, but tonight she can't help feeling all of it going to waste.

She heated herself some pasta, which was supposedly their dinner together, and opened a bottle of wine. She sat on the table the homekeeper prepared well for them, and imagined Tim sitting there opposite her. A bouquet of fresh flowers stood elegantly in a gold vase as a centerpiece.

"Stormy night, isn't it Tim?" She spoke in the silence, and pretended Tim was there with her.

She drank some more wine, until the bottle was empty.

Sober and tired, she went back up to the bedroom and slept.

•••

Lightning struck again, which caused to illuminate the dark bedroom, waking Tina up.

She rubbed her forehead, and checked the clock. It was already eleven in the evening. Tim didn't send any messages. She debated whether to call, and decided not to.

Grabbing a sweater, she retrieved her laptop from the side table and continued writing her story. She sat down near the window, because somehow rain inspired her in writing. She put on her glasses and started typing away.
Her story was about a student, falling in love for her teacher. Stupid, young adult urges. If she could just write something else.

Tina was in the middle of her writing when another lightning struck, illuminating the trees outside.
In that moment, she can't help but notice a dark figure, standing outside the lake house.
It was instant, and there was nothing to see again once the lightning passed.
The lake house was secluded, and surrounded by acres of trees, bushes, and forests. The highway was 10 kilometers away.
Tina couldn't help but feel nervous all of a sudden. She tried to ignore it, told herself maybe it was just the shadow of a tree trunk.
She went back to her writing, but couldn't focus anymore. She closed her laptop, and set it aside, pulling the sweater tighter around her.
Tina hid herself from the window, but just enough so she could check one last time if there was really someone there outside in the trees.
She waited for another lightning, and stared at the exact spot she thought she saw the figure.
Lightning struck as she had hoped, illuminating the whole front yard.
No one was there.

Tina sighed in relief, and went back to writing her story.
She stayed in bed, typing away till her neck ached and her fingers were sore from hitting on they keyboard.
She took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes.

Just then, she heard a noise downstairs. A faint 'thud'. Like someone dropped a heavy object on the floor.
She immediately sat up, and listened to all her might. The rain didn't do any help because it was still so loud.
She moved closer to the door, but didn't hear anything.

Curious, Tina walked downstairs. The lake house was dark, so it was impossible to see anything. She grabbed for a paddle that was displayed on a hook and felt for the switch, gliding her hand across the wall.
She tried to remember where she was, and held on to the paddle tightly.
She was nearing the kitchen now, then that's when she heard it again.

'Thud.'
She closed her mouth tight so as not to gasp.
The wooden floors creaked, which meant someone was inside, trying to be silent as possible. Maybe a thief, or a killer.
Tina suddenly felt weak, imagining a strong and tall man who might kill her any second from the other side. Feeling scared, she abandoned her plan, and started to back away slowly. Maybe she could just pretend to be asleep then they'd go away.
She was barefoot, but the floorboards creaked a little as she made little steps. She was praying the rain would drown out the noise, especially the sound of her heartbeat which grew louder every second.

Suddenly, the lights went on.

Tina found herself in the corridor leading to the staircase. She wanted to hide quickly.

That was no use, since she felt hot breath behind her and saw the shadow of a huge figure on the floor.

•••

Tim arrived early the next morning, as the storm started to ease. Two repairmen with a van started to clean the mess in the front yard caused by the storm.

"This will take about 30 minutes or so sir. Would that be fine?" One of the repairmen asked.

Tim was distracted. He was holding his phone, anxious. He'd been trying to contact Tina for the last five hours but she didn't reply. It was weird, considering she was the clingy type.

"Sir? Are you okay?" The repairman asked, noticing the distressed expression on Tim's face.

"Yeah, I just, want to get to the lake house." he said.

"We'll try to make this fast, but with this tree on the way there's really no other way across."

"It's alright." Tim said, looking at the lake house just a hundred meters ahead. He can't help but feel that something was wrong.

He tried to dial Tina's number again, but it went straight to voicemail.

"You sure is far from home aren't you?" The other repairman asked.

"What?" Tim said, distracted.

"You come all the way from the big city, are you not? Only people with big money come here." The repairman explained.

"Oh." Tim chuckled. "It's our anniversary. My wife is there inside." He pointed to the lake house.

"How long were you married?"

"Um, we just made it to our first year." Tim said.

The repairmen smiled at him.

"Keep going till 40, man."

Tim smiled. "Bless us."

Thirty minutes later, the path was finally paved free from the debris. Tim thanked the repairmen and tried to invite them for food.

"Come on, I'm sure my wife won't mind. The pier is a long way, we have cookies, from the big city." Tim said.

The repairmen looked at each other and finally agreed. "Okay."

They drove the rest of the way till they finally reached the lake house.

Tim honked loudly.

"Tina!"

There was no response. The repairmen looked at each other. Tim led the way to the door, and noticed it was unlocked. He ignored it and went inside.

"Tina, I'm here honey!"

The house was dead silent. Tim was about to call the emergency hotline when heavy running footsteps pounded upstairs. The sound became nearer, and nearer.
The men followed the sound. It travelled from the bedroom upstairs, then finally down the steps.

"Tim!"

Tina emerged at the top of the stairs, looking vibrant and lovely, even though she was still wearing her night gown . Tim sighed in relief and stashed his phone back to his bag. He worried all for nothing.

"Honey!" Tina greeted Tim, happily walking down the stairs but stopped when she noticed the two repairmen.

"Oh, Tim, we have company?"

Tim looked at the repairmen. "Oh, Tina, they're the repairmen. Fixed the driveway in minutes, how quick is that? I invited them over for some city treats. That's okay isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's no problem." Tina said, eyeing the repairmen .

"I thought something happened, you weren't responding to any of my messages. Did your phone die?" Tim started to say. He was about to kiss her when Tina backed away.

"Don't touch me!" Tina screamed.

Tim was taken aback.
"Honey, what's wrong?"

Tina was shaking her head smiling. "No, nothing's wrong. I just, " she sighed. "Let's give these men a treat first then send them on their way. I'll be happy to take care of this, honey, wash up and change clothes."
She looked back to the repairmen. "This way to the kitchen."
She tiptoed happily, and Tim urged the repairmen to follow her.

"Oh and honey, please do get unpacking. I planned a surprise for you." Tina called out from the kitchen.

Tim was disturbed a little, but he didn't give it much thought. Maybe it was all because of the storm.

Tim went upstairs to the bedroom and started unpacking.
He noticed Tina's laptop on the beside table, and smiled thinking how she must have spent the night just writing.
He began unbuttoning his shirt when he decided to take a read.
It was a good one, he thought while reading the chapter Tina left. The forbidden love story seemed cliche but Tina just knew how to make it work. He was about to end up reading when he noticed the words at the bottom of the page.

"Tim.Hlp.im stuck.THe girl below is not.me."

Tim was hit with instant worry.

"Honey!"Tina called out from downstairs. "I ran a bath for you. I'll follow as soon as these gentlemen get going."

"O-okay!" Tim shouted back. He could hear the water running from the bathroom and closed the laptop.
Weird. He thought. He walked towards the bathroom and stepped inside. A bathtub filled with rose petals was waiting for him.

He tried to set his mind straight. The words at the bottom of the page didn't mean anything. It was just a typo error. A joke. Plus the bath looked so tempting right now.
He took off the rest of his clothes, and got in the bath.

Tim relaxed into the water and closed his eyes. He thought of ways he could make up to Tina. It must have been hard being alone last night in the storm.

Suddenly he felt the water rise and he opened his eyes. Tina was already in the bathtub on the other end.
That was quick. He thought. Her hair was already wet too, as if she had already went under the water. She was staring at Tim with deep eyes that were so unfamiliar and strange.

"I missed you so much." Tina said seductively.

Tim started to move closer.

"Don't!" She said angrily.

Tim chuckled. "Honey, what's wrong? Why are you acting like this? I thought you missed me, I want to feel you."

"Just wait for a while." She said.

"So, are we just supposed to sit here doing nothing in this beautiful bath?" Tim said.

Tina just smiled at him.

Her unfamiliar gaze sent a chill through Tim's body. He remembered the words back on the laptop. Wondered if it was a hidden message. He couldn't help but feel creeped out. Tina didn't answer him for hours, and now that she's with him, she's acting completely different.
Tim was debating all this when Tina suddenly walked out of the tub. She walked across the bathroom floor, naked, and dripping water. She wrapped a towel around her upper body and smiled at Tim.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"Just down."

Tim quickly got out of the bath tub as Tina disappeared. He put on pants and a shirt fast enough to catch Tina leave the bedroom. He thought she was acting weird.

His heartbeat started to pace.

To his horror and disbelief, Tina was crawling like an animal. Her hands were on all fours, running to the bottom of the stairs.
Tim was shocked. Then as Tina hit the last step, she looked up at him. Her face, angry. Tim quickly got in the bedroom and locked the doors.

Something was wrong.

He looked for his bag and tried to search for his phone. Once he found it he dialed the emergency contact.
The police unfortunately would take an hour to arrive since they were an island away.
Waiting anxiously, he looked at the laptop again. There was nothing more there. Just Tina's haunting words. He couldn't shake the image of Tina crawling like an animal out of his head. Besides that, his fear was mounting on him.

Tim didn't know what to do. He felt scared . Scared because he didn't know what happened to his wife.
He's instantly hit with regrets. He never should have let her traveled ahead while he finished some business. He should have just went with her. This is all his fault.

He was blaming himself for all this when a knock came on the door.

"Honey, it's me. Why are you locked up? Is something wrong?"

"Where's Tina?!" He shouted, pacing the room nervously.

"What do you mean, honey? It's me. Come on, open up. This is not funny."
The door knob twisted fast. Tim looked for a weapon. All he got was a lampshade. He held it tight.

"You're really Tina?"

"Tim, this is not funny."

"How did I propose?" He asked.

"You're being ridiculous."

"You don't know, do you? Because you're not Tina!" He shouted.

Silence. The door knob stopped twisting. Tim couldn't hear anything.

"Hello?"

"Hello?!" He called out again a little louder.

A cry.
Tina's cry.
She was wailing, loud.

"Tina?"
Tim hesitated, then walked slowly outside. No one was there.
She sounded like she was crying downstairs.

Tim held the lamp up tighter, sweat breaking from his body even though he just got out from a bath.
He slowly stepped down the stairs, while the cries grew louder and clearer.

While passing the corridor, Tim noticed the paddle and set the lampshade down, traded himself a new defense weapon.

The cry came from the kitchen.

Tim braced himself. He tried to walk quietly as he could. He was almost to the kitchen now.

Suddenly the crying stopped.

The house was silent once again.

Still, he gathered the courage to step into the kitchen. He aimed the paddle heavily through thin air as he did so, and muffled a scream.

The sight sent a sickening feeling in his stomach.

The repairmen lay dead on the dining table, their stomachs cut wide open, guts out and blood spilling on the floor. Their faces in dead shock.

Tim couldn't move. He was having difficulty processing this.

"Honey."

A voice called out behind him.

Tim slowly turned around.

It was her. She was smiling widely at him, but her eyes were both furious and sad. It was unsettling. Like the pieces of her face didn't match altogether.

"Something bad happened to me. You shouldn't have left me here alone." She said.

Tim looked at her in shock. "You killed them." He said.

"No I didn't." She said. "Did you hear me? I said you shouldn't have left me alone."

"You killed them." Tim repeated, with empahsis now.

"I did not." Tina replied back sternly.

"Yes, you did." Tim said. "Where is my wife?"

"Honey, I am your wife."

"I don't think so."

"The beast made me do it." She said suddenly.

"What?"

Tina's expression seemed to change. Angrier, and upset.

"What are you talking about?" Tim asked.

Tina's face distorted, as if something was inside her face trying to get out.

"Tina, what's going on?" Tim started to cry in both fear and panic.

Her eyes started to go white, her lips started to disengage from her teeth. Then suddenly, her face stopped distorting to the face of a beast.

She put a hand on Tim's shoulder, and with dead white eyes uttered,

"RUN."

As soon as she touched him, she started to melt away. Tim couldn't scream. He couldn't find his voice.
It started to rain again, and darkness surrounded the house.

He started to run out of the house and into the car, but then is haunted by the thought of his wife.

"Tina!" He shouted, honking his car. "Tina, where are you?!"

His phone suddenly vibrated from his jeans. It was from her.

"Run or else he'll get you too."

He punched in the call button and rang. It picked up.

"Tina, Tina?! Tina, where are you?"

The voice on the other end sounded tired.

"You will never find me." She said.

"Tina, please." Tim was crying now. "Tell me."

"Go now before he gets here."

"What are you talking about?! They're dead! The repairmen are dead! You're not dead!"

"He stole my soul. I am lost. Thus you will never find me."

"Tina!"

"You have to go."

"Tina, I will find you!" Tim shouted.

"You never will."

The line went dead.

"Tina?! Tina!"

Tim cried but decided to drive away. In the middle of the highway he was met with the police, and fell on their arms crying.

It was a mystery never to be solved.

•••

The lake house was closed after that. No one understood why Tina disappeared, nor figured out if there really was a beast on the island, but little did they know Tina wasn't the first.

Tim was sent to a psychiatic hospital, unable to function normally again after what he just witnessed.
It haunted him.
People believed he killed his wife. No one believed his story.
Until now he continues to try to break free from the cages, convinced that Tina was still out there, trapped somewhere even though he saw her body melt away before his eyes.

He truly believed she was still out there.

Indeed she is.

Now a ghost living on the head of a beast, mounted on the lake house wall.

This is why no one will find her.










cover photo credit: pinterest
© Illegna