Eamon quickly scrambled with the door handle and got it open, then hurriedly jumped out of the car with me right behind him. I pushed him forward and we ran up the path towards the front door of Reese’s house. The rain made the path extremely slippery and Eamon stumbled, falling onto his knees. He pushed himself up and got back on his feet. I grabbed his hand and pulled him up the steps into the house, turning to see the cat-like creatures run past us before I closed the door.

“What were they?” Eamon panted, bending over with his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

“I don’t know, but we need to find the others and get out of here before they come back.” I replied, looking frantically around the hallway for a sign of Roderick and Reese.

Family photos lined the walls, all hanging haphazardly with some having fallen onto the floor, their glass and frames broken. There were of shots of Reese from throughout her childhood and early teens along with photos of her parents and other family members.

Reese was an only child so her parents adored her completely. She often hung out at the bookstore with them and before her and Rodrick had started dating I had become friendly with her. Sometimes we would sit together and read comic books and talk about the different characters within them when she wasn’t spending her afternoons down at the skatepark.

The usually friendly and inviting house now seemed dark and foreboding. There was very little light and what light there was was incredibly dim.

I moved forward and the floorboards creaked underneath my feet. The house was old and Reese‘s parents had renovated and refurbished it to make it more their own. They had kept the old floorboards and wooden ceilings which gave the house a warm natural feeling. With the light the way it was and the creaking floorboards, I felt like we were in a haunted mansion and the thought caused a shiver to travel up my spine creating goosebumps on my skin.

Eamon fell in step behind me. I could hear his shallow breathing as if he was trying to make less noise. We tread carefully and slowly, moving forward down the old threadbare rug that lay across the floor.

The first room that we came to was the living area. I carefully peered in, looking for signs of life. With beautiful old armchairs and couches, Reese‘s parents kept to the style of the house with their furniture choices and the room looked tidy and immaculate.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

An ornate dark wooden table sat in the middle of the room with beautiful coffee table books strewn across it. The window to the outside had been broken and glass lay across the floor. Pictures on the walls hung at odd angles caused by the violent shaking of the earthquakes we had encountered before.

Everything felt extremely quiet apart from our footsteps. As we ventured forward, I heard a rustling sound coming from the room in front of us. I stopped and motioned for Eamon to stand still. We listened as the rustling got louder and I heard a small dog bark.

I moved slowly into the room and saw Reese’s family dog Chichi lying in the corner with a pot plant lying across her. The heavy planter must’ve fallen on her during the quake, trapping the poor little terrier underneath it.

“Chichi.” I whispered, excitedly. The little dog barked again, happy to see me.

I went over and pulled the planter carefully off Chichi and she jumped into my arms, licking my face and wagging her tail in excitement. I held her tightly, nuzzling my face into her soft fur.

“Here.” I said, passing her to Eamon. “She’s your new best friend.”

He took her off me and held her to his chest. She scrambled up his t-shirt and licked his face causing him to close his eyes and pull back laughing.

“Okay, okay little one. We’re happy to see you too!” He smiled as he tried to hold her.

“Can you tell us where the others are?” I said in a sing-song voice as I tickled her under the chin while she tried to bounce in Eamon’s arms.

She barked again and wriggled free from Eamon, jumping to the floor. Her nails made a scratching sound against the surface of the wood as she tried to gain traction to run to the doorway.

Stopping to look back at us, she barked again and jumped in little circles.

“I think she wants us to follow her?!” Eamon shrugged looking at me.

“I think so too.” I replied. “Okay girl, where is Reese?”

Chichi turned and ran down the hallway, towards the back of the house with Eamon and I following closely behind. She ran through the kitchen and out through her little doggy door into the backyard. I looked out through the window to see Reese sitting on the ground with her head in her hands, with Roderick standing over her rubbing her back. In front of them lay two piles of dust.

My heart fell into my stomach as I realised that the dust piles must have been Reese’s Mom and Dad.

I looked at Eamon, his expression was one of confusion.

“What is going on Ariah, you have to fill me in. The world around us looks like it’s been put through a blender and we’re hiding from giant cats.” He said as he turned and looked back at me. “And why is Reese crying over piles of dust?”

“Follow me and we’ll explain.” I said opening the door to the outside as I did so.