Shadows - Chapter 4

Story so far:

Chapter 3

Chapter 2

Chapter 1

Aunt Padmini went to her room and closed the door. She looked towards the ceiling, the fan was running at full speed. The three blades rotated in such a fashion that they gave the impression of forming a circle around the central hub.

And yet, she felt as if she was inside a heater. It was suffocating, and her mind seemed to have fallen numb after the events that happened today. True, she had tried her best, but somehow things had started to fall apart. She had to be extra careful now. She had to make sure a repeat doesn't happen.

She looked around. Her room was shaded in grey, with specks of black at several places on the walls and ceilings. She recognized them as ash stains. She switched off the light and sat on the bed. She had to hurry, she had to do something quickly.

Things had progressed quicker than expected. She either had to slow them up, or take a stand and make the harshest of decisions - a decision she knew she might had to take, but feared.

Sapna was in her room, still under the shock of what happened in the evening. Her brother sat silently, looking at her.

You had big, red eyes.

Sapna had checked her face in the mirror. Nothing seemed to have changed, except the lack of smile and gleeful expression that was always there in her features. She didn't have big, red eyes now. But did she ever have them?

She was still in this dilemma when Aunt Padmini called them for supper. "Come on children. You need to eat something. Have your supper."

Sapna and Swapnil went to the drawing room and sat on the dining table. Their meal of cornflakes and fruits were ready, vapor emanating from the hot bowl. A glass of milk stood smartly on the table, inviting with its sweet aroma of chocolate flakes that were dipped into it. However, the electric bulb in the drawing room was switched off, and a large candle was glowing on the table, shining and illuminating the room with its radiance.

"The bulb fused. This is a common problem here. Don't worry, we have the candles," Aunt Padmini said.

The children sat on the chairs and started eating their meals. Swapnil, always a restless child, looked at the wall emanated with the candle light. He stood up from his chair, walked towards the wall, and meticulously joined his fingers in such a combination that the shadow which was formed replicated the shape of a dog. He showed it to Sapna and she giggled. She remembered how they used to make shadows in the wall using candle light back at home.

Sapna got up from her chair and went to the wall too. She twisted her fingers to form an image of a fish, and the shadow appeared on the wall, depicting the structure of the fish. Soon, they were busy making forms and features of several animals and birds on the wall.

They were quite engrossed in their game, unaware of the figure that was lurking from behind. Suddenly, cold hands brushed against their skin and a tight grip found way through each of their shoulders. The kids turned around and found Aunt Padmini behind. She let out a scream of rage, and shouted - "DO NOT PLAY WITH SHADOWS, YOU FOOLS!!!"

What happens next:

Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9