He crouched in the darkness behind the screen, the taste of warm blood still on his lips. The faint silhouette of the man shouting on the stage drew his attention, and he watched as another shadow left the stage and climbed down to the side. Abruptly, in front of where he crouched, he could here the curses and grunts of another person.

Creeping forward, he saw one of the young ushers struggling to raise the bar on the fire door. Instantly, he sprang. A shout from the projection booth was followed by the aisle lights, flickering to life, and the red exit sign blinking on in the dark area beside the stage.

"Heddy's cheer was choked off as she and Penny stared open mouthed at the scene in front of the exit. The limp body of the usher was hanging from one arm of the hunched figure; the other hand was raised to its mouth. In the red glow of the sign, the girls could see the burning eyes and the snarling face, and in unison, they screamed aloud, grabbing at the boys and shoving their way into the aisle.

**********

"Look, our kids are in there and we want them out." Hair dripping wet, Uncle Ted was pushing up against the restraining arms of the policeman who was trying as calmly as he could to explain that an orderly exit was under way. A large throng of worried parents gathered in the pouring rain to pick up their sons and daughters. Jim Foster grabbed his brother-in-law's arm and pointed; a small crowd of children was pushing their way out of the theatre, stumbling back as they felt the pelting rain.

They're coming out now." The two fathers watched anxiously as parents hurried forward with umbrellas and hats to gather in their children.

"Always last," Ted groaned.

"Tell me about it." Jim agreed.

**********

The jam in the lobby entrance was too great, and looking back, Penny could see the figure staggering up the aisle behind them. "Quick!" She shouted, this way." She pushed the others in front of her and they scrambled up the stairs to the second floor. Too late, they realized that there was only one door-and it was locked. Downstairs the yells and screams increased and over the din, they could hear the manager shouting vainly for the police.

"I have to go pee." Justin complained.

"I'm afraid not," Penny said, peering back down the stairs nervously.

"But I have to GO NOW!"

"Shhhh! Shhhhh! Heddy, help him will you."

"Help him! Help him how?"

"Shhhh! Dill, speak to your brother, tell him to be quiet."

Dillard threatened him with his monster toy, growling. Justin punched him on the arm. "He hit me!"

Penny slipped down a few steps, listening carefully. The noise had wound way down and a new sound reached her ears.

"Don't go down there!" Heddy hissed.

"SHHHHHHH! Will you be quiet!" She listened again, shuddering at what sounded like a wet chomping, and then she jerked upright as a shadow appeared at the foot of the stairs. Whimpering a warning, she darted back up, pushing everyone back against the door. Thunder crashed again and the children yelped loudly in response, banging against its wooden panels.

A cracking noise sounded, and they looked down to see that the wood had split. With a brief glance back down the stairs, Penny ran at the door, kicking as hard as she could. "C'mon, help me!"

Four pairs of frantic feet pounded at the door finally splintering the bottom panel with a loud crash. Quickly, they wrenched the shattered wood aside and Penny began pushing Justin through the ragged opening.

Ow, OW! I'm getting splinters."

"Just hurry." The shadow was sliding slowly up the stairway wall.

Dill went next followed by Heddy, who had difficulty squeezing through. "Hurry Penny! Hurry!"

"The hole's too small, I'M CAUGHT!" The leg of her jeans snagged on a splinter of wood and she couldn't pull free. "Pull me! Pull me!"

Justin couldn't help. One hand gripped his toy like death and the other squeezed his pants as he hopped about awkwardly. Dillard and Heddy grabbed Penny's arms and gave a mighty yank, ripping the leg of her pants and sending the three of them into a jumble on the floor. The shadow reached the door and then a long wriggling hand stretched through the opening, waving dangerously about. Dillard grabbed his Monstro and ran to the door.

"Dillard! NO!" The girls reached for him but missed. He bent down and aimed his toy through the hole, pulling the little trigger as fast as he could. A tiny stream of plastic bullets flew from the model's hand and they heard a loud, painful curse as the arm vanished back through the opening.

"Great work, Dill," Penny yelled, jerking him back beside her.

"Way to go," Heddy shouted gleefully, clapping him the back.

"Help me push this table over the hole," Penny cried, dragging the dusty old piece of furniture toward the door. The jammed it as tightly as they could in front of the opening and stood back panting.

"I still have to pee." Justin's little voice broke the silence.

**********

Police cars were scattered all over the street in front of the theatre. Great puddles of water smothered the road and the gutters were raging little rivers, carrying their cargo of litter and vanishing into the storm drains. Jim and Ted were frantic. The police wouldn't allow anyone near the theatre and had formed a loose ring about the ambulances and the paramedic workers. The storm had passed, leaving a thin spray to blow about the milling crowd. It had also knocked out the power to the automatic doors and now everyone was waiting for the lock specialist to arrive.

"What happened in there? What's the matter with those kids?" A woman holding a small dog under coat approached Jim.

"We're not really sure. The storm knocked the power out and they panicked but... something else happened."

"What?"

"I don't know, some of the children were bleeding when they came out. They were crying and screaming about a monster or something."

"They shouldn't let children into these horror films," the woman became indignant. "Terrible thing for them to watch."

"I'm beginning to agree," Ted said, rubbing his face with concern. "Why don't they just break the damned glass?"

**********

"What is this place? Where are we?" Heddy strained to see in the almost black room.

"It must be a storage room of some kind." Penny answered.

"I'm going to wet my pants," Justin cried, hopping about. Penny edged her way around the wall and halted when her foot kicked what sounded like a pail.

"Over here, Justin. C'mon over to me." He followed her voice and felt her hand on his arm. "There's a bucket here, give me your toy and you can use this bucket."

"Don't watch."

"Don't worry." She moved away, standing by Heddy and Dillard, listening to the splashing in the bucket in the dark.

"How do we get out of here?" Heddy demanded.

"I don't know, but we should start looking aro-" Her words were cut off by the screech of the desk being shoved along the floor.

"It's coming in!" Dillard cried.

"Hurry, push it back!" They strained their little bodies against the wooden desk, forcing it back a few inches. "This is no good," Penny warned, "try and find another way out."

**********

He stopped pushing, the pain in his eye making him rub it tenderly. He'd glimpsed the blonde headed little boy that caused his anguish, and he growled deep in his throat, slurping his lips. Counting their voices, he knew there was four of them trapped inside, and he wasn't going to miss getting his hands on them. His eye began to water and he rubbed it again, wincing at the pain and cursing the blurring it caused.

**********

"There's a screen on the wall here covering a hole." Heddy called from across the room.

"Shhhh! He'll hear you. Where does it go?"

"How would I know," she snipped back.

"Can we get it off? Justin? What are you doing?" She could hear the pail bumping across the room.

"I'm putting this by the door so he'll trip on it if he comes in." Penny could make out his small shape hoisting the bucket onto the edge of the desk.

"He won't trip on it up there."

"But it might fall on him." She heard him giggle in the dark and she couldn't help allowing a little smile of her own.

"Let's get this screen off." She said, joining Heddy. "Everybody get a grip and when I say three, yank hard. Ready? One... two... three..." They pulled for all they were worth, and with a grating screech, the screen bent away on one side.

"Yea!" Heddy cried, moving around and bending it back as far as she could. "Okay, now what?"

"Somebody crawls inside and sees where it goes."

"Somebody."

"Alright... you."

"No way!"

"Yes way. C'mon Heddy, the boys are too young and I have to stay with them. You go."

Suppressing a little hissy fit, Heddy pulled herself into the opening and crawled forward. "Argh! It's all spider webs and- and- stuff, in here."

"Just keep going." Penny encouraged, turning her head toward the screeching of the desk.

"There's another screen." Heddy's voice echoed hollowly out of the dark hole. "I can see a red light."

"Push the screen off, and see where you are." Justin squirmed his way between Penny and the wall, and she bent down, wrapping him in her arms.

"It won't move. I can't push with my hands, I need my feet." Dillard leaned into the opening and whispered loudly, "So use your feet then, dummy!"

"I can't turn around in here, Dillard-and don't call me dummy!" A noisy moment later Heddy backed out of the opening and stomped to the floor. "I'll have to go in backwards." She hunted for Dillard's face in the dark, glaring angrily. The desk screeched again.

"Hurry, Heddy, we don't have much time."

©lyttlejoe 2002