HUNTER

11

That night I felt prepared. Throughout the day I'd made sure I was the best wife I could be while secretly trying to find any weak spots in the doors and windows. Each one was tied to the collar, and any contact immediately sent an electric current into my flesh. Which I'd discovered at the first window I'd checked, after naively thinking he was bluffing. He was not.
The doors were set up the same way, which meant that the only way to get the hell out of here was to find the code for the collar. It was a four coder, and I had an idea where it might be. Either he had it on his body like a notebook or something, or the switch in his room was something to do with it. Maybe the switch turned the current off? Only way I would know, however, was if I actually flicked it on, or off, and see for myself.
Climbing out of bed I pull on the fluffy pink robe he'd bought me and quietly tiptoed to his room. He was sound asleep. His chest rising and falling with each blissfully unaware snore. He was laid on his back, the covers barely covering his large frame, showing off the Calvin Klein boxers he wore. The room was dimly lit by the bedside lamp and smelt faintly of aftershave which grew stronger as I neared the draw with the switch inside. Sliding it open I catch it sparkling at me in the low light. Biting my lip, I flick it and catch my breath as the wall with the hung portraits creaks quietly open. I spin around to check that the dragon was still asleep, and curiously walk into it's secret lair.
It was shocking to see that this room was completely different to the other parts of the house. A deep purple velvet covered the walls with a creamy marble floor. At the opposite end of the large room was a large portrait of a woman, with three glass cases on either side of the aisle leading to it. Five of the six cases held what appeared to be bodies. Women who looked very much like the woman in the portrait. My chest tightened, panic surged causing my eyes to water in shock at the woman staring back at me. A woman who looked like me. The same skin tone, the same eyes, the same smile, everything. Even the same hair! My eyes absorbed the likeness of the other women surrounding me. Each one formed into a pose similar to that of the painting. Each one wearing a white dress with daisies scattered in their curly hair, sitting in a chair. Their dull, glassy eyes seem to be mocking me. Almost as if they were greeting me, welcoming me to the group. Another member, hooray!
What horrified me the most wasn't the bodies of women, or haunting portrait, it was the empty glass case with a small white card sitting in the seat waiting for its sitter which read, "Angelica".
A ferocious sound echoed throughout the room. I only realised it was me when I was grabbed from behind and forced to come face to face with my nightmare. Hunter.