Nanny Betty had just staggered into the yard when she heard Tina’s scream. A flash of panic instantly swept through her face and she zoomed into the house.
She hurried through the hall directly to the kitchen and found Tina crouched beside the cabinet with her arms wrapped around her knees; shivering vehemently.
“Tina–” She muttered and Tina deftly glanced up at her with tears lingering in her eyes.
“Nanny Betty...” She cried, swiftly sprang up, and hugged her. “I was so scared nanny.” She grumbled. “I thought I was going to die.” She fringed.
“Calm down dear.” Nanny Betty snapped in as she drew her back. She slightly hunched forward, drying the tears that had escaped her eyes. “It’s okay now. I’m here.” She affirmed and Tina nodded.
She could see from Tina’s eyes how scared she was. Though Tina was calm now, nanny Betty could still feel her shivering within her bones.
“Come on, let's take you to your room.” She instinctively draped her arms around her shoulders and they both shuffled off through the small stairway leading to the corridor linking the rooms.
When they had gotten to Tina’s room, nanny Betty helped Tina onto her bed and pulled the blanket over her. She was about to leave when Tina held her hand. She deftly turned to meet Tina’s pleading gaze.
“Can you stay with me tonight Nanny?” She requested.
Nanny Betty stood quietly for some seconds and nodded.
“Okay, dear.” She agreed, lifted the blanket, and laid down beside Tina who in turn rested her head on her bosom.
Nanny Betty had always had the soft spot for Lucas and Tina since childhood as she was mostly the one they both grew around because of their parents' busy lives.
This was the more reason behind Tina’s boastful attitude since she had always done things to draw attention especially from her parents to herself.
Seeing how calmly Tina was resting now, Nanny Betty started humming her favorite tune to put her off to sleep.
******
Though Tina had her fair share of the ordeal, the game wasn't over yet. Just as the saying goes, what's good for the goose is also good for the gander. Whatever evil act took place wasn't the doing of Tina only and if there was any punishment to be meted, it was going to be done equally.
It had already started with Tina but both Bella and Roxy had no idea about it.
Bella and Roxy were both fonds of staying up late just like Tina. It could be more of the reasons why they became friends; they literary had almost everything in common.
Bella and Roxy were simultaneously upon their beds with their gazes buried in their phones whiles they surf through social media with it being their habit.
Bella was giggling, scrolling past some posts whiles chatting with Roxy when she heard a sound like someone striking insulation, but everyone else was asleep except for herself. Moreover, they didn't have anything of that sort in the house. Every gut and muscle of her body seemed to come unwounded; her hair stood up. Bella’s eyesockets seemed to be expanding and her eyeballs constructing as if her head were trying to turn into a skull.
Every inch of her skin broke out in gooseflesh.
“Something is in here with me.” Her mind screamed. “Very likely something dead.”
At that moment, she heard someone humming again. She instinctively became conscious of her breathing; it becomes quiet again but she was still on edge and her ears were pricked.
Just then, she heard it again, closer this time. Like the person was standing behind her door.
Roxy on the other hand heard a similar sound like that, but hers was more of a babbling sound, followed by a pounding noise.
Her chest instinctively tightened while she paused with whatever she was about to type to Bella. Roxy thought; listening to the inside of her head; it is changing. The pounding had stopped, as though it had proved ineffective and there was now a swift movement up and down the hall as if an animal was pacing back and forth with unbelievable impatience, watching first at the door; alert for a movement outside.
Both Roxy and Bella simultaneously shrugged up from their beds like they were being controlled. In slow and steady paces, they went to their doorposts. There, that little babbling murmur that Roxy remembered came again. Bella on the other hand kept hearing the same humming.
“Am I doing it?” Roxy wondered quickly, is that me? And heard the tiny laughter beyond the door, mocking her.
“Did you have fun killing me?” A voice followed.
Roxy screamed and instantly, the whole house woke up. The lights in her parent's room were the first to turn on followed by her elder siblings.
Meeting heads on in the corridor, they all rushed towards Roxy's room. Line, Roxy’s elder brother instinctively pushed the door opened and to their surprise, they found her unconscious on the floor.
“Roxy–” Her mother cried and Line quickly carried her from the floor to the bed, followed by the others.
Meanwhile, Bella still stood at the door; slowly reaching for it with so much hesitation. Gathering all the courage left in her, she finally pulled it open to meet the corridor literary empty and the humming instantly stopped.
She lurked from left to right as her eyes searches around but found no one.
At that moment, mocking laughter broke through the corridor. “Did you have fun killing me?” A voice whispered through the laughter, sending chilling shivers through Bella’s spine.
She instinctively clasped her hands on her ears, closing her eyes in the process as she let out a blood-curdling scream which swept across the whole house.
Her parents, nanny, and younger sister rushed to her end and found her unconscious.
A flush of panic instinctively swept their faces as their eyes widened with shock.
Without another word, her Dad carried her to the bed as he asked Nanny Courtney to go and look for any first aid that could help.