Garry pulled me into a run, sprinting past grinning portraits of people who had never existed. I looked back over my shoulder, trying to catch a glimpse of whatever was chasing us.

“Don’t look back!” Garry yelled, sensing my urge to stop and turn around.

I kept running beside him, clutching his hand tightly. In my other hand, I held a red rose. I glanced at Garry’s coat. In his inside pocket, a blue rose bounced silently.

We dashed around corners and wound our way through the many halls of the gallery. In time, we came to a long hallway with several doors along either side. Garry let go of my hand and began trying the doors on the left side. I hurried over to the right side and jiggled the doorknobs of every door within reach.

All the doors were locked but one. I felt relief flood through me when the knob turned smoothly. I called for Garry and he came running, pushing me into the dark room before going in himself. Once inside, he whirled around and slammed the door shut, locking it firmly.

Although there was hardly any light in the room, we were able to see. It wasn’t enough to make out any details but at least we knew we were alone. It was an empty space with a few bookshelves lining the walls.

Garry pressed himself against the door. I did the same, straining to listen to the commotion outside.

Whatever was chasing us was trying to pry open every single door. I heard crashes and explosions of wood every time it kicked down a door. Garry held me close as the monster advanced, almost near our door. I clutched his coat and my rose, my heart thumping madly in my heaving chest.

Stomp, stomp, stomp…CRASH!

I jumped. It was getting closer.

Stomp, stomp, stomp…CRASH!

And closer.

Stomp, stomp, stomp…

I closed my eyes and held my hands over my ears, waiting for the inevitable crash of our door exploding into splinters.

Sniff, sniff…growl…

I could almost smell it right outside our room. I felt Garry shaking slightly next to me. I squeezed his hand and he squeezed back, pulling me away from the door slowly.

Stomp, stomp, stomp…stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp…

To my surprise, and relief, the monster stomped away, its footsteps fading. We heard echoes of its growling long after it had left. But I couldn’t help but smile. We were safe…for now.

Garry sighed heavily and collapsed on the ground. He ran his hands through his purple hair and shuddered.

“Garry, are you alright?” I asked, kneeling beside him.

He nodded weakly. He looked pale and shaken. I leaned in closer and gave him a tight hug which he returned gratefully. When I pulled away, I smiled at him.

“We can wait here for a while if you want. I’m sure we’re safe for now.” I said.

“Yeah, let’s wait here. But…” Garry looked around him as though he feared some ghost might pop out of the wall and possess him. “I wonder why it went away…?”

That was a question that didn’t need answering.

“What if it comes back?” I whispered.

Garry put on a brave face and I would tell it was for my sake.

“Nah, we’re fine. He got bored with us, that’s all. He won’t come back. We can relax here until we’re ready to move on, okay?”

I nodded, but anxiety settled like a lump of led in my stomach. Fear churned within me like indigestion.

To take my mind off it, I reached out and grabbed a book off a nearby bookshelf. I flipped through the pages until something caught my eye. It was a picture of a girl standing sweetly amongst yellow roses. Her hands were folded obediently behind her back and her green skirt seemed to almost move with the wind. Her blonde hair was shiny and her eyes were sharp and clear. The picture was called Mary.

But there was something unsettling about her. The way she peered at you through the paper, the way she smiled. It just looked…sort of…wrong. Something about her wasn’t quite right.

I shut the book with a snap and placed it back on the shelf. I looked up to see that Garry had wandered off amongst the books and was flipping through each one like I did. He noticed me staring at him.

Smiling, he said, “Are you ready to go?” He closed the book he was reading and pushed it back into its place.

I nodded again, tasting bile in my throat. Garry took my hand to calm me down. He could probably see me trembling.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “We’ll get out of here soon. The exit may just be around the corner. Just hold on, okay?”

I forced a smile and reached for the doorknob. The door creaked in warning as I pulled it open. Sticking our heads out into the hallway, we looked left and right and then left again. Garry stepped out of the room quietly and pulled be along behind him. It was dim and silent.

I followed Garry to the end of the hallway. It ended in two paths. We chose the right side after a fierce game of rock-paper-scissors and continued to walk until we came to a large opening.

It was just another empty space. There were no displays of art or furniture. There was nothing there.

But in the very center of the room there stood a little girl. She had her back to us. But when she heard us, she turned around, a huge smile frozen on her pretty face. She looked like a plastic doll. But if there was one thing about her I didn’t like it was this:

She was the girl I saw in the book.

Mary.