Gianfranco Mancini’s Reviews > Video Night > Status Update

The figure was still there, standing motionless in the same position, a creepy, lifeless scarecrow stuck in the middle of his lawn. The face was shrouded in complete darkness. With the hooded jacket and the streetlights at its back, there was no way of knowing who it was. The only thing Billy could see were the tips of its fingers. They seemed to extend much further beyond the cuff of the jacket than was normal.

“My guess is they don’t like the cold,” Billy said. He was racking his brain trying to figure out which movie this was most like when he was interrupted by a knocking from upstairs. The knock turned into a frantic banging, and they both jumped. “Somebody’s knocking on your door,” Rachel said, probably sounding more panicked than she intended to.

“I meant to say that I did not know that a host that small could support us.” It may have been in response to Darl stepping closer, or it may have been that the creature perceived an insult, but either way the orange cat looked him directly in the eyes and hissed, its eyes flattened into an angry squint. The hiss petered out into a series of small clicks and then a purr. Geraldine smiled at him.

She shifted past him and no longer tried to stop his progress into the kitchen. Instead she doubled back into the hallway and wrapped her hand around the doorknob to the closet. It was time to release the hounds.