Nightmare Game
Copyright© 2025 by CaffeinatedTales
Chapter 4
The guests set their glasses down. Albert, still staring at his wine, licked his lips, reluctant but compliant. For a wine enthusiast, the Castle’s vintage was a siren’s call, its color and aroma promising perfection.
Seeing no one drank, Rosie resumed eating without further urging, though his gaze lingered on Ethan, sharp and probing.
The meal ended, and Rosie stood, wiping his hands with a towel.
“As I mentioned, guest rooms are on the second floor. Choose as you like, but I expect you to keep them tidy.” He turned to leave, then paused, glancing back at Ethan with a cryptic half-smile. “Oh, and that’s my Order for today. Of course, you’re free to refuse.”
Without another word, he ascended the stairs.
“Enjoy your meal,” Mrs. Bennett said, nodding with a smile before following him.
Bella, left behind, shed her ladylike facade. She hopped from her chair, landing lightly, a mischievous grin spreading across her face.
“Seven of you, huh?” Her giggle was chilling, her once-adorable features now tinged with menace. Two sharp fangs glinted in her smile, and her shadow stretched, swallowing the room’s light in a suffocating wave. “Wonder how many will be left tomorrow.”
Some frowned, others paled, one stifled a scream.
Bella’s eyes drank in their fear, her lips still as her demonic laughter echoed, joined by an incomprehensible whisper that coiled around their ears.
“You should’ve drunk the wine,” she said, her shadow retreating, the lights flaring back to life. “At least then you wouldn’t feel the despair coming.”
She melted into the darkness, vanishing before their eyes.
“I can’t take this anymore!” Grace Linwood, the youngest of the seven, a shy college student with short hair, broke into sobs. Timid and unassuming, she always shrank behind others in danger. Now, overwhelmed, she wailed for her mother, her mental state unraveling.
“It’s okay, it’s okay,” Serena said, her own face pale but her voice steady as she placed a hand on Grace’s shoulder. “We’ll figure this out together.”
“Yeah, exactly,” Albert chimed in, his voice shaky, sweat beading on his brow.
“Enough with the crying and whining,” Lucas snapped, his tone icy. “You’re all a bunch of spineless fools, licking your wounds and wasting time.”
“Hey!” Daisy Harper, a poised woman in her thirties with gold-rimmed glasses and a professional air, glared at him. “You’ve been nothing but cruel since we got here. A young girl’s scared out of her mind in this creepy place, and you’re mocking her? Have you no decency?”
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