Alona woke up to find the house unusually silent. The sun was already high in the sky, casting sharp beams through the cracks in the old wooden shutters. She turned over, expecting to see Justin beside her, but the bed was empty. Her stomach churned with unease, a feeling that had lingered since last night’s encounter by the river.
She dressed quickly and went downstairs, hoping to find him in the kitchen or maybe outside fixing something. The house was still. Alona stepped out into the yard, the fresh morning air doing little to calm her. She spotted a note hastily pinned to the door with a small nail.
“Gone to the town’s market. Will be back by evening.”
She sighed, folding the note and tucking it into her pocket. Justin had left early to gather supplies, something about restocking the food and getting a few repairs done on the truck. He’d been anxious to leave since their conversation the night before, when she told him about the eerie cries and the scratches on her leg.
All day, she busied herself around the house, but an unease gripped her, growing as the hours ticked by. By late afternoon, the clouds had rolled in, casting shadows over the house, and the temperature had dropped slightly. Evening came, and there was still no sign of Justin.
She kept checking the old clock on the mantle. 6:30 PM.
7:00 PM.
By 8:00 PM, the sky had turned a deep indigo, and there was still no sign of Justin. Alona couldn’t shake the unease creeping into her bones. She stood at the window, peering out into the night, listening intently for any sound of footsteps or the rattle of the truck. The house felt too quiet. A silence that pressed against her ears.
Just then, she heard it—a dull thud from outside. The sound made her freeze in place, her heart skipping a beat. It was the same thud she'd heard before. Slowly, she edged toward the window, trying to peer out without being seen. The trees outside swayed gently in the wind, but there was no sign of movement. She told herself it could have been anything—a branch falling or a small animal—but her mind refused to let go of the creeping dread.
A few minutes passed, and then the sound came again, closer this time. A soft thud followed by something else, something that made her skin prickle with unease—a baby’s cry.
Her breath caught in her throat. The same wail from last night. Low, almost desperate, it echoed through the night air. This time, the sound seemed to come from the edge of the yard, near the thick brush that bordered the river.
Alona’s pulse quickened as she opened the front door, stepping cautiously into the night. The cold air bit at her skin, and the cry pierced through the darkness once more, tugging at her heartstrings. She followed the sound, moving closer and closer to the source. There, just past the tall grass, illuminated faintly by the moonlight, she saw a small figure.
A child—barely a year old, covered in mud and crawling on the wet ground.
Alona's heart lurched with both fear and pity. Her maternal instinct kicked in, overriding the rational part of her mind that screamed for her to turn back. The child was tiny, frail-looking, its cries hoarse as it struggled to move through the mud.
“Who would abandon a baby like this?” she whispered to herself, her chest tightening at the sight. Without hesitation, she moved closer. "You poor thing..."
Kneeling in the dirt, Alona gently scooped up the baby girl, cradling her against her chest. The baby’s small hands clutched at her shirt, and for a moment, all Alona could feel was an overwhelming sense of sorrow. This child was lost, cold, and alone. She had to help her.
But as soon as she lifted the baby into her arms, something changed.
The baby’s cries turned into a low, guttural growl. The small hands that clutched at her shirt suddenly felt sharp—clawed. A strange, sickening crack sounded, and Alona stared down in horror as the baby’s face twisted, contorting into something hideous.
The sweet, innocent eyes turned a deep, empty black. The baby’s mouth widened into a grotesque, sharp-toothed grin. Its skin paled, stretched taut over its bones, and the creature in her arms let out a blood-curdling screech.
Alona’s scream caught in her throat. The creature thrashed violently, its claws ripping through her shirt, tearing into her skin. She tried to drop it, to throw it away from her, but her arms felt weak, heavy, as if something was holding her in place.
“No... no... what is this?!” she cried, stumbling backward as the thing lunged at her again.
The Tiyanak—a creature of legend, the demon child from the tales Justin had spoken of—was real, and it was right in front of her, snarling and clawing, its sharp teeth gleaming in the dim moonlight.
Alona turned and ran, her heart pounding in her ears. Her legs felt leaden, but she pushed forward, desperately trying to make it back to the house. The Tiyanak let out a shriek, and she could hear it chasing after her, its small, twisted form scuttling through the mud with unnatural speed.
Her feet slipped on the wet ground as she tried to find her way back, but everything seemed distorted. The trees no longer pointed the way home, and the path she had taken was gone, swallowed by the thickening darkness. The Tiyanak’s cries echoed around her, growing louder, closer.
Panic clawed at her mind as she realized she couldn’t find the house. It was as if the world had shifted, trapping her in a maze of shadows and thick brush. She kept running, her breath coming in ragged gasps, but the creature was faster, relentless.
Alona stumbled, falling hard into the mud. The Tiyanak was on her in an instant, its claws digging into her ankle, dragging her toward it. She screamed, kicking at the creature with everything she had, but it clung to her, its sharp teeth snapping at her leg. The pain was searing, like a fire spreading through her body.
In a last-ditch effort, she grabbed a fallen branch, swinging it wildly. The Tiyanak hissed, momentarily retreating, giving her just enough time to scramble to her feet. She ran again, her vision blurred by fear and exhaustion.
Somewhere ahead, she saw a faint light—was it the house? The hope of safety spurred her on, her legs burning as she sprinted toward it. The Tiyanak’s cries grew fainter, but she knew it was still behind her, lurking, waiting for her to slow down.
Finally, she burst through the trees and into a clearing. The house stood before her. Alona rushed toward the front door, slamming it shut behind her just as she heard the Tiyanak’s enraged screech from the woods.
Her body trembled violently, her skin cold and slick with sweat. She backed away from the door, her hands still shaking. The Tiyanak’s cries faded into the distance, but she knew it wasn’t gone. It was still out there, waiting.
She collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath. The scratches on her leg throbbed with pain, and her mind raced with the terror of what she had just seen. Alona pressed her hands to her face, trying to hold back the sobs that threatened to break free.
The silence in the house was suffocating, but the fear in her heart was even worse. She couldn’t stop shaking, her body still locked in the grip of fear. And as she lay there, the full horror of what had happened finally hit her.
She had held a demon child in her arms.
And it had tried to kill her.