My mom walks through the door, looking paler than a harsh blizzard. She opens her mouth to say something to me, but her tears are holding back the words she wishes to convey. She finally walks over to sit down on my bed.

While hugging me, my mom speaks terrifying words, “Dad is dead, Dean.”

***

“Where are we going Dean?” shouts Beverly.

Beverly (Bev) is the love of my life. We met each other freshman year when we both didn’t have anywhere to sit at lunch. I was fifteen then, and I’m seventeen now, and I don’t know if she is another high school relationship or if she has my back.

I keep pushing tree branches aside to navigate through this dark forest, “I’m looking for something I saw in a dream. It’s an old hospital, and it has something I need.”

Bev cuts in front of me to stop me from moving on, “You’re telling me that you dragged me into a forest with a dangerous maniac to find something that you saw in a dream? A dream!”

“This could stop The Ripper. My dream exposed a weakness of his and I need to find this building. There’s a room we need to find; 12C. There are little clues from my dreams that tell me the building is out here.” I try to tell her what I want, but I need to tell her why. “If tracking this killer down and putting an end to him is the way to avenge my dad and the other dead citizens, then I will go to extreme measures to make sure I stop this psyc-”

A sound of loud branches snapping interrupts me. Bev grabs onto my arm as tight as she can. The face of fear is present in both of us because we both know we aren’t alone.

“Don’t move,” I whisper to Bev while I hand the flashlight to her, and as I hear the sounds grow louder, I reach into my pocket for my dad’s old 9mm pistol. I turn around to see someone, twenty yards away.

An ugly, gruesome face, The Ripper. Its mouth is huge with many rows of teeth, and all of its teeth are dripping blood. This creature has a bloody coat and pants on, but I cannot consider it to be human.

Bev tugs on my arm, “What the hell is that thing! Shoot it!”

Bang! The ripper falls to the ground but gets up within a minute.

It’s immortal! I can’t hold this beast off forever. What do I do, Dean? Think, what’s next?

I cannot fully see where I am going, but I am hoping that The Ripper doesn’t earlier. Everything looks so similar, that I’m convinced this is a murder maze.

“Look, a building!” shouts Bev.

We approach the building, and there are so many dead bodies against the outer facade that I feel trapped. I hear footsteps of The Ripper coming, so I grab Bev and fall into the leaves for cover. I see the creature sprint towards the bodies, rip out the intestines, and begin to feast. This must be how it received its name.

The wind blocks The Ripper from picking up our scent. It eventually leaves, but I cannot waste any time. I grab Bev, creep slowly to the dead body, and rip out one of the bloody organs.

Stepping back, she looks at me in disgust, “What are you doing?”

“Trust me, I have a plan and I think we will need this,” I tell her.

Creeping around the side of the building, I find a door. Before stepping inside, I see the building is three stories tall, and I want to tell Bev, but I can’t; not yet.

As Bev steps in, I slam the door shut, hoping that The Ripper heard it.

She pushes me, “What are you doing? It’s going to come back!”

I need to tell her, “That’s what I’m hoping will happen.”

The building doesn’t look old, but it shows that no one has tended to it for years. I’m running through the halls to find room to hide, but I can feel that time is running out. Bang! It sounds like the doors opening. Time is up, so I signal to Bev to hide in the closest room.

There’s a chair and a table that is ripped up with bite marks, I hear a loud growl from the hallway; it’s coming.

The organ in my pocket is still there, and I know he can smell it. I toss it on the operating table, and entering the room is the most disgusting face I’ve seen: the face of a killer.

The Ripper rushes at us, but I shoot him once to slow him down, and I push Bev behind the table, “Stay back there, I have him!”

I pull out the flashlight and shine it on the operating chair and table. The killer rises again to feast, but freezes when it sees the chair. It’s not moving. Now’s the time to end this.

I grab the rope from my coat, shoot two bullets into the creature, and tie it down to the chair. Bev and I run out of the room, and I slam the door to the room and pull out the four industrial locks I brought for the door. The door to room 12C is locked, and the nightmare is trapped in it.

While walking out, Bev is completely confused, “How did you know that would freeze that beast?”

“My dad was a doctor at that facility. The room 12C is where my dad operated on The Ripper, trying to cure his mutation. While my dad failed, The Ripper never had power in that room, so it feels weak every time that it’s in the room,” I explain to Bev.

As we walk away from the building, I realize that Bev will be by my side no matter what, but some nightmares last forever.