In light of it being Friday the 13th AND a full moon, and the fact that it won’t happen again until 2049, Writers Carnival celebrated by throwing a midnight challenge to post a SCARY story using NO MORE than 750 words.

*WARNING : ELEMENTS OF HORROR – but this is ‘scary pants’, Friday 13th BADGE entry!* (Word count 590)

The desk lamp cast a pool of light over the black laquered surface of the desk. The nape of my neck prickled and, slowly turning my chair on its spindle, I gazed out over the muted city lights. Shit, it’s late. Pink blood-like streaks stretched across the dark grey canvas of an evening sky.

Leaning back and clasping my hands behind my head, I eased out my neck muscles, frowning at the tightness which pulled them back into knots. With a sudden explosion of movement, I stood up. Yanking my jacket from the back of my chair, without tidying away the spread of papers scattered over the desk, I headed for the door.

As I left the office, I scanned the open plan workspace beyond, relieved to find there were only two halos of lemon light glowing above the partitions of distant cubicles. Okay, I can get out of here. I walked carefully out to the deserted reception area, the measured stride of my footfalls echoing on the solid wood floor. A rush of heat made me sweat, and, running my finger around the inside of my collar, I cursed under my breath because it was tighter than it had been this morning.

The thin cotton of my shirt felt like sandpaper against my skin. I shifted my shoulders, grumbling gently as I stopped at the elevator.

With the side of a clenched fist, I hit the call button. The boldprint black ‘G’ became ghost grey as the safety glass fractured. I closed my eyes, listening to the whine and swish of the straining cables which, on a normal day, I could not hear, and began chanting. C’mon, c’mon, c’mon.

A musical chiming sound announced the arrival of the elevator, and I snapped my eyes open once more. For a moment, I stared into blood red eyes shining back at me from the mirror finish of the polished steel doors.

Glancing quickly over my shoulder as the elevator doors parted with a sigh, I strode swiftly forward into the brushed steel box. Letting my jacket drop onto the plush ruby red carpet at my feet, I leaned against the back wall, my unsheathed claws scraping over the metal panel. The doors swished as they began to close, smoothly narrowing the gap.

“Wait.”

Jerking into movement, I reached for the button displaying the ‘door close’ symbol, my lip folding back on my distorted features, a muzzle unleashing a rumbling growl.

A manicured hand slipped between the doors. “Wait. Please.”

I recognised the red nail varnish. I backed away. “Catch the next one, Kate.”

Her arm pushed into the car first, swiftly followed by a sidestepping body dressed in a cream silk blouse and tight black skirt.

“Pheww, that was close. Jason, why didn’t you hold the…”

She turned to look at me, the blond curtain of her hair swinging back. Her features froze in sudden terror and she jolted back against the sealed elevator door.

I killed the scream in her throat as my canines punctured her windpipe. My arms closed around her, holding her close in a macabre dance as her blood flowed down between our clamped bodies. When her flesh was cold, I lifted my chin and howled at the full-moon, which I felt like the burn of ash stroking over my skin, even though I could not see it. A tear lay a damp trail over the fur covering my cheek as the human mind trapped inside me screamed.