Still on the phone, Amy was becoming livid over the events of that morning.
" I left your sister this morning, hale and hearty," she said
"it's just students' gossip, you know," she added. Uche on the other end heaved a sigh of relief. It was perceptible over the phone. Amy was about to hang up when he spoke.
"what was she doing when you left, Amy?"
"she was..." Amy's heart skipped a beat,
"she was ...sleeping," she whispered it like it was some forbidden word. she hung up with a quick "call you back" and took to her heels.
Amy's mind raced as she dashed towards the hostel. Was Evelyn really sleeping when she left, or was she... dead? she was completely puzzled by unanswered questions; was it coincidental that someone whose name was Evelyn committed suicide, in a hostel where a student took his own life sometime ago? Amy didn't want to accept the fact that there was only one Evelyn in hostel-D, it just have to be another Evelyn.
A few minutes later, Amy laid a trembling hand on the door knob to her room. The hostel was empty when she rushed in and that frightened her. She'd open the door, she thought, and she'd see her friend getting ready for lectures with her bed untidy as usual. Amy was however, not disappointed for as she walked into the room, sitting on the bed and still in her night dress was Evelyn.
"No lectures today?" Amy asked sitting beside her friend.
" I'm not feeling too well," Evelyn stared blankly with her brown eyes.
"There's something I want to tell you," Amy said as she sat closer. She went on and narrated her experience to her friend, carefully excluding the rumour.
"something's really bad in this hostel, we should leave immediately," Amy said already packing.
"we can stay with my mum for the meantime until..."
"did you inhale too much of exhaust gas?" Evelyn asked for the first time since her friend walked in. Amy noticed a change in her friend's voice, it was strangely a baritone voice.
"why?" Amy asked with furrowed brows.
"carbon monoxide intake can cause hallucinations," she replied.
"you think I've been hallucinating?" Amy queried as her anger rose.
"you think losing a night's memory is a hallucination, you think your rumored suicide is also a hallucination?" Amy said rapidly.
" It's not a rumor Amy, they were right." Amy gasped and stared straight at her friend.
"what is not a rumor?" was all Amy managed.
Evelyn smiled, stood up and walked towards her friend; cutting her off from the door which had mysteriously slammed shut on its own accord. Tentacles of fear circled Amy as she had no idea what to do.
"you led me to that cursed room Amy,"
"you made me see the note," her voice was eerily calm initially but then it rose with a high accusing tone,
"you made me take my own life!" The sinister smile faded into a snarl as she moved closer. Amy wished it was some kind of joke but the strange voice proved otherwise. Only one thought frightened her; whatever it was that was with her in that room, standing before her, it wasn't Evelyn.
Cold shivers ran down her spine as Amy stared at her best friend or whatever it was, turning into something weird. Her eyes turned totally black, her face turned pale and her nails were growing at an impossible pace. Amy tried to look away but couldn't, the black pair of eyes seemed to be sending her a message. Evelyn stood a few inches away from Amy now, a wicked snarl played across her lips as her eyeballs bores deep into the eyes of her victim. It was then that it dawned on Amy, she was being hypnotized!
Her muscles started obeying some unseen command. Her right hand was suddenly clutching a razor blade and was moving towards her left wrist. Sweat trickled down her face as she battles to take back the control of her body.
She tried hard to remove her right hand but it was already cutting into her left wrist against her wish, Amy started sobbing. She opened her mouth to plead but couldn't produce any coherent sound. Panic took over as she feels the warmth and the coppery smell of her own blood as it trickled down her hand. Amy slowly went down on her knee as Evelyn stood with triumph over her still staring deep into Amy's eyes. It was then that she did something she rarely does- she prayed silently for some miracle.
Almost immediately, just like an answer to her silent prayer, a hurried knock came on the door.
"It's me, open the door Amy," on hearing the voice, Evelyn snapped her head immediately away from Amy and stared towards the door, she bared her teeth menacingly like a hungry vampire as a low growl emanated from her.
Amy felt a great relief as Evelyn broke the hypnotizing stare, the blade slipped out of her grasp, she immediately resumed control of her subconscious and screamed, "help...!"she had hardly finished when her assailant dealt her a deadly blow on her neck. Amy clutched her throat gasping for air as her assailant bolted towards the door in an attacking movement.
Hearing the scream, he threw his weight on the door and stumbled inside but was taken unaware. Evelyn grabbed his neck with both hands and lifted him into the air. He stared with awe at his attacker.
"It's me your brother Evelyn, it, Uche," he said in a chocking voice. Evelyn stared up at him with her head cocked in an awkward angle. His legs were still dangling in the air when the Chaplain walked in.
"I command you demon to leave her immediately!" he commanded as he showered her with holy water
"leave! in the name of the father, the son..." almost immediately, she dropped him, shook spasmodically with a shriek on the floor. The sound she produced was like the cacophony from suffering souls in Hades.
They all stood and watched as she shook on the floor, arched her back upwards and suddenly collapsed back on the floor. Her eyes returned to normal, her face looked peaceful and humane but one thing was obvious, she was lifeless. It was as though a legion of demons just left her body. He stood and stared blankly at his sister's body
"what on earth happened to my sister?" was all he could manage with a shaking voice. He actually addressed the question to no one in particular. He turned to Amy who was being attended to by the chaplain,
"I had to call the chaplain after we spoke on phone," he said
"I was scared Amy, I knew my sister was gone," Amy rushed up to him and held him in a warm embrace
"thank you for coming, whatever that was, it wasn't your sister, Evelyn would not hurt me or you."
"you need to see a doctor Amy," he said gesturing to the small wound still bleeding lightly on her left wrist.
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