Day 2,501

You knew you shouldn't be here, no living person should be here but you had to find her and the voice on the phone gave you this address. The voice sounded so soothingly familiar that you found yourself writing down everything they told you to and hailing the first cab you could find in the hopes that she would be there without even registering where you were heading to.

It used to be a mall back in the 60's, a thriving and bustling place that was closed and sealed off when a local cult barricaded themselves inside and never came back out. Their bodies were never found, nor was anyone who'd been in there with them - it was like they all just vanished into thin air. Just like she had.

It wasn't the kind of incident that anywhere could bounce back from so the owners cut their losses and closed the doors for good a couple of weeks after the police called it unsolvable. You'd heard the urban legends and playground stories about portals in the basement, how it was always night inside, how you could still see the dead cult members in their final hours but none of that scared you as much as thought of losing her for good.

The taxi dropped you off as close as they dared, leaving you a half hour's walk and a concerned driver who said he'd call the police if he hadn't heard from you by morning. You'd either have found her and called him back for a ride or... maybe you wouldn't need a lift at all. It wasn't something you wanted to think about but the closer you got, the more those old playground stories clouded your mind.

You were shaking like a leaf before your hand even touched the door and before you could fully reach for it, another hand shot out from behind you and gripped your wrist so hard you felt your bones creak. The soothingly familiar voice harshly whispered in your ear to not look up and back away slowly.

If it had been so easy then you'd still be on that side of the doors but you heard her banging on the glass and begging you for help. You twisted away from the stranger's grip, barely registering your wrist cracking and breaking from the force as your eyes locked with hers and you threw the doors open to meet with

                teeth