The lamp pulsed.
Golden light spilled across the room, flickering like it was waking up from a long, cursed nap.
Mrs. Hodgins stood over it, her eyes gleaming, her smile sharp.
"At last," she whispered. "The lamp responds. My triumph is complete."
She raised her arms dramatically, ready to channel its power—
"Not now, bitch!" Brittany screamed, bursting through the door like a glitter bomb of rage.
The lamp stopped glowing.
Just… blinked. And went dark.
Mrs. Hodgins blinked. "Excuse me?"
Mira skidded in behind Brittany, phone in hand. "Anne's tracker says she's somewhere here. Maybe downstairs."
Mrs. Hodgins smirked. "You'll never find her."
Brittany cracked her knuckles. "Oh, we'll see about that."
Scene: The Split
As Mrs. Hodgins stepped forward, her shadow stretching unnaturally across the floor, Mira darted in the opposite direction.
"I'll find her!" she shouted, disappearing down a hallway.
Zahir lay unconscious on the floor, his breathing shallow, his body still.
Brittany glanced at him, her heart twisting. "How do you even fight a ghost?"
Mrs. Hodgins answered for her—with a charge.
She moved fast, faster than Brittany expected, and struck her square in the gut.
Brittany gasped, stumbling back.
Mira heard the impact but couldn't turn back.
She was already deep in the mansion's maze, opening doors, checking rooms.
She opened one door—and froze.
Inside, two goblins were giving blowjobs to each other....
One wore a leather vest and shouted, "i told you to lock the door, Greg!"
Mira blinked. "I knew goblins were gay."
She backed out slowly.
"Not the room," she muttered. "Definitely not the room."
Back in the main hall, Brittany was on the ground, coughing, bruised, and furious.
Mrs. Hodgins loomed over her, smirking. "You're just like the rest. Loud. Pretty. Weak."
Brittany wiped blood from her lip. "You forgot petty. And I'm not done yet."
Mrs. Hodgins raised her hand again.
The lamp flickered.
Zahir didn't move.
And somewhere beneath them, Anne stirred.
To be continued…