7
336 Words
Chapter 7: Eyes of Gold
William's vision swam with crimson. When he blinked, thick fluid dripped from his lashes—not blood, but something metallic that reeked of rust. His retinas burned as if scalded, each heartbeat sending fresh agony through his skull.
"Your eyes..." Jackie's voice came through muffled, as if underwater.
The reflection in the flooded floor showed his irises now molten gold, pupils sl*t vertically like a cat's.
The doppelgänger's laughter shattered the air.
"Awake at last?" Its face began melting. "See for yourself—"
Decomposing fingers plunged into its own eye sockets, flinging two golden orbs into the air.
The Floodgates Open: 12:47 AM
William saw himself strapped to a 1920s operating table. Seven figures fed Emma's brain matter through silver tubes into his temples. A plague-masked surgeon raised a syringe filled with shimmering liquid.
"The seventh attempt must succeed." The voice echoed inside William's skull. "We require eyes that pierce the veil."
Fragments tore through him:
—Hammering baby teeth into a seven-pointed sigil—Placing a still-beating heart beneath silver forks—Practicing Emma's smile before mirrors
The worst memory surfaced last:
The surgeon handing him a shotgun—this shotgun—its barrel bearing the same dent. "When the next journalist comes," he whispered, "complete the rite with his blood."
The Reckoning: 1:03 AM
Jackie's palms framed William's face.
"Look at me." She bit her lip until blood dripped onto his lashes. "This isn't you."
Her amethyst bracelet glowed, illuminating the old burn scar on William's palm—a wound from saving his sister at fifteen, impossible for any century-old ghost to share.
The reflection shrieked in rage.
As it lunged, William fired instinctively. Instead of buckshot, golden sparks erupted—weaving a shimmering net of memories:
—The fire survivor he'd carried from collapsing beams—His shattered camera after exposing corporate lies—Cradling a suicide victim's hands in the morgue
"This is William Blackwood." Jackie's voice cut through the chaos. "The man who exposes truths."
- Writer
