The Shuddering

but something kept him from making a sound. He held his breath and waited, praying that it had only been the wind, that the door hadn’t been latched and it had finally given way to the air pressure outside. But why the fuck hadn’t that door been locked? The idea of their having huddled inside this cabin, collecting weapons, considering how they were going to defend themselves while there was an unlocked door in the opposite room blew his mind. And then he remembered Jane yelling, Sawyer pulling her back, the thing on the deck. In their panic, nobody had realized the dead bolt hadn’t been thrown back into place. And now Ryan was left sitting in the darkness of the living room, staring at it as it hung open wide, like a gaping mouth ready to scream.
    The moment he saw something fill the doorway was the moment Ryan Adler was sure they were dead. Oona’s defensiveness was suddenly squelched when the creature stepped inside. She ducked her head down, afraid, not daring to move from her master’s side. Ryan, on the other hand, didn’t move because he was petrified. With the fire to his back, his mouth hung open without sound.
    One of the things that had murdered Lauren stepped around the kitchen island, sniffing at the air. Its stomach was emaciated, like that of a stray dog that hadn’t fed for weeks. Long strings of saliva dripped from its wide jowls, glisteningin the firelight. It sniffed the air with two holes that served as its nose, a gruesome purr rumbling deep inside its chest. Ryan’s eyes widened as it began to pull out drawers, its nostrils flaring as it tried to sniff out food. Not having any luck, it finally pressed its huge skull to the refrigerator door, as if able to smell what was inside. With the fridge built into the cabinets, it didn’t budge when the creature gave it a shove—not even a wiggle. The monster pushed it again, this time with more frustration. Nothing. Ryan watched this while trying not to choke on his own heartbeat, hoping like hell the thing didn’t notice him sitting there beside the fire, praying that Oona didn’t make a move, that Sawyer and Jane didn’t bolt upright and start freaking out.
    Swiping at the door, the flat of the demon’s palm dragged across the refrigerator door, and its bony fingers hooked beneath the lip that served as the refrigerator’s handle. It canted its head as if curious, considering this new discovery, and then pulled instead of pushed, revealing the treasure it was looking for. Ryan went numb, dread spiking his bloodstream.
    They’re intelligent.
    That was why they hadn’t attacked days before, when Ryan and Sawyer had stood outside just beyond the pool room. It was why the one on the porch hadn’t burst through the glass when it had spotted the three of them standing inside in the kitchen. They were smart . They were weighing their options, considering the best plan of attack.
    He nearly jumped when a glass jar exploded against the kitchen floor. Both Sawyer and Jane jerked awake. Ryan dared to move, pressing his fingers to his mouth, silently warning them not to make a sound. He could only hope that if that thing spotted them it would run away like it had before, but he wasn’t about to take his chances.
    The predator fumbled through the dark refrigerator with nails that had been made for climbing and tearing. It thrust its arm inside the fridge, drawing it out a moment later, inspecting a gushing milk carton crushed within its wide, clawed hand. Lifting its arm so that milk dribbled into its mouth, it whipped its head from side to side before flinging the carton across the kitchen, apparently disliking the taste. As soon as it ducked its head back inside the fridge, Ryan scrambled closer to his comrades. The fire blazed behind them, burning his back through the fabric of his sweatshirt.
    Jane clamped her hand over her mouth, her eyes shimmering with panic that threatened to spill over. The terror crushed her self-restraint beneath its weight, and her whimper cut through the quiet of the room at precisely the wrong moment.
    Her eyes widened.
    Ryan’s attention snapped to the hairless abomination in the kitchen.
    It had heard, and it was staring directly at them, its gaping maw unhinged, the contents of the fridge at its feet. It lurched forward, its nails clacking against the floor. It stopped just shy of the single step that led down into the living room as if reconsidering an attack, the firelight reflecting in its cold black eyes,