CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The House of Creepy Mr. Ping-Pong
I sat on the floor doused in yellow liquid moonlight mingled with shadows, waiting. But for what? A chance to escape? The window was hopeless—small and too high for me to reach. For someone to rescue me? That was unlikely to happen. No one knew where I was. I’m trapped, I thought. In silence—ensnared by insatiable psychos. The door creaked open, and standing in front of me was a tall, muscular man with spiked hair and a smile that was all top teeth and gums. The sight of him made my skin crawl. “Such a shame.” He knelt down and plucked a leaf off my shirt. “You know, you would be so pretty without the canopy of cobwebs in your hair.” “Gee thanks, Sawdust Breath,” I snapped, struggling …show more content…
There are still a few kinks to iron out—” A noise, like the clatter of hooves on cobblestone gobbled up the rest of his words. The man who had brought me my supper stood framed in the doorway against a backdrop of yellow light. “Let’s go.” My heart was pounding. “But—” “Silence!” He twisted the rope that bound my wrist and they tightened. I began to groan. “Now move.” He snapped his fingers, and the lash eased. I stood up awkwardly, resigned to my fate like a condemned detainee consenting to their impending doom. The others seemed to accept their lot as well, and filed in a neat dress-right-dress line behind the man. We marched, single file, heads down, into an antique bronze elevator with a scissor gate. The winch lugged us up three floors and dinged to a stop. The man folded the barrier back and opened a purple door. Huge carved, red Chinese dragons with horns of ivory, holding pearl-shaped balls in their four claws, flanked the entry. “In here,” he said and pushed us into a circular room, which exuded bright, exotic colors. Yellow Chinese lanterns illuminated wall murals of bamboo shoots and sagging willow trees, gilded pillars, and ceiling frescoes. Purple sheers with beautiful scenes embroidered in gold hung over the long windows. “You approve of my drapes?” a voice from behind me
The House of Creepy Mr. Ping-Pong
I sat on the floor doused in yellow liquid moonlight mingled with shadows, waiting. But for what? A chance to escape? The window was hopeless—small and too high for me to reach. For someone to rescue me? That was unlikely to happen. No one knew where I was. I’m trapped, I thought. In silence—ensnared by insatiable psychos. The door creaked open, and standing in front of me was a tall, muscular man with spiked hair and a smile that was all top teeth and gums. The sight of him made my skin crawl. “Such a shame.” He knelt down and plucked a leaf off my shirt. “You know, you would be so pretty without the canopy of cobwebs in your hair.” “Gee thanks, Sawdust Breath,” I snapped, struggling …show more content…
There are still a few kinks to iron out—” A noise, like the clatter of hooves on cobblestone gobbled up the rest of his words. The man who had brought me my supper stood framed in the doorway against a backdrop of yellow light. “Let’s go.” My heart was pounding. “But—” “Silence!” He twisted the rope that bound my wrist and they tightened. I began to groan. “Now move.” He snapped his fingers, and the lash eased. I stood up awkwardly, resigned to my fate like a condemned detainee consenting to their impending doom. The others seemed to accept their lot as well, and filed in a neat dress-right-dress line behind the man. We marched, single file, heads down, into an antique bronze elevator with a scissor gate. The winch lugged us up three floors and dinged to a stop. The man folded the barrier back and opened a purple door. Huge carved, red Chinese dragons with horns of ivory, holding pearl-shaped balls in their four claws, flanked the entry. “In here,” he said and pushed us into a circular room, which exuded bright, exotic colors. Yellow Chinese lanterns illuminated wall murals of bamboo shoots and sagging willow trees, gilded pillars, and ceiling frescoes. Purple sheers with beautiful scenes embroidered in gold hung over the long windows. “You approve of my drapes?” a voice from behind me