Slowly and quietly, so as not to make a sound, he crept up the stairs. He avoided the last squeaky step and turned down the hall.
There were several doors. The first was bedroom where the boy slept. The second was the bathroom. The third door was the one that he wanted. That was where she slept.
He entered the room and saw her. She was sleeping so peacefully. This was just too easy.
Nicole was sleeping soundly when she felt something light on her shoulder. Still half asleep, she assumed she was still dreaming when she felt someone begin to trail light kisses down her neck. And she wasn't worried when she felt someone begin to unbutton her pajamas.
Thinking it was Peter, she mumbled something and rolled over, reaching for the blanket. Which wasn't there. She opened her eyes to look for it, and saw that she was naked.
"Peter?" she asked aloud. "What is going on?"
She felt kisses on her chest, her neck, her stomach, but she didn't see him. "Peter, where are you?" she asked. She reached across the bed for the light near her bed, but he grabbed her arm back, continuing.
Suddenly, she felt a pain. A dull but strong pain that seemed to be all over her body. "Peter…it hurts," Nicole moaned, but then realized she wasn't even sure what hurt.
Peter didn't stop whatever he was doing that hurt her. Remembering her power, Nicole reached out, until her hand struck another body. 'Ok Pete, you asked for it,' she thought to herself. Then, concentrating, she returned the pain.
Feeling the pain, the other person (Peter or not) fell off of her and on to the bed beside her.
"Mommy?" she heard Thomas' voice at the door, and she detected worry.
Nicole, remembering she was naked, grabbed a robe from nearby and through it on. Then she flicked on the light and hurried over to the boy.
"What is it?" she asked.
"I'm scared."
"Why?" she asked, worried.
"Daddy…he's hurt," Thomas whined.
"Daddy?" she asked, remembering what had just happened. "Oh, no Thomas, he'll be fine."
"Not him," Thomas replied. "He's not Daddy."
A shiver ran down Nicole's spine…that wasn't…? "Then where is Daddy?" she asked.
"Downstairs," Thomas replied, and led her down the stairs. He led her to the kitchen. Nicole flipped on the lights and gasped at what she saw. In the kitchen, in front of the still opened refrigerator, lay Peter…who looked exactly like the man who had been upstairs.
"P-peter?" Nicole asked, fear rushing through her veins. She lifted him up, sitting him upright, and looked into his eyes. They were dull, lifeless, staring. He didn't seem to be in there.
Fearing tears form in her eyes, Nicole wiped them away. He couldn't have won. Not after all she'd been through. She couldn't let Pleter win.
She heard a noise behind her and turned. Pleter stood there. Seeing him, finally, in good light, Nicole shivered. It was eerie.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"The same thing I've always wanted," he replied. Nicole stood up and took a step forward, getting between the two look-alikes. "To be better than him."
"I don't understand," she replied, confused. Pleter took a step towards her, but she didn't move.
"He's got everything good," he replied. "Even you." He took another step towards her. "But not anymore."
"What did you do to him?" she asked.
"I used my ability."
"What do you mean?" she asked.
He smiled. "Don't be daft. You know what I mean. He's got one; your son's got one; even all the bloody idiots next door have one. A special ability. I've got one too."
"What's that? What did you do to him? Is he dead?" Nicole demanded.
"No," Pleter admitted. "But very near to it. I took his soul."
"You…took…How?"
Pleter rolled his eyes. "Just did," he replied with a shrug. "Let me demonstrate."
He took another step towards her and placed his hands on her shoulders. Nicole felt the same pain go through her that she'd felt before. Slowly, consciousness began to leave her.
"No," she said aloud. "You can't do this." Fighting to stay awake, she grabbed his arms and turned his ability back on him. She felt something strange happening to her, and then Pleter was on the ground, as dead looking as Peter.
She sighed, exhausted, and flopped to the ground.
