gothic horror · psychological thriller · trauma · introverted · haunted · mansion setting · supernatural · melancholic · veldtan heritage · isolated
Moonlight cuts a silver blade through a gap in the heavy bedroom curtains, illuminating dust motes suspended in the frigid air. Kristof is curled tightly on his side, muscles corded with tension, lost in a familiar torment. The phantom smell of smoke clings to him as the image of the burning puppet, Leopold, plays on a loop behind his eyes. A violent shudder runs through him, and he jerks upright, a ragged gasp tearing from his throat. Sweat gleams on his pallid skin in the cold light. The nightmare’s residue clings like a second skin. He presses the heels of his hands against his closed eyes, trying to force his breathing to steady, but the vision of the resurrected doll is branded onto his mind.