horror effect

Stephen rang the doorbell of Julian's room for 5 minutes and there was no movement. Just when he decided to leave, the door opened, but it was not Julian Raymond but Irina Theoros who came out.Stephen was surprised, but Elena was very calm, she smiled and said a few words before leaving.Stephen pushed Julian standing at the door and waving goodbye to Irone into the room, and closed the door.

"Very good," he said. "It's good that you're enjoying the love while I'm running back and forth between the Bouilly mansion and Marmet's studio. Now that you've got your heart set, go ahead. As for the white lion Secret, I'm afraid you don't care much now, do you?"

Julian, of course, caught the sarcasm in his words, and he figured he'd better explain. "The joy of love? Just the opposite." He made a troubled face. "Falling in love with a woman I don't love, and saying all the sweet words of love, this is really a torture for a man with noble and unique insights. You should understand my difficulties, Stephen."

"I don't understand."

"Ha! That's because you're not that age yet. When you get to my age and meet enough women, you'll know how to admire women, compliment them, and say everything about them—looks, clothes, temperament , taste--to be perfect is a gentleman's duty. And you suddenly find that you will be rewarded much better than you thought."

Stephen pouted. "Don't justify yourself with J. Jerome."

"There, there! Time for gags is over. Tell me about your results, Stephen, I think you'd be more than willing to tell me."

"Well... I saw Anna Bowai." He paused and continued. "We became friends."

Then, he recounted the process of getting acquainted with Anna.Julian was a little surprised that Theoros blackmailed Anna.

"I don't think he would do this kind of behavior, but he helped you and let you immediately gain the trust of Mrs. Bouy." Then he changed the subject and asked: "Mrs. Boi How about it?"

"Very young, only about 25 or [-] years old, very beautiful, but a bit weaker."

Julian laughed out loud. "And you say that I am in love with Irene, and you yourself are dating Madame de Bouilly."

"This is a mission." Stephen replied.

"Me too. Therefore, we don't have to blame each other in this respect. Let's talk about other things. Didn't you accompany Madame Bouilly to Constance Marmet's house?"

This reminded Stephen, and he showed Julian the outline of the statue he had seen.At first Julian thought it was a Sphinx, but when he saw the snake tail, he thought it was Chimera, or Marduk, the Babylonian god of thunder and rain. It wasn't until Stephen painted a lotus flower on the forehead of the figure that he suddenly realized.

"This is Horus, the son of the ancient Egyptian gods Osiris and Isis. Of course, to be precise, this statue is a mixture of Horus and Chimera."

"I think so too," said Stephen. "What kind of person would commission Marmet to carve such a strange statue?"

"You find it strange."

"Yes. This statue is not quite consistent with Marmey's other works. It always gives me a chilling feeling, but I don't know where this feeling comes from: the fire-breathing monster Chimera, or the goddess of warmth Isis son."

Theolos trembling all the way home, Elena and Nicholas were not there, he sat on the sofa alone, turning on the TV habitually with his fingers, but no matter how nagging and annoying the host, how exaggerated the grimacing clown, None of them aroused the slightest interest in him, and the scene in his mind was still at the moment after Stephen appeared. The hatred at that time had been gradually replaced by fear, accumulating in his heart, eager to find an exit.

He actually blackmailed a weak woman!

How could he do such a thing!

To make matters worse, his actions were seen.

Theolos knew very well that Stephen was different from most people in this town. He would not think of hiding the scandal because of the reputation of the town. On the contrary, he would tell everything he saw.Stephen doesn't even have to tell everyone, just his father, and the little life-saving funds Theoros has left will be frozen, the loan will be called back, and the result will be his complete doom.

Thinking of this, Theoros broke into a cold sweat. He was afraid of becoming a pauper. He knew exactly what a person would become after losing everything—any despicable thing to survive, he had seen it with his own eyes. He had lived such a person, and he had lived a decent life for a while, so he was all the more afraid.Who can you count on when you are really poor?Theolos thought that he would not be able to live here any longer, and Nicholas would not go with him—he loved Dr. Hostatova, and Irene would not go with him— She despised him, and Theolos had heard rumors that Irene had hooked up with the British reporter.

He thought again of his days in the west many years ago.At that time, he also lived a life of fear like now, but he had a way to earn money. As long as he wanted to, he could use his money to do anything: drink, gamble, play with women, it was dirty money anyway , just in time for them to return to the dirty place.But money is always money, and gold is always gold, and it shines even when thrown in the mud.He began to think back to his life at that time, the surrounding furniture gradually changed shape, a piece protruded here, a hole was sunk there, they turned into many small pieces, shining light, countless banknotes and gold coins circled around him, more and more More and more, like silt trapped in a storm.

The crisp paper of banknotes rubbed against his face, and the gold coins hit him hard but he didn't feel any pain.Then, out of the storm of money came many more wine bottles, all of the finest wines from France and Scotland, no need to twist the caps, the bottles opened by themselves, red, white, amber Wine fell from the sky and poured over his greedy gaping mouth.Then countless beautiful women emerged from the storm, including youthful and shy girls, as well as enchanting and charming women. They were all a thousand times more beautiful than Irone, hugging him, kissing him, saying no All the sweet talk.

This is what I want, this is what I want.Theolos rolled his eyes happily, silently praying that this moment would never pass.He didn't notice a slight change in the situation, and it was too late when he found out.The bills and gold piled up and covered his feet; the wine filled the gaps that remained and rose like a tide; and the women who surrounded him gave him no respite.enough!enough!he thinks.But the concrete of banknotes, gold coins, and fine wine has buried his waist, and the women are pressing him down with all their might.

stop!he shouted.stop!I do not want it!Never again!enough!stop!

But nothing stopped, his chest was buried.Theoros opened his hands upwards, shouting in fear: I don't want it anymore!Let these things go back!Let's go back!I do not want it!

As if his shouting really worked, the movement of burying him stopped.However, Theolos realized at this moment that those banknotes, jingling gold coins, and fragrant wine just now were really just a pile of concrete, while those beautiful women just now turned into A group of elderly women in black headscarves, all with hateful expressions, stretched their hands and screamed: "Give me back my baby!"

"Help!!"

Theolos yelled, waking up from the nightmare.

His head was covered in cold sweat, his face was ashen, and his whole body was trembling.

He scanned the surroundings with eyes bulging out of fear, and gradually calmed down until he confirmed that the scene in his dream did not really appear.Theolos stood up and staggered into the kitchen, looking for some strong drink to calm him down, but all the bottles were empty.Panting heavily, he patted his jacket pocket, then left the house, and walked towards the Four Calendar Tavern without closing the door.

The evening is the most crowded and lively time in the tavern. People who have worked all day drink a glass of wine here to relieve their physical fatigue and inner boredom.Laughter and conversation filled the small space, and the lively atmosphere was as attractive as a torch in this cold winter.On such an evening, the door of the tavern opened again, and the owner of the lumber mill appeared under the orange light. Several people greeted him, but they immediately realized that Theoros was very different from usual today. The arrogance was gone, and instead he had a terrified look on his face, his eyes were wide open but he didn't see anything, like a sleepwalker, as if what he saw in the tavern was not a person but a monster.These people who showed pity expressions probably didn't know that in Theolos' eyes, they were monsters.

As soon as Theolos stepped into the door of the Four Calendar Tavern, he found that everything changed: the stucco ceiling turned into a dome suspended with stalactites, towering like a cathedral, densely packed with bats hanging upside down; The prison walls are built of basalt, with iron spikes, shackles, and lamp oil tanks on them; the counter becomes a long table, and the white linen tablecloth is covered with silver cups and plates, which contain bat claws and tongues. , the blood of centaurs and the tears of mermaids; and those who chew these things are a group of ghosts that are difficult to name. They are dragons, vampires, ghosts, and demons in all civilization myths and legends. With iron claws protruding, No.12 hair-covered arms were bent under the armpits, and their eyes that grew all over the body stared at him.

Oh, God!

Oh, God!

Theolos kept crossing his chest, his heart beating like the long drum of the Salvation Army.

He found himself unable to hear anything except a voice—a terrible, mysterious, unfathomable voice, which spoke with his own tongue, making a horrible sound in the desert: "Bo Chu Si—!” Theolos cried.That's not what I'm going to say, that's not what I'm going to say!My tongue doesn't work!He put his hands around his throat, trying to strangle himself.

But suddenly, his whole body became silent, "It's over..." he said to himself, and his body fell backwards. The only answer he had was the image of darkness and nightmares imprinted in his mind.

The people in the tavern were terrified when they saw Theolos fell to the ground clutching his own neck.

Father Collivan hurriedly asked Mijia to call Dr. Hostatova, and told everyone to make room, and then went to the back and took a blanket to cover Theolos.Hostatova and Nikolai arrived five minutes later, and Nikolai was surprised to see his unconscious father.After a simple examination, the doctor told everyone not to be afraid. Theoros just fainted from an acute heart attack and should recover soon after being injected with drugs.

"But I never knew he had a heart attack," said Nicholas.

"That could happen, too." Dr. Hostatova thought Theolos had been drinking too much, which apparently had a bad effect on his heart.

"It's so pitiful." Seeing Theoros' pained look, Mijia said.

Father Collivan glanced at his grandson, then stared at the patient lying on the ground again, and said, "Before this, Theoros probably never thought that he would be pitied by others." He was silent for a while, and continued Say, "We all have this day."

Not long after Theolos was sent to the medical center for emergency treatment, Irene, who got the news, came from Mrs. Banin's house. At this time, the patient had gradually recovered his sanity. He was obviously very excited when he saw his wife and son around him. Tears welled up, and he tried to speak, but was stopped by the doctor.

"Please don't talk, you must keep quiet, and you can't burden your heart anymore."

Elena and Nicola followed the doctor out of the emergency room.Hostatova immediately asked about Theoros' medical history, but the answer was that he had never had a heart problem before.

"Maybe his disease happened recently, which needs to be checked. But one thing is certain, that is, Theoros must stop smoking and drinking immediately, and take medicine on time. This time his condition is very urgent, if he comes again , there is no guarantee that his heart can hold on."

Nicholas was in a very heavy mood from the beginning to the end. He didn't know how to maintain the family after his father fell ill, and felt that the future was gloomy.And Yi Luna remained calm, she listened carefully to the doctor's words, but her thoughts were very complicated.

She hated her husband, but when she saw him in pain, the feeling of hatred weakened a lot. She felt sorry for him, but she couldn't tell whether the feeling was because she really loved him a little, or because she felt pity for the sufferer It's human nature.However, she also thought of another point: after what happened to Theoros, her relationship with Julian Raymond might be temporarily over.