In one of the rooms on the fourth floor - the same one where Karolina had earlier shoved a desk under the handle and wedged the metal bed frame against the door, just to buy a few extra seconds if anything from the corridor tried to force its way in - four girls were huddled tight in the corner where the walls met at the narrowest angle, offering the illusion of safety. Every one of them knew that if something truly powerful decided to come inside, no furniture in the world would make much difference.
Clang.
Clang.
Clang.
Metal against metal.
Then dull, heavy impacts - like someone was hurling a body into the walls with all their strength.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
The sounds carried down the corridor, vibrating through the door, through the floor, through the air itself, until they could feel it in their chests - like their hearts were trying to match the rhythm of that brutal exchange.
