"Hee-hee-hee..."
"Giggle, giggle..."
The female ghosts looked at Mrs. Shimada and started laughing again.
Their mocking laughter rang in Mrs. Shimada's ears.
Her lips moved, but not a sound came out.
She seemed to have accepted her fate and given up completely.
The cat walked up to Mrs. Shimada. Its raised front paw revealed a set of sharp claws.
With a quick swipe, it left a bloody mark across Mrs. Shimada's face.
Her skin split open, and blood dripped onto the tatami, spreading into a red flower.
Mrs. Shimada screamed and twisted her head, struggling.
Her hands and shoulders were pinned down. No matter how much she twisted her head, she couldn't escape the cat's claws.
It didn't take long for Mrs. Shimada to become unrecognizable, her face streaked with blood. There was blood beneath her, too.
"Kill me... Just kill me..." Mrs. Shimada begged in agony.
The cat hooked its claws, ripping a small piece of skin from Mrs. Shimada's face. It lifted its paw, and the bloody scrap fell onto Nakamura's face.
Nakamura, who had kept his eyes closed, suddenly opened them.
He stared at Mrs. Shimada in a daze. The hatred he'd felt toward her had already turned into fear of the female ghosts. Now, something else stirred inside him.
The scrap of skin stuck to his face slid slowly down and landed on the tatami before him.
The sight made him feel that he recognized it.
Nakamura raised his head and looked around.
Everyone still wore the faces of the film crew. They smiled and watched, as if they were viewing a performance.
Nakamura shuddered, and images surfaced in his mind.
His head began to throb violently, and he couldn't help crying out in pain.
The female ghosts laughed even louder.
I saw that among them,