The second night fell, raining and dreary. I let myself walk up and down the stairs, aimless, searching for another sign of the warm, dark liquid which had covered my hand the night before. The steady sound of the rain as it pattered against the tall dome was relaxing. I almost felt calm. When I had returned I brought a large flashlight with me, just in case, because the edges of those marble stairs were so difficult to see at night. I didn’t fancy the idea of falling down them in the dark. The red ooze appeared for a second time, and this time I had enough sense not to run away. I encountered it on the second story this time, closer to the ground floor. It ran down the sides of the columns and collected in puddles on the ground.

The second story also held a pair of statues. One was a reproduction of “Winged Victory” and another was a wooden statue of George Washington on his horse, carved over a century ago by an immigrant. The ooze seemed to be coming from them as well. It was very... odd to say the least. You could still look up to the ceiling of the rotunda and see the forty-three painted stars faintly upon the blue of the sky that was their background. I heard the echoing laughter of a small group of people and hurried over to where I thought the source was.

The gold lettering above the door proclaimed the room as the Governor's office, but I went in anyway. There seemed to be some kind of flickering candlelight illuminating the reception desk. The laughter faded away as I entered the room and something flowed past me in the dark. I could smell the lingering scent of mildew and decay. A great shadow was projected on the wall outside of the office nd paused for an instant, as though regarding my presence. Then it hurried off toward the center of the rotunda.

I hurried out to see if I could get a better look, but all I caught was the slithering edge of it’s dark shape flowing down the balcony to the first story. By this time the liquid had disappeared without a trace. I felt uncomfortable though, as if many eyes were pointed at me all at once and I felt the horrible coldness of fear creep down my spine. I hurried away yet a second time, skirting around any statues I saw on the way.