Faceless Instincts

Blood And Rust

I was pounding on Dorian's door to no avail. Finally, I gave up and looked around to find any way that could get me inside the house. I stepped down the porch and examined the windows but they were all locked. I tried to take a glimpse inside but everything was as dark as the bottom of the ocean.

The rain was chillingly cold, no wonder it would soon turn into snow days. I had started getting sodden, but I also needed to find a way inside the house.

I looked around and found a little girl from the neighbouring house looking at me through the wind.

"Hey... Hey" I waved at her and ran towards the fence, "can you call your parents and ask if they can get me in?" This was no way of asking for help and I know I was practically shouting but in my defence, I was desperate.

The girl looked sideways, I swear to God if one more person looked sideways and no one showed up? I will burst, fortunately, a woman came into view, she looked at me with strange curiosity.

"Can you help me get in the house?" I said squinting my eyes so I can a better look, her room was dark except for a musky candlight. "I heard some sound coming from inside but no one is answering, it could be an emergency"

She gave me a once over, shut the doors and drew the curtains in my face. What an absolute bitch.

Solidifying myself for any possible disaster I walked towards the side of the house and made my way to the backyard.

I tried to open any window that could give me away, but none of them shift as if they were closed for months or even years, but then I realised even I don't open the windows of this side - gets the rain and neighbours' eyes inside.

I took out my phone and turned on the flashlight, the path was covered in weeds and branches that cracked beneath my steps. Turning at the corner I felt the rain reduce moderately, flashing the light above I found an iron frame covering the entire backyard with ivy growing all over it.
This shelter from the sun had made the ground a little damp and the soil sunk in every time I stepped on it.

I looked around to find any window but luckily I found a backdoor. I hurried towards it and tried to unlock it. Damn!
the door was closed. What took hold of my attention was the intensive rust on the doorknob and handle.

I stepped back and flashed the light all over the door, it looked ages old with paint peeling from the surface, rust eating away the iron, pieces of wood breaking away and cobwebs dangling all over it. This door might simply breakaway with a few yanks. To blow as much force as I could, I stepped back and applied all my strength to kick at the door. The sound was loud and I stopped to see if I caught any of the neighbour's attention. When no one appeared I kicked again, it took me seven hits to shake the door away from the frame.

As I struggled to push it open I cut myself on the finger, biting on it to stop the blood, I entered the house.

An unfamiliar scent greeted me instantly and dust particles choked my nose and throat making me cough. I covered my nose with the inside of my elbow and raised my phone a little higher to have a better look around, on my primary right was a staircase going up, while on my left I saw a small door.

I walked a little deeper only to appear into a hallway, I could see the furniture while most of it was covered in sheets I noticed the uncovered furniture had a layer of dust on it. It was weird considering someone lived here. I tried a door on my right but it was locked. Moving further along I came into the main hall. Things looked extremely different in this area.

"Dorian?" I called out but got no answer. I swear if I die here tonight.

"Dorian" I shouted through my teeth.

As I entered the living room I found an open book lay on the table, I picked it up and turned to see the cover, "The masters of death" I blinked a few times and kept it back.

I was now having, second, third and fifty-sixth thought about this man.

Something felt unsettling, it didn't come across to be the house I had seen before. Darkness was making things troublesome, I moved as cautiously as I could but as I turned to go into the parlour, my step got grabbed in a rug and I dropped on my knees, my phone went skidding away and my foot got intertwined in some loose threads of the carpet. I stretched across the floor to grab my phone and picked it.

I turned to untangle my foot when something caught my eye, the carpet had tossed over when I fell and beneath it, between the wood planks was a very carefully tucked piece of metal. I untangled my foot and then supported my phone against the counter foot and removed the carpet from the area. Crouching down on the floor again I started scuffing on the piece of metal. I used my nails to slowly pull it out of the wood. When finally in my hand, looking down I saw a trinket, a half-moon covering the sun was now broken in half. I examined it closely, it looked similar but old.

The rust was settling at the corners but the tiny encrusted stone shone like new. Turning it over in my hand I saw a splatter of red across the trinket, I ran my thumb over it and it didn't take me long to realise what it was, dried blood!.

Shaking myself out of it I kept the trinket in the pocket, making a mental note to ask Dorian about it. I was in the room where Dorian had stood when I dropped him home. I walked by the window and looked in the direction where Dorian had looked. To my surprise, there was a bookshelf backed by the wall, there was no way that Dorian could have expected someone to come over to him from this direction, to do that he needed to look back not sideways.

A chill settled inside me. I no more felt alone, and as if on cue I saw a shadow pass on the window glass, my head turned in the direction and I called out, "Dorian?" My voice was loud but shaky, "is that you?".

At this moment my instincts were screaming at me to retrace my steps and leave, like that stormy night, but I knew I was going to betray myself again and walk further into the darkness. I accidentally touched a table and got dust on my hand, wiping it away on my cloth I walked back to the hallway and turned around the corner only to see a room with a piano sitting alone in the corner, I walked up to it and traced a finger on the fine wood, again the dust. I pressed a minor key and the entire house echoed the tune.

I repeated the key several times and when I stopped, the house drowned in silence. All I heard was a footstep shuffling on the first floor and I immediately turned off my flashlight. I was now walking in the dark against the wall, I knew I had crossed over to the kitchen when I felt a very heavy breath on my neck.

Before I could scream a hand shut my mouth, and I felt an arm around my waist. I struggled to get unrestricted, but before I could try harder I felt the man loosening away. I turned to see who it was but it was too dark. I fumbled with my phone but the man was already gone, "HEY" I shouted, in the void. I tried turning on my phone but it didn't work, and then I saw a warm golden glow rise in the chest of the hallway. I was not sure if I wanted to follow the light or stay in the dark.

I stiffened, I couldn't move and the light grew brighter, closer. My breathing was heavy and I felt drops of sweat form on my forehead. The wind was too strong outside, I grew more aware of the rain that has now picked up a heavier front. The light was now at the corner, while I was stepping away, the face came into my vision, with a strange glimmer in his eyes, smiling, he looked straight at me.