Time

Chapter 4 - 1896

Sundays were our only break from daily chores, our only day of freedom. Mrs Wickes would tend to stay hidden in her room as if she didn't care what we got up to on sundays, which was a huge bonus for us orphans.

One Sunday morning, Florence and I were in the kitchens, busy polishing off the remains of breakfast when we suddenly came across an unfamiliar trap door. Guarded by a ton of dusty, ancient cookbooks, it was obvious that the door hadn't been opened for quite a while.
"What do you think it is?" Florence questioned, as she removed the books from the door handle.
"I haven't got a clue, perhaps it's a cellar?" I replied, helping to clear the books to the side.
Once the trapdoor was completely visible, Florence turned the handle and attempted to open it. Unexpectedly, it creaked open with nothing but a tiny nudge. As we peered in, the only thing to be seen was a flight of stairs leading down into the gloomy unknown. Gulping anxiously, I watched as Florence began creeping down the stairs, eager to discover the secrets the mysterious trap door.
"Florence, wait!" I hissed, frustrated at how she hasn't taken the time to think everything through.
"What? Aren't you coming?" Florence called up to me. I looked around to see if we had company. No, we were alone.
"Okay...but wait let me grab a lantern" I told her.

Several minutes later, we were stepping down and down the stairs, guided by a small flicking lantern that was stretched out in front of us by my arm. The stairs seemed to be everlasting, and when I looked up, I could no longer see the light from the trap door.
"Florence, I think we should turn back" I muttered, unsure. She shook her head and snatched the lantern from my hand.
"Don't be ridiculous Clara! We've come this far, we're not turning back now! Come on let's pick up the pace " she commanded, skipping out a couple of steps in each stride. I sighed and quickly caught up with her, hoping that soon she'd come to her senses and just decide to turn back. But she didn't.

After what seemed like forever, we finally hit flat ground - which must've been the bottom. A rather unpleasant smell wafted up my nose, and I knew Florence smelt it to, as she made a disgusted face. Nevertheless, she continued along the ground leaving the echoes of her footsteps behind her. There was nothing to be seen except brick walls lining the passage that we were trudging along, and the occasional mouse scuttling past us. I longed to turn back, but Florence was determined to find something worth our trek.

Eventually, we approached a corner in the passage and as we rounded it, the smell suddenly increased and I had to cover my nose with my hands...and we stopped dead in our tracks.
"Clara..." Florence began, pointing ahead. I stared in horror at the sight we both saw, and I grabbed Florence's arm at once, as if that would make everything okay.

They were blood stained. They had torn clothes. They were rotting.

A pile of dead bodies.