Belleza del Silencio {English translation}

«10» The basement

A few more hours pass and I'm still lying in this bed, staring at the wall and regretting my existence. It will be even more difficult to run away now. He will surely increase the guards and I will be under observation around the clock. Sighing, I roll under the covers. 

I will never give up, Leroy... 

And I will never let him hurt my family. 

I get up and leave the room. It's midnight and even the lights in the Manor are turned off. Only sparse strings of lights still illuminate the hallways, but that's enough. The employees are probably already asleep, so I'll be able to have a look around. Maybe I'll find an even better way out of here if I just explore every corner.

The Manor is really huge and quite modern, but there's still something homey about it. It's disorienting. Sometimes it's pleasantly warm and sometimes it's freezing cold. The building is beautiful, for sure, but then again, it's eerie. Sometimes it's stark, dry, and colorless. Sometimes it's cold, callous, and ruthless. 

Like Leroy Kingston. 

Taking a deep breath, I stop at the stairs and look up at the sculptures. 

What has happened? What happened to him to make him like this? Where is that cute guy from my senior year back in high school? So many questions, yet no one wants to answer them for me. I feel like the Manor is slowly getting smaller and smaller and losing value, just like my willpower. Because this greatness is nothing but a facade. 

I wonder if he is going to kill me someday. 

Sighing, I turn away from the sculptures and walk another staircase up. 

But every door up here is locked except one, and inside that is a large training room. Strange. There are a whole six doors up here, but five of them are locked. 

This man is full of secrets. 

This time, I walk down to the first floor. To my left is the kitchen, to my right is the living room, and in the back is the terrace that leads out to the pool. To the left of the pool is a lattice fence and then you can see the backyard and the dogs. Like I said; A beautiful building. 

My eyes fall on a door that I have not seen before. A door just behind the front door. Annoyed, I roll my eyes as I open it and see only a stone staircase leading into the dark. The basement. 

Maybe there's a way out from down there, too. 

That would really be the best thing that could happen to me if there might even be a very easy way out from down there. Slowly I walk the stairs down, careful not to make a noise or fall down since it's so dark. I cringe when the lights suddenly turn on but immediately exhale in relief when I realize they are just motion detectors. But I don't blame myself. Anything could be possible here. Slowly, I look around.

Even his basement is bigger than my home. There is a corridor to the left and one to the right. The right corridor even leads again to the left and then to the right. God! Almost a labyrinth. Once there, I take the left side, but I stop in surprise when I see that after about fifteen meters it goes to the right again. 

This basement is really damn big...

And then it happens. I no longer know how to find my way back upstairs. Sometimes it went to the right and sometimes to the left, so that now when I've decided it's better to go back up and leave this basement, I can't find my way back. In despair, I let my head hang down and lean my forehead against a door.

I am so screwed if Leroy finds me here.

I shouldn't have come down here in the first place, but should I really just give up instead? Stop respecting myself and do what a man I don't even really know wants me to do - no ifs, ands, or buts? No!

I'm going to fight for my freedom and not just pull back like the scared little bunny I really am. As much as I wish I could just close my eyes until it's over, it doesn't work that way. I'm going to fight for myself... even if it can end really badly...

A muffled bang suddenly sounds and makes me wince hard. Shocked, I turn around, but no one is behind me. The light flickers for just a tiny moment as I stare into the empty hallway. Is Leroy already here? But I haven't been down here that long... 

But I was still in bed for more than an hour. So if I was in bed for maybe even two hours and now I've been down here about thirty minutes, then it could very well be Leroy. It doesn't have to take him exactly three hours - wherever he went. Damn, the thought that it could be Leroy sends me into a total panic! And again, a bang sounds. 

Oh, my God. The bang isn't even coming from back there, it's coming from... 

Thoughtfully, trembling with fear, I turn back to the door I had been leaning my forehead against. I hold my breath and listen. 

Then I hear a light knocking. Immediately, I flinch several steps back. My heart skips a beat and I feel my stomach tighten. Damn, where the hell did I end up here? 

"Who's there?", I mumble as I knock on the door as well and nothing responds. But I didn't imagine that, did I? What's hiding behind that door? 

"No, Rina, you're not going to look like in those stupid horror movies now!", I say to myself. 

Awkwardly, I turn away from the door to continue looking for the exit just hearing the knock again. My heart stops again as I hear someone chuckle. These doors are made of steel, so how can I hear that? Maybe because it's so quiet here? I bite my lower lip to keep myself from opening the door. My breathing becomes more frantic and my pulse races. What or who is behind the door?

The lights flicker again before suddenly going out and coming back on after a few seconds. A hysterical laugh escapes me.

Where am I? In a comedy show? 

Then it gets very, very quiet. Quiet as a mouse. Before a melody is heard. Someone sings. Slowly, I start to get scared. I don't move from the spot and listen to the - not so bad - melody. It sounds pleasant, but it also has something terrible about it, something I can't describe. 

"Who's there?!" I yell as the humming gets louder and louder. I have the feeling that someone is behind me, but I don't dare look back. Damn, what's happening? Tears gather in my eyes. Paralyzed by fear, I can't move. 

"Katrina..." 

"Oh God...," a whimper escapes me as the voice breathes my name. Maybe I'm just imagining it. 

"Who are you?", I whisper. I shouldn't have gone into the basement. 

"Your downfall," I suddenly hear it say behind me. Loud and close.

☼ ❅