Secrets of the Wandervall Mansion

CHAPTER THREE: FRANKENSTEIN'S CASTLE

12 YEARS AGO

'Are you sure this is the place, Pete?' Mum asked Dad.

She never called him anything else aside from his first name and "your father."

'Of course I'm sure, honey,' Dad replied, then turned to us. 'Ready to step out there?'

Frank groaned and went back to sleep, his long, red dyed hair covered one side of his face and his piercings shone under the moonlight. Jackson didn't say anything, he looked up from his phone then continued to play some sort of shooting game on his phone. He has his earphones in and I can hear loud music blaring through them. I, on the other hand, clutched a button eyed ragdoll and watched Jack lose his game. He cursed under his breath and his character respawned back behind a building only to be met by the whole enemy team and shot to death again.

Dad sighed and rolled his eyes. 'Let's just. Go inside,' he said with a sigh. He tapped the steering wheel impatiently before he turned the engine off and took the key out of the ignition.

'Come on you three. I don't have time telling you to get out of the car again,' Mum said in her commanding tone.

I nudged Jackson and told him to open the door.

'Open it yourself,' he replied, his attention fixed to his phone.

Mum quickly snatched the phone and threw it inside her bag before exiting the car. Jackson protested loudly and slammed the car door open on his side and ran out after Mum. An argument ensued between them. Jackson lost and he walked away, following Dad inside the new house. Mom shook her head and muttered something about teenagers being a pain in the ass.

'You're not going inside?' Frank asked.

'No. Not until, not until you wake up and go in a-as well,' I replied, not looking at him.

I heard him chuckle.

'And if I didn't go in?' he asked again.

'Then I won't. I won't go in.'

'I thought you're scared of me? Huh, Gin.'

'Its Kit. Not Gin,' I corrected. 'I just, I- well. I don't want to be in the same room as Mum and, Mum and Dad, or be alone with ... with Jackson,' I added. 'And no, I'm not, I'm not scared of you. At all.'

'Then don't go in the same room as them. You can always stay inside your room or any place where you won't be with them.'

I frowned, hugging my doll closer to my chest.

After a while, Frank broke the silence, 'I'm going inside, Kit. Come on.'

I slid off the seat and exited the car. Frank closed the door and told me to wait for him, I watched the ground as he closed the door Jackson exited from. He returned seconds later and took my hand, leading me to the house. I still hadn't seen it, but Dad described it as luxurious and beautiful. It was big, big enough for a family of five like us.

'Mum, please! Give me my phone back,' Jackson yelled from the bottom of the stairs. He looked up and his face is red and swollen.

'No! You've been on it for the entire ride from Camittsou and its bad for your health,' Mum replied.

'Like you care!' Jackson yelled back and stomped away from the stairs, muttering to himself as he passed Dad who watched the whole thing with a confused expression.

From the other room I heard Jackson yell again. 'This place doesn't even have WiFi or TV! How am I supposed to watch Captain Moonland and Racing Harry!'

'Oh, stop your whining will you? You're too old to be watching those shows anyway. You're making Gin upset,' Frank said and his grip on my hand tightened.