Survive the Night

3

Victoria felt her way into the darkness, holding her arms out in front of her and holding her breath. Completely disoriented, she looked back to see Ashley standing at the doorway, deciding whether or not she wanted to come in. Eventually Ashley did enter, and as she was closing the door, Victoria called out to her.

"Don't," Victoria said. "Not yet. We can't see a thing. Let's find some light first."

"Good idea." Ashley widened the opening.

It took a while for their eyes to adjust to the dark, but when they did, they began to make out hazy outlines of certain objects. They could assume they were in some sort of entrance hall. The hall was a long rectangle of space, almost the size of her father's entire house. There was no furniture, only a set of potted plants in the corners of the room. The main luxury was the walls; columns bordering each doorway, gold trimmings, and two marble statues sitting on a bust. One on each side of the room.

"Do you suppose those are the Ashmores?" Ashley said, eyeing one of the statues.

Victoria approached her. "I wish I knew. Let’s find the group."

The tiles under them were complex and irrational. They seemed to change directions with each step. There didn’t seem to be much order in this house, and Victoria could feel a dark presence lingering, floating around in the darkness of the room. Or maybe it was just her imagination. Just as Victoria began to feel panic settle in, she heard a voice echoing in the hall. Then saw multiple beams of light swinging across the walls.

"It smells like rotting wood in here," Emily Black said, a trifle laugh from the gang immediately following.

"Or rotting flesh," Geo corrected.

"Stop!"

"Hold--!" one of them shouted.

Victoria's figure lit up as they shone their flashlights on her and Ashley.

"Jesus, you scared the crap out of me," Kevin said, wielding his light away.

"Sorry," Victoria said. "We decided to stay."

The group was silent, and then Kevin fished out a flashlight from his bag. "This is our last one. You'll have to share."

They made a bee line for the second room to their right, taking incremental steps, more out of fear than caution. Once inside, the well-lit room was refreshing. The flashlights shut off, and bags were dropped to the ground. Sasha and Emily plopped onto a white sofa in the center of the room, their matching skirts floating over their thighs. This room made the main hall seem like a separate house entirely. There was a fine glass table in between both sofas in the center of the room, low to the ground and decorated with flowers that had been dead for a long time. The floor was a maroon carpet now, and it absorbed the sound in the room, unlike the hideous echo out in the hall. There were a few paintings lined around each wall, a piano, and a fireplace. The windows were veiled by massive, ruffled silk drapes. A chandelier hung above; and dimly lit lanterns surrounded the room. Kevin approached the mantel and crouched to his knees, the joints releasing a slight cracking sound.