The Curse of Dreadgrave Manor

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - THE ATTIC

Kris stood paralysed with fear. Her mind screamed at her to run, but she was too terrified to listen.

This is it! I'm dead!

"Kris?" Max's head appeared from behind the door. "You scared the life out of me!"

"Max!" Kris breathed out a huge sigh of relief at the sight of the familiar face. Without warning, she hugged him as tightly as she could. To her surprise, instead of pulling away, he returned the embrace. She leaned away from him and punched him playfully.

"I'm so glad I found you again!" She laughed, wiping away a stray tear.

"I've found some really messed up stuff in the bedroom Kris,"

Max said in a hushed voice. "It's exactly what we thought was going on and worse. All the kids that have gone missing over the years have disappeared in this house! There some sort of sick shrine in the wardrobe of their backpacks, jackets, books..." He paused and stared at her empty hands. "Speaking of books, where did yours go?"

"I had to throw it at Montgomery Dreadgrave to get away!" She recounted, now unphased about the encounter.

"I should probably warn you though, I have a feeling I've now made him seriously mad, especially after I smashed his head in with a cabinet."

"You did what?" Max gasped in disbelief.

Kris waved it off dismissively. "It doesn't matter. What I did find however was this small key that the zombie was guarding, and I'm sure it unlocks the book."

"If only we could get it back..." Max shook his head. "Forget it; we can't go back in those tunnels. It's far too dangerous. Besides, he could be waiting for us, and we barely made it out alive last time."

"Well, what can we do now?" Kris shrugged her shoulders in defeat. "We can't escape and wherever we turn in this maze of a house leads us straight back into danger."

Max looked around. Kris was right, and they were fast running out of ideas. He glanced up and noticed an iron ring dangling from the ceiling.

"Kris, I think there might be an attic above us. Maybe there's something up there that can help us."

"It's probably the best chance we've got, but how are we going to reach the ring? It's far too high up!" Max thought hard.

If only we could hook it with something...

He snapped his fingers victoriously. "Remember that metal pole we found earlier? It had a hooked end, and I bet that this is what it's meant to be used for."

"That sounds great, but where did you leave it?"

Max motioned down the hallway. "I left it by the window in the room we searched earlier after we heard Lewis screaming. I'll just have to run down and get it."

Kris grabbed tightly onto Max's arm in response to his plan.

"Just be careful... please?"

He flashed her a reassuring smile and sprinted down the hallway. Kris crossed her arms and pulled them tightly to her chest. She surveyed the area, ready to warn him the second anything dangerous approached.

"Max? Have you found it?" There was no reply.

"Max?" She called again, louder this time.

Her eyes darted around the hallway. She heard a series of distant thuds overhead, and thin trails of dust rained down on her.

Were those... footsteps?

"MAX!" The rising panic now apparent in her shouts.

Max stumbled out from the doorway and ran back to her, clutching the pole with a smile on his face. "Got it!"

"Where were you? I was getting worried!" Kris whispered sharply. "I think there might be something up there. I heard something moving around..."

"We're going to have to take our chances." Max replied. "We have no other choice."

Max hooked the pole onto the ring and pulled hard. The panel remained tightly shut. Undeterred, he jumped up and kept his feet off the floor, so the pole took all of his weight. He dangled fruitlessly.

"Here, let me help." Kris offered, and together they both jumped and hung from the end of the pole. Overwhelmed, the panel dropped open in defeat.

"Look out!" Max shouted as a ladder shot straight down from the hole directly at Kris' face at a breakneck speed. Max leapt forward and pushed her to the ground. The legs of the ladder impaled the floorboards, only just missing them.

"Are... you... okay?" Max panted and pushed himself off of

Kris.

She nodded; her face stunned. "Thanks! You saved my life!"

"Don't mention it." He held out his hand and pulled Kris to her feet.

They looked up at the square hatch in the ceiling. All Max and Kris could see beyond was darkness.

"I'll go up first," Max offered. "I'll check it out, and if it's safe, I'll call you up."

Without waiting for Kris to protest, he climbed up the ladder and poked his head through the hatch. He glanced around. Just as he suspected, the entire attic was shrouded in impenetrable darkness.

He pulled his torch out of his pocket and fumbled clumsily to turn it on. It fell out of his hands and clattered onto the floor at the base of the ladder. Kris bent over and picked it up. Max froze, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

Something's not right here.

A ghostly white hand reached out of the darkness and gripped tightly onto his wrist.