Is That Mom

Part 2 of Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

Into the Shadows

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Part 2:

The Hidden Facility

The air felt colder as Ethan stepped out of the car, the forest silent around him. The mist clung to the ground, swirling lazily around his feet, as if reluctant to let him go any further. He stood still for a moment, taking in the sight before him—a long-abandoned facility, its concrete walls dull and weathered, partially overtaken by creeping vines and moss. The structure loomed in the darkness, almost hidden behind the trees, as if it had been swallowed by the forest. From a distance, it might have been mistaken for a rock formation, but up close, it was unmistakably man-made, cold and unwelcoming.

Ethan approached slowly, his eyes scanning the building’s exterior. The place felt heavy with silence, as though it had been forgotten by time, left to decay quietly in the woods. Yet, as he neared the entrance, he noticed small details that sent a chill down his spine—footprints in the dirt, faint but fresh, leading up to the rusted metal doors. The realization that someone else had been here recently caused his heart to quicken. For a moment, he hesitated, torn between the urge to turn back and the need to press on. But he had come too far, and the answers he sought were somewhere inside.

The facility looked as if it hadn’t been used in years. The concrete was cracked and weathered, with patches of green where nature had started to reclaim it. Broken windows dotted the building, the glass shards glinting faintly in the low light. Some of the doors were chained shut, rusted locks hanging loosely, while others hung open, creaking softly as the wind pushed against them. Ethan could feel the unease building inside him, a tightness in his chest that made it hard to breathe. It was as if the facility was daring him to step inside, to uncover whatever secrets had been buried here.

He walked up to the main entrance, a set of double doors that were slightly ajar. Forcing himself to breathe steadily, he pushed one of the doors open, the metal groaning loudly in the silence. The sound echoed through the empty halls, reverberating off the cold walls and fading into the distance. Ethan paused, listening for any hint of movement, but there was nothing—just the hollow silence of a place that had been abandoned long ago. He stepped inside, the air damp and stale, carrying the faint scent of mold and rust.

The facility’s interior was dimly lit by the pale light filtering through the broken windows. Dust covered every surface, thick and undisturbed, except for a few faint tracks that trailed down the hallway. Ethan’s gaze followed them, his heart beating faster as he realized they were recent, not yet erased by time. Someone had been here, maybe not long ago, and that meant he wasn’t alone. The thought should have reassured him, but instead, it made his skin prickle with anxiety. He didn’t know who had been here or why, and the uncertainty gnawed at him.

As he ventured deeper into the facility, the sense of desolation became more pronounced. The walls were bare, the paint peeling and chipped, revealing the gray concrete beneath. Wires hung from the ceiling like twisted veins, some still sparking faintly, as if the building was struggling to cling to life. Ethan could hear the distant drip of water somewhere, the only sound breaking the oppressive silence. It felt like walking through a tomb, and the thought that something terrible had happened here was inescapable.

He moved carefully, his footsteps echoing through the empty halls. The corridor seemed to stretch on forever, the light growing dimmer with each step. Ethan’s eyes darted from side to side, searching for anything that might give him a clue, but there was nothing—just room after room, all locked, all empty. The place had been stripped bare, as if someone had gone to great lengths to erase any trace of what had happened here. But even so, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the walls were watching him, that the building itself was hiding something, waiting for him to discover it.

Ethan’s thoughts kept drifting back to his mother. She had been here, he was sure of it. The documents he had found pointed to this location, and if they were accurate, she had been involved in whatever had happened within these walls. The idea was almost too much to bear. He had always seen her as a victim, someone caught up in something beyond her control. But the more he uncovered, the more that image was crumbling. What if she had been a willing participant? What if she had known exactly what she was doing? The questions haunted him, pulling him in two different directions—one side desperate to find the truth, the other terrified of what that truth might be.

He reached a set of heavy metal doors at the end of the corridor, their surface scratched and dented, as if someone had tried to force them open. One of the doors was slightly ajar, and Ethan hesitated before pushing it open further. The room beyond was dark, the air colder than the rest of the facility. He fumbled for a light switch, but when he found it, nothing happened. The power was long gone, leaving the place shrouded in darkness. Ethan pulled out his flashlight, the beam cutting through the shadows, revealing a room cluttered with old, rusted equipment and overturned furniture.

The sight of it sent a shiver down his spine. This room was different from the rest. It felt like a place where people had once worked, where things had happened. He could see old machines covered in dust, their screens cracked, wires trailing across the floor. There were papers scattered everywhere, some yellowed with age, others torn as if someone had tried to destroy them. Ethan moved cautiously, stepping over the debris, his flashlight sweeping across the room. He could see empty shelves lining the walls, a few metal cabinets that had been left open, their contents long gone. But amidst the chaos, something caught his eye—a set of footprints leading towards a desk in the corner.

He followed the trail, his heart pounding. The desk was covered in dust, but there were clear signs that someone had been there recently. Papers had been moved, drawers left open, as if someone had been searching for something. Ethan’s hands trembled as he reached for one of the papers, his mind racing. He didn’t know what he was expecting, but as he read the faded text, he felt a chill run down his spine. It was a report, written in technical jargon that he didn’t fully understand, but there was one name that stood out—his mother’s.

The realization hit him like a punch to the gut. She had been involved, more deeply than he had ever imagined. He wanted to believe that she had been forced, that she hadn’t had a choice, but the more he read, the harder it was to hold on to that hope. The report spoke of experiments, of tests that had been conducted on human subjects, and it was clear that his mother had played a key role. Ethan’s vision blurred, his hands shaking as he scanned the paper, looking for anything that might explain why. But there were no answers, just more questions, more doubts.

He felt the walls closing in around him, the air growing heavier. It was as if the facility was alive, feeding off his fear, his confusion. Ethan wanted to run, to get out of there before the truth could destroy him, but he couldn’t move. He was trapped, not just by the building, but by his own need to understand. He had to know what had happened, even if it shattered everything he thought he knew about his mother. The fear of uncovering something he couldn’t handle was suffocating, but it was nothing compared to the fear of walking away without knowing.

Ethan forced himself to keep moving, his flashlight flickering as he searched the room. He found more reports, more scraps of information, but they were fragmented, incomplete. It was like trying to piece together a puzzle with half the pieces missing. But one thing was clear—whatever had happened here, it hadn’t been innocent. The facility was a place of secrets, of lies, and his mother had been at the center of it. The realization filled him with dread, a sinking feeling that made it hard to breathe. He had come here looking for answers, but the answers he was finding were only making everything worse.

As he stood there, surrounded by the remnants of a past he didn’t fully understand, Ethan heard a noise—a faint, almost imperceptible creak, like a door being pushed open. He froze, his heart leaping into his throat. The sound echoed through the empty halls, distant but unmistakable. He wasn’t alone. The thought sent a jolt of fear through him, but he couldn’t afford to panic. Slowly, he turned off his flashlight, plunging the room back into darkness, and listened. There was no other sound, just the steady, oppressive silence, but he knew that someone was out there, lurking in the shadows, waiting.

For the first time since he had stepped inside, Ethan considered leaving, running back to the safety of his car and forgetting everything he had seen. But he couldn’t. He had come too far, and there was still so much he didn’t know. He had to keep going, even if it meant facing whatever was hiding in the dark. With a deep breath, he steeled himself, turned the flashlight back on, and stepped towards the door, ready to confront the unknown.