Untold Story

Chapter Ten: The Thread Between Us

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Trigger Warning:
This chapter contains themes of trauma and emotional distress. Reader discretion is advised ______________________________________

Evelyn's POV

My head throbbed before I even opened my eyes. There was a sharp, chemical sting in my nose-mold, decay, something metallic beneath it. I blinked through the haze, the dim light burning into my skull. The ceiling above me was cracked and yellowed. For a second, I had no idea where I was.

Then the smell hit me-sharp, rancid. Like a dead rat left under the floorboards. My stomach turned.

I tried to move, but my arms were pinned-tied behind me. Panic sparked in my chest. I twisted, trying to sit up.

"You're awake," came a voice.

I turned my head. Kieran stood a few feet away, silhouetted in the gray light filtering through grime-coated windows. He was holding a iron rod, tapping it idly against his palm.

My throat was dry. "Where... where are we?"

"Sixth floor," he said, glancing around the bare room. "Empty place. No one ever comes here."

That stopped my breath. My mind clicked into gear despite the fog. Isabel's words rushed back-her reaction when I mentioned Austin, the flicker of something she hadn't meant to show. The sixth floor. The crying boy. It wasn't just a ghost story.

I shifted just enough to slide the small recorder from my back pocket, praying he hadn't noticed it when he tied me. I pressed the button with my bound fingers and heard the faintest click.

"Always poking around," Kieran said, eyeing me. "Too curious for your own good."

I kept my voice steady. "So what's the plan? You kill me now that I know too much?"

He gave a shrug, his tone casual but the steel rod tightening in his grip. "Depends. How much do you think you know?"

"I know Isabel left you because of the bruises," I said. "I know your daughter is scared of you. And what you did to your son..."

His expression flickered, the calm mask slipping.

"You want the truth?" he said, stepping closer. "You want to know what really happened to Austin?"

I didn't answer. Just held his gaze.

He looked away, jaw clenched. "He wouldn't stop crying. Kept asking for her. Day and night. And I-I told him to shut up. But he didn't listen."

He paused, then looked back at me. His eyes were empty.

"I was drunk. There was a beer bottle on the table. I swung it. I didn't think-just reacted."

A cold shiver went through me.

"He dropped like a stone. I panicked. There was blood. Too much. I waited. Hours. Just staring. Then I wrapped him in a sheet. Took him here. Tore up the floor and hid him."

He nodded toward a warped section of floorboards near the window.

"I was going to move him. I swear. But then... the crying started. And it hasn't stopped."