The Landlady- An Alternate Ending

During our Short Story unit last year in English we read the short story The Landlady by Roald Dahl. If you have read any of his novels or short stories, you know he is known for odd but intriguing stories. If you have read The Landlady you know that it just ends suddenly, leaving you thinking. Our job was to create an ending, this is mine:

If you haven't read the story, here's the link to it! http://www.nexuslearning.net/books/holt-eol2/collection%203/landlady.htm 

This is my first piece of work that I have published on Wattpad. I really hope someone out there enjoys it. Let me know what you think! Thank you & enjoy :)

The Landlady

"No, my dear" she said, "only you".

The words held in the silence. Billy managed to remain calm. Though there was something about how the landlady had said it that sent chills down his spine. No one in the last two to three years had been here except him. How odd he found that. The lady did not ask a large sum for a nights stay and she had many rooms. He wondered why no one else had stayed here. Then he remembered how she had said she was picky when it came to the guests. He also gave thought to the way she had talked about the young gentlemen and himself included. How she gazed off into space talking about the men as if she was talking about a lover.

Then there were the names that kept coming back to him. Christopher Mulholland. Gregory Temple. Both of them stuck in his head bouncing back and forth like a ping-pong ball. They were so familiar and had something in common, yet he couldn't remember why. He was certain that Christopher Mulholland was the same name as the Eton schoolboy who... no it couldn't be. Though he continued to give it thought.

That's when it hit him. A piece of photographic memory flashed in his mind, of two different prints of newspaper. In each it showed an article about missing students. The name in one article Christopher Mulholland, in the other Gregory Temple. Both missing.

"What kind of tea is this?" Billy asked.

'Oh it's just a special brand of mine," the lady replied with a smile.

"Oh, it's delicious," Billy lied.

 He wondered what ingredients it might contain. He continued to process over the discovery he had just made he decided it might not be safe to drink it. He put the cup down and sat it on his lap.

"Well I think I'll head up to bed now; if that's alright with you. I'm awfully tired and must get up early in the morning," Billy said.

   "Yes yes of course my dear. You must be very tired from your trip," she said hastily gathering herself together. She glanced over at his cup, peered in, and frowned. There was a bit more than half left.

 "Have you had enough tea, darling?" The lady asked. "It's very good for relaxing I'm sure it would help with your sleep.”

Even being cautious Billy could not bring himself to be rude towards her. So he simply accepted her offer and tilted his cup towards his mouth. He did not want to drink it in fear of whatever it may contain. Yet, there was no way he could fake it. Her eyes were on him. Carefully, watching every move like a predator watching its prey. There was really no choice he had. So he brought the cup to his lips and drank. He continued to sip it until it was gone. At which point he graciously thanked her for the tea.