The Mansion

Chapter 3

The house creaked and moaned in through the night. The rain pounded harshly against the roof and thunder roared like an untamed beast. The howling wind threatened to wipe out anything that lay in its path.

I ran through the dimly lit corridor which stretched into darkness. The walls were a maroon color in the faint light of the candles. A huge antique chandelier passed above me. The lamps illuminated with a mysterious aura and I noticed many doors as I ran - they seemed as if no one had entered in those cob webbed rooms for ages. The hallway smelled stale and musty, the passageway looked dull and dusty.

My bare feet thudded heavily against the wooden floor which replied to me by creaking. Without thinking I took sharp turns at every single corner I saw. Tears glistened upon my cheeks. My throat felt dry and my heart ached badly. My traitor tears blurred my vision so I had absolutely no idea where I was going in this new mansion that I was unfamiliar with. Mingled feelings of anger and disappointment clouded my mind, preventing me from any sane thoughts. I was outraged by my father as I trusted him to still love my mother and I was disappointed towards myself for trusting a person so easily. How I felt so betrayed. My sobs echoed against the walls, as my heart was pierced by a thousand blades.

All of a sudden, a warm breath blew against my neck, forcing me to cease running. I whirled around. There was nothing.

"Genessa!"

I wiped my tears to see clearly. What I saw in front of me was very peculiar. I seemed to be standing in what seemed like the older part of the building that had been ignored for centuries. It was strange that I had not noticed this change while I was running.

The hallway was now a bit darker. There were portraits with strange looking people hanging on shadowy blue walls that were worn out. The eyes seemed to be watching my every move. The flickering candle lights made shadows dance around the corner of the house. The dusty scent of the house that greeted my nose felt strangely revolting. I had a very bad idea about this place and I needed to escape from here - fast!

"Where am I?" I wondered.

I heard faint footsteps from a distance.

"Dad?" I asked.

There was no answer.

"Amara?"

There was still no answer.

I took a deep breath and tried hard not to freak out.

"Who is it?"

The footsteps stopped.

A small pale looking girl about five appeared in front of me, giving me a shock.

"Whoa!!!" I exclaimed, jumping back.

Regaining my balance, I examined her.

She was wearing a long sleeved old fashioned dress which seemed too long for her. I could not make out what color it was. Her hair was black and it fell back up to her waist. Her pale face and the darkness made it impossible for me to see what her eyes looked like. Her head was facing down and her lips were twitching.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" I asked, my hands reaching out to touch her. As soon as I did this, she stepped back and dissolved into the darkness.

"Huh?"

I blinked a few times, wondering if my mind was playing tricks on me.

The lights went out and I was plunged into darkness. There was a bone chilling wind blowing from somewhere. I spun to see an open window. It was extremely dark outside but I could make out some figures lingering. In a blink of an eye, the little girl climbed onto the window, ready to jump off.

An electric shock jolted through my body.

"No!!!!" I screamed, dashing towards her, my hand thrust forward in order to save her.

I felt time flowing by slowly as I ran towards her. It was like a dream. My finger tips touched lightly on her silk dress but it was too late. She dissolved again into nothingness. I leaned forward and searched for her. There was nothing. The sound of the rain slamming against the house deafened my ears. The wind blew strongly against my hair and a few minutes later I soaking wet.

I shivered and stepped back. It was horrifying to witness a young girl jumping out of the window. Something shiny caught my eye. My eyes lingered towards it.

It was a silver locket. The diamonds embedded in it sparkled in mystique. It was new--which was strange-- and it was hanging on the window. It was unbelievably beautiful and charming.

My fingers moved slowly towards it and touched it softly. I withdrew my hand immediately after I felt it. It was like a magnet pulling my hand. I was suddenly overwhelmed by the desire of owning the locket. I soon forgot about the incident with the little girl. So, I quickly grabbed it and examined it. On the back of the locket, there were letters engraved upon it. I could only make out these words:

"What thou seek is hidden in the depths of this house,"

What strange riddles from a house I knew nothing of.

I stared at the locket for a period of time. I couldn't help it; the locket seemed so spellbinding and so mysterious. There was a low buzzing sound coming from the locket. There seemed to be some kind of aura oozing out from it. 

'Genessa!'

I twirled around.

'Who is it?' I asked.  

Prickles went down my spine. I surveyed around the room although I couldn't see much. My knees buckled under me. Was I imagining things or were these things actually happening to me? I could no longer tell what was real or what my imagination was.

There was an ear piercing shriek.  I covered my ears and I fell down to my knees. My attempt for preventing the sound was only futile.

'HELP ME! HELP ME!' the voice boomed into my ears.

My mind felt heavy and my eyelids slid over my eyes slowly. My finger tips went numb and I started shaking uncontrollably like I did in the car. My vision slowly darkened and the sound stopped. Now I could hear footsteps approaching. But I passed out right before I saw the identity of the person....