30 Days of Writing

Day 27 - Victorian Murder

Prompt: While you're shopping for a new place to live, you drive past a beautiful Victorian house with a large lawn. It's for sale, and the price is so low that you have to buy it. It's moving day, and suddenly you notice a strange stain on the wall in the bedroom. You peel away the wallpaper to discover a giant hole in the wall, and inside, there's a body.

Moving day, finally! I'm so sick of my bug-infested, cramped apartment. Goodbye, moldy corners; goodbye, stained countertops; goodbye, old creaking doors; goodbye, Apartment #205!

I found my new house a few months ago. It's a beautiful Victorian-style house with grey bricks all around. A porch and some big windows sit at the entranceway that leads to a gigantic lawn. When I saw the "For Sale" sign sticking above the dirt with such a low price, I knew I found my dream house. Now, three months later, I'm lugging my suitcases in glee. 

This is it, I think. I stand on the porch, toying with the keys in my hands for a bit. Awestruck, I insert a key in and push the door open. The inside of the house was very bare; dust covered the entire area with white spots of where furniture used to be. A sharp, musty smell overwhelms me, and I crinkle my nose. Still, even in the middle of the unattended mess, I feel a sense of belonging. This is it. Home sweet home, Amelia.

After setting my suitcases to the side, I quickly set to work. After three hours, I finally wash the rag for the last time, feeling a wave of exhaustion washes over me. Swiping my hand across my forehead, I sigh as I admire my hard work. The entire first floor is finally clean; not a speck of dust rests on the floor. I scrubbed the furniture markings away too. A feeling of home is finally starting to emerge in this house.

I decide to clean upstairs so I have somewhere to sleep. The former landlord told me there's a mattress upstairs I can sleep on, so I look for that. I'm trudging up the stairs when a pungent smell flies up my nose. It smells as if weeks-old rotten eggs were digested by venomous snakes, vomited out, then plunged into a bucket of high-corrosion acid. It's that appalling. What is giving that smell?

I'm starting to feel unnerved, so my steps slow down. Cautiously, I peer around the top of the staircase. The invisible trail of smell guides me to the bedroom. Weird. I'm pretty sure the landlord never mentioned anything about this. Come to think of it, I did have to sign a waiver to release the landlord of any fatal responsibilities. I hadn't thought twice about it, but pieced together, it's starting to be suspicious now. Slowly, I push the door open. It doesn't creak like my old apartment door, and I smile a bit at the improvement.

The door reveals a large stain splattered at the wall behind. A brownish red smudge, the stain takes up half of the wall. Now close, there's no doubt that the stain is the source of the odor. A piece of the wallpaper is curling up, and I edge closer to peel it. 

Ssss!

In one swift motion, I yank the wallpaper off. The wallpaper concealed a gaping hole. At first, I don't recognize the dark mess in it, but when it finally registers, I scream the loudest I've ever screamed. The rag I was holding dropped to the floor, and my knees gave in.

Because in the middle of the hole in the wall is a congealed mess of blood, dirt, and bones. And nesting in the very center is an unmistakably human skull.

I race out there as fast as I can. My hands quiver when I try to dial 911. As the beeps sound, an eternity drags out and all I can hear is my pounding heart and ringing ears.

"Good afternoon. How may I help you?"

My mouth struggles to form words before finally managing to croak out, "Help...dead body....found."

I pass out.

AN// T-minus two days!!!