I gazed out the window as the ocean crashed onto the shore of Craigville Beach. I hadn’t been here since I was little, so I didn’t have too many memories of the place. It was strange, but my parents had actually lived off of that beach when they were my age.
Insane right? Yeah.
I peeked over the two seats in front of me to see my Dads golden locks and my Mom’s tangled raven hair.
“Are we almost there?” I pressed for the tenth time since we had passed over the sagamore bridge. My Dad chuckled, a deep rumble in his throat. What was so funny?
“Almost there. Calm down” He rolled his eyes at me. Sinking back into my seat, I crossed my arms and let out a long groan.
Once more I glanced out the window and watched as children all dashed across the yards of their homes. It was weird to see so many kids running around in yards. Living in the city was so different. Most kids barely had a sliver of grass in Boston. You had to go to park in order to even touch a patch of it. Well unless you decided to go to one of those plant stores. I generally passed on those, though. I wasn’t generally a plant person.
Shocking, I know. . . not. Ewie.
A sweet image rose to the forefront of my mind. I could only imagine what it was like to live all year by the curling waves, the beach only a step away from my house. A small pit of jealousy settled in my stomach as I thought about how these people on the cape could just go to the beach anytime they wished and never even give a second thought. I wondered if any of these people realized how lucky they actually were.
The car pulled into the seashell driveway of a massive white and black home. It barely took me a moment to spring from the car and bolt to the door. As I stood, waiting for my mom and dad with the keys I took in my whole surroundings. It was honestly breathtaking. From the large trees that stretched tall and held dark forest leaves that clung to their branches to a small garden on the ground which held a rainbow of flowers.
“Mom, you lived here?! Why can’t we live here now?!”
I watched as my Mom and Dad stepped from our families black Jeep Wrangler. A dark look washed over my Dad’s face and all the color drained from my Moms face. But just as fast as it had happened, they both relaxed. I decided it must not really be that bad if they could brush it off so easily.
“It’s nice to visit, but the winters are harsh.”
Another looked passed over my Mom’s face, but it was completely indistinguishable.
Before I could ask any more questions, my dad was placing a hand on my back and pushing me forward. “Come on, Princess.”
I decided to ignore the feeling that something was wrong and bounced on the balls of my feet, “Uncle MJ’s ice cream parlor is close to here, right?” My mom’s dark eyes rested on me for a moment. There was a smile pulling on her lips. .
“Calm down, Lila. Once we’re all settled your father and I will show you over.” Mom unlocked the door and I shot inside, dying to see the home that I had only heard about in my parents stories. Every Time we visited the cape, we decided to just stay in hotels. this house totally beat every hotel out there though.
Well until I walked in and actually saw the inside.
So first off, the way the house was built was different from anything I had ever seen before. Every piece of wood was carved with swirling patterns. It was a carpenter's dream. the next part was a fashion designer's worst nightmare.
I was surprised to find the house empty of almost everything. There was one lone couch in the living room, while the kitchen only contained a table with one chair. Deciding not to linger on the lack of furniture, I made my way into the other room where the stairs connected to another room. My eyebrows pulled together in confusion as I saw that one of the railings had an overwhelming amount of scratches to be normal. I looked down at my feet to find a rusty color had soaked into the floor, the smell distinct in my nostrils.
Blood.
I pulled in a deep breath, wondering if it was my Dad’s or Mom’s from years prior, but when the smell reached my nose, I found it oddly familiar. Of course though, I couldn’t put a face to the smell. Just my luck.
My Mom’s voice broke my thoughts. “Lila, come on, we’re heading to Uncle MJ’s ice cream parlor,”
