The House That Wept

Chapter 5

I froze. Claire Hart. The girl from Olivia's story. I looked back at everyone. They all looked shocked. I looked back to Claire.

"Is something wrong?" She said, cocking her head to the side.

"No, no." Dexter said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Nothing is wrong." He pulled me back.

"And what is your name handsome!" Claire asked Dexter. She took a step towards him. I moved to stand in between him and Claire. I put a hand on his chest.

"His name is Dexter!" I said, "he's my boyfriend."

"Mmm" She said. She turned around and kept walking. "What is everyone else's name."

"Olivia is the other girl, Caleb is the boy with red hair, Peter is the one with blonde hair in a ponytail and Aidan is the one with short blonde hair." I said as we walked. Dexter gripped my hand hard as we walked. I looked back at the others as we walked. The looked terrified. We'll be out of here soon, I mouthed.

"Oh hello brother!" Claire said as we reached what I guessed was the living room. When I saw him I gasped and stumbled back. I heard Olivia and Aidan scream behind us. I assumed they saw him too.

He looked awful. He was lying on a couch, dead. He was covered in blood. His abdomen must have been sliced with a knife because it was open and his insides were spilling out. His left hand was missing a couple fingers and his other arm was twisted in an unnatural way. His face had a gash on his forehead that looked brutal. Claire went over to him and put a hand on his bloody shoulders.

"This is Andrew!" She said, "Andrew meet my new friends!"

"I think we'll be going!" Peter said quickly. He grabbed my elbow and yanked me back. Dexter pushed us all away from her.

"Oh, no no!" She said, "you have to get father though." She started crying again. She stumbled towards us and we all turned an ran. We got through a door when I felt a cold hand on my wrist. I was yanked back and tried to scream. My mouth was covered by a hand. I was dragged away to who knows where.

"Hannah!" I heard Dexter and Olivia scream from somewhere far away. I could feel tears forming in my eyes. All of a sudden I was thrown into a wall. I stumbled slightly before pressing my back to the wall and shutting my eyes tightly. I felt a hand brush my lips. I opened my eyes and saw Claire inches away from my face.

"Your really pretty." She whispered in my ear. She pushed me up against the wall. Her forearm pushed my chest holding me there. She was strong. "It would be a shame if something happened to you." She laughed. Tears of blood started rolling down her face once more. She reached into a pocket in her dress and pulled out a needle and thread. "I'm pretty good at sewing. Mother taught me." She brushed my lips again. My eyes widened. "Will you stay quiet my little darling." I nodded.

She backed up and the needle fell to the ground. She took the string and looped it around my wrist around 40 times. I winced slightly in pain. She held her end and yanked on it. I fell forward into her.

"I think I'll make you my maid. Your by far the prettiest girl I've met for a while. My old maid, Well we had to dispose of her." She said smiling at me. I tried to pull back but was yanked forward again.

"What about the others?" I asked. She turned to me and smiled creepily. She took a step towards me and I took one back.

"Let's see," she put her index on her chin, "Aidan and Caleb will be pets. Peter can be Andrew's new friend, his old one wasn't good enough so we made him a pet. Olivia can be another doll and Dexter can be mine!" She giggled. I felt a single tear roll down my face. "Well then, let's go see father."

Not long later we were in front of a large window. She pointed out towards a large willow tree. I looked to where she was pointing and my eyes widened. There was a man hanging from the tree by his neck. I looked away.

"Father deserves it!" She shouted, startling me. I looked to her. She was crying again, sobs racking her body. She yanked on my string and held me to her chest. She stroked my hair. I froze. I didn't know what to do at this point.