Beware [COMPLETED]

21. The truth

As the darkness of the night slowly took over the sky, it brought dense gray clouds with it. Angry clouds that promised a destructive thunderstorm. The stars and the moon were all hidden away behind the thick veil and the trees shrouded by the mist were slowly being exposed. The dead leaves once scattered around were now being thrown around in the air by the harsh wind. Its whistles and screams were heard from miles away as its movement forced the dried branches of the naked trees to sway back and forth. The gale played around with them with each tug in a particular direction while it sang its somber tune.

Not paying attention to the weather outside, the group sat there in silence. Their quiet was disturbed by the call of nature, but their attention could still not be procured. Their eyes were focused on different spots in the room as they slowly took the information in. The information that claimed that they could be so close to the end, yet so far. The bright side of their minds made them disregard the important information and connections. Their only thought was of freedom.

Where everyone was immersed in the journey their train of thoughts was taking, Autumn's train took a different turn. So many possibilities, complications and answers stopped by her brain and forced themselves inside to the point where Autumn felt crammed. Her head hurt and throbbed as she tried to push them out.

"We don't have the keys," she stated quietly, picking up one of the defects and throwing it in front of everyone to acknowledge.

Every occupant of the room turned their eyes on the girl who was looking down at the letter in her hand. Her hands were fumbling around with it while crumpling it at the edges. The corners of her mouth turned down and she looked up.

Raymond was standing in front of the fireplace- having just set fire to the wood. Talia was standing by the window- failing to focus on the weather. Adam and Kaylee were sitting side by side on the floor- slowly losing hope. Katherine was looking down at her hands- submerged deep into the truth of her family and friends.

When no one replied, Autumn noticed their dull expressions and continued, "We might have to find the bag for the keys. Or maybe breaking the doors would be another good idea."

The last sentence was said with the intention of lightening up the mood, but it didn't work.

Raymond turned to face his best friend and frowned; the glow from the fire made his face more serious, "You're taking a break, Autie. We established that you will only be helping us in finding the letter. That means that you won't even think about how we'll look for the will. You need rest."

Autumn wanted to argue, but she was in no place to do so. She had agreed to that fact and now she had to keep her end of the deal. With a deep sigh, she got up, put the letter on the table, and started limping to the door.

"Where are you going?" Kaylee asked.

"I want you guys to focus completely on the task without worrying about me and I also want to have a good sleep. I'll be going up to the room and sleeping there."

"Are you sure you want to sleep up there? What if something happens? And the stairs ca-"

Autumn shook her head and smiled at her sister, cutting her off, "If something happens, I'll scream. Stairs won't be a problem. I really need to move my limbs. Don't worry."

No one felt assured by their friend's comment and ended up assisting her to the room. They couldn't make her stay downstairs no matter how hard they tried, so they thought that contributing in one way would be fine. She had done a lot for them and this was the least that they could do.

Once Autumn was settled on the bed, she remembered the last time she had been here. There had been a knock from behind the wardrobe which had led her to the room beside hers. A room she believed to be John Marshall's. There was the same broken window and dangling rope that had been mentioned in the diary. No other room could be his and Grace's.