Dark Secrets [COMPLETED]

Chapter 2: Familiar Faces

My old bedroom was like a safe haven in the middle of a prison. Its walls were the same dark crimson as the rest of the house, but the purple leaf-patterned comforter on my bed and the umber desk under the window made it mine.

I plopped myself face down onto the bed. Carlos left my luggage near my pillow, but I couldn't be bothered to put it all away right now. The stress from today's travel hit me hard, and before long, I drifted off to sleep.

A sound woke me up.

It was a faint sigh, like someone softly whispering into my ear. My eyes snapped open and I propped myself up on my elbows to look around. I was alone in the room. At first I thought somebody left my window open or something, but when I turned to look behind me, the red drapes were tied back and the window was shut.

I frowned, confused. I hadn't been asleep for long enough to dream, so there's no way I could have imagined it...right?

As if to answer me, another sigh hissed through the room, louder than before. I leapt to my feet and surveyed the room. That was not my imagination. I braced myself, waiting for the next sound and hoping that I'd be able to follow where it was coming from.

Nothing.

I let out a sigh of my own and ran a hand through my hair. Maybe I was going crazy. Being indoors for too long could do that to a person, especially in a place like this.

Deciding that what I needed was some fresh air, I walked over to the duffel bag on top of my large suitcase and fished out my phone and earbuds. Then I headed out the door.

I made my way down the hall and to the stairs. I only made it halfway down to the landing, when I froze.

Robert stared up at me from a few stairs down, his dark eyes as magnetic and repulsing as peering into the void. "Hello, Calista," he greeted me.

I stared at the space next to his ear, avoiding eye contact. "Hi," I replied curtly.

He tilted his head slightly, eyes still boring into me. "It has been a while, hasn't it?" An artificial smile spread across his lips. "I know that you and I don't always see eye-to-eye, but I hope that we can agree to get along while you are here, for your mother's sake. Don't you agree?"

I glanced into his eyes for a brief second, afraid that if I stared for too long, they would swallow me whole. I gave a slight nod.

He continued up the stairs, still focused on me. A smile was plastered on his face. In a few seconds he was inches away from me on the landing. "Have a nice walk," he said. Then he turned and continued walking up to the next level.

I ran, grabbing my jacket off of the cushioned bench in the foyer and practically flinging myself out the door.

I circled around the house, past Mom's greenhouse in the courtyard and towards the treeline at the back. Among the trees, I was brought to a worn path through the woods. It was the path I used to walk along when I was in high school—whenever school got too stressful or when I just wanted to get away from everything.

I ventured into the dense thicket of trees. Soon enough, I lost sight of the house and relief washed over me. The woods may still be a part of the Kendrick estate, but at least I didn't feel like someone was watching me when I was inside of them. The trees stood tall like guards against an enemy, their stark naked bodies remnant of autumn. The overall atmosphere was soothing, like water vapour against hot sweaty skin.

The trail led down the right side of the acre of the estate, and soon enough I saw the gravel road that we drove up to get to the house. There was an old carriage house in this area, mostly enveloped in the trees. Carlos used it as a garage now.

As I approached the small building, I heard music. I recognized the tune as "California Dreamin'," and decided to follow it. I walked up and entered through one of the big open doors at the front. An old lantern was lit inside, illuminating the space with an orange glow. Somebody was moving around at the back, where Mom's gardening tools were kept. I approached and, expecting to see Carlos, opened my mouth to say a witty remark.

It vanished off of my tongue when I saw a complete stranger standing in front of me. It was a young man around my age, fair-skinned and red-haired. His hazel eyes were wide like a deer in headlights. He was boyishly cute, but that didn't change the fact that he was a stranger rummaging around in my family's garage. "Who the hell are you?" I asked.

"Roger Cohen," he answered. "I'm the gardener of this estate."

A gardener? Since when did we have one of those? "What are you doing here?" I asked as he reached into his jeans pocket.

"Putting away my tools for the night," He said, turning off the song playing on his phone. He looked up at me, his eyes sharp. "...though I could ask you the same question. Mrs. Castle didn't tell me about any visitors."

Indignant, I snapped at him. "I'm her daughter!"

He looked surprised. "Oh! You're Calista?"

"Yes! And last I checked, we have no damn gardener!"

"Your mom hired me to take care of her greenhouse while her leg heals up." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Come to think of it, I think Mrs. Castle did mention you were coming here. Sorry about the confusion."

I crossed my arms in front of my chest, refusing to budge. He coughed. "Well, I should get going for the night. It's nice to meet you, Calista." He slipped past me and into the evening air. I turned around and watched through the gap in the trees as he walked down the dirt road and disappeared from view.

I went back to the house, creaking open the gates myself and walking up the path to the front door. I entered and went into the living room to see Mom perched on the edge of the couch, about to push herself up. "Do you need help?"

"Yeah, just to get to the dining room. Robert made dinner tonight. Isn't that sweet?"

I bit back a retort as I helped her balance and get a hold on her crutches before we made our way through the back archway into the dining room.

"How was your walk?" she asked as she slid into the second closest chair to the archway.

"It was alright. I met the gardener," I replied.

"Oh right, I forgot that Roger was doing some extra weeding around the courtyard today. He's such a sweet boy. What did you think?"

"I dunno. I didn't know he was a thing, really."

"Only for a month or so until I'm back on my feet. Hopefully it'll be sooner than that, though."

"It will be if you let yourself rest," Robert teased, coming up behind us. I nearly jumped out of my skin and Mom just laughed. "Will you be joining us for dinner, Calista? I recall that you preferred to eat alone the last time you lived here."

I opened my mouth to decline, but then I saw how Mom's face lit up at the suggestion. "Well... maybe for a little bit."

He smiled, turned and walked back into the kitchen. Mom grinned and patted the seat next to her.