It was my first night watching over the old house. I expected nothing less than silence and a peaceful evening of sitting around doing absolutely nothing. And then I heard a knock. Not at the front door, but at the basement door. It started off as a simple knock and then it was a banging sound like someone was in desperate need of getting in. The first time I heard the knock, I didn't move; only stood there, thinking it was just the sound of the old house making weird noises. And then as soon as the banging on the door began, I jumped back and almost fell to the floor.
When the banging stopped, I approached the door slowly. I didn't know what to do, but without hesitation, I began to reach for the doorknob. My hand was shaking like a dog after getting wet.
As soon as my hand wrapped around the knob, I turned it slowly until it couldn't turn anymore, and then I pushed. The door flew open and I took a step back, bracing myself for whatever was on the other side. To my confusion, there was nothing but blackness.
"Hello?" I asked into the darkness. I heard my voice echo, as it bounced off the walls leading down the stairs. I reached into my pocket for my phone and turned on the flashlight. I still couldn't see much, only a couple feet in front of me, so I began searching for the lightswitch.
After a couple of seconds of looking, I finally found it behind the door. The light flickered on and projected a faint yellow color, illuminating the stairwell that led to more blackness at the bottom. Still, I saw nothing, but now I was curious.
I steadily walked down the stairs, hearing the creak below my feet on every step I took down. As I got to the last step, I stopped and listened for any type of sound. I heard nothing but my own breathing, which was heavy and shaky. Another lightswitch to my right caught my eye and I flipped it on, brightening up the large room surrounding me. There were a couple of dusty couches against the back wall and an orange felt chair in between them. It smelled like a mix between a thrift store and an old folks home. The walls were painted what looked to be a type of tan color that appeared bleached in some spots. The carpet was blue and stained. A coffee table sat in front of one of the couches and an old desk with a very dusty and cobwebbed lamp on top stood against another wall. An old fireplace with ripped up newspaper lying in and around it took over half of the wall on the opposite side. This appeared to be the only room in the basement, except for a wooden door next to the desk.
There didn't seem to be anything worth seeing down there, so I turned to head back upstairs to enjoy the rest of my evening, when suddenly another knocking sound caught my attention. It was coming from that random door by the desk. I started walking towards it and reached out my hand to open it. Instead of a push, this door pulled back, and as I did so, it creaked, making the whole situation eerier.
Again, it was a dark room, but I did hear a small whimpering sound in the back corner. It didn't sound like an animal, more like a human being. I brushed the wall on both sides, but didn't feel a switch. I pulled out my phone again and turned on the flashlight. I immediately pointed the light in the direction of the whimpering sound. As soon as the light focused, I saw a young child cowering in the corner of the small room. He looked to be no more than ten years old and he was wearing overalls over a white long sleeve shirt. His hair was matted and he was dirty from head to toe. He looked terrified when he saw me, causing him to cry and cower more. I crouched down to his level and scooted a little closer, but not too much as to avoid scaring him even more.
"Hey, are you okay?" I asked in a small voice, almost a whisper. He didn't say anything, as I'd expected, but only turned away from me to face the wall. I moved a little closer until I was only a few feet away. "I'm not going to hurt you, I just want to know who you are." He faced me again and then opened his mouth to speak. "Where are my mommy and daddy? I lost them in the rain." I cocked my head and furrowed my brows. Was he talking about the lovely couple I was babysitting this house for? I didn't want to ask more questions, so I decided to call the police instead.
I quickly dialed 911, causing the light to go out and putting me and the little boy back into darkness.
"9-1-1, what's your emergency?" The woman operator asked.
"Hi, I'm calling from the old Barton House on Wensley Avenue about a missing child I have just found," I said, my voice a little shaky. There was silence on the other end for a couple of seconds. "Did you say the Barton house?" The question sounded more like a state of shock than anything. "Yeah?" I questioned back.
"So, you found a missing child there?"
"Yeah?" I questioned again.
"Well if you don't mind me asking, why are you there to begin with?" The question she asked confused me even more and made me feel a little on edge. "I'm watching over it for the old couple who lives here." There was more silence on the other end, a little longer than before. "I'm sorry, but that's impossible. Nobody's lived in that house in over two decades."
