The Unknown

Chapter 7

"Hello? Anyone home?" V's voice came from outside, blending with the fog outside in the front of the house.

The mud from yesterday's winter storm squished between my toes. I came out from behind the large tree to the side of the house. V's eyes scanned the exterior of the house, as if feeling my presence. Her eyes immediately fell on me. She rushed towards me sloshing through the shallow puddles of mud and wet leaves with papers in her hand. She held it up in triumph, with success in her eyes. Her exhaled hot air appeared between each breath she took from running.

"What's new?" I was eager with joy. V shoved the papers towards me, I scrambled to hold them without letting them fall into the mud that surrounded me. I skimmed the mildew covered paper.

Deaths of 1797-

Widowed Mrs. Maybella Sage found handged outside of her home. Home found trashed. No findings of the cause of suicide. House put up for auction. Completely furnished.

"That's it?" I ask upset, mentally expecting to find out more. Only one death in this house and the house was put up for auction. I craved to know more information. The empty void in my head was aggravating.

"No. No. There's more. This house was never bought. But I looked into who the woman was. She had an adopted daughter, who was barely seen outside of the home. The woman was schizophrenic and bipolar. Apparently she was a lawyer. Honestly, I don't care really about her. She was an awful woman. Just looking at her gives me the hebbie-jeebies," V held up a body length picture of the woman.

Hair pulled back in a tight bun. Business attire. No slacks, just a skirt. Low heels. No real distinctive facial features to this woman. She was horrifyingly familiar. Even though I did not recall seeing her at all since I've been here around this home. Nor did I remember ever seeing her at all in my life.

"Hey come back to Earth!" V broke my thoughts, waving her hand in front of my face. Words were going to form in her mouth once more, but her hand gave the 'I need to go' motion. She then turned, sloshing through the mud away from me, waving good bye without another word.

I was alone once again. I threw the papers down into the freezing mud below me. The thunder roared as soon as they hit the ground. Rain began to pour from the gray skies above the tree tops. I stood there, soaking in the icy December rain. Feeling the mud rise around my feet. The feeling of shivering and numb from the below zero didn't seem to bother me. It was some how comforting.

An unknown anger began to grow within me. The chilling rain steamed off of me. I gritted my teeth and stormed up the steps. The door immediately opened behind my forceful shove. Not one care of worrying about tracking mud into the home went across my mind. An aching feeling of disappointment from an unseen presence grew within and my anger changed into fear once more.

I found myself once again kneeling in front of the handle in the kitchen. Without hesitation, I looped my index and middle finger in the handle, pulling it, without a budge. I pulled again, but there was a deep pain within me. Both the wall and my insides cracked. I pulled until the pain was unbearable. I had to know what this handle led to.

I laid there on the kitchen tile in fetal position, trying to adjust to the pain in my chest. My heart beat pounded like a bass drum inside of my head. It was the only thing I heard. Better than silence.

Bum bum.

Thunder struck outside causing the walls to shake. The rain slowed and eased.

Bum bum.

Sloshing of mud in the distance came closer.

Bum bum.

Silence. The rain had stopped. My heart and breathing did not seem present at that moment. Everything was hushed.

V appeared in the kitchen door frame. Mud covered her matte black rain boots. The brown slop from outside rolled down her boots into clumps on the tile. She took off her boots, setting them by the door and new papers on top. She came closer to me, getting down to her knees, gently picking me up by my hands into sitting position against the wall. Her mouth started moving, creating incoherent sentences. My brain tried to process the words flowing out of her mouth. I cocked one eyebrow up, trying to gather up the word 'what' to come out of my throat.

"You found the door?" V looked to the wall and placed her hands onto it, moving them around in circles as if looking for something.

"Door?" my voice was raspy and my throat stung. V nodded her head. I fixed my gaze on the handle again, and wove two fingers into it once more.

"No," the voice in my head told me, trying to warn me. It began to feel too hot too touch. The handle burned my fingers. I tugged on the handle, causing the wall to crack once more. V stepped back and realized I had caused the noise. She removed my fingers from the handle, but sprung back, shocked at the lack of heat in my hands. She looked at me and then back at my hands and then the handle. She wove her own fingers into the handle and pulled it back.

Crack.

I collapsed to the floor. My rib cage cracked from an unknown force. My breath felt sparse and the air burned in my lungs. I staggered my breathing. V didn't notice me and pulled the handle once more.

Thunder roared outside the house, causing the walls around us to shake as they did before.

"It's not budging," complained V, continuing to tug on the small handle. I grabbed her ankle, trying to get her attention. She stopped before pulling once more and she dropped to her knees to help me up. She fixed one of my fingers into the loop, and added hers to the extra space next to mine. Together, we pulled. The cracking had seized and the door jutted open, but only a small amount. The door was only half an inch out than the wall. I let go and let V finish trying to open the knew found door. She managed to make it open enough to fit fingers through the open crack. I took it upon myself to wiggle my fingers into the tight crevice, pulling the door and the wall apart.

The air from behind the door was colder than outside. It felt like little spider legs trying to pull in my fingers. V gripped her fingers on part of the door I had opened.

"Hey V-" J's thoughts were cut off by him looking at both V and myself in the kitchen. V gave him a nod, trying to motion him over towards us. He stood there shaking his head. Angered, V left me, trying to pull her brother towards us to help.

I took this opportunity to myself. This felt meant for me. I forced the door open, the creaking of the out-of-sight hinges. My calf muscles tensed trying to push it open away from the wall with every step. The door pushed back on me, signaling I had opened it way too far.

I stepped back, facing the darkness leading down the steps. The smell of smoke mixed with the cold air luring me in. I took a step towards the opened door, my toes at the edge of the kitchen tile, leading to the first step below. Cold fingers danced up my arms, giving me chills. Goose bumps formed around my body. The fingers seemed to grip around my wrist, lightly tugging, attempting to bring me down the steps . . .

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