Jennifer was studying nursing, going into the same profession as her mom. She still remembers the day she told her mother, the tears had come easily for both of them. Tears of joy. Her mom had been proud of her, just as she had been with her other kids, when they had gone off to do their own thing and find their own place in the world. Jennifer was beginning to make her own way just as she’d been taught.
The journey passed with boring predictability, Jennifer had driven this route many times, at least this time, the journey would be broken up. She encountered no yaks on the road. She almost didn’t recognize the house when she arrived, the pictures certainly didn’t do it justice.
She had to check the GPS on her phone to make sure she had the right place. She smiled as she drove in through the gates. The manor house in front of her was glorious and she had butterflies in her stomach at the thought of her sister seeing the place and the two of them getting to stay here together. These two weeks would be sheer Heaven.
Jennifer parked her car in front of the house and walked up the steps. The porch was full of comfort and understated elegance. By the door was a small tree in a large ochre pot, Jennifer rolled the pot to the side and revealed a silver key resting beneath it. Mark had promised to leave the key there for her and she was relieved that she’d have no trouble getting into the house as planned.
Jennifer marveled at the old style key as she unlocked the double doors and pushed them both open. They opened with a grandeur other doors lacked. They opened as if they were announcing the way into another world, which in a way they were.
She took the time to walk around the main floor, admiring at the ornate decoration and adornments all around her. The walls, ceilings, and floors told a story of wealth and social standing the first owners of Falcon Manor must have enjoyed. It was clear that Mark had spent a lot of time and money in restoring this place. In her opinion, it was worth it.
Mark Hadley had hired Jennifer for the house-sitting job for the next two weeks. She had not met him, but had talked with him on the phone twice.
Jennifer started exploring as soon as she put her bags down. There were so many rooms she wasn’t sure where to start. She decided to pick the one closest and make the rounds to see them all before moving upstairs.
“Hmm. It’s cold in here. It’s June in Georgia so an open window can’t be the culprit.” She was talking to herself as she often did when she was alone. Her mother did the same thing and thought her kids didn’t know it. That thought made her chuckle as she rubbed up and down her arms to ward off the chill.
“Well, the house is old. That can’t be denied. I guess even a restoration can’t fix every little thing.”
She’d seen most of the downstairs and all that was left was the kitchen. She wanted to save that for last since she had a few groceries to put away later, anyway. She headed up the stairs holding the sturdy handrail as she stepped.
Jennifer’s phone rang again when she was walking into the first bedroom. It was her sister.
“What’s up?” Jennifer spoke into the phone as she continued to look around the house.
“Bad news Jen, I’m sorry.”
“What’s going on Sarah?”
“I didn’t mean for this to happen, but I’m not going to be able to come to the house in a couple of days like we had planned. Sorry, just stuff happened and… um, well, I know you’re going to be mad at me, but I don’t know what to say.”
“What? You’re not coming?” Jennifer was surprised and couldn’t imagine what could’ve come up to make her sister back out on their plans. More surprising was that she wasn’t giving much of an explanation, either.
Suddenly a noise came from downstairs, it sounded like something big clattering to the floor. She heard Sarah take a deep breath as she was about to say something else, but she interrupted before her sister could speak again.
“What the hell is that? I have to go, Sarah. I guess I’ll see you at home in a few weeks.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Fine. There was just a noise downstairs. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Okay,” said Sarah. “I’m sorry.”
Jennifer put the phone in her pocket and walked over to the stairs, taking a look down to the main level. She didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Tentatively, she made her way down, scanning the large entranceway as she did, seeing the front door slightly open. She went to it and was about to close it when a sound came from her left. Confused, she decided the only place it could have come from was the coat closet to the left of the main entrance.
Jennifer’s heart was beating too fast. She felt weak in the knees and very frightened. What was in the house with her? Deciding she’d better be safe than dead, she took her phone out of her pocket and dialed nine, then one, then one again. She didn’t press call just yet, but she was ready if she needed it. She tiptoed slowly towards the closet door. Just as she got there, she heard a faint scratching noise from inside.
She turned the handle of the door, very slowly, and then threw the door open fast, jumping back at the same time. She couldn’t see anyone inside, only old jackets, obviously belonging to Mark and whoever else stayed in the house.
Jennifer breathed a sigh of relief, then screamed as something burst out from behind the jackets and towards her. She panicked and covered her face as she screamed. Arms grabbed at her and knocked her down. She wanted to complete her emergency call, but she’d dropped her phone when she put her hands over her face. Jennifer stumbled to get up as the thing screamed in her face.
Then it laughed. Sarah laughed as she sat on top of Jennifer.
“Get off me!” shouted Jennifer.
“Only when you pronounce me ‘Queen of the Manor’.” Sarah continued to sit on Jennifer as if she had no plans to move.
“I’m Queen of the Manor!” Jennifer flipped Sarah over and pounced on her, pinning her to the floor.
“Can we both be Queen of the Manor?” Sarah wiggled to sit up, then they both stood looking at each other in the entryway.
“Sure,” said Jennifer. “What are you doing here? What was the phone call about if you’re here?”
“I wanted to surprise you. Ta-da! Mission accomplished!”
“Well, you did surprise me. That’s for sure.”
“I got an extra two days off work, so you have me all to yourself for an extra forty-eight hours. I didn’t think you’d mind it if I came up early.”
“Whoopee!” shouted Jennifer as she got up and danced around. “Come on, I’ll show you around. Lots of cool stuff.”
The two of them went off to look around, soon coming back to the entrance to bring in Sarah’s bags.
“I need to shower. Are you going to order us some pizza?” Sarah was disappearing upstairs, but turned around to yell what Jennifer already knew. “Hawaiian!”
Jennifer laughed, her sister was here with her and this was going to be the best break ever. She closed the front door and looked around, remembering she needed to straighten up the mess in the coat closet. The old jackets were freaking her out now. She chuckled at her scaredy-cat nerves and turned to head to the kitchen.
On the opposite side of the main doors was another door. “Hmm. That must be the basement.” She went to it and tried to turn the knob, but it was locked. “There must be a key somewhere. Maybe it’ll turn up.”
She got back to her initial mission of putting the few groceries she’d brought away and ordering pizza. She pulled out her phone and searched for a pizza place close by. She found a Marconi’s Italian Pie not too far away and placed the order.
The night passed in a blur of chick flicks and melted cheese. It took them thirty minutes to decide on which room they would each take, there were so many to choose from. They decided on side-by-side rooms and after chatting into the early hours of the morning, they tucked themselves into their beds.
Jennifer was still thirsty and went down to the kitchen for a glass of water.
“Weird,” she said whe
n she got to the bottom of the stairs. “Sarah! Were you exploring!” she shouted up to her sister, but there was no reply.
The door to the basement was hanging wide open, the darkness eclipsing everything inside. Jennifer crept closer and looked down, she couldn’t see a thing. The silence hung, thick in the air. The musty smell was almost overwhelming and unexpected given the state of the rest of the house.
She moved her hand across the wall, looking for a light switch, but there wasn’t one. She gave up and pushed the door closed, it bounced back slightly, leaving a sliver of darkness in view. She pushed it again and it bounced back. She wagged her finger at the door and went off in search of her glass of water.
She needed to get some sleep. She felt uneasy about the basement door, but some sleep would probably help her be fresh enough to sort it out tomorrow.
She poured a glass of water and headed up the stairs and to her room.
Chapter 2
The singing birds woke Jennifer. She’d left her bedroom window open last night, the warm air and gentle breezes filling her room with freshness, bringing peaceful slumber. She lay there with her eyes closed, drinking in the sounds of the open air.
The birds were most likely in the large oak tree she’d seen as she looked out into the dark grounds before getting into bed last night. She knocked on the wall behind her bed, a sleepy knock came back a few seconds later.
Jennifer got out of bed and got dressed. She looked out of her bedroom window at the yard, now lit up by the glory of the morning sun. The oak tree was full of birds and they fluttered and whistled through the branches and leaves. Jennifer walked back over to the nightstand by her bed and finished off her glass of water and took it with her as she headed downstairs.
She was about to head for the kitchen when she noticed the basement door again, it was fully closed. Now this was getting to be a little crazy and she wondered if she’d had a dream or something.
Walking to the door, she shook her head in disbelief. She turned the doorknob and it wouldn’t open when she pulled on it. The door was firmly locked. She stood there for a few seconds before shaking her head and going into the kitchen, she refilled the glass and drank it down.
Mark had promised to leave the fridge full of food and he didn’t disappoint. Jennifer made breakfast for herself and Sarah, leaving Sarah’s plate in the microwave for when she got up.
The house gave up no more secrets and Jennifer decided to go outside for a while and explore the gardens. She found the large oak tree and located her bedroom window. Sarah had kept her window closed. There was a nest, about half way up the tree and she watched as a large black bird flew back and forth to the nest. She listened intently, trying to hear the small chirps of baby birds. The breeze was picking up rustling the leaves and the peeps of the babies was whipped away with the wind. She walked further and laughed up at the sky as the sun began to warm her.
When she got back to the house, she couldn’t hear Sarah up, she must have still been sleeping. Sarah had been working hard recently, she had graduated last year and was working as an intern in a law firm, trying to gain enough experience to gain a permanent position. Their mother had been so proud when Sarah had taken up law, but even more so when Jennifer had decided to study nursing.
Jennifer looked up to her sister, she always had. It was she who had inspired Jennifer to get into nursing. Her mom had encouraged her, too, but Sarah had been the one who had pushed her. Sarah was three years older than Jennifer and there was a likeness in their features. They both had chestnut brown eyes, but Sarah’s hair was long and blond. Sarah had a slim and toned figure, gained by her years as a long-distance runner. Those days were long gone, but her figure had maintained itself with a little bit of yoga and weight training.
Jennifer was the clown of the family. Sarah was the intelligence. Jennifer was quirky and likeable. Sarah was professional and respected. Both women were strong and wise, both were moving and caring, both shared a bond which would never be broken. To know them was to like them. People were drawn in by the two sisters, different though they were.
The younger sister tried the door to the basement one more time. It wouldn’t budge. Shaking her head, she headed to the library with plans to spend the rest of the morning there. She had some college work to do over the summer break and wanted to get it done before the big family gathering in two weeks.
There was a pile of books on the desk, a laptop behind those and a notebook beside that. Jennifer took some time to browse the books on the shelf before she sat down to work. There were so many books that she wanted to read, she wished she could live here forever and even then, she was unsure if she could get though them all.
She was about to start some research, when she heard muted footsteps on the stairs. A few minutes later, the microwave began to beep. Jennifer waited and the door to the library opened slowly. Sarah’s head poked in.
“Thanks for breakfast.” Sarah smiled and was gone just as quickly as she came.
“Sarah!” shouted Jennifer.
“Yeah?” Sarah stuck her head back in, scratching her head through her sleep tousled hair.
“Did you go down to the basement last night?” Jennifer tilted her head to the side waiting on an answer.
“No, why?” Sarah shook her head and raised an eyebrow.
“Oh, it’s nothing. Nothing, really.” Jennifer waved her hand to dismiss Sarah so she could get back to her studies.
“Don’t do that to me! Give me a clue that something’s going on and then cut me off with nothing. Tell me.”
“I’m sure it is nothing, my mind playing tricks. Or something.” Jennifer sighed, looking at the ornate light fixture hanging from the ceiling. “I came downstairs last night to get a glass of water and the basement door was open. It was dark looking down the stairs, like pitch black. I tried to close it, but it wouldn’t shut. I tried several times and gave up. Then this morning… locked again.”
“You tried to open it again this morning?”
Jennifer nodded.
“Maybe you dreamed it,” said Sarah.
“Yeah, maybe, but the water was by my bed when I got up this morning, so I don’t know. Maybe a dream and reality got mixed in, I was pretty tired last night.”
“Probably,” said Sarah. “You should text Mark, see if he has a key for it.”
“Yeah, I’ll do that.”
“You’ve got some studying to do today?” Sarah turned as she was heading out of the room and waited for a response.
“A little.” Jennifer nodded, then looked up at Sarah. “Can we go out in a couple of hours, explore the town or something?”
“Sounds like a plan. I gotta go, I’m starved and that breakfast you made smells delicious.”
Sarah disappeared once again and the room was silent. Jennifer delved into her books. The minutes ticked by as she lost herself in the books.
The noises around her disappeared. The worries about the basement niggling at the back of her mind faded. Her concentration became focused on her studies. She was in the zone, a state where she was fully absorbed in learning and thinking about how it all fit together in what would be her profession one day.
A loud thud suddenly broke the silence. She was startled out of her concentration as instinct took over and she jumped out of her seat and looked around. Her heart was racing as she unconsciously placed her hand on the pulse in her neck in a reflexive attempt to slow it down.
The noise had come from the window. As she reached it, she looked down at the ground outside. A bird was laying lifeless on the ground. She stared at the bird. She couldn’t make her eyes leave it.
Suddenly sad, when she realized the creature was probably dead after hitting the window. She felt tears fill her eyes, when it started flapping it’s wings. Then it was on its feet and hopping away. Jennifer smiled and watched as it took flight. She hadn’t expected that sort of recovery.
Thankful for an surprising happy outcome, she sighed and sat back down at the d
esk. She looked at the clock on the wall and noted she had about thirty minutes left to study before she and Sarah set out on their expedition of the town. For now, it was back to the books.
She’d read another two pages, highlighting important points as she went, when something else broke her focus. A clinking sound, like metal against metal, broke the silence this time. Good grief. Can’t a girl get any studying done around here?
Clink. Clink. Jennifer waited, then there was nothing. Shrugging, she looked down at her book again. After reading one line, the noise interrupted again. Clink. Clink. Her brow knit together as she tried to analyze what she was hearing. Not metal against metal, more like metal against stone or brick.
“Sarah!” Jennifer called. She waited but there was no response. “Sarah!” she called again. Again, silence. She got up and went to investigate the noise.
Checking the kitchen first, all she found was a dirty plate and cup sitting beside the sink. Seeing her sister’s breakfast dishes annoyed her. Why can’t she ever clean up her own messes? The noise sounded again, reminding her not to get sidetracked by annoyances that she should be prepared for by now. Her sister had always been a little messy and that was unlikely to change. At this point, it didn’t even matter.
She left the kitchen with a shake of her head and went to the entryway. Standing in front of the front door, she felt a chill as she realized where the clatter was coming from. The basement. Her heart was racing again. She tried the door, but it was still locked. She stepped back quickly as if the door might hurt her in some way. She had to chuckle at her silly reaction to a locked door.
Knowing she couldn’t get in there to see for herself what was going on, she needed to find a way. She pulled her phone from her pocket and sent Mark a text, asking if there was a key. The message sent, she put her phone away and stepped tentatively toward the door again.
Haunting and Scares Collection Page 49