The Demon's Grave

by E. M. MacCallum

Phoebe flashed a defiant grin toward the second floor. “I can deal with a mess.”

  Before Aidan could protest Phoebe disappeared up the stairs, her footsteps creaking the floorboards above our heads.

  Aidan hesitated before grabbing the railing. “Only the second floor!”

  Robin clicked her heels into the entry with us and looked to me, her green eyes wide and excited. “Are we going up?”

  Before I could answer Aidan was trudging up the stairs. “Might as well,” he said, frowning. “Bring up some light, will you?”

  The curiosity of this old house had hypnotized us all, it seemed. Perhaps Aidan’s surprise weekend would be a hit after all. The seeds of guilt were laid as I thought of what a jerk I’d been. This was a great surprise and it would make a great place for the weekend, maybe even more in the future.

  Cody stuffed a handful of candles into his saggy back pocket while Read begrudgingly traded his empty beer bottle for a flashlight.

  Read followed Aidan, then it was Cody, then Robin who snatched my hand in her bony fingers to tug me along.

  We traveled up the groaning steps in single file, not leaving anyone out of arms reach. I was reminded of kindergarten recess.

  Read hopped up on top step and a distinct crack snapped through the empty space. Robin glanced at me, her smile faltering and her bird-like fingers crushed my hand.

  Breathing out slow so not to whimper, I said. “Robin, it’s okay if you want to go back downstairs.” I somehow hoped she’d say yes, but it only spurred her forward.

  “It’s okay,” she whispered and took a few more steps behind Cody. “If something happens, Cody will save us.”

  Cody glanced back at the sound of his name, looking like an overgrown zombie.

  Yeah right. Even on a good day I didn’t think Cody could save us.

  We reached the top of the stairs and were greeted by a hallway of doors. Three doors on the left and two on the right.

  Beside the landing was another set of stairs that curled against a circular brick wall.

  It must be the tower, I thought and leaned closer.

  It was shadowed and dark within, smelling like cold brick and something musty. That’s what Aidan must have meant by ‘only the second floor.’ After seeing the roof, I doubted anyone would want to go up there anyway.

  Robin gasped and didn’t let go of my hand, instead she dragged me along with her. Jolted forward I was yanked into a small room with her, our feet pounding on the wood floor.

  Stumbling to a stop, I could see the source of her gasp.

  An old crib was coated in spiderwebs and layers of dust. It appeared hand-carved, laced with intricate designs.

  Above it was one of the new windows. I could see an overgrown pond behind the house. Cattails and long reeds incrusted the tree line before thinning into bush.

  Robin pushed the crib with the toe of her boot and it rocked for the first time in what could have been a decade.

  The familiar hum bristled my hair and I looked back to see Aidan walk into the room.

  Seeing the crib rocking, he stepped inside. “Apparently, it was my grandpa’s crib when he was a baby.”

  He was walking too close to me.

  I felt my shoulders rise and refused to move. I wasn’t going to show Robin that I was uncomfortable.

  Aidan moved to stop the crib’s rocking and his hand brushed against mine.

  That humming shock that I often felt around him became sharp. It electrocuted every hair on my arm and rocketing through my shoulder blades, giving me goosebumps.

  It wasn’t so much a physical shock as a vibration with a life of its own.

  It wasn’t my imagination, we both stiffened.

  I met his shocking blue eyes to see them just as wide as my own and realized, he felt it too.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Offering the little crib a sad smile, Robin shifted her eyes toward the only other piece of furniture in the room, a broken empty shelf. “Come on,” she urged to me.

  Staring at Aidan I realized I should breathe.

  He did at the same time and neither of us moved.

  When Robin reached the doorway, she looked back and paused.

  Phoebe thundered into the moment. “Okay, you two! There’s a third floor.”

  Aidan and I jerked apart as if stung.

  Blushing, I spun around and almost bowled Robin over.

  Luckily, Robin was spry enough to dodge and we bolted past a bewildered Phoebe. The stinging thought followed Robin and me into the next room: He felt that.

  I almost ran into the antique chest in the new room. A cracked mirror leaning against the wall gave Robin and me a distorted reflection.

  Robin’s green eyes were sparkling. “That was soooo cute, Nora.”

  “Ah, what?” I asked, hoping she’d keep her voice down.

  “That was like a moment,” she said, grinning so hard her face could split. “I mean, what if this turns out to be a romantic weekend? I would have been there when you guys first…‌”

  “Stop,” I hissed and somehow, she listened.

  She pinched her lips together with her teeth, but the excitement behind Robin’s eyes didn’t wane. She kept looking at me as I pretended to find interest in a chest full of mouse-chewed blankets. Robin had far too many romantic ideas. Sometimes I wondered how Cody could stand it. If he didn’t bring flowers when he was supposed to, I bet she snapped.

  “Phoebe…‌” Aidan sounded exasperated.

  Stepping out into the hallway, I saw everyone was there, except Phoebe.

  “It’s starting to get dark.” Read motioned to the window and flicked on his flashlight.

  “Should we start a fire?” Robin asked.

  Cody nodded.

  “Nora and I were going to get firewood,” Read said, pointing the flashlight at my feet.

  Robin said. “Maybe Nora should help Aidan get it. He’ll know where it is.”

  What a brat.

  Aidan didn’t seem to be listening to any of it. He was approaching the darkened doorway leading to the third floor.

  “Where’s Phoebe?” I asked.

  Read thrust a thumb over his shoulder, not looking impressed. “Went exactly where Aidan said not to go.” To Aidan he said, bored, “I told you, man.”

  “Should we go up after her?” Robin asked, rocking from her toes to her heels impatiently.

  Cody flinched and muttered in a slur. “Let’s stay down here. Does anyone smell rain?”

  Ignoring Cody’s question, I asked. “Aren’t you curious what’s up there?”

  Aidan turned his head like a whip and narrowed his eyes at me.

  Shrugging my shoulders under the weight of the glare, I said. “I’m just saying,” I held up my hands apologetically, “that if we’re curious, she’s ten times worse.”

  “True,” Read grumbled, sounding bitter. “You can’t keep that girl out of your business.”

  I waited as it seemed he wanted to continue, but he swung his flashlight to the circular stairs instead.

  “Phoebe…‌” Aidan called and inched toward the open archway as if it would suck him in.

  “What?” Phoebe’s voice echoed against brick walls from above.

  “Come back down,” Aidan said, sounding worried.

  “I’m almost at the top,” she protested. “Don’t you want to know what’s up here, Aidan?”

  Aidan rubbed his face with one hand, hard. “Well, yeah but the floorboards are so brittle a pebble could fall through.”

  “Yeah Phoebe,” Read called, “we don’t want to have to spend another weekend taking you to the hospital.”

  By another, he meant just one. Phoebe had broken her foot falling out of a tree and her foot decided to swell black and blue within the hour.

  “I’m not scared,” Phoebe said.

  I could almost see the Cheshire Cat grin on her face. “Phoebe, we have to unload the car!” I shouted, growing impatient. I realized I wanted to go back downstairs. Cody was already s
tarting down but stopped when Robin grabbed his arm.

  I think Aidan mouthed “thank you,” in my direction, but I couldn’t be sure.

  Phoebe’s said. “I’m going to look from the outside. Okay?”

  “No! Stop fucking around and get back down,” Aidan snapped.

  I don’t think I’ve ever heard him angry, like really angry before. He’s been annoyed with me, and sometimes Phoebe, though never angry. This time I heard an edge to his voice, one that made him seem more like a twitchy finger on a loaded shotgun.

  Read was grumbling. “Just let her go.”

  I could hear Phoebe’s echo above. She was clucking like a chicken.

  “What if she falls through?” Aidan demanded. “I don’t even know where she’d fall. Cell phone reception isn’t that great out here.”

  Cody pulled two of the candles from his baggy back pocket and held them out.

  Aidan had the lighter.

  Robin snickered as she carefully combed her hair with her fingers, smoothing it out to perfection. “We should go up there and scare the crap out of her.”

  Cody cracked a weary smile as Aidan lit two candles with a shaky hand and took one.

  Everyone pretended not to notice and no one moved to go first.

  Concerned, my lips parted to ask, but Robin began to whine.

  Whatever mechanism Cody has built into him instantly reacted. He grabbed Robin’s petite hand and shouldered past Read, Aidan and me. The two used the brick wall for support and started up the stairs. Robin frantically waved for us to follow.

  Rolling his eyes, Read grumbled. “If it were one person to ruin a party, it’d be Phoebe.” To Aidan he said, “You want to start the car and I’ll carry her out when she breaks her legs?”

  “That’s not funny,” I said.

  Aidan sighed, his eyes trained on the stairs, eyebrows pinching. “Looks like we’re going up to the tower.” He didn’t sound the least bit amused.

  I began to wonder how fast Aidan’s clunker car could drive back to town if something did happen.

  Read ducked his dark head and lead the way up the steps, carrying the flashlight. I was next, then Aidan with his own candle. He cupped the flame in his palm to keep it from blowing out as he climbed the noisy stairs, leaving a few steps between us.

  A cold draft from the circular tower sent a trail of goosebumps up my arms. When we get back downstairs, I’m getting a sweater. I should have thought of that earlier. There were gaps in the roof after all.

  I could see Robin and Cody just ahead of him. Robin was balancing on her toes so not to let her boots click, but I was pretty sure Phoebe knew we were coming. She was probably crouched up there waiting to scare the first person to walk through the door, which would be Robin and the worst candidate of our group. I hoped Cody had the reflexes to catch her, even tired.

  With the faint light I could see that the steps were thick four by eight planks that had been lodged into the circular brick wall. No railing graced the edge and I was forced to use the wall as a guide. The gritty, cold brick sprinkled dirt past my palm.

  If one of these planks was rotted enough, it could have a domino effect.

  Phoebe was going to have to chill with the daredevil stuff or someone was going to get hurt.

  As if in answer to my thought, the heart-piercing shout erupted from the third floor.

  CHAPTER TEN

  At the head of the group Cody and Robin froze, stopping all motion on the spindly stairs.

  It was Read who whispered an echo that was something like, “move,” and we lurched forward like soldiers. Robin’s heels prevented a full tilt run, which may have been helpful, considering the rickety stairs.

  Cody and Aidan’s candles went out and I almost lost my balance in the dark.

  I used the wall to steady myself and the grit numbed my fingertips as I sailed up the steps as fast as Read would let me.

  I used the glow of the swinging flashlight overhead as a guide.

  I bumped into Read’s back in my concentration. The smell of the burnt wick crowded my nose.

  Swaying to catch my balance, I gasped. “Phoebe? Are you okay?” Cody’s lanky, tall body was blocking most of my view.

  No one answered. No one even moved.

  Read, Cody, and Robin peered into a room through an arched brick doorway, never stepping inside, stranding Aidan and me in the creeping dark. The itching, spying dark.

  Trying to peer over Read’s shoulder, I could just make out the open trusses of the ceiling and slivers of moonlight filtering through the holes.

  “What is it?” Aidan whispered close to my ear. His warm breath had me gulping back a squeal. He was careful not to touch my skin when he tapped me in the middle of the back and asked again. “Nora? What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know,” I confessed.

  He sounded worried and I couldn’t blame him. There were people he just met a year ago looking into his family’s business, and they weren’t reacting‌—‌at all.

  I thought about what it would be like if everyone gutted my own family’s affairs? If everything I’d held secret was laid out on the table I’d be expecting some type of judgement, scorn or pity. I didn’t want any of that and I’m certain Aidan didn’t either.

  Taking in a deep breath I shouted, making Cody cringe at the blistering echo that shot back at us, “What the hell is going on?”

  “I’m ok,” Phoebe called, her voice echoing past us along the stairwell.

  Well, that was a relief, but it didn’t change the fact that Aidan was still behind me. Standing on my tippy-toes I was still unable to see Phoebe. I was about to ask Cody, Read and Robin to move when Robin interrupted me.

  Twisting her petite figure in the tight space between the two tallest, skinniest guys, Read and Cody, she faced us in the dark. “You’re sure you’ve never been up here, Aidan?”

  Read swung the flashlight back, blinding me. Raising my free arm to block it, I squinted over my shoulder to see Aidan’s confusion. “Yes, I’m very sure,” he said slowly, testing the words one by one.

  His handsome face screwed tight, Read moved forward at last, leading the pack into the room. Aidan practically mowed me over when we reached the last step and entered the circular tower room.

  Inching along the wall, allowing space for the others I swallowed my alarm.

  The brick wall across from me looked like it had been chipped away, like some sort of graffiti. It wasn’t a natural pattern.

  Read’s flashlight swept over the far wall.

  Feeling light headed, I snapped my hands out to steady myself against the gritty wall and keep the room from tilting. I don’t want to be in here, I realized in a sharp panic.

  The weighty eyes were hiding in the dark. I could feel the dirty gaze and took a deep breath.

  Phoebe was across the circular room, inspecting the walls. Gouged into the brick wasn’t a pattern, it was the words.

  Dismal is the Demon’s Grave.Was the one nearest to the ceiling, followed closely by: Offered death for once the brave. One soul of blackened sin.

  Then there was another sentence. One I hadn’t seen before.

  Railing torment lies within.

  In the center of the room, two oversized wooden chairs sat back to back. They reminded me of the electric chairs featured on TV, minus the wires and headsets. There wasn’t anything fancy in their construction. They were blocked pieces of wood which were old but held a finish to prevent rot. One faced a tiny window that was no bigger than my hands.

  The second large wooden chair was tilted toward me and I could see the leather straps on the arms and legs. Were they used to hold people down? Was there something about this room that Aidan wasn’t supposed to know?

  Pressing back into the cool, gritty wall, it gave me a sense of stability, a sense of this all being real.

  My muscles tensed as a foreign heat swelled near the surface of my skin. The grainy wall chilled the unexpected wave and I wondered if I was going to throw up.<
br />
  Cody stumbled a little and flopped onto the chair facing me. At first he held his arms up, inspecting the shiny surface on the chair. The wood, especially where the hands would rest, was lubricious. Was it age or repetitive use?

  My legs began to vibrate from the inside out and my knees threatened to buckle, but I didn’t fall.

  “Nora,” Aidan whispered beside me. “Are you okay?”

  Just moving my head flashed little black spots before my eyes. I hadn’t been feeling this dizzy down below, but then, I hadn’t felt the weighty eyes either. I wondered if the run had affected me in some way, or maybe the room.

  Aidan was watching me. I hadn’t really seen him worried before, but his face was pinched, body rigid, as if he expected to run.

  Read asked. “Do you need help?”

  I could only imagine what I must look like to them. My arms nearly spread eagle, hands clawed against the brick, and legs tight together. I confessed hoarsely. “I don’t know if I can stand.” I was certain I didn’t want to sit in the other chair.

  Barely touching my arm, Aidan’s fingertips were icicles against my hot skin and I shivered; unsure if it was the initial sensation I had felt when our hands touched or if it was just a feverish reaction. Aidan’s pale eyes shifted from my arm to my face and he paused before motioning for me to lean on him.

  “It’s okay, buddy,” Read said. “I got her.”

  One hand catching my waist, it was easy for him to pull me away, and I pushed more of my weight into Read than I normally would have.

  Leaning my shoulder to Read’s t-shirt, I felt his warmth and I almost preferred Aidan’s cool hands.

  Gripping my waist as if I might pitch forward, Read drew me closer to the chair behind Cody’s. I couldn’t help but watch my feet to make sure they didn’t cross over each other and I’d land on my face.

  With Read’s flashlight pointing down I noticed the floor was spotless, dust-free. Not a single footprint. The floorboards weren’t straight, they formed a pattern. A series of triangles that all pointed to the middle, to the chairs.

  I hadn’t realized I had Read’s shirt knotted in my first until he helped me sit down. I collapsed and my legs and arms sighed in relief though the room still tilted.