Carlton House

by B. Groves

  How long had he been home? Why didn’t he alert her he was here? How much had he seen?

  Lily cheeks burned with embarrassment and shame. She went snooping somewhere she had been ordered to stay away from.

  “Yes, but—”

  “But, nothing. Sit down. I realize it’s early, but you look pale. Supper is waiting for you,” Mr. Carlton ordered.

  Lily glanced at the table. He was right, there was another covered dish with a napkin and utensils sitting near the notepad.

  Lily scoffed. She hadn’t noticed it when she walked into the room. She felt stupid, and Mr. Carlton probably thought she was a total idiot.

  “Please, sit.”

  Lily pulled out the chair and sat in front of the covered dish. She smelled a faint aroma but wasn’t sure what was beneath the cover.

  “Will you be joining me?” Lily asked.

  “No, I’m not hungry. Please enjoy your meal, and I will explain a little more about the house,” Mr. Carlton said.

  Lily had hoped Mr. Carlton would have joined her this time, but instead, he stayed seated behind the winged chair like the day before.

  Lily lifted the cover and found a roasted chicken leg and thigh covered in gravy with something mashed on the side and green beans with roasted almonds.

  The mashed food didn’t look like potatoes as Lily picked up the fork and poked at it.

  “Those are parsnips,” Mr. Carlton said.

  “Oh, I see,” Lily said, setting down the fork and placing the napkin in her lap.

  “Have you eaten them before?”

  “No. Never.”

  “They have a nutty flavor. I think you’ll enjoy them,” Mr. Carlton commented.

  “Do you cook, Mr. Carlton?” Lily asked as she picked up her fork and knife to cut the chicken.

  Another chuckle. “I would not consider myself a great cook.”

  Lily’s meal was specially ordered? Lily didn’t care. She found her stomach growling again and cut into the chicken. The juices ran onto the plate mixing with the gravy, making Lily ready to inhale her meal.

  Lily smiled as she took her first bite. She didn’t know who made Mr. Carlton’s meals, but she would swear they were right up there with well-known chefs she watched on television.

  “Before we go over your duties tomorrow, I know you have questions,” Mr. Carlton said.

  Lily held the fork in mid-air and had her mouth open ready to take the next bite when Mr. Carlton mentioned the questions.

  Lily set the fork down. She had questions. Lots of questions. Why is that room locked? Who was behind the doors? Who did she see in the window? Why was Mr. Carlton outside and near her cottage in the middle of the night?

  Instead, Lily lied. “I’m fine. I came in to check on supplies as you suggested and became curious.” Lily went to pick up her fork, but her appetite was waning. Her mind raced from her explorations of the house and now Mr. Carlton was volunteering more information.

  “You’re telling me a half-truth,” Mr. Carlton observed.

  Lily needed her questions answered. Those rules were strange and any other sane person wouldn’t have accepted the job based on those rules alone, but Lily found herself in a crunch and had to get away from her former situation. Jordan became violent. She didn’t want to live with a person like him. She did not want to repeat her childhood.

  She deserved to know. She deserved to know why he had such strict rules about those doors.

  “What’s behind the double doors? Why are they locked?”

  Those questions passed Lily’s lips before she could stop them. She had meant to ease into that particular part of the house, but it didn’t happen.

  She waited for Mr. Carlton to jump up and asked her to leave the property. I can always go to Angela’s, Lily thought. She would understand. She would welcome me home.

  Her hand was shaking while she held the fork and she placed it on the plate and clasped her hands in her lap.

  “There is a reason I keep these rules. It’s for your own safety,” Mr. Carlton said. “That part of the house is dangerous. You will get hurt working in there.”

  Lily frowned. What did he mean she would get hurt?

  “Something violent happened in the part of the house a long time ago,” Mr. Carlton said. “I keep it locked down because of the neglect. People would not enter that part of the house for years, and as a result, I sealed it.”

  Lily didn’t know what to say. What happened in that room? She remembered the ceiling above her looked pretty sturdy inside the ballroom but that didn’t mean there weren’t problems inside the room.

  “I saw a light and a person,” Lily commented. “Was it you?”

  Something violent happened in that part of the house. A chill ran down Lily’s spine with thinking of what might have happened. It could have been anything. An accident? A natural disaster? A murder?

  Lily shuddered from a possible murder.

  “Please stay away from the master bedroom and on the one on the left. That’s all I ask,” Mr. Carlton said.

  Who was telling half-truths now? Lily asked herself with a smirk.

  “I understand. What directions do you have for tomorrow?”

  Lily decided it’d be best to change the subject. Maybe one day she would earn Mr. Carlton’s trust enough to let her see inside that room. Lily had an idea. Tonight, she would search out Carlton House and its history on the internet. That might give her a better idea of what she’d gotten herself into.

  “Before we continue talking about your first day, I’m hoping you are enjoying the gardener’s cottage.”

  Lily smiled. She fell in love with the cottage the moment she stepped inside last night.

  “Oh, yes! I can’t thank you enough for letting me live here. That house is so beautiful. Inside and out,” Lily said.

  “I’m happy you are already enjoying your stay,” Mr. Carlton said. “Now, let’s move to tomorrow. I want to restore this house to its former glory. I’ve neglected it for far too long, but first, I need help to clean it up.”

  “I saw the portraits in the dining room,” Lily commented. “I’m assuming they are your family?”

  “That’s very observant of you,” Mr. Carlton answered. “They are long gone.”

  “I don’t want to pry but—”

  “Yes?”

  “There’s a portrait of a boy upstairs,” Lily started, remembering the look of fear in his eyes. “He looked so sad… so afraid. What happened to him?”

  She heard Mr. Carlton suck in a shaky breath. He raised the glass, and Lily assumed he was taking a drink of his liquor since she couldn’t see beyond the wing of the chair.

  “He did not live long. That’s why I mentioned the violent act that took place in this house a long time ago. I’m ready to cleanse those demons from this house and I hope renovations will help with that.”

  That was understandable. Lily’s eyes wandered around the dining room. She had a lot of research to do after dinner and when she returned to the cottage. She thought about that little boy in the portrait and her heart broke knowing he had a tragic end.

  “Now, if you’re done asking questions, I want this room cleaned first. I think you know by now that I favor this room and my study,” Mr. Carlton said. “Did you explore my study too?”

  Lily nodded. “Yes, I did. It’s a great room.”

  “You’re welcome to enter there any time. I have many books that are collecting dust if you like to read, but please be careful of the electrical equipment in there such as the monitors for the cameras and my laptop.”

  Lily nodded, although she was sure Mr. Carlton didn’t see it. Or maybe he did, she couldn’t tell.

  “I definitely have my work cut out for me tomorrow,” Lily said.

  Mr. Carlton stood up and turned to face Lily. His body and face were shadowed by the fire behind him.

  “Eight o’clock on the dot. I’ve grown weary, Lily. I’m retiring for the night. I will see you in the morning,” Mr. Carlt
on said. “Enjoy the rest of your meal.”

  Before Lily could respond, Mr. Carlton exited the dining room and left her staring at a vacant chair. She heard faint footsteps ascending the main staircase.

  Lily blinked a few times realizing she never actually saw Mr. Carlton leave the room. She tried to blow it off as surprise since his departure was so abrupt, but the doubt lingered.

  Lily turned back to her food and tried to eat a few more bites, but with only the grandfather clock ticking away in the corner, she decided she ate enough.

  Lily didn’t know if the dishes needed to be cleaned and returned to where Mr. Carlton bought the food or not. They were very nice dishes, and she didn’t want to leave them there, so she stood up, made sure she didn’t leave crumbs on the table and walked out of the dining room and into the kitchen.

  Lily shivered as she entered the kitchen. Darkness settled over the house as the last rays of sunshine disappeared behind the forest and that meant the air was turning cooler.

  Deciding she would wash the dishes and head back to the cottage for the night, she looked for some dish soap and found it along with sponges inside the supply closet.

  She tested the water and found it in working order. It was clear and cool under her fingers when she turned on the cold spigot.

  She washed off the dishes and utensils and placed them neatly to dry on the countertop. She had a few more minutes before the sun was fully set so she decided to explore the kitchen a little deeper to see what was in the cabinets.

  She opened the cabinets to her right and found nothing but spiderwebs and dust. Lily reached over to another cabinet and opened that one.

  Dishes were stacked inside the cabinet, but they were different shapes and sizes.

  None of them matched. Some were fancier square designs and some were plain round plates. She grabbed one plate and found it was lightweight. She worked in the casinos long enough to know this was typically the kinds of plates they used for room service.

  Maybe Mr. Carlton liked to collect plates on his travels, Lily thought, shrugging it off. She placed the plate back in the cabinet and closed the door.

  She opened another cabinet and found different styles of glasses. Some were plain water glasses and others were fancy champagne glasses. All had a fine layer of dust coating them.

  Well, Mr. Carlton is the only person who lives here, so why would that be surprising?

  Lily shook her head and felt her previous paranoia creeping up inside her again. She thought about the answers Mr. Carlton gave her. His answers didn’t give her peace of mind.

  All he explained was the danger inside those rooms without going into further detail.

  He also mentioned a dark history of the boy in the portrait—Harry.

  Lily’s curiosity piqued. She would research more about the house and its history and since Mr. Carlton hadn’t revealed much, she would research it herself.

  Lily turned off the lights inside the kitchen. She glanced back down the hallway. This house fed into her paranoia and learning the story about a little boy dying tragically inside the house, the gardener’s cottage became Lily’s refuge.

  Lily walked out the back door and locked it behind her, finally remembering which key fit into which lock.

  The sky had changed into a deep violet color with stars showing their brilliance and the moon rising in the east.

  Lily inhaled the frosty, fresh air. Her spirits lifting once she left the house.

  She walked over to the cottage and smiled, seeing the living room light she’d left on before she went to explore the main house.

  She would heed Mr. Carlton’s rules. Keep all the doors locked and window curtains closed.

  She unlocked the cottage door and closed it behind her, making sure the lock clicked in place.

  Lily thought about eating the sandwich she had left in the refrigerator but decided to just snack on the bag of potato chips she bought with it instead.

  She changed out of her clothes and settled into the sofa with her laptop sitting on the coffee table and the TV on low in the background.

  She listened for any strange noises but didn’t detect any other sounds except the low voices of a sitcom playing on the TV.

  While Lily crunched on her chips, she was ready to type in Carlton House when her phone beeped with a text.

  While Lily crunched on her chips, she typed “Carlton House” into the search engine and as she was scrolling through the results, her phone beeped.

  She opened her phone and a heavy feeling formed in Lily’s stomach.

  Jordan: Come home. I love u and miss u. I’m sorry.

  Lily’s surprise turned to anger. She stared at the screen wondering if she should answer Jordan.

  She would not fall for that one. He could cry, beg, or plead, but he would never convince her to go back to that apartment.

  Lily turned away from the phone hoping to gain control of her emotions. She was furious that he would have the audacity to text after assaulting her. They had agreed when they broke up to live together as roommates until one of them found a better job and could move on although Jordan never wanted to move on.

  She remembered Angela’s words about control and Lily nodded in agreement.

  Jordan: Where are u?

  Lily blinked when the next text came in.

  Jordan: Please answer

  Lily had to make it stop. She would inform Jordan that she never wanted to talk to him again.

  She was ready to type in a response when she thought she heard a whisper behind her.

  “Don’t answer it.”

  Lily sat up straight and turned her head right and left in surprise.

  Did she hear someone whisper?

  Lily placed a hand on her forehead in irritation about her overactive imagination.

  Shaking her head, Lily went back to the phone and viewed Jordan’s texts. Maybe that whisper was her subconscious telling her that answering Jordan was a bad idea.

  It was a bad idea, she thought. Giving in and answering him would give him the upper hand and Lily didn’t want that. She wanted to avoid going down a path that could lead to unnecessary drama.

  She placed the phone down on the coffee table. Wherever that voice came from, it was right. Don’t answer it and don’t answer him.

  Lily sat there for a few minutes still debating answering Jordan. She stared at her phone, but no other messages appeared on the screen.

  Satisfied, Lily turned her attention back to the origins of Carlton House.

  She typed the name into the search engine and was surprised when she received only a few hits.

  She frowned and tried an advanced search. She even listed the address.

  Again, very few hits.

  Lily clicked on the first listed in her browser. The page contained some historical information about southern New Jersey from a local blogger.

  Lily sat there for a few minutes still debating answering Jordan. She stared at her phone, but no other messages appeared on the screen.

  Satisfied, Lily turned her attention back to the origins of Carlton House.

  She typed the name into the search engine and was surprised when she received only a few hits.

  She frowned and tried an advanced search. She even entered the address.

  Again, very few hits.

  Lily clicked on the first listed in her browser. The page contained some historical information about southern New Jersey from a local blogger.

  The blogger set up the site with a blogger format. Lily clicked through a few of the links and found them broken and the websites shut down.

  A summary of the house appeared on the main page.

  Constructed in 1848, Carlton House was built during the early years of the Victorian Era. Phillip Carlton Sr. constructed the home as a getaway for himself and his family when summers would become overwhelming in New York City and the family sought the fresh air and cool sea breezes in southern New Jersey.

  They gifted the house to his so
n, Phillip, when Phillip’s wife, Hannah, fell ill with Tuberculosis (Consumption).

  No one knows the real truth, but rumors persist that after Phillip returned home after the Civil War, and found his beloved Hannah dying of the terrible disease, it drove him insane.

  After Hannah’s death, his grief and anger were too much to bear. He murdered his son, Harry, and then hung himself from the staircase.