The Blacker House
by
Nicole Mulloy
1.
Kate awoke with a start. Panic gripped her as her eyes darted around the dark, unfamiliar room. Her heart thudded in her chest and she gasped to take in ragged breaths. Reaching out uncertainly, her fingers came upon a hard, strong surface and she used it to steady herself. She peered into the darkness and tried to decipher the strange shapes in the darkness. Where am I? A small shaft of moonlight shone onto polished hardwood floors. Crystal chandeliers tinkled overhead, as if a breeze had just wafted through the room.
I’m in the new house, she realized with relief. She took a deep breath and felt her body relax and her heartbeat slow. A whisper of a dream passed through her mind. She recalled the image of a tall, shadowy man and she felt cold, hard dread in the pit of her stomach, although she couldn’t recall anything else from her dream.
What am I doing down here? She was standing on the bottom step of the staircase in the foyer, her hand gripped on the railing. It was very strange place to wake up, but not that strange for Kate.
Kate shivered. The new house was unfamiliar and seemed too big. Kate felt small and insignificant as the house loomed around her. It was too large, even for Kate’s family. With all seven people under its roof, the house still felt cavernous and empty. Suddenly, Kate had the distinct feeling that she was being watched. She glanced into the dark rooms to her left and right. She remained motionless for a moment, holding her breath as she listened intently. The house was quiet and still as the grave.
Kate shook her head, throwing off the sinister feeling. By now, her eyes had adjusted to the darkness and she shuffled into the kitchen, weaving her way carefully around stacked boxes, most yet to be unpacked, and felt along the wall until she found the light switch. The kitchen glowed painfully white. Kate squinted and made her way to the refrigerator. It held only a box of soda cans, a gallon of milk and a greasy box of leftover pizza. Grabbing a paper cup from the counter, she poured herself a cup of milk and downed it too fast, making her stomach feel full and bloated. She burped loudly. It was a talent.
She moved to throw her cup into the trash, but just as she did, she heard a loud thump. It came from the basement. Of course…the basement.
The door to the basement looked innocent enough, a thick wood door newly painted a gleaming white, but behind the door lurked the creepiest basement Kate had ever seen. The creaky wooden stairs led down to a dank catacomb of rooms. The walls and floor were made of large rocks mortared together. It made Kate shudder to know that the huge house, all three stories, rested on a foundation of nothing but rocks and hundred-year-old glue.
One of the rooms of the basement was almost completely filled with dirt. Dirt! It seemed so strange, but then Kate had never lived in an old manor like this before. Maybe they all had basement rooms filled with dirt.
Kate stood frozen, paper cup poised over the trash. She glanced back at the basement door and noticed it was slightly ajar. Kate gulped. Her fingers finally released the paper cup which fell into the trash. Carefully, she padded across the floor in her bare feet, taking quiet, cautious steps. Reaching a hand out slowly, she pushed on the door and heard it click shut. Kate backed away slowly, noticing how her pulse had quickened.
She scoffed at her own unease. It’s just a door, she told herself. It’s a creepy basement, but all old houses have creepy basements. It’s some kind of real estate law. Kate glanced at the clock: quarter to three. She’d better get back to bed. She had to get up early in the morning. Tomorrow was her first day at the new school. Kate’s stomach fluttered just thinking about it.
Just as she turned to head up the stairs, Kate heard another thump, followed by a squeak. Slowly, she turned her head. The basement door stood open again, just a little, just enough for someone to peek through.
Kate’s heart raced now as wild thoughts ran through her mind. Blood-sucking vampires and psycho killers could be lurking behind the door, ready to pounce at any moment and rip her to shreds. Kate nearly turned and ran out of the room, screaming like a lunatic, but a calmer Kate found her way to the surface. This calm Kate took control. It’s just an old door in an old house. Don’t freak out. Calm Kate looked at the door and the slit of darkness behind it. It didn’t look like anybody or anything hid behind it. No yellow eyeballs peered out at her. Her fear diminished, but her heart still banged away like a bass drum, thumping loudly in her chest.
Summoning up her courage, Kate strode back to the basement door. This time, she put her whole hand on the door and gave it a firm shove. The door responded with a firm clack. She wouldn’t wait to see if it opened again. Kate dodged the boxes, walking quickly away from the basement door, picking up her feet a little higher than usual.
Instead of taking the wide, open staircase in the foyer, Kate opted for the small “back” stairs. Mom said that they were the servants’ stairs, back from when the house was a lavish estate. The servants’ stairs were crooked and creaky with a low ceiling and close walls. They felt safe to Kate, safe and comfortable. She flipped off the kitchen light and slipped up the stairs, all the way to the third floor where her sparse bedroom awaited.
Kate shimmied between the covers of her bed and glanced at the only thing she had unpacked in her room, the sweet, smiling picture of Jacob. She missed him so much. She thought about him as she fell into a fitful sleep.
2.
“Get up, Kate! Get out of bed!” her mother’s voice echoed through the stairwell.
Kate groaned and pulled the covers up over her head. Her alarm clock beeped loudly and Kate reached over to turn it off. Mornings were always too early for her, especially today. She suddenly remembered a pillowcase she slept on as a child. It pictured Sally from the Peanuts gang saying “I hate to go to bed at night and I hate to get up in the morning.” It pretty much summed up Kate’s attitude then, and now at sixteen.
She rubbed her eyes and stretched. The memory of waking up the foyer suddenly came to the forefront of her mind. It had been a while since her last “nighttime event.” That’s what her parents called her occasional sleepwalking episodes. Kate hated that term. They made it sound like she wet the bed. She had started walking in her sleep when she was only a toddler. Her parents often found her sitting at the kitchen table in the middle of the night. Once, after a frantic search, she was discovered sitting at the top of the slide of her swing set. Kate had not had a nighttime event in a long time. In fact, years had passed since the last once. She had considered herself cured.
It must be stress, she decided. Leaving Jacob, moving to the new town and the new house, it had all happened so fast. In fact, Kate was feeling very stressed right now. She had to start at the new school today, in just over an hour, in fact.
She threw her legs over the side of the bed and stood. The photograph of Jacob was lying face down on her bedside table. She must have knocked it over during the night. She set it back upright. The sight of his face made her happy and sad at the same time. She knew that he missed her and loved her, but she didn’t know when she would see him again.
Not yet fully awake, she made her way into the bathroom and turned on the shower. The pipes groaned and protested in the walls as the house tried to heat up the water. While she waited, Kate looked at herself in the mirror.
Kate’s appearance seemed to change from day to day. Some days, Kate thought she was kind of pretty, with thick brown hair, sparkling green eyes and clear skin. Other days, she thought she looked like a circus freak. Her hair could only be described as mousy brown and it never grew past her shoulders. Sure, she had nice green eyes, but with nonexistent eyelashes, and her skin took on a yellowy hue sometimes. Those great pink lipsticks she saw in magazines never looked quite right
on her. Kate’s mother told her that she was olive-skinned, a genetic blip from some Greek ancestors. Darn ancestors.
Although Kate had never been a great athlete, she looked the part with a compact, athletic build. She enjoyed sports, soccer and basketball mostly, but at just over five feet tall, she didn’t see herself dunking the basketball any time soon. Maybe if she had a trampoline or a step-ladder.
Finally, clouds of steam started to billow toward the ceiling. Kate climbed into the shower and stood under the hot water, not moving. It always took her a few minutes to wake up enough to shampoo her hair. She thought about going to the new school and a flurry of anxiety spread through her. A few days ago, Kate and her sister Lucy had visited their new school, St. Peter’s Regional High School, a Catholic school. Kate had always attended public school back in Nebraska. Public school suited Kate just fine. Her old high school had been big and bustling with lots of dances, football games and even some interesting classes.
But St. Pete’s was dingy and small, nothing like her school in Nebraska. It didn’t even have a cafeteria, but Kate’s parents heard it was the best school in town. Maybe it gave Mom some peace of mind to know her children were finally being educated by devout Catholics. No more learning secular math from public school. Whatever.
School had started a few weeks ago here, so Kate was already behind. She sighed heavily and allowed the steamy air of the shower to fill her lungs. She pushed the nervousness aside and turned her thoughts to Jacob. As always, thinking of him made her smile, even on a cloudy, stressful Monday morning.
She remembered the last day she saw him. All of the family’s belongings had been packed up and taken away, leaving the house emptier and cleaner that it had ever been. On the last night in Nebraska, Kate’s family slept in sleeping bags on the floor. Jacob arrived in the morning to say goodbye.
They stood embraced together for what felt like forever, yet it seemed so fleeting now. She had been wearing his football jersey, number 14, with his name, “Wilkinson,” across the back. In her arms she clutched the stuffed koala he had given her for their six month anniversary. Jacob wrapped his arms around her as she dropped her head onto his chest, her shoulders shaking with sobs. He lifted her chin and kissed her gently on the lips.
Her parents and four siblings were waiting in the van. There came a sudden moment when Kate realized that she really had to go. She really had to leave Jacob. Although she knew this time would come, she couldn’t believe it had come so soon, or that it could hurt so much. Kate stood fast, clutching Jacob hard. After a few minutes, she heard the van engine start. She glanced up. Even from here, she could see that her family was anxious to go, seatbelts snapped, beads of sweat forming on her mother’s face.
Kate hugged Jacob tightly and looked at his face. His mouth was a tight line, tears slipping from his eyes. She kissed him again and mouthed the words “I love you.” Then, she pulled away. He held onto her arm, then let his grasp slip to her hand. They lingered there a moment, holding hands, and then let go.
As the cars pulled away, Kate looked back on Jacob’s handsome, tear-streaked face, then had fallen into a fit of sobbing that lasted all the way to Des Moines. Nobody spoke. After a while, Kate could only heave her shoulders, exhausted from crying. She laid her cheek against the window, staring at unending cornfields, heartbroken. In the shower, Kate could feel the hot tears again, trickling down her cheeks and dripping off her chin. She missed Jacob so much.
Now, Kate Gilbert was a resident of Huntington, West Virginia. It still didn’t seem real. A month ago, she didn’t even know West Virginia was a state. She thought it was just, you know, western Virginia. It really is a state.
West Virginia was predictably awful thus far. Here for only a week and she already hated it.
For the first few nights, Kate’s family stayed in hotel rooms on the edge of town. On the very first morning after arriving, the family went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. As they were finishing their food, the chubby waitress asked them if they would like anything else. They all shook their heads.
“I can’t bring ya’ nothin’ else?” she asked. Then, the waitress had looked right at Kate and said, “Looks like yer stuffed as a tick!” Kate looked at her mother in horror. It was at that moment that Kate knew she would hate this town, hate this state, hate her new life.
Kate finished rinsing and turned off the shower, fully preparing herself to hate her new school.
*
Everybody was bustling around the kitchen this morning, the smell of coffee hanging in the warm air. Kate glanced quickly at the basement door. It appeared to be shut tight.
Kate’s mom, in pumps and a pressed suit, clicked across the kitchen floor, a stack of papers in her hand. She looked harried, her makeup applied thickly over the dark circles looming under her eyes. It looked like Mom hadn’t slept well either.
“You’re on your own for breakfast, Katie,” she said as she sloshed a bit of coffee on the counter top. Kate’s dad grabbed a washcloth to wipe it up.
“We can put a man on the moon, but we can’t build a coffee pot that doesn’t spill coffee all over the counter top.” Kate’s dad often marveled at the ineptness of the human race by comparing it to the moon landing.
“There’s cereal in the cupboard by the fridge. I think there’s milk left, if your sisters left you any.” Mom continued to stomp around the room, trying to find things in the disorganized mess.
“Calm down, dear,” Kate’s dad put an arm around his wife as she passed him.
“I’m fine.”
“No, you’re being frantic. You’re going to be great. Isn’t she, Kate?”
Kate looked at her mom; saw the nervous quiver of her lip. It was Mom’s new job that had moved the whole family to West Virginia. A lot rode on this job, this first day.
“Yeah, you’ll be fine, Mom,” Kate said, and then wished she had said something a little more encouraging. She went for the coffeepot and poured herself a big cup.
Last summer, Kate had worked part-time at a doughnut shop. The doughnuts were nothing to speak of, but the coffee was fantastic. Kate became hooked on coffee, swimming with lots of sugar and real cream. The coffee at home didn’t compare in taste, but at least it woke her up for school.
Marie and Lucy, Kate’s younger sisters, were sitting at the kitchen table in the small breakfast nook. The Gilberts’ large kitchen table filled up the whole room. This small room, painted a cheery yellow, seemed just right for breakfast. Several large windows lined one wall, facing east. Behind the house, a small backyard was encircled by a wooden fence. Behind that, an alley ran the length of the block. The Gilberts’ two cars were parked there beside a small garage.
October was just around the corner, and although it was already after seven, the sun was still trying to reach into all the shadowy places of the backyard. Although Kate loved the fall, she always felt a touch of sadness when the days grew noticeably shorter. She knew that the departure of the sun was slow, but it seemed to Kate very sudden. One day, it was summer. The next, she was going to school in cold darkness. It always took her by surprise.
Kate’s normally squealing sisters were quiet and thoughtful this morning. Kate was glad for it. She didn’t feel like talking anyway. She poured her cereal and looked at them. Lucy appeared to have taken great care in picking out her clothes. Her short black hair was carefully combed and gelled into place. Marie was in her plaid school uniform, required by the elementary school, complete with white tights and black shoes. She was small for her age, and she had to straighten her back to properly slurp her cereal.
“Are you all ready to go?” Kate asked Lucy as she finished off her breakfast.
Lucy nodded, her big blue eyes full of excitement. “I just need to grab my backpack.”
“Alright, let’s get going.” The school was just a few blocks away. Kate and Lucy would walk. Marie didn’t start until later and would get dropped off by their dad, who had several job interviews lined up for the da
y.
“Make sure your brothers are awake before you leave, Kate,” Mom yelled from the kitchen.
“Why do I have to wake them up? They’re big boys.”
Mom gave Kate a tired look. “Just do it.”
“Okay,” Kate said, rolling her eyes.
“Have a good first day.” Mom kissed each girl on the cheek and gave quick hugs. Then, she clicked out the door.
Kate grabbed her backpack and shouted to her youngest sister. “Marie, wake up the boys before you go.”
Marie frowned. “Mom told you to do it!”
“I know, but I have to go. Just do it.” Kate walked out the door, Lucy catching up behind her. She heard Marie complaining to their father. Kate shut the door and walked down the path.
*
The hallways of St. Pete’s were dirty. Wadded-up paper, used tissues and dust balls littered the floor. Kate and Lucy stood just inside the front door, Kate looking with dismay. Students pushed around them, trying to get to class on time. The hallway in front of them was lined with gray lockers. Young-looking students spun knobs, opened the lockers, rifled for books and slammed the doors.
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