by Cora Clark
It moved to the side, and underneath it lay a darker kind of wood. I had to place my hand on the floor and wipe some dust away from it to see the cracks. Cracks forming a square. A hatch.
Bile sped up my throat and I placed my hand over my mouth, stopping myself from puking. I rose to my feet and turned. I wasn’t going to find out what was down there alone. Something down there gave away a horrible smell. Mould and dirt aside, this I couldn’t even describe. It caused me to throw up in an instant.
I jogged back up and practically slammed the door shut behind me. “Better now?” I asked out loud. “Can the dreams stop now?”
Of course, they wouldn’t. I would need to open the damn thing before they would stop.
I kept myself occupied with work and binge-watching a random Swedish comedy series on TV. I stuffed my face with everything I had left to eat in the house, making a mental note to go shopping the next day. It was almost dinner time when I got a text message from Hayden.
‘How’s my favourite cabin-girl?’
I laughed.
‘It’s not a cabin, it’s a house.’
‘….It’s a cabin to me.’
‘Lol. What’s up?’
‘Nothing. Just made the best ever pasta Bolognese. It would be a shame if I had to eat it all by myself…’
I bit my lip, my smile extending from ear to ear.
‘I’d love to.’
‘Great, see you soon!’
I got up from the couch, prettied myself up in the bathroom, and then put on some nicer clothes. I settled for a knitted dress and stockings, knowing I wouldn’t need to be out in the cold for too long. I threw on my coat, and then my boots, bracing myself for the icy wind outside.
The snow made a nice, homey sound under my feet as I pushed myself forward. It was absolutely freezing cold, and I cursed myself for not bringing a scarf or something to cover my ears. They would be frozen in ice by the time I got there.
I walked up the hill, feeling warmer as my body temperature rose. I smiled as I walked up the driveway. Hayden opened the door and ushered me inside.
“It’s freezing!” he said as he closed the door behind me.
“It sure is, wow, it smells amazing!” It really did. I was really looking forward to his homemade Bolognese.
“Come in, I have already set the table.”
As the dining table came into view, I got met by lit candles, dimmed lights, and a bottle of red standing there with two glasses next to it.
I didn’t know what to say, so I just smiled as he picked up the bottle and poured us both some wine.
“I hope you like this one,” he said.
I nodded and took a small sip. “It’s spicy, I love it.”
He beamed. “Good! It’s my favourite. Sit down.”
I did as he asked and sat down, watching him as he carefully dished up the pasta and the sauce on our plates. It looked really good, and I could feel my stomach rumble, despite me having been eating garbage all day.
“How did you go last night?” he asked as he sat down next to me.
I shrugged. “Fine. Still dreamt, but it’s fine.” I decided not to tell him about the hatch. He would either think I was really going mad, or he would get worried about me. I didn’t like either outcome, so I kept my mouth shut.
“Wish there was something I could do.”
I smiled. “You can, and you are doing it right now.”
He chuckled and took a bite of the food. I did the same, savouring every bite. It was probably the best God damn pasta I had ever had in my life.
“Do you like it?”
I wiped my mouth on my serviette and smiled. “Yes, it is great! You are a good cook.”
He seemed to be blushing slightly. “Thank you, I try.”
“This is really nice, too,” I said eyeing the candles on the table. “Thank you.”
“No problem, figured it would be nicer than the bright kitchen lights…”
I nodded and then focused all my attention on the food while Hayden spoke about how he made the sauce from scratch. I didn’t doubt it, it was too good to be coming from a glass jar.
Once dinner was done, and my stomach threatened to break through my dress, we remained at the table for a while, finishing off the bottle of wine.
“Do you want to stay the night?” Hayden asked me.
I felt my heart sputter. “Oh, eh, yeah, I mean, why not?”
He looked pleased. “Good, I was hoping you’d want to.”
I giggled and finished the last bit of wine. “How so?”
He looked at me, eyes burying into me. I could practically hear my heart in my ears as he rose from his chair and walked up to me. I felt a hot sensation spread through my body as he leaned down and cupped my chin with his hand. I looked up at him and let out a shallow breath before his lips touched mine.
The room disappeared. I closed my eyes and let his mouth guide mine as we kissed. My stomach made irregular jumps as my heart rate increased and my body temperature rose.
Our lips parted, and he took a step back, eyes still locked on me. “That’s why I wanted you to stay.”
I bit my lower lip and blushed. “I see.”
He eyed the table, then blew out the candles. “Do you want to come with me to the room? I’ll show you where you will be sleeping.”
I nervously got up and followed him as we went up the stairs and into a big, luxurious bedroom. The sheets were of silk, red and inviting. I eyed Hayden. “But this is your bed?”
He pushed the door closed and then grabbed my head between his big hands. Our lips crashed together again, and this time he didn’t hold back.
My body followed him as he kissed me and gently removed my clothes, starting with my shoes, then my stockings. I found myself moaning in pleasure in between kisses, wanting him like crazy, almost like it had been a lifelong dream of mine.
Which it could have been, for all I knew.
He removed his own shirt and pants before helping me take my dress off. I lay there exposed in only my underwear on the soft sheet as he placed himself over me and kissed my collarbones.
“Do you want to do this?” he asked.
I caught my breath before saying, “Yes.”
“Are you sure?”
I grabbed a hold of his head and made him look me in the eye. “I want you, Hayden.”
He smiled and kissed my lips before proceeding to remove the rest of both mine and his clothing.
I lay back and focused on enjoying every touch, every whisper, and every kiss.
This was also the very first time I had been with a man. And it was something I would never forget.
Chapter Twelve
Madness
I felt happy when I woke up the next morning embraced by Hayden’s muscular arms. I sighed and squinted as the morning sun escaped through his blinds.
“Good morning,” Hayden whispered. I felt his lips on the back of my neck.
“Morning.”
“How did you sleep?”
I turned to face him. “Really good.”
He moved a string of hair from my face and smiled. “Good. I am glad you decided to stay.”
“Me too.”
“Do you have plans for today?”
I sighed. “Other than work? Not really.”
He shrugged. “It’s the weekend.”
I rubbed my eyes, realising how off my sense of time was already. “I had no idea.”
“I won’t stop you from going back now if you need to, after coffee and breakfast.”
I smiled and kissed his lips. “Thank you. The house gives me the creeps, so breakfast sounds great.”
His expression changed, and he rolled over on his back, staring up the ceiling. “I really think you should stop trying to remember what happened, Octavia.”
I felt a sting in my stomach. “What? Why would you say that?”
“It’s not good for you. You have said it yourself. You get nightmares, and you are paranoid.”
&nb
sp; I sighed and sat upon the edge of the bed, back facing him. “I get the nightmares and visions regardless.”
“Why is it so important to you?”
I frowned. “Wouldn’t you want to know? And haven’t we already had this conversation?”
“I just really think you should let this whole thing with your dad go. Let the man rest in peace.”
I turned to face him, my blood starting to boil. “What to do you know about him that you are not telling me?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Tell me, Hayden.”
Hayden sat up and eyed me. “Look. My dad always told me and my friends to leave him alone, that he was up to no good. I never knew what it was, but my dad didn’t seem at all comfortable around him. He did something, with his work, something you probably don’t want to know about. Why ruin your good memories of him?”
I felt tears pressing behind my eyes. “What did he do?”
“I told you, I don’t know.”
I shook my head. “No. You must know more than what you are telling me. What did he do?”
He rose from the bed and put on his pants, then a new T-shirt. “Octavia, I don’t know. It is the truth. I just know he was up to something, because Dad told me he was.”
I put on my dress and then my shoes, ignoring the stockings. “I need to go back,” I said, tears threatening to escape any minute now.
Hayden touched my shoulder as I turned to walk out. “Don’t leave, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I shook my head and sighed. “I just need some time alone.” I lied. I didn’t really want to be alone, but I also didn’t want to me crying in front of Hayden.
I left the house and instantly blinked as snowflakes entered my eyes. I rubbed them and sprinted down the hill towards my house. As I looked up, my heart stopped.
A woman dressed in a long, black coat stood outside the house, peering into one of my windows. I stopped in my tracks, staring at her for a moment before I yelled out, “Hey!”
The woman turned, revealing a long lock of blonde hair hiding inside her hood. She seemed panicked and began running towards the forest behind the house.
I picked up my pace and ran after her. “Wait! Who are you?”
As I rounded the corner, she was gone. I stood there in the snow listening to my own heavy breaths for a moment before deciding to head back inside. I instantly thought maybe the house had been trashed while I had been gone.
I locked the door behind me and turned on the lights. It all looked exactly as it had when I left the night before.
I sighed and removed my coat before placing some wood in the fireplace.
Who was the woman? Why was she sneaking around my house?
I didn’t even notice the tears streaming down my face. Had I even seen her? Was she really there, or was it my mind playing tricks on me? Like when I saw my mother and father argue in the kitchen?
I wiped my cheeks and lay down on the couch, watching TV as I tried to think about something else.
I drifted off multiple times, waking up scared and alone. I turned on all the lights in the house and kept peering out the windows in case the woman would show up again.
She didn’t. And I felt really dumb.
For the first time since arriving back in Sweden, I wanted to take the next plane back to England. This was not at all like I had hoped or planned.
My pillow was drenched in tears when I finally fell asleep for the night.
Chapter Thirteen
The Cellar
The contours of the hatch in the cellar look so sharp and threatening. It is like my mind is trying to tell me something really, really important is hiding down there. I stand in the cellar, confused and scared, when the lights turn off. I scream and run for the door, which is locked.
I scream some more, pounding on the door, feeling my blood rush violently though my body.
I don’t know how, but I know I am going to die.
Something or someone in the cellar is going to kill me.
I pound on the door until my fists bleed, and I look at my hands in horror. The darkness of the cellar doesn’t reveal the dark red colour of the blood, but I feel its wetness, and the numbness reaching my fingers.
I sit down helplessly on the floor, my back against the door. My cries drown and I lose my voice trying to scream.
Something is knocking on the hatch, from the inside…
Thump Thump…
I woke up sweating, bolting upright on the bed. Someone was pounding on the front door.
I took a breath and wiped my forehead. “Coming!” I yelled out as I put on my nightgown and then trotted down the stairs.
With the dream still fresh in my mind, I opened the door and jumped as I saw Hayden standing there.
“Whoa! Didn’t mean to scare you,” he said.
I sighed and let him inside. “Nightmare, I’m fine.”
He walked inside and looked at me, raising one eyebrow. “Look, I am sorry, okay?”
I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “I don’t care anymore. It’s fine.”
“Are you sure? You seem upset about something.”
I looked at him. “Did you know we have a secret hatch down in the cellar?”
He shook his head. “What do you mean, a secret hatch?”
“I mean a secret hatch. Hidden under a carpet.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “Was that in your dream?”
I nodded. “Yup. It was. And then I went down there, and wouldn’t you know, there it was.”
“You are just remembering it then.”
I sighed. “Either way, I need to know what’s down there.”
He took a step towards me, then touched my cheek with his cold hand. “Do you want me to check it out with you?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Okay. We can do that.” He leaned forward and kissed my lips. I felt a tingle in my lower stomach.
“I also saw someone, yesterday...” I said as I moved my head back, breaking the kiss.
“Saw who?”
“A woman peeking through the windows.”
He frowned. “Here?”
“Yes, through the kitchen window. I tried to follow her when she ran into the woods.”
“God, why didn’t you tell me?”
I shook my head. “I was upset.”
He took his shoes off and sat down on the couch. “Who could it have been?”
I kept talking to him as I entered the kitchen and put on some coffee. “I have no idea. I didn’t recognise her.”
“Just strange… for someone to come all the way out here just to peek into a window?”
I closed my eyes and took a breath as I waited for the coffee. The dream was still affecting me in a really bad way. I felt jumpy, scared, and extremely homesick. “I know it’s strange.”
“So… do you think it has anything to do with… you know… what you think might have happened with your dad?”
I watched as the coffee dripped into the kettle. “I don’t know. Could be. We need to check the hatch.”
“I’m happy to go down there when you are.”
I waited for the coffee to finish and made us a cup each. We drank it in silence while the TV played in the background.
“You look terrible,” Hayden said as he put his empty cup down on the coffee table.
I snorted. “Well, thanks.”
“I didn’t mean it that way. You look like you haven’t slept.”
I shrugged. “I have, but the dreams seem to really be getting to me.”
“Ready for the hatch?”
I nodded and finished the last bit of coffee. “Yeah, let’s do it.”
I turned on all the lights and made sure we could see the dirty floors as we walked down the cellar. My arms were folded across my chest as I followed close behind Hayden.
“Over there,” I said and pointed to the carpet.
Hayden moved it to the side. “I’ll be damned.”
I started biting my nails as he bent over and grabbed onto the handle. He pulled, and nothing happened.
“Is it locked?” I asked.
“No, just stuck.” He pulled again, and again. It wasn’t until the tenth or so time that the hatch actually opened with a loud shriek of old wood and metal.
I found myself taking a step back as he pulled out a flashlight and turned it on. “It’s a staircase.”
I swallowed. “How far down does it go?”
Hayden covered his nose with the sleeve of his shirt. “Wow, the smell…”
“How far down does it go?”
He moved the light around. “Not too far. Do you want to come?”
I nodded. I wasn’t going to let him go down there all by himself. He took my hand and helped me get down the first couple of steps. The smell was terrible. It stank of rotten wood, mould, sourness, and something else I couldn’t quite describe.
I followed the light of the flashlight, clutching onto Hayden’s hand as we slowly went down.
A small room came into view, and at first, I had no idea what the black heaps of… something was, lining up against the stone walls.
Hayden shone the light straight at it, and I gasped. I turned around and fell on the first step of the staircase. Hayden grabbed me from behind.
“Calm down!”
I looked at him, feeling my pulse in my ears. “They are bodies!” I screamed, suddenly fearing my own life.
Hayden didn’t seem to believe me, so he turned around and shone the light at them again. Bones, pieces of clothing, and metal shackles. At least four bodies.
I sobbed and kept my hand covering my mouth and nose. “Hayden, we need to go!”
He looked like he had seen a ghost when he turned around. All blood drained from his face. I took his hand and went up the stairs. I didn’t look back until we were all the way out, and out of the cellar.
I didn’t need to say anything to Hayden. It seemed like we were on the same page. I packed a small suitcase of my things and we promptly left the house and went to his.
My mind was racing, and I felt sick to my stomach thinking about me sleeping in that house with bodies rotting away in the cellar.