THE ORPHANAGE

Chapter 1

SYLVIE'S POV

I looked out the window as I saw  Lucia being driven out in a Bentley to her new home. She was one of my close friends but she was adopted by a rich family. Why is everyone being adopted except me? So if you haven't guessed, I live in an orphanage.

According to my file, my parents were assassinated when I was only six and ever since then I have lived here awaiting adoption. Well I am fifteen now and I don't think I would be adopted any time from now.

I walked out of the room to the hallway before going down the stairs. "Sylvie" someone called from behind me. I looked back to see Ms. Rachel, our caretaker, carrying a basket of dirty laundry.

"Could you please go over to the boys' orphanage and ask Mr. Chiesa to hand over the boys' laundry. I tried to phone him but he wouldn't pick up.''

"Okay." I replied then she handed me a basket.
     
I stepped out through the front door. The boys' orphanage was directly behind the girls' but it was separated by a fence. I don't really understand why they separated the boys' orphanage from the girls'.

I saw Mr. Williams, our gardener, trimming the flowers.

"Morning Mr. Williams." I greeted.

"Oh morning, where are you off to?" He asked while turning to face me.

"Just running some errands" I replied.

"Alright, carry on"

I pushed on the little gate on the fence and walked to the front door. I knocked on it and waited impatiently for the door to answer. As I stood there, the sound of footsteps echoed from the other side of the door, followed by the creaking of old wooden hinges.

The door swung open, revealing a tall lanky boy with messy brown hair and a scowl on his face.

"What do you want?" He asked gruffly, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in my presence.

I held out the basket I was holding trying to appear nonchalant despite the flutter in my chest. "Ms. Rachel sent me here to collect the boys' laundry. She tried calling Mr. Chiesa but he didn't answer."
   
"Oh yeah, Mr. Chiesa's been busy with the new renovations. I'll go get the laundry." He turned and disappeared into the depths of the orphanage, leaving me standing in the doorway.
   
As I waited, I couldn't help but glance at the interior of the building. The boys' orphanage seemed to have a similar layout to ours, but the decorations and furniture looked slightly different. I noticed that the window was adorned with makeshift curtains, and the paint was chipped in places.

The boy returned with a large basket of dirty clothes, which he handed over to me with a nod. "Here you go. Tell Ms. Rachel that Mr. Chiesa will be in touch soon."

"Thanks." I muttered as I took the basket from him before turning to head back to the girls' orphanage.

As I walked into the girls' orphanage, Cressida looked up from the book she was reading, a curious expression on her face.
  
"Where were you?" she asked, her voice laced with a hint of concern.
 
I shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant. "Ms. Rachel asked me to run some errands."

Cressida nodded, seeming to accept my explanation. "Oh, okay." She returned to her book, and I made my way to the laundry room to sort the dirty clothes.

The rest of the day went by uneventful, until it was nighttime. I went to my room to get ready for bed. My room consists of three bunk beds, Lydia and Bryony shared the first, Cressida and I shared the second, and only Ivy is on the third, she used to share it with Lucia before she got adopted.

"Do you think we would leave this place?" Lydia asked out of nowhere as I was getting into bed.

"Well yes, I don't think we can stay here forever" Cressida replied.

I got into bed, my mind still feeling from the question. Lydia's question hung in the air, and I couldn't help but wonder the same thing. Do we have a future outside these four walls?

Cressida's response was met with a few murmur of agreement from the others. I settled into bed, feeling the worn-out mattress beneath me. The darkness seemed to amplify the silence, and I could sense the weight of our collective uncertainty.

"What's going to happen to us?" Bryony's soft voice broke the silence, her voice barely above a whisper.

No one responded, but I knew we were all thinking the same thing. We were all orphans, stuck in this place with no clear future. The only sound was the creaking of the old building and the distant hum of the night.

As I was drifting off to sleep, I heard a scream followed by a loud thud coming from downstairs which shot me up immediately. And it seemed I wasn't the only one who heard it because everyone was up room

"What was that? Ivy whispered.

"How the hell do you expect us to know?" Cressida replied which led to an argument between them.

"Can you guys please stop' I whisper yelled.

We all went down the stairs and into the kitchen where we heard the noise from. As we entered, the sight before us horrified us. We froze, our eyes fixed on the gruesome scene before us.

Ms. Rachel, our caretaker, lay motionless on the floor, a pool of blood spreading from her chest. The room fell silent except for the sound of our ragging breathing.

Ivy's eyes went wide, and she took a step back, her hand covering her mouth. Cressida's face turned pale, and she looked like she was about to collapse. Lydia and Bryony clung to each other, their eyes fixed on the horror before us.We all stood there paralyzed by shock, unsure of what to do next.

And then suddenly, we heard a faint noise coming from outside. Footsteps, heavy and deliberate, were making their way towards the front door.

I grabbed the nearest object I could find which was a frying pan, and the girls followed behind me quietly, each grabbing something as a form of weapon.

As I flung the door open my eyes locked with Mr. Chiesa's smiling face.

"What are you ladies up to?" He asked looking behind me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked back.

Why was he here soon after Ms. Rachel's been murdered?

"I came to see Ms. Rachel"

"Isn't it a bit late for a visit?" Cressida asked from behind me.

"Oh I know it's late, but I have some urgent business to discuss with Ms. Rachel. Is she... available?"

His eyes seemed to bore into mine and I felt a shiver run doen my spine. I glanced back at the girls who were watching the scene unfold with a mix of fear and curiosity.

"What's going on?" Lydia whispered, her voice barely audible.

I turned back to Mr. Chiesa, my grip on the frying pan tight.

"You're not going anywhere until you tell us what's going on. What did you want to discuss with Ms. Rachel?"

Mr. Chiesa's expression changed, his smile now looking more concerned. "What's wrong? You all look like you've seen a ghost."

He took a step closer, his eyes scanning the scene behind me.
"Is everything okay?"

I hesitated, unsure of how to respond. The girls were watching me, waiting for my cue. I took a deep breath and stepped aside, revealing the scene behind me.
Mr. Chiesa's eyes widened as he took in the sight of Ms. Rachel's lifeless body.

  "Oh no" he whispered his face pale.

   "What happened?"