Tacenda | A Jerza Fanfic

Chapter 7 | A Rabbit Hole

I left the kid with his imaginary grandma and left the village once the rain had stopped. I went searching for Veronica, the town. I wonder if there will be people there or if I'll find it as deserted and gloomy as this one...

My stomach growled and every animal that I saw, looked like a delicious piece of chicken. The kid was helpful enough to give me a hand-drawn map of the route I must take. Though childish, I could somewhat make out the trees, the valley, and the caves. I like that kid, he seems like an explorer.

According to the map, I must take a right from here which will lead me to a river. It was still around nine or ten but because of the dense trees and heavy clouds, it appeared as if it was almost eight in the evening. I reached the river and saw that it was nearly dried up. I crossed it easily and came across two paths. One that led me deeper into the forest and the other was a bit open-spaced and had an obscure trail.

The kid didn't tell me anything about choosing paths, so I guess from here on, I am on my own. Hence, since a trail means there might be people around here, I took the path that looked less dangerous and more hopeful.

But I'm still confused...Is the red-haired girl alive? The kid said that I will find her in this town but will I really? And if I do, what do I do then? Do I just start writing her story before she goes missing again...? For some reason, I have got a bad feeling about this.

After walking a few kilometers. I met a broken gate that had a cracked board saying, 'No one lives here' hanging on it. Past the gate were row houses that had a slightly western touch to it. There were a couple of bikes that were fallen to the side, the front yards were dead and basically, it looked like a ghost town as well.

I pushed the gate a little and walked inside. It was strange how such a gated community was hiding deep in the woods. I walked ahead and for some reason, as I looked at the empty houses, I felt a kind of safe and cozy feeling as if I've come to the right place. As if I could live here if I had to. Though, just walking in a soulless town with no one to welcome me seemed kind of odd.

Now, where will I find the red-haired girl? The kid said I would find her here but this place is as empty as a dried up well. Maybe I shouldn't have listened to the kid and just taken the bus back to town. I had a feeling he was wrong since undoubtedly, he was mentally ill but no point in complaining now.

I will just retrace my steps and wait for the bus.

I sighed and turned around, but suddenly, I stumbled back when when I saw the bloody red-haired girl standing just inches away from me. My heart jumped to my throat and I sat there, frozen. The girl was crying inaudibly, her bloody tears ran down her cheeks and she stared at me with an expression of agony. She rose her arm and pointed to the left. I followed her finger and saw that there stood an ordinary, dusty house that looked as if it could use a little paint to brighten its boards and roof.

I looked back at the girl but she had vanished. With a deep breath, I got to my feet, dusted myself and glanced at the house again.

Do I go inside or do I just leave this town?

To me, the answer was obvious. I had to go inside because obviously, the girl wants to show me something. This is my chance of finding out about her. Even if I get a small clue, I'll be more than happy knowing that my trip to this town didn't go to waste. Oddly enough, I wasn't frightened to investigate the house. Upon seeing the girl, more than scared, I felt sad. Sad that I'm the only one who is able to see her. Sad that she has been crying for so long; helpless and alone, stuck in darkness and unable to live or die in peace.

I walked to the house and tried to look inside through the windows but saw nothing except what the dim sunlight illuminated; a chair, a desk and a flower pot that held dead flowers. I went to the front door and turned the knob. To my surprise, the door clicked and I pulled it open. I wasn't afraid of the darkness, but I was suddenly scared to go inside. In front of me stood a passage of darkness that led to more darkness.

What if something or someone comes out of there? Like the Grudge or the Ring? These unnecessary thoughts began to run in my mind; preventing my body from moving forward. I tried to calm myself and tell my silly brain that everything was going to be alright once I got inside but it took me nearly a half hour before I could actually step inside and find a lantern that worked.

Luckily, the lantern was in the kitchen near a box of matches. I held the lantern in one hand and found a sharp, long stick lying on the floor in the other hand, just for safety in case I encounter some creature or less scary; a drug-addict who is living here secretly.

With everything in hand and with a composed mind, I started to explore this damned building, unable to even assume what lay in store for me. I searched the ground floor first. The living, dining and guest room. I didn't find much except photos of a family of four; two daughters but neither of the daughter had red hair. I then went to the second floor and checked both the rooms. One room was a master bedroom that was a bit messy with ragged clothes thrown everywhere and stuff just lying around like debris. The other room was the children's room which was painted pink all over. I didn't find anything that caught my eye aside from a dirty rag doll that looked as though it was staring right at me. I tried to ignore that eerie and sinister feeling and closed the children's room shut.

Why did she point me here?

I couldn't find anything that could lead me to somewhere or something. No photo, no clue, no nothing. I went back down and just stood there in the middle of the passage waiting for a sign to be shown. "What do you want me to find?" I asked softly. Gradually, the lantern was dying and my heart was speeding.

What do I do now...?

Just then, I heard something fall in the kitchen. It was a faint clink but it echoed throughout the house like an organ. I rushed towards the sound and saw that a fork was fallen near a moth-eaten cabinet. I walked to it and thought of picking it up when slowly, the cabinet's door creaked open a little.

I held my breath as I instantly felt a presence around me. I considered running away but something was holding me back; perhaps my curiosity once again? I dug up my courage from deep within me and walked toward the open cabinet. I didn't want to touch the doors lest my hands get infected, but I had no choice. The darkness inside the small gap was unsettling. I placed the lantern on the table, gulped and with a quick motion, opened the doors. A strong gust of wind blew from inside the cabinet.

I stood there, taken aback and stared into the blackness.

"What the hell...?"

A malodorous odor swayed under my nose and I quickly blocked it with my forearm. However, the smell was so strong that it touched the back of my throat, leaving me with a dry cough. I knelt in front of the cabinet and grabbed the lantern and tried to see what was inside.

It was like a rabbit hole. A muddy hole that led to someplace. I wondered how far the final destination would be or how deep it went. But I also wondered why something like this was created in this house in the first place? For what purpose?

Momentarily, I had this crazy feeling of surveying the hole. That's it, I didn't waste any more time and agreed to go with my gut. I placed the lantern aside, took off my jacket, pushed back my hair, grabbed the lantern again and with a soft inhale, crawled inside the cabinet that started to smell like dead rats and stinky tofu.