Dance With The Devil

CHAPTER FIVE - NOT ALONE

She then noticed a small chest by the window, it took all her strength to open it. Sadness filled her heart as she realized what was inside. It was a baby's clothes, Brahms obviously. She could only imagine Mrs. Heelshire's pain, this must have been her most precious treasure. Suddenly she felt awful for searching into something so personal, it felt wrong.

She folded the clothes ready to place them back but she then noticed a photo album at the bottom of the chest. She picked it up and opened it. The first picture was that of a newborn baby. She read the words under the picture:

Welcome to our lives our little angel.

Brahms Heelshire - December 1st 1991

He would be twenty nine years old today, she thought. She turned the pages to find more pictures of him as he was growing up. There were pictures of him at school, another picture where he played piano.

She stopped at a picture that he was with another boy, he was dark skinned and his face looked familiar. He must be Alex's brother she realized. In the next picture he was with a blonde girl, she was taller than him and she had a bored smile on her face. Something was written on the other side of the picture, she turned it and read:

Brahms Heelshire and Emily Cribbs

First day at school - September 1st 1999

That was Emily, the Emily. The girl he had killed. A shiver run up her spine at the thought. How could someone so small and innocent looking do something so horrible? But then again Alex was right, he wasn't the only one to blame. She had pushed him on the edge, hurt him many times both physically and mentally. He had reached a point of no return, even if he had survived the fire his life would not be the same.

She looked at the last picture on the album, it was the original picture from the painting she had seen in the library. Everything looked the same, except him. In the painting he had a smile on his face but he wasn't smiling in the picture. He had an empty look on his face. He never smiled in pictures she realized.

She closed the album and put it back. It was getting dark outside and it was hard to see anymore. She decided to explore the rest of the attic tomorrow. She climbed down the ladder and tried to push it back up but it would not move. Perhaps it was better to leave it like this since she didn't have anything to pull it down again.

She walked towards the stairs and stopped by Brahms room, the light was on which was odd because she didn't remember turning it on. The sun was still up when she went into the attic so there was no need to turn on any lights yet. Maybe she had turned it on when she left and didn't notice? It was possible, she was upset when she left his room. She turned it off and decided not to think about it.

She walked into the kitchen and thought about preparing dinner but she felt exhausted. Suddenly Mrs. Heelshire's obsession with saving food in the freezer didn't seem like a bad idea. She could have the food she saved for dinner and cook something else tomorrow, it seemed like a good plan.

She opened the freezer and instantly stopped. It was empty. Did she ate all the food? No, it couldn't be. Even the tupperware was gone which didn't make any sense. She clearly remembered saving the food and placing it in the freezer so where did the food go? She felt like she was going crazy.

Am I becoming paranoid or is there something wrong here? She said outloud to herself. The answer came from upstairs when a loud bang echoed in the house. She ran up the stairs already knowing what it was. The ladder had somehow closed.

Damn! She shouted. How would she pull it back down now? A strange noise from the floor caught her attention and she looked down. There was a paper under her left foot, she curiously picked it and was surprised to find out it was the paper with the rules Mrs. Heelshire had given her. She wasn't sure where she had left it last time but definitely not on the floor in the middle of the hallway, how did it ended up there, she couldn't imagine.

She was getting angry at herself, she felt like she was losing control. She would not lose it right now, not when she finally had her freedom and her life in her hands. She went back downstairs and slammed the paper on the kitchen table. She rested her hands on the table and closed her eyes taking a deep breath, she wasn't even sure what made her so upset.

Dinner, she reminded herself, she had to make dinner. It was the perfect way to distract herself. She decided eggs would be fine for dinner. She turned on the small tv on the counter and the room was filled with noise, it made feel more comfortable and she felt more at ease.

As soon as she finished dinner she realized how exhausted she was. She cleaned the kitchen and decided to take a shower to help her relax. She walked into her room and picked clean clothes and towels from her closet before heading to the bathroom. She let the hot water wash away her worries for the moment and she let herself relax.

She grabbed the towels and dried herself, she combed her hair and looked at herself in the mirror. She already looked better, there were no more black circles under her green eyes and the bruises on her body were already fading. She closed her eyes and and a shiver run up her spine, she wasn't sure if it was because she was cold or because of the memories her bruises brought back.

It was time to get dressed but as she turned to look on the self where she had placed her clothes she found it empty.

Oh come on now! I know I left it there! She complained out loud. She ran out of the bathroom holding tightly the towel around her body, not really sure what she was looking for or what she was expecting to see. She went back into her room and got dressed up quickly. Nothing was out of place in her room except that the clothes she had picked before were gone. They weren't in her closet which meant that she did not forget to take them before going to the bathroom.

Had she left them somewhere else maybe? No, it was stupid. All this was stupid. She laid down on the bed and closed her eyes. She needed rest, that was all. The next day she could think things more clearly. She pulled the covers over and tried to sleep a sound made her open her eyes. Creaking echoed inside the house making her jump off the bed. She walked to the door and tried to listen where it was coming from.

The thought of opening the door to explore the strange sounds crossed her mind but she was all alone in a massive house in the middle of nowhere and if there was an intruder she could not face them alone. She decided to lock the door and pushed the heavy dresser behind it. Then she just waited. Every now and then she could hear sounds but she wasn't sure where were they coming from.

Perhaps it just the house itself? Old houses made noises sometimes, maybe she was just being paranoid. She decided to wait for the morning to explore.

It was going to be a long night...