“Stop.” The voice vibrated through the floor, through the very walls of the house. “Please.”
I froze with fear. Every atom in my body was frightened at the voice that seemed to breathe through
this very house. My eyes were directed to the chained up door, hearing the metal creak and crash upon
the hook as if it wanted to give way.
“Theo,” echoed throughout the room, bouncing off every surface like a torrential wind. I looked above
me, noticing that the creaking of the floor had suddenly ceased. Where was Teddy, and why was this
voice calling out his name?
“Theo, you are hurting me,” the voice wept, sounding so broken and afraid. The chain over the doorway
began to slam louder, the door to the cellars resolved on opening. I stepped back slowly, lowering the
knife since I realized I would need more than metal to defeat this demonic being. The house was
haunted, I was certain of that now.
The grandfather clock began to ring, but it was far too soon for it to be nine o’clock already. “Theo!” was
screamed out at the top of the woman’s lungs. The bell continued to ring, echoing down the hallway to
where I stood. The chain was thrashed heavily, for the door was determined to be open all the way.
The drapes whipped around faster even though there was no wind, flickering the hallowed moonbeams
that illuminated the kitchen floor. The clock never stopped ringing down the hall, and suddenly I feared
that the very sound would make Teddy go insane. I leaned against the countertop, wondering which
direction I would take for a quick escape. He could be coming down the steps at any moment, but what
could be worse than the thing that was on the other side of the cellar, screaming out his name?
Clang, clang, pierced through the air. The chains were brandishing themselves against the hook,
determined to push themselves off the curved metal .
“Please,” cried out from the depth of the floor, a sound that came directly beneath my feet. “I love you,”
broke out a cry. “Don’t do this to me.”
I covered my ear once a terrible shrill struck the air, dropping my weapons entirely to block out the
sound. It was a harrowing cry, one that you prayed to never hear in your lifetime. I found my knees
buckling from fear, and soon I collapsed upon the floor with only my hands on the back of the chair to
brace me upwards. The ominous bell continued to ring, it was enough to make me go mad. The chain
thrashed itself heavier, and I could hear a banging against the door as if something was desperate to
escape.
I stared at the door to the cellar in pure horror, only to let out a breathless scream once hands clasped
me from behind. A hand covered my mouth, in which I reacted by squirming in strong arms that were
undoubtedly Teddy’s.
“Shhhh,” he hissed into my ears. “Quiet.”
I cried into his mouth while shaking uncontrollably. Everyone was right all along, I should have stayed
away from him, but now it was too late. I tried to push him away, but Teddy was so much stronger than
me. I felt him dragging me away from the chained up door where the chain continued to clatter against
the hook, and only when we reached the main hallway that he removed his hand from my mouth.
Teddy violently turned me around to look at him, but with the heavy darkness that eclipsed the hallway
it was hard to make him out, only his silhouette could be perceived. I immediately pushed at his chest
in anger and tried to run away, heading towards the only route where I knew there was a clear escape.
“Nooo!” Teddy bellowed out in a furious rage, before he ran after me as fast as he could. The staircase
to the upper levels swiftly turned to the left, leaving me on a levelled platform where I could only go
upwards. The sound of the grandfather clock continued to ring, loud enough to block out the hurried
footsteps of Teddy. I sprinted up the last few steps and then found myself in a long hallway without
knowing where to go next. There were so many doors, and in the darkness I could not make out which
one to choose.
The grandfather suddenly stopped ringing. I turned around, too startled by the silence to realize that
Teddy was right behind me. He bumped into me in the darkness, knocking me off balance to the point
that I fell upon the floor. I screamed when he grabbed at my leg and immediately used my right foot to
jab at his moving hands.
“Stop!” he yelled, but I only kicked him in the top section of his thigh. “Sela!” he screamed out in pain.
He clasped at my bare foot and tugged me forward, sending out a blood curdling scream that shook
through the house. “Quiet,” he warned in so fierce a tone, that I laid perfectly still. “I’m not going to hurt
you,” he said in a breathless voice. “But she will.”
I laid there motionless on the floor as I took in his words. “Who?”
Teddy never answered me, and instead offered a hand in the shifting darkness to lift me off the floor.
The banging of a metal chain downstairs could still be heard, but it was less threatening when we were
so far away.
“We need to get out of here.”
“We?”
“Come,” he warned, before he tugged on my hand to bring me to the flight of stairs. We were just about
to reach the top landing, when we heard someone call out his name. It was faint, but noticeable enough
to leave me frozen. “Ignore it,” he warned. “Keep moving.”
I tugged on his hand in resistance. “Who is up there?”
“Ignore it,” he growled in a threatening manner.
“Who is it?” I repeated. “Tell me!”
Teddy responded with an aggressive tug, which sent me crashing into his frame. “You need to leave
now,” he warned. He stared at me hard, and under the faint lighting of the hallway I sensed that this
was something beyond me now. I needed to trust him.
“Okay,” I whispered with a curt nod of my head.
He leaned forward suddenly and kissed my lips, pressing his harshly against mine with a world of
passion. A hand pressed against the back of my head to keep me there. His lips were firm, determined
to kiss me enough to reassure me of his feelings. I fell into his chest freely, completely forgetting my
fears when his arms were so tightly grasped around me.
A deep thump sounding from one of the rooms upstairs broke the moment, reminding me of the
lingering dangers in the house.
“Trust me,” Teddy whispered close to my ear. “Sela.”
“Okay.”
“Be quiet,” he insisted, before he tugged at my hand to send me forward. Our feet padded lightly across
the staircase. I kept looking back, realizing that the hallway was gradually being illuminated by the
moonlight. Seconds ago the entire place was eclipsed in darkness, so why should there suddenly be
light now? I stopped in my tracks and tugged at Teddy’s hand, doing my best to get his attention.
“Look!” I entreated, and pointed at the upper hallway that we had just escaped. “There’s light. I think
someone opened a door.”
“Come along,” he urged with a nervous tremor to his voice.
“But there is light,” I stammered out in pure stupidity. “Why?”
Teddy responded with a sharp yank at my hand to bring me down the staircase with him. His name was
being called out in the faintest voice, though it grew louder each time. His feet were stumbling down the
staircase in fear.
“I can’t let you leave,” echoed throughout the house, turning more wicked than ever. “You must stay
here, always.”
Teddy reached the lower levels of his house and yanked at my hand to send me sprinting down the
hallway. “I have the car keys, let’s go,” he urged, once we reached the front of the door. “Grab your
purse.”
I leaned downwards to snatch at my tote bag and stuffed my sandals in the large opening. Teddy took a
hold of his own shoes, not bothering to put them on when he was visibly trembling before me.
His voice was firm when he uttered: “Come along.” I heard him twist the doorknob and pull it harshly,
but a heavy sound rocked through the air when he tried to yank it open. “What?” I watched him attempt
it again, only to find that the door was sealed. “No,” he moaned. “No, this can’t-” The low thump of the
deadbolt slamming against the metal lock was enough of a warning that his fate was sealed. “She
can’t.”
He turned around and stormed down the hallway, desperately looking for another means of escape. I
watched him run into the music room, ignoring the blazing fireplace to sprint over to the window. He
attempted to open the window, but it was to no avail.
“Teddy, what’s happening?” I demanded, but he simply ignored me. “What’s going on? Who is up
there?”
“She doesn’t want you to leave.”
“Who doesn’t?”
He ignored me, and searched for something in the room with frantically moving hands. “Sela, help me,”
he begged. “We need to break the glass window.”
“But you can’t do that.”
He turned his head to look over his shoulder, and with the moonlight illuminating his face I realized he
was absolutely terrified for my own well-being. “We must,” he bellowed, and then waved his hand at me
to bring myself over.
We both searched the room, looking for something blunt and strong enough to strike against the
window. I ran over to the light switch to flick it on, but to my surprise it was not working. The flames
began to soar in pure mockery, licking the ruddy bricks that encased it. There was a low moan coming
down the hallway, sounding from upstairs and beneath my feet. The house had come alive by now, and
it was intent on finding me.
“Sela, keep moving,” Teddy ordered, after he brushed back his hair from his dripping brow. “Hurry!”
I pointed at the piano bench. “What about that?”
“It could work,” he sharply replied, before hurling it off the ground. “Stand back.”
He moved backwards to create distance from the window where the curtains flickered upwards in
defiance. He was risking his life for me, but something in my heart told me that Teddy would do it
anyways. He let out short haggard breaths that shook his entire form. “Teddy,” I pleaded, for I feared for
his safety if this should work. The glass would shatter everywhere and I feared for him getting hurt. He
ignored me and ran forward, banging the heavy object into the thick glass. The bang was loud, shaking
through the whole house. The fire began to spark outwards, sending specks of white ash throughout
the room to land on the carpet that was close to the coffee table. I ran forward to try and press it out,
only to realize that I had no shoes on. Frantically I searched the room for something to put it out, while
Teddy ran forward to knock the heavy wood against the glass again.
I could hear the glass cracking, a welcome sign that we could escape this place after all. The thin vase
was taken up to pour water over the burning ashes that nuzzled themselves deep inside of the carpet.
There was a limited amount of water in the vase, so I knew it would not be enough to quench it. The
heat from the roaring fireplace was unbearable now, spreading across the room as the wooden floor
directly in front of it began to burn. “We need water!” I yelled out, but Teddy ignored me. “Water!”
“We need to get out of here,” he argued back. “Help me! Tear down the curtains, they keep getting in
the way.”
I ran forward, and gripped at the sturdy material to fling it down. Whatever sinister spiritual being that
lived and died in this house fought back, making it harder to remove the fabric by clinging itself to the
hooks. “I can’t,” I wailed, which brought Teddy forward. We were so focused on removing the curtains
that continually twisted and curled within our tightened grip that we forgot about the fire that was quickly
engulfing the carpet and the wooden floor behind us.
Teddy’s voice was haggard as he exclaimed, “We don’t have time for this.” He pushed the bench aside
and headed for the open door, assuming I would follow him. I sprinted after him, not wanting to be left
alone in a room that was quickly being ignited by such inferno flames. I was just behind Teddy’s large
back when he screamed at the top of his lungs: “Mother!”
The grandfather clock ticking was his only answer, a sound that made his shoulders roll back
defensively. I stood there staring at him, wondering if this spiritual being was in fact his mother all
along.
“I’ve had enough of this,” Teddy grumbled in a low tone of voice. “You will not have me choose between
one and another.” He turned around and snatched at my hand to pull me forward. “Come down here,
now.”
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