A short story in a collection of stories I'm writing about the House of Doctor Glum. |
Lisa stood at the doorway to the big house staring at the dark wooden door surrounded by white bricks. The big house was old, no one knew when it was built and no one knew who lived there; but each year on halloween a group of teenagers would send someone up to the house to see what was there. Most years the person who got sent up to the same wooden door Lisa was staring at now, would run back down not even bothering to try the door handle. The story of Adam Noel still echoing through their minds; Adam was the only known person to ever enter the house, he wasn't seen again until two weeks later his body was found at the bottom of the towns river blood drained from his body and on doctor's inspection several organs missing. No one tried to find out what happened, the message was clear, don't go to the big house on the hill. Lisa was going to prove the town wrong though. She had chosen herself to go up the hill through the wrought iron gates passed the big white pillars and to the wooden dark door. This is where she stood now, wondering if this should be her course of action, but before the thought could fully form in her head the door swung open. Taking this as a sign she pushed it slightly, allowing it to open so she could step inside. It was dark in what Lisa guessed to be the hallway, the only source of light came from the entrance. When Lisa stepped inside she looked around to see who had let her in but no one was there. The door slammed shut making her jump and plunging the hallway in to complete darkness. Laughing quietly to herself Lisa believed this to be one of her friends, as she stepped back and tried the handle. Pulling down several times to try and open the door her heart almost stopped when it refused to move. Turning back towards the hallway she hugged the cold wood of the door as a cackle or some kind of laugh echoed down the hallway and back again. She moved forward stepping carefully as the floor creaked with her movement. It seemed to take forever to find the nearest wall, almost sighing loudly with relief Lisa shot her hand to her mouth reminding herself to be quiet. The wall felt sticky when she rested her fingers on it, ignoring that she moved her hands along the wall to guide her through her house. 'You won't get out!' A voice echoed through the house in the same manner as the laugh, sending shivers down Lisa's body. No, she was brave she wanted this and it was more likely her best friends playing a joke, she thought. Adam Noel must of died after he left this house, no one lives here why is everyone so scared of a house. 'You shouldn't of entered my house. I leave your town alone all I ask is for the same courtesy!' The voice echoed again biting at Lisa's skin making her feel weak and tired. Pulling her arms around her she caught the scent of the fingers that had been on the wall. Moving her arm away from her she almost chocked as she tried not to throw up her dinner. The rich metalic smell reached down in to her stomach and sent it up her throat. Whatever it was it smelt old, rusty in away. Squinting through the dark she tried to see what was on her fingers as she rubbed them together. Whatever it was had caked itself to her fingertips and was crumbling off as she touched it. Just as she raised her hand to her nose to see if she could identify what it was without being sick, a door at the other side of the hall flung open lighting the hallway. 'Miss Lisa Harris, please enter.' A woman's voice said, abandoning what was on her fingers, Lisa hesitantly made her way to the door. 'Welcome to my home,' the echoed voice said, this time not echoing anymore. 'I am Doctor Glum,' the man said with a chuckle. Lisa stared at him, she recognised him from somewhere. He was tall with white hair yet his face was youthful and his body, well his body was smooth and toned, which Lisa could see because all he wore was a towel. 'Miss Harris please sit, my maid shall get you a drink. I believe diet coke to be your favourite.' The woman who had let Lisa into the room was wearing a blue uniform with a white apron, he face was drained and covered with wrinkles. Lisa saw bald patches covering her head when the woman gave her a glass of cold diet coke. She backed away to stand by the door, her head down and her hands folded together. Lisa turned her gaze back to Doctor Glum who was now sitting in a high back chair near a wood burning fire, she took a sip of the coke before turning away from Doctor Glum. Looking around the room, Lisa noticed potraits of him in that chair with various people standing by him. The last painting had Adam Noel standing by the chair. Lisa froze feeling ice cold, even with the warm fire blazing in the room. She put the glass down, as if the ice inside was the reason for her chilled bones. Noticing now in the light when she pulled her hands in that on her fingers the caked substances was dark red. 'Miss Harris what brings you to my house. I know many teenagers in your little town like to come up the hill on halloween, but you had every intention of coming in.' 'Well I h-hadn't made my mind up b-but then the door swung open so I th-thought...' Lisa shrugged to finish off what she had been saying. Doctor Glum laughed again, the cackle type laugh that had caused Lisa to hug the door when she first came into the house. 'Oh no my dear, see the reason why most teenagers never come into the house on halloween even if they do make it up to my door is that they don't really want to come, they have nothing to prove. They get a feeling of death and run away as fast as their legs will carry them. But you & I believe you know my old guest, Adam, well you had every intention of coming in other wise the door wouldn't have opened for you.' He smiled wickedly as he shuffled his towel around his body. 'I don't like people in my house Miss Harris, people who haven't been invited. Have you been invited?' Lisa shook her head knowing that admitting this would give her a first hand experience at whatever happened to Adam. Doctor Glum nodded his head with Lisa's admittance as if he hadn't expected anything else. Clicking his fingers the fire died out causing Lisa to let out a startled scream as the light again disappeared from around her. A storm had gathered outside and as lightening flashed across the sky Lisa saw that the room had filled with meancing looking people licking their lips and rubbing their hands. 'Miss Harris you have 10 seconds to find your way out of my house other wise you will experience what I do to trespassers.' Not wasting any time Lisa ran from the chair feeling like her legs had been turned to lead. Pulling the door of the room open she heard Doctor Glum counting. '10,' She ran faster not knowing which way to go, not trusting the front door she tried the next room. '9,' Not being able to see much Lisa ran through the room, with her legs getting heavier she went to the window trying to force it open. '8,' Finding a table or small chair, not really knowing which in the dark, Lisa lifted it up and threw it at the window, sheilding her face as the glass splatters through out the room. '7, she's really quite smart,' Doctor Glum's voice said as Lisa turned back to the door and finding the group from the other following her into this one. Not wasting any time she jumped out the window scratching herself on a shard of glass as she tried to get away quicker. '6, mmm you can just taste the blood,' the sound of Doctor Glum's voice echoed down the grounds as Lisa ran full speed towards the gate. She began to think that the coke must of been drugged as her body drained of energy and the gate seemed further away, Lisa looked behind her to see how far away the others are. '5,' enough time that is enough time, Lisa thought as she urged her body to move, a survival need kicking in. '4, 3, 2, 1 too late sweet pea.' Doctor Glum's voice chuckled. Not bothering to look back this time Lisa pushed herself onwards seeing her friends waiting by the gate knowing they would help if she was being dragged back inside. That was when she felt strong firm arm grip her around her body and a tongue lick at her neck. 'Too late Miss Harris you belong to me, don't worry about your friends they can't see us. They'll just think your killing youself.' As he said this Doctor Glum pressed a sharp piece of glass into her hands, 'you're already bleeding after all.' Raising her hand for her Doctor Glum turned Lisa towards her friends who looked on with shocked horror. As he plunged her hand down into her stomach causing the glass to cut her belly button in half Doctor Glum spoke in another language to the men behind him. A few moved forward quicker than what was humanly possible to the gate preventing her friends from opening it. Lisa tried not to scream as the glass was removed from her stomach covered in blood and with some tissue hanging off it. 'Mmm, you will taste good, I believe Miss Harris.' Doctor Glum said as the glass re-entered Lisa's body by her own hand. The next day the town was in mourning at the loss of one of their own, a teenager by the name Lisa Harris. The friends she had been with said she ventured into the house on the hill and came out 10 minutes later holding a piece of glass and stopped dead in front of the gate. Tears ran as they explained she cut her own body to shreds with the glass, staying alive for longer than normal as her body bled out. Just as they were about to save her from herself, the gates opened on their own and group of wolf's appeared around her. One wolf, with bright white fur, dragged her limp body back up the hill. Her body still hasn't been found. A year later though, when someone else entered the house and sat in the living room with portraits they noticed at the very end of the portraits a painting of Lisa standing next to the chair. |