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Chapter 2

By Tyler Kojen

Nothing.  That’s what Shelley and Dolly found in the rest of the rooms on the first floor.  Not another statue anywhere.  It was time to go up stairs.

Shelley and Dolly looked at the ascending case of stairs with hesitation.  It was dark up there… they couldn’t see what awaited them at the top.  “Um… how ‘bout you go first?”  Shelley looked over at Dolly, her arm outstretched in an “after you” gesture.  Despite the lack of any other strange finds, the initial finding of James and the mansion’s generally creepy atmosphere continued to gnaw on Shelley’s already small supply of courage.  But then she thought of getting the promotion, and her resolve was restored… slightly.

Dolly proceeded up the stairs slowly and cautiously, testing each step to be sure it was stable; Shelley followed closely behind.  They eventually reached the landing at the top, where a long hallway lead to the right and a closed door awaited on the left.  Dolly looked to Shelley, “What would you prefer?  Left or right?”

Looking back and forth, Shelley was having difficulty choosing.  “Hmm… I guess we could go right first.”  Dolly nodded, and the girls walked down the hall.  It was empty for a while, until they came across a lone doorway on the left side about halfway down.  Of course, Dolly was the first to enter.  This room was a bedroom, and from the plain décor it appeared to be a boy’s room.  “I remember hearing that the couple who owned the house had a son.  He was supposed to be pretty cute, too, from what I heard,” Shelley mused.  The room was simple: a king-sized bed bearing sports-themed bed sheets rested in the left corner, a small closet took up the right wall, and a wood computer desk sat against the far wall under a window.  Shelley looked out the window, and noticed the room overlooked a small greenhouse.  Maybe we’ll find something there, but it can wait until later I suppose.  To the far left Shelley also noticed a small windowless building that was separated from the main mansion.  I wonder what that is?  Unable to see anything else, Shelley turned her attention to the contents of the desk.  A computer monitor was set against the corner, where it wouldn’t obstruct the window.  If only the mansion still had electricity.  Maybe there’d be some clues on this computer.  A few notebooks, apparently new since they hadn’t been used, were also on the desk.  Shelley sat in the swivel chair next to the desk and began to search the desk drawers.  More notebooks, these ones containing notes from various classes, and the textbooks for said classes.  “Damn, nothing again.  I’m telling you, except for finding that James statue this trip has been a bust.  Have you found anything?”  Shelley turned, expecting Dolly to be rummaging through the closet, but she found herself alone in the room.  “Dolly?  Dolly?  Hey, this isn’t funny.”  Poking her head out the doorway, she looked down both ends of the hall.  No one in sight.  Not even the glow of one of Dolly’s flares.  Alone.  Shelley was alone.  Maybe she went back to the car for something she forgot?  Afraid and alone, Shelley began to walk back to the stairs.  Outside, a dark figure entered the greenhouse.

*          *          *

As she was about to descend the stairs, Shelley noticed something had changed.  Below, both of the front doors were now closed.  And in front of her, the once closed door was open, revealing another hallway.  Not only that, but at the end of the hallway, Shelley swore she could see light under a door.

Maybe Dolly’s in there?  Oh God, I hope so!  Careful to make as little noise as she could, Shelley approached the door.  Slowly, she reached out for the doorknob, and turned it with hesitation.  Opening the door slightly, Shelley peered inside the room, but couldn’t see anything.  Taking a breath, Shelley opened the door and walked into the room.  Immediately she saw the source of light: a battery-powered lantern sat in the middle of the floor.  “Huh?  What’s this doing here?”  Shelley looked around the room for a sign of the owner.  The room was bare, except for the lantern, a single ceiling light, and a pair of mirrored sliding doors.  Shelley walked up to the doors slowly, and reached out to push one aside.  When she did, a great beam of light blinded her.

“Who the?  Shelley, is that you?” a rough, obviously male voice inquired.

Shelley put her hands over her eyes, waiting till the spots went away.  “What the hell?  Who are you?”

“Shelley it’s me, Garret.  Ah, damn… sorry I blinded you.  I thought you were someone else.”  As her vision returned, Shelley could make out the face of Garret Irons, Rejina’s trusted personal assistant, with his usual expensive sunglasses and neatly trimmed goatee.  Though he was almost equally promiscuous as Rejina, Shelley actually liked him.  Probably because he wasn’t such a bitch.

“Who else were you expecting to show up?  I doubt it’d have been Rejina considering your warm welcome.”

“There’s someone… something here Shelley.  It turned James into stone somehow.”

“So that really was James?”  Shelley was horrified that her guess earlier had been true, but felt a small amount of pride at being right.  “When did that happen?  And where’s Rejina?”

“Well, he tagged along with me and Rejina, y’see.  When we first got in the place, we decided to split up.  He went off on his own, while Rejina and me explored other parts…”

Yeah, each other’s parts, I bet.  Shelley mused while listening.

“… so a while later we both came back and found James like that.  We didn’t hear him scream or yell or anything…”

Probably because Rejina’s yelling was too loud.

“… anyhow, Rejina went out back to turn the generator on.  That way it’ll be easier to look around.  I was waiting here for her to get back.”  Shelley and noticed he was holding a large video camera, attached to which was the large light he’d blinded her with.  Seeming to notice her attention, he said, “Oh this?  Rejina had me borrow it from a pal.  Figured it’d be easier to tape stuff then take a buncha pictures.”  Shelley’s hand reached up to her camera, and she felt a little bit stupid.

“Wait… a generator?”  Shelley suddenly remembered what Garrett had said.

“Yeah.  The family that lived here had this big generator in a building behind the house.  I guess they didn’t wanna pay to have electrical lines installed all the way out here.  There’s a buncha big solar panels on the other side of the building too; I’m guessing they powered the generator.  Anyhow, Rejina figured it’d still be operating.  But she left a while ago.  She shoulda been back by now.”  Garrett looked worried about Rejina.  Though Shelley could care less for Rejina’s safety, she hoped the slut would turn the power on.  And then, almost as if on cue, the single ceiling light in the room came on.  “Atta girl.  Looks like she came through for us.  She should be back soon.”

*          *          *

Shelley and Garrett looked up as a figure entered the room.  “Baby, you’re back!”

“Who’re you calling baby?”  Dolly replied in an annoyed tone.

“Huh?  Who the hell’re you?”  Garrett asked, obviously confused.

“Dolly!”  Shelley leapt up and hugged Dolly, embracing her so tightly she thought the porcelain-looking girl might shatter in her arms.  “Where did you go?  I was worried you’d left or something had happened to you!”

“Well, I was going to get more flares, but since the power’s on I guess I didn’t need to.  I told you, but I guess you didn’t hear me.”

“Um, Shelley, would you mind telling me who this is?”

“Oh yeah!  Garrett, this is my partner Dolly.  Dolly, this is Rejina’s assistant Garrett.”

“Partner, eh?”  Garrett sounded too eager over the word, and the girl’s embrace was only aiding his imagination.

“Just business, you perv.  And this is only our first time together, too.  Right Dolly?  Dolly?”  Apparently, Dolly had been tired, as she had begun to doze off with her head on Shelley’s shoulder and her hands somehow had found their way to Shelley’s ass.  This isn’t helping my argument at all.

“Huh?  Oh, sorry… it’s just been a long day, that’s all.”  Shelley looked at her watch after Dolly’s comment.  10:45 PM.  She was getting tired herself.

“Hey Garrett, I think it’d be best if we get some sleep.  Did you happen to find any bedrooms?”  She of course remembered the son’s room from earlier, but it only had the one bed.

“Yeah, they’re down the hall across the stairs.  There’s the son’s room, a locked room, and the parents’ room.  The bed in the parents’ room is the biggest, so you two can sleep there.  I’m gonna go look for Rejina, and we’ll take the son’s room later.”

“Okay, we’ll see you in the morning.”  With that, the girls trudged into the parents’ bedroom, crawled into bed, and fell fast asleep.

*          *          *