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Published : 19 December 2015
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The Reader House
Present
Copyright
Table of Content
CHAPTER 1 : Joanne
CHAPTER 2 : Bob
CHAPTER 3 : Father Collins
CHAPTER 4 : Henry Williamson
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The red SUV drove onto the muddy path that lead to a green belt filled with various kinds of plants and trees. “God this place is beautiful!” Rachel said looking out of the window. With her beautiful and kind eyes, Rachel was taking in the natural beauty of this place. Seeing this place she was reminded of her ancestral home where she grew up. Though her house was not this big, this place looked fancy and expensive by the standards of old days. “You liked it?” Steven asked while focusing on the road. He was not used to driving on roads like this. Growing in a town with all the facilities and luxuries, he was doing this for his wife.
“Why, you don’t like it?” Rachel asked Steven.
“No. I like it. But its important to me that
you
like it more than I do.” Steven said while momentarily looking at his wife. He really wanted her to like this place so that they could end their weekly tour to the countryside, only to hunt old houses.
“We don’t need to come so far away from the city. I will be fine in our old neighbourhood.” Rachel knew that Steven could not connect to surroundings like this like she did. But Steven was also determined to make his wife happy.
“Listen..” he pulled the brakes and turned to Rachel, “the doctors have been telling us that you should not be living in a polluted environment anymore. I already work from home and so this place will be perfect for us. You have told me so many stories of you and your family in a house like this.”
Rachel looked out of the window. Their car was standing outside the house, which was at least three times bigger and beautiful than the house she lived in.
“My house was not big as this. This.. is like a freaking castle!” Rachel was awestruck by the sheer grandeur of the house. Steven got out of the car and opened the door for Rachel. He then held her hand and helped her get out. Rachel was still looking at the house.
“I want you to be happy and perfectly healthy.” Steven said placing his hand over her shoulder, as they both looked at the house, “and I know how much you love houses like these.”
Suddenly, the main door of the house flung open and an old woman came out. “Hello!” her smile was from her one ear to another, scary enough for children, “You must be Rachel and Steven. I am Joanne, we talked over the phone?” her smile widened — something Steven thought was not possible. After shaking their hands, Joanne escorted the couple inside. It was an old fashioned house made out of wood and bricks — mostly wood. Rachel could notice the fancy and heavy wooden beams on the roof and a beautiful fireplace in the hall. “You like it dear?” Joanne asked Rachel with her scary smile. Steven could see the several signs of cosmetic enhancement on Joanne’s face. With big and plump lips, wide eyes, and surgically cheekbones, Joanne was desperately trying to hang onto her fleeting youth. Rachel checked out some adjoining rooms, “Uhhh… Yes. I like it.” she said.
Rachel’s endorsement boosted Joanne’s confidence and she started doing to the house what those cosmetic enhancements did to her body. “You should know..” she said like a salesman’s pitch, “this house is made of premium material. The original owner of this house left no expense to build this beautiful castle. Passed through several generations, this house is still strong and beautiful as it used to be in its early years. And mark my words, this is going to be here standing strong.”
Steven knew how sales pitches sounded and so he nodded only to show how he appreciated Joanne’s
impressive
description of the house. “Tell us about the history of this house please.” Rachel asked Joanne. She actually seemed impressed.
“Well, I don’t know everything, but the last owner of this house was a Mr…” Joanne checked her notepad, “… yeah.. Mr Williamson! A rich fellow with a rich heritage. His family was in the railroad business.”
“Why did they leave this house?” Rachel asked, intrigued.
“They moved away. You know into the city, to find modern luxuries and comforts.” Joanne said, “The family now does not plan to come here anymore and so they put it on the market. I am telling you darling, this place is a steal.”
“If this house is so good as you say,” Steven knocked one beam and it sounded real solid, “then why are they selling it at such a good price?”
“Because, they are rich!” Joanne was ready with the reply, “they don’t care for the money. The young generation of the Williamson family dont care about their history. They barely stay in one place. You know these young rich globe trotter kind of people.”
Rachel was already impressed and she turned to Steven to tell that with her eyes.
“So there is no catch?” Steven asked looking away from Rachel’s puppy eyes.
“What catch?” Joanne asked.
“Oh you know, the usual.. ghosts, dead-bodies, termites, rotten foundation!” Steven casually asked as if he was a know all of these kind of deals.
“Darling! All my houses come with my personal guarantee. I can assure you this house is in tip top condition like me.” Joanne stood proud showing off her body that though artificial, was still in a wonderful shape, “And as far as dead bodies and ghosts go, you can call me if you find a dead body and I will have it removed.” Joanne laughed.
“What about the ghosts?” Steven joked back.
“You are a big boy!” the lady said.
Finally, Joanne realized that the jokes were over, “Trust me, this house is squeaky clean. There are no physical damages, corpses or spirits here.”
“Well, I will take your word!” Steven said.
“Wonderful, so lets get the paperwork done and you guys can move in here the next week.” Joanne said bringing out a pile of documents from her folder.
Rachel looked at Steven who mouthed, “You are welcome.” She jumped at him, hugging her.
The hauling truck left the estate and Steven carried one final box inside the house. Tired, he placed the box on the floor and looked around. Rachel had changed the look of the place. It did not seem like an old house that was abandoned for years. With all their stuff, it looked like a good old American house with a huge family.
Rachel came out with their dog Russo behind her. Steven could see that she was really happy. “Look at you.” he said chuckling with his own happiness, “like a kid in disneyland.”
“Oh Steve! I love this house! I have always wanted to live in a place like this.” Rachel was looking at her new home. “I know !” Steven was so happy seeing her happy.
Suddenly a vase crashed on the ground.
“RUSSO!” Rachel yelled. The dog seemed happier than Rachel.
“You need to take care of him now. You know how he gets when he sees an open space.” Steven warned Rachel who was on top of the world.
“Let him be. Poor boy had been living in cramped up apartments all his life.” Rachel looked at jumping Russo with the love of a mother. Steven could see that look and he grabbed Rachel from behind, “Well, since now we have a big house. How about we turn into a big family?”
“Oh yeah!” Rachel ran her fingers through his hair, “You know I am in a good mood today, right?”
“No hurry!” Steven said releasing Rachel, but she turned around and kissed him with her arms around him.
“Thank you baby! I love you.” Rachel whispered.
“Woof!” Russo ruined their moment with his loud bark.
“What?” Steven asked and saw Russo was scratching the door, “Alright!” he said and opened the door. With the door open, Russo bolted outside.
“Go after him. Its a strange place.” Rachel quickly grabbed Russo’s leash and threw it at Steven. He did not want to go, but Steven could not say no to Rachel. Besides, she was right. Russo did not know his way around. And so he ran out after the dog with his leash.
“Russo! Stop!” Steven yelled while running.
Russo was so happy to see such an open space and he increased his speed. Soon, he came across a small wooden cabin and stopped just outside. A short old man with a slight hunch came out hearing the bark.
“Where did you come from, dog? Go from here!” the old man raised his hands.
But Russo kept barking, fixed in his spot. The old man picked up a stick, “Its for your own good, dog, get lost!” he raised the stick over his head in a threatening manner. Steven could see this from a distance, “Russo Stop!” he yelled.
Seeing the threat, Russo showed the old man his sharp teeth and assumed an attack position. But suddenly, something happened that Steven could no understand and Russo whimpered like he was kicked in the belly. Scared, he ran back to Steven with his tail between his legs. Steven could not understand what happened to his dog, “What happened boy?” he then looked at the old man, “Excuse me Sir! Did you hit my dog?”
“I did not even touch that dog!” the old man replied pointing the stick at Russo.
Steven checked Russo’s body and there was no sign of any attack or injury. Seeing the size of the stick. Steven could assume that a stick that big would leave some sort of a mark, but there was nothing on Russo’s body. As soon as Russo recovered, he bolted back to the house, which was visible from the cabin. Steven could only witness Russo running back to the house in super speed. The dog scratched the door entered as Rachel opened the door. Seeing his dog reach safely back to house, Steven now turned towards the old man.
“I didn’t touch that dog!” the old man again, but Steven had already believed him.
“I apologize Sir!” he said with a polite tone, “he usually never behaves like that. I don’t know what got into him.” The old man’s face turned back to normal from agitated, “Its okay I guess.” he looked at Steven and then back at the home beyond the trees, “You bought that house?”
Steven looked back at the house, “Yes sir. Its me my wife.. and our dog that you just met. My name is Steven by the way.” Steven took a step further to shake hands with the old man. The old man returned the politeness by shaking Steven’s hand, “I am Bob.” that all he said.
“You live alone here, Bob?” Steven asked trying to get a peek inside his cabin.
“Yeah!” Bob replied, “You better go home and take a look at your dog.” he said while walking into his cabin. Steven was used to the rude people in the city, but he never imagined he would meet same people in the country side.
Deciding not to bother himself with it, he walked back to his house.
“What happened to him?” Rachel asked looking at Russo as Steven came through the door. — “I dont know. He just cried and ran back home.” confused, Steven told things as they were.
“Maybe he is just a little nervous with this change of setting.” Rachel said kissing the dog who seemed tired. Then Rachel walked into another room. “I will get started with the dinner. You wanna help?”
“Yeah okay!” Steven said and followed Rachel, looking at Russo who now sat like an old dog. The dog who was filled with infinite energy now sat quietly in the hall.
—————
The darkness took over the estate and Steven could see the light from Bob’s cabin from his window. It felt a little awkward to Steven to not see any street light in the dark. “This is how we are going to live now.” he said to himself and got back to cleaning the dishes.
“You done with the dishes?” Rachel asked Steven from the hall.
“In a minute!” Steven replied.
“I am taking Russo out. Maybe he will play with me. Poor boy needs some cheering up.” Rachel picked up Russo’s ball and held his leash along with a flashlight. But as soon as she opened the door, Russo remained fixed in his spot, refusing to budge even an inch.
“Come one boy! We will play outside!” Rachel pulled Russo’s leash, but the dog was like a rock. Steven saw this as he finished the dishes, “Whats going on?”
Rachel yanked the leash again but Russo started whimpering as well, resisting to move, “I dont know. He seems to like to stay in.” finally Rachel gave in. And the moment she dropped the leash, Russo ran with his tail between his legs and disappeared into another room. “What happened to him?” Steven asked.
Suddenly, Rachel saw something moving in the trees. She turned on her flashlight and poured the light over the trees. And she could swear to god she saw a shadow running into the trees. “Oh my god, Steven there is somebody outside!” she quickly came back inside and locked the door. Steven cam from the kitchen and looked out the window, “Where?” he asked.
“There, by the trees.” Rachel pointed to some trees in the darkness far away from Bob’s cabin. Steven tried to look with the flashlight into the trees but saw nothing. “Could be Bob!” he told Rachel turning the flashlight off.
“Who?” Rachel did not know that name.
“Bob! He lives in that cabin down there.” Steven placed the flashlight back in the shelf.
Rachel was frozen, “Steve, NOBODY lives here but us.”
Steven laughed and went to the window to show the light of Bob’s cabin to Rachel, but there was nothing there now. “Where did that go?”
“What?” Rachel came to the window.
“Bob’s cabin. It was right there.” Steven pointed at a spot in darkness.
“Steve I am telling you there is nobody in this estate. Joanne told me we are the only ones living here.” Rachel slowly explained herself. Steven thought for some time and then picked up the flashlight again, walking to the door.
“Where are you going?” Rachel asked.
“To go and look for Bob. You are welcome to come with me and meet him.” Steven opened the door but Rachel closed it.
“I just saw somebody out there who does not want to be seen, and now you are going out in the dark trying to look for somebody who may or may not live here? No way I letting you out of this door.” Rachel made herself clear.
Steven could see the logic in Rachel’s argument, but he also saw a fear in her eyes and so decided not to go out. “Alright! Lets lock all the doors and windows.” he said.
“Good! And you can show me this Bob in the morning.” Rachel said locking the door.
Both of them checked the locks and went to bed with a flashlight, crowbar, knife and Steven’s old baseball bat. Russo slept under the bed.