"The young women—Emelia Bath and Violet Vaccari—moved into the house along with Emelia's older brother Henry," I said. "The nature of their relationship is unknown, though some theorise they were lovers, whilst others believe Violet was a friend of the family set to marry Henry. All three lived here for nearly a year before tragedy struck."
"Let me guess, Henry murdered them," Nathaniel said, torch fixed on a portrait of Mr Bath hung above the fireplace.
"Henry travelled a lot for work. Reports say he'd been away for several weeks when the women's bodies were found."
"Who found them?"
"Julian Walsh," I answered. "A fifteen-year-old boy who lived next door. He knocked on the door on September seventeen intending to ask Emelia if he could pick a rose from their garden for his mother. But the door was open. He went inside and found Violet sprawled halfway down the staircase."
"And Emilia?"
I cast my torch toward the staircase, the moth-eaten carpet torn from the wood, leaving patches where a body once stained it with blood. "Upstairs. Just before the first step."
"Who was it, then? Who killed them? And why?" Nathaniel asked.
"No one knows," I sighed, "the murder remains unsolved to this day."
We ascended the staircase, wood protesting under our weight as shadows danced around the edges of our torches, dust floating across our light beams. A cold chill crept along the back of my neck, the darkness menacing.
Upon reaching the second floor, our torchlights extinguished, the house enveloping us in darkness. I reached for Nathaniel, but my fingers met only air.
"Nate?" I whispered.
Silence.
You're alone again, little monster.
Dread carved a blade through my chest, the Devil's fingers curled around the hilt to drive it in deeper as blood filled my mouth, trickling down my chin. Breath evaded my lungs. Knees fell to the floor. Laughter rained down on me as death inched closer.
And then a pale glow illuminated the room, an indistinct shape holding a flickering candle. It hovered in a familiarhallway, a cold draft brushing the curls from my forehead, delivering a breath of fresh air that swam toward my lungs.
I had returned inside the House on North Lane, the door to my bedroom to my left, the strange figure lingering at the end of the hall. I stepped forward, the floorboards beneath my feet shooting upward like wooden stakes waiting to impale me. Swallowing a scream, I turned to descend the stairs, only for the Devil's face to appear inches from mine, beetles pouring from his mouth.
I staggered backwards, elbows landing on the jagged floorboards with a crack. The walls towered over me, the floor beneath me shaking as though an earthquake had struck. The Devil placed his foot on my chest and pressed down, teeth razor sharp.
This is where you belong. And where you will stay if you try to find your mother.
"Augustus!"
Fingers tugged at my hair, forcing my head up to meet a pair of big brown eyes wide with concern. Nathaniel held me, his warm body trembling against my own.
We were on the staircase where Violet's body had been discovered, my knees against the wood whilst Nathaniel crouched down to hold me, to stop me from falling.
"What happened?" he breathed out.
I didn't answer.Couldn'tanswer. The Devil was there. The House on North Lane had found me.
I trembled like a leaf, Nathaniel's words muffled as the Devil rattled around in my brain.
"Augustus?"
"Let's go. Let's just go."
I grew distant once I returned home, not replying to Nathaniel's messages or answering his calls. I wish I could say that I didn’t let this drag on for too long, but who was I if notone to ruin something good? I had happiness in the grasp of my hand, and I was willing to let it crumble and drift off in the wind. All because of the Devil—a Devil I had failed to shut out.
Guilt weighed heavy on my shoulders, but I convinced myself I was doing the right thing. For Nathaniel’s sake. He deserved better than the burden I brought him. He deserved someone who could take him on a date without hallucinating—someone who didn't shut down the second things crumbled all around him. I thought I had made the right decision, but the nightmares returned in Nathaniel’s absence. Sleepless nights, miserable days.
A week had passed before Nathaniel cornered me on campus. I thought I could successfully avoid him since classes were over, but he found me on my way to the library, dark circles under his eyes, his lips cracked and peeling.
