The Truth Beneath the Curse
1612 Words
The creature’s hand slowly crawled out from the shattered wall.
Long fingers.
Twisted.
The skin looked gray and stretched too tightly over the bones, as if it had been dead for a very long time.
I couldn’t breathe.
My legs felt like stone.
“Adrian…” I whispered, barely able to speak.
But Adrian was already pulling me backward.
“Move,” he said sharply.
For the first time since I met him, his voice carried real urgency.
Another c***k tore through the wall as more stones collapsed to the floor.
The hand gripped the edge of the broken opening and pulled.
Something was climbing out.
Something that should never have existed.
I finally forced my legs to move as Adrian dragged me toward the staircase.
Behind us, the thing let out a sound.
A low, guttural growl that echoed through the basement like thunder rolling through a cave.
My heart nearly stopped.
“What is that?!” I gasped.
Adrian didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he shoved me up the first step.
“Go!” he ordered.
I ran.
The narrow staircase suddenly felt too small, too dark. My hands scraped against the walls as I climbed as fast as I could.
Behind us, the creature dragged itself completely out of the hole.
I heard its limbs scraping across the stone floor.
Then came the sound of bones cracking.
A horrible wet snapping sound.
The whispers of the women returned again, louder than ever.
“Run!”
“Don’t let it see you!”
“He woke it!”
I reached the top of the stairs just as Adrian slammed the basement door shut.
He shoved a heavy iron bolt across it.
For a moment, everything went silent.
Then—
BANG.
The entire door shook violently.
I screamed.
Something slammed against the other side again.
BANG!
The wood splintered slightly under the impact.
My chest heaved as I backed away.
“That door won’t hold!” I cried.
Adrian stared at it for a moment.
His jaw clenched.
“No,” he said quietly.
“It won’t.”
Before I could react, he grabbed my wrist again and pulled me down the hallway.
“Where are we going?” I asked breathlessly.
“Somewhere it can’t follow.”
The creature slammed against the door again.
The bolt bent slightly.
Another hit like that and the door would break.
Adrian pushed open a door on the side of the hallway and dragged me inside.
It was a study.
Bookshelves lined the walls from floor to ceiling.
Ancient books filled every inch of space.
Adrian rushed to the largest shelf and pulled a book.
The shelf slid open with a deep grinding sound.
My eyes widened.
A hidden passage.
“Inside,” Adrian said.
“What about that thing?” I asked.
His dark eyes flicked toward the door.
“It won’t stop.”
Another loud BANG echoed down the hallway.
The basement door had just shattered.
I didn’t need any more convincing.
I ran into the hidden passage.
Adrian followed and closed the shelf behind us.
Darkness swallowed the narrow tunnel.
The only light came from a small lantern hanging on the wall.
Adrian grabbed it quickly.
“Keep moving,” he said.
We hurried down the tight stone corridor.
My heart was still racing so fast it hurt.
“What was that creature?” I demanded.
Adrian remained silent for a few seconds.
His footsteps echoed heavily through the tunnel.
Finally, he spoke.
“It’s part of the curse.”
My stomach twisted.
“You keep saying that word. What curse?”
Adrian stopped walking.
The lantern light flickered across his face.
For the first time since meeting him, his expression looked… tired.
Haunted.
“My family made a deal centuries ago,” he said slowly.
“A deal for power, wealth, and influence.”
“With who?” I asked.
His eyes met mine.
“Not who.”
He paused.
“What.”
A cold shiver crawled down my spine.
“What does that mean?”
Adrian turned and continued walking.
“In 1793, my ancestor, Victor Blackwood, was a desperate man. His fortune had collapsed. His family was on the verge of ruin.”
The tunnel seemed endless as we moved deeper.
“So he went looking for something forbidden.”
“What kind of thing?” I asked.
Adrian’s voice dropped lower.
“Something ancient.”
My throat felt dry.
“He found a ritual. Something buried deep in old texts.”
Adrian reached the end of the tunnel.
A heavy metal door stood there.
He pushed it open.
We stepped into another room.
But this one looked different.
Older.
Stone pillars surrounded the chamber.
Strange symbols were carved into the walls.
Candles burned in every corner.
The air felt heavy.
Oppressive.
“What is this place?” I whispered.
Adrian closed the door behind us.
“This is where the deal was made.”
My pulse quickened.
“You mean…”
“Yes,” Adrian said quietly.
“Victor Blackwood summoned something into this house.”
The words hung in the air like poison.
“What kind of thing?” I asked again.
Adrian’s eyes drifted toward the center of the room.
There was a large stone circle carved into the floor.
Dark stains covered it.
Old stains.
Dried long ago.
“A demon,” he said.
My stomach dropped.
“You’re joking.”
“I wish I was.”
The lantern flickered again.
I stepped closer to the circle.
The stains looked like old blood.
“So what was the deal?” I asked.
Adrian’s voice became colder.
“Power in exchange for sacrifice.”
My chest tightened.
“What kind of sacrifice?”
Adrian looked at me slowly.
“His wife.”
The room felt suddenly smaller.
“He killed her?” I whispered.
Adrian nodded.
“The ritual worked. Victor Blackwood became powerful. Rich. Untouchable.”
My mind struggled to process everything.
“But demons don’t give things for free,” Adrian continued.
“They demand payment.”
The ground beneath us suddenly trembled slightly.
A distant roar echoed through the walls.
The creature from the basement.
It was searching for us.
“What kind of payment?” I asked nervously.
Adrian’s voice became barely audible.
“A bride.”
Cold dread filled my chest.
“Every generation,” he continued, “the Blackwood heir must marry.”
“And then?” I asked.
His eyes locked onto mine.
“The house decides if she lives.”
The words crushed the air out of my lungs.
“What does that mean?”
Adrian took a step closer.
“If the demon accepts the bride, the curse sleeps for another generation.”
“And if it doesn’t?” I asked.
Adrian’s voice turned hollow.
“Then she becomes part of the house.”
The whispers of the women suddenly returned.
But this time they weren’t faint.
They were all around us.
Dozens of voices crying out in pain.
My chest tightened as I looked around.
The stone walls began to darken.
Shadows moved across the floor.
Shapes forming in the darkness.
Women.
Dozens of ghostly figures appeared around the chamber.
Their faces were pale and broken.
Their eyes hollow.
The previous wives.
My heart raced.
“They’re real…” I whispered.
Adrian nodded slowly.
“They never truly leave.”
One of the spirits drifted closer to me.
Her face was twisted with sorrow.
“Help us…” she whispered.
Another appeared beside her.
“He promised we would live…”
“He lied…”
The room filled with their voices.
I backed away.
“Make them stop!”
Adrian looked around helplessly.
“I can’t.”
A sudden roar shook the chamber.
The creature had found us.
Something slammed against the metal door outside.
The wives screamed in terror.
“It’s here!” one of them cried.
Adrian’s expression darkened.
“That shouldn’t be possible.”
The door bent inward slightly.
Something massive was pushing against it.
“You said it couldn’t follow us!” I shouted.
Adrian’s eyes flicked toward the stone circle.
“It’s stronger than before.”
The door dented again.
Metal screamed under the pressure.
“What do we do?” I asked.
Adrian looked at me.
Really looked at me.
Like he was seeing me for the first time.
Then he said something that made my blood run cold.
“There’s only one way to stop it.”
My chest tightened.
“What way?”
Adrian hesitated.
The wives screamed louder.
The door cracked open slightly as black claws forced their way through the metal.
Adrian finally spoke.
“The curse must be fulfilled.”
The meaning hit me instantly.
“No.”
The word came out sharp.
“No, Adrian.”
His eyes filled with something painful.
“I didn’t want this.”
The door burst open halfway.
The creature’s glowing eyes appeared in the darkness.
It was enormous.
Twisted.
A monster formed from shadows and bone.
The wives screamed in terror.
“You brought me here for this?” I shouted.
Adrian’s voice broke slightly.
“I thought the house would accept you.”
The creature stepped inside the chamber.
Its eyes locked onto me.
“And if it doesn’t?” I asked quietly.
Adrian’s face hardened.
“Then it will take you anyway.”
The creature let out a deep roar that shook the entire chamber.
The wives’ spirits shrieked in panic.
And in that moment, I realized the horrible truth.
I was never meant to escape Blackwood Manor.
I was meant to become part of it.
- Writer
