Forever Finding You

6

Britt lead the way inside with me following shortly behind her. I tried to shake off the image I had just seen so I could focus on what were were doing.

The first thing that hit me was the smell. Old wood, dust, and something faintly floral lingered in the air. I expected the inside to feel abandoned, but somehow it didn't. It was quiet, almost unnaturally so, but there was warmth to it that I couldn't explain.

A large foyer stretched out in front of us, its ceiling rising two stories above our heads. A massive chandelier hung overhead, covered in a thin layer of dust but still beautiful enough to make me wonder what it must have looked like when the house was new.

Dark hardwood floors ran throughout the room, scratched and faded from years of use. A grand staircase curved along the far wall, its wooden railing polished smooth in places where countless hands must have rested against it over the years.

Tall windows lined the walls, their glass slightly cloudy with age. The late afternoon sunlight filtered through them, casting long golden streaks across the floor.

I looked toward the walls.

Portraits covered them.

Men and women dressed in clothes from different eras stared back at us with serious expressions. Some paintings were large enough to take up nearly the entire wall. Others were smaller, their frames darkened with age.

I couldn't explain why, but I felt drawn to them.

I stepped closer to one.

The woman in the painting was an older woman. She wore a long ivory dress, her dark hair pinned loosely behind her head. A delicate necklace rested against her collarbone.

I dont know why but I felt an ache in my chest looking at it.

I looked away from it quickly.

"Layla." Britt said while she watched me again. "Are you ok?"

I looked at her and nodded my head giving her a small weak smile.

I glanced back at the photo of woman, still staring at me.

I shook my head and followed Britt farther into the house.

The hallway opened into a massive sitting room. An enormous stone fireplace dominated one wall, its mantel decorated with antique clocks, candles, and framed photographs. Dust covered nearly everything, but there were signs that someone had recently been here.

A chair had been moved.

One of the curtains had been opened.

There were fresh footprints in the thin layer of dust covering the floor.

I stopped.

"Britt."

She turned towards me and answered. "What?"

"Someone's been here." I told her while pointing to the foot prints on the floor.

She looked down at the floor.

"Oh."

Neither of us spoke for a moment.

Then Britt smiled.

"Well, technically someone owns the place now."

I nodded, but something about those footprints bothered me.

I couldn't explain it.

Britt wandered over to the fireplace and looked at the photos on the mantle.

"What are we looking for?" I asked her as I walked over towards another wall and pretended to look at the protraits there.

"I dont know." Britt answered truthfully. "Maybe some blue prints of the house that mentions what year this place was built."

She wandered over to a very dusty book shelf and began looking at each one.

"Maybe we can find something over here."

I followed Britt over to the bok shelf and began looking at the old withered books.

A big red one stuck out the most to me. It was the only book that wasnt dusty and covered in cob webs. Like it had been moved recently. I had a feeling that I should look at it.

As reached up and touched the spine of the book another flash happened before my eyes.

This time it wasnt someone else hand I saw, but my own. Except it didnt look like my hand. My hand reached up and pulled the book out revealing a wooden slab behind it. My hand reached up and gently pushed the slab.

Then it was gone again and I was back to standing there with my fingertips lightly touching the book.

Just to prove to myself that I wasnt crazy, I yanked the book out of its place on the book shelf. Right behind that book was the same wooden slab.

Without giving it much thought I reached up and pushed it just like the vision had shown me.

The sound of something mechanical started and gears turning made me pull my hand away. I grabbed Britt's elbow and pulled her a few steps back with me as the bookshelf began to shake.

"What did you do?" Britt asked as we watched it begin to to open outwards.

I couldnt answer her as I watched in awe as it moved revealing a secret room behind it.

We stood in silence for awhile.

"Are you sure you havent been in here before?" She asked her voice almost a whisper.

"Never."

We both looked at each other and back to the room.

I stepped forward before Britt to have a better look.

I stepped through the door way and a feeling crept into my chest. I couldn't tell if it was good or bad. I started silently panicking wondering if it was too late to turn around.

Unlike the rest of the house the room was well preserved. There was no dust, cob webs, or anything that looked untouched. Which confused me. How is that possible?

The room was a bedroom. There was a king sized bed with a dark wooden bedframe and headboard with carvings of flowers and swirls. The bed sheets and pillows were fresh. With two end tables on each side of the bed with lamps sitting on them.

An antique dresser with a larger clean mirror sat against the wall. A wooden trunk sat at the foot of the bed.

The floor to ceiling windows were covered in light pink curtains.

"Wow." Britt whispered. "Its like someone cleaned up in here recently."

Yeah, that had to be it. Whoever bought the place decided to clean this room first for some reason.

Britt walked over to the trunk and clicked open the shiny gold locks.

She opened it and inside was paints, and paintings.

Britt reached inside and pulled out something I didnt see.

She holds up a small silver necklace and examines it.

I recognized it right away, it was the necklace the woman in the painting was wearing.

"Can I see it?" I asked as I reached out for it.

She handed me the necklace and I gasped as soon as it touched my hand as everything changed before my eyes.

I was walking hand and hand with Wesley into the hidden room. I still couldn't see him clearly, but I could feel something overwhelmingly good. Love. I could feel how much I loved the man holding my hand and how happy I felt to be near him.

"This will be our room." His warm voice spoke as he waved his hand around the room. "It will keep us safe from intruders."

I heard myself giggle but it wasnt my laugh.

"Darling you worry to much." I told him as one of my hands reached up and caressed his hidden face.

I could feel the smooth texture of his skin as he nuzzles his cheek into my hand.

"I just want to keep you safe Marie."

I felt myself smile lovingly at him.

"Just promise that if something happens to me, you will find me again."

Wesley shook his head up and down whispering, "I promise."

The image changes again. Im in pain and agony on the floor. I begged for Wesley to save me and the darker figure stood behind him. It was the dream again. I was seeing it happen again and I could feel the pain all over again.

Then like a fog lifted over my eyes, I saw his face. Wesley. The man from the coffee shop.

Wesley begged for my life again as the dark figure reached out to touch me.

The vision faded and I collapsed onto the floor.

I couldnt open my eyes or speak. I felt movement over my body and it took me a second to realize that it was Britt.

"Layla!" she yelled at me and began tapping my face repeatedly. "Wake up!"

I could here her pants in her voice and I forced my eyes to open and look at her.

Her eyes will filled with tears as she exhaled a sigh of relief and threw her arms around me.

I pushed myself up on one elbow and threw my other arm around her.

I felt her body tense up like something had scared her.

"Layla." She said in my ear.

I thought we had been caught and the owners came and found us here.

I was waiting for her to say somwthing else but she didnt.

"What?" I eventually asked.

She didnt answer so I pulled myself back from her grip to look at her.

She was staring dead center at the wall behind me.

I twisted myself around to see what she was looking at.

I expected to see a person standing there, but it was a protrait.

A protrait of a woman with dark brown hair, green eyes, smiling at me.

The protrait was me. Well The girl in the protrait looked exactly like me.

"What the hell?" Britt whispered breathlessly.