Haunted Home

Charu didn't sleep the whole night as she was constantly thinking about the picture of an old villa with the map guiding towards that villa. 

She was trying to figure out the meaning of the alpha-numeric code written behind that picture but failed. The whole night was spent in solving this puzzle but all efforts went in vain. So, she woke up late in the morning, her father already left for the office and her grandmother was sleeping because of sedatives.

She was getting bored, so she picked that book again, started observing the photograph. She felt a strong urge to visit that place, doesn't matter what happens afterwards. There was some force which was pulling her to that place. So finally she decided to visit that place. She picked her bag, kept the villa's picture inside the bag, headed to David Hall from where she had bought that book.

She showed the book to the bookshop owner and asked, from where he bought this book?

I don't have any idea, I have bought this book shop last month only, so books were already there. Is there any problem with this book? Lots of people have come and enquired about it earlier.

If you want to return it, you can return but I won't give money in exchange, you can take another book.

No, no......... I don't want to return this book.

I left that place, started googling Hotel Abode as per map's directions. Google was showing it near Wellington, 1-hour drive from my place to Wellington. I took a cab and asked the driver to drop me at Hotel Abode in Wellington island.

He started staring at me and asked, why do you want to go to Wellington island? It's a haunted place, I have heard lots of stories about that place.

I am working on a history project and I need information for that.

Okay, I will drop you there.

I don't know why, but I wanted to know the underneath story of that code and villa. After an hours drive, I reached Hotel Abode. There was nothing fancy about this hotel. It was an old hotel in a dilapidated condition, only a few old people were having tea there.

There were no people on roads, the weather was cloudy and the wind was quite harsh.

I asked the man sitting at the hotel reception about the villa, but he didn't utter a single word. Instead, he said, go back.......

Why did you come here? Nobody lives here in this area, just a bunch of few old people.

I was a little scared after hearing it's the haunted status but I am adamant to find the truth behind it.

In today's time, how could they talk about all this?

It's better to follow the map's directions. I started walking on the road with a map in my hand. It was a fully desolated place. There was no one on the road. All the houses were old and deserted as if no one had lived there for a long time. It was so scary to walk there as I could hear the sound of my footsteps, wind. First time I heard the sound of the silence. 

As I was moving ahead seeing the houses on the roadside. Finally, I was standing in front of a villa named "Home". It was an old house in a dilapidated condition big unattended lawn was there in front of the house. There was a big iron gate, and I was trying to open it but it was locked.

Suddenly, a man came from behind, started shouting on me. Who are you? What are you doing here?

I was petrified to see that old man. He was in tattered clothes, shabby looking with long unkempt hair.

I am a college student, I am working on my history project, so I came here to collect some information about Wellington.

Ohhhhh......

Whose house is this?

This was the house of Sheryl Varghese a beautiful woman without eyes and her possessive husband David Varghese.

Was she blind by birth?

No, her husband made her blind.

He was obsessed with her, so he never allowed her mingling with men. He had one negro servant Adam who was ugly but with a beautiful voice. He never doubted Sheryl's and Adam's intentions as he was so ugly, nobody can fall in love with him as per David's opinion.

Once David left town for a business trip for a month. Sheryl was alone, had no friends. She found solitude in Adam's singing. They started talking to each other, he started teaching music to her and they became friends.

One day she fell from the stairs and Adam lifted her in his strong arms and put her on to the bed. He took great care of her and they fell in love.

When David came back from the trip, he sensed a change in Sheryl's behaviour and increased proximity between Adam and her.

David asked Sheryl, did she love Adam? and she said, yes.

He smashed her face with his wine bottle and Sheryl lost her eyesight, beauty and happiness.

She didn't hear Adam's songs again, there was only David's sound in the home.

I had tears in my eyes, where is she now? What happened to Adam?

She died long ago and David might have killed and buried Adam and Sheryl in the house itself.

What........

I was shivering with fear.

How do you know?

Everybody knows here, it's a haunted place. More frightening after sunset. Don't you know?

I don't believe in all this crap?

Who are you?

I am Adam (started laughing loudly). It's my and Sheryl's home and I would not allow anyone to disturb our peace.

 I started running as fast as I could run. I was fully drenched in my sweat. There was no one sitting in the Hotel Abode, not even that man at the counter. It was fully vacant.

I was so terrified, unable to say a word. Somehow I managed to reach on the main road, took a cab for my home.

I threw that picture outside from cab's window and closed eyes for a while.

I reached my house, took a shower and trying to sleep, I saw the same Polaroid photo of the villa lying on my bedside table…………

I shrieked with fear, it was not a dream, it was real…..