Bed and Breakfast

Robert and Claire drove for what felt like hours leaving the lights of the city behind heading to what the website referred to as "a quaint little bed and breakfast off the beaten path." The GPS led them to their destination, an unmarked dirt road framed with trees just over a hill right outside the city limits. Robert squeezed the steering wheel when he saw the path.

“What is this place?” he asked turning onto the road. He pulled on the controls and the rental’s lights grew brighter.

“They just don’t have any streetlights on the road,” Claire said in an attempt to reassure him. “I’m sure it’s fine.”

Robert spotted two suspiciously eerie statues serving as sentries to what lay ahead and stopped the gray sedan. He cracked the tinted window for a better look.

They were hooded figures around seven feet tall wearing black robes that stretched to the ground. Their faces appeared to be based on some sort of Venetian plague doctor masks with long beaks, wrinkles around the narrow slits of the eyes, and a crooked smile carved for its lips. Its skeletal hands were held together near its chest, its long fingers interlocked and up as if they were waiting for something… or someone.

“Are you seeing this?” he asked, flabbergasted by their weirdness.

“The statues?” she asked.

“Yes, the st-statues!” He stumbled over his words for a moment, his mouth unable to keep up with his racing brain. “They look like mascots for the Black Death.”

“Yeah, I mean they are creepy.”

“Creepy?” He took in a deep breath and turned his attention back to the path. The branches from the tops of the trees reached out and connected making the road look like a long, dark tunnel. “I mean, are you seeing this! This is how horror movies start!”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said.

“This is not ridic… ridic….” He gestured wildly at the statue next to his window before launching his hand forward and crashing it into the windshield trying to point to the road. “That is not ridiculous!”

“Okay,” she remained calm speaking in a soothing tone. “Well, let’s just have a look at the place, and if you still feel uncomfortable, we’ll leave.”

“Do you think this is normal? We’re out here in the middle of a cornfield with no lights and creepy statues and you expect to live through the night?”

“Well, maybe they’re decorating early. I mean, it is close to Halloween.”

“It’s September, Claire! It’s the beginning of freaking September. Who decorates for Halloween at the beginning of September?”

“Mister James next door, Miss Donahue down the street, and so do we sometimes.”

“One time, Claire! We did that one time!”

“Stop shouting at me.”

“I’m not shouting at you, I’m just speaking very loudly about the statues that are about to come to life and kill us!”

“I guess you should close that window then.”

Robert looked at her in stunned silence. Against everything inside of him, he slowly continued down the path.

They emerged from the tree tunnel and saw the large, plantation-style house. It was extravagant and probably would’ve been beautiful during the unpleasant days of its youth. There was a circle of hedges surrounding a three-tiered fountain that served as the center of a traffic circle for the estate. There were a few upper-level rooms with bay windows and one large bay window in a room next to the front door. The sporadic amount of rooms with lights to rooms that were dark only made Robert feel even more uncomfortable.

“Isn’t this the house from The Shinning?” Robert asked.

“That was a hotel.”

“Well, this is a hotel now! The point is that this house is clearly some kind of haunted mansion.”

“That’s a different movie altogether.” She smiled but he was not amused. “C’mon, park the car and let’s get our bags.”

“Are you seriously still considering this?”

She rolled her eyes. “I just want to prove to you that you’re seriously overreacting.”

“And you’re not ‘reacting’ enough.” He used finger quotes. “You’re under-reacting.”

She unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door. “It’s probably really nice inside.”

“It’s probably a murder den,” he mumbled.

She rolled her eyes and shut the door behind her.

They entered the manor.

An old grandfather clocked chimed a haunting welcome as they went to check-in. They passed by a beautiful staircase made of dark cherry wood that was an elegant contrast to the white marble floors. The second level wound around the foyer. Robert noticed a strange picture at the top of the staircase of a woman who seemed to be watching them.

Robert put the bags down and rang the little bell on the front desk that appeared to be a portable curved wooden bar that didn't quite match the rest of the wood in the house. He heard someone shuffle around behind a door beyond the desk before an older woman emerged. She walked with her back so straight and her steps so light that she seemed to glide across the floor. She was tall wearing a long dress of black velvet that hugged her slender frame and adorned the boat neckline with a long string of pearls. Her black hair was lined with many stripes of gray and pinned in a neat bun on top of her head.

“May we help you?” Her voice sounded rather snobbish.

“We?” mumbled Robert.

“We’re the Matthews," said Claire. "We have a reservation for the next few nights."

“Matthews?” The woman opened a ledger and used one of her long, bony fingers to scan through it. “We see no reservation for Matthews.”

“We made the reservation online.”

The woman stared at Claire for a few moments, her face expressionless.

“On a computer,” said Robert rather sarcastically.

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “We know what online means.” Her thin, wrinkled lips seemed to accent the O sound.

Robert took a step back. “You lost our reservation?” he said a bit too eagerly.

“We have never ‘lost’ a reservation.” She picked up a pen made to look like a feather quill but wrote like a fine point. “We shall assign you to the upper suite made especially for young, married couples.” She turned around and unlocked a key cabinet. “If you are here for the festival, you are quite late. We prefer our guests to be checked in before the sun sets, but we suppose there’s not much we can do about it now.”

“Festival?” asked Robert. “What festival?”

She turned her head and looked at them suspiciously. “No, we suppose you are not.” She grabbed an old looking metal key and turned back to them. “Your room will be up those stairs to your right. Once you reach the top, turn left to the end of the hall to suite 3B. There are plenty of signs to help guide your way.”

“An actual key?” asked Robert.

“Thank you very much,” said Claire as she quickly took the key.

“If you have any further questions at any time during your stay, please feel free to ask for Madam Templeton.”

“What is this, a brothel?” Robert stifled a chuckle. “Who’s Madam Templeton?”

The woman raised an eyebrow.

The smile quickly left his face and he stood up straight. “So, uh, what’s this festival all about?”

Madam Templeton put her hands together. “Participants are meeting in the drawing-room in fifteen minutes if you care to attend. There will be a selection of teas and cakes if you care to partake.”

“Kind of late for a snack isn’t it?” asked Robert.

Madam Templeton’s lips twitched. “It is a late-night festival. Participants need to… keep up their strength.” She tilted her head in a slight bow before gliding back to the office.

They made their way up the staircase. Each stair creaked loudly under their weight, step by step until they reached the top. Robert went to get a closer look at the woman in the painting. It was in an antique-looking golden colored frame.

“What is it?” asked Claire.

“This woman.”

“What about her?”

“Doesn’t she look like the one who checked us in?”

Claire took a closer look. “I suppose. Maybe younger. Don’t tell me, you think it’s odd.”

“Her eyes are following us.”

“No they’re not,” she hesitated but took a closer look. “Are they?”

Robert took a moment. “No,” he pouted. “But you agree this whole place is just all around creepy.”

Claire studied the painting. “It has this area of negative space like something was supposed to be there.”

Robert smiled wide and practically vibrated. “So, you agree?”

“I mean, she could’ve just had that person painted over for whatever reason. Quit looking for excuses. Let’s just check out the room.”

Through narrow hallways and a few turns, they found their way to their suite. The lock made a loud click and Robert carefully opened the door. The room looked normal enough. Fairly large suite with a king-sized bed, a dressing table, a six-drawer vertical dresser, and a walk-in closet.

“Wow,” said Claire. “This is a nice room for the price.” She walked around. “A suite this sized at a hotel would’ve cost us twice as much, maybe more.”

Robert placed the bags near the foot of the bed and looked around. The entire place just felt wrong and weird. It was an old room. The furniture could almost be considered antique, and some of it was. All he could think about were the statues and the fact that he was in the middle of nowhere. He grabbed his phone and headed out to explore.

He recorded the hallways as he looked around. The walls were lined with pictures of people who seemed to scrutinize his every move. He looked up and noticed the chandelier. It seemed to sway ever so gently. Suddenly, there was a dark streak that shot in front of his lens. He looked up quickly to see the lights in the chandelier flicker as it moved in a large, circular motion.

“No, Claire,” he said sarcastically to himself. “Of course this place isn’t creepy and haunted.”

The entire floor was empty of patrons. He assumed the guests were all at the tea in the drawing-room, whatever that was. He glanced back at his phone screen and saw a person who appeared to be examining something on a bookshelf. He looked up to check if he could get a better look with his eyes, but the person wasn’t there. A glance back at his phone showed the same absence of a person, but he knew he saw someone… didn’t he?

A quick creak, creak, creak came up behind him. He spun on his heels ready to attack when he saw his wife.

“Geez, Claire,” he released a large exhale.

“What are you doing out here?”

“I thought I saw someone.”

“You probably did. We’re in a very large house and they’re having some sort of event.”

“That’s not remotely what I meant.” He headed straight for the bookshelf. “It was here. Someone was bent over like this and looking through the books.” He scanned the shelf and found a sort of history book. “This.”

“What is it?”

“It’s a book about the manor.” The book was mysteriously knocked from his hands and opened once it hit the ground. Robert froze.

"Careful," said Claire. "Don't break anything."

"I didn't..." he trailed off, bent down to the open page, and started reading. “It says here that this manor has had all sorts of misfortunes since its construction in the early 1800s, some of which have killed people.”

“So the place has a few ghosts. What place doesn’t these days? I mean, how many could it possibly have?”

“More than a few. They built a chapel on the grounds somewhere. It was hit with an earthquake that killed two priests and seven students.”

“Earthquakes happen.”

“Then, a few years later, the chapel burned down killing eight more people, some of them children.”

“So you think all those ghosts are here in the manor?”

“If not in this building, they’re on the grounds. This place is definitely haunted.”

“It’s not my fault none of the online reviews mentioned the dead children.”

Robert closed the book and carefully put it back. “Let’s go to the drawing-room”

“You really want to?”

“I have a few questions about this event.” He made his way down the stairs, Claire closely behind him.

Robert stood in the doorway to the drawing room with Claire at his side. There were roughly ten people and it seemed as if all eyes had turned their attention to Robert and Claire. All in unison, the once somewhat noisy chatter had turned to utter silence. Robert struggled to swallow, but his mouth had gone dry. Claire held his hand and led him over to the food.

“That’s quite the spread,” said Claire. She picked up a rather large macadamia nut cookie wrapped in a brown paper pouch and tucked it safely away in her jacket pocket. “Want some tea?”

“Look at them,” he said practically ignoring her. “They’re all talking about us.”

“No, they’re not.” She helped herself to one of the finger sandwiches and then grabbed a teacup for some hot tea.

“They want to sacrifice us. How can you think of eating at a time like this?”

“I’m hungry.” She filled her cup.

“We just ate.”

“That was like two hours ago.” She held the warm teacup to her lips and let the aromas fill her nose. “Smells like orange pekoe.”

“Well, great, you have some tea. Let’s mingle.” He grabbed her arm and headed over to a few people who were standing together, two men and one woman. They looked normal enough. “Hi, guys,” he said brightly.

They looked at him strangely.

“Hello,” said a young woman. “My name is Lisa and this is my husband Edward.”

“Hi!” Robert held out his hand and she gladly shook it. “So what’s going on here?”

“Well,” said Lisa. “We’re just sort of getting to know each other before the ceremony tonight.”

“We haven’t seen you here before,” said Edward, his voice deep. “Please, introduce yourselves.”

“Oh, how rude of him,” said Claire. “This is Robert, and I’m….”

Robert interrupted giving Claire’s arm a little squeeze. “We’re just passing through and needed a place to stay.”

“Are you married?” asked Lisa.

“Okay,” Robert replied.

“Mm, that’s not really an answer.”

“A young couple,” said the other man. “Excellent.”

Robert felt a cold shiver crawl up his spine. “Why is that excellent?”

“Don’t listen to him,” said Lisa. “That’s Jim. He’s creepy.”

“Are you curious about the ceremony?” asked Edward. “Most newcomers are. Perhaps you’ll be intrigued enough to join us.”

“You let outsiders see your… ceremony?” asked Robert.

“How else would we gain new members?” said Jim. “We must always gain new members if we are to survive.”

Edward’s eyes cut to Claire. “Doesn’t your wife speak?”

Claire’s eyes narrowed. “When I feel like it.”

Edward’s lips curled. “Good.”

“I bet she’s a screamer,” said Jim. He leaned down to look her in the eyes. “Are you a screamer?”

Robert put a hand on Claire’s shoulder and moved her to his other side.

“Dammit, Jim.” Lisa pulled him back. “See, he’s creepy.”

“Certifiably,” said Robert. “So, what’s the ceremony?”

“Graduation,” said Lisa. “Have you been able to explore the grounds, yet?”

Robert shook his head.

“Oh, well if you had, you would’ve seen our school. Because of the nature of the property, we use the energies around us to learn all about alternative spiritual activities.”

“Alternative spiritual activities?” Robert raised an eyebrow.

“The study of ghosts,” said Edward.

“Ghosts and other supernatural occurrences,” said Lisa. “This place is the perfect spot for it given what happened in its past.”

“Occult activities?” Robert asked.

“I mean, I guess you could say that,” said Lisa. “It’s all very interesting.”

“Yes, and we need a young couple to complete a very special ritual,” said Jim. He looked over at Claire and licked his lips. “A very special ritual.”

Claire grabbed the back of Robert’s shirt.

“Well,” said Robert. “That was all very informative, but we’ve had a long drive and could use a bit of sleep. It very was nice meeting all of you.”

They all said their goodnights and Robert ushered Claire out of the room and up the stairs.

As they walked by the painting in the hallway, Robert noticed something a little different. The once empty space next to the woman was filled, and the person standing next to her was Jim. He looked exactly as he looked downstairs only a few moments prior and he held a malicious smile on his face. Robert kept Claire by his side and quickened his pace. He wasn’t sure if she noticed the painting, but he didn’t feel comfortable enough to stop and ask.

Once inside the room, he quickly locked the door behind him before heading over to grab the dresser and shuffling it as best he could.

“What are you doing?” asked Claire.

“What does it look like, Claire?” he grunted. “I have to make sure that freak, Jim, doesn’t get his hands on you.”

“That’s very sweet of you, but how will we leave if there’s a fire or something?”

He stopped pulling at the dresser at glanced back at her. “I can’t let them hurt you! I don’t know what I’d do without you!”

She smiled. “You’re shouting again.”

“I’m passionate, Claire! You know how I get!”

“I know, and I appreciate it, but you have to calm down. Getting all worked up isn’t good for you.” She made her way to the bed and pulled out her cookie.

“Calm down? I can’t just calm down. Being in this building isn’t good for either of us. Did you see how he looked at you?”

Her eyes shifted away from him as she took a bite. “Yea, that was creepy.”

“And you heard what they said. Occult activities, Claire! They need a young couple to complete some kind of s-satanic occult ritual.”

“You don’t know it’s satanic.”

“You don’t know it’s not satanic!” He knelt beside the bed and placed his head on Claire’s lap. “Mysterious fires, earthquakes, ghosts, and ritualistic sacrifices.”

“I’m pretty sure the only person who brought up sacrifices was you.” She brushed some cookie crumbs from his hair and then curled a few of his locks around her fingers.

“The book mentioned a few sacrifices.” He looked up at her. “I’m serious. I don’t know if you noticed, but that painting isn’t empty anymore. That Jim guy is in it now and he has an eye for you.”

She stopped twirling. “Maybe it’s a different painting.”

“Can you stop trying to be my voice of reason right now? This isn’t like the other times when I thought I saw a ghost. I saw Jim in that painting wearing the same stuff we just saw him in, looking the same way we just met him.”

She stood and made her way to their large bathroom. She gasped.

“Claire?” He stood up. “Is everything okay?”

“Robert, come look at this.”

He darted straight to her. “What is it?”

“Look.” She pointed to the mirror. “What is that?”

He leaned in to get a closer look at a strange stain on the mirror. The frame was similar to the gold-colored frame of the painting in the hallway, but the bottom had two thick red stains. He reached out his hand to it.

“Don’t touch it!” said Claire. “We don’t know what it is.”

“Looks like dried blood.”

She whimpered.

“Oh, so you see a little blood and believe me?”

“I never doubted you, I just didn’t want….”

“You didn’t want it to be true.”

“I was tired and I’ve never stayed in a manor before.”

He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. “I know.”

“And it was so affordable and I figured one night couldn’t possibly kill us.”

“An affordable murder den.”

“And anytime we go on vacation, you always think wherever we’re staying has a ghost or two.”

“There’s usually compelling evidence to back me up.”

“Something falling off a table isn’t compelling evidence.”

“It is when you know for a fact that you put the cup in the middle of the table, not near the edge.”

“I’m not getting into this with you again, not right now.” She looked up into his eyes. “You win. Let’s go.”

He nodded. “I won’t say I told you so.”

“Yes, you will.”

“Yes, I will. I told you so.” He kissed the top of her head. “I’ll get the bags.”

As Claire turned to grab her toiletry bag, a dark red liquid oozed down from the top of the mirror. She took a step back. Jim’s reflection was smiling back at her through the red lines. She quickly spun around, but no one was there.

“Robert?”

He didn’t answer.

“Robert!”

Still nothing.

She walked carefully to the bathroom door and peeked out into the room. Robert was gone and the door was wide open. She pulled out her phone and dialed his number. After a few moments, she heard the ring and followed it to a spot on the floor next to the bed. She took a deep breath and headed out to find him.

Everything looked the same but it all suddenly seemed so sinister. She circled to the staircase and glanced at the chandelier. Its lights flickered and it swayed ever so slightly. A book fell to the floor as she walked by the shelf. She bent down slowly to pick it up. It opened to the page about the chapel at the manor, the same page Robert had been reading earlier. She turned the pages and found an old black and white photograph of the chapel that had been scanned into the book. The photo was burned around the edges, but she could still make out the faces, at least, the faces of the people she just met. There, in front of the chapel, stood Edward, Lisa, Jim, and Madam Templeton. The year on the photo was circa 1852.

Claire darted down the stairs as fast as she could using the railing for balance. When she entered the drawing-room, her shoulders sank, and her eyes filled with tears at the sight of the empty room. Where were they? Where was Robert? She felt the chill of a breeze. An open window? An open door. She took a deep breath and headed outside.

Her eyes strained in the dark for any indication of light or a struggle. Anything. She held her arms across her chest and shifted her weight from one foot to the next when she saw a dark figure. It swayed gently back and forth like the ebb and flow of a sea. She couldn’t make out any facial features if it even had facial features or a face. It lifted an arm and pointed out into the cornfield. Her eyes followed the direction and she saw a cross.

“The chapel?”

The shadow disappeared.

She darted off into the cornfield. After a few moments, she heard chanting of some kind and slowed her pace. She could see them ahead. They wore long, black robes and stood in a circle around a small fire. She looked around and then saw Robert sitting calmly next to the fire between Edward and Jim.

“Robert!” Claire darted out at them and didn’t stop until she was at his side. “Robert, are you okay?”

He seemed dazed. “Claire?”

Madam Templeton reached down to her. “Come now, Missus Matthews. You’re in hysterics.”

Claire slapped her hand away. “What have you done to him?”

“Nothing,” said Lisa innocently. “He felt a bit dizzy so I suggested he sit down. Does he have some sort of medical issue?”

Claire focused on Robert again. “Robert?” She ran her fingers through his hair. “What’s happened? What’s going on?”

Robert attempted a smile before his neck released its tension leaving his head to bob around aimlessly.

“Robert!” She cradled his head to her breast. “What have you done to him?”

“Why do you think we’ve done something to him?” said Lisa.

“They’re like all the others,” said Jim. “They’re just as close-minded as the rest of them. They came here to mock us, not learn about us!”

“It no longer matters,” said Madam Templeton. “We must always have new members if we are to survive.”

They swarmed around Claire, grabbing her arms and legs so she couldn’t fight back and pulling Robert from her grasp. She screamed for him, but he couldn’t respond.

“Don’t resist,” said Edward. “You won’t like what happens when you do.”

She continued to fight and managed to get one of her legs free kicking whoever she could.

“I knew she’d be trouble,” said Jim. "The little ones are always scrappy."

“Then we will do what must be done,” replied Madam Templeton.

Someone hit Claire in the head and she was knocked out cold.

Claire woke up in the car as Robert drove down the dark highway.

“Robert?” her voice was groggy. “Where are we?” She put a hand on her head and groaned.

“You’re awake,” he replied. “We were just about to turn off for that B and B.”

She looked around. “Didn’t we… didn’t we already stay there?”

“What do you mean?”

“We were just there… weren’t we?”

He reached over and placed his hand on her shoulder. “Having exciting dreams about staying in such a large house?”

“I guess you could say that, but it was so real.”

The car slowed as Robert reached their turn off.

“I don’t want to stay there,” said Claire. “Please don’t turn.”

“What are you talking about? We thought you were excited about it?” He made the turn.

“I told you not to turn!”

“Please stop shouting. You’re in hysterics.” He moved his hand down from her shoulder and unbuckled her seatbelt.

Claire tried to catch her breath. Her voice trembled. “Robert?”

“The school must always gain new members.”

“Robert, what did they do to you?”

He stopped by the statues and rolled down her window. “If you will not consent to be one of us, then you will stay here and be one of them.”

In one quick movement, the statue pulled her from the car swallowed her whole.

“We must always have new members if we are to survive.”