Kenny laid the sledgehammer against the
adjacent wall and admired the hole he'd made in the drywall of his house’s guest
bedroom. He tugged at the crumbling board, and as the hole widened to the
nearest stud, he noticed something quite unexpected underneath. A door. A thin
door perfectly positioned between the two studs branded with a bright bleeding X.
“What are you doing here?” Kenny ran his hand along the warped wood of the
mysterious door, knocked a few times, and tried the small brass knob. Locked. “This
makes no sense. A door in the wall?”
He used the sledgehammer to sever the
knob from the door, then jabbed the backside of the doorknob with the butt of its handle. Strangely, the metallic clink of the knob hitting the floor didn't
sound.
The door creaked open when Kenny gave it
a tap. Standing at the threshold, he peered into the shadows of what appeared to be a narrow, hidden room. A room between rooms? Light from the bedroom
streamed in and revealed a circular hole in the floor, approximately three feet
in diameter.
Kenny scoured the house for a flashlight
so he could get a better look at what he'd found so unexpectedly.
The flashlight beam danced around the
room as he explored the musty space. The walls were unfinished and the floor, nothing but dirt. The hole, centered in the barricaded and
forgotten closet, was inlaid with redbrick like a well.
Kenny cautiously approached the well and
shown his flashlight down into the creepy opening in the floor, which descended
fifteen, maybe even twenty feet! And then the light grazed over a hunched
figure.
“Lose something?” the man in the well
asked, holding the other half of the brass knob in his hand.
Kenny shook with such a fright that he
nearly dropped his flashlight into the hole. Now he knew he was crazy.
The man, or boy, looked no older than
twenty. His clothes were ragged, his hair knotted and clumpy, and he
flashed a smile of black and crooked teeth.
“What are you doing in my...house?” Kenny
stuttered.
“It wasn't your house when I was put
down here.”
“What are you talking about? I've lived
here for ten years. You––”
“And the McKinley's before you. And the Cunningham’s
before them. And Old Man Grommet before them. I've been down here a long time.
Would you like the other half of your doorknob back?”
“How are you still alive?” Kenny
couldn't believe what was happening. He clicked off the flashlight, confident
that if he couldn't see the boy, then he would simply disappear.
“That's a good question. How about a
little help. It would be nice to feel the warmth of sunlight on my face again.
Then I'll tell you why I was placed here before taking my leave.”
“I don't know if that's such a good
idea.”
“How can you say that? Do you really
want me to remain here, in your house, with you and your wife? Jill, is it?”
Kenny felt a chill surge through his
entire body. Turning the flashlight back on, those seemingly innocent eyes remained fixed on him like a helpless puppy. “So, if I let you out, you're just going to leave?”
“Right after telling you my story. You've
got my word.”
“Fine,” Kenny said, backing away slowly.
“I'll find some rope.”
“Very good. I'll just
wait here.”
