The house appeared empty as they all moved into the shadowed foyer. The distant tick of a clock sounded like the tolling of their deaths in the abnormally quiet house, even their footsteps were muffled on the thick carpet. Though nothing in the house seemed overly foreboding, she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something sinister going on within these walls. That they held secrets she didn't want to know.
Hannah's gaze skimmed over the walls as they stepped into the room where Calvin kept all of his mail clad statues. She eyed the unmoving soldiers warily, half expecting them to come to life and attack them with their assorted weapons of spears, lances, and swords. All the soldiers wore helmets, but even still she couldn't shake the feeling that there were eyes behind the helmets that followed them across the room.
"It doesn't seem like anyone is here," Timber said.
"We're still going to search the whole place. I have a feeling there's more going on here than what meets the eye," Braith replied. "Xavier, William, Daniel and Timber go upstairs. We'll continue to search down here."
Hannah watched the others split off toward the set of stairs that branched from the main foyer to the second floor. Aria pulled the bow from her back and removed an arrow from her quiver. The click of the arrow against the wooden bow was the only sound other than the ticking clock inside the house. Braith and Jack led the way out of the room with all of the soldiers and into another narrow hall.
Hannah's eyes were picking up more detail than she was used to, and it took her a moment to realize that it was due to Jack's blood flowing through her veins. Distinct particles of dust danced through the air even though little illumination infiltrated this windowless area of the home. Tapestries lined the hall and judging by the smell of dust and mildew wafting off of them, they were far older than their colorful and intact thread would indicate. It took all she had not to run her fingers over the beautiful cloths, but she was terrified that she would ruin one of them if she did.
The hall ended in a set of massive metal doors that were barred with a piece of wood that could have doubled as a small oak tree. Hannah didn't understand why anyone would need such thick doors in their house and though she sniffed at the seams and cracks, she couldn't detect any strange scents coming from the other side. Braith and Jack each grabbed an end of the heavy wooden crossbar and heaved it off as if it weighed no more than a twig. Hannah wished for a weapon as Aria lifted her bow and aimed it at the door. But then, there had never been a reason for her to learn how to use a weapon and she definitely wouldn't have liked to use one that could kill her.
Braith grabbed hold of Aria's shoulder and nudged her toward the door. "You and Hannah are going to open it," he told her.
Though disappointment filtered over her features, Aria didn't argue as she threw her bow over her shoulder and grabbed hold of one of the handles. Hannah stepped to the other side. Her gaze found Jack's as he gave her a brief nod. The door was heavier than she had expected it to be, but even still she was able to pull it open with more ease than she would have exhibited yesterday.
Although she had fully been expecting something monstrous to burst out of the room beyond, nothing stirred within. She poked her head around the door. Though some light filtered into the room, she wasn't entirely sure what she was looking at. With the doors open, a strange odor emanated from within that caused her nose to wrinkle and her eyes to water.
"That can't be good," Jack said as he stepped forward.
Hannah almost grabbed hold of his arm to stop him from entering the room. Even though nothing had immediately happened when they opened the doors, she knew that death lay within as she finally placed the scent that was wafting out. She'd only been around one decomposing body in her life, a woman that had passed away in her sleep. The woman hadn't been found for a couple of days. Hannah had been in the street with Lucas when they had taken the woman's body by.
The last thing she wanted to do was locate the source of that smell but still she stepped into the enormous room behind Jack. She had been expecting to find bodies sprawled throughout, but the blood colored marble floor was pristine and empty. Stained-glass windows lined three of the four walls. Unlike many of the beautiful stained-glass windows she had seen before, these windows didn't depict wild animals, soaring doves or an image of Christ. These were pictures of bloody massacres with people being drawn and quartered, beheaded, hung, and many other horrific depictions of torture. Despite the chill in the room her skin was coated with a thin layer of sweat that was making her dress stick to her.
Aria had stopped looking at the windows, her head had tilted back and the color had vanished from her face. Hannah knew she shouldn't look up but she felt compelled to as she turned to the rafters overhead. Hooks, carved and lethal, dangled from the ceiling. At first she thought it was the light coming through the mostly red stained glass windows that caused the hooks to look a rusted red in color, but it finally sank in that it wasn't light at all, it was in fact blood.
Nausea swelled through her stomach, she took a step back as horror shot through her. Jack grabbed hold of her shoulder and pulled her against his side as he attempted to steady her. "I think we're about to find the proof we've been looking for," Braith said. "We have to locate the source of that smell, but first let's find the others."
"Wait," Jack said as they turned to leave the room. Hannah was brought up short against his chest as he focused on something on the floor. "Stay here," he told her before giving her a brief kiss on the head and walking away.
Braith fell into step beside him as they took a few steps into the middle of the room. They stopped before some sort of indentation in the floorboards; Jack knelt down and began to prod around the edges of it, his hands went about four feet in each direction. He pushed down on something that Hannah couldn't see, even with her enhanced vision. A piece of the floor began to rise upward. Hannah took a curious step forward before the smell of what was under the floor hit her.