Episode 2

Hill House was deserted. Nevertheless, Amadeo couldn’t get rid of the feeling of being watched. The manor, with all its cumbersome interior impending over the newcomer, seemed watchful under its disguise of silence.

A whiff of the draft, coming from nowhere, a drop of water from the kitchen tap followed him with the persistence of a hunter, lurking from behind the wall of stillness.

Amadeo gave himself a quick tour.

He opened as many curtains as he found to let in some light.

Eventually, he lost his way in the labyrinth of rooms inside rooms and suddenly walked out to the entrance hall from where he started.

Strange… I could swear I was on the other side of the house.

Cold sweat pricked at Amadeo’s skin, and the hair on his neck stood up. Despite the golden rays of twilight seeping through the windows, the interior stood dim and dusky.

Shadows crept into the corners and the hollow doorways gaped at him in suspense.

Amadeo turned his gaze upstairs, imagining he saw someone standing there with his hand resting on the balustrade.

That was just a picture on the wall.

Silly country superstitions. They’re getting on my nerves. It’s just a house, a normal old, creaky house that I’m gonna turn into a piece of cake with a cherry on top. That’s it!

Still, he jumped with his heart pounding in his ear when a car signalled outside. His first thought was, “Rogers!” They must have remembered leaving the doors open and came to check on that. He rushed outside, surprisingly fast, as if running away. From what?

A strong-built brunette in glasses stood out of the car, watching him with concern. He held a smartphone and was obviously about to call someone.

“Hi, glad you’re back. My guests are just about to arrive,” Amadeo said, panting.

“Amadeo Goldfield?” the brunette inquired.

Another, taller man, left the car and banged the door shut.

He was the rock version of the one in glasses, with long, wavy, brown hair and a wild squint.

“We are your guests.” He said in low bass.

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Episode 1

Amadeo stood at the rusty gates of his newly bought manor, gazing at the intricate windows and confusing aisles that transfixed him with their immensity and extraordinary.

That architect must have been mad. Came the thought.

Amadeo pushed the gate, and it squeaked open, jingling with a heavy padlock on a chain.

He noted installing the modern security system and wondered why the brokers hadn’t set it up to protect the lonely house, lost in the pine woods. Middle Ages!

Amadeo walked up to the entrance, reached for the door hammer, and politely knocked it twice. Nobody answered. He knocked harder, and the door cracked open.

“Hello, anyone?” He called out, walking in. “Mr and Mrs Rogers? It’s Amadeo Goldfield, the new house owner.”

Only echo from the dim halls came in reply.

The house looked solemn, dark… expectant, and smelled of roses. Amadeo looked around the stucco walls in the vivid Art Nouveau style and shabby chic furniture as if frozen in time, preserved from decaying in this secluded place.

He swept a finger over the nearest tabletop. Clean. So the servants, his broker introduced as locals who tended to the house, did their job.

“I see the front yard is in a terrible state!” Amadeo cried toward what he assumed was the kitchen. “The shrubs need trimming.”

He noticed a vase with freshly picked flowers on the table. The rose fragrance hung in the air like the morning mist. There was a note beside it, lined with steady, stiff handwriting.

“Dear Mr Goldfield,

Welcome to Hill House. We don’t stay on the premises after four o’clock. If you are reading this, then you are late. The dinner is in the oven. Help yourself to any side dishes and snacks I left in the fridge. Your master bedroom and guest rooms are ready. The old boiler is on, though the water runs gurgling. The plumber you hired hasn’t finished his job.
I’d say ‘make yourself at home’ if I believed you could.
Help you, God.

Yours sincerely,
Mrs Rogers.”

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Amazing building is by @simsontherope! Thank you so much for this piece of art. Not in any case I consider you mad for building this masterpiece!:D