Jared was on his feet in an instant. He grabbed the shovel and held it ready as a weapon, then stared at me and Aaron, holding one of his fingers up to his lips. I looked around for something that I could use as a weapon too, but the best I could find was a piece of fallen wood. I took up my makeshift weapon, and then motioned for Aaron to stand next to me.
The crashing sound echoed through the air again, causing my body to shake along with the sound. Jared's eyes darted around the room; I didn't know what he was looking for until I saw his eyes lock onto something near the cashier's counter. There was a trapdoor. The sound must have been coming from in there.
Damn it.
I didn't want to go down there. I absolutely did not want to go down there. But Jared was already moving towards it, and I knew that we couldn't just leave it unexplored. We couldn't just leave whatever was down there alone. Because I knew that if it was something more than just an animal, it would come for us if we didn't come for it first.Jared opened the trap door, and peered down. I turned to Aaron, I didn't want to bring him with me, but I couldn't leave him here alone. I couldn't let Jared go down there alone either, so I couldn't stay with Aaron.
We all had to go down there. I expected Aaron to protest, but surprisingly he nodded his head. He really had meant what he said earlier, he trusted me to protect him. Well then, I guess I'll have to live up to my son's expectations, no matter how much my body shivers in fear.
Jared motioned for me to come over, and then he took a step into the open trapdoor, his foot connecting with a ladder. Another crash rang out, but this time I didn't let it startle me. I let Aaron go down before me, so that he'd be between me and Jared and then I followed right after.
As I stepped down the ladder, I brought out the flashlight and turned it on. "It was a good thing we found this flashlight," I thought as my feet connected with the damp dirt floor, "I can't imagine having to maneuver through here without it."
The place where we had entered was dug into the dirt, with wooden support beams on the sides and a wooden door at the end, about ten feet away. Broken wood littered the muddy ground and a few boxes that were completely smashed were lying around here and there. There was a crowbar lying on the ground, which I chose as my weapon over the piece of wood.Another crash rang out; this time it was easy to definitely pinpoint the source. It was coming from behind the door. I handed Aaron the flashlight as Jared and I both readied our makeshift weapons.
Another sound came from behind the door, it sounded almost like someone yelling out something. I couldn't make out what they were saying. Jared turned towards me, and nodded. I nodded in return.
We charged towards the door, quickly swung it open and peered inside. It appeared to be what looked like a wine cellar, but there were no bottles lined along the walls. Only the richest people could afford such things, after all. Perhaps it had once been lined with many different drinks before, but undoubtedly nothing had sat there for a very long. A few barrels sat around the room, one of which had been completely torn apart. A table rested in the center, and on that rested a lamp, illuminating the room. And last but not least... two people stood in the doorway, a man and a woman, who seemed oddly familiar.
I instantly recognized them as the couple from the picture.
The man's eyes were wild, rapidly darting between me and Jared. The woman's eyes were completely vacant; I would have thought she was dead if she wasn't breathing so fast that she was hyperventilating. Both of their bodies were covered in cuts and blood, the man had a particularly large gash on his right leg.I was about to say something. Maybe sorry for startling them, maybe sorry for barging into their house, maybe asking them if they were alright, if they needed help...But my eyes drifted towards the man's hands.
In them, he held a shotgun, pointed directly at Jared's chest.
