((Short chapter, next one will be longer and tell more backstories
After their chat, Zoe and Jared worked quietly, examining each room with silent calmness. Neither were upset or mad, just happy to not speak for a little while.
It's wasn't long until the two finished their floor, and Jared somehow found himself finishing up in the study.
On one end, there was a large, fluffy couch that probably was about fifty perfect dust at this point. In front of the couch was a fine coffee table with a gold ash tray on top. Behind the couch stood a tall, dark oak bookcase. Each book had a genuine leather cover and a grand name, such as OPERATIONS OF SURGERY or MANSON'S TROPICAL DISEASES.
On the other side of the room was the desk. Behind it was a large window that looked out onto the property. The few plants seen from the window were withered and black.
On the desk laid a variety of oddities, including a preserved human eye, a dried out exotic flower, large, goggly reading glasses, and an armless statue of a woman.
Jared picked up the jar with the eye, staring into it's pupil. The eye was a lovely hazel color. It was a dark brown by the center and gray and blue near the outer edges.
As Jared still stared at the eye, he attempted to lean back against the desk. In this, he managed to knock over the statue, creating a loud thud.
Jared cursed jumping up and dropping the jar in the process. The preservatives leaked out onto the floor, creating a nasty odor. The eyeball rolled under the desk, never to be seen again.
Jared turned to the desk, and was confused to find that the statue had indeed shattered, but the bottom of it had been attached to some sort of wire.
He reached out, trying to figure out what was happening with the wire, when behind him he heard creaking.
Thinking Zoe was coming into the room, Jared turned around to talk to her, only to find that the bookshelf had swung open, revealing a small hallway.
"What the hell-" Jared moved forward, carefully stepping over the eye juice, and made his way into the passage. As he stepped in, the door shut behind him.
Jared raised his eyebrows in concern but continued forward, following along the path. The floor was rotted wood and the walls a rough stone. In the middle of the hall was a window, and Jared approached it carefully.
He was staring out into the the second floor hallway, Zoe was leaning up against the wall, still waiting for Jared to completely his room.
"It must be a one way mirror." Jared whispered to no one in particular. He reached out a hand and touched the glass.
Then, he banged on it.
"Hey Zoe!" He tried to call, but the mirror muffled his voice. Zoe looked up, startled, at the mirror, her eyes wide in horror. "Zoe! It's me, Jared!" He banged on it again before realizing that she could not hear his voice, just the thumping of the mirror.
He saw her mouth his name as she ran towards the study.
Well, she was sure to have a surprise when she got there.
Jared turn on his heel and continued following the path, which lead him to a steep stairwell heading downwards.
He squinted as he went down, the lighting in the hall was way dimmer than it needed to be and-
Jared's foot caught ahold of something heavy and he fell down the rest of the stairs, which, luckily, there weren't too many left.
Cursing, he sat up, looking around for whatever had caused him to fall, when his eyes landed on a candlestick.
It had rolled away from him, leaving flakes of dried up blood in its path.
Oh shit, that was the murder weapon.
Jared stood up to continue down the path when he found he had reached a dead end.
Or so he thought.
As he leaned his head against the wall, sending it flying open, and sending him tumbling to the floor once again.
He cursed, looking up to find he was in the basement once more. The weapons still all sat on the table, and Mr. Boddy was still lying face down on the floor.
Oh good, at least he knew where he was.
"I found something!" He yelled, scrambling up from the floor and dashing up the stairs once more. "Guys! Guys! I found something-"
