The Shadow Sisters

[E1] Chapter 3 - Marie Shadow

Entering Meadow View was like passing through a time portal into the Victorian Era. The road they travelled along was cobbled, causing the Nissan to rattle like an old space shuttle. The houses to either side were Gothic. They had flying buttresses, wooden verandas, and arched stained glass windows.

They soon arrived outside a set of large wrought iron gates.

A placard to the right with golden lettering told them that this was number 184. Seeing this, Mum exited the car and opened the gates manually, with some effort, pushing out the heavy bolts and heaving the metal open, then she hopped back into the car.

Marie's eyes were as wide as two satellites as they travelled up the drive, ending at the house. The property was ancient, all rickety and slanted to the side. It had different levels to it, like separate structures stuck together, like a patchwork house.

"This is it?" she asked.

Mum doubled checked the address on her phone. "Yup, this is us. We're 184 Meadow View."

"God help us." If he could still hear them here.

Mum ignored this comment and drove up the driveway.

The grounds were long on the front and back, but narrow, adding to the wacky sense of disproportion that radiated from the building like a bad smell. Thus, the neighbours were very close to them on either side, which might have added some level of comfort, were the houses not every bit as ugly and crooked.

Hannah gazed at the amalgamation of bricks, slats, and spires with starry eyes, as if it were the eighth wonder of the world. "Oh, this is definitely a haunted house."

For once, Marie agreed with her sister's words but did not much appreciate the note of relish that accompanied them.

"Well," Mum said, "Since it's the same as every other house in the neighbourhood, our ghosts will be in good company, won't they?"

"Are you sure we can even afford this place?" Marie asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that it's an actual house." As ugly as it was, that had to mean it was worth something. She watched some antique shows on television and knew ugly old things were worth a lot of money for some reason. Growing up, their family had only ever lived in flats, so she was scarcely able to fathom the idea of having her own bedroom, stairs that weren't part of a communal area, and more than one level.

"It belongs to the University. They own every property in Meadow View. As part of an education scheme in the city, rent is covered in our pay package. Like an extra benefit. I would imagine that majority of our neighbours are fellow staff members or connected with the university in some way."

"Are we allowed to look elsewhere if we don't like it?" Marie asked.

Hannah appeared positively aghast at the notion.

"We have that option, sure," Mum said.

"But let's give it a fair shot first," Hannah interjected.

They pulled up outside the house and before retrieving any of their bags, suitcases, or belongings, they exited the car and ran up the porch steps, emerging onto the veranda. Facing them was a large red oak door with an ornate bronze knocker shaped like a snarling wolf, ready to snap at any moment.

Mum gave it a wary once over before revealing a brass key, longer than her palm, and inserting it into the lock.

Once the heavy door creaked open, they crept inside.

First, they entered an anteroom meant for hanging their coats and placing their shoes. Beyond that, they were met by a spacious foyer with a high vaulted ceiling. Hanging from that was a huge chandelier. Against the western wall was a large map of Willow Town and covering the eastern wall was a collection of paintings and mosaics. Sconces and candelabra littered the room to the point that they had to be careful with their steps.

Besides that, it was all rather drab. The floor was dusty and the wood and walls were bare. The only carpet was the regal one covering the big winding staircase.

"Creepy," Hannah said, spotting a family of gnomes crammed into an alcove.

"Gross," Marie said, kicking away a dust ball.

"Let's do some exploring," Mum said. Her tone was much more hesitant since glimpsing the interior.

They checked the downstairs first, which consisted of a parlour, kitchen, pantry, dining room, miniature bathroom, art studio, scullery, and utility room. There were also six storage rooms that they'd found so far.

Under the staircase was a door presumably to a cellar. Or maybe a dungeon, Marie thought ominously. As the three of them gazed down into the dark space, none of them were quite brave enough to descend into it now.

"Uh, let's leave that for another time," Mum suggested.

"Agreed," Hannah said.

"Or maybe never," Marie added.

Upstairs, there were more pointless storage rooms and nooks. They were absolutely everywhere. In addition to those were three wide bare bedrooms, a large bathroom, a hot press, a study, a library, and an attic.

"Is this really where we're supposed to live?" Marie asked when they reconvened on the landing.

Mum carefully inspected a portrait of a staggeringly old man with a drooping face like a melted candle. His wife and dog lurked off in the background. "It needs work to make it feel like a home."

"It needs a wrecking ball," Marie said.

"We can make a project of it," Hannah suggested.

"One that we'll all contribute to," Mum agreed. "Er, once I check with the university on what adjustments we're allowed to make. I have a feeling buildings like these might be protected relics."

"Well they can't have issues with us laying down a carpet," Hannah said.

"Or a few hundred coats of paint," Marie muttered.

Mum looked to Hannah, who was leaning against the bannister and staring up at the chandelier, wondering if she could reach out to touch it. "What are your overall impressions, Dear?" she asked.

Marie noted Mum didn't ask her, because she knew damn well how her elder daughter felt.

"You're sure all this is ours to keep?" Hannah asked.

"Until told otherwise."

"I love it," she whispered.

The house was grandiose. Everything was tall and high and wide. It was by no means a mansion, but to them, it felt like a palace compared to dwellings they'd resided in before.

A palace by size, not aesthetic, Marie thought.

"Do I still get the first choice of room?" Marie enquired.

"Of course," Mum said. "That was our deal."

Hannah, true to her word, raised no objections.

Marie strayed off and chose the least creepy of the bedrooms, not that that was saying much. It was barer than the other two but had no weird furniture or random storage spaces. At least none that she had found yet. Heck, the roof and the floor seemed relatively level from here and the lilac double bed was very clean.

She wandered over to it and sank into it, surprised to find just how comfortable it was as it enveloped her. She almost felt at peace until she saw above, woven between the ceiling beams, were tangles of cobwebs thick as ropes. To add to her unease, she also found, under her bed, a small brown bead that might have been an animal dropping. That had her scanning the walls for holes.

She sighed.

This was her life now.