Jessica was 27 and one of the most entitled people you would ever have the displeasure of meeting. She believed in her own mind that the world owed her everything and if you did not measure up to her perceived status, you were simply treated like gum beneath her shoes which should be scraped off and tossed away. She expected the world to bend to her will and if she was not happy she would find a way to make the lives of others simply miserable for her own pleasure. She had a big social media following and everything was about living her best life even if it meant walking over the hard work of others.
She had managed to get herself an invitation to a tour of an old historic plantation even though it had been fully booked because she had enough connections, plenty of money and would simply not take no for an answer. Besides it would make a great piece for her next social media post and she did not want to disappoint her many viewers. The tour she found to be quite boring and not up to her standards so while the tour guide was speaking to the crowd about the kitchen and those who used to work in it, she slipped away and wandered off on her own, peering into each room looking for the perfect place to explore. As she passed by the master bedroom ,she paused then stepped inside. The curtains were slightly drawn so it allowed for enough light for her to see inside but it was not the decor that caught her attention. It was the open jewelry box that sat open on top of the dresser that her crystal blue eyes were drawn to. As she moved closer trying not to attract any attention to herself, she saw a ring that caught her attention.
The ring was beautiful in its quiet simplicity. The soft gold band, the color of churned butter, tapered gracefully with intricate ivy leaves hand-carved along its length. Securely nestled at its center was an elegant seed pearl; it was a token that spoke of regal ownership, a well-valued treasure. She quickly looked over her shoulder and listened but the group was still in another part of the house so no one would notice if something that insignificant went missing since it was one of the rooms that had the velvet rope across the doorway meaning no one could step inside which she had obviously ignored. She carefully reached down and picked up the ring and for a brief moment the room felt like it held its breath. She slipped it into the pocket of her jacket, a grin of triumph on her lips as she quickly retreated from the room, replacing the velvet rope back in place before returning to the group and blending in, acting like she had been there the entire time.
After the tour had come to an end she retreated to her car, not noticing the temperature change in the air as she sat down in the driver's seat and shut the door. She muttered to herself “the stupid fools, no idea what happened in there. No one is the wiser, she giggled gleefully as she pulled the ring out of her pocket. She held it up to the light and admired it, wondering how much it was actually worth. Should she sell it or keep it? She didn't need the money and it did look like it was the perfect size for her finger. She was not aware that the house knew about the theft and it was not pleased. She thought because the tour guides did not notice anything that she had gotten away with it but the house itself was not pleased. It felt like a piece of its history had been torn away from it by the removal of one of its prized possession.
She held it up to the light and admired it wondering how much it was worth. Should she sell it or keep it? She was unaware that the house knew about the theft and she was not pleased. She lost track of time and by the time she glanced up, she realized that the parking lot was empty except for her car and the sun had already begun to set. She could see the house in the rear view mirror and it no longer seemed like a house simply made of brick and mortar and she did not get the feeling of it being inviting and friendly anymore. The structure now began to rattle on its hinges, a strange pulsating vibration that began to ripple through every doorway and hallway slowly spreading from the front porch and towards her car.
She slowly begins to panic, slipping the ring on her finger without giving it a second though then she fumbles for her car keys, thrusting them into the ignition trying to start the car so she can get out of this place. She turned the key more than once, growling in frustration and also fear as the ground beneath the car began to shake, the sound of the door locks engaging as the ring on her finger began to tighten. She is startled as the car begins to move without any power to the engine, slowly being pulled backwards towards the mansion, which it was slowly appearing closer and closer. Frantically she reaches for the door handle and tugs at it, even trying to pull up on the lock but it is securely engaged and the ring tightened even more. As the car neared the mansion it slowly spun around in a complete circle, till the front of it was facing the front of the building which now seemed to loom above her. The back end of the car began to sink into the ground as if some one had punctured the tired then suddenly the headlights came to life, and shone onto the front window where for a brief moment she thought she saw some one or something move in front of the curtains, from right to left before vanishing.
She stared in disbelief, her mouth opening and closing like a fish trying to breathe out of water but no sound escaped her throat. The heavy oak front doors slowly began to creak open and a hollowed disembodied voice drifted out on a waft of an ice cold breeze that could have frozen hell if given the opportunity. “We know what you tried to steal from us” Her eyes went wide as she struggled to pull the ring off of her finger and plead with what little voice she could find “Please take back the ring, i will give it back to you if you let me go” There was no vocal response to her begging simply the bump of the front wheels on the steps leading up to the porch..thump, thump, thump…each jolt of the car brought it that much closer to the opening that stretched between the open doors. Inch by inch the car shifted forward till the nose of it was now just inside then the headlights flicked off, leaving the house in complete darkness. Without warning the rest of the car was pulled completely inside and the doors slammed shut behind her.
The outside of the house showed no sign of any disturbance, the gravel was smooth and pristine, the stairs were free of any cracks or scuffs that would have been made by an entire car being pulled up on them, nothing was out of place. The next morning the staff who were the care takers of such a historic place returned at their usual time to make sure everything was in order for the next tour that was that afternoon. They even checked the rooms that were marked off from the public with the velvet ropes. When they reached the master bedroom, one of the workers stopped and noticed something slightly different about the room. They carefully let down the rope and stepped inside and each of them slowly crept around the room inspecting each corner without touching anything. It is when Lila, the oldest of the 3 workers got to the dresser, she called to the others and pointed to the top of it. Next to the open jewelry box there was a new figurine, one that had not been there before. The young woman it portrayed seemed like she had been frozen in time and something about the face looked familiar but they could not place it. Quickly she checked the jewelry and saw nothing out of place, the old Victorian ring still prominently displayed in the center right where it belonged. They found no sign of an intruder and treated the new addition as a mysterious donation that appeared while they were absent and went about their day. The house will not forgive nor forget, a reminder of what happens when you try to steal from it.
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