It was something I wanted to do for a very long time. I finally got the opportunity and I jumped at it. If I had only known…
The place I went to is open to the public and you can pay for a guided or self-guided tour of the entire grounds. And believe me, the place is huge.
I made my reservation, packed my supplies, and headed off. When I got there, I was greeted by a very nice tour guide. I told him I was a horror author and a former corrections officer, so my interest was in the old part of the prison but also the new.
He was very helpful in pointing out where I would want to go for each of my interests. I marked spots on my map for what kind of pictures I would be able to take, then planned out my route.
He made me sign in on a clipboard with an empty space for signing out.
“Do you ever lose anybody?” I said jokingly.
He laughed but it seemed more nervous than genuine.
“Oh, you might be surprised,” he said.
I thanked him and turned to leave but he gave me one more warning.
“The buildings marked in black,” he said looking somewhat ashen. “Don’t go in those. Don’t even go near them.”
“Why?”
He hesitated.
“You don’t want to know,” he said with a hitch. “Let’s just say it’s dangerous.”
I walked away from that rather cryptic answer and started my tour.
The first building was amazing. It looked more like a French chalet than a prison building. It was made of stone and looked like it was nearly new. I could easily picture this building standing for another hundred years or more.
I pulled out my camera and cell phone and started taking pictures. I used the phone for basic pictures, but the camera was set up for making pictures look creepy. The bright cloudless sky made it look brilliant and welcoming. I had to change settings to make it look like some haunted castle. As I stepped in out of the blazing sun, the interior reminded me of a dance hall. Past the foyer was a large open room with a floor made of bricks and stone archways against one wall that curiously didn’t seem to lead anywhere. Either someone built them as an ostentatious decoration or whatever they used to lead to was now blocked off. I turned and looked down the first of many creepy hallways. This was the route I wanted to take.
I turned away from the large room and started down the hallway, taking pictures as I went. The bright sun shone in through the windows making the interior bright and the years of neglect easy to see. The hallway was lined with newer metal doors that had glass windows in them. It seemed like the glass on every single door I passed was smashed. Either vandals had been inside at some point or there was some other reason.
I reached a room that was solid metal with bars on the door. This was my first indication that this building had been a prison. I looked inside but all I found was peeling paint. There was no bunk or anything else to suggest that this would be long-term housing.
At the end of the hall, I was presented with a choice. There was a stairwell with stairs going up and also going down. I decided to go up and try for more of a bird’s eye view. I gently grasped the railing, unsure if it would rip out of the wall at the slightest touch.
To my surprise it held, but I did receive a handful of dirt. I stared at my hand for a moment wondering how long the dirt had been laying there waiting for me to come along.
The next level held what I hoped it would. Higher views of the rest of the grounds, along with much more decay than the previous floor. One room held a ceiling fan with its blades drooping down as if they had melted.
I chuckled and for the first time realized just how empty this building was and how alone I was. The echo came back to me in a voice I didn’t recognize. I shrugged it off as acoustics and continued my exploration.
At the end of the hallway was a down staircase, this one had a metal grate door on it. One of the rules my hosts emphasized was don’t open any doors that are closed, and more importantly, don’t close any doors that are open. When I asked why, he hesitated before flashing a nervous smile and saying, “Because we might not have the key to that door and it may take a while to get it open again.”
With that in mind, I descended the staircase passing the floor I had already seen, and headed for the basement. I was assaulted by the musty smell of decay. Even though the air was cool, which felt good on a day where temperatures were rapidly heading into the nineties, it still held a sense of foreboding.
It didn’t help that the rooms in the basement were suffering a much greater degree of decay. There were no ceilings that hadn’t already fallen. The few patches of paint that desperately clung to the walls were losing the battle with gravity. The light was in short supply due to there being fewer windows and as I turned a corner I was plunged into total darkness.
My breath caught in my throat for a moment as I fumbled for my flashlight. The light should’ve been a comfort, but the circle of light seemed as though it was surrounded by darkness that was closing in threatening to smother it.
I took my first few hesitant steps into this darkness infested hallway when my light flashed upon a disturbing sight. Red letters painted on the wall showed a one-word message that was chilling. It said, ‘Help’. Whether this was here from the original days or the left behind of a vandal was unclear. It was also unclear if the person was asking for or offering help.
In either case, I left the cryptic message behind and continued my exploration. As I walked down the hallway a gust of cool air caught my attention. I turned and saw a long hallway with no light and no doors. Attached to the wall was a series of pipes. Checking my map I saw that there was a tunnel in this building, however, the map didn’t show where it led to.
Having decided that I had seen all of this building I wanted to, I started down the dark tunnel. It had a damp smell and the ceiling was peeling. Unfortunately, the ceiling was also lower than the rest of the building. As I went it seemed like it was getting smaller. I had to walk slightly hunched over to avoid rubbing my head against the nasty ceiling. I hoped that it wouldn’t shrink into nothingness.
During my entire trip to this point, I had only seen three other people. Two were on a different trail as I came to this building and one was leaving as I was going in. The silence in the tunnel was oppressive. Every move I made echoed back to me. Add to that the shrinking ceiling and my mind was starting to play tricks on me. The echoes made it sound like footfalls behind me. Several times I would stop and whip around shining my flashlight where I had come from. But there was never anything there.
Despite my hesitation, my curiosity spurred me onward. I’m sure if I had timed how long I was in the tunnel it would’ve been only fifteen minutes of walking. But alone, in the dark, with only a small beam of light to guide me, it seemed much longer.
I came across side rooms and alternate tunnels but decided to keep going in the direction I was headed.
Eventually I was rewarded with a thin sliver of light ahead of me. My mind sighed heavily at the thought of literally the light at the end of the tunnel.
Just then I heard a sound behind me. This time it was unmistakable. I knew it wasn’t the echo of my footsteps because I was standing still. It sounded like someone had dropped a rock. I shone my light back into the tunnel and couldn’t see anything, including the rock.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I turned and started toward the light with a little more zip in my step. It didn’t take long for the end of the tunnel to appear. I ended up in a laundry room of all places. The industrial washers and dryers all had the glass broken out of them.
The room was brightly lit and on the far side was an awesome sight… outside.
I stepped into the hot bright air and breathed a sigh of relief. It was short-lived as I began to sweat and stopped to take a long drink from one of my water bottles.
As I drank I surveyed the area and nothing about it seemed familiar. I put my water bottle away and took out the map. I studied the shapes of the buildings around me and found I had walked nearly the entire length of the property. I had started out at the southernmost border and was now almost to the northernmost.
I shook my head in astonishment and then decided which of the buildings to enter next.
The mess hall was to my left and I wanted pictures for my current ghostwriting assignment, so left I went. Expectations clashed with reality when I entered the building and instead of seeing rows of tables, there was only empty space.
I made my way to the kitchen and was astounded that the smell of grease still hung in the air like the ghost of myriad meals past.
I traveled down a hallway, hearing voices but feeling confident they were from other explorers. Finally, I wound up in the RHU section. I was most excited to get some pictures of the cells and especially the recreation area for the book I was writing.
The RHU rec was like nothing I’d dealt with before. It was a chain link fence on the bottom, and plexiglass on the top so they couldn’t climb up to the ceiling. Not that it would’ve done any good anyway. The top was covered with razor wire. The entire enclosure only measured 5 feet by 15 feet at most.
I tried to imagine having this as my only outside time, when suddenly I heard a door slam shut inside.
I paused and waited for the other explorers to appear, but no one did. I tentatively left the RHU rec and went into RHU itself. All the doors to the cells were open except for one. I wracked my brain to remember if that door had been closed when I walked through but I couldn’t remember.
I began to recall the stories I had read on the prison’s website about how they had housed two famous serial killers each of whom had died in the prison. I tried to remember if either had passed away in RHU, but decided I didn’t really want to know. I took a few pictures of the RHU cells and moved on, perhaps a bit more quickly than I intended.
The next building I entered looked like it was just hallways full of rooms for lower security inmates. There were no bars on the doors or windows. As I walked down the hallway I noticed a grey box with a red light on it sitting in the middle of the floor. I stepped toward it, but as I got close I saw there was a man and woman in a room with a lot of equipment. Video monitors, cameras, microphones, you name it. Thinking I had just interrupted a TV show in progress I apologized and departed that building quickly.
Across from that building was the chapel. I went in and took some pictures then headed to the basement only to find yet another tunnel. Having no desire to get lost again, I came back out and returned to the main building to chat with the guides.
They laughed with me about getting lost but were curious about the man and woman with the equipment. They told me there were no camera crews scheduled for that day. In fact, they told me they didn’t remember a man and woman carrying in a bunch of equipment.
I eyed them dubiously, wondering if this was a joke, a misunderstanding, or something else.
They did tell me that the building I had seen them in was the one that most paranormal researchers gravitated towards.
Not wanting to delve any further down that particular rabbit hole, I asked about the remaining buildings I hadn’t been in yet. They pointed out where I would want to go for modern pictures and for the building that had medical equipment in it. They also pointed out the morgue. All of these buildings were on the same path, so I thanked them and started out fresh.
The first building I went to was one of the newer cell blocks. Cellblock D. It had been built around thirty years ago and was the prototype for the new prisons being built in the state at the time.
When I walked in I immediately felt more at ease with the newer design. It reminded me of the prison I used to work in only on a larger scale.
The block itself was shaped like a giant triangle with the day room being in the middle of all the rows of cells. I took lots of pictures of the general area and even the cells themselves. The tables had been removed from the day areas and strangely enough, the toilets and sinks were gone from each cell. I found that odd because who takes all the toilets out of an abandoned prison?
As I was taking pictures two other explorers came into the block. I greeted them and we talked for a while comparing notes. One of them was still working in state prison. It was nice to talk shop with someone who knew their stuff.
After they left, I went over to the other side of the block. It was a mirror image of the side I had just been in. Walking into this block felt eerily like traveling to an opposite dimension. Even the air felt different. It was heavier like there was something weighing it down. I approached this side with much less excitement. There were twin skylights built into the ceiling of each side, yet this one seemed somehow darker. It was dark enough that I pulled out my flashlight to see into the corners and spaces where the skylight couldn’t reach.
I pushed the creepy feeling that had been growing to the back of my mind and kept on with my mission. I was here to take pictures, dammit. I found a cell that was a little less dirty than the others and took some pictures. I wanted to get some from a different perspective so I went inside a cell and took pictures facing out into the block.
I turned and looked out the window noticing how much darker the sky looked since I had entered the building. As I did I heard the slightest of creaks. I turned to find something impossible. The door of the cell I was standing in was slowly going shut.
My mind was in shock. I must’ve been dreaming. I knew there was no one else there. As I rolled through the impossibility of the situation, the door continued to shut.
My mind sent out an urgent reminder. When I first came to the prison the guides told me they don’t have keys to every door. That’s why they made the rule of not shutting doors.
I lunged for the entrance and shoved my foot in the doorframe. It hit my foot hard. Hard enough that I almost lost my senses and pulled my foot back into the cell. I shudder to think what might’ve happened.
I shoved back against the cell door and it flew open slamming back against the wall. I flung myself out of the cell and into the dayroom. I spun around looking for the joker who had pranked me.
The dayroom was empty.
I ran to the first three cells to the right and the three to the left, looking for someone hiding nearby who had played this trick on me.
No one was there.
My spine turned to ice.
I had a sudden use for the missing toilets. But more than that, I had a sudden need to get the hell out of that building. I ran to the main entrance but found the door was shut. I pulled and pulled but it refused to give. I looked around for anything to pry it open with but found nothing of use.
I tried looking over to the other side of the block, but that door was also now shut. Helplessness blanketed me, threatening to suffocate me. The only thought I had left was a memory from earlier in the day. I had seen this building when I came out of the tunnel. Aside from the main door, there was a side door that was open.
I ran back into the block feeling like someone was chasing me. I didn’t stop when I came to the door even though it was closed. I hit it solid with my shoulder and nearly sang with jubilation as the door gave way and opened.
The thing I didn’t count on was the steps.
There were five concrete steps leading from the block down to the path below. I cleared them all and landed headfirst in knee-deep grass next to a tree.
I didn’t care though because I was free of the building that seemed determined to trap me.
As I lay there rejoicing in my newfound freedom, I looked up at the sky. When I entered the building it was sunny and near ninety degrees. Now clouds ruled the sky with no sun to be found. The world seemed to be in a premature twilight.
I knew I couldn’t have been inside for more than twenty or thirty minutes. I scrolled back through the pictures on my phone and looked at the time stamp from when I took the first picture until now. Sure enough, it was twenty-eight minutes. How could the sky have gone so dark so quickly?
I shoved the thought to the back of my mind and focused on getting as far away from this building as possible. I started running through the tall grass heading for the asphalt road that ran through the middle of the compound, straight back to the main building.
After getting turned around, I finally made it back to the road. I turned back toward the building that looked almost as innocent as when I first stepped inside it. The difference was the lighting. This darker sky made everything seem somehow more sinister.
Of course, that may have just been the fact that I was nearly trapped in the building that made it seem that way.
Being safely outside made my mood immensely better. I wrestled with myself whether to go to the next building or just call it a day. I had plenty of the pictures I had come for. Giving up wouldn’t have meant failure.
As I held my mental tug of war I noticed a man looking out of a window in one of the nearby buildings. I hadn’t seen him before, but as big as the place was that didn’t surprise me. I smiled and waved at him.
He didn’t smile back. He didn’t wave back. He just kept staring.
That made my mind up for me. I headed for the last building on my list just to walk in the opposite direction of my new friend.
This last building was the one I was most anticipating. It was the building that held the old morgue. The creepy factor was dialed up to eleven for this building. I went in and looked around on the first floor. There were several examining room tables and some patient chairs that looked awesome. Getting pictures of them made my trip complete. The bonus was going to be getting shots of the morgue.
I went downstairs and followed the hallway to the end where the morgue was supposed to be. But instead of an empty room, there were lots of people. Probably over a dozen standing around trying to see what was happening. I craned my neck as well. Someone up front was talking. I could hear them but they were muffled and I couldn’t really make out what they were saying.
The curious crowd formed a solid barrier that prevented me from seeing what was happening at the front. I found an old chair in one of the other rooms and pulled it in then climbed up on it to see what was going on.
When I saw it, I nearly vomited.
“Oh my God,” I said seeing the person in the front was dressed entirely in a white gown that had been soiled with red. He was doing an actual autopsy. The person laying on the table was wearing a green top and white shorts. It was obviously a woman from the exposed breasts. Her ribcage was open and the man in the white gown had a heart in his hand.
When I spoke, everyone including the man in the gown, stopped and turned to stare at me.
It wasn’t the stare you get when you talk too loud in church or a library, this was something much deeper, more malevolent.
I tried to jump down off the chair but my mind and my body didn’t seem to be on speaking terms. My mind was still trying to comprehend what was happening while my body was screaming for control to get us the hell out of there.
When the group collectively turned and reached for me, my mind regained itself and I took off in a flash. I ran down the hall, not even looking back to see if anyone was in pursuit. I took the stairs two at a time, nearly tripping as I bolted out the door.
Once out in the open air, I felt some of the panic bleed away, but I didn’t stop. I wanted out. I had enough pictures. And even if I didn’t, I knew it was time to go.
I ran down the trail only to skid to a stop. The man who had stared at me through the window was now blocking my path. He wasn’t doing anything more than standing there staring at me, but I didn’t want anything to do with him.
I shot over to another path, running full speed, trying desperately to keep my backpack from falling off.
I made the turn to cut between two buildings when I saw the man standing there again blocking my path. It wasn’t possible for him to get here before me, let alone just standing there as if he was waiting for me, not even breathing hard.
Panic fueled my steps as I raced toward another path. This was the only other way to reach the main building and escape.
Once again, the man stood in the middle of the path, blocking it. I paused for a moment to catch my breath. The man made no move toward me, he merely stood there. I turned and saw the people from the morgue pursuing me.
This was it. I had no choice. I ran straight at the man. He didn’t move. I lowered my shoulder to ram into him but when I reached the point of contact, there was nothing there. I felt cold for an instant and then I was on the other side of him. I nearly stumbled but regained myself and kept running. I could see the main building and nothing else mattered.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw some of the morgue people running down other paths trying to get ahead of me. I kept running as fast as self-preservation would carry me.
At the end of my life and death race, I burst through the door and ran into the building. I didn’t know what I was going to say to the guides. If I would chew them out for their deadly game or if I would tell them to run.
In the end, the choice was made for me. The reception room was empty. Not only was it empty, but it was also deserted. Just like the rest of the prison. I picked up one of the maps they had given me just this morning and it crumbled in my hand as though it was ancient.
I didn’t take more than a fleeting moment to ponder this before I heard the back door.
I ran out the front toward the parking lot. It was empty. Only my car remained. This morning, not five hours ago, the lot had been full with over a dozen cars. Now not a single one remained.
This was yet another question that would wait until later. I jumped in my car and drove out of there at breakneck speed.
It wasn’t until miles down the road that I slowed to the speed limit on my way home.
***
Things haven’t been the same ever since I visited the prison. Everything’s different. My house looks like my house, but it doesn’t feel the same. It’s like that feeling of being watched, that constant being on edge that I just can’t shake.
Days later I’m still trying to figure out what happened. I looked up the website for the prison but it was gone as if it never existed.
I tried, many times to build up the courage to drive past the prison and see if it was still there.
I know it wasn’t a dream. I still have the pictures on my phone.
I tried asking people online if they knew anything about this old prison or the phenomenon. No one answered. I posted some of my pictures on a social media site asking if anyone has ever been to this place. But they never get a single view. I don’t know if anyone will even read this, but I must post it to warn others away. Or at least tell them to be very careful where they go if they visit that prison if it still exists.
Only this morning did I finally get a response from someone. They refused to identify themselves but left me a message.
It read, “Go back the way you came.”
It took me a while to comprehend what my mysterious helper was saying. It took me even longer to face my fear and realize the truth. I had no desire to return to the prison, but I knew I didn’t belong here. I gathered my supplies and my courage and then headed back to the prison.
When I arrived it was just as empty as when I left. I pulled out my map and mentally marked the best and quickest route to get back to cell block D. I slipped inside the main building as quietly as possible, before sneaking out the back door and into the prison compound.
I looked for anyone creeping around before starting on my direct route back to D block.
I stuck to the shadows as much as possible. The diminished daylight helped me this time around. I was nearly halfway there before the man appeared in front of me. I tried the same bum’s rush that had worked the last time, but he was ready for it. As I passed through him, he grabbed my backpack and stopped me in my tracks.
Before I knew it I was being dragged backward away from D block. He dragged me into RHU and threw me in a cell. For a long time, he sat and watched me. I sat on the bunk curled up in the corner trying not to go to sleep when I heard something. It was the banging in another cell.
I jumped up and ran to my cell door.
“Hello?” I yelled.
“Hello?” they answered.
“Are you stuck here too?” I said.
“That depends,” they said.
“On what?”
“Are you human or one of those things?”
I chuckled. “I’m human. I guess I got pulled over to the other side when I was in D block.”
“Wait a minute, were you the guy I was talking to, the prison guard?”
“Yeah. Did you get pulled through right before me?”
“Seems like.”
“What about your friend?”
“We got separated. I haven’t seen her.”
“Remind me of what she was wearing,” I said having a terrible thought.
“She had on a pastel green top and white shorts, why?”
I hung my head. “I’m sorry, but I know exactly where she is.”
“Where?” she said slowly.
“In the morgue. They were performing an autopsy on her.”
Silence hung heavy in the air punctuated by an occasional sniffle.
“Are you sure?”
“That’s what the woman was wearing when the man… “
“Ok,” she said. “I don’t want to hear any more.”
For a long time, I didn’t say anything.
“I didn’t get your name before,” she said eventually.
“It’s Mike, what’s yours?”
“Celia,” she said. “Nice to meet you, Mike.”
“Same, I just wish it wasn’t here.”
“At least it took them a while to find you,” she said.
“I left. I was gone, off the property.”
“Then why in hell would you come back?”
I explained about the site being gone and the cryptic response I got.
“I think we’re not in our own world. And I think the only way back is through D block.”
“Wow,” she said after a few moments. “That’s a lot to think about.”
“I have a plan,” I said. “Have they been feeding you?”
“Yes, they come around three times a day, just like in a prison.”
“I wonder if that’s what they are, guards that have somehow become attached to this place.”
“Like us.”
“Yeah, but not for long.”
“They should be around soon,” she said. “Let’s hope your plan works.”
“Just be ready to go at a moment’s notice.”
A little over an hour later my pie hatch opened and a sandwich was shoved through. The man looked at me and then went on his way. Five minutes later I dug into my bag and pulled out a thin metal wedge with one end covered in duct tape. I pressed it against the cell door lock, pulled out a hammer, and hit the wedge into the lock. It popped open.
I went to Celia’s cell as quietly as possible and handed her the wedge and hammer. Soon she was free as well. She handed me back my tools as we made our way out of RHU and started towards D block, blending into the shadows as we went.
As we approached the front door, something didn’t feel right. I opened the door with no problem.
“I don’t think this is the right way,” I said holding the door.
“What other way is there?”
“Go back the way you came,” I said. “That’s what the message said.”
“So, this is the way we came.”
“But it’s not,” I said. “I came out through the side door. I think we have to go that way.”
I started toward the side door but she blocked my path.
“That’s not the right way,” she said.
“Ok,” I said slowly. “We’ll try it your way.”
I followed her in through the front door.
“So how did it happen for you?” she said.
“I was on the left side of the block when I met you and your friend, then went over to the right side. As soon as I did I could feel a difference.”
“Then the portal should be right here in the main reception area,” she said looking around.
I watched as she held her arms out in front of her, waving them around like she was hoping to catch them on some invisible string that would magically open a portal.
“It doesn’t seem to be working,” she said.
“I have one more theory to test,” I said. “Come with me.”
We went back to the left side of the block.
“I was in this cell when something strange happened,” I said stepping in the cell.
She followed me in as I felt along the walls toward the door.
I jumped back out of the cell and slammed the door leaving her inside.
“What are you doing?” she said
“It’s a surprise,” I said. “Just hold on here, I’ll be right back.”
I went back through the front door and around to the side door I had escaped from. One tug on the door and it opened easily. I stepped inside and was greeted by the same oppressive feeling as before. The air seemed heavy with anticipation.
I wasted no time running across the block, heading for the door. Just before I got there, Celia stepped in front of it. I slid to a stop on the dirty concrete.
“How did you get here?” I said.
Her eyes flashed betrayal.
“No thanks to you, that’s for sure.”
I stepped past her and pulled on the door. It was locked.
“How did you get here?” I said.
“It must’ve locked after I came through,” she said.
“Help me open it,” I said pulling on the door.
She came to my side and pulled as well. After a minute we both stopped, breathing hard.
“Is there another way out?” I said.
“I don’t know.”
“What about the side door?”
“What about it?”
“It was open. Go check to see if it locked after I came through.”
She ran to the other end of the cell block while I reached into my backpack and pulled out a hammer and metal wedge. I stuck the wedge against the door bolt and hit it with the hammer. The first try didn’t work so I tried it again and again, desperation growing with each try. I knew I needed to get through before…
“What are you doing?” Celia said in my ear.
I turned slowly to find her right beside me.
“I was trying the same trick that got us out of RHU.”
“I don’t think that’ll work this time,” she said.
“Why not?”
“This door is different,” she said with the slightest of grins.
“I know it is,” I said. “Just like I know you’re not who you pretend to be.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean it was you all along,” I said. “You closed the door after I stepped into the other side of the block. You tried to trap me in the cell. You already had a victim lined up in that poor woman you dragged to the morgue. I was a bonus who stumbled into your web. I was supposed to panic and waste time trying to open the door until you could come back and get me. But you didn’t count on me escaping.”
The grin on her face stretched impossibly wide. It went literally from ear to ear. Her eyes disappeared leaving only empty holes black as the abyss.
“You’re right,” she said, her voice suddenly sounding like a dozen voices together in some unholy chorus. “I didn’t expect you to escape. But instead of fleeing the trap, you went deeper in.”
“But now I’m back. And you still need me here.”
She laughed. The cacophony of voices sounded harsh and menacing.
“You’re not going anywhere, except the morgue,” she said taking the hammer from my hand.
“But there’s one thing you didn’t count on.”
“What’s that?”
“I already have the door open.”
I pulled and the door came open with a rush of wind.
She swung the hammer at my head and I ducked it as I dove through the door and pulled it closed.
She slammed against the door, screaming so loud I had to hold my ears. Even so, the screams sounded muffled as if they were far away.
I stood on the other side watching the impotent rage flood her eyes. She reached through the door and grabbed my wrist, trying to pull me back through. I panicked and resisted against her steel grip. My hand drifted closer to the door as I was unable to fight against her supernatural strength.
When my hand touched the door, it stopped. She tried over and over, but it wouldn’t go through.
I looked at her and smiled.
“It only works if I go through willingly, doesn’t it?” I said. “You can’t take me back against my will.”
She looked at my hand and snarled. Her teeth grew massive and her face contorted to an inhuman monstrosity.
“Well, I’ll be going now,” I said looking at my wrist that was still held in her grip.
She straightened. Her face went impassive. The rage seemed to bleed away.
“I can’t force you back,” she said calmly. “So instead I’ll give you a little parting gift.”
She squeezed my wrist impossibly hard. I felt bones give at the same time I heard them crack. I screamed in agony, then suddenly I was free.
I looked down at my limp hand with finger marks around my crushed wrist. I looked back up at the door and she was glaring at me with a triumphant smile.
I backed up out of reach then took my good hand and raised my middle finger on the useless one.
She chuckled and backed away from the door.
I stepped out into the bright sunshine and walked as far away from the building as I could before collapsing in pain. I pulled the first-aid kit out of my backpack and wrapped my wrist in a makeshift splint.
I walked to the main building, jumping at every shadow, my head darting around like it was on a swivel.
When I stepped inside and met the guide from the previous week, his eyes grew wide.
I collapsed on the bench, trying to favor my injured wrist.
“You… you’re back,” the guide said.
“I took a little detour.”
Unlike the day I first started exploring, there were no other people around.
“What happened to all your customers?” I said taking a long drink from my water bottle.
“We only do the tours on the weekend.”
“What day is it?”
“Wednesday.”
“Wednesday,” I repeated back trying to grasp the reality of being… somewhere else for five days.
“What happened?” the guide said.
I chuckled. “That’s a very long conversation.”
“No, I meant what happened,” he said pointing to my wrist.
I raised it gently, looked at it, and said, “A souvenir.”
I finished my water and gathered the strength to stand.
“I’d like to go home now.”
“Of course,” he said. “Just sign out please.”
He pulled out a clipboard full of papers with names and signatures. As he went back through the pages I noticed there were other blank spots on the other side of the sheets.
“How many have you lost?” I said causing him to pause.
“I… I’m not at liberty to say.”
He found my sheet and I signed out in the space provided. On the page, several names above mine was a woman’s name with a blank space beside her signature. I could only assume it was the woman Celia had taken.
I turned and started for the door.
“You’re the only one to make it back,” I heard.
I turned and looked at him, but he acted like he hadn’t said anything.
I stepped out into the bright sunshine and shielded my eyes as I looked for my car. It was right where I had left it. Five other cars sat in the parking lot. I wondered which one belonged to the woman who wouldn’t be coming back.
I’m posting this story here as a warning.
Sometimes places are abandoned for a good reason.