⚠️TW⚠️Animal “Abuse”
As somebody who always procrastinates with trying new things, pushing myself to acquire my first job was definitely not easy for me, I was pretty nervous. I was 16 at the time, and I felt strongly that I needed to get a job, and experience that sensation of receiving my own money. I also wanted to feel responsible, like I’m actually doing something in my life.
So I whipped out my trusty ole’ laptop and started searching for jobs online. I was young, obviously, so I didn’t really background check for safety measures. I stumbled upon 3 jobs I felt that I qualified for, and ended up with the one job that interested me the most; Cleaning an Abandoned House.
This was great for me, because I was young and naive, looking for a “fun” job. I was already digging up my own grave. So I signed up for the job, told them my address (which was pretty damn stupid), and went on with my day. Now, here’s the thing; There were already 3 red flags for this job, so visible you would think I was completely blind the way I didn’t see them.
For one, there was nobody to work with, or speak to, in order to start the job. All I had to do was drive to the place, do the tasks they sent me via email, and then leave. Secondally, like I said, there was nobody to cooperate with, so I was being paid through PAYPAL. And finally, the description of the job stated that the house was “abandoned” and that the new owner who recently bought the land wants it freshened up. But there was no proof of ownership or information about the owner.
But me being the dumbass I was, I STILL accepted the job.
After nothing else to do but wait for them to reply, I go downstairs, sit on the couch, and watch T.V. This was a pretty boring day, and this probably pushed me to finally look for jobs in the first place. As I was surfing through channels, something caught my eye.
It was my local news channel talking about the missing people who were all pronounced missing this month. There were even animals and pets going missing, all at the same time. This was pretty weird, but I think little of it and switch the channel.
After 2 days, they sent me the address. I packed my bag with stuff I felt like I needed, and rode my bike the entire way. When I finally got there, I realized that the street was very ominous and creepy. Definitely not the type of place you would take a stroll in. But I sucked my gut in and proceeded through the weird place.
The street was weirdly built. If you walk all the way down, there’s a dead end, with a curved sidewalk, kind of similar to Grove Street in the GTA games. The house was all the way at the end, and there it was. I have this weird feeling….as if it was….waiting for me or something. I look at the weirdly placed sign and there it says, “Elephant Row.”
I checked the email the website sent me, with all the tasks on it, looking to see if there was any direction to get inside. It told me that the key was in the mailbox. So with no time wasted, I take the keys out of the mailbox, and head inside.
This place was huge. Creepy, but huge. As if the atmosphere couldn’t get any worse, the lights barely even worked in this place. I tried turning one on and all it did was flicker on and off. Luckily, I packed a flashlight in my bag. I turn it on, and check my email for the first task. “Enter room A.”
“What the hell?” I say outloud to myself
If this wasn’t a sign to get my behind out of this place, I don’t know what is.
Luckily, the email had a map of the house connected to it, so I knew where the hell I was going in this place. I proceeded to go upstairs, and enter the room. It was completely empty. Confused, I figured they expected me to clean it, so that’s what I did.
In almost complete darkness, I swept some of the room with a small dustpan I brought in my bag. And let me tell you, I was scared shitless. I wanted to convince myself that I was fine, but really, I wanted to leave. 5 minutes into cleaning, I hear the door creak. Absolutely scared out of my mind, I froze. My body entered an intense fight or flight mode. Hoping I was just overreacting, I turned around slowly to look behind me.
A shadowy figure stood at the door frame. Never in my life have I ever panicked so badly. I guess my body was done with flight mode, so I quickly ran to the door and slammed it shut.
“Stupid, Stupid, Stupid!” I aggressively whisper to myself. My breathing was getting heavier and heavier by the second.
“I knew I shouldn’t have taken this job!” I continue to panic, sitting on the ground, with my back pushing towards the door. The floor I was on wasn’t too far from the ground. I was getting ready to make a run for it to the window; But then, I got a text message.
“Do you want the money?”
I stare at the phone. Was there somebody watching me?
It continues to type.
“We know where you live.”
My eyes widened. Of course they know where I live. I gave them the address myself. How could I be so stupid? A tear fell from my eye, as I thought my life was over. I couldn’t leave, I was clearly being watched. Plus, they know my address. What did they want from me? I received another text message.
“Finish the job, and you may leave.”
That was the last text I would get in a while.
It took me a while to gather myself, but at this point, I have nothing else to do, I need to leave this place. So I stand up, and plan my escape. I can hear scratching from the other side of the door. That thing was still there. I open the door, and hide behind it. My plan was for the thing to come inside, and hopefully it’s back would face me so that I can leave the room.
It comes through the door, and I get a better glimpse of it.
It had very bad posture, and kind of flinched and quivered with every movement. It didn’t even appear to be human. I was in shock. But I knew I didn’t have the time to freeze again, so I had to leave.
I carefully leave the room, trying to make as little noise as possible. Thankfully, due to the darkness of the room, that thing couldn’t see me make my escape. I quietly walk downstairs, and back myself in a corner, squatting down for less visibility. I checked the email for my next task, I had 4 tasks in total to finish. I’m now on number 2.
“Feed the dog.”
I sit in confusion. I thought this was a cleaning gig? Why am I feeding dogs? But at this point, after what I witnessed, that was the least of my concerns. It doesn’t matter what I do at this point, this is now life or death.
I looked at the map to find that this house had a backyard, and just like the house, it was pretty big. With caution, I navigate through the house, to then make it to the double sliding glass doors. I open it, to come to the sight of an empty backyard. You can obviously tell there’s a pattern of empty spaces in this house. I look around, to find a medium sized cage. I figured the dog would most likely be in there, so I walked over to it.
A bag of dog food right next to it, I gently pick it up and prepare to feed the dog. I look into the cage, about to pour the food into it, when I see a rather disturbing sight.
A human, sitting in the cage, with only his underwear on. He looked pretty dirty, but also young. Again, I could not let the shock get to me. I had to prepare for all the things this house would throw at me, because at this point, I needed to expect anything.
He looked pretty roughed up, but seemed to not want to talk. He was obviously traumatized by what happened to him, or what he saw. I felt awful for what I was feeding him, but I didn’t want to end up in the same position. I pour the dog food into the cage, and then prepare to leave. But before I was able to do anything else, the boy pointed behind me. This time, I turned around immediately.
It looked like a person. Definitely wasn’t the thing from earlier, it held itself totally different. It stood for a while and then turned my way. It then slowly walked over to where I was. Like, VERY slowly. Thinking fast, I ran through the door to go inside the house. He was following me. I couldn’t find out how to lock the door, so I grabbed a knife from the kitchen right next to me and ran up the stairs. I look down to see the person still following me. It was like a walking shadow; I couldn’t see any of its features, just darkness. It walked in a stiff fashion, and it made shivers go down my spine the way it was following me so slowly. It was just weird.
I ran into “Room B”, printed on a metal plating glued to the wall. This room was filled with a bunch of boxes, some closed and turned upwards, and some open and upside down. I took the time that I had to quickly check my email for the next task. Luckily, this task was located in a room I was already in. “Open the b0x.”
I was bewildered. As I was getting ready to open up the boxes, figuring that it was something that I needed to find, I got a text. “Don’t open the wrong one.” I stop immediately. This changed everything. I sat down in defeat, as I was, just like anybody else would be, scared to open the wrong box.
After about 1 very long minute, I get another text. “He’s coming.” At this point, I’m about to have a damn heart attack. This was obviously a hint to the time limit that I have. I had to do something.
At this point, I’m thinking to myself that there’s an obvious puzzle that I need to solve, but what even is the puzzle? I start analyzing the room. All the boxes had numbers on them from 0 to 22, so I thought to myself that maybe that’s where I need to start. But then I was lost again. The room was literally only filled with boxes, what else could there be for me to use? I start to panic. My hands start to get sweaty as I feel the time quickly start to deteriorate. “Is this really the end for me?” I think to myself. I could hear the slow footsteps of the person coming closer and closer to the door.
I got another text. “You’re missing what’s right in front of you.” I stare at the message, desperately trying to figure out what it means by that. Obviously, there was something right in front of me that was the dead clue. But I just couldn’t figure it out! But then, I noticed something.
He misspelled the word “box.” Instead of an O, he put a 0. And then, I quickly realized what he meant by missing what’s right in front of me. Not only was it box number 0, but it was literally right in front of the door, and seemed to be placed on purpose. But I was hesitant, I could be wrong, and this could be my life on the line. But I could hear footsteps right outside the door. “Fuck it.” I tell myself as I hurry and open the box.
A key. That’s what was inside the box. A message is sent through my phone. “Congrats, but he’s still hungry.” Before I could even properly calm myself down, I had another problem to deal with. I remembered that I had the knife on me. So, I quickly pulled it out, and prepared to defend myself.
But nobody came through the door, and the footsteps stopped. Filled with confusion, I then hear ruffling under one of the upside down boxes. “Shit.” I tell myself. The thing rumbled in the box until it finally got out. I was already on my way out the door. I ran down the stairs and looked back to see a dog, full on sprinting down the stairs.
Panicking, I run back into the kitchen and jump onto a table. The dog right on my tail, he jumps on me and starts trying to bite me. Struggling, I try to hold the dog back. My survival instincts kicked in, and with the knife still in my hand. I stab the dog near his stomach area. It then got off of me and ran away with the knife still inside of it, leaving a blood trail. I came to the assumption that it died.
With blood on me and a bite mark on my finger, I take out my phone. At this point I’m filled with a mix of emotions. I was exhausted, but rushing with adrenaline at the same time. My fingers were shaking and the sheer thought of knowing that I truly do not have a guarantee of getting out of this place safely, even if I did all the right things, was horrifying. I checked my email one last time.
“The Basement.” This was the last task on the list. I knew if I wanted to look for wherever this basement is, I needed to be careful. I take out my flashlight and continue through the house. The pure silence. Only sounds I could hear were my footsteps and breathing. All I wanted was to leave.
After a couple minutes of searching, I found a door with a keyhole. I figured the key I got from room B was the key to this door. When I opened it I saw dusty unstable stairs that went downwards. Due to the fact that I was on the first floor, I figured this led to the basement. I cautiously go down. Sweat dripping from my palms and the thought of what could’ve been down there, I did not want to do this. As I get to the bottom, I immediately notice five people in hooded cloaks surrounding a table. I hurry and hide.
They were whispering something, but I couldn’t really comprehend what they were saying. And then, I saw something. Actually, I saw SOMEONE.
Laying on the table, tied down, was a girl. Long black hair and pale white skin. She looked as if she couldn’t move. And then, I realized something. I take a good look at the girl. This was one of the people who went missing. I started freaking out, while putting all the pieces together. Even the dog, these are all missing people, and there’s no doubt that I’m next.
Trying to keep my composure, I quietly get closer to the hooded people. At this point, I’m so sweaty and shaky, I was praying that I don’t pass out. The girl looked helpless, they probably injected her with something to temporarily paralyze her. I felt that I needed to do something.
With lots of hesitation, I throw a can I found on the floor. They all look towards where the sound came from. In unison, the people in cloaks go over to where the can was. Quickly, I make my way over to the girl, and bring her down off the table.
I can tell she’s scared. “Don’t worry, I’m helping you.” I said to her, while holding her with both of my hands. “Thank…you.” she whispered with a shaky voice. I realized that behind us was a ladder leading upwards through a trapdoor. I had to think quickly. I asked her if she could gather enough strength to climb up the ladder. She nods her head, and proceeds to do so. I followed right behind her, praying she did not lose grip. I can tell her hands were shaky, so this could’ve been dangerous.
But then, they turned around. The people in the hooded cloaks saw us trying to escape. They then started to walk faster and faster towards us. At this point, the girl was almost through the trap door, but I can see her slipping. The people were getting closer and closer. She almost falls off, but she makes it through. In a hurry, I climbed the ladder, and made it upstairs.
Laying on the floor beside her, I could tell she used up almost all the energy she had left. “Are you ok?” I ask her. She nods her head slowly, “Yea, I’m…fine.” I help her up, crouched down, and we sneakily make it to the living room. Hiding behind a couch, I text the anonymous person. “WHAT IS ALL THIS? WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS.” It texts back, “I have my reasons.” This had to be some sort of sick game to them, at least that’s what I thought.
The things that this person had been telling me, I couldn’t tell if they were on my side or not. But then, it sends me a message.
“Her father.”
I stop my breathing for a second.
“What?”
“That girl you just saved, I’m her father.”
“Her name is Emily. When she went missing, I knew that house was involved, because I used to be a member of that cult. That’s how I know the whole layout, and the ends and outs. I left the cult because I knew I couldn’t be in that type of life anymore. I had a family to take care of. But they weren’t very fond of that, and that’s when she went missing.”
He continues to type.
“I then got somebody from the inside to tell me what was going on, and what they were doing with her. That’s when I found out definitively that they had her, and where exactly they were keeping her. They ended up killing the person on the inside. So I came up with a plan. I was in that cult before, I knew their routine, and I knew how long I had. So, I made a website. Whoever took the offer, would do the job for me.”
I stare at Emily. She did not deserve this. “WHY DIDN’T YOU GO YOURSELF? WHY HAVE ME DO YOUR DIRTY WORK!?” I said. “Because…..I’m a coward.” Angrily, I put my phone in my pocket. “Let’s go.” I say to the girl. I help her up, and we begin to find an exit.
I could see the exit down the hallway, I was so relieved to leave this house. As we were walking, we then saw the shadowy figure. We hide behind a wall. But, as we were hiding, we saw that creature that I saw first with the bad posture, along with the dog. This was bad.
“Can you run?” I ask Emily
“We have no choice.” She says.
We then hurry and sprint towards the exit, the dog chasing right behind us. As I approached the shadowy man, I quickly duck under his arm and make my way out the door. But, Emily couldn’t do the same. The shadowy man had her in his grasp. As I was about to run back for her, and get ready to fight, the people with hooded cloaks came and surrounded them. I stop in my tracks. I could see all the people.
The shadowy man, the creature with the bad posture, the dog, the hooded people in cloaks, they were all there. One of the hooded people then waved at me, as the doors closed. “EMILY!” I yell. “Help!” She screamed, holding her hands out, as she slowly faded away while the doors closed. *Boom*
I sat there in silence. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t talk. This hot feeling in my chest built up more and more as my brain tried to process what just happened in front of me. A message comes through to my phone. “WHERE IS SHE?!?”, “WHY DID YOU LET HER GO?!?” The anonymous person was furious to say the least. He just lost a daughter.
But do I think that it’s my fault? Should I think it’s my fault? He was a coward and selfishly tried to find other people to put their lives in danger for his benefit. He was no man. And I told him just like that. “You will wish you never disobeyed me.” That was the last message he sent me. I turned around for one second to look at the outside world I most desperately missed. But when I turned back around, the house was gone, including the street sign.
I’ve asked multiple people if they knew about this street or this house to make sure I wasn’t going insane, and to no avail.
Am I just crazy? I do not think so. Am I scared? Of course I am. But ever since then, I’ve tried to stay calm and stay alert because he’s obviously trying to get back at me. I’m alone in my house right now, my family is gone while I picked to stay home, and I have a bad feeling about what’s going to happen to me, but if I survive, I’ll definitely be back to tell the story. God bless you all, and God bless Emily.