The First Page (youngsters:other, 834 words) [1/2] show all parts
Author: homeydd	Updated: Feb 23 2004	Views/Reads: 19958/3	Part vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
This story revolves around an old diary that Liz had found in the house's basement junk box. It belonged to the previous owner of the old Victorian House in which was now the Parker residence. Curious, she flipped it open and began reading from the first

"Liz! Remember to clean up the basement, ok?" Mrs. Parker called out.
Liz sighed heavily and nodded. "Alright, mom," she answered flatly, 
dragging herself out of bed. She got changed and headed downstairs for 
breakfast. 

As usual, the whole family was already seated at the dining table. Liz
greeted everyone and sat at a vacant seat next to her elder brother 
Evan. "Pass me the butter, bro," she said. "Sure," Evan replied and 
passed it to her. "Thanks," Liz said, and spreaded a thin layer of it 
onto her toast. She sank her teeth into it, consuming the whole thing 
in a minute. Evan let out a soft chuckle. "You must be very hungry, 
Liz." Liz shot him a glaring look. "Evan, it's none of your business. 
I've got to hurry because I have to clean the whole basement up today," 
Liz said. 

Mrs. Parker placed an arm onto her daughter's shoulder. "Honey, I know
it's going to be a tiring day for you, and I'd like your brother to 
help too. But he's got to head back to school for a day-long band 
practice." 

Liz sat still and didn't utter a single word out of her mouth. She was
mad that Evan had band practice and need not help in the household 
chores. That wasn't fair to her at all. Even though Liz had 
extra-curricular activities, she still have to help her parents out 
with the chores. 

"I know what you're thinking, Liz. But honey, we really need your help.
Dad's on a business trip, Evan's busy with band practices, and I've got 
to help your grandma. You know, her health's been poor these days-" 

"Ok, ok. Enough of it, mom. I'll clean up the basement," Liz said.
Sometimes she wished her mother didn't explain to her the reasons. 
Anyway, she thought to herself. It'll be good to do a little 
exploration of the house's basement. She hadn't step into it since they 
moved in here a couple of months ago. "Who knows something interesting 
will pop out of nowhere," she grinned. 

After seeing her mother and brother off, Liz closed the door behind her
and started for the basement. Her loud footsteps created echoes that 
filled the entire basement. The place smelled of old wood, and dust and 
cobwebs covered every item that was in there. Liz could feel the old 
charm surrounding her. A dressing table sat at the furthermost end of 
the basement. "Hmm...interesting," Liz whispered to herself as she 
picked up a box of old make-up powder and examined it for a moment. The 
place was beginning to sound like an adventure now. 

She rumaged through the drawers and took out everything that was found
in them. An old paperback and a thick, heavy book fell out. Liz grabbed 
them in time before they could drop onto the dusty ground below. "Boy, 
this is heavy!" she exclaimed as she placed them onto the dressing 
table. She took a look at the old, heavy book. It boasted beautifully 
carved patterns on the cover, and its edges bounded by the now-rusted 
gold border. Curious of what was contained inside, Liz flipped to the 
first page. "Lina Willoway..." she read and flipped to the next page. 
"Geez, it's her diary!". Liz felt as if the atmosphere was getting 
tensed as she continued reading further. It was getting more and more 
interesting as the second-hand of the clock ticked by. Through the 
diary, Liz uncovered a number of secrets that Lina had kept to herself. 
She could see that Lina was a pretty secretive person who knew a lot 
but didn't share much about her knowledge. Liz came across a page that 
she wished she'd never flipped to. 

"...Today, my beloved husband John was being murdered in the basement at
the hands of our chauffer. I was extremely terrified when I found his 
lifeless and cold body lying there. Oh how I felt like dying too..." 
Liz read, her voice trembling a little. It sure did send a shiver down 
her spine and goosebumps started to appear on her fair skin. 

So, there was a murder being committed right here decades ago, down in
the basement! Liz could sensed that someone was watching over her at 
that moment. She felt terrified and wanted to leave the place at once. 
However, she couldn't bring herself to it as her eyes were glued to the 
rest of the entry on that page. It got more terrifying as she scanned 
down the lines. "Stop it, Liz! Stop it!" Liz scolded herself. Cold 
sweat appeared on her forehead, but she couldn't take her eyes off the 
diary. She felt as if it was trying to tell her something important. 
"Please...stop it..." Liz sobbed. The diary still wouldn't let her off 
till she'd finished reading that particular entry. Liz finally brought 
herself to close the book and chucked it back in the drawer. Thereafter 
she hurried up the stairs and out of the creepy basement... 

(to be continued.)


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