The Secret Manuscript by Edward Mullen Page A

walked
over to assist him. With his hand on the doorknob, Kyle paused
before opening the door.
    “If there are
any dead bodies in this place, they’d be stored in this closet. I
just want to make sure you’re ready for that.”
    “I’m
ready.”
    With a quick
jolt, Kyle yanked the door open. Much to their surprise, there were
no skeletons in the closet; in fact, it was not even a closet.
    “Hey, what do
you know, this place has a basement!” Ben exclaimed with
delight.
    “After you,”
Kyle offered.
    They stood at
the top of the stairs and peered into the abyss. The basement was
completely underground and had no windows so it was freezing cold
and pitch black. This was apparent just from standing at the top of
the stairs. They both had chills running up their spines from the
temperature and eeriness.
    “I don’t
suppose you have a flashlight on you?” Kyle asked.
    “As a matter
of fact, I do,” Ben said, as he retrieved one from his
backpack.
    “Lead the way.
I’ll be right behind you,” Kyle said.
    Ben turned his
flashlight on and the beam of light pierced through the darkness.
The wooden staircase leading down to the basement creaked with each
step. When they reached the bottom, a new odour presented itself.
The damp basement smelled like an old shoe. Years of condensation
seeping into the porous concrete had sprouted mould and other
bacteria growth that created a retched stench.
    They stayed
close to each other; neither of them was willing to admit they were
a little scared to be down there. Nevertheless, since it was part
of the house, it too needed to be explored. Despite being scared,
their curiosity made them proceed.
    The basement
was equally as unimpressive as the rest of the house. It was
unfinished, with concrete walls and visible rafters in the ceiling.
The main area of the basement was just an open space with no
furniture. There was a fireplace at the far end and nothing hanging
on the walls. A little bar occupied one corner, but there was no
alcohol or glasses. Through a small doorway, they were able to
access the remainder of the basement. There was a small furnace
area on the right, and just beyond that was a pair of bedrooms side
by side. Ben shone his flashlight into each of them. The rooms were
empty, but something about them caught his attention.
    “Hmm,” he
said, as he stood there peering in.
    “What is
it?”
    “I don’t know,
it’s probably nothing,” Ben replied. “Take a look at these rooms,
don’t they seem a little shallow to you?”
    Kyle took
another look. He did not notice anything unusual. “Shallow in what
way?” he asked.
    “When we did
the tour of the main floor, one thing I noticed was the breadth of
the house. It was very wide. But looking at the basement, I get the
opposite impression. It’s much narrower. It just strikes me as
odd.”
    “Basements are
dug in the ground, and there’s no rule that says they have to be
the same layout as the floors above it,” Kyle said.
    “That’s
true.”
    “Or perhaps
it’s the absence of light that’s not allowing you to properly gauge
distances.”
    “Yeah, you’re
probably right,” Ben replied.
    “Either way,
can we get out of here? This place is giving me the creeps.”

Chapter
Fourteen
    Over the next
few days, Ben and Kyle worked diligently to get the house in order.
They worked well as a team and were no strangers to manual labour.
It was especially satisfying working for themselves for a change.
The place was dusted, scrubbed, and polished. They bound up
fourteen large garbage bags filled with old junk and hauled them
out to the curb.
    “Are you sure
the garbage collectors will take all this?” Kyle asked.
    “I’m not sure;
I’ve never owned a house before.”
    They did an
inventory of the house, but did not find anything of value. Nor did
they find any of Mr. Gringer’s personal effects. Any letters lying
around were just junk mail and not assigned to anyone specifically.
It was as if the previous