Cozy Cabin

We drove up the snowy, winding road towards the cozy cabin. When we arrived, I remember thinking of how peaceful and calm the drive had been. I was looking forward to spending time with my lover.

When we got ready for bed, a window blew open. After closing it, I noticed a note that said “beware.” I looked around and didn’t see where it came from, as there was no desk or shelf that housed notes or papers.

I ended up feeling cautious and told Todd I had a headache. In the morning, while he was making breakfast, I found another window open. Below it was a wedding band. I looked and wondered if maybe Todd had dropped it. He had previously told me that he had never been married. It seemed too soon for a proposal, but maybe he just really knew what he wanted.

I went downstairs and said “look what I found.” He looked up from making breakfast. A startled look flashed over his face. I was puzzled and asked “is everything ok?” “Yes I guess I just thought the band was lost forever. It’s not mine. But it does belong to my family.”

“How do you know?”

“I saw the engraving. That’s my grandfather's initials.”

“They are also your initials. How do I know you don’t secretly have a wife?”

“You have to trust me.”

I tilted my head and playfully said “I don’t know about you.”

After finishing breakfast, he went out to gather more wood. Then there was a sound upstairs by the bookcase. I remember reading about secret passageways and pulling books to reveal a hidden door. So I pulled out a couple books for the fun of it. I was surprised when a door actually opened. I walked through it and I found an old wedding dress and suit. On a desk, I found a photo of a couple who eerily looked like Todd and me. Next to the photo was an article saying shortly after Thomas married his sweetheart, she went missing. He stated that he missed her dearly, but the town suspected he had done it for the insurance money. He claimed that leaving was a way to stop mourning the loss of his wife.

Then I felt an icy chill on my shoulder. I turned around and saw a glowing figure in the dress. She whispered “beware.” I asked her “Of what?” but she disappeared. As I heard Todd coming back, I also felt like I was being followed.

“I think this place is haunted.”

“Come on. There’s no such thing as ghosts.”

“I am not as sure I used to be. I found a note that says beware and a ring all after gusts of wind pass by me. And today I found a secret passage. Apparently your grandfather was a suspected murderer.”

“Sweetie, that happened a long time ago. And why would my grandfather kill his wife?”

I wondered how he knew who his grandfather was suspected of killing, but I figured he heard the story before.

“She had a lot of money. And I am bit concerned that he is trying to kill me. I look a lot like her.”

“I would never let that happen to you. I will protect you from any living or dead human being.”

I look into his eyes and he seems so calm and loving. I trust him, but I don’t trust the ghost. They know how to move small objects and there’s no guarantee that they cannot start moving larger objects.

“I trust you and I don’t trust the ghosts. I think we should leave immediately.”

Todd’s eyes change color and he is wearing a suit. “You won’t be leaving here alive.”

I throw the wedding ring at him. It hits but he keeps moving towards me. I run out the door and a gust of wind slams it shut.

I left the cabin and my dreams of a once peaceful and loving relationship behind.