Sneak Peek

**Sneak Peek from Chapter 4:**

The quiet muttering of people speaking and laughing graced the forest as soon as they finished eating. Together with 3 other friends, Eily volunteered to bring the dishes in and wash them. Between the four of them the chore was finished quickly and they went back to the bonfire.
As the group of four neared, they met the Rosemondes with the type of conversation Eily dreaded the most.

" – and the man drops the phone, shocked, and drives twenty minutes to the crime scene. When he arrives the police arrest him and he's convicted of murdering his wife. How did the police know that he committed the crime?" Kevin's voice was low and his face was somber looking.

Merwyn, who seemed to be the person that should answer the horror riddle, scratched the back of his head and pondered his answer for a moment.

"He had blood on his clothes?" He said unconvinced.
"Wrong." A grin stretched on Kevin's lips. "Other guesses?"
"Uhh..."

"That's too easy, Kevin. The police never told the man where the crime scene was." Muireann's answer came from the other side of the fire, mocking her brother, Merwyn, and making him bristle.
"Idiot! I was about to say that!" Merwyn angrily pointed his finger at Muireann's direction.
Before his sister could respond back with something just as insulting, Aderyn interrupted.

"Oh! I have one, who wants to answer?"
"I will." Gwynne raised her hand and let it drop back on top of her boyfriend's leg, where he took her hand in his and started drawing invisible patterns on it, unbeknown to him making Anice red with anger in the process, jealousy radiating of her.

"You're in a mansion and the power is out." Aderyn started.

Eily looked behind her to make sure the power in the house was on.

"You see a blue and a red door. Pick one."
Gwynne furrowed her brows in concentration. "Does it matter which?"
"No."
"Well then, I pick the red one."
"Now you see a purple and a green door. Pick one again."
"Green." her boyfriend answered; green was Gwynne's favourite color.
"Now you see a door with a golden handle and a door with a silver handle. Pick one."
"Golden."
"Good. Now you come across three doors, with a sign on each one of them. One says "Death from drowning", another says "Death from spikes", and the last one says "Death from electric chair". Then you see a sign on the wall that says "Or stay in the mansion and starve to death". What do you choose and still live?" Silence enveloped the clearing as people went over the riddle.

"Can't she just go back and exit the mansion?" Merwyn asked.
"No, she can't. She has to choose."

Gwynne thought about it and found the answer without a problem. This was an easy one.
"The electric chair." All eyes turned to her. "The power is out so you choose the electric chair." The nod from Aderyn made it clear that her answer is correct.

"Hey..." Merwyn whined. "Why are you so good at this?"
"It's just simple logic, Merwyn. Something which you're greatly lacking." Gwynne teased.

Then Muireann spoke.
"I know! Why don't you tell us a story or a riddle, you used to be pretty good back at the days. I remember how spooked I was after the one with the –"
"No." Gwynne mentally winced at how harsh her reply was. Muireann looked startled. Clearing her throat she continued more softly than before. "I think that this place has seen and heard more than enough horror stories without us adding to them."

The following silence was almost frightening.

Eily and their other friends are now confused.
*What does she mean?*
Could her best friend be hiding something? Does she know what happened to this mansion three years ago?
Nobody said anything after that. Each one of them lost in what seemed to be unpleasant thoughts and memories.

Muireann's "Goodnight." was the cue for all of them to head to bed. 'Goodnight's and 'See you tomorrow's were the only words exchanged and one by one the group entered the house, or should I say mansion because of how large it is.

Gwynne's comforting hug and Oliver's reassuring words failed to make her feel better. Ernest's intense gaze was the only thing keeping her from bolting from the mansion, running down the hill, climbing in her car and speeding out from here.

*This didn't feel right.*
And it wasn't until the next day when things started going amiss.