Free Dead Horizon by Carl Hose Page B

The move caught him off guard. He wasn’t used to the display of affection.
    “It’s great, huh?” he said. “Maybe we can stay here a couple of days before we head out. This might be what we need, a little time together in a romantic setting. Who, knows, we might be able to get along.”
    “By all means, stay as long as you like,” Mabel said. “Dinner has already passed for this evening, but feel free to come down to the kitchen for a snack when you’ve settled in. Edgar and I are always prowling about if you should need anything.”
    When Mabel was gone, Brandon and Jennifer explored the room. Jennifer was attracted to the bathroom straight away, decked out as it was with a huge claw-foot porcelain tub, golden fixtures, and thick towels.
    While Jennifer drew a bath, Brandon nosed around the room a bit more. He was a little disappointed by the absence of entertainment. No TV, no radio, nothing but a couple of old books lying on the dresser.
    He looked outside. It was pitch black. Thunder rumbled in the distance, and when a flash of lightning cracked the darkness, he was able to glimpse a courtyard out back of the house. He was about to turn away from the window when another shard of lightning shattered the darkness. This time Brandon caught sight of a gazebo further out, and he was sure he’d seen a human figure briefly illuminated and standing beside the gazebo.
    “What the—”
    Maybe he’d imagined the figure. He was tired, after all. Walking wasn’t his strong suit. It was highly likely his eyes had played a trick on him.
    “Hey, stud, why don’t you join me?” Jennifer called from the bathroom.
    He considered it. They hadn’t made love in a long time. In the end, he decided against it in favor of resting his eyes.
    “I think I’m going to rest a little bit,” he called back.
    “Have it your way,” Jennifer replied, and then he could hear the gentle swish of water as she settled back in the tub.
    Brandon stripped off his shirt, shoes, and socks. He threw himself onto the bed, sighing as the mattress enveloped his body like a soft hand. It wasn’t long before he was completely out.
    When he woke up, he wasn’t sure how much time had passed. The room was pitch black. He remembered seeing a tiny lamp on the nightstand beside the bed. He felt for it and turned it on.
    Jennifer wasn’t in bed with him. He called her name, afraid she might have fallen asleep in the bathtub, then swung his feet to the floor and went to look for her.
    She wasn’t in the bathroom, so he figured she decided to go downstairs for something to eat. She was always eating. Never gained a pound, thank God, but she was always snacking on something.
    Brandon went downstairs. The house was dark and quiet. He had no clue where to find the kitchen, and what the hell had happened to Mabel and her husband, what was his name, Egbert, Eddie? Hadn’t the old woman said they were always prowling around?
    He kept one hand planted against the wall, feeling his way through the dark. He couldn’t imagine Jen down here by herself, but he wasn’t sure where else to look for her.
    He suddenly felt like a lab rat trapped in a maze. The house was creepy. He hadn’t thought so earlier, but now, moving around its darkened hallways, he swore he could feel it breathing. There were noises too. Strange rustling sounds all around, shadows drifting across his path.
    Then he bumped into something solid. There was a sharp scratching sound and the smell of sulfur. A match flared, casting Mabel’s face in flickering light as she lit a slender candle.
    “You’ve decided to have a late-night snack?” she asked, sounding very much to him like Opy Taylor’s Aunt Bee.
    “No, I was looking for my —”
    “Nonsense,” she said.
    “What’s with the lights?”
    “Storm knocked out the power. Don’t you worry, though. There’s plenty of candles in the house to last us a lifetime.”
    She took him by the arm and led him to the kitchen.
    “You sit,”