Chapter Two: Secrets of the Clock House

The old wall clock in the Clock House made an annoying sound in every corner of the place. The sound was like a heartbeat growing stronger as time passed, reminding Olivia that she was getting closer to the moment when she would uncover everything. The atmosphere in the house was suffocating, and the memories had accumulated like dust on everything. Every wall, every corner, held something from the past that she had tried so hard to forget, but the truth was following her. Everything in this place seemed to scream at her: "Remember, go back to searching, don't leave without knowing everything."

Olivia stood in front of a large mirror in the entrance hall, her eyes staring at her own reflection. She saw herself, but there was nothing in her image that reflected the whole truth she was searching for. Was this really her? Or had time and experience changed her? Nothing was the same. There was a gap in her memory; she thought it was filled with happy memories, but there were dark parts of those memories, parts she didn’t want to touch—parts about Ava, her disappearance, and the secrets hidden from everyone.

Olivia began to explore the house further, heading down to the basement where there was a small door that seemed very old, but it was tightly shut. She tried to open it, but an old lock blocked her way. She searched her bag until she found an old key she had kept with her all these years, not knowing why she had held onto it. The key looked very old, as though it belonged to a distant time. She placed the key in the lock and turned it gently. The door slowly creaked open, as if the house itself hesitated to let her in.

The room was dark, and a deep gloom filled the space. Olivia felt the coldness of the place seep into her bones, but she was determined to uncover what was hidden there. She took out her flashlight and slowly illuminated the room. It was filled with old, neglected things—dusty books, closed boxes, and some tools that seemed to have been unused for years. In the far corner of the room, there was an old table with some scattered papers. Olivia approached carefully, and as she picked up some of the papers, she discovered they were filled with writings.

The moment she read the first line, a strange feeling crept into her heart. The words were familiar, but they stirred confusion at the same time. "She was the one who started it all. She knew, and she knew everything from the beginning." The handwriting was messy, as though the person who wrote it was struggling to express themselves. But what made Olivia's heart skip a beat was that these words were about Ava, and they spoke of something Olivia had completely forgotten. Did Ava know something about this house? About the secrets it was hiding?

As she flipped through the papers, her eyes landed on something else buried in the corner of the room. There was an old wooden box. Her heart began to beat faster as she approached it cautiously. The box was tightly closed, looking like it had endured many years. Olivia examined the sides of the box carefully and found it had a small lock. This time, she needed another key, but she couldn’t find one around her.

While she was thinking about how to open the box, she suddenly felt something strange in the air. There was a faint sound in the background, as if someone was watching her. She looked around, but the room was empty. There was no one. However, something uncomfortable lingered in the place, something that made her feel as though she was not alone.

She decided to stop searching for now, but she knew deep down that she had reached a point of no return. The box, and the papers she had found, were part of something bigger. This place held deep secrets, secrets that had to be uncovered, no matter the consequences.

As she was about to leave the room, she discovered something strange. There was an upside-down picture on the table. She turned it over carefully, and when she looked at it, she froze. It was an old picture of Ava, but what made her heart race was the man in the picture. It was the same man she had seen in the photo in the notebook she found upstairs. This man was everywhere. He hovered around every memory, every clue, as if there was a hidden connection between him and Ava’s disappearance.

She closed her eyes for a few seconds, trying to collect her thoughts. The human mind, in such moments, searches for any kind of hope, but at that moment, hope seemed very distant. There were questions far too big for her to answer on her own, and the truth seemed more complicated than ever.

On her way back upstairs, she found herself in front of the door she had entered from earlier. She couldn't go back now, for the closer she got to the truth, the more questions exploded in her mind. At that moment, her phone rang again. It was a text message, and this time the words were clear: "You are about to discover everything, but remember, some things should remain buried."

The words felt like a threat. But she knew that what she had started must be completed. This message was just the beginning of something bigger, something that would change everything. There was something dark in this place, and it was about to explode.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***