Upstairs

Leanne decided going upstairs and getting further away from that godforsaken room would be in her best interests. She quickly found the staircase and followed it up to the next floor. This level was just as silent as creepy as the one below it, with an identical line of doors trailing off in front of her in the gloom.

She walked forwards down the corridor trying to think what she should do next. However, before she could make a decision one of the doors opened and a man stepped out into the hallway, causing her to jump a little in fright.

"Hello?" called out the aged resident. The young woman didn't answer. "Who... Who's there?" he asked timidly.

"L-Leanne," she responded, equally nervously. "I'm... I'm a helper here today."

"Oh, hello, Leanne." replied the old man warmly. "My name's Mr. Norworth. But you can call me Jimmy."

"Nice to meet you, Jimmy." said Leanne with a smile. For some reason talking to the old man made her feel a little more relaxed. "Did you need something?"

"I just heard you coming down the corridor. So I came out to see who it was." answered the old man. "It's a little unusual for anyone to be walking around at this time of the afternoon. Most people are either resting or doing other things."

"You've got very good hearing to hear me coming," replied Leanne. She'd been deliberately trying to walk quietly so as not to draw any more attention to herself.

"My hearing is a little better than most," confessed the pensioner. "One of the advantages of being blind I guess."

Leanne was a little surprised at this. It wasn’t immediately obvious, though that could have been in part thanks to the dim light. "Oh, I'm sorry, Jimmy. I didn't realise." She watched the old man closely. Judging whether he showed any signs of being able to see her in the short black dress she’d borrowed. However, he continued to stare directly ahead. “Say, Jimmy. Since there’s no-one else around how about I come and chat with you?”

"That’d be lovely,” replied the resident. “I used to live here with my wife before she passed away. So I don’t often get to spend time with ladies nowadays."

“Great!” responded Leanne, before quickly regretting it in case he thought she sounded pleased about his dead wife. “Lead the way.” Leanne followed the old man inside his bedroom. It was similar to everywhere else in Rosefield Manor that she'd seen so far; gloomy and sparsely furnished. "So, what's it like living here?"

"It's okay... Mostly." came the surprisingly sombre response.

"Mostly?" queried Leanne as she focused in on the tone of his reply.

A long sigh escaped from the old man. He didn't seem comfortable in telling her his thoughts but at the same time he wanted to let her know. "There's a lot of... strange things happening lately." he began cautiously.

"Like what?" asked Leanne. Intrigued by what the resident was going to tell her.

"I hear unusual noises at night." continued Jimmy. "Banging on the pipes, things like that. And then there's that odd light." The old man hesitated again. "I know I'm blind, but I still have a very small percentage of vision." Leanne wrapped her arms tightly around her body, wondering exactly what the pensioner was capable of seeing. "If there's a bright light I can make it out among the dark. Most days I see this orange glow under my door. And it's been happening more regularly the past few weeks."

Leanne moved to sit next to the old man and placed her arm around his shoulders. She was trying to think of something kind to comfort him when she saw the strange orange glow Jimmy had just described coming from the corridor. She wondered whether to say anything to the pensioner. Maybe it was something completely harmless and she could ease his worries. Then again it could be something much more sinister.