They walked into Nathan’s bedroom after dinner. Zane looked around the space. This was Nathan’s private room, the place where he slept and spent his ti alone. Zane felt his heart beat fast as he took in the details of the furniture and the personal items on the shelves.
He wanted to be here alone with Nathan. Instead, Eli and Gabriel were there, loudly comnting on everything they saw. Zane felt annoyed by their presence.
He looked at Nathan. To most people, Nathan looked harsh and acted like he didn’t care about anyone. But Zane knew the truth. Nathan was kind. Zane was certain Nathan couldn’t even kill a rat. He felt lucky to know this side of him and to be in love with him.
Nathan turned on the gaming console and told Eli to sit on the sofa.
"I know how to play this!" Eli said when Nathan explained the controls. He looked at the other three. "But who am I playing with?"
"You can play by yourself," Nathan said.
Nathan turned toward the balcony. Gabriel was standing outside by the railing. The balcony door was open, and Zane felt the cold night air entering the room. He walked over to close the door.
"Hey, co in! Don’t you feel cold?" Zane asked.
Gabriel didn’t move. He stood still, staring out into the night. Nathan walked to the balcony as well because he also felt the drop in temperature.
"Gab, did you finish your assignnt? Why didn’t you bring your laptop?" Nathan asked.
Gabriel didn’t answer. He turned his head and signaled for them to co closer. Nathan and Zane looked at each other in confusion.
"What?" Nathan asked.
Inside the room, Eli was busy testing the controller and did not notice that the others had gathered tensely on the balcony.
Gabriel pointed carefully toward the building across from them. It was Leo’s room.
Nathan squinted to see what Gabriel was pointing at. The window in Leo’s room had a red glow. It looked like a red lamp was lit inside.
"What is it?" Zane asked. He didn’t see anything strange about a light being on.
"I... I don’t know. I thought I saw a shadow inside the window," Gabriel said. His voice sounded tight.
Nathan looked again. He often saw strange things coming from that part of the mansion, but he assud it was just part of Leo’s work.
"Leo keeps many dogs. Maybe you saw the shadow of a dog," Nathan said.
Gabriel looked at Nathan, trying to see if he was serious. Zane let out a breath of annoyance.
"It’s not even late yet and you’re already seeing things," Zane mocked.
Gabriel reacted by hitting Zane’s shoulder. Gabriel was strong, and the impact made Zane groan in pain.
"Don’t hit , Perlich!" Zane grumbled.
Gabriel laughed, and his usual expression returned. "Your house is really nice. Is that a forest over there?" He pointed toward the thick line of trees beyond the lawn.
Nathan nodded. "Yes."
"It’s cool! We can go there in the sumr!" Gabriel said.
Zane looked at the darkness of the forest. It looked very black. Then, he saw a small light moving between the branches of the trees. It looked like the light from a flashlight or a candle.
"Is there a house over there?" Zane asked.
Nathan shook his head. He saw the moving light too.
"There is nothing out there," Nathan said.
"Maybe it is a bear hunter," Gabriel suggested.
Nathan didn’t want to think about it. He told them both to go back inside. "I’m freezing!"
Once they were back in the warm room, Zane pulled Nathan aside. "I don’t see your mom here. I would like to et her."
Nathan stopped and looked at him. Across the room, Gabriel had sat down next to Eli and was bothering him while he played the ga.
"They don’t live here. And last night Nael said Alex couldn’t contact her, so I don’t know if she will co here," Nathan replied. He knew Zane was very curious about his mother.
Zane nodded, feeling a bit disappointed. However, he was staying for a few nights, so he hoped there would be a chance later. Nathan then looked at Gabriel.
"Aren’t you doing your howork?" Nathan asked.
"I already finished it," Gabriel replied casually.
Nathan’s eyes widened. "What?"
"It’s not important. As long as you pass, you’re safe," Gabriel said. To him, schoolwork was just a headache. He believed that finishing it as quickly as possible was the best way to handle it.
Eli groaned after losing the ga to Gabriel. He looked over at Nathan, who was sitting seriously on the carpeted floor with Zane. Books and papers were scattered all around the two of them.
"Nathan, isn’t Alexander here?" Eli asked.
Nathan shook his head. "Not today. He went on vacation with his lover."
Eli just nodded.
Zane looked up from his book. "Why do you ask?"
"Nothing, I’m just curious," Eli replied. "I thought maybe I could say thank you to him. Because of him, my mother is receiving dical treatnt. He even sent a kind woman to the house to help her."
Nathan looked up, frowning in confusion. "A kind woman?" He had no idea about this.
Eli nodded. "Yes, she said Alexander sent her to help my mother. I am relieved because now I can work and co out like this without worrying about her."
Nathan stared at Eli for a long ti. He truly did not expect Alexander to go that far. He wondered if his brother would try to bill him for the costs later, but regardless of that, he was surprised that Alexander had done so much for Eli.
Nathan smiled. "Maybe soday you can et him."
Eli grinned widely. "Yes! You are so kind, and Alexander is too."
Zane looked at Nathan and gave him a small smile.
Suddenly, Nathan’s phone rang. Zane saw Nathan’s face beco very serious as he listened to the person on the other end. Zane stopped typing on his laptop and stared at Nathan.
When Nathan finished the call, Zane asked imdiately, "What is it?"
Nathan remained silent for a long ti before answering. "That was Vale, my best friend from my previous school. He asked if I have seen Ray. They can’t find him anywhere."
"Ray? Your friend from the café? The one we visited last ti?" Zane asked.
Nathan nodded. He didn’t focus on Zane’s question. His heart was beating very fast. He thought about the person he believed he saw yesterday. This thought bothered him.
Was Ray in this house? But how was that possible? Could Ray be a friend of one of his brothers? He wasn’t sure if he had really seen Ray yesterday or if it was just his imagination. However, it happened at the sa ti as the young man’s disappearance.
Zane waved his hand in front of Nathan. "Hey, are you okay?"
Nathan started and nodded quickly. "Y-yeah. I just... I don’t believe it. He’s gone."
"Maybe he’s just staying overnight at a friend’s house," Zane said to calm him.
Nathan didn’t answer. He still felt uneasy.
Gabriel shouted every ti he moved the controller. The two of them were really noisy. But he imdiately responded when he heard the news Nathan told him.
"Your friend is missing?" Gabriel asked, his voice booming.
"I’m not sure yet. But his family can’t contact him," Nathan replied.
Nathan then stood up. "I’ll get more snacks and drinks." He walked out of the room.
A few monts later, Eli’s groans could be heard. He lost again. He glared at Gabriel, annoyed that the boy had made him lose.
anwhile, Gabriel just laughed happily.
Eli stood up. "Nathan, wait! I’ll go with you!" Eli ran after Nathan, who had already left the room.
But the boy was nowhere to be seen. Eli ran down the corridor. He wanted to take a short walk because his back hurt. And he was curious to see other parts of the large mansion.
But he got lost.
He was sure he had to go through that corridor to get to the stairs. But he ended up on stairs that looked like they had never been used. And they were very different from the stairs he had used to enter.
Should he go down or go back?
Why was the mansion so big? And on a night like this, it felt like he was walking through an old museum alone. Horrifying.
Eli was about to turn back when he heard a scream.
It sounded like a scream. But it was very faint. Or far away.
Eli felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Was the house haunted?
But he wasn’t hallucinating, because he heard the scream again.
"Please! Release !"
The voice was clear now.
"What is that?" Eli stepped back. He felt scared. He turned around. But his body collided with soone large. His body was thrown backward.
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