Her Necklace

I drove to my new house, where David was arranging my furniture.

The moon was hidden behind the clouds, making it impossible to see the house except for the lit windows. It was a wide house with two floors; I was not allowed to go the 1st floor. The owner couldn’t tell me why, because he got a heart attack midway telling me through phone.

David grinned as I entered. “Jeff! Almost done.”

The room was okay. It was decorated with ambient lights, and it seemed cozy. David had arranged the furniture in perfect spots. Almost in every wall hung an antique painting. A sweet smell floated across the room. “Honey?”

David grimaced. “What?”

“You can’t smell it?”

“Can’t smell what?”

Maybe it’s the cold wind playing tricks on my nose. I tried to pay David, but he refused.

I frowned. He never said no to money. “Why-?”

“C’mon, I can’t take money from friends.”

Lie. He had taken money from me several times; he took money from his parents. “Doing a job to get money,” he simply says. But I didn’t push him. After he left, I locked the door, brushed, and headed to the bedroom.

This whole time, I could hear some creaks from above. I didn’t mind, because I knew the wind was getting stronger and was probably causing it.

I fell asleep.

As time went on, the wind grew louder and so did the creaks, waking me up. Ignoring it, I clutched the blanket tighter as sweat trickled down my forehead.

It was probably the wind.

The creaking stopped. The room was silent, except for the howling of the terrible wind. My neck was slightly itching; I scratched it, only to find something squeeze my throat, making it hard to breathe. Small ragged gasps began to escape my throat, tears forming and streaming down my face as my lungs ached. I couldn’t see what was choking me; my head was spinning and I was beginning to see stars.

What was choking me?

After what seemed like forever, that ‘something’ released me, making me fall off the bed, panting. It took a while for my lungs to relax; I almost forgot how to breathe properly.

Blinking hard, I stood up with wobbly knees, chest heaving. There had been a glass of water on the nightstand but I couldn’t find it.

Another creak.

I froze. The creak stopped, but this time it was very near. The smell of honey also returned. Shivers ran down my spine. I turned back.

It was a woman.

A wave of panic crashed over me; I tripped over the nightstand while walking backwards. A glass of water fell with me, shattering and spilling everywhere on the floor.

The woman stared. She was dressed in white, with long black hair, pale face and bright red lips, her hands slightly shaking. She looked familiar…

Silence fell as we held eye contact.

Seconds later, she raised her hand, stopping midway. It took me seconds to realize that she was lifting a piece of the fallen glass without touching.

How was that possible?

The piece of glass floated towards me, paralyzing me in shock. It dropped to my wrist, and began to press against it.

Hot-red pain shot up through my arm as it cut through my skin. I screamed.

“Where is it?” she whispered.

“What?” I cried, writhing in agony.

“The NECKLACE!” Her voice shook the room; something fell and broke. She pointed to a painting, and then I realized that was where I’d seen her. It was a painting of her, wearing a heavy gold necklace, and a man. “That.”

Red spots danced in my vision. “I don’t-”

The glass pressed harder than ever, buckling my knees. I tried to make myself clear. “I… came…today…please…”

The glass stopped pressing and landed on the ground. Blood flowed out of the cut, making the pain linger.

“Flee,” she whispered.

***

David did not believe me.

I sighed. “Anyway, you know anything about a necklace?”

“What?”

“That house. A necklace?”

“Oh, I sold it.”

I almost dropped the phone. “You WHAT-?”

“It wasn’t yours and I got a good amount of money.”