Inside the Walls

It was long past midnight and yet I found myself wide awake, unable to wind down enough to attempt sleep. I kept wondering if anyone else had noticed anything strange and freaky about our new house yet. Why me, why did I have to be the one who heard the weird noises and whispers every night? Was I really the only one who had seen two of the Grayson ghosts or was Dad also living the same real-life nightmare? Maybe he had been warned about the place when it was sold to him and he just didn’t want any of us to find out.           I stopped turning pages when I heard a shuffling sound just outside my bedroom door. I felt the contents of my stomach churn as the butterflies set in, nervously waiting for whomever or whatever was at my door to make itself known. I could hear whispered arguing now and unclenched slightly when I recognised my parents’ voices. Whilst crawling towards the door so I could hear better, I heard the word ridiculous being uttered repeatedly by my mother, who sounded incredibly frustrated. Pressing myself against the door, I could hear what they were saying, just.            'Scott, I’m telling you, it was a dream!' 'Explain the burns then, look-my whole arm is singed!''Well, then it was just an accident.''Yeah, well that seems to happen a lot in this house, doesn’t it?! It was him, Mags. His face was pretty clear before he went up in flames. He was trying to warn me we’re in danger.'            So, my Dad was seeing things too, he just didn’t want to admit it to me. Who was my father talking about? He even spoke as though he knew him. As far as I was aware though, Dad had never been to Bellicose before and certainly hadn’t ever mentioned knowing anyone from here prior to the move. Nothing about it made any sense at all.            If this mystery ghost was warning Dad though, who or what was he warning him about? Agatha? Although, if the Agatha woman was supposedly so dangerous, wouldn’t she have shown herself by now? Was I really supposed to believe a deadly spirit was coming after my family? What on earth was I actually supposed to do about it anyway? I couldn’t talk to Dad about it, even if he was seeing them too, he certainly made it clear to me he didn’t want to discuss it.            Just then, my body went rigid and my heart began to race as a seemingly familiar voice suddenly whispered directly into my ear, as though she were standing right behind me.            'Olivia, she’s going to kill you.'In the eerie town of Bellicose, not long after settling in, 17-year-old Olivia Murphy’s fresh start quickly takes a dark turn.Warned by locals about the residence she’s just moved into, Olivia soon learns of the family who lived in the manor before hers, The Graysons, who all mysteriously perished in a tragic accident...Or was it the wrath of Agatha Clayton? The infamous ghost who supposedly remains in the house, seeking retribution for her parents’ unsolved murder, years ago.Caught in a web of fear and deception, Olivia’s world unravels when she begins to uncover not only the Graysons’ secrets, but the twisted secrets buried within her family tree. Will Olivia discover the truth about the house’s past before it’s too late?What is inside the walls of Bellicose’s most feared manor?