BLACK VELVET ROSES

by Marianne Spitzer

Taylor smiled, “You two in the hot tub is going to lead to more than relaxing muscles.”

  Andrea giggled, “I hope.”

  ########

  The day and hours spent in the pool exhausted the group, and they had dinner in their rooms. They planned on sleeping in the next morning, having a late breakfast, and getting to the manor house before noon. That would give them ample daylight to explore. Cole purchased several battery operated LED lanterns to give them light in the basement. Kellie was bound and determined to check it out and find a dungeon if one existed.

  Kellie tossed and turned all night. She kept waking up and several times her dreams followed her into a vague reality. She saw a small girl dressed in a long dark dress and a white pinafore standing near the foot of her bed. Each time the girl said, “Come back and help us. Help me.” Kellie would drift off to sleep again. When her alarm woke her, she couldn’t recall if she had been dreaming or having visions, but she did know she was still tired. Something disrupted her sleep. She headed to her bathroom to get ready for her day of exploring.

  Chapter Ten

  Taylor was finishing brushing her long red hair when Hunter rushed into the bathroom. “Hi, you didn’t take a very long walk with Rufus,” she said. “You’re not even covered with any dog hairs.”

  He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the bathroom into the living room area. “I had a better idea.” He picked up her purse and handed it to her. “Put on your shoes. You’re going to love this.” She slipped on her shoes and followed him out of the hotel room.

  “What about the others? We’re going to breakfast and the manor house.”

  “Don’t worry. This is a surprise from me to you. It’s just us for a while today. I can’t wait to get you alone.”

  “We are alone,” she argued as they got into the elevator.

  Hunter pushed the lobby button and smiled. “This will be better. The best. You have never seen anything like it.”

  She tried to pull away thinking he was a little too excited and possibly had a few drinks at the bar when she saw the new black convertible waiting for them outside the front entrance. “We’re going for a ride, Red.”

  “Red? You know I hate that name. When you called me that in college, you promised never to say it again.”

  “Yeah, yeah, but you look like a Red especially in this car.”

  Her gut told her something was off, but this was Hunter. He was the most stable person on earth. If a ride in a new convertible would make him happy, why not? She climbed in the passenger side, and Hunter took off. He headed away from the hotel and town toward the country.

  “Where are we going?”

  “Out to the country to see the trees and smell the flowers.”

  Taylor crouched down in her seat. She knew Hunter must have been drinking. This was not like him at all. When he pulled up the drive to the Gotz Manor house and drove around to the back, she knew she was right.

  She tried to get out of the car. Hunter, who had driven without a seatbelt, was at her side in a flash. He took her hand. “C’mon, we’re going to check this place out without anyone else around. It has a nice romantic history.”

  She tried to pull away. But he gripped Taylor’s wrist so tightly she couldn’t do anything except follow him. He pulled her up the back steps and the kitchen door opened at his touch. Hunter pulled her into the manor house and locked the door dropping the key into his pocket.

  Taylor tried to take a moment to catch her breath and slow her heart. It was pounding against her chest wall, and her ribs were beginning to hurt from her gasping for air. Hunter ignored her and opened the basement door. She fought him, but he dragged her down the stairs. She missed the last stair and fell onto her knees. He laughed and yanked her to her feet.

  She struggled with him and tried to beat on his arm with her free hand. Ignoring her, he pulled her along the basement corridor to the dungeon stairs. When he stopped and swung the rusty door open, Taylor felt faint. Hyperventilating and feeling light headed; she could barely walk. Hunter scooped her up in his arms and carried her down into the dungeon area. At the end of the dungeon was another door. One touch and the door opened. Taylor realized it was the secret torture chamber. With what little strength she had left, she tried to scream. Hunter laughed and looked at her. “This is where the fun begins, Red.” His eyes changed from their usual dreamy bright green to dark, drab, gray. Taylor fainted.

  When she woke she realized she was alone in the room, but was shackled to the wall with iron wrist restraints. Approximately a foot of chain connected her to the wall. It was enough for her to sit down, but not be comfortable. The floor was damp and cold. She looked around the room and recognized there were torture devices in the room. She remembered them from the medieval history class she took in college.

  Tears formed in her eyes. Taylor knew she was going to die, and a terrible death waited. Something evil had a hold of her husband, and she would die at his hand. She looked around the room and tried to remember what each device was called.

  There was an open weave coffin not used for burial, but to hold a prisoner in a standing position with openings available for additional tortures to be inflicted on the prisoner.

  She noticed there were more wrist shackles attached higher on another wall. Deep brown stains were scattered all along the wall. Taylor knew it was a flagellation wall used for whipping with anything from a simple whip to a cat-o-nine-tales.

  A few wide leather straps were lying on the floor. Taylor had seen them in a book. They were used to bind people into a fetal like position for hours causing immense pain since they were tightened at the whim of the prison master.

  The rack stood in the middle of the room. She knew it could be extremely painful if used to stretch a person, but it could also be used to hold a person in a position where they were at the mercy of their captor.

  The last thing she saw was a table with leather straps. It could have been used for any reason and Taylor dropped her head and cried. No one knew where she was, and she was at the mercy of whatever had taken control of Hunter. Being tortured and killed was terrifying, but the idea of it happening at the hands of the man she loved caused Taylor to begin to sink into near hysteria.

  She listened to the quiet around her. Maybe this was part of his plan. He would leave her alone in her terror. She prayed her friends would realize she was missing. No, they wouldn’t. Hunter was gone, too. They would assume they were together. Taylor knew she was losing her mind when she began to hear voices, no just one voice. It was more like a gentle whisper, “Don’t be afraid. I will help you.”

  ########

  Cole and Andrea knocked at Kellie’s door a few minutes before lunchtime. “Hi,” said Cole. “I thought we were all going to have lunch together, but there’s no answer at Hunter and Taylor’s room.”

  “Hmm, that’s odd, c’mon in.” She held the door open wide. “I’ll call Taylor’s cell. No answer.”

  Cole called Hunter’s cell while Kellie tried their room phone. No answer at either. Kellie dialed the front desk. “Hi, can you tell me if Hunter and Taylor O’Neil, the occupants in the room next to mine, are in the lobby or if they left a message for me? Oh, I see. Which way were they headed. Thanks.”

  Kellie looked at Cole and Andrea. “This is odd. The front desk said Taylor and Hunter left in a rented convertible about an hour ago headed toward the countryside.”

  Cole shook his head. “Something’s wrong here. If they wanted some time alone, they would have told us.”

  Kellie’s cell rang. She looked at the Caller ID and glanced at Cole and Andrea. “It’s Claudia.”

  Kellie answered and listened. “I don’t know how or why, but there’s trouble, Kellie. The images are dark. I can’t see through them, but Hunter and Taylor are in danger. Taylor is in grave danger. She is damp and cold. Use your sixth sense, find her, and find her quickly. I will call if I know more.”

  Kellie called the front desk asking for her SUV to be brought to the
front door, looked at Cole and Andrea and said, “There’s trouble. Hunter and Taylor are in danger. Claudia said I could sense them, and something is telling me to go to the manor house.” She grabbed her purse, and the three hurried down to the waiting SUV.

  The SUV sped along the highway making good time to the Gotz manor. Kellie stopped at the end of the driveway. “I don’t see any cars. It’s Sunday; the manor house is closed.”

  Cole said, “Drive around back. If you feel we need to be here, there must be something to it.”

  Kellie drove slowly hoping if whoever was responsible for Hunter and Taylor leaving the hotel was near, they wouldn’t hear her. As she pulled around back, the black convertible came into view. The three got out of the SUV and walked over to the convertible. Kellie looked in the car and found Taylor’s purse and her cell phone on the front seat.

  “This isn’t good. The hotel concierge said the two of them left alone, but Taylor wouldn’t leave her purse and cell behind.”

  “Agreed,” said Cole. “Do you think they’re in the manor house?”

  “I sense they’re here along with several spirits. I feel a child telling me to find her friend before she gets hurt. That friend might be Taylor. Claudia said Taylor was damp and cold. That must mean the basement, the dungeon. Oh no, what if there is a torture chamber in this house?”

  Andrea went pale and gripped the car to steady herself. “How do we get her and what about Hunter? Where is he?”

  “I don’t know,” Cole said, “We’ll find them both.” He was trying to open the back door. It was locked tight. He jumped off the steps, picked up a rock, and climbed back up to use the rock to break the window.

  Kellie grabbed his arm. “Try the door again, I think it’ll open.”

  He turned the nob and opened the door. “How did you know that?”

  “I’m not sure if I felt or heard it, but I knew to try the door again.”

  He looked at the girls and said, “If something evil has ahold of them, it already knows we’re here. Let’s go. I hope whatever helped you will continue.”

  ########

  Taylor was too far away from the back door to hear her friends enter the manor house. Hunter wasn’t. He was in the main part of the basement gathering the toys he wanted to use when he played with Taylor. He found a few knives, a small branding iron, a whip, and several other items that might come in handy. He hurried back to Taylor and closed the door behind him. He locked it knowing no one could enter through the heavy metal door. They might hear Taylor’s screams, but that would add to the fun.

  Taylor saw Hunter enter the room, drop the items on the table, and lock the metal door. She knew it wasn’t her husband. Something possessed his body. Hunter was her protector, and she needed him to save her, but he was going to kill her. When he turned and looked at her with those evil dark, gray eyes she felt a chill all the way to her bones.

  He smiled and said, “I’m back Red. It’s play time.”

  Taylor’s body racked with sobs. Her wrists bled from the metal shackles, she thought her heart would burst in her chest, and the room began to spin. He took two steps towards her and Taylor passed out.

  “Not fair Red, now we have to wake you up before we play.” He laughed and if Taylor was awake, it would have made her skin crawl.

  A splash of cold water hit Taylor’s face, and she again became aware of where she was and what was about to happen. Hoping her friends could find her, she tried to stall for time.

  “Who are you? I know you’re not Hunter.”

  “No, my name is Thomas. Mama used to call me Tommy and I hated it. I killed her one night while she slept, and no one ever called me Tommy again.”

  “That’s your name, but who are you and why are we here?”

  “I’m the caretaker”

  “The crazy caretaker people talk about?”

  His eyes flashed, and he slapped her face.

  She cringed and said, “I’m sorry. That was rude. I don’t know you.”

  “No you don’t, but you will.” His smile made chills run up her spine, and the hairs on her neck stood on end.

  “Why are you still here?”

  “That’s an interesting story. Want to hear it or better yet see it?”

  Taylor nodded.

  Hunter twirled his hand in front of him, and a mist appeared. Taylor could see the dungeon room in the mist, but it appeared newer and cleaner.

  Thomas said, “I was hired as caretaker and also helped to convert this large cellar into two rooms. The first room we entered was for cold storage. This room was meant to be a wine cellar. Unfortunately, the soil on the grounds was not good for growing grapes, and this area was locked off by a large metal door.”

  Taylor watched the story play out in front of her.

  The young master of the house found Thomas hard at work in the rear garden. “Good morning, Thomas. I need your help with a secret project.”

  “All right, sir”

  “I remember the discussion we had about our love of young women and the feistier they were the better. I have come up with an idea how we can have them whenever we are in the mood.”

  “How?”

  “I have had a few of the maids in the house and they were agreeable. They are enjoying a nice life in the house with a little extra money I give them. If not, I threaten them, and they keep silent, but avoid me. I would like your help building three wooden cells in the unused wine cellar to keep those who are not agreeable. Locked up they can be ours at any time.” His eyebrows rose, and his tongue licked his lips. “What do you think?”

  Thomas smiled, “I like the idea of women available anytime I want one, but why do we need three cells?”

  “I would like to have more than one woman down there. Everyone will assume they ran off and married or headed for the city. They will never be missed, and we’ll have our choice.”

  Taylor could see Thomas’ pleased reaction through the mist. She thought it was like watching a movie in the fog.

  The scene changed, and the young master entered the room and opened a cell. The young woman didn’t move. He kicked her. “Wake up.”

  A soft voice from another cell said, “She hasn’t moved since this morning. Something’s wrong with her.”

  Thinking he must have accidentally killed her; he panicked. He ran to get a large knife and entered the second cell.

  The young woman screamed, but no one in the house heard her. It was the middle of the night. She was soon quiet. He opened the third cell.

  “Please don’t kill me. I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll leave and never come back. No one will ever know. Please, sir. I will keep your secrets.”

  “Quiet,” he shouted and cut her throat with one quick move. Her body collapsed without a sound.

  “Then what happened?” Terror built in Taylor’s chest, and she could barely speak. She knew the longer he spoke to her, the more time she had to live.

  “Now he had three bodies to hide. He came looking for me.”

  “A loud knocking on the door of my room behind the barn woke me. I saw the young master standing there wearing a blood soaked white shirt.”

  “I killed them all; I need your help” He fidgeted around as if bugs were crawling on his skin.

  Taylor watched as Thomas helped the young master bury them and cover them with a thick layer of lye.

  “He told me he would never use the room again, but I wanted the room. I had my own ideas.”

  The odd movie played on, and Thomas hit the young master in the head with the shovel and he dropped on top of the three women. Thomas buried all four.

  “They have never been found. A full scale search for the young master ensued, but his parents gave up. They also assumed he had run off with one of the missing young women.”

  He waved his hand and the misty movie disappeared.

  “I read you were captured and hung. Whatever happened?” asked Taylor her voice becoming weaker with each breath.

  “I used this
place for several months and built the toys you see here. We are far enough underground that no one could hear them scream plus a rag in the mouth makes a great muffler because I can still hear them.” He threw his head back and laughed.

  Taylor tried to pull her hands free, but it was of no use. She only deepened the cuts that were already on her wrists.

  “I found it easier to bury the bodies in pieces and after playing my games with them, many were already in pieces. One night I was caught burying my latest plaything and the two hunters tied me up and dragged me to town. I was tried for all the missing women’s deaths even though only one body was found, and they hung me. I realized I could stay here in spirit form, inhabit a body, and still play games. I don’t do it often since I love only red heads, and it is hard to find one alone. I couldn’t resist you when I saw you yesterday, and your husband’s body was quite agreeable.” He laughed again. “Shall we play now?” He walked over to Taylor and unlocked one wrist shackle.

  Her hand dropped to the floor, and she tried to scoot away. He laughed shaking his head. Taylor heard a buzzing in her ears and thought she was going crazy again. Then she heard a quiet voice, “Don’t worry. The beautiful lady with golden hair was told you are in trouble. She’s looking for you. I will try and help her.” The buzzing disappeared, and Taylor heard the maniacal laugh again.

  He unlocked the second shackle and Taylor collapsed to the floor. She was too weak to fight. He bent over and scooped her up like a rag doll. Taylor tried to scream, but her throat was dry. Nothing emerged except a small squeak. When he laid her on the table, she lost consciousness again.

  When she woke, her feet were shackled to the table, and a leather belt held her mid-section tightly to the table. One of her wrists was wrapped in cloth and Hunter’s possessed body was binding her second wrist. “You were bleeding. I can’t have you bleed to death before it is time.”

  He shackled one bound wrist to the table and reached for the second. Taylor did her best to fight, but she was weak. He shackled her second wrist.

  “What game shall we play first, Red?” Taylor’s eyes widened in fear and her chest rose and dropped rapidly as she tried to catch her breath.