'You really had to choose this house out of so many places in the city.' said Sonali in a slightly angry tone.

'Darling, I know you wanted to live in the busy part of the city, but just look at this house. It is surrounded by greenery. There are so many trees and plants all over. You know there is a small pond at the back of the house, and you would also find many types of birds. And see, the house has been completely renovated as per your choice. Just give this house a chance.' said Ashish with a smile.

Ashish and Sonali stood in front of the house. They looked around. A few houses spread across the place, and the small path connected all the other houses. The chirping of the birds and the sweet smell of the flowers filled the entire atmosphere as a faint smile spread on her face. She was beginning to fall in love with the place. It was quiet. Ashish was an architect and had moved here to renovate an old hotel. Sonali is a fashion photographer. She decided to vacation with Ashish in this quiet place before returning to her assignments.

The smell of antique rust filled the hall when they entered the house. All the household goods were covered. A small spiral staircase on the left led to the two bedrooms on the first floor. The ground floor boasted a large living hall followed by a kitchen and a tidy dining space. A single room was locked on the right side of the kitchen, which served as a guest room. The house was surrounded by greenery and a wooden fence. The locks were old but were functioning correctly. There was a small basement beneath the staircase, which housed all the house's old materials. It was locked, and they were instructed not to open it.

The house's electrical wiring was partially done, and then some parts were to be completed. The place needed a bit of cleaning. The maid was in the kitchen arranging the utensils when they entered the kitchen.

'Hello sir, hello ma'am. I hope you had a pleasant trip. I have arranged the house. There are a few works which will be completed in some time. I have prepared the meal. I hope you like it.' said Shanta, the maid.

'Thank you, Shanta. The food looks delicious. Is your room also ready?' asked Sonali.

Shanta looked tensed. She looked at Ashish; he had not informed Sonali about his discussion with Shanta. He nodded to Shanta to continue working and looked at Sonali.

'She won't be staying here. I had asked her earlier, but the locals have spread some rumours, so she does not want to stay here after the sunset. She will complete all the work and leave in the evening.' said Ashish.

'Seriously, Ashish. You could not get a better house, ' said Sonali disgustedly and moved away to check the backyard.

Ashish ran after Sonali to convince her. Shanta continued arranging the kitchen. She opened a drawer when suddenly her eyes fell on something. The dark object smelt bad and was not moving. Looking at it, she screamed loudly. Ashish and Sonali came inside worried. Shanta was standing in a corner, shaking, and pointed towards a drawer. Ashish slowly moved ahead. Beads of sweat perspired on his forehead. He indicated both of them move back. He picked up a knife and moved ahead. He looked at the drawer and heaved a huge relief.

'It's a dead rat, and I will have it removed. Shanta, you screamed as if you saw a ghost in the house.' laughed Ashish.

Shanta was still trembling. Seeing it, Sonali asked her to go home and come tomorrow so that they could arrange the house properly. Meanwhile, Ashish removed the dead rat and sanitised the cupboard.

'That's not a good sign, Ashish. A dead rat.' said Sonali.

'Don't worry, dear. This is an old house. Tomorrow I will call the pesticides guys to clean the house. You do not have to believe the rumours. Come on, let's eat. We have a lot of unpacking to do.' Ashish winked as he hugged Sonali.

Sonali let out a huge laugh and hugged him back. Meanwhile, the door to the antic closed slowly with a faint creaking sound.

The house was dark and damp. The room felt cold. The faint creaking sound of the wooden flooring was echoed in unequal intervals. The place looked empty, but muffled sounds on the top floor slowly filled the atmosphere. The sudden outburst of thundering and lightning filled the entire house with light and dominated the creaking and the muffled sounds. The raindrops hit the window panes like they are pushing themselves inside. He looked around, but still, he could not find anyone.

The house looked old. The furniture was old. Some were broken and had lost their glory days. The paint has peeled off from the walls exposing the internal structure of the walls. The frames on the wall had a layer of dust on them. It seemed the entire household badly needed a housemaid. The kitchen looked clean and properly arranged. Drops of water were trickling from the kitchen tap. He turned around and looked around. He saw the small spiral staircase near a huge door, presumably the entrance to this dark house. The staircase looked in bad shape. The handrail of the stairs was not firm. It could break at any time. The paint of the walls on the side of the staircase was entirely peeled off. He could hear some muffled sounds beneath the stairs. As he was about to open the basement below the staircase, he heard a scream from the first floor. Suddenly, everything around went blank.

When his eyes opened, he was inside a room dimly lit with candles. The room was hot, and he was already sweating. In the corner of the room, he could see two kids sitting on a chair. When he concentrated, he realised they were tied up. A person wearing a black veil was standing in front of them. The kids' mouths were tied up with clothes, and their muffled screams could not leave the room. Seeing it, he tried to get up but realised he was stuck. He tried hard but could not move. He gave his best, closed his eyes and pulled himself, and when he opened his eyes, the room was changed.

The Shabby room was evenly dimly lit than the previous room, and the curtains covered the windows. He could not see anything as the room was filled with smoke. He could hear coughing sounds and see the blurred image of the same person standing in front of a lady who was tied to a chair. He tried to move through the smoke but failed as he was stuck in the place. He tried to move but could not. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, he was downstairs in the living hall.

The person in the black veil was standing in the middle of the room. He dragged a chair to the centre and sat. He was not able to look at the face. He tried to move around, but still, his face was blurred. The person removed a knife from his pocket and looked at the wall facing him. Suddenly, he moved his knife towards him when Abhay's eyes opened. It was 2:19 am.

'Darling, I am leaving. The pesticide people would be here at 10 am.' informed Ashish as Sonali came down.

Shanta was preparing the breakfast. The first night was silent and suspicious, but Sonali ignored the signs. She was in a cheerful mood. She looked around the house. The house needs cleaning and a bit of renovation.

'Shanta, after you are done with the kitchen, let us work on cleaning the house.' said Sonali as she sat on the sofa and started reading her book.

Shanta had been unreasonably quiet since she came in the morning. Yesterday's incident in the kitchen had disturbed her, and she was busy cleaning the kitchen and preparing breakfast.

'Ma'am, breakfast is ready.' Shanta came and informed Sonali.

'Shanta, why are you so quiet? Are you ok?' questioned Sonali.

Shanta was silent and continued working. Sonali got up from her seat and moved towards her.

'Tell me, Shanta. What happened?' Sonali asked.

'Ma'am, nothing. Actually, I am a bit disturbed about yesterday's incident. My husband and many others warned me not to take up work at this house, but I needed work badly and so could not say no. I am not getting good vibes here.' said Shanta.

'It's ok, Shanta. You do not have to worry about it. Whatever you must have heard are all rumours. People make up these stories to create a local folk tale, or maybe people are jealous that you have a good house to work in. You do not think about it. Let us get to work today. We have to clean it up properly and have your breakfast.' said Sonali with a smile.

They began with the huge living room. Shanta had cleaned the house, but Sonali needed it up to her mark. They both started cleaning the room while discussing their families.

'Shanta, do you have the keys to this room and the basement.' Sonali said.

'No, ma'am. The caretaker of the house had strictly asked not to open these rooms, and she did not give the keys to these two rooms as well. She does not live here but comes here once in a while to clean up this place.' said Shanta.

'Who is the caretaker, and what is present behind these doors?' asked Sonali, confused.

'The caretaker does not stay here, and she is the only living member of the owner's family.' said Shanta.

'Living member? What do you mean by it, Shanta?' asked a confused Sonali.

"No, ma'am, nothing. Please ignore it. Let us start with the housework,' said Shanta.

'Shanta, tell me now.' said Sonali sternly.

Shanta looked tensed. She sat in the corner, wiped her forehead and started slowly.

'Many years ago, Supriya's family had shifted here. She was the youngest daughter of the family. She had three elder sisters. Her father was a rich businessman who had purchased this old building. I was very young then, but my mother used to say they were a good family. My mother used to work here. But, the local people used to say that the house was cursed. The original owner died many years ago, and his spirit roamed the house. But, Supriya's father did not believe in such stories. He got the place at a low price from a person who had taken over the house after the death of the original house. I do not have all the details. They moved here and lived happily. But their happiness was short-lived as one morning when my mother came to work, she found the entire family murdered in cold blood and Supriya's father kneeling before their children and his wife covered in blood. The knife was drenched in blood. When the police came, he had no recollection of what happened, but he was found on the spot with all the proof. He was sentenced to death. Luckily, Supriya was not in the house that unfaithful night. Since that day, Supriya never came back. The house has been abandoned since then. Supriya sends her people to clean the house once in a while. I do not know how Ashish sir got in touch with Supriya and got this house. Even she was not giving the house to anyone.' said Shanta.

Sonali listened in silence. She was terrified beyond reason but decided to stay calm, saying, 'This is absurd, Shanta. Just because the husband became mad and killed his family does not mean the house is cursed. People have a habit of putting all the strange things on dark spirits. Yes, the mansion gives a spooky feeling because it is old. Apart from it, just because murders took place does not mean the place is haunted. In this case, no one should ever go to the burial grounds. Listen, do not worry about it. I think Supriya must have kept her family belongings in the closed room. Let us leave those rooms and work on the others.'

With it, they both got up and moved to the rooms on the first floor. Sonali acted normal, but deep down, she was terrified and decided to talk to Ashish about it. She made a mental note of it as they picked up the clothes and brooms for cleaning.

'What is it, Sonali? You seem so quiet.' asked Ashish.

'Ashish, did you know about the place before you took it on rent?' asked Sonali.

Ashish said nothing. He looked at the magazine kept on the table.

'Tell me, Ashish.' asked Sonali, a bit irritated.

'Yes, but I did not want to disturb you. You know how people make stories about old buildings. We have seen so many old buildings like that. I know there were murders in this building, but that does not make it haunted.' said Ashish.

'I do not feel good about it. What if the place is actually haunted? Why did the person kill the entire family?' said Sonali.

'Listen, Sonali. The man was in heavy debt, and he could not save his business. One night came home drunk and killed his entire family. After that day, the house was empty, and no one dared to stay as people told stories that the family's spirits still haunted the house. This is purely a story so that no one stays in the house. We got this on rent at a cheap rate. Plus, my work would be over in six months, and we would be out of here.' said Ashish.

'I do not see it just as a story. Anyways, let's hope it is just a story.' said Sonali as they both moved towards the dinner table. A shadow slowly moved behind them and slid upstairs.

Days passed after this discussion. Their lives moved on smoothly, and Sonali slowly fell in love with the place. With Shanta, she decorated the house. While Ashish was busy with his work, she had taken a break from her work to enjoy the place. He could not give time to Sonali but made sure to be available for dinner. His project had a deadline, and he had to finish before it. She felt someone was inside the house, but she ignored it.

'Hey, listen, today I have to stay at the site. Can you stay alone, or you would like to come over here?' asked Ashish.

Sonali was silent. He could hear her breathing faintly.

'Sonu, tell me.' asked Ashish.

'Don't worry, Ashish. I can manage. But I don't want it to be a regular thing. I still do not feel right about this place.' said Sonali.

'Don't worry. This is the first and last time. Listen, I have to go now. See you tomorrow.' saying Ashish disconnected the call.

Sonali continued to sit on her sofa, looking at the closed door in front of her. Shanta had already left after completing her work, and Sonali was alone in the huge house. She picked up her book and started to read before going ahead with other work.

Sonali did not realise when the dark moonless night took over the day. She got up, clicked on the house's light, and went to the kitchen. He opened the fridge when she felt someone behind her. She turned around, and there was no one. As she again turned towards the refrigerator, she screamed as she saw a burnt face, and in a flash, there was no one in front of her. She shook in fear as she dragged herself away from the fridge to the kitchen's corner. The lights in the kitchen flickered, and she saw someone crawling swiftly across the hall. She could hear a faint scream across the hall. The fridge closed slowly. She looked for her mobile, but she had left it on her sofa. She slowly turned towards the hall, and her eyes remained wide open. Her scream got lost in the loud thundering sound followed by rain. The lights went off.

Sonali found the courage and started to run towards her room. She was running up the stairs when something held her and pulled her down. She screamed in pain as her face hit the stairs. Blood oozed out of her face while she rolled down the stairs. She was lying on the floor, bleeding and in extreme pain when she saw the locked door in the hall open slowly. She saw a faint light coming out from it. She was slowly losing her senses because of the fall. She was in extreme pain while lying on her pool of blood. As her eyes winked, she saw someone standing before her, and all the lights went off. It started raining heavily.

As usual, Shanta came to her work in the morning. She found the main door open and was surprised. She slowly opened the door and looked inside.

'Ma'am, are you there?' said Shanta in a loud tone.

There was no response. She looked around and was shocked to see the house in a mess. She knew something was wrong. Before she could call someone, she saw blood near the stairs and screamed. She could hear footsteps on the upper floor and ran outside, closing the main door. The police reached and sealed the building. Inspector Madhav got down from his vehicle, wore his gloves and went inside the house.

The house was swarming with police and the forensic team. A constable came to Madhav and gave a crisp salute.

'Sir, good morning. We have the accused with us. Please come with me.' said the constable in a confident tone.

Madhav was surprised but decided to follow the constable. You can never call anyone accused until all the proof has been gathered. But he needed to see with his own eyes before passing any judgements. He was taken inside a room on the first floor, where forensics collected evidence and clicked pictures. The body of Sonali was lying on the floor, covered in blood. A butcher's knife was lying near her, covered in blood. There were several stab marks on her body. Her clothes were soaked deep in blood. Her eyes reflected the horror she saw in the final moments of her life.

'You were talking about the accused. Where is the person?' asked Madhav.

'Sir, this way. We have held him in the second room. He was found in the room with the weapon in his hand and covered in blood. He is the victim's husband, Mr Ashish, who is here for an architectural project and has been staying with his wife for some time in this house. The local folks say that this place is haunted.' said the constable.

'What rubbish? Not every time that angle can be put while solving a case.' Madhav ignored him as he entered the room.

Ashish was sitting on a chair. He was in complete shambles, and his white shirt was covered in blood. His hair was completely dishevelled. Two police constables stood around him. He was shaking, looking at the floor and mumbling something. Madhav dragged a chair and sat in front of him.

'So, Mr Ashish, tell me what happened here?' Madhav came straight to the point.

Ashish was silent. He was staring at the floor.

'Your silence won't help you, Ashish. You need to talk because things are not looking in favour of you.' said Madhav.

'I... I... di... didn't do anything, sir. I am innocent.' mumbled Ashish slowly.

'So, tell me what happened.' said Madhav handing him a glass of water.

Ashish gulped down the water in a second and slowly started, 'Sir, I had informed her that I would not be coming last night because of work, but things wrapped up, and I decided to go home. When I reached home, it started raining heavily. I parked the car and knew Sonali would be sleeping. So, without calling her, I went inside. It was strange to see the house in darkness. I went inside and tried switching the lights, but there was no power supply. I turned on my mobile light and looked for the torch. Suddenly I felt like I stood on something wet, and when I looked down, I was shocked to see the blood. I started to go up when everything went dark. After that, I do not remember anything. When I came to my senses, I saw her lying on the floor, dead. Ashish started to cry.

'There is something wrong. Did you check the camera at the entrance? See if there are cameras anywhere else. Get the weapon tested and ask the doctor to conduct the post-mortem as soon as possible. I need the reports directly on my table, and I will also speak to the doctor.' said Madhav to the constable. 'Meanwhile, take him to custody for interrogation.'