The door crept open, sending a shiver down my spine.

"What the hell?" I heard my friend say from behind me.

"Come on, Lucy. Let's go, " my other friend added.

Ignoring the pair, I peeked around the door to find the house empty. I expected it to be dusty and rundown. Yet, you would have sworn someone lived inside. From what I could make out of the kitchen directly in front of me, there were pots and pans stacked beside a sink. In the hall were three coats hung on the wall and a small table at the bottom of the stairs with fresh flowers in a vase. At just the sight, my heart picked up speed, thrilling me.

"Just let me look, " I called to them. "Wait there." I hurried inside before they could object.

As soon as I entered, the door closed. My body began to tremble now, a voice in my head telling me to run.

I took a step, the floor beneath me creaking. I paused, waiting for something to happen. Anything. But nothing did. I gulped before taking another.

This time the sound of creaking from above me stopped me in my tracks. My shaking intensified as my legs stiffened. The whole building drew to a quiet, the only noise was my heavy breathing that came from my nostrils.

When no further sound came, I continued towards the kitchen. The closer I got, the more it came into view. From around the entrance, I noticed the edge of a table with a newspaper and a mug. The counters that ran along the edge of the room appeared spotless.

Someone had to live here.

I went to tiptoe into the room when muffled sounds caught my attention. My head snapped towards a small door under the staircase. I narrowed my eyes, cautiously approaching it as the noise became louder.

Slowly, I gripped the handle and carefully twisted it, making a click. The door swung open revealing a dark basement, and I drew back when a strong rotten smell ran up my nose, making me gag. Covering my face with my shirt, I forced myself to look inside, but the room seemed too dark to make anything out clearly. I decided to head deeper inside until again, the muffled noise caught my attention.

My eyes darted to something in the corner of the room. I couldn't make out what it was, but it wriggled and continued to let out muted screams. That's when I realised it was a person.

My eyes widened and for a split second, I froze as my heart picked up the pace. It told me to run to them, but the voice in my head still yelled at me to bolt it. However, I followed my heart, pushing aside the warnings. I hurried down the stairwell, guessing each step. My legs quickly moved to the person chained to the floor.

As I got closer, I noted the person to be a man in his twenties, who appeared to be naked. His body was covered in dirt, bad cuts and bruises. His hair was a messy mop and tears soaked the cloth in his mouth. He seemed to be trying to say something, but I didn't know what.

"Are you ok? I'll call for help." I assured him, but this only seemed to bother him. I jumped up from the spot and went to spin around when suddenly, the door slammed shut.

"Well, who do we have here?"