CHAPTER 21

Wooden steps descending into the dark were the only visible sights for Bree. She decided to follow the stairs to see where they lead. The wooden stairs made a very screechy "creak" sound every time they came in contact with the pressure of her feet, sending slight chills down her spine. The 13 steps lead to a cement floor with mildew spiderwebbed across it.

A bare bulb light with a pull string was dangling in the centre of the basement. The scraped-up washing machine and dryer sitting against the wall beside a shelf holding laundry soap and stain removers didn't seem convincing to Bree. There were small grimy windows with dead flies on the sill. Beside the shelf were old boxes and crates filled with memorabilia (decorations, keepsakes, books, and other collectables of the house owners.

Horrible looking, mismatched furniture waiting to be refurbished or repaired was collecting dust by the end of the basement right by what seemed to be a door. Bree was confused and curious. She was curious about what was behind that door that had 13 different locks. She was confused in why everything in this house seemed to be tied with the number 13. Was it someone's birthdate? Was it a death date? She was too puzzled to even think of what would be the use of a secret door in a basement. All she could think of is how she is going to get that door open.

"That's right! I almost forgot he tagged along!" Bree had just remembered that Yeon came along with her.

She dashed up those old and creaky stairs to go get Yeon to help her open the mystery door in the basement.

*Meanwhile upstairs*

Yeon was wondering about the dark, empty hallway upstairs, hoping to find clues. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought this was a haunted house and he is like some ghost hunter exploring the place for a good documentary. There were 4 bedrooms upstairs which he found very odd as Bree's place only had 3. However, he assumed they did a major renovation and let that slide.

"Miss little devil said not to leave any traces. She didn't say I wasn't allowed in the rooms, did she?" he asked his reflection in the mirror at the end of the hallway.

He then searched all of the 3 rooms on the left side of the stairs. There wasn't much in any of the rooms. All he found was a wooden ladle on the floor of the 2nd bedroom which looked like a little girl's room.

"Funny! She must have forgotten to spill the tea about the neighbour's daughter. Oh Bree, you little forgetful brat!" he said chuckling to himself.

He then walked over to the other side of the hallway to check out the last room. That particular side of the hallway had a very dark and deadly vibe. Yet, he was trying his best not to disappoint his 24/7 curious, sweet but psychotic girlfriend who has high hopes for him all the time. So, he gathered all the courage left in him to open that door. As he was twisting the doorknob of the fourth room, he felt a slight brush of air against his exposed forehead.

"OH, HELL NO! I AIN'T DOING THIS! NAH MAN THIS ISN'T RIGHT!" Yeon was freaking out and silent yelling, if that was a real thing.

"Doing what, scaredy-cat?" Bree snuck up behind him.

"Jesus, Bree! Don't do that! OMG! Why do you have to be so good at sneaking up on people?" he almost threw his hands thinking she was a ghost.

"Sorry if I startled you but realistically speaking, there ain't no unholy spirit as cute as me. Don't worry!" she was trying to cheer him up and change the atmosphere.

"Easy for you to say! Do you know the amount of anxiety I was experiencing while approaching this particular door?" Yeon's voice cracked while yelling.

"Yeah, can't relate. It's alright. I'll help you!" she seemed particularly excited to break in.

"Well, someone is enjoying her free pass in trespassing. Do this often?" he smirked while looking at her hands which were covered in dust.

"Let's just say doing this kind of activity is how I picture my first date. You know, forcing an entry, dressing up like a cat burglar, those kinds of things. It's thrilling!" she sounded genuine, which scared Yeon even more.

"You're scaring me a lil' bit, not gon' lie!" he was worried about her unhealthy obsession.

"Don't worry, hun! I'm not going to be like a burglar or anything like that. I prefer not to be wanted by the police. Would you, by any chance, like to force an entry sometime? Just asking!" she looked at him wide-eyed.

"If you want to, then sure! But I, myself am not interested in these illegal activities that are severely punishable by the law. I know you can do it without getting caught!" he teased.

"Let's focus on the main issue here, shall we?" she tried to avoid the topic.

Yeon was keeping watch while Bree was picking the locks one by one. The first five were child's play to her. The ones that came after were the real deal. One thing is certain. The person who owned that room didn't want anyone accessing it. Who would even think of installing 13 locks for a bedroom door? The main door downstairs had only one lock, with no hatch by the way.

After several tries, Bree managed to unlock 12 out of the 13 weird locks of the haunted-looking bedroom door. The last one was a rotary combination lock. A rotary combination lock is a special lock commonly used to secure safes (mostly used in bank vaults) and as an unkeyed padlock mechanism. This particular type of locking mechanism consists of a single dial which must be rotated left and right in a certain combination to open the lock. One wrong turn and that's it! It will be locked forever, or at least that's what they teach you in movies.