The Secret We Bury

Maxine couldn't shake off the feeling of fear as she walked to work the next evening. She couldn't stop thinking about Mrs. Thatcher's apartment. The dark room, the whispers, and the strange words in the diary all felt like a bad dream. But the fear she felt was real. Too real.

As she walked, the building, Crescent Apartments, loomed ahead of her. The streetlights cast long shadows, making the old building look even more sinister. Maxine hesitated at the entrance, her mind replaying Daniel's warning from the night before. "This building is cursed."

Trying to shake off her anxiety, she pushed the door open and stepped inside. The lobby was quiet, with only dim lighting to illuminate the space. Maxine's footsteps echoed softly as she made her way to the security office. She needed to focus on her job and not let her imagination run wild.

As she sat down at her desk, the intercom crackled to life. It was Daniel's voice, calm but serious. "Maxine, meet me on the roof in ten minutes. We need to talk."

Maxine's stomach twisted. She hadn't spoken to Daniel since he pulled her out of Mrs. Thatcher's apartment the night before. She didn't want to be alone with him, but she knew she couldn't ignore him. He seemed to know more about what was going on than he let on.

Reluctantly, Maxine left the security office and took the elevator to the top floor. As she stepped out onto the rooftop, the cold night air hit her. Daniel was waiting near the edge, his back to her, staring out at the city.

"I'm here," Maxine said, her voice betraying her nervousness.

Daniel turned to face her, his expression unreadable. "There's something you need to know," he began, his tone serious. "Something I should have told you sooner."

Maxine crossed her arms, trying to steady herself. "What is it?"

Daniel took a deep breath, weighing his words carefully. "This building has a dark history. A terrible ritual was performed here, a blood pact that bound the spirits of the dead to this place. They're trapped, unable to move on, and every few decades, the curse needs to be renewed. That was what happened to Mrs Thatcher.

Maxine was very scared. Daniel was telling her that a woman who lived in the apartment was murdered in a ritual. "She was not happy about it," Daniel said. "But the person who did it,used her body to make the ritual stronger. And now, the same thing might happen to you."

Maxine felt a cold wind blow through her. She didn't want to believe it, but she knew it was true. She had felt strange things happening to her, like someone was watching her.

"We have to stop it," Maxine said. "There has to be a way to break the curse."

Daniel was sad, but he said, "Yes, there is a way. But it's very dangerous. We have to go to the place where the ritual was done and destroy the thing that keeps the curse going."

Maxine was very scared, but she knew she had to do it. She couldn't just sit and wait to be taken by the curse.They both went down to the basement of the building, where the ritual was done years ago.

The air was bad and the lights were flickering. Maxine felt like she was walking to her doom. But Daniel was with her and she knew he would help her.

When they got to the room where the ritual was done, Maxine felt like she was surrounded by evil spirits. She saw things moving in the shadows and heard whispering in her ear. But she was determined to break the curse.

Maxine and Daniel went to the altar and destroyed it. The spirits were very angry, but they didn't stop. They kept going until the curse was broken.

But then, Daniel whispered to her and said, "It's not over yet. Something worse is coming."