Castle

Prologue

PROLOGUE

MILLIE

I stared at my backpack.

Inside there were some clothes, a toothbrush, toothpaste, some makeup, my almost empty wallet containing fifty dollars, and a hairbrush.

I looked around my room, knowing I wouldn’t miss a thing about being in this place. The past six years here had been nothing short of a nightmare, and every corner was a grim reminder of that. I descended the stairs, hoping to put it all behind me.

Nothing in this house was worth remembering. If it was possible, I wanted to forget everything; starting with my uncle Mark and his son, Ray.

The only reason I stayed for as long as I did was for my aunt, who was ill and passed away last week.

Now, I had no reason to live in this house.

After my aunt’s passing, not a day went by that I didn’t plan on escaping.

I tiptoed down the hallway and threw a glance at the living room. Mark was seated on the raggedy old couch. A puff of smoke permeated the air, and the ashtray was decorated with cigarette butts. For a forty-five-year-old man, he looked at least ten years older.

He was intently watching something on the TV and chugging a large can of beer when his eyes landed on me. His face twisted into an ugly smile.

“Where are you going,honey?” His words were slurred.

I dropped my bag on the floor out of his sight as I answered him, “I’m just going to Perry’s house. Forgot my notebook there.” I said, letting the lie roll naturally from my lips.

“Alright, but don’t be late. I hate to be kept waiting.” He sneered at me before looking back at the television screen.

I masked the look of pure disgust as I pocketed some money lying around on the table. I opened the door to the old rickety house and sniffed the air of freedom as soon as I stepped outside. My cousin Ray’s old beat-up truck was parked out front, but he wasn’t anywhere in sight. I assumed he was working on one of his useless cars in the garage.

The trees whooshed as I walked past them. I looked once at the cornfields and tried not to think of all the vile stuff that happened back there.

The scarecrow standing alone in the dark looked like a prop right out of a macabre horror movie, like it was going to follow me.

Cars zoomed past me, some men passed dirty comments, and others offered me a ride. I’d dressed appropriately in jeans and a loose fitted tank top. I’d also pulled on a jacket to cover myself, so there was nothing scandalous to look at here. I guess it didn’t matter, just as long as a woman was walking alone on the street; men were going to whistle and cat-call.

Twenty minutes later, I found the bus stop that was going to take me to my final destination. I had to wait for another thirty minutes before a bus pulled up before the station. I climbed in and took the very first seat that was vacant by the door.

Goodbye fucked up past, and hello bright future!

This felt like an adventure as if I was letting fate decide what was in store for me. I tried not to be too upset about not having much cash or losing a permanent home—especially since, if I wasn’t hired for this job as planned, I would be practically homeless.

I opened the app on my phone and checked all the jobs I’d marked important and only one of them was in the same location I was heading towards.

One ad read:

NEED A FULL-TIME BABYSITTER.

Should be beautiful with curves and no scars. Interested candidates kindly send your details ;)

I rolled my eyes. Am I supposed to take this seriously?

Why did a babysitter need to have curves? I knew this ad looked sketchy as hell and there was no doubt in my mind that this man was a perv trying to catch unsuspecting teenage girls. I reported the ad and scrolled through more. A few minutes later, I finally found the one that I was looking for.

The advertisement on the app read:

Looking for a dedicated live-in nanny to join our family an a full-time basis.

Requirements:

Minimum one year of work experience.

Education: Higher Secondary (At least)

Perks and Benefits:

Free Accommodation and meals.

Additional allowance provided when necessary.

Interested candidates, please send your CV to the email below.

I’d applied for this job a few weeks ago and was surprised when I’d heard from them. The man said the family wanted to meet me before they gave me the job, and something in the man’s voice told me I could indeed get selected.

I squeezed my aunt’s photo between my fingers. I had a very good feeling about this.

The signage for Ambervale town came into view and I asked the driver about the address of the house that I was visiting. His brows hit the roof when he read it and asked me if that’s really where I planned to stop and when I said yes, he laughed mockingly, which was a little strange. I mean, it’s not like I’d asked him to drop me off on a different planet.

When I asked him what was funny, he shrugged it off like it was no biggie.

It’s when he dropped me off the bus that I realized why he seemed to think I was crazy.

In front of me were two huge metal gates with the letters ‘M’ on them. I stared at it in awe and into the far distance, my eyes focused on the very large and daunting house, a gothic mansion that looked right out of an Architectural Digest magazine, or a horror movie. You take the pick. The opulence and the grandness of it were nothing like I’d ever seen before.

I decide to call on the number that was provided on the app.

“Hi, this is Millicent. I applied for the job and received a call to come for the interview.” My voice was a little anxious and shaky. “I just arrived at the location. Is this the right address?”

I heard a deep masculine chuckle on the other end of the line. “I see you, Millicent. Please come inside.”

He could see me?

Just then, I noticed the surveillance cameras surrounding the area.

The gates to the house opened slowly, and I stepped through them, completely unaware of the horrors that awaited me.