Miss Planeswalker, are you free for romance?

"Very good, I guess we need to discuss some other things."

She hooked her finger at the young girl.

Chapter 4 Failed Escape

"Are your parents still alive?"

"My mother... passed away when I was young. My father also passed away last year."

"I'm so sorry... Have you ever taken care of them like this?"

"I would have. But I didn't expect him to leave so quickly."

Mrs. De was holding a cigarette, and the hazy smoke blurred her old outline. In the smoke, Caroline seemed to hear her mumbling: "Yes, I spend too much time thinking about the remaining life, and forget to live well..."

After a few sighs, the old man cheered up: "Be kind to my husband and his house, okay? Caroline."

Of course, this is a job she loves.

However, one day...

She was still curious.

'Where are my trillium seeds?'

Mrs. De held the potted plant and turned it over and over in the flower basket, muttering: "I remember I put it in - Caroline? "

"I'm here?" Caroline was looking after Ben - in fact, he was just reading a book. Ben, the old man, could sit in a wheelchair all day without moving. Her job was much easier than she thought.

"Can you please do me a favor? Go to the attic. No, not too deep. It's on the shelf next to the entrance stairs. The trillium seeds seem to have been taken down... I remember I..."

Caroline stood up.

Go upstairs and open the gray-white wooden door.

There is an indescribable smell in the attic. It smells good, but not common. It's like the smell of burning incense. The faint smell makes people relax involuntarily.

Opposite the staircase was a stone fireplace, which had fallen into disrepair and the patterns carved on the white stone were difficult to discern. On both sides were shelves filled with tightly covered bottles and jars.

Caroline saw a lot of ceramic products at her feet. Thinking about Mrs. De's exaggerated words, she counted them in her hands and checked the seed paper bags.

suddenly.

She heard the slightest noise.

Click.

Like the clicking sound of metal gears meshing or a stem jamming.

From the fireplace.

A fireplace hidden by shelves.

As we got closer, we saw that the source of the sound was blocked by the fireplace.

An older and more dilapidated wooden door, as if someone was pushing and twisting it from behind, the brass door handle clicking and turning, the door naturally pushed outwards, but was blocked by the shelf and bounced back...

Click…

Click.

She slowly took out the key and inserted it into the keyhole...

Twist.

Click.

'Caroline!'

In the attic, which was silent except for the sound of the door being opened, her brain was suddenly filled with a call!

The girl woke up from her trance, pulled out the key, grabbed the paper bag and turned around and left.

He went downstairs quickly, crossed the corridor and entered the garden.

"What took you so long?"

Mrs. De was still fiddling with her plants.

"I'm sorry," Caroline gasped. "I thought that key would open all the doors."

The old woman looked up in surprise: "What key?"

"It's the one you gave me. You told me that I could use it to open all the doors."

"Um…"

"But there's a door in the attic that won't open."

"Oh. I know what you mean." The old woman pushed up her sun hat and smiled. "That door has never been opened... seeds, yes, that's them."

"why?"

"what?"

"Why can't it be opened?"

"We don't know why it won't open, or what's inside. We have no idea. Caroline, that door has never been opened since we moved in. I have to go sow the seeds quickly. I heard it's going to rain today."

The obviously perfunctory words did not reassure Caroline.

That door...

Twist and push the door.

What's behind this?

people?

still…

I returned to my room anxiously.

As expected, it rained heavily at night.

As I tossed and turned in bed, I heard the tiny clicking sound again.

No, it's not the same.

Caroline sat up suddenly, and when the lightning illuminated the room, she quickly put on her clothes, opened the door and ran to the second floor.

thump…

dong dong.

"Book?"

The door was pushed open a little, and there was no one on the bed.

"Book?!"

Only that weird old vinyl record was spinning.

"Book?"

Click... click...

The sound of nails scratching came from outside the window. In the pouring rain at night, the sound was so small that it was almost unnoticeable.

Caroline opened the window in horror.

Ben was there.

The 'paralyzed' old man, like a wet maggot, crawled on the eaves relying on his stiff arms.

The rain soaked his sea-blue pajamas, outlining his originally skinny body.

A dying skeleton.

"Book--!"

Caroline screamed, but the old man struggled even harder to crawl out - and then the slippery eaves threw him out.

It landed on the lawn outside the first floor door.

boom!

There was a dull sound of something falling to the ground.

“Oh my god…!!”

"Mrs. Devereux--!!"

She screamed and rushed down the stairs and into the rain!

"Book!"

The old man who fell to the ground was still struggling.

"Ben! What are you doing? It's me! Caroline!"

"Ah...ah..."

The old man's roar was mixed with meaning that Caroline didn't understand. As the two people twisted and struggled, the hostess finally followed them out.

She was awakened by Caroline's scream.

"my God…"

Now, all three of them were in the rain.

"Caroline! What did he, you, do?!" Mrs. Devereux accused Caroline: "What on earth is going on?!"

Caroline screamed into the rain, "I don't know, he climbed out of the window!"

"Didn't you feed him the medicine?!"

"Hey!"

"Are you sure he drank it? Go get the wheelchair, we have to push him in!"

There was a rush.

The wheelchair is in Ben's room, just off the…

——When was this cloth put on it?

Caroline glimpsed a long strip of white cloth tucked under the wheelchair cushion.

Unfold.

Simple words scrawled in black charcoal.

"Save me"

Click!

A flash of lightning lit up the room.

Save me…?

"Caroline!"

Outside the window, Mrs. Devereux was still calling her.

Caroline crumpled up the white cloth, stuffed it roughly into the closet, and pushed the wheelchair downstairs with a heavy heart.

"Help me! Yes, hold his side!"

I don’t know if it was an illusion, but when Caroline picked up Ben, she always felt that the old man was staring at her with eyes full of anger and regret.

Yes, just look into her eyes.

The old man hadn't lost a moment's pause as he was lifted from the dirt and put back into the wheelchair, and Caroline was sure she saw anger and regret.

as well as…

Seems like an urgent urging?

Mr. Ben, what on earth have you been through?

Caroline touched the old man's skinny arms and legs, and was at a loss for a moment.