Enix's heart was pounding with excitement as the family's car wound its way through the rugged terrain.

But as the road grew narrower and rougher, Enix began to feel uneasy.

There's a sense of isolation and abandonment, and it seemed as if they were the only ones left in the world.

Enix's father had always been practical, and knew that the low price of the house in Majayjay was too good to pass up.

They had spent many summers suffocating in Manila's polluted air, and a change of scenery was long overdue.

Enix's family had been dreaming of their vacation home in the countryside for a long time.

As they arrived, the house looked beautiful, with a garden and a porch, perfect for relaxation.

The family was excited to explore the spacious and comfortable rooms.

However, when the mother went to check the terrace, she felt uneasy.

The metal bars that surrounded it were closed tightly, and there was no visible escape.

"I don't feel safe with these bars locked up like this. What if something happens and we can't escape?"

Despite her unease, she couldn't help but be drawn to the deep well in the garden, knowing it would be a great source of fresh water for the family.

During a moment of rest, his mother can't help but ask, "Why was this house sold at such a low price? It doesn't make sense."

"I'm not sure, but I heard that the former owner needed money urgently and was moving to another country. They probably wanted to sell the house quickly."

Enix's mother was surprised by this revelation.

It didn't quite add up, and she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

Life in the countryside was different from what they were used to. There was no cable TV or internet connection, and Enix found himself bored.

One evening, as he watched a saved movie on his phone, a loud bang echoed through the house, followed by a deafening scream. Enix rushed to the kitchen.

"Mom, was that you screaming?"

"What are you talking about? I was just cooking dinner."

Enix couldn't believe what he was hearing.

If it wasn't his mother who had screamed, then who was it?

And where had the loud bang come from?

As he stood there, trying to make sense of it all, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was very wrong in this house.

Enix realized that he was the only one who had heard the loud bang and the screams.

Was he going crazy?

He brushed these thoughts aside.

He decided to go outside to check on the light post. As he walked out, he felt a sense of relief wash over him.

But as he turned to go back inside, something caught his eye.

A shadowy figure ran across the side of the house, disappearing into the darkness.

Enix was scared and didn't know what to do.

He held up a nearby wooden dustpan as a weapon.

He could see the area thanks to the faint light of a post.

When he saw a shadowy figure, he was relieved when he realized it was just a trick of the light.

However, he noticed a small basement with metal bars and chains that appeared to have been locked up for a long time.

The rust on the hinges and the lock were significant.

Enix was shocked by what he had discovered.

What could be locked away in that basement?

Enix rushed back inside the house to tell his parents about the locked basement.

"Mom, Dad, I found a locked basement outside. You have to see it!"

"We'll check it out tomorrow morning," his Mom said, "but it's too dark to do anything now. Just try to get some rest, and we'll deal with it in the morning."

Despite his mother's warning, Enix couldn't shake the feeling of curiosity about the locked basement.

But I won't be able to sleep, I need to know what's down there

He went back inside the house and searched through the drawers until he found an old matchbox. It wasn't much, but it was all they had – they didn't have a flashlight or any other sources of light.

Enix took a deep breath, slipped the matchbox into his pocket, and headed back to the basement.

Holding up a match, he tried to illuminate the dark and mysterious basement.

He saw stairs that descended into the darkness, and couldn't resist the temptation to take a closer look.

Ignoring the way the rusted metal scraped against his skin, he reached through the metallic bars, attempting to brighten the area with his tiny matchstick.

But he suffered a burn on his hand, and in his panic, accidentally threw the lit matchstick down the stairs.

In that brief moment, something caught his eye.

He could have sworn he saw a hand strike out and extinguish the flame, as if someone was down there in the darkness, trying to hide from view.

Enix was shocked and terrified by what he saw.

He rushed back inside the house to tell his parents, and his father noticed the look of fear on his face.

"What did you see?" he asked with concern.

"There's someone in the basement. I saw a hand, and I'm sure of it."

Enix's father was taken aback by his son's claim and decided to investigate.

Enix insisted on coming along, wielding the wooden dustpan once more.

With a key, his father unlocked the metal bars to the basement with a screech.

Descending the stairs with a matchstick for light, they called out, "Is someone there? We own this house, and if you're trespassing, we'll have to call the police."

Using a couple of matchsticks, they searched for the light switch and eventually found it.

The basement was cluttered with old and unused items, and the silence made them feel uneasy.

Enix noticed a cassette player and some cassette tapes among the clutter and felt drawn to them.

Enix was completely focused on the cassette player and the possibility of discovering new music or stories on the tapes.

But when his father saw him engrossed in the cassette player, he couldn't help but wonder if his son had just been making an excuse to explore the basement.

"Did you really see something out there, or were you just trying to find an excuse to check out the basement?"

Enix didn't answer the question.

"Do you think this still works?"

His father sighed and shook his head, but he couldn't deny the look of excitement on his son's face.

Maybe there was something to be gained from exploring the basement after all.

Enix's excitement from the previous night turned into disappointment when his father refused to let him take the cassette player and tapes upstairs.

His mother greeted them anxiously, asking if they found anything.

"Just a bunch of old stuff," his father replied with a shrug. "We'll have to clean out the basement and see what we can do with it. But for now, it's just a cluttered mess."

The next morning, Enix was eager to go back into the basement and explore the cassette tapes further.

But his father had other plans.

"You can take the cassette player and tapes up to your room if you want, but you'll just be in the way down here. We've got some cleaning to do."

Enix took the cassette player and tapes upstairs, eager to uncover any hidden secrets.

He remembered the backmasking technique he had learned about and unscrewed a cassette tape of a hardcore band.

Unfortunatelt, the music was just noise and mumbled words when he played it.

He was about to turn off the player when he heard a faint sound of a woman's voice

"Help me,"

It was barely audible, but he was certain he had heard it.

Enix rewound the tape and played it again, straining to hear the faint voice of the woman.

Her words sent chills down his spine as he listened intently.

"I'm in the basement,"

"I need help."

"Please, someone help me."

As the cassette tape continued to play, the woman's screams echoed through the room.

"Help me! My husband buried me and cemented me in the basement. I can't get out. Please,"

Enix was in tears as he ran to his parents and shared what he had heard on the cassette tape.

They were skeptical but decided to check the basement once more, and noticed a newly cemented area that looked suspicious.

Enix's father called for help and gathered some neighbors to witness what they were about to do.

Together, they worked hard to dig through the cement, and after a while, they uncovered something terrible.

Enix's family was stunned to find the corpse of a woman buried in their basement, and they immediately called the police to report the grisly discovery.

As they waited for the authorities to arrive, the family tried to make sense of what had happened.

"How could someone do something so evil?" Enix's mother wondered aloud, her voice trembling with emotion.

Enix's father was equally shaken by the discovery.

"We need to report this to the authority," he said firmly.

The family huddled together, waiting for the police to arrive and hoping that justice would be served for the poor woman who had been buried alive.

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months as the family waited for news on the investigation.

Enix's parents talked in hushed tones, discussing the latest updates with each other.

One day, the police came to their door with news that the former owner of the house had been arrested in connection with the murder.

Enix's family felt a sense of relief knowing that justice would be served, but the memory of the woman's desperate cries for help and the horror of finding her body would stay with them forever.

It took a couple of years for the family to sell the house and move on from the traumatic events that had occurred there, but they eventually found peace and closure knowing that the killer had been brought to justice.

 

 

Binge-read advanced chapters on Toodat