ofdollpartsâ:
She snaps out of the initial shock enough to pull her phone out of her pocket, fingers fumbling to unlock it and open up her friendsâ Whatsapp group. Tyler Hathawayâs here, Henley types, glancing between her screen and the manâs back to make sure he doesnât see, we heard something. Heâs trying to open the door, be careful.
When Tyler talks again, she jumps a little, fingers scrambling to lock her phone and stuff it back into her pocket. Sheâs luckily the least bit faster than he is, though her success doesnât calm the rapid-fire beat of her heart.
The card catches the light glowing from a nearby streetlamp. It winks at Henley. She stares at it, feeling it practically dare her to follow Tyler inside.
His second hey pulls her gaze back to his. Henley blinks, feeling the leftover moisture in her eyes betray Tylerâs silence when he cuts himself off. Of course he notices; of course she isnât being fucking subtle.
âNo, Iâm fine,â she promises, words spilling out of her a little too quickly. Her nose is still blocked, but she ignores it, closing the distance to stand next to Tyler. She gestures at the door, âletâs figure this out.â
     An unsure pause ensues. Henley doesn't look fine. She's obviously rattled and jumpy, the slight sniffle to her tone betraying her hasty words of reassuranceâbut Tyler drops the subject without saying anything else. He does wonder what her excuse is, because she isnât supposed to be here as much as he isnât.Â
     The card is forcefully jammed between the door frame and the lock; he then pushes the card against it, trying to get the lock back into the door. It takes a few tries before he hears a rusty click. A nifty trick. He wouldn't know how to use a bobby pin or a paper clip or even a proper lockpick set to open a door, but this is something he learned from a colleague during a field investigation.
     "This was a bad idea," he mutters quietly as he pushes the door open, regretful and resigned, like he's having second thoughts but it's too late to back down. Which isn't too far from the truth, really, since he is walking into uncharted territory here. The lack of knowledge bothers him, frightens him, even, as the bizarre humming lures him into the house, a wicked promising of answers. Richard isn't one to get scared easilyâand that isn't some clichĂ©, macho kind of bullshit boasting, he just doesn't, instead throws himself with a certain degree of reckless abandonâyet he feels dread piling up from the bottom of his stomach, mixed with anticipation. If he can understand what it is, he isn't scared of it anymore. The act of acknowledgement. There is power in being able to name what he sees. However, this escapes his understanding, escapes his version of realityâand that makes him hesitate more than anything.
     Inside, everything is still and dark, except for the moonlight trickling through the windows. They are in the â- kitchen area?
     "Fuck, we're really doing this," Tyler hisses under his breath, a hint of panic creeping into his tone (as is appropriate). His eyes are slowly adjusting to the dark. âYou think it's coming from where the... where Josie's body used to be?â



















