Tedd said, getting out of the car after Bill.
The road was blocked, the gates were chained. While Tedd was standing at the gate, Bill took the pliers out of the trunk and headed for the lock. A moment later, the gate was open. Both guys got back in the car and their journey continued.
“The Quiet Hill is 5 km from here.”
The fog, which had been almost absent all the way, began to thicken. The sky merged with the ground, and only the asphalt was visible in the headlights. Everyone in the cabin stopped talking and peered into the fog, trying to see something in it.
– That’s it, we’ve arrived, – Bill broke the silence and stopped the car in front of the Welcome to Quiet Hill stand
There was no sound, no wind, no smells, nothing at all.
– So where are we going? – Sarah asked, glad to be here.
– hm… Of course, we can go to the local school, – Tedd suggested, pulling an old map of the city out of his pocket. Alex went over to him to look at the map. The edges of the paper were slightly burned, and the date 1968 was visible on one corner.
– Where did you get this card? – Alex asked, starting to get a little nervous about all this. Something was bothering him.
– I found it in my grandfather’s book, – Tedd replied without taking his eyes off the map.
– What was the book about?
– In my opinion, “Ghost Towns of the whole world”, and the map is based on the history of the Quiet Hill, so it became interesting for me to visit here.
– If I’m not mistaken, your grandfather lived here…
– Yes, and what?
– And he left this place after the fire, and when he returned to Centralia, he was placed in a psychiatric clinic amid a nervous breakdown and insanity…
Sarah spread her hands:
– Alex, his grandfather was already ill, and everyone knows that he just inhaled carbon monoxide during the fire. Relax, especially if it calms you down, he was alone, but there are many of us. You can imagine anything, but it’s unlikely that all five of them would have made the same mistake.
Alex felt a little calmer, he didn’t want to go back to the big house with bars on the windows and cold white walls. He stayed there for a week, transitional age, frequent depression, he turned out to be too weak. He was saved, but no matter how much he said it wouldn’t happen again, no one listened to him. The doctors’ job is to follow the patient and tell him if he really feels better. He was marked in the medical record as a temporary guest, but, of course, with a discharge.
Megan slowly walked up to him and took his hand:
– Don’t worry, everything will be fine, – she smiled slightly.
– Here! The school is not far away, let’s go, – Tedd commanded and walked down the road, the others followed him. Everyone was walking calmly except Alex. He looked at every abandoned house, every car parked next to them. The city resembled a reflection of Centralia, there were not even signs of a fire. His hand trembled with excitement and a sudden chill. Megan felt it. She slowed down and ask him:
– What are you afraid of? It’s just a fog…
– It’s kind of weird here, no signs of a fire…, – he grumbled in response, casting sidelong glances at the gray buildings. Megan looked at the houses:
– Indeed, hmm.. Maybe there was no fire here?
– Yes, but then why did the edges of the map get burned, for sure this map is from here, and I didn’t think that his grandfather was so crazy that he played with a lighter and singed the edges on purpose. Moreover, the date corresponds to the date of the fire.
– Alex, you’re scaring me, – Megan stopped, and he also stood next to her.
– Well, here we are, – Sarah said cheerfully as always, standing near the school stairs. Tedd and Bill went straight to the door of the school, Sarah went with Megan. Alex took just one step as something warm flowed from his nose, a drop of warm water. A small red spot formed on the steps, the blood dried on the concrete. At that moment, Megan turned around.
– Oh, my God.. Guys! Alex’s nose is bleeding, – she screamed and ran up to him. But the guys were walking down the corridor of the school and did not hear anything.
– I’ll call them, – Sarah said and ran to school.
Alex stood there and did not understand what was happening to him, his knees were weak, his head was spinning, and an unpleasant squeak appeared in his ears. Megan grabbed his arm and sat him down on a bench near the school steps.
– So, tilt your head back… – Megan helped him lift his head, – what happened?
Alex looked at the sky, which was covered with fog and said nothing, after a few seconds he croaked,
– We need to… leave… and as soon as possible…
– Why?
– This place is still cursed, we shouldn’t have come here… I became a believer after God saved me from myself, and… I can’t go to this school, something won’t let me go there..
Megan frowned. There was silence for a moment. Suddenly she jumped up, obviously realizing what Alex was trying to tell her.
– I’ll run and get them back! Wait here and don’t try to follow me! – And she quickly ran up the steps to the school.
Alex didn’t see her enter the school, but he heard the door slam.
Now he was sitting alone. The taste of blood appeared in my mouth, it no longer flowed down my throat, it stopped. Slowly, he lowered his head. “Why did I let her go?” – he thought, coming to himself. Alex tried to stand up, his legs were still heavy, but he was able to get up from the bench. Standing outside the school, he knew he couldn’t go there, but what should he do?
“Phone!” flashed through his mind, but as soon as he took it out… The school bell broke the silence. The phone made an unpleasant crackling sound. Alex fell to his knees, there was a terrible noise, and he put his fingers in his ears.
Suddenly, abruptly, that’s all. The street was filled with silence again. As if nothing had happened. Alex got up from the ground. Nothing has changed around, but the lull was not as long as we would like. A few minutes later, the heavy, long-drawn, terrifying wail of the city siren echoed throughout the city. The last time she worked was during a fire, but this time it’s completely different. At that moment, everything seemed to come alive. The fog began to dissolve in the air, and the light gradually turned into darkness. Alex panicked, his heart pounding in his chest, when he saw the darkness at the very end of the main street, which was quickly swallowing up the houses, one by one, like a black hole. There was a scream in the school. Alex didn’t know exactly whose, because he was already far from the school and running to the car. He was praying out of fear, his legs were giving way, adrenaline was pounding in his head, and the siren was getting louder and louder.
And now he sees the car! With a final tug, Alex jumped into it. For a second he was afraid: “Tedd might have the keys!!” But, alas, this guy left the car open with the keys, he probably thought that it was unlikely that anyone but them would come here.
The engine roared, and Alex started backing up. Darkness engulfed the entire city and pursued only him, but the car turned sharply and sped down the highway at full speed. He had to get off this highway before the darkness swallowed him up. Ahead, a “2 km to Centralia” sign flashed in the headlights.
“Where am I?” Alex thought.
He opened his eyes. There was no fog, and he recognized the area. He was glad to be back in Centralia. A man in a firefighter’s