In hallow rooms,
up rickety stairs,
lies secrets and woe.
A ghostly chill,
the long night waits,
forever more to stay.
The path went askew,
but course corrected,
the king sits in waiting.
Dr. Lily Pearl journeyed from Dallas on the late-night greyhound streaking past the endless countryside, with a change at Waco, to Galveston. The moon was coming up, out of the dim starry sky over the apartments opposite the station exit. But the warm wind was like a warm blanket on her cheeks.
“Excuse me,” she said, “but is there any cheap hotel or motel not too far away from here?”
“Try The Mansion on 17th,” the driver answered, pointing down the road. “They might take you in. It’s about a quarter of a mile along on the other side there.”
Lily thanked him, grabbed her belongings, and walked the quarter-mile to The Mansion. She had never been to Galveston before. Granted, she didn’t know anyone who had. But Dr. Richardson at Site-16 had told her that the town had a certain charm to it.
“Find your place in town until they can set you up on Site-16-1,” Richardson told her, and also something else but it’s a blur. “—make sure to send a report back here as soon as you’re settled.” She wondered what he said before that and thought that she could make a quick call, but it was 2 a.m., and she didn’t want to be a bother.
Lily was twenty-seven in an old gay overcoat, a new brown pinched front hat, and an old brown suit. As she walked down the street, she checked her watch. She was trying to do everything as efficiently as possible these days. Efficiency, she had decided, was the one common characteristic shared by all of the successful Foundation personnel. The big shots up at Site-16 were perfectly efficient all the time and one day, she would be just like them.
There were a couple of shops but mostly hotels and apartments on this wide street. Most of them are identical and even a bit familiar with her old home before going to University. They had porches and pillars and four or five steps going up to their front doors, and it was obvious that once upon a time they had been very nice businesses. But now, even in the dark, she could see that their white facades were blotchy and cracked from age and sea salt, and the paint was flaking off the woodwork around their doors and windows. Abruptly, in an alley to the right at the end was a window and door that was brightly lit by a street lamp. Lily saw a framed yellow sign with an arrow pointing down the alley. It read Feast & Sleep Inn, with a smaller hanging sign that said vacancy.
She paused. She noticed deep blue drapes in a luxurious, silk-like quality, that adorned the sides of the window. Not a spec of paint chipped, unlike the other buildings she passed by. She leaned in and gazed through the glass and spotted a small blazing fire in the fireplace. On the wooden floor before the hearth, a fluffy cat lay curled up, its tail wrapped around its body. The room, cloaked in shadows, was warm and inviting, filled with a sleek modernist armchair, a large bookshelf, and a cozy loveseat. In one corner stood a grand aquarium, teeming with colorful fish. To her, the presence of animals suggested a welcoming atmosphere. Overall, she thought it looked like an excellent place to spend some time, definitely more inviting than The Mansion on the 17th.
After pacing back and forth in the chilly air for some time, Lily finally decided to move on and check out the Mansion on the 17th before making a decision.
And then something strange happened. She was just about to step back and turn away from the window when her attention was abruptly and peculiarly seized by a whisper. It said, ‘Come in, come in, come in.” The repetition of the phrase was a song to her through the glass, holding her in place, and compelled her to stay. Next thing she knew, she found herself moving from the window towards the house's front door, climbing the steps, and reaching out to ring the bell.
She pressed it, and deep within the house was a chime, and a split second later, the door flew open. Causing her to flinch and before her was an old woman. She looked to be in her late seventies. When she saw her, her face lit up with a kind, charming smile. "Please, come in," she said warmly. She stepped aside, holding the door open wide, and without even thinking, Lily found herself moving forward. The urge or perhaps more accurately, the irresistible pull to follow her into the house was almost overwhelming.
"I saw the sign in the window," she said, restraining herself.
"Yes, yes."
"Are there any rooms available?"
"It's ready and waiting for you, dear," she replied. Her face was round and rosy and her heterochromic eyes glowed green and blue.
"Thank you," Lily explained, "I wasn’t sure what else was open."
"Poor thing," the elder coaxed, "why not come in from the cold and warm up?"
"How much is it to stay here?"
"A hundred a night, breakfast included of course."
It was shockingly cheap, far less than what Lily had expected to pay in this city from what she heard back at Site-16, but those people don't get out of the lab that often, and Texas was huge.
She appeared awfully sweet, she thought. Lily stepped into the house and took off her hat and coat.
“Come in, come in!” The woman smiled back at her over her shoulder as she guided Lily upstairs. “I don't often get the chance to have guests since all the fancy hotels and such have moved in.”
Lily mused that the landlady seemed to think the other hotels were “fancy”, but for such a low price, it wasn't worth worrying about. "I'm surprised you don't have more people lining up to stay here," she said softly.
"Oh, I am, dear. The thing is, I'm just a tad bit picky about who I let in. Can't be too careful these days," she cooed, "and when I do, I always keep things ready, day and night, just in case a nice young woman happens to come by. And it’s such a delight when I open the door and find someone perfect standing there." She was halfway up the stairs, paused with one hand on the railing, and turned her head to smile down at her with red lips. "Just like you," she added, her eyes slowly scanning Lily from top to bottom and back up again.
Once they got to the second floor, she gestured to the hallway and said, "This room is mine, bathroom is to the left." They climbed another flight of stairs to the third floor, "and this room is all yours," she remarked and opened the door. "Here it is. I hope you find it comfortable, darling."
She guided her into a quaint yet cozy front bedroom. She flicked the light switch and bathed the room in a warm yellow. "The afternoon sun pours right through the windows here down the walkway, Ms. Willa. It is Ms. Willa, right dear?"
"No," she corrected. "It's Pearl, Dr. Lily Pearl."
“Ms. Pearl. well isn't that lovely. I’ve just washed the sheets and put clean ones on, so they should still be warm.”
“Thank you,” Lily said. “That's awfully kind of you.”
“It's such a blessing you came here,” she said, looking earnestly into her face. “Such a blessing indeed!”
“ Well, thank you again for taking me in.” She hung her coat on the back of the chair and plopped her suitcase on the bed.
"What about dinner, dear? Did you eat before arriving?”
"I'm not hungry right now, I ate on the way here," she responded. "I think I'll head to bed soon since I gotta be up early tomorrow, I have a bit of a drive to make.”
“Very well, then. I’ll leave you now so that you can unpack. But before you go to bed, would you like to join me downstairs for a cup of valerian root tea? I find it best when I get to bed before a busy day.”
Lily thought about it for a moment before responding. She wanted to turn in for the night but didn't want to appear rude, before she could say no she felt a nudge compel her and said yes.
“Oh, that's wonderful! Let me go down and get it started.”
Sometime later after unpacking, she freshened up in the bathroom and then made her way downstairs to the living room. Looking around, the lady was nowhere in sight, but the fire was roaring still, casting an eerie yet soft air across the room. Its bright yellow flame snuggled her body and soul. Lucky me, she mused, rubbing her hands together. This place is like mom’s.
She spotted the guest book lying open on the piano and wanted to jot down her name and address. Only three other entries appeared on the page above Lily’s, the rest of the book was filled. As is often the case with guest books, curiosity got the better of her, and she began to read them. The first entry was from Dixie Mae of Plano, and the second from Lila Rose of Deep and the third was Savannah Lee of Irving.
She reread the names. Huh, that's funny, she thought. Dixie Mae. Why does that name ring a bell? It’s at the tip of her tongue but she couldn't quite place where she'd encountered a “Dixie Mae”. Was it a girl from her University? No, that didn’t seem right. Could it have been one of her sister's many girlfriends? No, it wasn’t any of those either. She examined the book again.
"Such delightful young ladies," said a voice behind her. She turned to see the lady of the house who strolled into the room with a small wooden tea tray. She held it out in front of her, keeping it high and balanced.
"I’m pretty sure I’ve come across some of these women before. Funny, right? Could it have been in the news? Were they famous or something?"
"Famous? Oh, I highly doubt they were," she responded, placing the tea tray on the table in front of the sofa. "But, my goodness, they were remarkably beautiful. One was tall and the other short, both youthful and so stunning. Just like you, my dear."
Lily looked back at the book and noticed something. "Check this out," she said, pointing at the dates. "The most recent entry is from over two years ago. And Dixie Mae's entry dates back almost two years earlier, making it over four years ago."
"My word," the lady replied, shaking her head and letting out a delicate sigh. "I would have never imagined. Time certainly slips away from all of us, doesn't it?"
"But that’s the thing," Lily said. "All three names, Mae, Rose, and Lee. I knew them, right? Not just individually, either.”
"Now isn't that quite interesting," she remarked. "But why don't you come here, darling, I have a warm and cozy place on the couch. I'll make you a nice cup of tea before you go to sleep. You have a long day tomorrow."
"I don't think this is all necessary, you don't have to trouble yourself," Lily said. She stood by the piano, watching as the lady busied herself with the cups and saucers. She noticed her small, pale hands with painted red nails moving swiftly. "I'm almost certain I read those names in some papers," Lily murmured. There's nothing more frustrating than something like this lingering just outside of your memory. She hated to give up.
"Wait a minute," she said. " Mae… Dixie Mae… I worked with her…she was a lab technician at the Site who came down here, and then suddenly…"
"Would you like milk or sugar in your tea?" she interjected.
"Yes, please."
Lily crossed the room and sat on the sofa as the lady held out her teacup.
"There you go, deary," she said. "Aren’t you comfortable?"
Both began sipping their tea. Neither of them spoke, just sitting in silence, facing the fire. But Lily knew that the woman was staring at her. Her head was slightly half-turned toward her, and she could feel her yellow eyes. Occasionally, she sniffed a sour odor that remedied straight from her being.
"You have quite the collection of books," Lily remarked, her gaze trailing over the wall-to-wall shelves laden with old tomes, shattering the awkward silence.
"Oh yes, dearie," the woman replied with a grin, "I've spent the last forty years amassing them. Among them, my favorite is one particular book—The King in Yellow."
Finally, she said, "Mae, Rose, and Lee. Remarkable women they were… Yes… I would like to be remarkable again too.”
“Where are they?”
“Oh, they’re still here. On the third floor, all of them together."
Lily felt the fire radiated in the cold. The yellow light dimmed and flickered its sparks as they danced towards her. They orbited around Lily and suffocated her. She felt detached from her body as if she was forced out of a shell. The old woman leaned to her. “How old are you, my dear?”
“Thirty-five.” Lily’s body spoke.
"Thirty-five!" She yelled. "Oh, it's the perfect age! Ms. Mae was also thirty-five, but I think she was a trifle shorter than you are. I'm sure she was, and her teeth weren't quite so white. Though you have the most beautiful teeth, Ms. Pearl, did you know that?" The woman smiled.
“But my favorite are the eyes.”
By some miracle, Lily forced herself into her body again, even if the sparks were stabbing her. "What– did you– put– in– my tea?"
“Oh nothing much, just a small dose of Pailid’s Blood. It helps me. And will help you too, my dear.”
“Stop it!” Lily shouts and the yellow sparks scatter. She dropped to the floor and shattered the cup.
“And you’re so strong too.”
Lily coughed and heaved, she crawled to her feet tripping on the first step of the stairs, running up the stairs grabbing the handrail and wall for support, stumbling into the room flipping her bags open, and stuffing her things inside, she could hear the woman cackling downstairs. It rang in her ears causing pain and discomfort.
Out of the corner of her eye behind her, she saw her looming shadow black as night against the wall but it didn't feel like her own, looking back she saw the piercing yellow eyes staring back at her. Grabbing her bags as she ran down the stairs looking down she saw the woman crawling up but she rammed into her, knocking the woman down the stairs into the banister. One of the railing impaled her as she hit the floor.
The woman stumbled to get up but couldn't, she grabbed the wooden baluster from her chest with both hands pulling it out and tossing it to the side Lily stared at her insides the rotten hollow corpse, and the large gaping chest cavity, eyes still gleaming yellow with hatred.
Without stopping, Lily burst out the door, and then down the alleyway. It was darker and felt longer than it did before. She could see the dim light of the street in the distance she ran to it without looking back. It was all she could do until she eventually caught the last public bus of the night and it took her to God knows where, anywhere could be better.
As the next few days went by, Lily was settled into Site-16-1, assuming her duties overseeing SCP-8327. After her report was made about the incident in Galveston, Foundation agents investigated the area of the city for the anomaly she described. All they found were the run-down and or struggling hotels, motels, and inns in the area. The house in particular was nowhere to be found, just a normal-looking alleyway. When Lily inquired about Dixie Mae, Dr.Richardson informed her that there was no record of Dixie Mae in their system or any system for that matter.
It was for her best interest that Lily didn’t pursue it any further. So she didn’t and continued her work. She was offered amnesties treatment but turned it down just in case the anomaly pops up again.
Sometimes though, in the long late night hours she would see a fluffy cat near the outskirts of Site-16-1. It would just stare at her with its beaty yellow eyes being reflected by the moonlight. Every time she spotted it, her mouth would recall the tea she drank and the events of what had transpired that night.
Sometimes, she thought about shooting the damn thing. Other times, to cut out her tongue and eyes.