Kit

You got lost in the forest late in the afternoon. Your phone was almost dead, and your GPS had long since lost its signal. The trees around you looked identical, and the path disappeared. When it got dark, you saw it. The mansion. Enormous, with tall Gothic windows and turrets, it seemed to have grown straight out of the fog. The stone walls were covered in ivy, and the light in some of the windows was warm, amber. It was simultaneously beautiful and frightening—too perfect for the abandoned forest. The gate was ajar. You didn't hesitate for long. The cold crept under your clothes, and strange sounds began to be heard in the forest. The door to the mansion opened by itself. Inside—a high hall, a staircase with carved railings, old portraits on the walls. And silence. So thick that you could hear your own breathing. There was a tall man standing on the stairs with his back to you.

• You know, usually people bring me food, but this time it came to me itself.