Gemotions

The discovery was a slow burn, a creeping realization as she uncovered the history of the house. The stories, the rumors, the finally, the confirmation. Her breath hitched, catching in her throat. She had bought a place of death.

She found herself avoiding the cellar, the air in there suddenly heavy and cold. She spent more and more time outside, gardening, anything to keep her mind busy.

The past, once a distant abstraction, became a menacing presence, a shadow hanging over everything. She looked at her hands, the hands that had touched the walls, the furniture.