Monsters in the Closet

"...Did you get high last night, is that why you saw something? It would make sense, right? You're a drug addict and Mary and Graham are too trusting not to search you. How do we know you didn't shoot up and get high?" The same man, Jack, critiqued, his eyes narrowing at the other distrustfully. Josef was clearly going through withdrawal, even Jack could see that, but he also didn't want to acknowledge it. It was easier to assume that Josef had gotten high than for him to seriously consider that he was suggesting Mary and Graham could do something so appalling.

If he was high, it gave him an excuse for his visions, and ultimately, many of the guests believed that possibility over Mary and Graham being responsible for what Josef had timidly suggested.
 
"I didn't get high, h-how... how dare you assume I did," Josef replied in horror. He desperately wanted to so to be accused of something he couldn't do even if he tried was insulting. He had gone through sleepless nights and waking up in cold sweat just for this random person to accuse him of something so horrific? He grimaced, getting to his feet.

"I suggest you back off, Jack. There's no reason for you to be here other than you're rich enough to abandon everything for a nice little resort. I'm... I'm here to get help. All you do is lounge around, carefree, it's disgusting," he scoffed, his cheeks now beetroot. "You've never dealt with withdrawal so how about you shove it up your ass? This was a great conversation, I'm glad I'm getting the care and understanding I was promised when I came here," he scoffed sarcastically before storming away, his arms wrapped around himself comfortingly.
 
After his outburst, however understandable it was, Mary would keep away from Josef until she was sure he had calmed down, just to give him the space she felt he deserved. It was well into the evening before she quietly peeked her head around his door, wandering in with her usual smile and a plate of food she kept back for him from dinner.

"Jack was out of order. I... do hope you understand he's in the minority? We want to help you, we choose to trust you. I'd never insinuate you had gotten... high, Josef. I think you're tired and exhausted and the mind plays tricks when our bodies are in that state," she carefully sighed as she took a seat on the bed, setting the food down for him and doing her best to ignore the very faint sounds from the basement. They were so subtle that she knew nobody could really hear them. She was actively waiting to hear something, but even she had to strain her ears to pick up on it, so she very much doubted she had anything to worry about right now when it came to Josef... though speaking a tad quicker to cover the noise up to be on the safe side was perhaps wise.

"You should eat up and take a bath before you get some sleep. We can start tomorrow on a fresh slate, start again. Jack will apologise, I've already told him to think about what he said and how wrong he is. One thing about that man is he's not stubborn; he'll realise how hurtful and wrong his words were."
 
"I'm not hungry," he murmured in response from under his blankets, his eyes open and locked on the wall. "... thank you, though. I'm just not hungry. I feel like I'm going crazy a-and that bastard has the audacity to mock me and insinuate something he doesn't understand? It's - that's fucked up, Mary," he murmured before reluctantly peeking his head up.

"I don't... want you to think I'm accusing you or Graham of anything, it just... felt really real. That headache has only gotten worse, too, and I think I need some new bandages - how bad is it?"
 
"It's really not that bad. It's probably very painful and there was a lot of blood, but I don't think it's as bad as we first thought," she smiled, dutifully leaning in to replace the bandages for him and clean the dried blood away as gently as she could. Graham had told her not to talk about what happened, knowing how scattered and flustered she often became when talking about River, but she couldn't really get away from the topic at the moment.

"...I'm sure it felt very real, yes. I mean, well, it did sound like an accusation at first, but of course we don't hold that against you. If it felt real, of course you're going to assume it was real, but-- well, it clearly wasn't, obviously, that... it's not real, no," she laughed weakly, breathing out as subtly as she could in the desperate need to compose herself before she said something she couldn't retract. "...You must know that none of what you said you saw was real, I... I'd never hurt anyone like that."
 
"Who said you were the one who did it?" He replied after a pause, his eyes closing as to avoid her. "Everyone assumes I'm blaming you but... but I didn't see anyone with the kid o-or whatever he was. I don't know - I know. Thinking about it is giving me a headache," he admitted after getting his words together before flexing his fingers.

"I've been dissociating a lot lately, Mary. I don't know what that means - I've never gone this long without taking a hit, I don't think it's good for me. I know not getting high will help but I'm in pain - maybe that helped with the sleepwalking?" He suggested with an awkward smile. "I want to die."
 
"Don't say that! Don't you ever say that, you shouldn't think that way. I can see you're in pain, so here, take two of these. We don't agree with any medicine that isn't completely natural, but I have trouble sleeping and... I make an exception for sleeping tablets. I struggle to sleep without them. I'm sure you could use some right now," she sighed as she fished inside her pocket, placing the tablets down on the counter with a tired smile. It would mean going without them herself, the pills being the last in her supply, but she'd rather the other get some sleep and not wake up to hear anything suspicious from the basement. She didn't like hearing the noises, but it was much better if she heard them, rather than Josef.

"...If you're still in pain tomorrow, I'll have Graham head down to one of the hotel lodges to find you medicine to help with your aches and pains. Maybe you just need a long sleep, maybe that'll help."
 
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"I'm... sorry, you don't have to do that," he urged, guilt setting in. He felt like he was some whiny little baby who needed Mary all the time as opposed to the grown man he was. He knew there were other people who needed help was here he was, wasting their time with nonesense.

"I don't want to sleep the rest of the day away, though. I think I have a concussion and I read that you aren't supposed to sleep during that," he decided to mention, his Russian accent thick as he moved to ease back into the bed. "I do feel a little better, though. I'm just sorry... about hurting your trust in me."
 
"You haven't hurt me, not at all. Don't you even worry about it. We can forget the whole accusation; it was barely even one, was it? You were confused, sweetheart. Graham and I understand that completely," she assured as she took his hand and patted it comfortingly, pushing herself to her feet when she realised he probably needed peace and quiet.

"Why don't you take a nice hot bath, hm? We have eye masks in the cabinet if you want to really relax in there," she chuckled, holding her dressing gown tighter around herself. "I just want you to relax; I don't want you having nasty nightmares again like last night."
 
"You just have a pile of eye masks laying around?" He asked in shock, though did snort at the idea. "I mean, I'm not going to complain, that does sound lovely. Maybe I will relax, listen to some classical music... if I could borrow the CD player. I've been invested in this ghost book, which is creepy but pleasant - perhaps I'll learn more about ghost stories from this state. I know that the East Coast is incredibly old," he explained before slipping out the bed.

"... I think I can handle everything for a little while. I'll probably take a walk later after the bath. If you need to, I'll have someone come with me so no one assumes I'm going off, treading down the mountain to grab some cocaine. I mean, that's what everyone says, yeah?" He grumbled. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't incredibly petty, especially after the accusation.
 
"Don't you think people accuse Graham and I of things? I'm not talking about you. People down in the hotel lodges sometimes say hurtful things about our lifestyle. It's easy to hold onto hatred, but you shouldn't let it impact you, however hurtful. It'll ruin your stay and your recovery. I want you to let it go, hm? It's not nice, what was said, but... if you let him get in your head, your stay won't be as enjoyable," she pointed out, taking a glance outside as the sky grew dark. She knew the woods like the back of her hand and even she wouldn't go out in them in the dark, so the likelihood of her allowing Josef to do that was slim.

"If you want to go out for a walk, you ought to go before it gets dark. It tends to grow dark early this time of year and I'd hate for you to get lost; it's dangerous out there."
 
"I'm... not going to go for a walk, I was just being dramatic," he murmured in response before adding another thing in Russian, a frown growing deeper on his lips. Anxiously offering a thankful nod and a small pat to the woman's shoulder, he replaced the frown with a halfhearted smile in abc attempt to get the other off his back. "Thank you, but... I think I just want to be alone for a little bit."

Once managing to convince Mary to leave and let him enjoy his bath, Josef would only make a brief appearance to the other guests for dinner and ate only enough to make sure he didn't get ill. He quickly returned to his room to spend time alone and read... though the sole reason behind it was to focus on the night time.

He had gotten his sleep earlier, taking naps periodically throughout the day. After waking up from a nap, it had been 3 in the morning when he dared to slip out of his bed and head down the worn steps curiously. He was desperate to prove to himself whether his dream was right and thus decided to get a glass of water if he inevitably needed an excuse for his presence and once getting his water, Josef began to wander curiously in search of where this mysterious boy had come from.
 
There wasn't much River could do to bring attention to his situation. If he could shout and yell, he would have been discovered and helped years ago. His parents had taken the wise decision to gag him to prevent him making a sound and even if he wanted to, he probably couldn't muster the energy to even raise his voice as loud as it needed to be. Add in the fact that he spent most of the day unable to differentiate between his dreams and reality, which left him dazed and confused, it was incredibly difficult to cause enough attention to have someone head down to help him.

After his escape attempt and the panic he had caused his parents, he had received an extra dose for his troubles and a few punches to the ribs and face. Somehow, he managed to fight off the drowsiness enough to make a little noise, mostly from the chains he was tied to. He attempted the same thing every night, when he had a little more control of himself. It hadn't helped him yet, of course, but he knew he couldn't just sit back and give up - not now there was someone who had seen him. At the back of his head, he remembered Josef and how shocked he had looked. If he was still up there, River knew he was possibly the person who could help, so giving up now he stood a good chance of help just wasn't an option.
 
Josef was about to give up on the whole thing and chock it up to being a dream, his hand holding the bandage as a headache hit. He didn't want to be caught just standing in the center of the main entrance in pitch darkness only to be called crazy again. So, with being hit with embarrassment, the man awkwardly began to head upstairs... until hearing the faint sound of chains.

He decided to follow his intuition and listen for the sound, even though his intuition was notoriously awful. Listening carefully for the sound, he found himself at the face of a door with a heavy padlock. Lightly knocking on the door, he pressed his ear against it.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"
 
River was about to give up himself. As much as he didn't want to, there was only so much movement he could manage without getting exhausted at the moment. It was the final movement he could take before deciding to give into tiredness and shut his eyes, only to hear the voice at the basement door.

He didn't know who it was, not really remembering what Josef's voice was like. He vaguely recalled that he had an accent, but recalling the exact accent was impossible. All he did know was that this wasn't his father, so speaking out and appealing for help was possible.

"I-I need help," he called out, his voice croaky but, given the silence around the home and the echo in the basement, was surprisingly coherent. "G-Get the keys and... and help me-- I-I need to get out of here."
 
"Where are the keys?" He asked, trying his best to be quiet as to not wake up anyone but at least be loud enough for River to hear. "Are you alright? Ah... do you have any knowledge of where the keys could possibly be? Wait - this is real, right? I'm not crazy?" He confirmed in a nervous babble .

"I'm sorry, I... will look for the keys. I know where you are now, so... so don't worry," he urged the other desperately, trying his best to keep the other optimistic while he tried to keep his nerves calm.
 
"My Dad has them, he... he always has them," he coughed, working on trying to slip his hands out of the shackles. It wasn't impossible to do, given how much weight he had lost, but he had always been far too scared to attempt really yanking his hands out in case a bone or two broke - and the pain that occurred every time he did try was too intense to continue. This was only when he had the energy to even attempt it, of course, and he lacked that energy at the moment, though it didn't stop him attempting something. He felt far too useless sitting and waiting, doing nothing.

"Just-- Just hurry. H-He sleeps really heavily, it... it won't be difficult to get them from him."
 
"Okay, yeah," he agreed, hurrying out from the door to the couple's rooms. He wanted everything to go quickly. He shouldn't have felt as responsible for saving this stranger but he was always one to feel particularly empathetic towards strangers in need. River was definitely not an exception to that rule. Awkwardly sneaking into the bedroom.

Tiptoeing as carefully as possible, his eyes locking on the keys. He had never been in Mary's bedroom because he never wanted to. Guilt set in, but his desperation to do the right thing was more powerful... assuming this all wasn't a dream. If it was, it was the most detailed and stressful dream he had ever had.
 
For all River knew, the man could be in on it with his parents and had left to inform them of River's 'disobedience', as the couple would term it. He had no idea who Josef was and, for all he really understood, everyone in the lodge could be in on it together. His parents might have told them all to get the extra hands-on assistance in River's 'care'.

It was why he was so surprised when seeing Josef unlock the door to the basement, that being the confirmation he needed to place all his trust in the stranger. It didn't occur to him to hold back on trusting him. Having been locked up since he was 5, away from the world, he was very much naive and innocent in many ways - and trusting a complete stranger really didn't seem like a bad idea, especially if that stranger was heading to help him out of the chains.

"Y-You came? You... You're the man from last night," he murmured carefully, his smile widening, despite his chapped lips stinging painfully at the movement. "I-I... I can't believe you're helping-- w-we have to go, now. Before my parents find out."
 
"Of course I'm helping, why wouldn't I?" He countered, taking in River in horror at the conditions the boy was in. Fiddling off the shackles, he didn't hesitate to lift River up into his arms, fearlessly heading up the stairs with the other. He wasn't particularly strong but he did have amazing 'fight or flight' instinct hence why he effortlessly headed up the stairs to his room and laid River down on the bed as he scrambled to grab his things.

"This place is crazy, I'll get you out of here," he reassured quietly with a smile as he forced his clothes and things back into their bags, his eyes darting to the door all the while.
 
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