Lucy lived in a small village surrounded by dark woods. Her house was old, with stone walls and narrow windows. She worked at a bakery, filling the air with the smell of fresh bread. Lucy loved her quiet life, but one night, everything changed. It started with a whisper from the walls.
Lucy was reading in bed when she heard it, a soft voice saying her name. She sat up, her heart beating fast. The room was silent. “Maybe it’s the wind,” she thought. But the whisper came again, louder this time. “Lucy… help me…” She turned on the light and checked the house. No one was there. The walls were cold and still.
The next morning, Lucy told her friend Mark about the whisper. Mark was a tall man who fixed cars in the village. He laughed. “Old houses make noises, Lucy. It’s nothing.” But Lucy wasn’t sure. That night, the whisper returned. This time, it said, “Find the key.” Lucy’s hands shook. She looked around her room and saw a small, rusty key on her table. She hadn’t seen it before.
Lucy called Mark. “I found a key in my room. I don’t know where it came from,” she said. Mark came over, his face serious. They searched the house for a lock that fit the key. In the basement, they found an old wooden door hidden behind boxes. The key fit perfectly. The door creaked open, revealing a dark room. Inside was a dusty book with a note: “The whisper lives. Do not trust the voice.”
Lucy’s stomach turned. “What is this?” she asked. Mark shook his head. “Let’s take the book and leave.” They went upstairs, but the air felt heavy. The lights flickered. Lucy opened the book. It was a diary, written by a woman named Emma who lived in the house 100 years ago. Emma wrote about a voice in the walls that promised to help her but lied. “The voice traps you,” Emma wrote. “It wants your life.”
Lucy was scared. She wanted to throw the book away, but Mark said, “We need to know more.” They went to the village library to find information about Emma. The librarian, Mrs. Cole, was an old woman with sharp eyes. When Lucy showed her the diary, Mrs. Cole frowned. “Emma disappeared,” she said. “People said she was cursed. Be careful, Lucy.”
That night, Lucy had a dream. A woman in a grey dress stood in her room. “I’m Emma,” she said. “The voice tricked me. It’s in the walls. Destroy the diary to stop it.” Lucy woke up sweating. She grabbed the diary and ran to the fireplace. But as she lit the fire, the whisper screamed, “No!” The room shook, and the diary flew from her hands.
Lucy called Mark. He arrived with a hammer. “We’ll break the door in the basement,” he said. “Maybe that’s where the voice lives.” They went downstairs and smashed the wooden door. Behind it was a small room with a mirror on the wall. In the mirror, Lucy saw Emma’s face, not her own. Emma’s eyes were sad. “Break the mirror,” she whispered.
Lucy hesitated. The whisper in the walls grew louder, saying, “Don’t listen to her. I’ll give you everything.” Lucy didn’t trust the voice. She grabbed the hammer and smashed the mirror. Glass shattered, and the whisper stopped. The house felt lighter. Emma’s face was gone.
Lucy thought it was over. She and Mark burned the diary, and the ashes disappeared in the wind. But the next day, Mrs. Cole called. “Lucy, I found an old letter in the library. It’s from Emma’s sister. She says Emma lied. Emma wasn’t trapped. She was the voice.” Lucy’s blood ran cold. Had she freed Emma or something worse?
Lucy moved out of the house. She lived in a new village, far away. But sometimes, at night, she heard a faint whisper. She checked her mirrors, but her reflection was normal. Then, one day, she found a rusty key in her pocket. Her heart stopped. She threw it into the river, but that night, the whisper returned. “Lucy… you can’t escape…”
Was Emma still out there? Or was the voice something else? Lucy never knew. She kept her doors locked and her windows shut, but the whisper followed her, waiting for her to listen again.
Look out for Part 2, next…
Vocabulary Notes
Whisper: Noun (can also be a verb)
Definition: A soft, quiet way of speaking or a faint sound, often secretive or mysterious.
Example: “She heard a whisper, like someone saying her name.”
New Example: In the dark forest, the wind made a whisper through the trees.
Similar Words:
Murmur: A low, continuous sound, often indistinct. (Example: The crowd’s murmur grew louder.)
Mutter: A quiet, unclear way of speaking, often showing discontent. (Example: He muttered about the cold weather.)
Hiss: A sharp, quiet sound, like a snake or steam. (Example: The kettle made a hiss on the stove.)
Creak: Verb (can also be a noun)
Definition: A harsh, squeaking sound made by something old or stiff, like wood or a door.
Example: “The door creaked open, revealing a dark room.”
New Example: The old chair creaked when she sat down.
Similar Words:
Squeak: A short, high-pitched sound, often from small objects. (Example: The mouse squeaked in the corner.)
Groan: A low, moaning sound, often from strain or pain. (Example: The floor groaned under his weight.)
Grate: A harsh, scraping sound. (Example: The metal gate grated as it opened.)
Rusty: Adjective
Definition: Covered with rust (a reddish-brown coating on metal) or old and not working well.
Example: “She looked around her room and saw a small, rusty key on her table.”
New Example: The rusty bicycle was hard to ride.
Similar Words:
Corroded: Eaten away by rust or chemicals. (Example: The corroded pipe leaked water.)
Old: No longer new or in good condition. (Example: The old clock stopped working.)
Worn: Damaged or faded from use. (Example: His worn shoes had holes.)
Shatter: Verb
Definition: To break suddenly into many small pieces, often with a loud sound.
Example: “Glass shattered, and the whisper stopped.”
New Example: The vase shattered when it fell on the floor.
Similar Words:
Smash: To break something violently into pieces. (Example: He smashed the window with a rock.)
Crack: To break something so it has lines but doesn’t fall apart. (Example: The plate cracked in the heat.)
Splinter: To break into small, sharp pieces, often wood or glass. (Example: The wooden door splintered under the axe.)
Curse: Noun (can also be a verb)
Definition: A magical spell or force that causes harm or bad luck; also, a wish for something bad to happen.
Example: “People said she was cursed.”
New Example: The old castle was under a curse, so no one visited it.
Similar Words:
Spell: A magical influence or charm, often in stories. (Example: The witch cast a spell on the prince.)
Hex: A magical curse meant to harm someone. (Example: She believed a hex caused her bad luck.)
Jinx: A person or thing that brings bad luck. (Example: He thought the black cat was a jinx.)
Story written by Grok 3 AI
Image created by Grok 3 AI
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