The Voice from Downstairs

I heard my boyfriend's voice from downstairs, telling me to come down for a midnight snack.

As I was getting ready to go downstairs, I heard my boyfriend's voice coming from the next room.

"Don't go, I heard it too."

01

My boyfriend and I are both professional writers. To better spark our creativity, we rented a villa in the countryside.

That day, while I was writing alone in my room, I heard my boyfriend Harold's voice from downstairs.

"Raquel, come down for a midnight snack."

I smiled, opened the door, and stepped into the hallway.

Just as I was about to go downstairs, I suddenly heard Harold's voice from the room next door.

"Don't go, I heard it too."

His trembling voice was filled with fear and anxiety, making my heart race.

If Harold was in the room next door, then who was downstairs?

The voice was exactly the same to Harold's.

At that moment, I heard Harold's voice again from downstairs.

"Raquel, come down quickly!

The voice upstairs isn't mine!

"

I was stunned and frozen in place.

For a moment, fear gripped me tightly.

A chill ran down my spine.

Harold's voice came from the next room again.

"Raquel, come in quickly, don't trust the person downstairs!"

At the same time, the sound from downstairs started up as well.

"Raquel, come to me quickly, leave the second floor!"

Two identical sound spoke simultaneously, with no difference in tone.

I could feel a chill running through me, even in my teeth.

"What did you give me on our first date?"

Both voices answered in unison again.

"A book, Roland's 'Intimate Relationships.

'"

I was stunned.

Now, I couldn't tell which one was the real Harold.

Just as I was extremely anxious, the door to the next room creaked open.

A pale, bony hand rested on the edge of the door.

In the darkness, I could clearly hear my throat gulping.

Thankfully, the face that appeared next was my boyfriend Harold's.

Harold grabbed me and pulled me back into the room.

He looked really nervous and clearly scared.

Seeing my boyfriend, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as I was about to ask him about the voice downstairs, he suddenly gripped my shoulders tightly.

"Raquel, there's a thing I've never told you."

"The person downstairs is probably my twin brother."

"He looks exactly like me, even his voice is the same to mine, but there's one difference-he's a dangerous psychopath."

"Last week, I heard that he escaped from the mental hospital. I thought hiding here would keep us safe, but he still found us.

"

"Trust me, he's a total psychopath, and he's gonna kill us.

"

Just as I was shocked by my boyfriend's words, the sound from downstairs started up again.

"Raquel, don't believe him!

He's lying. After he injured me and left me in the forest yesterday, I had to stumble around for a long time before I found my way here.

"

"He's my psychopathic twin brother!"

Identical voices, completely different stories.

I subtly stepped back and put my hand on the door handle.

Since I couldn't tell who was telling the truth, the safest option was to hide alone.

But just as I was about to leave, I heard heavy footsteps coming from the stairs.

He was coming up.

02

I hesitated for a few seconds but chose to stay in the room.

Harold grabbed my hand; his hand was ice-cold and sweaty.

"Hide in the closet, quickly."

Harold opened the closet and pushed me inside.

Since it was winter, I hid well under several thick coats.

I'm petite, so even if someone outside opens the closet, they won't find me as long as they don't push aside the clothes.

I heard Harold lock the door.

Through the gap in the closet, I nervously watched outside.

There was a loud banging on the door from outside.

"I know you hate me, but don't hurt Raquel. She's innocent!

"

A desperate shout came from outside.

My heart skipped a beat.

The sound was filled with intense emotion.

Harold scoffed. "Stop pretending, you psycho. You've been good at disguising yourself since we were kids.

"

"When we were little, Mom bought us a pet dog. You didn't like it because it took away my and Mom's attention, so you killed it.

"You even put the dog's body next to my bed, making Mom think I was the one who killed it."

"Now you're trying to pull the same trick again."

The banging on the door grew more intense, mixed with curses in a voice identical to Harold's.

"Damn you, you haven't changed one bit. You won't hurt Raquel!

"

Hiding in the closet, I couldn't tell who was telling the truth,

because I had never heard about Harold's twin brother before.

All I knew was that Harold's mother passed away when he was fifteen.

The banging on the door grew more violent, and soon, with a loud crash, the door was kicked open.

But it was eerily empty outside, as if no one was there.

Harold glanced at me, signaling me to stay here, then he went outside.

Soon, I heard the sounds of a fierce struggle outside.

I was so nervous that I started to sweat.

Soon, there was a muffled groan.

The area outside the door fell into a deathly silence.

My heart pounded wildly.

At that moment, I saw Harold walk in.

His face was pale, and his handsome face had an unsettling, broken beauty.

"Raquel, come out. I've knocked him out,"

Harold said. My hand was on the closet door, just about to push it open, but then I quickly pulled it back.

He didn't even glance at the closet.

It was as if he didn't know where I was hiding, scanning the room instead.

My heart sank.

He was the one from downstairs.

But I wasn't sure if he was the real Harold.

I quietly took out my phone, preparing to send an emergency text.

But my SIM card had somehow been removed from my phone.

Just then, my phone started buzzing.

It was my alarm.

To keep from sitting too long, I set an alarm to go off every hour.

I hurriedly turned off the alarm, hoping desperately that the person outside hadn't heard it.

At the same time, I huddled completely behind the coat.

There was no noise from outside for a long time.

Just when I thought he hadn't noticed me-

A dark eye appeared at the crack of the closet.

"So, you're hiding here."

I held my breath and stayed completely still behind the coat, too scared to move.

"Don't hide, I've already seen you."

The closet door was yanked open.

A pale hand reached in and dragged me out forcefully.

I screamed loudly and struggled, but someone was pressing down hard on my shoulders.

"Raquel, calm down!"

I forced myself to calm down.

I subtly took two steps back.

"You're not Harold."

The man tilted his head, looking at me.

"Harold doesn't have a mole on his chin."

I stared at him, speaking slowly.

"Raquel, you're right, I'm not Harold."

The man looked anxious and spoke quickly.

"But please believe me, I really don't want to hurt you. I called you down just to help you escape quickly.

"

I sneered, lifted my phone, and showed him the screen.

On it was a news article from six months ago.

A patient with antisocial personality disorder had escaped from a mental hospital.

This person had killed an eight-year-old girl and was extremely violent and dangerous.

"Harold was right, you are his twin brother, Duncan."

"I suggest you get out of here quickly. I've already called the cops," I threatened deliberately.

"Raquel, by the time the police arrive, we'll both be dead," Duncan said, looking at me with a face identical to Harold's.

"Harold and I are indeed twins, but he's the real lunatic."

"Everything he told you is true, except the real culprit is him, not me."

"When we were kids, he killed my beloved dog, placed it on his bed, and then cried to our mother, saying I did it."

"As adults, he grew even more deranged. He killed a girl and framed me for it.

"

"Every year, he visits me with the malice of a victor.

Six months ago, he told me about you and him.

"

"Raquel, someone with antisocial personality disorder can't love anyone. I'm here for revenge and to save you.

"

After hearing Duncan's words, I was utterly shocked.

But I couldn't just doubt my boyfriend based on his words alone.

Maybe he was just a pathological liar.

I thought of Harold, who had fainted outside, and quickly left the room.

The hallway was empty; there was no sign of Harold.

Duncan's pale face showed fear again.

His skin even trembled uncontrollably from fear.

"He's awake.

Raquel, if I were you, I'd hide now.

"

"He won't act anymore. He'll kill us like a hunter.

"

"His favorite game is hide and seek."

"If he finds us, we'll die."

Duncan grabbed my hand suddenly.

His hand trembled uncontrollably. "Let's hide."

I shook off Duncan's hand.

I couldn't trust him.

I had rented this villa, and there was a basement only I knew about.

The basement was the safest place I could think of right now.

I took a deep breath, glanced at Duncan, and immediately ran downstairs.

To my surprise, Duncan didn't follow.

I made my way to the basement and locked the door.

The darkness gave me a sense of security.

The basement was dusty and the walls were stained.

In the center was a wooden table.

I walked to the table and saw a dusty, yellowed diary on it.

Driven by curiosity, I opened the diary.

The first sentence read-

"I suspect that Harold wants to kill me."