Page 2 of Alien in the Attic

Sofia gave Carmen an irritated glare but dutifully put her things away. She was insistent on following their grandparents’ research into the paranormal, even though that was what most likely led to their disappearance.

The car was silent as they drove to the outskirts of Hollowbrook. Their grandparents’ mansion—well, theirs now—stood sentry just outside the old Victorian town. A dilapidated sign swung slightly in the breeze, welcoming them to Wildridge Manor.

The sisters stood staring at the mansion for a few minutes, each caught up in their memories of their grandparents. The Gothic manor stood four stories tall, with a large balcony over the entrance. The dark paint was peeling in places, revealing gray stone underneath. The front garden was overgrown, the rose bushes drooping with browning leaves.

A pang of sadness shot through Carmen at the state of the house. Her grandfather was meticulous in taking care of the façade while the garden was her grandmother’s pride and joy. It just confirmed what she already knew. Her grandparents were well and truly gone.

A loud bang jolted them out of their thoughts. Carmen looked around, her heart racing. The bang came again, and she spun around. Elena laughed at her reaction, ever the practical one,and walked over to the gate. She secured it from where it was blowing in the wind and returned to them with a raised eyebrow.

“Looks like Denny’s not the only one affected by ghost stories, huh?” Her smug laughter was cut off as she stared at the house. Carmen frowned.

“What is it?”

“I thought… Did you see that? I’m sure the curtain moved, and I saw a face…” Carmen laughed at her, the irony making even Sofia smirk.

Ghost stories were forgotten quickly in the flurry of activity that followed. They unloaded the car, packed away groceries, and put a premade lasagna in the oven. Carmen poured each of them a glass of wine as they sat around the dining room table. Their grandparents’ seats were notably absent.

Carmen sighed heavily, looking around the room where they’d spent many happy family dinners. Her grandparents would come up with the most bizarre stories of space travel and alien races that were so detailed they seemed real.

“Remember the story they told about getting stuck in a wormhole?” Sofia asked, and Carmen realized they must have all been thinking about the same thing.

Elena laughed. “They were so creative. From a tech perspective, some of the things they described almost felt like they couldexist. Like I could make a spaceship if such a thing was possible.” She shook her head, a small smile on her face.

“I just wish we knew what happened to them,” Carmen said sadly. “It’s weird to not have closure, like they could walk in the door any moment with more crazy stories about where they supposedly were.” The sisters nodded, their eyes involuntarily turning to the door.

Carmen jumped up when the timer for the lasagna went off, just to curse loudly when she reached the oven.

“This isn’t funny! Who turned the oven off?” she shouted. Sofia and Elena appeared in the doorway with confused looks.

“What do you mean? We haven’t touched it,” Sofia said. She walked over to inspect the uncooked lasagna in the decidedly cold oven.

“I definitely turned it on. You saw me do it,” Carmen replied, her eyebrows drawn together.

Elena laughed. “Well, either you’re losing your mind, or our ‘ghost’ situation is more of apoltergeistsituation.”

Carmen shot Elena a playful glare and turned the oven back on, staring at it for a few minutes to make sure it didn’t magically turn off again. As she sighed in relief, the lights flickered, and all three sisters jumped. They shared a nervous laugh.

“I’ll call the electrician in the morning. I’m sure it’s just old wires or something,” Carmen said.

“Sure,” Sofia replied dubiously.

They chatted idly with no more mention of ghosts when dinner was finally ready. As they finished their meals, Elena yawned, setting off a chain reaction that made all three of them giggle.

“Time for bed. It’s been a long day,” Carmen said.

Sofia rolled her eyes. “Yes, ma’am!” she replied with a mocking salute.

Carmen snorted. She was only a year older than Sofia and three years older than Elena, but when their parents died in a car accident, she assumed the responsibility of caring for them and took it very seriously. From Sofia’s mocking, probably too seriously.

The stairs creaked as Carmen walked to her bedroom on the third story. She paused next to a detailed tapestry that depicted an old-timey battleground. Squinting against the dim light, she thought she saw strange-looking humanoid creatures with blue skin, but when she looked closer, it was too dark to make out. She shook her head and walked to the bathroom to get ready for bed.

It was a blessing to take off her fitted jeans and the long-sleeved top she’d been wearing all day. She quickly pulled on her comfy, well-worn pajama set.

The water spluttered when she opened the tap before finally steadying out. She was brushing her teeth when she saw something in the corner of her eye. She spun around, almost choking on her toothpaste, but saw nothing.

She looked toward the doorway, expecting to see one of her sisters there, but the longer she stared into the area, the dizzier she became. She clutched the bathroom counter for balance, blinking rapidly.

“Weird,” she said out loud. “Guess I’m more tired than I thought.”

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