The attic

THE ATTIC

"Johanna what is your plans for the holidays." Adrian asked me.

"Honestly I dunno there are plenty of things up here." I said pointing at my head. Adrian was my best friend and room mate at the college where I was talking Bachelor in Biochemistry. I have visited his family several times during summer holidays.

"I wanted to visit your family this time. I wanna meet them .Your mom is so sweet.You got good genes man."

"huh, hard ."

Adrian came from ol rich family.He was white over six feet tall with a huge endomorphic body.He had yellowish blonde hairs and light green eyes-like the colour of an old dollar bill.I on the other hand was lean ,5'10 with a dark glowing skin.My hair were much darker than usual so do my eyes. We were completely different in appearance. He was a confident young guy and brilliant too. He must have from the most expensive private school because the way he carried himself he had the tendency of getting what he wanted.I on the other hand was a guy who loved a quiet life.

My mom had recently undergone a nasty divorce with my third stepdad.The stepdad who was responsible for most of our upkeep money.She had been stressed of late as she had to move out to a motel as she was search for a place to live.I had talked with her over the phone. I had even asked her to ask for help from her brothers. She had refused of course.

All of mom's brothers and sisters were whites except her. It was some form of a mystery as my grandmother was also white. I had always asked myself why mom is brown when her entire family are white. I knew there was a huge story behind that. Mom seemed to know.One day I asked her and she told me the story .

This is the story.Karen our grandmother was married to a rich ass man from somewhere in Africa. The guy later returned to Africa after get grandma pregnant.He had left his house to grandma. Grandma had remarried but the mystery is that she could no longer live in the house with her new found hubby.Unexplained things started to happen.The swimming pool which had been cleaned and pumped full of water would be empty the next day.Chairs,sofasets and even utensils would be seen outside the house early in the morning. Grandma decided to move out when one day she woke up with her fiance outside the house with their bed and mattress.After moving out she tried to rent it but tenants always complained of seeing bizarre things.The house had been unoccupied for over forty years.Mom had expressed doubt if the house was really haunted.Grandma was well known to have issues with people of colour me included. That is why mom rarely let me visit her.

On noticing my silence Adrian began explaining how it will be fun for him to spend holiday at our home.

"Do you have a young sister and you are afraid that she will fall in love with me."

"If I had one she would never fall in love with an overconfident guy."

"Why improve upon perfection." he said with a feral smile.

"I am an only child you should have known that by now. You want to hear the truth of the matter or not?" I asked him.

"yes please. "

"Mum and stepdad are now divorced. As we are talking, mom is in a motel.To be frank I wanted to ask you if I can go to your home but it seemed things are different. Its complicated. "

"Whoa! Hard that one."

"To be frank most things about my family is complicated. We don't have a dose of normalcy. "

"What kind of a black dude are you?" he joked

"Hommie,my grandma is white.My uncles,aunts,cousins are all whites."

"So you inherited all this colour from your dad? I have seen your mom she is brown while you are much darker. "

"Are you racist or something. "

"Nah buddy,just stating a fact."

"I have never met my dad or granddad. Their existence is a big piece of mystery. You want another bombshell.? Mom also has never met her dad, but atleast he left an inheritance for her. A house that has been runned by a poltegist or whatever haunt it for forty years."

"You have a haunted house?" a glimmer lit his eyes.

"Nah,I am not even sure if it is haunted. I have never visited the said house. "

"Why don't your mom not move into the house instead of staying at the motel.We could spend the holiday there. And don't start ,we are going there."

Later I called mom and convinced her to move to the house. She relented. She had little money and staying at the motel ate a large chunk of her budget."

We picked her at the motel with Adrian 's car. The house was in a ten acre land outside of Chicago. It was a large six bedroomed bungalow complete with a swimming pool, children playground, a tennis court and an outside grill. The swimming pool was full of clean water. There was also a clean garage and a parking lot at the back. Everything seemed to be spic and span.I was sure there was somebody living there.

After we unpacked and had eaten our packed lunch we all trouped to the swimming pool.

"I want to know what is like to swim in a forty-year old swimming pool water."

"The water would have dried long time ago. Not to mention the pool would be dirty and full of leaves .There is something I don't understand. Unless grandma was paying people to clean everything ." I said.

"Afraid to talk about a haunted house." Adrian joked.

"Stop being superstitious." I hissed at him.

"Like you can say." he joked back.

Mother was deep in thought.

" Johanna ,I think the house may be more than haunted. I lived here with your dad for two weeks you see that bucket there it was at that place twenty years ago.No one is cleaning the house but it seems there is something going on."

" You have never said anything about dad. Why?"

"He is also from Africa."

The words hit me like cold water.

"Another African,huh."

"That is cool man you have dual citizenship." Adrian joked at me.

"Why would I want to live in Africa?"

"What is wrong with Africa?" mom asked.

"Africa is a large land with fifty five countries. Johanna has dual citizenship of which country?" Adrian asked mother.

"Most Americans have his origin in another part of the globe away from the North America continent.Even this friend of you." mother said.

"Once upon a time I used to hate Russians. One day wanted to know my origins so I went to do a DNA test.I was shocked to discover I had 80% genes from central Russia.Talk about big revelations. Apparently my great, great granddad came from Russia just before the Russian Revolution of 1917."

"His name is Richard. I honestly cannot tell the country he came from." Mother continued with her information.

"Johanna, give me names of five countries in Africa."

"Jamaica, Costa Rica...hmmn."

"Fortunately I spend my time during geographical lesson not writing love letters.Jamaica and Costa Rica are not in Africa you dumbass."

"Richard had come to the US to study. He was on a scholarship but worked three part time jobs to support himself. He was brilliant,humble and handsome too. He wanted me to go with him to Africa I refused. I begged him to stay but he told me he had a huge obligation to his family and community. He did not want to be stuck here in America. By the time I was pregnant with you.I hid the pregnancy from him.I took him to the airport it was so sad.I really miss him.When you were born you inherited a lot of his genes including his brilliance and looks."

"Johanna, you wanna trace him to Africa?"

"Yes, I may just do that but after I'm well off."

"Now mom,apart from the clean swimming pool is there suspicious thing about this house." A change of topic was good.

"Dad dearest left this house to mom.He did not tell her why.He could have sold it pocket the money and returned to his country.All what mom remembers is that he left her an instruction. The instructions are that there is an attic at the top most apartment no one is to open it."

Adrian and I looked at each other.

"Why?" I asked her.

"I honestly have no idea."

"Has somebody attempted to open it." I asked her.

"Yes,mother,step dad and Richard. The did not succeed in opening the door.Its like locked inside."

"Do not attempt to open it Johanna. Remember curiosity killed the cat."

"Nah,you got it wrong.Its curiosity turned the cat gay." Adrian supplied.

Loud laughter erupted in the room.The two of us me with Adrian walked to my room in the topmost floor. My room was near the said attic. I did not have any fears. I felt like at home. Adrian came and sat on the corner in a wooden stool restless. Curiosity overcome me I wanted to know what was hidden behind that door.I walked outside the room.Adrian followed me.

We could see the door of the attic. It was green coloured made of what seemed like a heavy tropical hardwood timbers. It had a handle but there was no key at the key hole. I touched the handle without an iota of fear.I twisted it and to our surprise the door cracked open.

The room was so different It was dusty with alot of cobwebs and dust.It was in pale comparison with the spic and span house.There were shelves- huge shelves all the way to the celling. A table was in the middle of the room and on the table was a letter. My heart sank on seeing the letter.It was not in an envelope .The piece of paper looked old and mystic. I walked to the table took the letter and opened it.I sat on one of the dusty wooden chair and read it slowly.It hand writing was slanted in non human way.The letter was like this.

The fact that you were able to get hold of this letter shows that you are my blood. You are now henceforth embodied in our spirit. Things will happen in your life. Unexplained things. It is your duty to have courage and determination. You are now one of our warriors. Hide this secret well. Best of wishes.

I could hear Adrian breathing heavily. I read the letter over and over willing the words to change. We walked outside the door leaving the letter at the table. I met my mother at the door. She looked at me straight at the face and hugged me.