(20 years ago)
"Come on little brother, its Halloween. It's supposed to be scary." Samuel Drake, 17, shook his head at his brother who refused to budge. The boardwalk was full of fall and Halloween decorations but the Drake brothers found themselves at the scariest attraction.
"Na-uh. I'm not going in there." Nathan crossed his arms in protest, looking up at the haunted house. There was a creepily painted clown looking back down at him. He shuttered.
"Look, I'll be right there with you. I promise nothing bad will happen." Sam yanked his brother by the arm. Nate tried to weigh himself down but Sam was stronger. "It's all fake you know." He said letting go of his brother to give the worker two tickets.
"I still don't want to go in there."
"Where's your sense of adventure?" Sam smirked and stood in the doorframe.
"Come on kid, you're holding up the line." The worker glared at the indecisive boy. Nate sighed and walked to his brother.
"If I die-" Nate started
"Oh don't be so dramatic! Let's go." Sam wrapped an arm around his younger brother and walked further into the dark tunnel. They heard screams up head, but so far all they saw where cheap, store bought props. "See, not so bad huh?" Sam smirked and walked over to a table with a lit lantern. "Check it out! WooOOOOooo!" Sam picked up an obviously fake severed hand and waved it around. Nate let out a small chuckle.
"Yeah, guess it's not so bad." He examined the items with little interest. After seeing a mansion full of actual historical artifacts, this little sideshow seemed boring. A door slammed and Nathan instinctively turned. "What was that?!" He eyes darted to the dark, empty doorway that lay ahead.
"It was just a sound effect, don't be so jumpy." Sam, still looking at the fake blood and guts on the table, sighed.
"No, I saw something move. It went to the next room."
"Well then. Let's go see what it was!" The excitement in Sam's voice worried Nate, but against his better judgment he followed his brother.
The next room was pitch back save for a single red light bulb in the middle of the room. They could see gruesome photographs all over the walls. More screams came from up ahead.
"Sam, can we just go back?" Nate asked, griping his brother's arm.
"Just a few more rooms." Sam smiled down. They turned a corner and the door slammed shut behind them, causing them both to jump. Their vision lost to the pitch-black room. They stopped, unsure of where to go next.
"Sam?" Nate whispered. The silence felt heavy in the darkness. Sam took a couple steps forwards, Nathan still holding on to his brother's sleeve. They walked slowly, trying to avoid running into walls and obstacle. Nate took a step and the ground beneath him gave way slightly. A bright flash of light blinded them for a moment but once their eyes adjusted they saw a figure standing beside them. The lights dimmed again, letting them only see basic shapes in their way. "SAM!" Nathan yelled as the figure advanced and snatched Nate from his protector.
"Nathan!" Sam yelled in horror, watching the figure drag his brother through to the next room. Sam ran as fast as his legs would carry him. Hearing his brother scream caused his heart to pound faster. He slid into the next room, almost falling over. It was so bright his eyes hurt. He squinted and raised his hands. "Nathan!" Sam cursed once his vision focused on the figure and his younger brother. The pale clown smiled slowly to Sam, making chills run down his spine. The clown had one hand over Nate's mouth, the other binding him around his chest. Nate tried to break free. Blood dripping down his arm from the sharp nails that held him. He tried to scream out.
Sam didn't know what to do. The clown's crimson eyes and smile pierced though Sam's soul. He gripped the boy tighter. The hand that was holding his mouth moved to under the boy's chin. His sinister look never waiving as he snapped-
Nathan woke up in a cold sweat. He hadn't thought of that night since he was a kid, though his nightmare was a lot more terrifying then he remembered. He sat up in bed and tried to catch his breath, his heart was pounding in his chest. A feeling of calmness washed over him when he turned and saw Elena sound asleep next to him. She seemed so at peace he couldn't help but smile. He cautiously laid back down, making sure not to disturb her when a loud knock rang throughout the house.
"It's for you..." Elena whispered rolling over when another, more frantic, knock sounded. Nate sighed, got up, and threw some pants on. Another knock rushed him into the hallway.
"I'm coming, I'm coming." He irritably mumbled to himself. He opened the door and the shock snapped him awake. "Sam?!"
"Hey little brother. I, uh, I need your help."
"Come in." He paused and took a good look at him. "You look terrible; when was the last time you slept?" Nate questioned, shutting and locking the door behind him.
"That's not important. Did you get what I sent you?" Sam was a little fidgety, like he needed a cigarette.
"That Aztec token thing? Yeah… but Sam, Elena and I don't do that any more. We run a strictly legal business. We can't ju-"
"Nathan. Victor and I are in a lot of trouble here. You know how risky it was getting that to you?" Sam had aggravation in his voice.
"Risky? And you sent it here?! What if someone came looking for it!?" Nate was getting angry at the thought of someone entering his home, guns blazing like they normally did, and something happening to Elena over this little piece of treasure.
"Look, Nathan, the guy we stole that from, he's after something big. And if he gets it, let's just say Hitler would look like a saint. But he can't go any further without that; so as of now we have the advantage."
"Sam. It's 12:45. You can sleep in the spare room and we'll talk in the morning, all of us, over coffee. Where's Sully?"
"Separate flight. Thought it would be best if we weren't seen together. He should be here around 3." Sam was still fidgeting, but seemed to calm down at the thought of sleep.
"Just… text him to use the spare key. I'm going back to bed. We'll figure this out." Nathan walked Sam to the room he'll be staying in and when he turned to leave Sam called out after him.
"When you say all of us, you mean Elena too right?" Sam's question puzzled him.
"Yeah. She's just as much a part of this as I am. Get some sleep." Nate shut the door and walked back to his bedroom, still confused about what just happened. Maybe it was all a dream. He sighed.
"So, who was at the door?" Elena questioned when she felt Nathan slide back into bed. She turned around and gazed into his tired eyes, a look of concern flashed across her face.
"Sam. Sully will be joining use around 3." He laid down, wrapping himself around his wife. She pushed back so she could see his face.
"Everything all right?" The journalist in her couldn't rest until she knew what was going on.
"We'll talk about it in the morning." He pulled her close again and shut his eyes. The darkness brought back his nightmare but the warmth of Elena kept him sane.
"It's about that gold we got in the mail, isn't it?" She questioned.
"Mmmm." Was what she got in return. Elena silently huffed and shut her eyes, realizing the conversation was over.
