Day 377

Her hallway usually had three doors - kitchen, bedroom and bathroom.

When she came home from work there were four.

This new door was a deep red with a dark bronze handle, ornate and bleeding.

Voices were yelling from the other side, she could only partially hear them.
You rotten cheat you had that card up your slee - no I never, you cut card all the time!
As she pressed her ear to the door to better eavesdrop on them the door swung open.

She fell through, just managing to catch herself.
Looking up she found herself in a dimly lit room with an almost foggy tone to the air.
A round table was at the centre, its green felt surface matching the dark carpet.

The walls were blood red and covered in western-style wanted posters.
She recognised the faces of the two men seated at the table from them.
They were staring at her, eyes pitch black and skin slightly translucent.

Say lady, do you know how to play Ashes? I'm damn sick of this cheating scumbag over he-
Oh I'm the cheater? Roll up your sleeves pal and we'll see who's cheating!
They continued to argue until she stood up and their heads snapped to face her, silent and waiting.

Nervously she stuttered out that she'd never played Ashes before and had no idea what it was.
The door slammed shut behind her, the lock clicking into place.
A third chair appeared before her, it looked comfortable and inviting.

Slowly she sat down and they dealt her in, refusing to explain to her how the game was played.
As the game progressed she found that the cards moved her hands, playing themselves.
When she voiced this the two men rolled their eyes like it had been obvious all along.

The game never seemed to end, one round morphed into endless others.
Before she realised it she was accusing them both of cheating, joining the meaningless squabbles.
As a fourth chair appeared the lock clicked open and they fell silent.