The Mansion on the Hill
The old mansion stood on the hill; a solitary and dark, forbidding presence that towered over the town and cast a melancholic shadow on the houses surrounding it. Its windows stared out like vacant eyes. Poison ivy crawled over every available space of its exterior, enveloping it in a shroud of secrecy.
Everyone in Hills City avoided that big old mansion. A family had been gruesomely murdered in that house a hundred years ago and rumour has it that since then, the vengeful spirits of the victims inhabiting it have been haunting those who dared to set foot in the house.
A few years ago, Mr Pudd, a serious businessman who lived in Hills City and an atheist who didn't believe in any of this “spiritual pooh-pooh” – he called it – had tried to tear down the old mansion to redevelop the land into an entertainment centre. But while examining the mansion one day, he mysteriously fell down a flight of stairs, broke his neck and died.
The police who examined the scene said that there were skid marks at the top of the stairs – signs of a struggle. They concluded that Mr Pudd had probably been pushed. The coroner who examined Mr Pudd's body said that his eyes were wide open and fixed at a spot at the top of the stairs as if staring at the one who had pushed him. But the police never caught the person who pushed Mr Pudd to his death as there was no evidence to indicate the presence of another person at that time. The story drew considerable attention from the residents of Hills City and from then on, they left the mansion on its own. From time to time, stories of strange sounds and activities in the house were reported and they only served to strengthen the fear that was already in the hearts of the people who lived there.
* * *
Sean could feel the air thicken as he got closer to the front porch of the mansion. Was it his imagination or did it seem more difficult to breathe the closer he got to it? He paused hesitantly on the first step and glanced back at the two boys standing by the gate with their brand-new gleaming stunt bikes. Billy and Joel were watching him closely, like eagles who had spotted their prey and were about to swoop down with killer precision to capture it.
As he met Billy's intense gaze, Billy lifted his chin in a challenge. The boys smiled at him tauntingly .
“Come on, you can do it,” Sean told himself as he turned back towards the house. “Just a few more steps and you'll be at the front door. Then all you have to do is knock on it three times, and afterwards you can get out of there. Easy as that,” he coaxed himself.
Sean took another step towards the front door. The pungent odour of rotting corpses hit his nostrils. The smell was overpowering. Sean retched , but managed to keep control. He used the sleeve of his shirt to cover his nose and mouth.
“Don't think about the rumours. Think about Billy's stunt bike… Think about the bike,” Sean chanted to himself over and over as if he was reciting a mantra.
Sean had come upon Billy and Joel at the playground that afternoon. The boys were trying to set fire to a see-saw, but the rotting wood and strong winds made it difficult for the wood to catch fire. Sean had been sitting under a tree, watching them and admiring their bikes. Feeling bored of trying to set the see-saw aflame, the two boys had challenged Sean to a dare. If he dared to knock on the front door of the old mansion three times, Billy and Joel would hang out with him for the entire week and Billy would loan him his stunt bike.
Being the new kid in town and lured by the prospect of new friends and a new toy to play with, Sean had readily agreed despite the rumours he heard about the house on his first week in town.
Squaring his shoulders and steeling himself, Sean ventured another step forward. Suddenly, he could sense a presence. It seemed to be watching him, following his every move. Sean felt uneasy. His skin prickled and the tiny hairs on the back of his neck stood. Beads of sweat clung to his skin. The mansion seemed to be emanating an aura of malevolence .
He was almost there now. Just a few more steps and the front door would be within his reach. With trembling hands, Sean raised the knocker on the front door. It creaked from disuse. The barely audible creak sounded like a pistol shot to Sean's ears and he jumped. He glanced back at the boys again, giving them a smile, hoping he didn't look as scared as he felt. They were seated on their bikes now, ready to take off if anything happened.
Sean gulped and then brought the knocker down on the door in three rapid strikes. The sound reverberated through the house. After a suspenseful pause, a loud wail that surely could not have come from any human radiated through the house and its shutters began to open and close. Sean caught sight of several black figures gliding down the hallway through the narrow gaps in the shutters as they opened.
He had seen enough. With his heart thudding wildly in his chest, Sean sprinted down the porch and dashed out through the heavy iron gates. Billy and Joel were nowhere to be seen. They had fled a long time ago.
Is the mansion in Hills City really haunted? What or who really inhabits that old dwelling? Stay tuned to the next issue of WaWa in Kids World to find out.
Dictionary:
1) Melancholic: gloomy, depressive
2) Shroud: cloak, to veil or hide
3) Atheist: a person who does not believe in the existence of supreme beings or spirits.
4) Tauntingly: mockingly, jeering
5) Retched: gagged
6) Emanating: emitting, radiating
7) Malevolence: wickedness, evil
8) Reverberated: echoed, resounded