Haunted House

• Maeve Donaldson, Grade 4
• Short Story
• 2016

I never enjoyed wherever my family and I moved. Everywhere seemed to have creepy neighbours. My name is Darcy, and I have got a story to tell you.
It was just what I wanted. A new place, a comfortable house, in a sleepy town called Eden. I wanted peace and harmony for once in my life. A young girl peeked over the rusty old steel fence bordering my property. She looked like a Greek Goddess with her glowing tanned skin and blonde hair. Her blue eyes glistened like diamonds. Although, I felt peculiarly nervous by the strange presence eerily coming from her grotesque house.
“Hello,” I said. She stared at me blankly. It was if she was entering into my soul. I’ll never forget that sudden feeling of emptiness that dawned upon me. She was like a mermaid siren, luring me into her presence.
“Hi, my name is Maggie,” she said. I was surprised at how confidently she spoke. “Darcy” I replied. Maggie demanded that I come over to her house. I reluctantly agreed. Her icy cold hands grabbed my wrist like a tightened clamp and she dragged me along.
“What are you doing?” I screamed. I was confused, afraid and agitated. “This house is haunted,” she yelled back. Her ghostly voice was like a possessed corpse. The house was dark and gloomy. It was a dungeon. Life as I knew it suddenly came to screeching halt. “Every room will lure you in and will consume you. It wants you to die. We have to destroy the evil!” she said.
“Yes, I will help you,” I replied. What was I thinking? “Well, come on then!” Maggie shouted. This was certainly not the peace and harmony I wanted.
We slowly walked into the house. It was if the house had ears and could hear my every footstep. Maggie whispered, “This way, come to my room. We found ourselves in her room. It smelt like an old musty waiting room from a run-down hospital.
A ghostly figure suddenly stormed in furiously! It was a young girl. It screamed, “This is my room, leave now!” We followed the ghost to another room that had a golden door. Maggie refused to go in. It was if she knew that some evil spirit occupied it. I was not scared. Well, maybe a touch. I slowly and nervously pushed the door open. Shivering, I felt sick. As I entered the room, I saw a smiling horror clown rocking back and forth on an antique rocking chair. Blood was dripping from its mouth. Maggie took a glimpse over my shoulder and saw a silver knife behind it. The ghostly figure was sitting next to the clown.
I couldn’t hold the scream and tears back any longer. I ran frantically to the front door. Maggie was screaming. The front door was locked. Visions of my whole life flashed before me.
Maggie pushed me across the room opening a strange trap-door. Was she showing me to safety?