HHH/A.J. Showder
From Create Your Own Story
It's been a rough day. Just before you left for work this morning, your labrador Trixie got loose. You didn't have time to chase her, so she's been out all day. Worse yet, your boss insisted on finishing the house frame and plumbing today, so you had to stay late.
By the time you got home at six thirty, Trixie had been out for almost twelve hours. She could have been anywhere. Fortunately, one of your neighbors caught sight of her at about six and told you she was in the neighborhood of the old, abandoned mansion up on the hill. You got your flashlight and headed out that way. It was already starting to get dark, but you were really worried about her. Then, to put the cherry on top, after you got out of your truck and started walking around looking for her, it started raining, then seriously pouring.
By this point, you were on the mansion grounds, and it looked like the best place to stay dry was on the mansion's porch. When you got there, you thought you heard voices inside, so you tried the door.
You go into the mansion and see a scrawny kid with a shaggy mess of brown hair, probably a student at C.U. He was talking to Mrs. Dylan, who runs the cafe in town. As always when you see her, your eyes are drawn to her fantastic tits for a moment. You shake yourself out of it quickly and ask, "Have you guys seen a dog?"
They both say no, and you tell them you've been looking for her since she got out this morning. "What is this place, anyway?" you finish.
The scrawny kid answers, "Well, some of the highly reliable stories around town say it's haunted because of some murders." His snotty sarcasm is irritating as hell. You already don't like him.
Mrs. Dylan replies, "There's a lot more to this house than those silly stories. The Sprye family was one of the founders of this town and---"
This sounds like it could go on for a long time if you don't cut in quick. "OK, I didn't ask for a history lesson. I'm A.J. by the way."
"My name's Steve."
"I'm Jennifer. And no, I'm not Jenn."
There's a sudden, frantic knocking at the door behind you. "I didn't see anyone out there," you say.
"Well let them in! Can't you hear the wind?" says Steve. Damn, this kid is pushy!
You open the door, and outside is standing a wisp of a girl. You could probably pick her up over your head one-handed. The rain has thoroughly soaked her white tee shirt, and you can plainly see her bra through it.
She looks around a bit confused, then says, "My car broke down out there and I saw lights up here. Can you guys help me out?"
"I didn't see any lights," you say. "You guys?" Both Jennifer and Steve shake their heads.
"So wait, what is this place? Who are you guys?" the girl asks.
You all three introduce yourselves and then, before you can shut him up, Steve starts talking about a bet to stay in the "haunted" mansion overnight.
The girl's voice squeaks when she says, "Haunted?"
You pat her on the shoulder and say, "Ignore that twit. There's nothing wrong with this place. So what's your name?"
"April," she answers, fear still evident in her voice.
A pronounced click comes from the direction of the door, and then an odd rumbling, clanking sound.
You turn to try the door and find it locked.
"Huh. It's . . . locked. I guess we'll have to find another way out."
Steve pulls out his phone. "I should call my friends to tell them what happened." He looks at it in confusion and shakes it a bit. "That's funny. I had three bars when they dropped me off."
Jennifer checks her phone and can't get a signal and your own is dead, although you charged it just this afternoon at work.
After patting down her pockets, April can't find hers. "But I specifically made sure I had it before I got out of the car. . . . I must have dropped it running up here. Oh God! It must be soaked out there."
It sounds like this poor girl is having a day worse than yours.
Turning your flashlights down the long foyer, you see two doors leading off to either side and a stairway going up at the end.
"I guess we should have a look around," says Jennifer. "If we split up, we can cover more ground, then all meet back here. We'll be out of here in no time."
"S-s-split up?" says April. "I don't think that's a good idea."
Steve looks at you and shrugs.
Do you:
