13 Phantom Avenue

by Gavin Crowe

I stood in front of the old manor house, amazed by the fact that this long-since forgotten building was still standing after all the years of modern construction around it. The structure stood out from the small, but welcoming houses that surrounded it.

I tentatively took a few steps forward and pushed the old and creaky door open, but I only found darkness inside. What must have been a fresh, new coat of white paint had worn off the rotting, oak door frame. I flicked on my torch and walked inside, letting only the weak beam of my torch guide me through the deserted hallways and ravaged rooms.

As I walked into what could have been a nice living room and which was now a dark, damp room, full of different types of broken furniture that must have been expensive antiques in their time. I walked through various other rooms with more broken furniture, but then I came upon the kitchen.

It seemed untouched. Then next to it, in the dining room, the table had neatly been set up for a dinner for two and a dark figure sat, perched in the furthest chair. The figure’s lifeless body had pale, white skin and a bloody gash that scarred most of what appeared to be a man’s face. I ran for the door, but it was sealed shut by a rusty padlock. I turned around and the last thing I saw was a sharp glint on a metal surface that reflected off the weak beam of light shining from my torch. I felt the metal surface burying itself into my flesh ......... then, nothingness..........