607 Hullberry St.

The fainting sounds of haunting carnival music, kids laughing and the smell of apple cider donuts followed Ava as she walked out of Ikeborrow’s Annual Spooky Festival. It was just about dusk, and Ava was determined to get to 607 Hullberry St. before it was completely dark. The streets were still filled with people, it was a Friday night, and it was mischief night. There was so much energy in the air, Ava almost felt like she could see it. The cops were already beginning to drive around, hoping to ward off any teenagers or adults from doing something stupid tonight. It didn’t matter, a million cops could be out, and it wouldn’t stop them. Mischief night was on a Friday and the weather was holding out. Mischief would be had tonight.

A slight breeze blew and ruffled some leaves and Ava walked down the street. She pulled her jacket collar a little tighter, although not freezing the wind was a bit chilly. There were only a few blocks to go before Hullberry St. and 607 sat right at the dead end. It has been abandoned for years, yet someone kept it up. Although it showed a lot of age, the mansion was not dilapidated. The grounds were a bit overgrown, but not like something you’d expect from a house that hasn’t had anyone living it for at least fifty years. That was the mystery of Ikeborrow, who kept up Hullberry Manor?

For years people have attempted to break in and figure this out, yet once there everyone always seemed to get scared and not do it. Townsfolk say the house is cursed, that’s why once you get near it you immediately leave. Residents also claim it’s witchcraft that keeps the house from falling apart, and that the last residents have never really left. People say you can sometimes see lights flicker at odd times in the house. Ava thinks this is all crap and she is determined to prove it. Her theory is that it’s all mind over matter, people have been told these stories for years, so they are trained to believe them. Of course, if you think the house is cursed to make you leave, you’ll leave when you get there. If there are mysterious caretakers than obviously the lights will flicker at odd times, don’t they need to see to keep things tidy? There were clear explanations to Ava.

However, there were two things Ava couldn’t manage to find a logical answer to and one was what happened to the last known residents of Hullberry Manor? The Crane family lived there for only five years and then one night they were just gone. All of them, Carl his wife Alice and their three kids John, Linda and Margot who were all under the age of thirteen. The family literally disappeared without a trace on Mischief Night just over fifty years ago. Everything was supposedly left in the house except for the Crane’s themselves. It’s been so many years now and the story had been told over and over, it’s hard to know what the actual truth is. Townies love to embellish say the Cranes were vampires or some other creatures that go bump in the night. Others say the house sits on a portal to another world and the Cranes somehow went through it.

The second odd thing that always bugged Ava is that any records pertaining to this period in Ikeborrow seem to have gone missing or are messed up and any living residents who were around at that time just brush off the story all together. So doing any actual research on this isn’t possible. Ava once tried to ask her grandmother about it, she realized she would have been alive when the Cranes were living in Ikeborrow. Her grandmother claimed they just moved, and people love to warp history. She doesn’t know why the house is abandoned but that’s not our business. Her grandmother claimed there was a fire at townhall a few years after the Crane’s moved so that’s why the records are fuzzy. How convenient, thought Ava there is always a fire. All this makes Ava wonder if it really is nothing or if something terrible did happen there and the town actually wants to it keep hidden? Maybe the elaborate urban legends and ghost stories are there to hide the real horror of what happened at 607 Hullberry St.

Ava decided to stay on Main St. even though it will take her a few minutes longer to get there. She would be isolated enough once she got to Hullberry, so for now she wanted to be around people. Most of the shops were still open. Tony’s Pizza was bustling. Kids, teens, adults all in there enjoying their night. The bakery smelled of chocolate and vanilla cream as Ava strolled by. The owner turned the sign to closed as she passed. Thankfully she had sampled some of their delights at the festival. The shopping strip that housed the grocery, movie theater and deli was full of people. The theater was doing its annual horrorfest which always attracted the widest variety of people. Once passed the strip Ava turned left onto Garden Dr. two blocks down and then Hullberry.

The side street was surprisingly quiet. Aside from a few teenagers running by screaming something, Ava didn’t see many people. Front and porch lights were on but most people seemed to be either inside or somewhere else. Ava was positive security cameras and doorbell cameras were ready, pranksters didn’t have it as easy these days. Technology made it so we could see everything all the time.

Finally there it was. Hullberry St. Ava made a right and started walking towards the dead end. You could see the manor house from the corner of where Garden and Hullberry meet. What a contrast thought Ava. Although quiet, Garden Dr. had a homey atmosphere. Hullberry was just bleak. There were only two houses on this side of the block, they looked old and dark. Not welcoming at all even though they appeared to be lived in. The trees even looked creepier. “Stop!” Ava told herself. She was beginning to think of all the stories people said about 607 Hullberry St. Her mind was just playing games. This street was just the same as the others, it just looked darker because it was later in the night and there weren’t as many porch or street lights.

Hullberry Manor was quite a site close up. It was dark and gothic looking. Ava figured it was probably build it the mid to late 1800’s. The fence that surrounded the property looked like something you’d se around a haunted cemetery. The was a gate, but it was never locked. Ava went to put her hands on the gate, but pulled them back. All of sudden she was hesitant. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea?

Then Ava said out loud “No, I’m not falling for the stories. I’m going in.” With that she forcefully pushed open the gate and walked through it. “Well that was anticlimactic” she thought. The gate made a loud creaking noise but that was it. Ava walked through like it was any other gate. Nothing attacked her, she wasn’t shifted to another dimension or reality. She was just standing on the other side of the gate on 607 Hullberry St. Ava looked left then right and the same road with the same two abysmal houses lay in the same place.

Ava turned and faced the old house. Up close it wasn’t scarier looking, but rather sad. It just looked so empty and cold. She almost felt bad for it. The property was a bit rattier than usual, so she figured she probably wouldn’t venture too far from the house. She heard there was a secret cemetery on the grounds, but that’s probably another tall tale.

She made her way to the steps, there was a grand porch on the front of the manor. The stairs were covered in leaves, and it didn’t look like anyone had walked up them in a while. No caretakers? Or they have another entrance thought Ava. The porch was empty aside from twigs and leaves. The door was a deep mahogany with brass handles. There were two windows level to her, but the curtains were drawn so no peeking in. Although it was probably locked, Ava figured she would try the front door anyway. Her stomach felt a little queasy, Ava wasn’t sure if she was excited, nervous or both. She reached her hand out. The brass handle was cold, and it sent a slight shiver up her arm as she grasped the metal. Ava’s hand wrapped around it, and she pressed down and to her shock the door wasn’t locked. She inhaled a deep breath and pushed the door open.

“Ava. Ava. Ava” she heard is a faint whisper. She jumped; a hand tapped her shoulder. Ava turned around and saw her sister Lisa starring at her.

“You sure were lost in thought there.” Said Lisa.

“What? I mean yeah.” Replied Ava startled. She was no longer at the door of Hullberry Manor but in a card store. In front of an elaborate tiny Halloween village set. It was an entire town set up on a display table. A festival, kids and teens roaming around and a big creepy manor at the end.

“Those things are pretty detailed huh.” Said Lisa.

“Yeah, I was just admiring it. You could almost imagine it being real.” Said Ava still a little thrown off from being so lost in her daydream about the little décor village.

“Sure, if you say. Let’s go. I’m hungry” answered Lisa as she turned to leave to the store. Ava glanced at the little village once more and began to follow Lisa. Then she heard in an unearthly hushed tone “Don’t you want to know the secret?”

Ava hastily swung around and saw a tiny light flicker in the haunted looking manor. It was so fast Ava decided she imagined it. She walked towards the exit of the shop and then heard it in that same eerie whisper, “Don’t worry you’ll be back.”