Scary Mansion

​It was this old, abandoned house around three houses from ours. Quite a sizeable building, with a small wicker gate giving access to one person at a time. We used to go when the sun was high in the sky, fearing ghouls and vagabonds. No one had the nerve to enter the premises, and we five – me, Jason, Hari, Mehul and Lisa-gawked open-mouthed at the haunting verandah with stately pillars and a heavy carved door with a pointed peg on top. We always challenged ourselves and anyone who came to go up, knock on the door and go in. There might be a broken window, we felt sure, but lacked the nerve to check. A window opened and closed immediately.

​We all drew back, except for Hari. He ran forward excitedly and leapt up on the wall, grabbing the window ledge. Peeping in through a crack, he lost his balance and fell back to the ground. His leg came into contact with a hard stone, and he let out a yelp. We grabbed him and sped out, nearly getting stuck in the narrow gate and thrashing like fishes. Never stopping till we got home! ‘There was someone, dark with a mantle and a cloak,’ Hari uttered, all agog. ‘He or she or it’ he snarled: ‘looked at me and raised a bony hand.’

​A week passed before anyone spoke about the house. We sat in the branches of the guava tree, eating unripe fruits and amusing ourselves with the frisbee. Then Hari said he would go into the house. We all fell silent, a chilly gust blowing down our collective spine! ‘I bet 20 rupees you will not.’ Rohan bet his flute, Lisa a box of mints, Jason a box of marbles: all the things we held dear. ‘Let me see the goods’ he countered. I showed the money, and we went to each house in turn. ‘Meet me there at four’ shrieked Hari as he sped off homeward. He lived farthest away from us, but he ran extraordinarily fast. None of us could catch him in police-n-crook games. 

​At four, we assembled, with flashlights and candles and wickets and hockey sticks. We were going to rid the place of its ghost forever. Thrilling with horror, our hair standing stiff as porcupine quills, we prepared to back Hari up if needed. The bet was the furthest thing from our minds. We wanted to partake in the glorious adventure. Hari broke the window and was swallowed. Jason went in, then me and perhaps the others. I found myself going up the stairs. Jason had entered a door and vanished. Around halfway, I saw a forbidding figure glaring down at me and stopped rooted to the steps. It glided along smoothly and then appeared to fly. Scared into action, I gave a terrific leap, clearing five steps and then slipping the rest of the way. I ran into what seemed to be the hall and hid behind the door. 

Footsteps sounded outside and a hissing voice reached my ears: “Come out, I don’t want your money.” I began to edge out, relieved it was Hari. Then I stopped and looked through the narrow gap beneath the hinges. I saw something much taller than Hari, shrouded in black – raising a bony hand. Just as he had described. “Come!” it bade me in a voice full of authority. Fear became a ball that rose in my throat, making breathing difficult. My mouth felt dry from inhaling the dust of decades and my head felt queer. I slid away from the door, feeling for some exit and came across a wooden door bracket. 

Something or somebody abruptly pulled me in, and I yelled out of fear. Swinging the pointed wicket, I held up the flashlight and saw Mehul. I smiled with relief: ‘Where is Jason?’ ‘He is in the kitchen’, answered Mehul shining the torch upwards from his chin. It was rather unnerving till he moved the torch. So, what have you been doing? He glared at me in surprise. 

‘You had just told me now to go upstairs and find Hari.’

‘No, I did not, I have just escaped from upstairs. Nothing will induce me to go there again.’ 

‘That’s funny’, he remarked heading out. ‘Where are Lisa and Jason. Jasonnn, Lisaaa,’ someone shouted earsplittingly loud.

There was no reply, then a reedy voice quavered: “Don’t keep me waiting.” It was the same sound as earlier.  ‘Oh! Stop it Hari,’ I exclaimed, hoping I was right. “You won’t scare us a second time!” I couldn’t tell whether the sun was setting outside but didn’t want to be stuck there come sundown. We needed to hurry.

Hearing a sound from the window, I peeped out and saw Lisa or someone like her, muttering incantations. Surprise, surprise: Hari was also there. Then who had spoken from within? We made a dash for the window and jumped out as footsteps ensued in pursuit. The door flew open, and Jason bounded out, clearing three steps in his headlong rush.

Something fell with a crash on the steps as Hari pushed past me. Madly running out, we slipped through the narrow gate. Nothing would make us go in there again. As I watched Hari swinging along jauntily, I had the feeling he wasn’t the same person we knew. Another shiver passed down my spine as I glanced back at the door swinging shut. It would be a long time before we ventured that way again.