The morning sun slowly rose over the still sleeping town of Veronaville as a car and moving van halted before an old Victorian mansion. The wooden, three-story structure, with its alabaster pillars and oak wood panels, stood eerily on the verdant hilltop and, as a cool morning breeze swept by, the house seemed to moan as if in agony. In spite of the mansion’s derelict condition, Mindy Archer took a moment to take in the scenery before enthusiastically hopping out of the car.
"Well, you guys, here we are," she said, her crystal blue eyes gleaming in the morning light.
Three sleep-deprived teenagers filed out of the car and van, and gazed indifferently at the towering mansion.
"It's big," Judy flatly stated, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"A little too big..." Cecilia added, gazing unsurely at her foster mother.
"Yeah, well," Mindy started, moving to the back of the van and unlocking the latch. "I thought it'd be a nice change for once. And besides, it may be big, but at least now you girls will each have your own bathroom.”
Jake gave a light chuckle as he said, "Well that’s a relief.”
The two girls glared at their brother before helping their mom unload the van.
One by one, Jake, Judy and Cecilia carried the plethora of moving boxes into the house. The porch stairs creaked under teenagers’ weight and the house itself seemed to give off an unwelcoming – almost foreboding – air. Cecilia shivered.
“This place gives me the creeps,” she said, looking around the empty living room.
“Yeah,” Jake agreed. “Kinda reminds me of those houses you see in horror movies.”
“Oh, relax, you guys,” Mindy said as she entered the room with several duffel bags. “After a little sprucing up, this place will start to feel like home.”
But before Jake and Cecilia could argue, Judy’s piercing scream sounded throughout the house.