Free The Mansion by Peter Buckley

from
generation to generation—its secrets and rituals handed on to the
next member of the family. The family lineage died out, but we
found a way to live on. Sacrifice of the innocent, the taking of
the will of someone feeds us—it feeds the house and all that are
tied to it through blood.’
    Tony looked at all the people sitting at the
table. They all smiled and nodded. He then noticed the sculpture of
antlers begin to move. It swayed gently as if being blown by a
gentle breeze. It then began to rotate.
    The man looked up at the sculpture and then
at Tony and Jeremy and continued.
    ‘We can give you all that you desire. All you
have to do is to give in to us. Your friends have allowed us to
share their spirit and energy in exchange for their deepest
desires. As you can see,’ he said, pointing up at the
sculpture.
    Jeremy looked up at the two bodies that
slowly moved with each other as the sculpture moved, their
nakedness and contorted position looking like a page from the Kama
sutra, except that in several places antlers protruded from them.
He then began to throw up on the table space in front of him.
    ‘What…have…you…done?’ Tony stuttered.
    ‘The man desired the woman, and the woman had
deep feelings for him, so they received their gift. Each other,’
the man said, smiling.
    Jeremy suddenly shot to his feet and kicked
back the chair. He turned and ran to the open doorway. The children
in the room all looked at him as he left, their faces momentarily
disfigured. Tony saw their faces and gasped, their real identity
revealed: blackened, cracked skulls.
    Jeremy ran through the corridor and reached
the front door. Even with his arm still being cradled by his
un-injured limb, he still managed to launch a heavy kick at them.
The loud bang as his foot crashed against the solid oak door echoed
around the open hallway. He could feel the cold wind begin to swirl
around him, signaling the arrival of a spirit or spirits. He ran
back up the stairs, bounding two at a time, until he reached the
hallway with all the bedroom doors. He paused, briefly noticing
they were all open, and looked back over his shoulder and noticed a
spinning vortex of dust and dirt ascending the stairs. He ran along
the hallway until he found the room with the large window. The
strange grey light from the snow outside still cast an eerie
luminance in the room. He ran to the window and kicked at it. The
window vibrated, and he stepped back and kicked it again. Still it
didn’t give in. He looked it up and down, searching for any signs
of weakness. He then peered out through it and stepped back
quickly. Gathered on the snow-covered lawns were hundreds of black,
misty shapes. Bright white eyes blinked at him. A sudden blast of
cold air made him shudder, and he turned quickly to see two boys
standing at the door, their faces full of anger. He heard a giggle
and saw two girls lying on the bed, their lower legs being kicked
alternatively in a playful manner as they rested their chins on
their interlocked fingers. There was a flicker of black against the
grey light, and two more children appeared, a young boy and girl
holding hands, their blank, expressionless faces staring at him. He
could feel his heart pounding against his chest. His mind was full
of a strange, loud nothingness, and he couldn’t think straight. He
could hear only white noise as his brain and emotions exploded
within him.
    ‘You are not allowed to leave.’ The sudden
sound of several children’s voices filled his head.
    His whole body shook; he was finding it hard
to breathe. Through complete fear, he turned and threw his whole
body at the large window. The sudden shattering sound of glass
pierced the grey night sky. He stumbled briefly before falling. He
felt a moment of peace settle over him, and time slowed down; he
felt like he was falling for an age. He had time to hope that the
fall would end his torment. He waited for the ground to arrive, but
it never did.
    As Jeremy burst