In the small town of Willow Grove, there was a house that had been abandoned for years. Locals whispered about strange happenings that occurred within the walls of the old Victorian mansion. No one dared to enter, fearing the rumors of a terrifying spirit that haunted the premises. Pairing with those rumors, the true life triple homicide that happened in this fractured home over a century ago, only made the breathtaking structure that much more chilling. 

       The old house stood tall and imposing, its crumbling façade barely visible in the dim moonlight. Three friends, Sarah, Michael, and Emily, had decided to explore the abandoned house, drawn by its eerie reputation and mysterious past. They were thrill-seekers looking for a good scare, but they had no idea what they were about to encounter. Being hours past tipsy wasn't leading them to the best of decision-making skills either.

        As soon as they stepped foot inside the house, an eerie feeling washed over them. The air was thick with a sense of foreboding, and the temperature dropped dramatically. A chill ran down their spines, and they could hear the faint whispers of unseen spirits echoing through the halls. Sarah, the bravest of the group, led the way, her flashlight cutting through the darkness like a beacon. Suddenly, they heard a blood-curdling scream coming from the upstairs.

     The friends started running to the exit, their screams echoing through the empty halls. They tried to escape, but the doors were locked, and the windows were sealed shut. The 3 friends were trapped. They were not alone in the house. A dark shadowy figure lurked in the corners, its presence sending shivers down their spines. They could hear its mumbling in the darkness, taunting them with promises of death and despair. They each ran in different directions to try to find sanctuary or freedom.

      As they fumbled through the maze-like corridors, Michael suddenly felt a cold hand grip his shoulder. Maybe it was one of the girls trying to get him to slow down. He turned around, but there was no one there. A feeling of dread washed over him, something was terribly wrong. Before he could say a word, a loud crash echoed through the mansion, and Sarah screamed in terror.

    Michael took off like a bat out of hell towards the now silent area where the scream had come from. He found Sarah lying on the floor, her face pale and her eyes wide with fear. She whispered something about a ghost before her body went limp, her lifeless eyes staring into the void. He tried to wake her up, hoping she was asleep, but it was too late. Michael's childhood sweetheart had just died in his arms, and he had no idea why... aside from that vague mention of a ghost. 

     Elsewhere in the empty halls, a sudden gust of wind swept through the area, blowing out the lighter Emily was using for light and plunging her into darkness. Panicking, she fumbled for her phone, trying to turn it back on after it had died. She was desperate to call for help. But before she could dial a number, a shadowy figure appeared before her, its eyes glowing with evil intent. Emily screamed as the figure lunged at her, its icy grip tightening around her throat. She could feel her throat collapsing in the vise-like grip, but when she tried to grab at the arms of her attacker, her hands would pass right through them. She fought desperately against the intangible force, but it was no use. It's as if they weren't actually there. Unfortunately for Emily, this was all too real. The last thing she saw before everything went black was a twisted, mocking smile on the face of the spirit. The mouth filled with fangs, drooling with anticipation of the kill. Michael turned the corner just in time to see Emily make one final gasp for air before dropping to the floor lifeless. Michael took off in the opposite direction.

     After witnessing the gruesome deaths of Sarah and Emily, Michael knew he had to escape the haunted mansion before he met a similar fate. He tried multiple times to find a way out, but every unlocked door seemed to lead him back to the same dark hallway. As he frantically searched for a usable exit, he could feel the presence of the evil spirits closing in on him. Whispers echoed through the halls once more, this time promising him a fate worse than death. Michael's heart raced as he realized he was trapped in a twisted nightmare from which he may never awaken. Alone and afraid, Michael searched until he finally stumbled upon a hidden staircase leading down into the depths of the mansion. He thought he had found a way out, but as he descended into the darkness, he realized he had only descended further into the clutches of the one he was so desperately trying to get away from. The walls of the staircase seemed to close in around him, the air growing colder and more oppressive with each step he took. When he turned around to retreat, it was just a cement wall. The building seemed to be consuming him. Then, just as he reached the bottom, the spirits appeared before him in all their horrifying glory. They swirled around him, their twisted forms contorting and shifting in a grotesque dance of death. Michael screamed in terror as they closed in on him, their cold, ethereal hands reaching out to claim his soul. With each piercing finger, and every piece of flesh that ripped from his body, Michael knew he would never escape the haunted mansion alive. The spirits enveloped him in their icy embrace, their unearthly wails drowning out his final, desperate cries for help. Until there was no sound left aside from the remaining echoes from a sound that disappeared moments ago.

     After the last flicker of life left his eyes, Michael joined Sarah and Emily in the realm of the dead, his body becoming just another twisted, tortured soul trapped within the walls of the gothic landscape forever cursed to consume others that may enter the home.

       The abandoned home had claimed three more souls that night, its unwavering presence feeding on their fear and despair. As the sun rose over the dilapidated house, casting long shadows over its decrepit walls, a calm eerily filled the air. Birds chirped, squirrels played in the grass and trees, and a gentle breeze comforted the house. The world kept turning. 

     Over the next few days, missing persons reports, manhunts, and investigations went on. Noone could find the mischievious teens. Police had labeled them as runaways. Fitting as each of them spent the last moments of their lives trying to runaway. The parents of the three teens, had all decided they were going to ignore the legends, and check out the old, abandoned mansion at the end of town, because they knew their kids. The police weren't going to do it, so they were going to take matters into their own hands. That night, all 6 of them were going to break into the old Victorian mansion in Willow Grove.