Front Page Story

Chapter 1

By Tyler Kojen

Shelley knew what she needed, and she knew where it was.  A story that would get her on the front page.  Then her editor would practically have to give her the new reporter position.  No more taking pictures for a measly wage.  She knew that if she could get the scoop on the recent disappearance case, she’d have the position won.  And she’d finally have beaten that slut, Rejina.  Rejina couldn’t suck enough dicks to beat this story.  Shelley ginned to herself as she drove along the side road towards the old deserted mansion.  Most of the townspeople claimed the place was haunted, since the entire family living there and their servants vanished one day.  One of the servants was found near town looking half dead, yammering some nonsense.  Poor guy died the day after, his heart exhausted from stress.  The police tried investigating, but after a few of their own disappeared, they decided it’d be best to quit the investigation.  They even closed off the one side road leading to the mansion just in case; Shelley had an old friend from school in the department, and was able to get onto the road.  Shouldn’t be much longer now, she thought.

“You’re going too fast.”  A voice coming from the passenger side brought Shelley out of her self-exposition.  “The road isn’t paved well; you need to slow down.”

Shelley looked over at her “partner” who she hired for this job.  The Chinese girl gave Shelley the shivers.  She had hair that was so black that the shadows around her seemed brighter.  Her skin was covered in some powder, making it ivory white.  And the dress she wore… it looked like the standard Chinese dress one sees in movies and stuff, but was completely black, with dark green, snake-like designs sprawling about it.  Apparently she was some sort of “paranormal investigator” who was interested in the disappearances.  Shelley couldn’t even pronounce the girl’s real name, so they both agreed that Dolly would suffice, since the girl’s appearance reminded Shelley of a China doll.

“Keep your eyes on the road please,” Dolly said in her all-business tone of voice.  “This would be a very bad place to have an accident.”

Shelley stuck her tongue out at Dolly, and then put her attention back to the road ahead.  “You’re too cautious.  Relax a little.  Besides, it looks like we’re here.”  Shelley slowed the car to a gentle halt.  Shelley slowed the car to a gentle halt; before them was a large iron gate, held closed by a length of chain, with a padlock keeping the chain together.  Shelley turned off the car and got out to examine the padlock.  “We’re in luck!  It’s not actually locked!”  Removing the padlock and chain, Shelley swung the gates open, granting the pair entry to the inner grounds.  Shelley looked back to see Dolly getting her bag from the car.  She brought out Shelley’s camera as well.  “Could you remind me again why we can’t just drive the rest of the way?”

Dolly looked exasperated.  “Once again, because the engine interferes with my concentration, and because if there is something in there, it would be best to not alert it to our presence so soon.”  She walked up to Shelley and held out the camera.

“Oh yeah… that’s right.  Still sounds dumb to me,” she said, snatching her camera.  She faced inwards towards the mansion grounds, where a thick layer of mist covered the ground.  “This place is already giving me the creeps… you go first.”

Dolly shook her head and proceeded inside, with Shelley following close behind her.  “You’re such a child,” Dolly muttered under her breath.

*          *          *

Despite how close the manor seemed from the front gate, the walk was long and nerve-wracking to Shelley.  She attributed it mostly to Dolly’s slow pace.  Finally the pair reached the end of the driveway, to find a white sports car parked in front of the stairs leading to the entrance.

“Oh my God!  No way!  That backstabbing, two-timing, cum-guzzling whore!  What’s Rejina doing here?!?”  Shelley screamed to no one in particular.

“Trying to steal your story, I’d imagine.”  Dolly peered into the passenger side window and noticed two hot beverage cups in the drink holders.  “And she’s either lazy, or she’s not alone.”  Shelley seemed even more furious than before upon hearing of this.

“Well, let’s go inside.  Maybe we can find the answers before her.”  And so Shelley and Dolly walked up to the mansion’s large double doors.  “Uh… you do the honors.”  Dolly shook her head once more, let out a quick sigh, pushed open a single door just enough so she could fit through, and disappeared into the mansion’s interior, leaving Shelley outside.  Shelley looked back in the direction of the front gate; she could barely see it through the increasing veil of mist.  “I guess it’s now or never.”  Taking a deep breath, then letting it out slowly, Shelley entered the darkness.

*          *          *

“I just realized…” Shelley’s voice echoed in the entrance hall, “… I forgot to bring a flashlight.”  While the front door was still open, it let in virtually no light, and the entrance was pitch black.  “Maybe there’s a lamp in here?”  Shelley moved slightly, her arms outstretched, hands feeling for anything.  Wait… here’s something… it’s round and hard… a vase?  But it’s got cloth over it… and it’s warm… vases shouldn’t be warm.  A small bit of luminescence appeared just in front of Shelley, allowing her to see the object she’d been feeling; she’d been feeling up Dolly’s ass.

“Are you finished?”  Shelley thought she heard a tone of disappointment in Dolly’s voice.  “Here, take some of these.”  Dolly held out a dimly lit flare in one hand, and about half a dozen unused flares in the other, offering them to Shelley.

“Wouldn’t candles be more your style?”  Shelley took the flares, and lit one for herself.

“Oh, I’ve got candles.  But I want to save them in case I need to perform a ritual.”  Dolly looked around, investigating what little she could.  She came across some doorways leading who knows where, and a curving staircase leading to the second floor.  “So where do you want to go first?”

Shelley hadn’t the slightest clue.  This place was so big, and she didn’t know where to start.  She looked around, trying to decide by looking for the direction that gave her the fewest shivers.  She saw one door that wasn’t closed.  I guess that’s as good a start as any.  She motioned to Dolly towards the door, and the two approached the doorway slowly, unsure of what waited inside.

*          *          *

This room, whatever it was, was as dark as the entrance, if not more so.  Looking around, Shelley noticed a few bookcases and shelves lining the walls.  Near a curtained window, Shelley saw a large desk and office chair.  “Must be a study or office of some sort.  Let me open this window so it’ll be easier to see.”  Shelley pushed aside the heavy curtains, allowing a dim stream of light to pass through the dust covered window and enter the room.  “So, find anything?”

“You could say that.  You might want to take a look at this.”  Shelley looked over to see the back of a large chair to see Dolly on the other side, looking quite intensely at whatever was in the chair.  Shelley maneuvered her way next to Dolly, and looked at the contents of the chair.

“Oh my God…” was all she could think to say.  In front of her, sitting in the chair, was a life-sized statue of a young man who stared at his rock-hard erection with the same amazement as Shelley.  As though this lewd statue wasn’t strange enough, Shelley thought it even stranger that it was wearing modern clothes.  It even had boxers that had been pulled down along with its denim jeans.  Shelley leaned forward to get a better look at the statue’s ecstatic face, and was instantly slapped with a sense of recognition.  “James?  What the hell is a statue of James doing here?”  Shelley heard some rustling below her, and saw Dolly was checking the jean pockets before she withdrew a wallet.  Thumbing through it, she pulled out a card and passed it to Shelley.  It was a driver’s license issued to James Wallace.  “Does this mean that this statue… is James?”

Dolly began fingering the statue’s erect penis, feeling the intricacies of its shaft.  She then moved to the stone pubic hair, broke a few curls off, sniffed them a bit, placed them in a small plastic pouch she took from her bag, and then put the pouch back in her bag.  “I’m afraid your guess is correct.  Considering the likeness to your friend, the realism and detail of the statue, the clothes, and the driver’s license, that it is the only sensible conclusion.”  Dolly stood, looking towards Shelley.  “So, uh… how did you know him?”

“He was an intern for the newspaper.  We talked a little from time to time, but he always seemed more interested in Rejina.  Nice kid, but a bit too eager to please others, especially Rejina.”  Shelley thought for a moment, then turned to Dolly.  “Speaking of that bitch, we should get moving before she finds all the good clues.”

“Um, Shelley…” Dolly pointed to James, “… don’t you think he’s a clue?”

“You know, I think you’re right!  So what we should do is be on the lookout for more bizarre statues, right?”

Dolly nodded, “But that’s not all.  We have no idea how he became a statue.  We should be cautious so that the same thing doesn’t happen to us.  There’s only a few ways I know of a person could be petrified.  Stay close to me, and be careful.”

“Hey, I’m supposed to be in charge.” Shelly thought about the consequences of continuing her complaint, then added, “and as the person in charge, I think we should follow your plan.”

The girls decided they’d spent enough time in the room, and that they should move on.  But before leaving the room, Shelley took a few picture of James.  “These will be useful as evidence later.”

“Don’t you think he’s evidence enough on his own?”  Shelley just stuck her tongue out at Dolly for the remark, and the two exited the study.

*          *          *