As her hair was all over the place due to the warm summer wind, Lena kicked a rock down the dirt trail while sighing. Because it was the first day of her summer vacation, and instead of hanging out at the lake with her friends, she was confined to her small town with nothing to do. As a result, she wanted something exciting to happen.
A silver flash showed up, almost instantly removing her wish. Silver dust caught her eye. She decided to bend down and pick up the old, rusted key that was half buried in the ground. With the type of key it was, extensive chests and secret rooms immediately came to mind. That alone contributed to her heartbeat thumping with excitement.
After placing it in her hands, she murmured, “Where did you come from?” while turning it over.
Jake’s sneakers were releasing dirt. He, her best friend, ran up while exclaiming, “Hey Lena! What’s that?”
While looking at it, she responded, “I don’t know, but it looks important.” Then, she lifted it towards the sun. “What if it unlocks something fascinating?”
“I don’t know,” Jake said, his eyes narrowing. “But if there is a treasure chest, then all of my dreams would come true. What if there is even an abandoned house?”
Looking at each other with grins, they both knew that a mystery was exactly what they needed, so that they could make this summer interesting.
Lena glanced out the window before speaking. “This must be a part of the town with historical significance. I wonder how it relates to the creepy mansion on oak street.”
Jake shuddered. “Oh, you mean the Holloway House? The one that is said to be haunted?”
“Only one way to find out.” She placed the key in her pocket and began running. Jake groaned while trailing behind.
At the end of Oak Street, the Holloway House sat overgrown with vines and encased in a rusty iron fence. Its windows were covered with dust and the whole property appeared as though it had been neglected for ages.
“Can you see any keyholes?” she whispered as they tiptoed towards the porch. Lena creaked the gate open and they timidly walked up the porch’s steps.
Jake focused on the door. “Look! There! Right under the handle, I can see a placement for a key; use it.”
Lena put the key in the lock and waited a moment. As the door began to creak open, she turned to catch Jake’s nervous glance. Slowly, the two of them stepped through the doorway together.
The dust filled her lungs as an air of stale memories and timelessness settled upon her. Ghostly furniture and cobwebs tended with white sheets surrounded her alongside dated portraits that had begun to lose their color.
“This place is like a museum,” Jake whispered. “Anyway, what are we actually looking for?”
Lena didn’t know. But then she saw it—a small wooden chest on a desk in the corner. Her pulse quickened. “Maybe the key opens that too.”
She knelt and turned the key in the lock. It clicked, and the lid creaked open. Inside was a stack of yellowed letters tied with a ribbon.
Jake picked one up. “These are from Mr. Holloway to his wife. Look! This one says he hid something valuable before he left for war.”
Lena’s breath caught. “You mean…treasure?”
Before Jake could answer, a floorboard creaked upstairs.
They froze.
“Did you hear that?” Jake whispered.
Lena swallowed. “Yeah. And I think we’re not alone.”
Their summer had just gotten a whole lot more interesting.
