statues

Suspense Stories | Apr 6, 2013 | 4 min read
20 Votes, average: 4 out of 5
I didn't mean to trespass in Mrs.Gorgonvich's back yard. I was climbing in our large apple tree. The tree grew in our yard, but its thick roots and branches snaked over and under the tall wooden fence that separated our yards. Mrs.Gorgonvich always complained about "that ugly tree always dropping apples in my yard!" She practically lived in her backyard, spending all day out there and then going in as soon as the sun went down. Apart from her occasional dreaded appearance at our front door, I never saw her.

She never had parties in her dilapidated house or backyard. So, when I found myself in her backyard, I was surprised, I expected carefully kept hedges and bushes, along with large flowerbeds and strenuously clipped grass. Instead, I felt as if I had landed in a different world, no hedges, no bushes, in fact, the only flowers were thorny roses and dark, creeping vines. The only scenery were the statues. Life sized statues. Hundreds of them, little children, men, women, and even dogs, all so real they looked as if they could open their eyes and shake off the stone. They weren't normal looking statues either, most looked horrified or panicked, like some grotesque mason had started making lawn decorations for the criminally insane. The vines and rose bushes entangling the frozen figures and creating a dark, foreboding look to the terrace.

The dry, dead grass crackling under my feet. I wanted to get out of there as fast as I could, hoping Mrs.Gorgonvich doesn't catch me, if she gets mad about the apples, I can't imagine what she will do if she finds me back here! The front gate was on the other side of the house, on the side, but from there I would have to cross her front yard. I was risky, but it was the only way out. I started running; I wanted to get out of there as fast as I could. I rounded the corner of the house, past the side gate and into, Mrs.Gorgonvich! She stood there, towering over me, her bony neck craning down, her hands on her skeletal hips. "Look who I caught" She said out loud "and what would you be doing in my garden?" she asked. Her dark red lips pulled back in a nasty smirk, showing slightly pointed teeth and her eyes sparkling from behind thick sunglasses, looking pleased that she caught me. For a moment, she looked so, in-human she could have turned out to be a monster and eaten me, but all she did was to lead me to the front gate. "Your mother will hear about your trespassing," she said as she glared at me" And I think your mother will want to know all about your vandalisation of my public property."
"I-I-I was c-climbing a-and I fell i-into your g-garden" I stammered, trying to explain
"You could have broken one of my treasures!" She raged, emphizing each syabyl.
"You mean those creepy statues all covered in vines?"
"Yes, those statues" She said as she glared at me with pure hate.
She sheparded me out her gate and pushed me out in front of her. She followed me up to my door and stopped at the last concrete step. Even though I was right in the front hall, she franticly rang the bell until my mother, exasperated, arrived at the front door to greet the "special" visitor.
Mrs.Gorgonvich kept ringing the bell until my mother opened the front door to let her in. She started talking before she sat down, speaking so quickly that I only caught snippets of the conversation (but it didn't deserve to be called that, seeing as Mre.Gregovroich did all the talking). "So disappointed", "Deserves punishment", "trespassing" and, finally, "tomorrow then." I ran up to my room, fearing the judgment from Mrs.Gregovorich, what was she going to do to me? Make me do yard work for her? Maybe she would make me trim the rose bushes in her depressing yard! Or, worst of all, would I have to massage her feet? I shivered at the thought of horrible, nasty feet covered in warts and bunions.

When I woke up, my mom was gone, but on the table, next to a bowl of soggy circle-os, was a note. "Dear honey, I am at Mrs.Gregovorich's house. Please come over as soon as you are done with breakfast." was all it read. My knees nearly knocked together at the thought of my mom and our horrible neighbor sitting and talking. I gave one last shiver and left the house.

When I got to the house, I noticed the door was slightly open, as if inviting me into the run-down house. I stepped in and nearly gasped at the smell, it was horrible, like rotting meat and bad eggs mixed into a toadstool stew. I searched through the living room (a worn rug and some ratty couches), the dining room (an old table covered in a rotting cloth), and finally reached the kitchen (stove so old it could be in a museum, if not for the rust and stains, and a refrigerator that looked like it was from the stone-age, with yellowed sides and a handle nearly falling off), and ran out the back door, and there was Mrs.Gregovorich. I was surprised to not see my mother anywhere. "There you are." She said with her broken smile and a voice that made snake hisses sound pleasant. "Just in time," she said, pulling off her mirrored glasses "you'll look good right next to your mother!" Her wig slid off and, instead of a bald head, there was snakes, writhing and hissing. Her eyes darted to mine and I felt frozen in her gaze. "Perfect, I know you would complete my collection." My arms got heavy, my legs felt useless and I could no longer move my head. Frozen by her gaze, made into a living statue.

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