324 Abercorn by Mark Allan Gunnells

 Release date: July 8, 2020

Subgenre: Ghost Story, Horror

About 324 Abercorn:

 

Brad Storm doesn’t believe in ghosts, but moving into the house at 324 Abercorn just may change his mind.

Best-selling author Bradley Storm finally has enough money to buy and restore his dream home. Despite 324 Abercorn's reputation as one of the most haunted houses in America, Bradley isn't worried. He doesn't believe in the supernatural. Then strange things begin to happen. Objects no longer where he left them. Phantom noises heard from empty rooms. Shadows glimpsed from the corner of his eye.

Is his house truly haunted, or is there something more sinister happening on the property?

With the help of Bradley’s new boyfriend and a few friends who are just as intrigued with the seemingly inexplicable occurrences surrounding the infamous house, they set out to find the truth of what stalks the halls at 324 Abercorn.

Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.

Excerpt:

 

The Maverick Center had originated as a school, and upstairs was a recreation of how the classrooms would have looked when the school first opened in 1856, with wooden desks and chalkboard tablets, outdated world maps hanging on the walls and even a dunce cap sitting on a wooden stool in the corner. Brad had visited the place before, and knew the classroom was technically in the next building over, but at the top of the stairs a door led onto an open walkway that connected the two buildings.

            Out on the walkway, Brad paused to enjoy the warm breeze. Still early spring but the temperatures were already in the 70s. This foretold of a blistering summer, but the heat had never bothered Brad. He’d rather be too hot than too cold any day.

            Letting his eyes wander over to his house, Brad found himself fixated on an odd shadow reflected in the glass of the bay window. Leaning slightly over the railing and squinting, he detected what looked like the silhouette of a person standing by the window. His bedroom window.

            Brad placed a hand over his eyes to shield the glare from the sun, sure his vision must be playing tricks on him. Just as a cloud scuttled in front of the sun, it seemed the figure in his bedroom stepped back from the window. Or it could have been the shade from the cloud removing the reflection from the glass.

            In any case, Brad turned back and retreated the way he came, bounding down the stairs and past the register. Marty asked if anything was wrong, but Brad didn’t answer. He was out the door and sprinting across the street, nearly colliding with a middle-aged couple who’d stopped at the edge of Crenshaw Square to study a large map.

            He took the curving steps two at a time, unlocked the door, and started for the stairs until the incessant beeping of the alarm drew him back to the foyer. He punched in the code, and then rushed upstairs to his bedroom.

            His bedroom was empty and seemingly undisturbed. The bedsheets lay rumpled in the manner he’d left them this morning, his Rolex sat untouched on the nightstand. He did a quick search of the upstairs, just as he had the other day when he thought he’d heard the footsteps, but the rooms were as deserted now as they were then.

            He made his way down to the lower floor and searched those rooms, as well as the basement library, Phantom following alone as if he were the Pied Piper. He found no one, and no sign that anyone had been inside. In fact, how could anyone have been inside when the alarm was still set when he came in?

            The alarm.

Something about this nagged at him, and he realized that he didn’t recall deactivating the alarm when he’d come in for the book earlier. Of course, punching in his code had become second nature so perhaps he’d done it automatically. He couldn’t be sure. Just as he couldn’t be sure he’d seen anything in the window.

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About Max Allan Gunnells:

 

Mark Allan Gunnells loves to tell stories. He has since he was a kid, penning one-page tales that were Twilight Zone knockoffs. He likes to think he has gotten a little better since then. He loves reader feedback, and above all he loves telling stories. He lives in Greer, SC, with his husband Craig A. Metcalf.