Pick Your Poison Chapter 1: The Invitation It was a stormy day-gray skies, the occasional sprinkling of rain, a chilling wind, creating the perfect fall rainy day ambience. I sat outside my house, scribbling in my notebook and solving some new puzzles I’d written down. I loved all kinds of puzzles, from sudoku to riddles. I was also a big fan of horror and mystery stories. My personal favorites were Smiles, Dead by Dawn and the Twisted Dreams/Waking Nightmares duology. “August! Come inside!” That was my dad, Clark Aves. My mom was away on a business trip from the A&H Hollows company, a famous company that sold valuable artifacts. The owners, Abigail and Henry Hollows, actually lived right in my town, Dawnsbloom. They had this huge mansion, Hollow’s Manor. “August! Now!” “Coming, Dad!” I came inside and found him in the hallway holding a letter. “Great news, August. We’ve been cordially invited to a banquet celebrating the A&H Hollow’s success!” “Wonderful. Another fancy banquet to show off. Don’t they ever get tired of it?” He frowned. “Oh, don’t be like that. This is a huge honor. Only the ten most prominent and prestigious members and their children have been invited. And the chance to befriend the Hollows… could earn me a promotion…” I rolled my eyes. Of course he would want to go to this banquet to get a promotion or whatever. He was way too obsessed with his job. “Well, have a fun time. I’ll just stay home.” “Absolutely not. It will be good for you to attend this. You’ll get to meet all the most important members and the owners themselves. Perhaps you’ll join this company when you’re older.” “But Dad-,” I protested. He held up his hand. “I don’t want to hear it. We’re going tonight so be ready by 5:00.” I sighed. I had no desire to meet a bunch of important people or join that company when I grew up, but it seemed that this was being forced on me. “Yes, sir.” “Excellent. Now go get ready.” I headed upstairs to my room. Unbelievable. A beautiful day, smack dab in the middle of fall break, and I was spending it stuck in a mansion eating a bunch of exquisite food and listening to old people talk. But whatever. It was only for one afternoon. I spent forever deciding on my outfit, finally choosing a short dress with black leggings and boots. It matched my flaming orange hair, which refused to lay straight. I pulled some of my stray hair back with some bobby pins, then looked at myself in the mirror. Acceptable. I stuffed a small notebook that could fit in my pocket, should I need a distraction. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too boring. I quickly ran downstairs, and glanced at my watch. Exactly 5:00. “Oh, good. You’re ready.” Dad said, appearing beside me. He wore a suit and a tie, with a slightly excited expression on his face. “Let’s go. Don’t want to be late.” He walked out the door, with me following behind him. We hopped in the car and he cranked it. “Make sure to be very respectful to them. Don’t say anything that would upset them,” he said as we drove through town. “Got it,” I said, watching out the window as the trees and buildings passed by. Eventually we arrived at the huge mansion at the edge of town. It was impressive, with some of the most astounding architecture I had ever seen. Selling artifacts must be a very successful business indeed. We walked through their gardens complete with fountains and statues, and stood at the front door. “Alright,” Dad whispered, looking nervous. “Be good,” he told me again. As if I hadn't already heard this. “I know.” I said. This banquet was crucial, I got it. Then he slowly knocked on the doors. Chapter Two-
