Doll House — A Short Horror Story

Being a ghost hunter makes you prey.

“Everyone knows their jobs?” I asked my friends as I parked the van.

“Setting up the cameras and checking audio,” said Steven.

“I’m checking for EMF,” Sara said, “And fingerprints.”

“And I got motion and the book,” said Max. “If anything wants to write me their biography, they can do so. I hope for their sake it’s got good grammar.”

“Good… good,” I said, feeling more reassured, “And everyone has their flashlights, crucifixes, all that?”

Everyone affirmed as they exited the van.

“Stay safe in there,” I said. “Steven, get those cameras set up quick so I can monitor for activity. We’ll catch this ghost in action.”

“Hell yes we are,” Steven replied as he jumped out of the back with the others, shutting the doors behind him.

Alone in the van with only my computer in front of me and the car’s dimly lit dome light, I turned on my computer, letting it boot up the programs necessary for the night. Reaching for my walkie-talkie, I pressed the talk button to radio in with the group.

“Everyone, can you read me?”

“Affirmative Tin Man,” said Max.

“No, that isn’t my name,” I replied, rolling my eyes. “I already said that.”

“You’re a man in a tin can,” Max argued. “I don’t see a better name.”

“Fine, whatever, just go do your job. We’ll discuss this later.”

“Whatever you say, Tin Man.”

I waited in silence for a few seconds before Steven radioed, “We are at the front door, proceeding inside.”

“It is creepy in here,” added Max.

“That’s because there’s no light on,” Sara said.

“I found a switch,” Steven said. There was a brief pause before he replied. “Nope. Electrical must be out. Flashlights on people.”

“Aye aye,” Max said.

A few minutes went by while I twiddled my thumbs, waiting for a feed from Steven. Not being able to provide over-watch made me most paranoid. Anything could happen during this time and I may be unaware.

My computer beeped, making me jump in my seat. I opened the program and expanded the infrared camera Steven had just put down.

“Boss, you see me?” he asked, waving his arms at the camera.

“That I can,” I responded. “That’s a good feed.”

I observed the view the camera gave me. The family room had couches, chairs, a wall-mounted TV, a fireplace, and a tall bookshelf in the corner. Bowls and magazines were laid across the table in front of the couch in the middle of the room.

“Placing the second camera,” Steven said as another feed went live on my end.

It was in the kitchen. The room formed an L-shape with standard kitchen wares and a kitchen table in the corner that the camera rested on. The place seemed abandoned mid-dinner preparation. Items laid everywhere, even the flour had toppled over and fallen on the floor, pouring its contents all over the ground.

“Third camera going up,” Steven said. “This is the second-floor hallway.”

I watched the camera go live, seeing the long hallway. Steven headed into a room at the far end of the hall. Opening it, he walked inside. I strained my eyes to see inside and noticed several toys scattered on the floor, with a dollhouse in the background.

A face appeared bright white on my screen, making me jump backward with a scream. The white face moved backward to reveal more detail of the individual.

Max.

“I don’t appreciate that,” I said over the radio.

Max laughed through the radio. “Making sure you’re on your toes, Tin Man.”

I closed my eyes as I massaged my temples. Taking Sara’s brother with us proved to be a terrible idea, but if it got me closer to her, then I’d welcome him again. If he doesn’t mess things up, I won’t speak my mind about him.

“Fourth camera,” Steven called over the radio.

I watched it come online, revealing the child’s bedroom. It was what I expected of a little girl’s room. Messy and full of dolls. The room appeared unsettling compared to the others.

“So, this must be Claire Esten’s room,” I said to the group, pulling up her file on my computer. “Her deranged father killed her right in the middle of this room.”

“That’s correct,” Steven said. “I suggest the motion sensor should be by her room’s door.”

“I would agree with that,” I responded. “Max, you copy?”

“Aye aye, boss man,” Max replied. I watched him step into the bedroom and crouched down by the door, affixing the motion sensor. “All set Tin Man.”

“Good,” I said, ignoring his name calling, “I’d say, see if we can get some readings from the bedroom. EMF, audio, fingerprints.”

Sara entered the room with the EMF reader and scanned the bedroom. After a few seconds, she spoke on the radio, “No wild readings on the EMF yet.”

I watched her take out the UV flashlight and shined it around the room. Then she added, “And I don’t see any fingerprints on the UV.”

“Steven?” I questioned.

I watched Steven reenter the room with the audio recording equipment he brought. He flipped a few buttons before speaking, “Claire Esten, are you here?” Silence. “Claire Esten, can you show me a sign that you’re here?”

I flipped through the camera feeds while listening to Steven go on with his audio. There was little of interest in the hallway or living room. It wasn’t until I stopped on the kitchen camera when I noticed footprints in the flour.

“Did any of you walk through the flour in the kitchen?” I asked.

“No way Tin Man,” said Max, “Want me too?”

“We’ve all been up here,” Steven said. The camera was set up by me alone in that room. Didn’t go over the flour, though.”

“Does that mean it was her?” Sara asked, worry echoing in her voice.

“Possibly,” I replied, “Which would mean she’s active. But we need more proof. Keep trying for audio.”

Zooming the camera wasn’t possible, so I couldn’t inspect the footprints closely. They moved towards the living room but vanished before reaching it. I checked the living room again and saw nothing.

I scanned the camera feeds for signs of paranormal activity. Finding nothing, I stopped in the bedroom again to watch the three look around.

“Any updates?” I asked.

“Nothing so far,” said Sara. “Nothing on the motion, either.”

“Nothing here as well,” Steven said.

“Maybe Claire just wants-”

“Wait, hold on,” Steven interrupted. “I got something. Jesus. Okay… sending to you now.”

I awaited the audio file. Once on my computer, I opened the file and listened.

“Play.”

I felt the shiver down my spine from the word. The voice belonged to a little girl.

“Okay, that’s… interesting,” I said, “She whispered play. So we’ve got footprints and audio so far. More than we normally get.”

I continued to analyze the group meandering around the bedroom, waiting for more audio to come from Steven. Growing impatient, however, I flipped through the cameras again. The hallway again had no activity. Same with the living room.

Flipping to the kitchen made my heart somersault. The flour rose and took the shape of a cartoon ghost. It floated briefly before dropping back down.

“Uh… guys?” I called, “I just saw the flour move on its own… very unnaturally.”

The group didn’t respond for a few seconds. I flipped back to the bedroom, fearing the worst, as I often did. The group still mingled in the room, going about their respective jobs, except for Max, who laid on the child’s bed.

I couldn’t hear any of them, and it looked like Sara was trying to reach me. I unplugged my headset and re-plugged it back in to no avail. Lights flickered in my peripheral vision and I glanced back at the monitors in time to watch their flashlights burn out.

“Hey!” I shouted. “What’s going on in there?”

I flipped through the cameras again, landing in the hallway. I stopped, seeing a little body of a girl standing there, facing the child’s bedroom. It started creeping forward with exaggerated effort.

“Guys!” I shouted into the radio, hoping it will suddenly work. “She’s outside the room!”

The group gave no acknowledgement, and it confirmed to me that the girl messed with our equipment. Something that never happened before with our rather expensive hardware.

My computer pinged an alarm at me, notifying me about the motion sensor tripping. I flipped back to the bedroom feed to see my friends huddled against the bed. I had a perfect view of Sara’s EMF reader, which currently flashed red, meaning something was present.

The little girl stopped in the doorway, watching them. Sara screamed loud enough for me to hear her from the van. She jumped onto the bed and pushed herself onto the wall.

The girl walked quickly forward, which caused the rest to scream just as loud as Sara.

“Guys!” I shouted, while I continued to watch the scene, unsure of what to do. I swept my hands through my hair, gently yanking on them to determine if this was merely a dream. To my disappointment, it wasn’t.

My friends remained as expected, still pushed up on each other in the corner. The camera flickered for a moment as I watched the little girl dart at them. The camera turned off a moment after.

I attempted various methods to reconnect my camera, including refreshing my program and cycling the feeds. The camera flickered back on, not by my hand, after a minute of retrying different options.

I looked at the bedroom feed first, seeing nobody inside the room. I toggled to the hallway and saw the little girl standing 10 feet away from the camera, looking down the stairs. There appeared to be a body near her room’s entrance.

“Guys?” I said over the radio, “What happened? I see her in the second-floor hallway. Who’s by the -”

“Get us out of here now!” shouted Sara in between sobs. “She killed Max! She killed my brother!”

“Help us!” shouted Steven. “We can’t get outside! The door is locked!”

My heart raced as I toggled the camera feeds. I found Sara and Steven crouched in the living room next to the fireplace. I toggled to the kitchen, seeing nothing, then into the bedroom again. The little girl was standing on her bed, looking at the camera. I felt like she was acknowledging my presence by looking at me.

“More audio!” Steven exclaimed in panic. “Sent it to you. Please come get us out of here!”

I pulled up the audio he referred to, opening it up to take a listen.

“I see you.”

I’m not sure how long I stopped breathing for but I choked on air as I tried to get my breathing under control.

Toggling back to the living room, I watched Sara and Steven eye the staircase where the girl lingered. My instincts warned me not to approach that house after what happened. I still hadn’t comprehended Max’s death, or even if he was dead, or if Sara was mistaken. But I couldn’t leave the others there to die.

“Okay, just stay where you are,” I told them. “I’m coming to get you.”

“Oh god, thank you,” said Sara. “We’re in the living room.”

“Coming,” I replied.

With the walkie talkie in hand, I exited the van through the back door into the night. The moon shined over me, creating ample light outside where I didn’t need my flashlight right away. I started my slow walk toward the house, feeling the urge to just go back and drive away. I didn’t know what the little girl could do, though Max’s body showed some idea, so trying to enter the house may only anger her.

All my friends needed was an escape. Opening the door was all they needed.

Stopping in front of the pathway that led to the house’s front door, I read the number above it. 407 Greenville Dr. With a sigh, I stepped onto the property, creeping my way forward towards the front door. I looked around the house and stopped dead frozen when I saw her staring at me from a second-story window. She didn’t move, didn’t vanish, just stood there, looking at me as if she was waiting for me to enter her home.

I took another step forward, watching for her movements, but she did nothing. I stepped forward again, but when I looked back; she was gone.

Cursing under my breath, I sprinted the rest of the way to the front door, allowing for obscenities to flow out of my mouth the closer I got. The door being locked hit me then, and I cursed again at my stupidity.

Twisting the doorknob out of frustration, I heard the latch move, and the door creaked slightly. I pushed on it, surprised to find it open with ease. The inside darkness kept me from moving as I switched on my flashlight, thankful it had ignited.

“Hello?” I said, “Guys? The door’s open.”

No answer came, so I stepped inside. I called out again, but received no response. Shining my flashlight around the room, nothing looked out of place except for the rug in the middle of the living room folded on itself.

I swept the flashlight towards the staircase but saw nothing standing at the top. Thinking about Max laying motionless up there, I moved towards the staircase. I had to get him out, whether dead or alive. I hoped the rest went back upstairs as well, so I wouldn’t have to explore elsewhere.

A muffled scream came from below me. Frozen in place, I shined the light around again, the feeling of eyes watching me intensified. The flashlight landed on a doorway by the staircase.

The door drew me in. Another scream only confirmed my feelings. I walked over to it and stopped in place as it swayed open itself.

Cold air seeped out of the black abyss. I shined the flashlight at the door, seeing a staircase. Shining my flashlight further in, I could tell it led downstairs.

I snapped out of it and took a deep breath. Every part of my body scream to leave. To drive away and never look back. I wasn’t a hero.

But my friends joined my little escapades, willingly knowing the risks. They did it for me. Abandoning them now was something I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself for.

I got them into this mess. I had to get them out.

Moving up to the door, I shined the light down into the eerie darkness. Boxes lined the bottom, blocking any view past them. Proceeding down the steps one at a time, I noticed the screaming had stopped. I pushed aside the meanings and looked for them, hoping they were okay.

Hitting the landing, I move the flashlight around the basement, letting it illuminate the sheer amount of junk thrown down there. To my right, a light switch rested on the wall. I flicked it a few times with no results.

I crept along the basement floor as I made my way through the junk. A table with a board caught my eye at the other end. I stepped up to it to see it was a Ouija board. The planchette lay motionless on the side.

I checked my surroundings for any potential threats, but only saw clutter. Glancing to my right made me scream. Sara and Steven stood there staring at me, eyes wide with fear. Their swaying bodies made me realize they weren’t standing but hanging from ropes tied around their necks.

My whole body convulsed as if I stood outside amid winter with no clothes on. I stared at my deceased friends, unable to think straight.

A soft scraping noise brought my attention back to the Ouija board. Its planchette moved along the board again. Muscles too stiff to move, I watched the planchette while it landed on the letters H, E, L, L, and finally O.

I heard a growl and shriek, and saw a small, injured animal crawling quickly towards me. Screaming, I spun to the right and grabbed items off the shelves to throw down behind me. The inhuman shrieking continued as the creature followed in pursuit, dangerously close.

Making it to the staircase, I sprinted at full speed up the stairs, bashing on the now closed door to open it. It swung open, and I darted out, but too slowly. The beast latched onto my leg and threw me to the ground, slowly dragging me back down the stairs.

Turning around, I kicked at the beast, which screamed up at me, clawing at my leg. Its knife-like nails slashed at my jeans, ripping them open and cutting into my skin. I cried out, but continued to kick. I broke free and ran up the stairs and out the door.

Limping, I hurried through the house to the front door. I could hear the little girl behind me giggling.

“Don’t go!” she said. “We were just having fun!”

The front door closed as I neared it, forever locking me inside. Without a second thought, I grabbed a chair and smashed into a nearby window. Glass shattered all around me as I dropped the chair.

“Don’t leave me,” said the girl with a whimper.

I stepped through the broken window as quickly as I could, cutting my arms accidentally. I jogged back to the van while the girl’s voice turned into a roar. As I turned the ignition, the front door banged loudly.

As soon as the van turned on, I sped away from the house, with no thoughts of ever returning.

As I drove to the other end of the block, I finally cried, thinking of my friends who remained at the house. I couldn’t save them. I barely saved myself. But I couldn’t leave them there forever.

Opting for the police station as my first stop, I-

That’s when I noticed eyes staring at me in my rear-view mirror. I froze, air draining from my lungs as the little girl giggled sweetly at me. Her eyes turned pure white as she moved closer.

I tried to jump out of the car, but the door wouldn’t open. Hands grabbed my face from behind me as I screamed in pain from the nails cutting into me.

“Welcome to my dollhouse,” whispered the little girl in my ear.

Then my world went black.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this short story, consider checking out some of my other work here. Also, connect with me on Twitter! I enjoy engaging with other writers.