Summary

Jane, a seasoned housesitter, encounters a series of terrifying events while watching over a house filled with eerie dolls and experiences a night of horror that leads her to never housesit again.

Abstract

Jane, confident in her housesitting experience, faces an unsettling night at a new residence. After a series of disturbing occurrences, including locking herself out, an alarm system malfunction, and an invasion of maggots, she is confronted by a collection of dolls that seem to come alive, pleading for help. The climax of the horror-filled night prompts Jane to flee the house, leaving behind a note claiming an emergency. The homeowner, Mrs. Hoffmeister, presses charges for the disappearance of her valuable antique dolls, resulting in Jane facing financial and psychological repercussions.

Opinions

The author likely believes in the power of suggestion and the impact of atmosphere to create fear, as evidenced by the detailed descriptions of the eerie events and the transformation of ordinary objects into sources of terror.
The narrative suggests a critical view of the protagonist's decision to engage with the unknown, implying that curiosity can lead to dangerous situations.
The story may reflect a broader societal fear of the uncanny, particularly the unsettling nature of dolls and their potential to be perceived as threatening when placed in a certain context.
The author seems to play with the trope of the 'haunted house' genre, using common elements like a locked door, a blaring alarm, and a ringing phone to build suspense and deliver a classic horror experience.
There is an underlying message about the consequences of not respecting one's surroundings, as Jane's disregard for the peculiarities of the house leads to her downfall.

Why Jane Will Never Housesit Again

Spooky fiction

Jane pet the siamese cat, switched off the television, and decided to head upstairs for the night.

She was a seasoned housesitter, but it was her first time keeping watch at this house.

As she went to the kitchen to turn off the light, she caught a whiff of strong-scented cat food coming from the garbage. Jane decided she should bring out the trash before going to bed.

It was almost midnight. The autumn air was crisp and cutting.

Jane heaved the heavy trash bag into the bin. Swarms of maggots appeared under the lid. Slamming it shut quickly, she shuddered and walked back to the door.

When she turned the door handle, she found it was locked. But she hadn’t even closed the door.

An orange, full moon glowed in the sky. A gray cat screeched from the alleyway, startling Jane. She wrapped her arms around her bare shoulders to stop from shivering.

When Jane walked around the house to the front door, she found it open. When she entered the house, the alarm system began blaring. Jane’s heart was pumping so fast she wondered if she might black out.

Frantically, she punched in the numbers she’d memorized, wondering if someone had come into the house while she was outside.

Jane closed and locked the doors and reset the alarm.

She made her way up the green stairs to the second floor bedroom. There was a collection of dolls decorating the banister. They all seemed to be watching her, to know something she wasn’t aware of.

Shuddering again, she avoided looking into the dolls’ eyes and found her way to the master bedroom. Jane changed into a nightgown and washed her face.

She looked in the mirror, half-expecting a horror story clown to appear with her reflection. Her face looked like a doll’s face. She pinched her cheeks, shook her head, and turned away.

There were maggots swarming out of the toilet.

She looked up at the ceiling and saw a clown doll holding a knife and staring at her menacingly.

She slammed the bathroom door shut and crawled under the white sheets and white comforter. She wrapped herself tight. The house was so silent she could hear herself breathe.

There was a landline here. Probably one of the last landlines of the 21st century.

The phone rang. She wondered if she should answer it. As soon as she picked up the phone, all the lights in the house turned off. There was someone on the other line, but they weren’t saying anything. Only breathing heavily.

Jane slammed down the phone and tried to turn on the bedside lamp. But, the light came on before she could reach the switch.

Jane wanted to scream, but she was frozen. Her mind was racing but not fast enough to keep up with this seemingly haunted house.

She glanced out of the bedroom at the dolls on the banister and shuddered. She closed the bedroom door and climbed into the canopy bed, hoping sunlight would come fast. She left all the lights on.

Jane wondered if she’d ever be brave enough to housesit again.

She noticed the window was cracked. She remembered locking it…There was a shadowy figure there. She closed her eyes tightly, hoping the figure would disappear.

After a couple hours in which she hadn’t slept a wink, Jane decided to open her eyes. She was looking straight up. All the dolls were hanging upside down from the bed’s canopy. Their eyes were wide open and their mouths were moving in unison,

“Help us, Janie. Help us. We’re trapped. We don’t want to be here anymore.”

Jane looked with horror at the talking dolls. She wondered if she was going crazy. The window slammed open and shut, open and shut.

The dolls kept addressing her in their creepy sweet singsong voices until Jane found her courage and threw each doll out the window.

Once they were all on the ground, they laughed gleefully and sprinted down the alleyway.

Jane scribbled a note saying there had been an emergency-she’d had to leave. She ran to her car and sped away.

When Mrs. Hoffmeister returned from her visit to North Carolina, she noticed all her prized dolls had disappeared.

She pressed charges against Jane, who had to pay thousands of dollars to replace the antique collection.

She then paid even more money for years in therapy.

And, she never housesat again.