know where we’re going?” Mat asked Demetri after the third time he turned the car around.
Three hours earlier, Demetri had pulled into the gas station in a black Cadillac, like a knight in shining armor. Mat thought the man couldn’t be any more handsome than in his full suit, but low and behold, a rolled sleeve button-up and a pair of jeans that fit in all the right places somehow made him look better.
In no time, they were back on the road after Demetri helped pull their luggage out of the Green Machine and into his SUV. And, as Mat was dazed by the man and his damn smoky whiskey intoxicating cologne, Frankie and August took the back seats, leaving Mat to fend for himself up front.
“No, we’re not lost,” Demetri said, gripping the steering wheel and squinting into the dark woods. “Sometimes the entrance gets away from me. It can be finicky like that.”
A hand jutted between Mat and Demetri, pointing forward. “Wait, was that there before?” August asked.
Mat followed August’s finger to a small gravel driveway to the right of the county road up ahead.
“Good eye,” Demetri said. “I promise it’ll be easier to find once it gets used to you.”
“Don’t you mean once we get used to it?” Frankie asked.
Demetri shook his head. “No. You’ll see. All in due time.”
Mat frowned. “What kind of neighborhood is this hard to find? Should we be worried?”
Frankie checked his phone. “At least there’s service, but this is giving me some serious Get Out vibes.”
They turned onto the gravel road, and Mat held on to his seat belt as he jostled around in his seat.
“It’s not that bad, I promise,” Demetri said.
Leaves and branches brushed against the SUV as they drove up a small hill. Gravel turned back into solid pavement as they broke free from the brush.
In front of them was a massive black iron gate adorned with brass filigree and the letters HH. On either side was a tall stone wall that trailed off into the woods with burning iron lanterns spaced out every few yards.
Mat didn’t know what he’d expected when he’d heard names like Mandrake Manor or Henbane Hollow, but he didn’t imagine a gated community that looked more like some ancient castle entrance in the middle of the woods. He looked behind him, noting that the paved road continued around a bend in the woods, and the graveled path they’d been on was completely gone.
He frowned. “Wait. Where’s the . . . ?”
“Holy shit,” Frankie said.
Demetri pulled the car up to the gate and rolled down his window, waving at an attendant standing in a booth next to the gates.
“Hold on, we have security too?” August said.
Demetri looked into his rearview and smiled. “Henbane Hollow is one of the oldest communities that came over from Europe. We’ve always had a guard at the entrance. It helps keep the peace. We don’t want anyone just strolling into the neighborhood.”
The guard shambled out of the booth, one leg dragging behind him and his mouth stretched open at an odd angle. He looked more like some kind of zombie as he approached the fence, baring a pair of bright yellow teeth.
“Uh, is he okay?” Mat asked.
“Yes,” Demetri said, his next words loud enough for the guard to hear. “Gary just likes to make a dramatic entrance.”
The guard raised an eyebrow and stood up straight. “Dramatic? Come on, when do I get to pull the gates open for new guests?”
“Just hurry up. They’ve been on the road for hours and would probably like to settle in for the night.”
“Alright, alright,” he said as he peered into the SUV. “Well, come back when you’ve rested for the full Gary experience.”
He swung open the gates and waved the SUV through. As they drove past, Mat caught Gary’s gaze and swore the man’s gaunt face had turned into a pitted and torn mass of flesh with one missing eye, but when he blinked, the man was back to normal, waving them off.
Before he could ask, the sight of Henbane Hollow drew him in. Old black lampposts lit up the street, trailing up perfectly flat cobblestone sidewalks and manicured lawns. Nearly all the homes past the entrance were typical cookie-cutter suburban homes with beige siding and large French windows. But after Demetri took a turn onto Snakeroot Street, the typical suburbia was intermixed with strange houses and plots of land.
Some were cottage homes that looked like they were pulled right out of a storybook, some looked like they had been carved out of a massive tree, and others were just a plot of land with a cave entrance or a well into unknown depths.
After another turn onto Belladonna Boulevard, Mat couldn’t contain himself. “Well, some of these houses are—”
“Different,” August said.
Demetri nodded. “That they are. Many homes are generations old, passed down through family lines tracing back to the first settlers from Europe.” He let out a sigh and said, “But as you saw with the other homes, we are in the middle of a community revitalization.”
Frankie peered out his window and mumbled, “That explains the Stepford houses. I hope whoever is heading that up knows that if every house looked the same, in a gated community in the forest, that they would check all the boxes for me to get the hell out.”
“I’ll take it up with the HOA. You three are in luck, though. The manor has been unscathed thus far,” Demetri said. “The late Ms. Mandrake was very adamant about keeping her estate as it was.”
They turned onto another road, Wormwood Way, and spotted another gate at the end of the road. This one was smaller but mimicked the same black iron gate and brass filigree that the entrance to Henbane Hollow had. Instead of Hs, there were two brass Ms intertwined with each other.
The headlights to Demetri’s car beamed past the gates and onto a path overgrown with bushes and unkempt landscaping. Mat followed the path up to two illuminated lamp posts that shone on a tall, three-story Victorian home overrun by ivy.
Demetri stopped the car in front of the gates. “And here is Mandrake Manor.”
The more he stared at the house, the more things Mat found. A greenhouse attached to one side of the house, boarded up floor-to-ceiling windows, and a wrap-around porch with a swing. “Holy shit,” Mat said.
“And this. This is ours?” Frankie asked.
Demetri nodded. “Everything inside this fence is yours.”
August leaned forward in their seat. “Is it safe?”
“Yeah,” Frankie added. “It’s not haunted, right?”
Mat nodded. The property might have once looked astonishing in its prime, but now, even in the dark, Mat saw time had passed. The green paint on the house flaked away, windows were boarded up, and nature seemed more inclined to reclaim the house the longer Mat spent looking at it.
Demetri rested his hands on the steering wheel. “From the assessments by my inspectors, the house is safe. A few repairs will spruce this place right back up.”
Mat chewed his lip. “I don’t know if we can do all this. I’m not a repair guy.”
“Well, luckily I know a few people who could help,” Demetri said. He frowned and adjusted his rearview mirror as headlights appeared behind them. “But I guess that will have to wait. Looks like the welcoming committee is here.”
A white SUV pulled up next to them, and Demetri killed the engine. He stepped out of his car as a pale woman with long black hair, bold red lipstick, and a white pantsuit stepped out of the SUV. Mat, Frankie, and August followed.
“Demetri,” the woman said. “What a pleasure seeing you here. Have you been treating our new neighbors well?”
“Obviously, seeing that they are my clients.”
Clients, Mat winced. Even though he barely knew Demetri, he wished for the day he’d be more than a client. He leaned close to Demetri and asked, “Who is this?”
The woman raised her eyebrows. “Oh, how rude of Demetri to not have introduced me. I’m Helena Henbane, chair of Henbane Hollow’s homeowners’ association.”
Mat held out his hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Mat, this is Frankie, and that’s—”
Helena hefted a large tote bag into Mat’s extended hand. He nearly toppled over as she cut him off. “Mathias Mandrake, what a pleasure it is to finally meet you. Your late aunt and I were such good friends, and I hope to continue that relationship with you. Here is everything you need.”
“Everything I need?” Mat asked.
Helena gasped and glared at Demetri. “You mean you didn’t tell them?”
“Tell us what?” Frankie asked.
“Why would I tell them? It’s your initiative,” Demetri said.
Helena’s gaze fell on Mat, and she pointed a finger at the tote bag. “You’ll find all the rules and regulations for Henbane Hollow within the binder in that welcome bag. There are also some flyers from local businesses, committees, and events in the neighborhood. Feel free to sign up for anything and return them to me.”
Mat frowned. “Wait. Rules and regulations?”
Helena nodded. “We can’t have our homes looking like some abandoned ghost town, can we? You’ll find a guide in there on what we expect of you, especially for homes that do not partake in the revitalization project.”
“You mean you want this manor turned into some suburban house?” August asked.
Helena glared at August, eyeing them up and down before returning her gaze to Mat. “Mandrake Manor will need to comply with the rules. However, regarding the revitalization project, Melinda and I came to an agreement that she could not fulfill.”
“An agreement? I never saw an agreement,” Demetri said, crossing his arms.
Helena rolled her eyes. “Mandrake Manor may keep its original structure but must comply with the aesthetic of the neighborhood.” She looked out toward the manor. “I say this to save you time and money. As you consider repairs, refer to the guidelines and regulations to ensure the HOA won’t fine you.”
Mat held up the tote, eyeing the massive binder within. “Great.”
Helena checked her watch and tutted her tongue. “Ah, I’m late for the board meeting. We’re voting on increasing the penalty for overgrowth on visible walkways.” She looked back at Mandrake Manor and smiled. “Better get someone out here soon. I wouldn’t want you to rack up fines during your first week here.”