The low sun shot weakening beams of light through the dense row of trees, flashing Ingrid obnoxiously as she puttered along the road, nervously glancing at the fuel gage in her 1997 Toyota Camry. She squinted and winced as another blast of light hit her, a blinding shock from the darkness that otherwise enveloped them as they wandered deeper into unknown territory.
“Are you sure we’re going the right way?” Amy asked from the back seat, the dim glow of her phone screen reflecting off her glasses in the rear view mirror.
“I don’t know,” Ingrid said. She looked over at Mike in the passenger seat.
He shrugged. “I suppose we may have missed a turn back there.”
Amy scrolled stiffly, her eyes scanning the screen eagerly. The long arms of the forest reached low overhead, creating an ever darkening tunnel for the road to pass through. They were silent a while longer until the only exterior source of light was the weak, yellow headlights of Ingrid’s geriatric car. The lights blasted out a series of old, faded signs, the text long worn off. Something in Ingrid’s gut told her they were warning signs, but when the pavement ended she figured they were just indications that the road would end soon.
“Well,” she announced. “I guess we should turn around.”
“Wait!” Mike said, pointing straight ahead excitedly. “I think we’re there!”
Ingrid peered past the edge of the far reaches of her antiquated headlight beams, squinting. “Really?” She asked, doubtfully. “You think the Airbnb would be all the way out here?”
“Yeah, it’s just up ahead!” he urged. “We found it!”
Ingrid had almost entirely let up on the gas and the car was slowly mumbling its way forward on the dirt road. Straight ahead the old, rusted bars of a huge iron gate appeared to be held together by a tangled mess of ancient vines. Ingrid thought for sure she could watch the movement of the full moon as it drifted up from the horizon from behind a four story tall mansion, complete with boarded up windows and a round tower rising above the main roof. On cue, a coyote howled off in the distance.
“Guys,” Amy said tentatively, “I doubt this is the Airbnb. I remember seeing a photo of this place in an article about a recluse who was tied to several mysterious disappearances. He was a suspect in several cases, but the police haven’t been able to get enough evidence on him and…”
“Nah,” Mike interrupted. “You’re just scared ’cause it looks a little spooky. I’m sure this is the place. Look, I think there’s a note on the front door. Pull up and I’ll hop out and take a look.”
Ingrid scanned the old mansion from top to bottom and saw that there were no lights on. It was dark, and the place was too remote to be safe without power. They were only an hour out of town, if she turned around now they could be in a hotel by midnight.
“I don’t know, it gives me the creeps,” Amy offered weakly.
“Yeah, it’s a nope from me,” Ingrid said, suddenly taking a hard left turn. She executed a quick two point turn and put the decrepit house in her rear view mirror until it disappeared into the cloud of dust kicked up by her tires.
Mermaid Pirate Dispatch 
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