THE FEATHERWOODS

As Julius Featherwood, dusted the shelves of the uninhabited attic, many thoughts traveled his brain. He examined the seemingly ancient leather-bound books that were caked in dust and wondered: what kind of people were his ancestors?

He had only recently learned of this estate that was supposedly rightfully his, after the passing of his grandmother. Why this place had been kept a secret from him for twenty-five years baffled the young man. After all, he was close to his grandmother, having spent all of his summers with her; so why only on her deathbed did she think to disclose these facts with him.

He coughed from the agitated dust and covered his mouth. He knew that keeping this place would be more than just a fixer-upper, and that selling it would the greatest task. It had been empty for over fifty years.

Gazing at the endless books, he caught sight of small black book— it looked far different than any of the other books upon the shelf, almost modern. Grabbing hold of it, he opened it and instantly, the first words written in the book caught his attention.

“Finally, I thought you’d never this,” it read.

Initially, Julius found the note humorous and shook his head at it; but as he read on, his smile faded.

“If you are standing in the library of the Featherwood estate, then you are the first to find this book and you are the rightful inheritor to the $20,000 dollars that comes with it. The money is probably already in your bank account now. Exciting ain’t it? But know that there is a catch.”

Julius sighed— of course there’d be a catch, if this was even real. His eyes returned to the page in the notebook.

“First, I want you to find a cassette in the living room of this estate, that’s for you to listen to later and get to know a little bit about me :). Next, I need you to go to my grave and find a key. It’s made of brass nickel, in the shape of a skull, lying right on my chest… I’m only bones by now so there’s nothing creepy you have to deal with. And then, I need you to quit your job and I know you want to— you’re probably thinking that the $20,000 isn’t enough to make you wanna do that, but trust me, kid— more will come. After you quit your job, take the key you found to 467 State Street, it’s not far from the estate and once you get there, you’ll notice that it’s owned by a family called: Winston. When you find the head of the family… well, turn the page, kid.”

Julius turned the page.

“Kill him.”

Julius nearly dropped the book. This had to be a joke. He readied to throw the black book away and forget he had ever opened it, yet, his curiosity got the best of him.

“You think it’s a joke, and I don’t blame you,” he read. “But I’m warning you— if you don’t kill Winston first, he’s going to kill you. So, I would suggest you get to work.”

“This is wacky,” Julius breathed. “I’m not a murderer, and no one is gonna kill me.” He placed the book down on the shelf and considered taking it to the police. He knew he needed a break from this creepy estate and figured he’d head home and come back in the morning.

Walking down the cold and dark staircase, his eyes traveled back upwards, thinking of his father’s early demise, the same grisly end as his uncles and grandfather. All murdered in darkly creative ways. Could that be why there was a warning in that little black book?

Shutting his eyes, he gained the courage to walk back up the stairs to the retrieve the little black book. If the key was where it was said to be, then he’d follow through with the other requirements.

2.

Thinking about listening to what was on that tape made Julius’ stomach turn, but he knew he had to do it, especially if there was really a threat out there. He blew the dust off of it, popped it into the player, and sat down.

From the tape came the voice a young man; he didn’t sound too different from Julius. “Jeepers, kid, I’m surprised you’re actually hearing this,” he said. Julius could hear him lighting a cigarette in the background. “I won’t waste much of your time, I’ll only tell you this: The Featherwoods and the Winstons have been at war for ages now, some say it goes all the way back to the 1600’s… that’s well before even my time. It’s good ol’ 1956 right now, how about where you are?” he asked and there was a silence.

Awkwardly, Julius gulped. “2021,” he replied.

“If you answered me, you’re bonkers,” the man laughed. “The slaughtering of the Featherwoods won’t end until you kill Winston and take his safe. That’s what the key is going to get ya. Once you own the safe, you own the State Street Gang and the Featherwood gang. Don’t worry about what’s in it. just do as I said. New name, new job, new background. If you’re around 25 now, believe this: they’re coming for ya,” he warned.

The tape ended and Julius blinked his eyes in confusion. “What did I just get myself into?” he grumbled.

3.

Reading from the little black book, Julius located the grave of his ancestor, he was in a Mausoleum, lying in an unlocked casket. Having heard the man alive through the tape and read his notes, it felt strange and eerie to walk into his grave.

When he did, he was just as he said he would be, all bones, with a key locked in his hands. Julius grimaced at touching the skeleton and put up a bit of a fight to get the key from his hands. It was there. Now, he had to follow through with the rest of the commands.

“Are you really going to do this?” he asked himself.

***

Of course, Julius was weary about quitting his job; but he couldn’t resist the temptation to follow through with this strange quest from 1956, especially having seen that the $20,000 was in fact, in his bank account. Walking out of his former workplace, he felt his gut tightening as he recalled his next task: Murder… but it wasn’t really murder was it? It was self-defense according to what the tape said.

He went to State street. As he sat in his car contemplating if he should actually go in and kill Winston, he earned many a suspicious stare. Taking one more deep breath, Julius finally walked out of his car and into the building.

A woman greeted him, but without a word, only a smile spread her rouge colored lips, almost as If she knew why he was there…

“I’m here to see—"

“Winston?” She asked. “Right this way.”

His heart raced. His palms grew sweaty and the room spun as Julius followed the woman… his life was about to change forever.

Was this all really worth $20,000?

What would you do?