Fayette County Literary
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The Ethie Castle
by John

            “ A warm welcome awaits you at the Ethie Castle, an ancient limestone fortress dating from the 15^th century.  Ethie Castle is a retreat of peace and tranquility.  Dine in the magnificent kitchen with its massive stone fireplace where a warm fire is always glowing.  If you listen carefully you may be able to hear the music from parties of the past…”

            Jake searched the Internet for castles he and his fiancé could stay in on their honeymoon.  He remembered once that Jennifer said she would love to stay in a castle, so she could feel like a princess.  Finally, he found one.  The Ethie Castle in Scotland.  It sounded perfect!

            After a beautiful wedding and a night of eating, dancing, and lots of laughing, the newlywed couple was ready to go on their honeymoon.  Jake and Jennifer left hand in hand to go to the airport and board their plane to Scotland.  It was a long trip, but they were filled with excitement!

            Once they arrived, they got in a taxi and went off to their dream castle.  During the cab ride, Jennifer said in a whiney voice, “Oh honey, I’m so excited! I’m so glad you decided to come here on our honeymoon.” Just then Jake looked up and shouted, “Hey look! There it is on the hilltop! WOW! It looks exactly like the advertisement described.”

            They pulled up the gravel road to the main door of the house.  When they got out of the taxi, they looked all the way up and almost fell backwards. Jake exclaimed, “Wow! It looks like the top touches the clouds.” Jennifer looked at Jake and giggled, “Thank-you for making me your princess.”

            The two walked through the enormous black wooden door.  Then all of a sudden, SLAM! The door shut behind them. Jake and Jennifer were so startled and confused they were unable to speak. They both looked around at the castle in amazement. It did not resemble the advertisement at all.  Instead it looked like a nightmare!  There were cracks all over the ceiling and running down the walls. The chandelier was hanging from the ceiling by a few wires. The entire place was covered with spider webs. The wallpaper was stained and peeling.  The floor was covered with several inches of dust. Jennifer began to whimper.

They turned back to the door and tried to get out, but discovered it was locked.  Their dream castle went from beautiful and graceful to down right horrific.  Then they heard a very low creepy voice behind them, “Let me show you to your room.” “ You are crazy! We’re not staying here!” screamed Jennifer.  The butler cackled, “Oh, but yes you are.  Once you come through that door, you can never leave! Ha, Ha, Ha!” “AHHHH!” screamed Jennifer. The young couple ran up the stairs, into the first room they came to and slammed the door.  Jake ran to the window and looked out---“Whoa it’s a long way down. We’ll have to find another way. Come on Jennifer” Jennifer wailed, “What do we do now? I want out of here! I’m afraid that so called butler will stop at nothing to hurt us.”  “Don’t worry honey, I’ll think of something.” Jake reassured his bride.

They opened the door to the room and crept down the hallway.  Jake said, I think the only thing we can do now is look around for a way out and try to avoid the butler.” Jake suggested. They ran down to the kitchen.  They turned the knob to the pantry door and set off an alarm of bells and sirens.  Butcher knives began falling from the ceiling dropping all around them.  An axe swung from the wall.  The two dropped to the floor screaming.  They crawled through the kitchen to doors, which lead to the basement.  They ran half way down the stairs and heard a strange grinding sound. When they got to the bottom of the steps, they bumped right into the butler! He turned around with a large blade in his hand!  The blade shone in the darkness, he had been sharpening it. “I have been waiting for you to come” smirked the butler.

Jake grabs Jennifer and pulls her up the stairs screaming. They run into the library. They could hear  boom boom  on the stairs… it was the butler’s footsteps! Jake commanded, “Quick! Start pulling books off the shelves and look for a secret passage!” Jake had recalled from his internet research that old Scottish castles sometimes had secret passages in the bookshelves.  The two began frantically pulling books off the shelf looking for a secret passage. Then they heard a snap; they froze. Their bodies filled with terror. They looked over and saw a portrait on the wall had opened.  Jake looked inside- it’s a secret passage! Jennifer cries with joy, “Oh, Jake you are brilliant!”  

They ran through the dark passage, hearing the cold laugh of the butler echoing around them.  They could see a light in the distance. The couple began to feel relief. Once they got to the end of the passage, they looked down and realized it was a HUGE drop down to the ocean. Jake and Jennifer thought, we could either jump or take our chances with the butler. The butler was getting closer and closer. The waves were crashing against the rocks.  Jake looked lovingly at Jennifer. He took her hand and whispered softly, “Well, if we can make it through this we can make it through anything. I love you Jennifer.” Then the two newlyweds jumped off into the ocean.