Note: This fanfic is a work in progress. I will try to post about one chapter every two weeks, which is about all I will have time to write while school is going on. This is my first attempt at writing fanfic, so hopefully I will get better as I write more. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you for your patience.
**Projected completion date: May 31, 2004**
Chapter 1
My name is Victoria Winters. Night has fallen on the Great House at Collinwood, as a storm approaches. There is danger in this night. For, unknown to the residents of the great estate, a man has gone into hiding in the abandoned Old House. A man who, if discovered, could bring terror and even death to the residents of Collinwood. And two mysterious strangers, who arrive at Collinwood by accident, could very well be their only hope.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
March 1, 1967 – 11 pm
A military base outside Washington, D.C.
A wire fence ten feet high surrounded a complex of large, flat roofed buildings. A figure wearing black and carrying a briefcase slipped quietly into the one nearest the gate. Once inside, the figure walked down the long, dark corridor until he got to the door at the end. He picked the lock, went inside and turned on his flashlight. On the other side of the door was a small office, containing only a desk, a few chairs and two filing cabinets.
The intruder was a large man of over six feet, with a muscular build. He reached the other side of the office and opened the bottom drawer of one of the filing cabinets. Inside the drawer, face up, was a small safe. Carefully, the man turned the lock until he found the right combination. Then, he opened the door to the safe and pulled out a large manila envelope. He opened the envelope and pulled its contents part of the way out. Smiling slightly, he slid the papers back into the envelope and placed it in his briefcase.
Once out of the room, he started back down the corridor. He had not gotten far when alarms began to go off all over the building. Startled, he rushed toward the exit. But before he could get there, a guard came around the corner behind him. "Hey!" yelled the guard, "Stop! Stop or I'll shoot!"
When the man kept running, the guard fired a warning shot into the air. The intruder did not stop, but reached into his coat, pulled out a pistol and fired, twice. The guard fell. The man soon reached the exit and left the building.
Outside, several guards were waiting for the trespasser to exit the building. The man ran for his car, which was parked just outside the gate. The guards ran after him. When they could not catch him, they began to fire at him. The man fired back at the guards with his four remaining shots, hitting two of them. He slipped through an opening in the gate, got into his car and drove away unharmed. Several guards got into other cars and started after him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
March 3, 1967 – 2 am
Collinwood (Old House) – Collinsport, Maine
It was a stormy, moonless night. Brief flashes of lightning lit up the woods on the Collins estate to reveal a man lurking in the shadows. It was the same man who had broken into the military base near Washington, D.C. He had succeeded in eluding the guards at the base, but now federal agents, as well as the state police, had set up road blocks on every road leading out of the area. So, rather than get caught, he had abandoned his car and set out on foot.
He had been wandering through the woods for nearly two hours, when he came upon the abandoned mansion, known as the Old House because no one had lived there for over a century. He walked up to the front of the house and peered through the window. Seeing that it was deserted, he went inside.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
March 3, 1967 – 9 am
Collinwood (Main House) – Collinsport, Maine
Victoria Winters sat alone in the drawing room in front of the fire. Vicky, a young woman in her early twenties, worked as governess for the Collins family. While she was sitting there, someone knocked at the door. She walked over to the door and opened it.
"Hello, sheriff." Vicky said, as the sheriff stepped into the foyer.
"Hello, Miss Winters," the sheriff replied, "I need to speak with Mrs. Stoddard. Is she in?"
"Yes, I'll go get her." Vicky turned and walked up the staircase leading from the foyer to the upstairs bedrooms.
Moments later, Elizabeth Collins Stoddard appeared at the top of the staircase. "Sheriff Patterson, what brings you here?" she asked when she reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Business, I'm afraid. There's a fugitive on the run. He broke into a military base in D.C. a couple of days ago. Killed two guards and wounded a third. He disappeared yesterday afternoon about fifty miles from Bangor.
"Oh dear." Then Mrs. Stoddard's voice rose slightly. "Do you think he could be somewhere near here?"
"It's a possibility. The state police have all the roads blocked, so they're fairly certain he couldn't have gotten out of the area. You haven't seen anything unusual, have you?"
"No, I can't say that I have."
"Well if you do, let me know. In the mean time, tell everyone here to be on the look out." The sheriff turned to walk out the door, then paused and turned to face Mrs. Stoddard. "And be careful. He's a very dangerous man."
"Alright. Thank you, George. I will."
The sheriff left; and Elizabeth closed the door behind him. She started to go back up the stairs. Then she paused for a moment, walked back to the door, and turned the lock.
To be continued...