Phantom Manor

Chapter 3: The Road to Thunder Mesa

"You sure that it's a good idea to bring along someone we don't even know?" Chris objected, packing his best polo shirt into his suitcase. It was now Sunday, and everyone had been excited about the trip to Thunder Mesa, especially when it included a haunted mansion that they would be able to explore. Well, everyone except Chris, who was still uneasy about the idea of exploring the mansion, especially with someone they had just officially met two days ago. Robert rolled his eyes at Chris, packing away his toothbrush and toothpaste into a plastic zip bag.

"Come on Chris. Lighten up." Robert answered. "We're taking a road trip to a rusty old town that has a haunted mansion. What's there not to look forward to?"

Chris was not amused. He continued to pack more clothes into his suitcase in silence. Robert, ignoring Chris's silence, continued on.

"I'm pretty excited to finally drink at a real western bar like in the old western films. Maybe we could also have a showdown in the streets. Oh, and then…"

Robert stopped midsentence when he saw the scowl coming from Chris.

"Did I do something wrong?" Robert asked rhetorically. Chris had had enough. He slammed his suitcase closed and began walking out the door. "When are you going Chris?" Robert asked confused. Chris violently turned to face Robert, still wearing the scowl.

"I've had just about enough of this. You make this sound like it's going to be a friendly little field trip, but in reality, it's a research assignment given to us because of your constant screw-ups." Robert opened his mouth to speak. "Don't even!" Chris shouted.

Robert closed his mouth fearfully. He had never seen Chris so angry in his life.

"Do you know what I think?" Chris continued. "I think that we need a serious break from this 'best friends' thing, Robert. I think that you need to feel how it is without me towing your ass everywhere. How it feels to fail because you were too incompetent to handle things yourself.

"When you're ready to fess up and actually treat this like an actual problem and not just some game, I'll be in my car. 'Til then, I don't wanna talk to you anymore." Chris turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him, causing Robert to flinch.

The next morning, Robert woke up to the sound of banging on his door. "Oh no!" He cried. "I must be late for class again!" Looking at his calendar, he eased up a little, realizing that it was the Monday of Spring Break. He looked over at Chris's bed, empty and stripped of its covers. The banging on the door continued.

"Its Spring Break, Chris. Stop banging on the door." Robert called.

"Robert? Are you ready yet?" Came Rosemary's voice. "Hurry up! The bus is gonna be here in ten minutes."

Robert thought for a while and remembered that they were all going to take the bus to Thunder Mesa. "I'll be right out!" He called. Scurrying, Robert sniffed at a shirt on the floor. Doesn't smell bad. Might as well wear it. Rose was waiting impatiently outside the door. "What's taking him so long? We're gonna miss the bus." Rose raised her fist once again to bang on the door. Just as she swung her fist to bang on the door, it opened, causing her fist to collide into Robert's face instead. Robert shrieked out in pain, clutching his nose.

"OW!" He cried, checking for blood. "What did you do that for?"

"Sorry." Rose apologized. "But it is your fault, you know." She said.

The two rushed to the bus stop, where Myrtle was talking with Chris while Steve was reading a book on the paranormal habits of haunting. Brian was almost unnoticeable, skulking around the sign, smoking a cigarette while waiting for the bus.

"Hey guys. I got him!" Rose called. Myrtle ran over and shook Robert. "You little sloth. If you had made us miss that bus, I'd have turned you into a ghost." She said, continuing to shake Robert violently.

"Okay, Okay. I get it. Now let go of me." Robert strained, fighting off Myrtle.

"Hey guys." Brian called, crushing his cigarette under his left foot. "Looks like the bus is here."

Sure enough, the bus rolled into the station. As the doors opened, a plump man with brown hair and buck teeth sat in the driver's seat. "All right people. Let's make this quick! We got a long way ahead to Thunder Mesa." Robert walked up to get on first but was shoved out of the way by Chris, giving him a dirty look as he boarded. Robert, massaging his arm, got on second. He sat closer to the front of the bus, while Chris sat towards the back, not even looking in Robert's direction. Steve got on next, deciding to sit right in the middle on the right side, to read a bit more on the history of Thunder Mesa. Myrtle sat just ahead of Chris, looking back at him every now and then to see if he was looking at her. Brian sat in the very front seat, away from everyone else. Rose sat down next to Robert. Noticing that Robert was still looking at Chris, she tried starting up a conversation with him.

"Still thinking about Chris?" she asked politely. Robert turned to Rose and gave out a sigh.

"Yeah." He replied. Rose scooched in closer now.

"Do you think that I hate you?" she asked. Robert gave her a bit of a puzzled look.

"Do you?" he responded. Rose's pitiful smile turned into a disappointed frown.

"I don't hate you, but you do owe me a date to Disneyland." She jabbed. Rose then scooched back into her seat. Robert sighed again, this time at how stupid he was.

The drive to Thunder Mesa lasted the entire morning and well into the afternoon. Steve was now reciting study questions, Brian was having an argument with the bus driver about the no smoking rule on the bus, Myrtle and Chris were talking about what they would have done if they went to Disneyland, and Rose was asleep. Robert was keeping his focus mostly on the landscape.

The drive was boring, but everyone seemed to perk up a bit when the driver made the announcement.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are now within 5 miles from the town of Thunder Mesa. On your right you will notice the famous Big Thunder Mountain. Just beyond there is Thunder Mesa."

Everyone had now moved over to the right side of the bus, wanting to get a good view of the mountain.

"So, this is the Big Thunder Mountain." Myrtle said in amazement.

"The very mountain said to have housed the great spirit of the local tribe's god: The Thunderbird." Steve added.

Robert smiled as he saw how big it was. He turned over to Chris to share his enjoyment only to find him still slumped back in the seat not even showing an ounce of interest. Robert's smile turned into a frown of regret as he went back to his seat.

When the bus stopped, everyone hurried out and started looking around them. The town was dusty yet vibrant. Steve pointed toward the east and laughed sinisterly.

"There it is! The Phantom Manor!" he laughed. Chris then cleared his throat, catching everyone's attention.

"While it is pretty cool to see the mansion, finally…" he began. "The first thing we need to do is to check into the hotel." Everyone looked around and nodded in unison. They then picked up their luggage and headed towards the edge of the canyon, where a saloon-like lodge was stationed. At first glance, it looked like your typical old western saloon. Once you went past the flaps however, it looked a bit more modern than you would think. The inside was pretty clean, something you would not expect out here. The front desk was to the front. To the right, a bar was filled with people drinking, most likely local regulars who lived nearby. Further down, a stage with a band and showgirls were performing for a tired looking crowd. The front desk then called out to the posse.

"Excuse me? Do you have a reservation?" the clerk asked. Chris walked up to the desk.

"Yes. I should be under the name of Vendez." He told her. The clerk typed the name into her computer. She found the name after a few seconds.

"Ah yes. Mr. Christopher Vendez. Three rooms for six people?" she asked. Chris glanced over at Robert, who was speaking with the bartender.

"Yes. That sounds about right." He responded. Chris then remembered something.

"One more thing. Is there anywhere that we can hear some of the folk stories of the town? We're here on a research assignment." He asked.

The clerk gave Chris a troubled look. "I'm sorry sir, but I don't think I am the right person to answer that. Why don't you ask the town mayor tomorrow? I heard that he is a descendant of someone who worked very close to Mr. Ravenswood."

Chris bleakly smiled at her. "Thank you. I think you actually were the right person to answer that question." He said sarcastically.

The clerk didn't laugh at this but kindly handed him the keycards to their rooms.

"Your checkout is this Saturday at noon tomorrow. Any lateness will result in a late fee."

Chris nodded his head in understanding then hurried over to the rest of the crew.

"Okay guys, I have the rooms. Rose and Myrtle, this is your room. Steve and I will share a room."

Robert, who was drinking a mug of soda, shook his head as if he had not heard Chris correctly.

"Sorry, but did you say that Steve will be staying with you? Instead of me? Your best friend?"

Chris narrowed his eyebrows at Robert.

"Do I need to remind you that we are not best friends Robert? You are staying with Brian since you were so glad to bring him along."

Chris handed Robert his key. Robert stared at it for a while before turning to Steve.

"Come on Steve. Are you really gonna let him do this?"

"Are you kidding?" Steve laughed. "Of course, I am. At least I won't have to sleep with Mr. smoking delinquent over there."

Robert felt angry at Steve and Chris. How could he do this to me? How could he sell me out for a nerd? These and many other things were going through Robert's head. He gave a long sigh and thought about the one good thing that he had: a chance to finally explore a real haunted mansion. He and the rest of the crew would head up there first thing tomorrow night and nothing, not even a ghost was going to stop him from uncovering its secrets.