Chapter 1

Jessica Vogt leaned forward,her navy-blue eyes staring out the bus window.She wanted to take in every detail of the town of Twin Falls where she would be spending the next years of her life.The main street, Pennsylvania Avenue, crowded with traffic now as other college students like herself arrived in town, pass flanked on one side by a slowly meandering river, on the other side by shops and restaurants, a red brick post office, several bank buildings.Shoppers accustomed to the annual onslaught of young people ignore the long line of cars and buses making its way through the center of town and went about their business.

The bus passed slowly through the center of town, advancing past a stone bridge on the left spanning the river, and a beautiful row of lavish white and brick homes on the right, facing the water. A huge stone church took up one whole block, it's spire rising some distance above the medium\-sized community. Tall, full trees lined the avenue in front of the church. A larger section of more modest homes followed, and then, at the edge of town, a large, sprawling shopping mall.

Jess could already see the rooftops of the university buildings some distance ahead, just beyond the town. She settled back in her seat. It was a pretty town, not unlike her own hometown. Peaceful, quiet . . . and it had a mall. She smiled. What would life be like without a mall?

The bus let her off just a block from Nightingale Hall, the off\-campus dorm where she would be living.

When it had gone, she walked up the block, and paused at the bottom of the curving gravelled driveway that led up the slope to the house. Hands in the pockets of her khaki shorts, a set of cheap brown luggage resting beside her sandelled feet, she grimaced in dismay as her eyes focused on the building destined to be her home from September to June. It wasn't very inviting.

"Great place to film a horror movie", she murmured, running a hand through her short, glossy black hair. Shifting slightly, she kept her gaze on the house.

It was tall and narrow, 3 stories of break so deep are red and so shaded by massive oaks it looked charcoal. Two of the dark green shutters flanking and tall, skinny windows where hanging crookedly and the wide, wooden porch sagged enough to make the house look a little drunk. A metal fire escape traveled from the ground up to the third story along the left hand side.

In case we never need an escape route, Jess thought.

The house stood, tired and worn, at the top of the slope, overlooking the hill and the highway with, Jess had to admit a certain kind of dignity in spite of its shabbiness.

It's seen better days, she thought with conviction. It must have been beautiful once.

The lawn had recently been mowed, filling the air with the smell of fresh cut grass, and the squat green shrubbery flanking the wide front porch was thick with round, red berries.

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