The Town of Juliet

Nestled deep in the Appalachian Mountains lies the quaint, sleepy town of Juliet. Much like any lumber town established in the late 19th century, Juliet is proud to boast of a population of 1,106 (1,107 if you count Natalie Habrook’s new baby). The directions to Juliet are fairly simple, if you dare to brave little-known Highway 17 off I-77. Dozens of travelers unwittingly meet their end on these winding mountain passes each year. The town’s cemetery is filled with unknown, unnamed, unclaimed bodies of the unsuccessful would-be visitors. 

Those who do survive the treacherous journey pass a sign welcoming them to “Picture Perfect Juliet” as they cruise down Main Street.  

For all intents and purposes, you would think this the happiest, most charming town. As you drive through, you might find yourself saying, “Honey, let’s retire here. This place is perfect.” You wouldn’t be the first, nor would you be the last.

Rafael and Eva Lancaster, fed up with the constant commotion of city apartment life, found themselves thinking just that. Independently wealthy and childless, the young couple decided a move to the mountains was just what they needed. While perusing the towns in the region on Google Maps, the couple stumbled across a photo someone had posted of Juliet’s Main Street. The caption read, “Quintessential sleepy American town.”

They immediately fell in love with the town. A few phone calls and $200,000 later, they were the proud owners of a quaint, three bedroom three bathroom Victorian home. Or at least they assumed it was quaint, they had never actually seen it. The kind realtor, who was thrilled to sell any kind of house, failed to mention a few details: first, this house had been sold thirteen times over the past century; second, no owner had lasted longer than a week before putting it back on the market. 

On the day of the Autumnal Equinox, the couple survived the treacherous highway and arrived safely. Main Street lived up to every expectation. Every person they passed, from the grocer to the pedestrians, all greeted them with a smile and a wave. “What a friendly town,” Eva commented.

At their new house, Rafa stepped out of the car, and took his first breath of the crisp mountain air. “This was a great idea, sweetie,” he said. He collected his backpack with a change of clothes from the backseat and walked around to Eva.

“Yeah, this is divine.”

Together, arms around each other, they turned to survey their new life. It was everything they had imagined. This was the place, they thought, this was the time to find out what life truly meant. And they certainly would.

Footsteps pattered down the street towards them, whistling. Rafa and Eva turned to greet their new neighbor. The whistling belonged to a boy of around fifteen. “Good afternoon,” Rafa called. 

At the shouted greeting, the boy looked up and stared at them, but never stopped whistling. Rafa tried again, friendly as ever. The boy ignored them and kept walking.

“Well that was strange,” Eva laughed. “Let’s get inside and see what we’ve gotten ourselves into!”

Still puzzled by the lack of response, Rafa nodded half-heartedly and followed his wife to the door. The empty house was enough to get him back into the thrill of their new adventure. The front door opened onto a beautiful foyer lit by an ornate chandelier. On the right, stairs led up to the second floor; on the left, a hallway leading to the dining room and kitchen.

“Halllllooooo!” Rafa shouted.

They were met with silence, save the faint echo of his voice bouncing off the unadorned walls.

Feeling like little kids with the anticipation of unexplored territory, they dumped their overnight bags on the floor and raced through the house, investigating everything it had to offer. The house was shockingly perfect. The lavish master suite upstairs caught Rafa’s attention. Eva found herself imagining a vast book collection filling the built-in bookshelves in the front room. 

“I feel like we won the lottery with this house,” Eva said enthusiastically as they stood in the dining room sharing their favorite parts of the house.

“I know, right? How was this place even on the market?”

“No idea… do you think someone died here?”

They looked at each other, mock horror on their faces, then busted up laughing. “Oooooo,” Rafa raised his hands imitating a ghost. “This is a haunted house.” They both laughed harder still.

Once the laughter subsided, Rafa brought the subject to food. “Do we have anything to eat?”

“Just the bag of chips in the car. I’m sorry, I didn’t even think about bringing something more substantial.”

“That’s okay, it’s almost dinner time anyways. What do you say we go get to know this new town of ours and find something to eat? I think I saw a diner on Main Street.”

Eva agreed, equally hungry. “This place is so small, too, let’s just walk! And in small towns we don’t even have to lock our door, right?”

“Not like there’s much to steal anyways, should we try it?”

Though a tempting thought, habit got the better of them. “Nah, better lock it.”

They strolled down the block, commenting on the beauty of the trees, mountains, and homes. Their house was the largest on the block, but each one was surprisingly well maintained. The boy they had seen earlier was walking towards them on the next block. Although the same whistled tune seemed to be coming from behind them.

Another teenage boy followed some ten paces behind, whistling. Rafa and Eva stopped to greet him with a little wave. “Good afternoon,” Rafa said. The boy stopped, but continued to whistle. “Where’s the best place to…” Eva nudged him, pointing across the street. Another whistling boy had stopped right across the street. Rafa wrapped his arm around his wife. “Odd,” he muttered. He quickened their pace and rounded the corner towards Main Street. The first boy that had been ahead of them turned down the same street, keeping pace and not breaking his tune.

Eva urged her husband faster. “What’s going on?” She hissed. What had initially started as a humorous quirk was growing more and more unsettling.

“Hey, boy!” Rafa shouted across the street. The boy glanced over, but kept walking and whistling. “Hey you, what’s your name?”

The whistling continued, but in stereo. The two boys behind them, their faces drawn tight by the puckered lips, stayed about ten paces behind. A fourth boy appeared ahead of them, seemingly out of nowhere, whistling the same tune.

“Run along! We’re not looking for trouble, just a bite to eat.” 

Eva clung to Rafa, her fingernails digging through his shirt. 

“It’s alright,” he muttered. “They’re probably just being boys, trying to pull a prank. Think they’re funny or something.” As if to prove him at least partially wrong, a girl of similar age appeared in the middle of the street ahead of them, whistling the same tune. In perfect unison, the song took on an ominous air. Each youth glared menacingly at the new couple. Each child took a step towards them, then another, closing the gap and circling around them.

Rafa put up a hand. “Enough!” He yelled. They wouldn’t listen, they wouldn’t stop. They were six paces away now. Four. Three.

With his arm firmly around Eva, he shoved past the boy and girl ahead of them. They parted before them, letting Eva and Rafa past without a fight. But the whistling never ceased. The five kids bunched together and stayed a consistent three paces behind, even as Eva encouraged Rafa to move faster. 

After what felt like an eternity, they crossed into the picturesque Main Street. Relief washed over them. Surely the kids wouldn’t do anything in such a public place. They could see the grocer moving what remained of his produce display inside. Eva pulled Rafa in that direction, remembering his friendly smile and wave as they drove in.

“Hello!” She called out to the grocer. He looked up, startled. With sudden recognition, he grabbed the box he had just filled and dashed into the building, slamming the door behind him. The blinds in the windows dropped as Rafa and Eva reached the store front. They looked at it, puzzled. The youth stayed three paces behind.

They kept walking, doing their best to ignore their entourage. They searched for anyone friendly to talk to. Faces looked down on them through windows they passed, but disappeared as soon as Rafa or Eva looked in their direction. What is going on? True fear was beginning to creep in on them, but neither dared give voice to their concerns. As they walked, the sun began to dip below the horizon, casting long shadows over them.

“There’s a diner!” Rafa called out, pointing. They looked both ways, then dashed across the empty street. The youth kept pace. The lights were glowing within, and they could make out a woman behind the counter. The bell above the door jingled as they entered. The whistling behind them suddenly ceased. The youth followed them in, seemingly engrossed in some conversation about a new video game.

“Oh, hello,” the woman said, friendly and chipper. “You must be the new couple. How… thrilling, I’d hoped you’d stop by.”

Rafa and Eva looked at one another in surprise. Though they craved that friendliness, it added to the uneasy tension building within them. “Er, hello,” Rafa said hesitantly.

“Come, sit down, take a load off. I want to know all about you. Tonight’s meal is on the house.”

Grateful things were finally going how they’d expected, the couple sat down and started flipping through the menu. 

“I’m Henrietta, by the way. Henrietta Stanley,” she said warmly. “Let me start you off with some onion rings while you glance through the menu.” She stepped into the back kitchen.

Rafa glanced nervously at the youth behind them, but they had crowded into one of the booths and were engrossed in their conversation. None of them so much as glanced their way. He breathed an audible sigh of relief. 

Eva rubbed his back, “It’s okay, we’ll feel much better after we eat.” 

Rafa wasn’t so sure, he felt particularly perturbed by the behavior of the local kids. What were they trying to do, run them out of town? But hunger got the better of annoyances. He poured over the menu trying not to drool over the greasy pictures. Henrietta came back out and took their orders.

“So what brought you to fair Juliet?” She asked them.

“We were looking for a change of pace,” Eva said. “We were getting tired of all the politics in D.C.”

“Can’t say I blame you. I wouldn’t last more than ten minutes in that city. No thank you!” Henrietta ducked back into the kitchen to prepare their food. She came back out with big, juicy hamburgers. “Nothing like a classic country burger to say welcome to town. You know, we get all of our meat fresh as all get out. Gill Mason has a cattle ranch just down the road. Gives us a nice good discount he does. So have you met anyone else?”

Rafa shook his head, mumbling a “no” through a mouth full of food. Eva, a little more refined, added, “No, we were going to stop by the grocer on our way here, but he dashed inside and closed the shop before we could get there.”

“Oh that’s Sam. He’s always a little skittish around new comers. Don’t mind him. I’m sure he’ll warm up to you soon enough. Anywho, what are your plans here in Juliet? Do you work?”

“We’ve actually managed to retire,” Rafa said. “Twitter bought a big piece of software I wrote, so we’re here to relax and find out what life really means.”

“Well, you won’t find any place better than Juliet for that.”

“I’m also an author,” Eva said. “A cozy, quiet town seems like the perfect place for me to focus.”

“Isn’t that something. Anything I would’ve read?”

“The Waif Moon? You probably haven’t heard of it.”

“Bless my stars, that was you? My daughter absolutely loves that book!” 

Eva beamed back. She had met very few people that had actually read it before she met them. She was feeling more and more at home here.

“So what is there to do around here?” Rafa asked.

“Oh, well tonight’s the Autumnal Equinox and the harvest moon, so you’re in for a real treat. You’ll actually be able to see the stars here, unlike D.C.” She went on to explain the community theater, the harvest bake sell, and a variety of other upcoming events.

They left the warm, glowing diner practically skipping an hour or so later completely satisfied.. Rafa checked the time. It was only 7:30, plenty of time to meander through Juliet before going to sleep on the hard wood floor of their new house.

They walked back up Main Street. The youth followed them out of the diner, as soon as the door clicked behind them, the whistling resumed. With their stomachs full, though, the couple just laughed laughed them off. “A weird way to welcome guests, but it could be worse,” Eva said. “The community theater sounds fun. Maybe we should audition for it?”

“I’m no actor,” Rafa said with a smile.

“No, but you’ve got plenty of time to learn now!”

“Let’s go check out that church.” Lights glowed warm through the stained glass windows. Rafa and Eva always liked wandering through old churches.

The darkness had set in by that time. As promised, the orange glow of the harvest moon loomed large over the top of the mountain peaks, illuminating the sidewalks before them. Despite their laughter, the song the youth whistled began to weigh heavy on their minds. They began to feel sluggish. The night shadows seemed to dance unsettlingly before their eyes. The song grew louder and louder, drowning out all sound of night life.

Eva glanced behind her, increasingly nervous and annoyed by the persistent youth. She stopped in her tracks, causing Rafa to stumble. “What?” He complained.

She pointed to the youth. What had been just five youth had somehow grown to at least a dozen boys and girls. Each whistling in perfect unison. The group slowly fanned out around them, expressions angry. Still the whistling continued.

“Let’s get to the church,” Rafa whispered, but the kids were so close they could hear every word.

“On three,” Eva whispered back.

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three.” They raced for the church doors. Just as they reached them, the deadbolt slid into place and the lights in the window clicked off. The only light left was the moon. They pounded on the door. “Please!” He called. “Let us in!”

There was no response. No one was going to let them in. The youth formed a perfect semicircle around them.

Without thinking, they grasped each other’s hands and raced back to the safety of the diner. They stumbled over rocks and cracks as they ran. Why had none of the street lights come on?

The youth followed behind nonchalantly, the tempo of their unified whistling increased, matching in time with Rafa and Eva’s beating hearts.

When they reached the diner, the lights clicked off. The shades dropped into place. The door wouldn’t budge. Henrietta was nowhere to be seen.

There was nothing for it, they needed to get back home. They sprinted the few blocks between the diner and their house and slammed into their own door, out of breath. The youth had somehow kept pace, without so much as losing their breath.

Eva fumbled with the key, dropped it, picked it up and dropped it again. Rafa stood behind her keeping a wary eye on the youth. They continued to multiply, now thirty strong at least. The noise was deafening. Why hadn’t the neighbors come out to investigate? Finally, Eva got the key in the lock, her hands shaking. 

They scrambled inside and slammed the door behind them, throwing the deadbolt. They collapsed onto the dark floor, breathing heavy. They held onto each other tightly. “It’s okay,” Rafa tried to console himself. “We’re fine. We’re fine.” 

The whistled tune slipped its way under the door, causing a shiver to run up Eva’s spine. “Why are they doing this?” Eva sobbed.

At that moment, the chandelier clicked on.

“Because we don’t like new comers,” a voice said from the stairs.

Rafa and Eva’s blood ran chill. They scrambled to their feet in horror, discovering a crowd of people on their stairs, including Henrietta and the grocer.

“You might be spies.”

“You might be communists.” 

“Have you come to destroy our peace?” 

“N-n-n-no, we haven’t!”

They each took a step down the stairs with a single, resounding thud. Fists began pounding on the wall of the house. A strong, burly man at the top of the stairs threw something large down on the floor in front of them. Rafa stepped forward to get a better look. 

It was a body. A human body.

Eva screamed. Rafa tried to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “The latch, the latch” Eva yelled hysterically. She threw the deadbolt and they escaped in blind panic. 

They shoved past the kids and scrambled into the car. It failed to start, keeping them in the driveway long enough to see the adults step out onto the porch. The youth kept whistling. 

Finally the engine roared to life. Rafa slammed the car into reverse and backed out of the driveway, over the lawn, and off a curb. They tore out of town without another look back. They didn’t stop until they landed at the bottom of a ravine.