It was the Saturday before Halloween, and the sign over the open gate said "Knollwood Farm". Brittany turned in and drove down the gravel lane to the big farm house at the end. Just to the left of the farmhouse was a huge machine shed and a barn almost as large. In front of the barn stood an old fashioned, horse-drawn farm wagon. As she and Timmy got out of her car, she heard the neigh of a horse coming from the barn.
The church had decided to have a Halloween party for the children of all the members, and had found Knollwood Farm offered all they needed. The evening would begin with face painting for the younger kids, a trip through the 'Haunted House", really just the machine shed, and then an old-fashioned hay ride on a horse drawn wagon that the brochure said would also be scary. After the hayride, the evening would end with a marshmallow roast over an open fire. There would also be coffee for the adults in attendance, and cocoa for the children.
Brittany had been excited about everything except the hayride. She'd been on one as a girl, and had discovered she was allergic to hay. Much to the dismay of the boy she'd gone with, she began to sneeze as soon as the wagon started to move. Brittany knew he wanted to steal a kiss or two, and had wanted that too, but her sneezing put a stop to that. She'd sneezed for two days afterwards, and hadn't been near any hay since.
Timmy thought it was a great idea, and talked about it all week. Brittany thought the fact that Cheryl, the girl Timmy seemed to talk about a lot, was also going and might have something to do with his excitement.
The haunted house was scary, even for Brittany. The inside of the big machine shed had been divided into rooms with paneling, and the rooms were laid out so one had to walk down one specific path through them. It was filled with screeching ghosts and witches who jumped out at them when they walked past, animated figures of people in coffins, and some sort of leggy things that seemed to fall on Brittany's bare shoulders and hair. She knew it was all just part of the show, but feeling something that seemed to have a thousand legs brushing your neck was still creepy.
Brittany walked out of the haunted house, following Timmy and Cheryl. He was holding Cheryl's hand, and Brittany smiled. He was growing up fast. She'd have to have another talk with him one of these days. He was fourteen and at the age where girls had become interesting. That should have been Ricky's job, but since he'd left, she'd had to be both mother and father to Timmy. She watched Timmy help Cheryl into the wagon. He climbed in after her and sat down beside her. Brittany went to find the coffee pot.
The man who was setting out paper cups on the table smiled at Brittany when she walked up. He was a little taller than Brittany, and she thought he must eat a lot because his belly was fat enough his belt was down under it. The day's worth of whiskers made him look a little mean, too.
"You're not going on the hayride?"
Brittany chuckled.
"I don't want to sneeze all next week. I'm allergic to hay...any dry grass actually."
"Well, I can understand. With me, it's the fall ragweed. Doc gave me a shot that helps some, but it's still a pain since I'm outside a lot in the fall."
"I suppose I should go see about it, but as long as I stay away from hay, I do OK."
The man stuck out his hand.
"I'm Jack."
Brittany smiled.
"I'm Brittany. I take it this is your farm?"
"Yeah, all five hundred and seventy two acres. You want some coffee or cocoa while you wait?"
"Coffee, please. Did you build the haunted house?"
Jack nodded his head.
"Always liked building things, and figured maybe people would pay to see what I build. Been doing this for ten years now, and every year, I build something to make it a little better. Must be working, because the same people come back every year."
"I'd never heard of it before the church arranged for the party. When are you open?"
"I never really advertised much, just that first year. After that, people told other people, and the newspaper came out and did an article on us once. Been busy every Friday and Saturday night in October since, well, except for the Saturday closest to Halloween. Most towns pick that night for trick or treating, so nobody comes out then. They will this year though."
Jack handed Brittany a steaming styrofoam cup.
"Careful. It's hot. Cream and sugar?"
"Just cream, please."
Brittany took a tiny sip from her cup. It was good coffee, as good as she made, and it was hot. She sat the cup down on the table to cool a little.
"What's different about this year?"
Jack laughed.
"It was Marsha's idea, really. She's my wife. She likes to dress up on Halloween, but there's no place to go so she can show off. She said we ought to have an adult Halloween party, so that's what we're doing. It'll be the same haunted house, except for a few things I won't show the children, and the same hayride. We can't serve alcohol, but it's OK if people bring their own. Should be fun. Wanna come?"
Brittany smiled.
"You'll probably only have couples and I'm not a couple."
"You aren't?. I thought since you had a boy..."
"I was married, but I've been single for the past ten years."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
Brittany smiled.
"Don't be. I'm happy."
Jack grinned.
"Well, you should still come. I figure it'll be a lot of fun. Marsha's got her outfit all done", Jack grinned again, "what there is of it. She's gonna dress up like an old-time saloon girl and she's hoping all the men will think she's hot. She put it on for me last night. She's gonna be hot enough to fry eggs. Bet you would be too."
Brittany laughed.
"I think you must be thinking of some other woman. I'm not all that sexy."
Jack wiggled his eyebrows.
"Don't sell yourself short. You would be if you dressed right, maybe as a pirate wench or a nurse. Say, would you like to see what I made for the adult party? If you were coming, I wouldn't spoil the surprise, but since you aren't..."
Jack led Brittany through the maze of rooms. He'd evidently turned off the ghosts and screams, though the furry things still fell on Brittany's shoulders. Jack laughed when she shrieked at one.
"They're just cut up rubber bands on fishing line. Can't see 'em when it's so dark and they feel just like a spider crawling on you. Ah, here we are, right at the end. You went out the door that says "exit". At the adult party, they'll go in here."
