Max_Writer

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

(After playing the Call of Cthulhu scenario “The Wizard of Wilson Creek” Saturday at MACE 2011 in high Point with Carl Little and Georgette from 8 p.m. to 12 a.m.)

In the late spring of 1928, practicing attorney Daniel Fuller received a letter at his office in Boston. It read:


200 Lee St.
Boston, Ma
Friday, May 11, 1928

Mr. Fuller,

It has come to my attention that a certain piece of property I took possession two years
ago might be at the center of certain strange events happening in North Carolina. I would
like you to personally investigate the house and make sure that it is undamaged, still intact
since I last visited it, and not at the center of rumors and strange stories that have recently
come to light.

I have learned from the solicitor Richard Atkinson, Esq. of Atkinson, Birch, and Fisher
out of Lenoir, N.C., that strange lights and sounds have been emanating from the woods near
the house, which lies just south of the tiny town of Mortimer, N.C. Strange things have been
reported at the house in the past. My Uncle Joseph Abington, a well-known professor of
Anthropology at Boston University, inherited the property in 1925 from a long-lost relative.
It has since come into my possession though I wish that were not the case.

Uncle Joseph had an unsettling experience at the house three years ago. Though I don’t
know the details, I know what it did to my uncle.

Please take it upon yourself to act for me in this case. I am leaving for Peru tomorrow on
business and will be out of touch for two months. I expect you to see to my interests in North
Carolina and protect my property.

Contact Mr. Atkinson in Lenoir for the keys to the property. His office is located at 201
Main St. N.W. He will be expecting you.

Sincerely,
William Abington


Enclosed with the letter was a newspaper clipping dated Thursday, May 10, 1928, from the Lenoir News-Topic. It read:


More strangeness in Mortimer
Lights and sounds on Yellow Buck

MORTIMER – Strange things have happened on the Yellow Buck Mountain over the past
two years and even before. Now more stories are coming out of the town of Mortimer – this
time of something haunting Yellow Buck Mountain itself.

According to residents of Mortimer, strange noises have been heard near the old, ruined
Wilson Creek Presbyterian Church. Red lights, possibly related to the Brown Mountain Lights,
have also been seen in the vicinity of the mountain, leading some to speculate that something
unnatural has taking up residence.

Some claim that the sounds (and probably the lights) are coming from the old Campbell
House, which stands on a ridge off Yellow Buck Mountain and has been the site of strangeness
for years. Just last year, mysterious figures were seen in the woods around the area, harassing
the locals and possibly even kidnapping one of their number.

Before that, the house was the scene of madness and mayhem. In 1919, a woman who was a
guest at the house disappeared without a trace. In 1921, a man was torn apart by wild beasts near
the house and bled to death. In 1922, another guest at the house sent his automobile crashing into
nearby Craig Creek, destroying the vehicle and losing his life in the process.

Sheriff F.T. Sherrill says deputies have searched the mountain but found nothing out of the
ordinary. He urges residents to stay calm and contact the Sheriff’s Office if they see or hear
anything more.


Fuller thought on the letter and the article and stroked his well-trimmed brown mustache. He was painfully skinny, standing five feet, six inches tall in his bare feet but only weighing about 100 pounds. He was not a strong man but was healthy enough and a trip of that sort might be just what he needed. It was not, strictly speaking, his line of work, but sounded like it might make a good few days away. He figured he could take a couple of months off and knew who he should invite along. He made a telephone call.

Bill McAfee was a uniformed police officer in Boston. A very tall and very solid man, Bill had red hair and a strong jaw. He was almost all muscle, and was hardy and fit. When Fuller asked him to go, he said he would and asked if he could invite a friend of his, a nurse who he guessed would enjoy a few days away from the city. Fuller had no problem with that.

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