The Spite House

Opening lines:

The Masson House of Degener, Texas, was like the corpse of an old monster, too strange and feared for most to approach it, much less attempt to bury it. After all, it might be feigning death or dormant. 

A little joke about the house, made by a little girl:

"If you're worried about the house because it looks weird, you don't have to be. It's okay. I figured out why it's so skinny."

"Yeah? Why?"

Stacy snickered, then said, "Because it hasn't had enough to eat." Then she laughed like she'd told the best joke she'd ever tell.

(Foreshadowing?)

Lights from Degener's Main Street shops and restaurants traveled just far enough to prevent the dark's absolute dominion. Eric was sure that those buildings in town kept their lights on through the night to warn the spite house that it could not sneak into town unseen, or open its door to draw people inside. Eat them. Hadn't Stacy inadvertently suggested that a couple of nights ago? She'd said the house was skinny because it hadn't eaten enough. What else would a house like this feed on but lives? 

(I knew it!)