It compares the hinges with something unfamiliar and scary.
Explanation:
A simile is a method for comparison of a thing with something different. It creates a realistic feeling to the situation, imagined or visualized distinctively.
Let us read the sentence from the story, as mentioned by the author.
"I pulled the heavy double doors open; the hinges squeaked like a platoon of lost ghosts."
The squeaky sound of the hinges because the door had not been used for a long time. The narrator is unfamiliar with what lies behind the door.
The hinges, compared to a platoon of lost ghosts, give a scary feeling to the sentence.
Hence, the answer is the second answer choice -
It compares the hinges with something unfamiliar and scary.
The past perfect refers to a time earlier than before now. It is used to make it clear that one event happened before another in the past. It does not matter which event is mentioned first - the tense makes it clear which one happened first.
