Jan. 17, 2026

Haunted Houses & Cursed Finds Six Ghost Stories of Possession, Poltergeists, and True Terror

Haunted Houses & Cursed Finds Six Ghost Stories of Possession, Poltergeists, and True Terror
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If you’re craving haunted house horror stories, ghost stories, and paranormal encounters that escalate fast—this compilation is your next late-night listen. From a historic inn with a locked room and a German priest’s shadow, to an abandoned murder house that turns viral for all the wrong reasons… these tales spiral through possession, poltergeist chaos, cursed objects, and the kind of dread that follows you home.

Inside this compilation (in order):

• Horror at the Hexagon House Inn — Bill Spears: A writer relocates to a booming Texas town for his wife’s health… only to discover Room 4 is not empty—and the past isn’t buried. Letters become evidence, and the haunting turns personal.
• The House That Killed Me — Bruce Haney: An “abandoned places” YouTuber chases the next big upload in rural Oregon—until child-ghost warnings, a cellar secret, and hungry predators turn content into a death sentence.
• Ghost Story — A.N. Onimus: A strange boy at the county fair leads two friends to a mansion that won’t let them leave—where time fractures, doors lie, and something in the dark learns their fear.
• Thrifting Fail - We’re now Haunted! — Bruce Haney: A $1 yard-sale bowl comes with a freezing presence and an angry artist’s spirit—until the couple realizes the haunting has rules… and the only way out might be to pass it on.
• Lucien Greyshire and the Ghost from Applebee’s — L.F. Falconer: A scarred party-producer who can see the dead recruits a teenage poltergeist—promising purpose, spectacle, and a darker “service” hiding beneath Halloween entertainment.
• The House in the Woods — Bruce Haney: A lost hike, a carved jack-o’-lantern, and a bonfire reveal a house that shouldn’t exist—where spiders wear human skin and desperation tempts a man to return.

Hit play, lock the doors, and tell me which one crawled under your skin the most.

🎧 LISTEN NOW and subscribe for spine-tingling horror stories every week!

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📬 Contact Us / Submit Your Horror Story!


🎵 Music by Ray Mattis 👉 Check out Ray’s incredible work here !
👨‍💼 Executive Producers: Rob Fields, Bobbletopia.com
🎥 Produced by: Daniel Wilder
🌐 Explore more terrifying tales at: WeeklySpooky.com
WEBVTT

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Welcome back my spoon horror at the Hexta House. We

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have a full off bilit six stories one right after

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like walking four wherevery my dear friend Robert and something

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your favorite writer weird fiction is a cowboy. Now we've

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got in Henry and my lovely wife Victoria. We've gotten

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the great city of chicagoans a YouTube person coming to

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Texas into all Black Springs. We've got a count Why

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we moved to a mansion. The move was because Victoria

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has by suffering from a persistent cough from men. We're

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going and doctors recommended. Nothing screams decision like bringing home.

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Goodbye lakes and hello to the town that has no

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water source or other than we are taking the most

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haunted place. Springs is a town that's a chain rest

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more than many oasts are the recent oil boom and

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the vibe while the country rings to be in a recession.

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Tell it here where a house. The name even comes

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from the oil boom and the thing. The story I've

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heard is that Blackness Springs name new Munies on the

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community by German Immiglock, eighteen fifty nine. And if you

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hear the name was changed in seventeen when loathing of

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the Kaiser by the Scotch Irish lanes that took over

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the population, and the discovery of oil in the ear story.

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Name every single Wednesdays, all year long that the history

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texascribed on your favorite bloody casting between cattle drives, happy

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to hencecutter wars. Now this news can there is no different.

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On the outskirts of oil boom towns. There are acres

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of tense cities where the roughnecks live while working in

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this county. At night, the roads are filled with miscreants

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and robbers that are looking to take advantage of the

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roughnecks that are reaping great rewards for the incredibly long

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hours they are. Bars and beer joints are being erected

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overnight to tempt the roughnecks out of their pay. It's

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not unusual for gun fights to happen at these establishments.

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Here we are three and a half decades into the

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twentieth century, an age of civility, and these men are

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living like they were in the outlaw West. Don't let

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my previous paragraphs worry you too much about my safety, though.

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If you take out the bars, robbers, tensities, and oil derricks,

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black springs and Samuel County are quite beautiful. There's an

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opera house downtown that they are installing a screen and

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movie projector into. It will be the first movie theater

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in this area. That's not all. There is legend that

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the opera house was opened by John Wilkes Booth after

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he escaped death. Imagine the absurdity of the assassin of

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my home state hero escaping a burning barn and gunshot

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to the neck to open an opera house in Texas.

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Our lodging is quite remarkable as well. We're staying in

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room two of the Hexagon House Inn. This beautiful structure

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was built at the turn of the sentry and has

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six identical sides, each with balconies and three gables. Each

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gable has a five pointed star above a peaked window.

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The upstairs area has six rooms, one for each side

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of the inn. The rooms form a sort of circle,

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so Room one is next to Room six. Each room

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is complete with a king sized bed and a fireplace,

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complete with a sitting area with two comfortable chairs. I

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have never seen anything like this and refuse to believe

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that an inn this remarkable exists anywhere else in the world.

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The inn is owned by a couple named Cartwright. They

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also live downstairs and our great company. Inclosing, I hope

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that you are doing well in California. Tomorrow morning, I

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will start my new job as a ranch hand, because

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we both know that the delayed payments from Weird Fiction's

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magazine are not going to be enough to support my

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wife and myself. Your friend, Henry Noble, October twenty fifth,

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nineteen thirty four. Dear Robert Hoffman, I'm glad to hear

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that all is well with you, and I did enjoy

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your story that was published in the last issue of

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Weird Fictions. The owner of the local pharmacy was kind

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enough to stock the magazine when I requested it. It

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turns out that it is quite the cellar with the

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roughnecks that frequent the store for benzadrine and sleeping pills.

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I'm honestly surprised these Scotch Irish barbarians know how to read.

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They have finished installing the screen and the projector in

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the opera house and it is now officially a movie theater.

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This weekend for Halloween, the new Universal Pictures movie The

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Black Cat will be showing. It's based on the Edgar

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Allan Poe story. I hope the opera House isn't truly

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haunted by John Wilkes Boo. He might decide to shoot me,

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confusing me with another Republican from Illinois. My new job

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as a ranch hand on the Failure ranch is going

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well enough, but I fear that I am not entirely

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cut out for the work. It is hard labor and

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long hours. I have never ridden a horse before, so

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the experience I have to offer is limited. I feel

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like a burden because the other hands are constantly having

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to stop to teach me things that seem to come

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naturally to most people born down here. My riding has

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been suffering because I have hardly any time to devote

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to it. Working in the oil field is not a

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suitable alternative. Perhaps I can take up work as a

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soda jerk for the local drug store. Victoria is ever

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supportive of whatever I wish to do. She received an

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inheritance years ago, and it helps us greatly. Thank you

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for asking about Victoria's cough. It has gotten so much

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better since we've moved to Texas. It has virtually disappeared

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in the past month. Speaking of Victoria, I do understand

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that This letter will find its way to you some

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time after Halloween. But I have a great ghost story

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to share with you that involves Victoria. It's not a

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weird fiction's yarn either, It's a real ghost story. For

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the past two weeks, I've woken up in the middle

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of the night and Victoria was not in bed with me.

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For the first few nights, I went back to sleep

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and paid her absence no mine and returned to my slumber.

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On the fourth or fifth night, however, I let my

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curiosity get the best of me and began looking for her.

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I would find Victoria in Room four of the Inn.

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The room is currently unoccupied, as Victoria and I are

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the only lodgers at the moment. Victoria is spending these

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nights in Room four, sitting by the fire talking. The

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chair she's been sitting in has its back to the door,

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so she hasn't seen me standing there. There was no

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indication of who she had been talking to, though the

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other chair was completely empty. It's like she was talking

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to herself, but that is an impossibility because she has

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been slipping into speaking German at times. I have never

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known Victoria to speak any other language. Last Sunday, morning.

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Over breakfast, I asked Victoria about her fireside chats. She said,

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she has no memory of what I'm talking about. She's

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firmly convinced that she's sleeping through the night. She even

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went as far as to tell me that the past

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few weeks were the best she slept in years, and

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only knows of going to sleep and waking up. Then

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I mentioned to her that I heard her speak in German.

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Victoria replied, I don't even know German, in a laugh,

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as if I were making the whole thing up as

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a joke on her. But then she paused, I have

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been having dreams of a German priest. Though. Do you

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think that it's possible that Victoria is dreaming of a ghost,

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or possibly that this is a case of possession. I

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feel like I should be keeping a record of this.

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Then maybe I too can have a new story published

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in Weird Fictions. Your friend, Henry Noble, November thirtieth, nineteen

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thirty four. Dear Robert Hoffman, your favorite writer of weird

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Fictions is no longer a cowboy. That is correct, I

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am now a legitimate soda jerk. I do hope that

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I can perform this job to the best of my abilities.

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All joking aside. I received your letter Wednesday and do

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appreciate your support in my ghost situation. I felt you

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would best understand the situation. Out of all of our

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circle of weird fiction's writer friends, the others all love

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to write about the supernatural, but I doubt any of

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them truly believe in the things they write about. It

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is now a cool November Friday afternoon, and I am

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riding in the cool air while sitting on the porch

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of the Inn. Yesterday was Thanksgiving. I hope your holiday

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was well. Mine was educational. Mister and Missus Cartwright are

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a couple in their forties that never managed to have children.

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On Thanksgiving, they invited Victoria and I to join them

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and the family of mister Cartwright's brother for Thanksgiving dinner.

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Mister Cartwright's brother, David, lives in San Antonio, where he

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has a practice as a doctor. David, his wife, and

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two teenage sons are also staying in rooms five and

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six of the Inn for the weekend. During the dinner,

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I brought up Victoria's sleepwalking and dreams. As strange as

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it seems, I've actually never mentioned these things to the

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Cartwrights before, only to you. I really haven't seen a

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point in mention them. The sleep walking hasn't been a

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bother for weeks. Victoria denies it even happens, claiming she's

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been sleeping soundly. I've gotten used to it and am

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able to sleep through it. At the mention of dreams

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of a German priest, mister Cartwright and his brother David

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both fell silent. I took this as a rather ominous sign,

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so after dinner I made it a point to catch

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David on the porch while he was smoking his pipe.

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I wanted to find out if there was more to this.

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I really couldn't think of any way to lead in

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with it, so I just started talking, hoping that he

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would bring up the topic. It took a bit, but

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the conversation came around when David asked me how long

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Victoria and I were planning on staying at the inn

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as long as we can. We really haven't discussed whether

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we should stay here or go back to Chicago. Have

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you thought of finding another place to stay in the meantime?

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Does this have to do with Victoria's dreams? David fell silent.

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He was looking for an excuse for us to leave

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that didn't involve whatever he was hiding. When he realized

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that there wasn't one, he asked, do you believe in

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the supernatural? I answered that I did. I think there's

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something supernatural in that house. I think it's been here

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since nineteen seventeen. Why nineteen seventeen, I asked. In nineteen seventeen,

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the Catholic Church built that little chapel out on the

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east side of town. I don't know why they even

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built it. Everyone in town is either German families that

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immigrated to Texas during the days of the Impresarios or

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scotch Irish by way of Tennessee. The Germans are Lutheran

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and the scotch Irish are Baptist. There's no Catholics any who.

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They sent a priest, a German named Father Johann Bauer.

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Not like the Germans that were already here and have

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been here since the town was founded. This was a

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German from German. You can imagine that didn't go over

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very well. Since the Great War was going on at

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the time. We were in the middle of changing the

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name of the town. Because even the Germans living here

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didn't want to be associated with Germany. People said things

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about him. Some said that the Catholics didn't even build

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the church, that it was the Kaiser that had built it,

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and that the priest was a spy for the Kaiser.

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That made sense to a lot of people. Father Bauer

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was having a hard time finding any place to stay.

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None of the boarding houses would have him. No one

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wanted to rent or sell to him. My parents owned

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the inn at the time and weren't in any position

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to turn down anybody. So he stayed here in room four.

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I was twenty two at the time and working here

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part time and at the pharmacy part time, trying to

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save up for medical school. There was a pause. It

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was almost as if David needed a push to go further.

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So I asked him what happened to Father Bauer. That

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church is about a mile and a half from here.

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Father Bower would walk it every day. I still don't

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see why no one else was setting foot in the place,

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but he walked there every morning and then back here

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every evening. One morning he left for the church but

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didn't come back that evening. He just disappeared. I asked,

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in a town this small, nobody just disappears. You hear

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talk about what happened to people. What talk did you

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hear about what happened to Father Bower? He was lynched?

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You mean he was hanged. I was disgusted. I had

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heard stories of people being hanged here in the South,

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but the tales i'd heard usually involved the person being

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hanged also being accused of horrible crimes. I couldn't imagine

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someone being hung over paranoid rumors. Not all lynchings are hangings,

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David continued. In Father Bower's case, he was tarred and feathered.

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I have lived my entire life in Chicago, where the

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police handle matters. Lynchings of any sort are not common.

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I was trying to imagine someone being tarred and feathered.

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I had always heard of this as a metaphor for humiliation,

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not a lynching. David saw the confusion in my face

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and began to explain when someone is tarred and feathered,

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it's supposed to hurt and scar, but not kill. The

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tar has to be hot enough to stick to the

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skin and the feathers. That's about three hundred and fifty

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to four hundred degrees at least. There was a group

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of about a half a dozen men that waited for

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Father Bower between the church and here that evening. From

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what I understand, the goal was never to kill him,

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just to hurt him bad enough to make him want

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to leave. Something went wrong, though, and he ended up dead.

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From what I heard, the body was buried with the

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feathers still melted to the flesh. David Cartwright went on

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to tell me that the Catholic Church sent a new

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priest the following spring, this time an irishman, so those

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types of rumors wouldn't spread again. David said he moved

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to San Antonio the following fall and tries not to

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think of Father Bauer. I hope that my story hasn't

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lowered your spirits too much. I fear that this story

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00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:21.279
might be too gruesome for even the pages of Weird

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Fictions if I were to try to turn it into

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a story for the magazine. I felt that I must

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write you while it was still on my mind, since

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it seems to relate to Victoria's new sleeping habits. I

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really want to get this to you as soon as possible,

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and it is early enough that I can walk to

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the post now and send it. Henry Noble, February nineteenth

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nineteen thirty five, My friend, Robert Hoffman, it has been

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months since I have written to you, and if you

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responded to the letter I sent you during Thanksgiving, I

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never received it. I have been institutionalive and imprisoned since

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the night that I placed that letter in the post

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to you, Robert, you are the only one that will

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00:16:08.320 --> 00:16:11.120
believe me, and I have tried to explain to others

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what happened, but they locked me up in a sanitarium

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in North Texas, where I was drugged and unable to

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communicate with the outside world. I spent months in that

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dreaded place, surrounded by people who couldn't even form a sentence.

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Screams of the mad filled the hallways at night. They

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thought I was mad because of the story I told them,

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but the place they sent me to cure me was

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driving me mad. I'm getting far ahead of myself, though,

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I need to start with that night, the night that

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you last heard from me. The evening was very normal.

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After I returned from placing the letter in the post.

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We sat in the parlor visiting the Cartwrights, David's family, Virginia,

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and myself. The Cartwrights had a bottle of Kentucky bourbon

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that they shared with us. Around midnight, a thunderstorm rolled in.

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We wound things down and retired to our rooms. I

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fell asleep easily, with the bourbon in my system and

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Victoria beside me. As soon as my head hit the pillow.

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I was sleeping heavily, regardless of the storm. Suddenly I

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was awakened by a stark, blood curdling scream, the scream

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00:17:30.160 --> 00:17:34.480
of a woman. I bolted upright, reaching my hand beside me.

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Victoria wasn't there. The storm was still raging outside. I

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got to my feet and rushed to the door, reaching

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for the electric switch next to it. I flipped the

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00:17:48.279 --> 00:17:53.759
switch up, then down, then up again, but there was nothing.

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The storm had knocked out the electricity. I rushed back

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to bed with only the flashes of lightning to guide me.

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There was a kerosene lamp and a box of matches

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on the bedside table. I was so shaken by the

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scream and Victoria missing that I had trouble striking the matches.

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It took me five matches before I was able to

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keep one lit long enough to light the lamp. I

295
00:18:19.440 --> 00:18:22.200
then returned to the door and took a deep breath

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to steady myself before I pulled the door open. The

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light of the lamp could only illuminate so far, so

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I stepped out of the room. I was still at

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a loss of who made the scream or what caused

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00:18:35.480 --> 00:18:38.200
them to make it. My intentions were to make it

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00:18:38.240 --> 00:18:42.079
to room six and five to check on David Cartwright's family.

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I knocked on the door of Room six, where the

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00:18:45.440 --> 00:18:49.000
teenage sons of David were staying. I knocked on the

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door and it creaked open. I called into the room hello.

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00:18:56.559 --> 00:18:59.599
There was no answer. I put my hand with the

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00:18:59.680 --> 00:19:02.079
lamp into the room and followed it with my head.

307
00:19:03.240 --> 00:19:07.000
My dear friend Robert. I wish I could forget the

308
00:19:07.160 --> 00:19:10.400
sight I saw, but it will haunt me till the

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00:19:10.519 --> 00:19:14.599
day I die. The bodies of the two teenage boys

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00:19:14.599 --> 00:19:16.880
were laid on the floor at the foot of the bed,

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one on top of the other. The foreheads of each

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00:19:20.640 --> 00:19:25.160
of them split open, as if by an axe. There

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00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:27.799
were two streaks of blood running from the bed to

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00:19:27.880 --> 00:19:33.119
the bodies. They were killed, then dragged to the floor.

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00:19:34.359 --> 00:19:37.880
I gasped, this was a horrific scene, but it couldn't

316
00:19:37.920 --> 00:19:40.039
have been the source of the scream. That I heard.

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00:19:40.799 --> 00:19:44.160
It was a woman's scream. I mustered up courage to

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00:19:44.200 --> 00:19:48.319
get past what I had seen and continued to Room five.

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00:19:49.799 --> 00:19:53.960
Once again, I knocked in the door creaked open. I

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00:19:54.039 --> 00:19:56.599
repeated the entry I used in room six, with the

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00:19:56.680 --> 00:20:01.559
lamp entering the room before me. The sight of David

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00:20:01.599 --> 00:20:04.319
Cartwright and his wife was even more startling to me

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00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:08.319
than the sight of their sons. David was lying face

324
00:20:08.440 --> 00:20:11.599
down on the bed with large cuts all over him.

325
00:20:12.079 --> 00:20:15.079
He must have been attacked by the same axe that

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00:20:15.200 --> 00:20:19.200
his sons were. He never stood a chance. He was

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00:20:19.240 --> 00:20:22.799
probably dead before he could even wake up. His right

328
00:20:22.920 --> 00:20:27.319
arm was either under him or missing altogether. I couldn't

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00:20:27.319 --> 00:20:32.079
bring myself to approach him to find out. I couldn't

330
00:20:32.079 --> 00:20:35.119
see David's wife until I moved the lamp to explore

331
00:20:35.200 --> 00:20:39.160
more of the room. There she was bent over the chair,

332
00:20:40.119 --> 00:20:43.559
her back up in the air, and the axe still

333
00:20:43.640 --> 00:20:48.559
in her the handle pointing straight up. I gasped again,

334
00:20:48.680 --> 00:20:52.839
this time almost dropping the lamp. I turned and ran

335
00:20:52.960 --> 00:20:57.480
to the staircase. It crossed my mind to see if

336
00:20:57.559 --> 00:21:01.680
Victoria was in Room four, but the thought of finding

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00:21:01.720 --> 00:21:05.279
her butchered by the axe in there was simply too

338
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much to bear, so instead I ran down the stairs.

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When I was half way down the staircase, there was

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a lightning flash that revealed the contents of the foyer

341
00:21:16.920 --> 00:21:22.720
to me. It was the bodies of the Cartwright's lying

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00:21:22.759 --> 00:21:27.200
on the floor, with Victoria above Missus Cartwright a knife

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00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:30.720
in her raised hand. Her back was turned to me.

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In that split second, I saw the hand come down,

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then it was dark again before I saw her plunge

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00:21:39.799 --> 00:21:45.160
the knife into the chest of Missus Cartwright. This sight

347
00:21:45.359 --> 00:21:49.000
was too much, and I succeeded in dropping the lamp.

348
00:21:49.079 --> 00:21:53.960
This time it shattered and the kerosene splashed onto the steps.

349
00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:57.160
The open flame of the lamp caught the spreading kerosene

350
00:21:57.160 --> 00:22:02.160
and ignited. Victoria turned around and then ran towards me

351
00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:05.200
with the knife in her hand. In a lightning flash,

352
00:22:05.240 --> 00:22:10.880
her face changed from my Victoria to a man with

353
00:22:10.960 --> 00:22:16.599
a disfigured face, a burned face with feathers melted to it.

354
00:22:18.000 --> 00:22:21.799
My Victoria was father Bower in that flash of lightning,

355
00:22:22.880 --> 00:22:26.559
but then it was back to my Victoria when the

356
00:22:26.599 --> 00:22:32.160
flash was over. But it wasn't my Victoria because whatever

357
00:22:32.240 --> 00:22:35.319
it was still came at me with the knife raised.

358
00:22:36.079 --> 00:22:39.240
I was caught off guard and fell backwards, sliding down

359
00:22:39.279 --> 00:22:41.799
the stairs, but I was able to gather myself enough

360
00:22:42.039 --> 00:22:45.720
to make it to my feet quickly. Victoria, now standing

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00:22:45.759 --> 00:22:49.279
in front of me, raised her hand, then brought the

362
00:22:49.359 --> 00:22:53.160
knife down at me, but I caught her arm. The

363
00:22:53.240 --> 00:22:56.039
fire was beginning to build on the staircase above us,

364
00:22:56.240 --> 00:23:00.279
but Victoria was too concerned with stabbing and and I

365
00:23:00.400 --> 00:23:04.039
too concerned with us surviving for either of us to

366
00:23:04.119 --> 00:23:09.680
notice she spoke. It was not Victoria's voice, though, It

367
00:23:09.799 --> 00:23:13.480
was the voice of a demon, and it will haunt

368
00:23:13.559 --> 00:23:17.799
me until the day I die. The words that came

369
00:23:17.839 --> 00:23:23.359
from her made no sense. Elderkov seize you. The struggle

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00:23:23.400 --> 00:23:25.480
took all of my strength, but I was able to

371
00:23:25.480 --> 00:23:28.799
push her to the side into where the flames had spread.

372
00:23:29.240 --> 00:23:32.799
As her nightgown caught fire, I ran for the front

373
00:23:32.839 --> 00:23:39.079
door and escaped the house. I can only imagine Victoria's

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00:23:39.079 --> 00:23:45.880
fate being left in the house as it burned. I

375
00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:49.680
stood in the road watching the Hexagon house in engulfed

376
00:23:49.720 --> 00:23:54.160
in flames. As the sheriff approached, I told him exactly

377
00:23:54.880 --> 00:23:59.279
what had happened, and he took me to the sanitarium.

378
00:23:59.519 --> 00:24:03.359
I would die in that place, screaming the words Eldri

379
00:24:03.440 --> 00:24:07.960
Kissov sees you. But the sheriff returned for me and

380
00:24:08.079 --> 00:24:12.119
took me back to Black Springs for a trial. I

381
00:24:12.240 --> 00:24:15.960
thought that it would be an actual trial, but instead

382
00:24:16.200 --> 00:24:19.680
I was rushed into a courtroom and found guilty in

383
00:24:19.759 --> 00:24:25.559
less than an hour of murdering seven people. I now

384
00:24:25.640 --> 00:24:30.440
sit on death row, this being my first correspondence since

385
00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:34.799
I last wrote you. You are the only person that

386
00:24:34.839 --> 00:24:52.680
will believe me. Please help Henry Noble The House that

387
00:24:52.920 --> 00:24:59.400
killed me By Bruce Haney. There are many different paths

388
00:24:59.440 --> 00:25:02.960
to faign that one can follow. You can get the

389
00:25:03.000 --> 00:25:08.039
attention you crave from writing, acting, directing, or posting to

390
00:25:08.079 --> 00:25:11.880
social media. There are some people who are famous just

391
00:25:11.960 --> 00:25:15.759
for posting photos of their lives online or making the

392
00:25:16.400 --> 00:25:19.799
exact same ten second video on TikTok that everyone else

393
00:25:19.839 --> 00:25:24.559
already has. Brandon's attempt for fame took the video path.

394
00:25:25.240 --> 00:25:31.440
His channel was titled Abandoned with Brandon. Before his final video,

395
00:25:31.559 --> 00:25:34.559
he had built his channel up to one thousand followers.

396
00:25:35.319 --> 00:25:39.279
After the final video was uploaded, his subscribership jumped up

397
00:25:39.319 --> 00:25:43.559
to one hundred thousand. Though everyone knew that he would

398
00:25:43.640 --> 00:25:53.319
never post another video. That final clip received fifteen million views. Previously,

399
00:25:53.440 --> 00:25:57.559
his highest viewed video had twenty thousand and was titled

400
00:25:58.039 --> 00:26:04.039
Overnight at the Witch's House. You see Brandon's online niche

401
00:26:04.119 --> 00:26:07.960
was that he made abandon place's videos. The Witch's House

402
00:26:08.079 --> 00:26:11.759
was a surprise hit for Brandon, though twenty thousand was

403
00:26:11.839 --> 00:26:15.519
nobody's idea of a hit anymore, but Brandon was proud

404
00:26:15.559 --> 00:26:18.440
of it. He had been making videos for just over

405
00:26:18.480 --> 00:26:21.680
a year and this was his first taste of success.

406
00:26:22.839 --> 00:26:25.759
He was late to the game, he knew, but he

407
00:26:25.960 --> 00:26:28.720
just turned twenty years old and finally was free enough

408
00:26:28.720 --> 00:26:31.400
from his parents' hold to start traveling and doing with

409
00:26:31.519 --> 00:26:36.119
his life whatever he wanted. For him, that meant making

410
00:26:36.160 --> 00:26:39.799
the types of videos that he loved watching. He had

411
00:26:39.799 --> 00:26:43.559
been watching urban exploration videos since he was a kid.

412
00:26:44.119 --> 00:26:46.839
He still loved them, but he didn't realize that so

413
00:26:47.000 --> 00:26:51.000
many of the cool abandoned places had already been explored

414
00:26:51.039 --> 00:26:55.559
and exploited for online hits and likes. But the Witch's

415
00:26:55.640 --> 00:26:58.960
House did well. He just posted it a month ago

416
00:26:59.319 --> 00:27:03.720
and he was getting new subscribers daily. Three things led

417
00:27:03.759 --> 00:27:06.640
to the success of that video. The first was that

418
00:27:06.720 --> 00:27:09.839
this was a new abandoned place that nobody had seen.

419
00:27:10.440 --> 00:27:14.440
The second were the cymbals he found inside. The third

420
00:27:14.440 --> 00:27:16.839
part of that success was the thumbnail he chose for

421
00:27:16.880 --> 00:27:20.359
the video. He took a photo from the kitchen into

422
00:27:20.359 --> 00:27:23.279
the bedroom, where you could see the details of a

423
00:27:23.359 --> 00:27:27.839
face that looked like a witch web. Sleuths in the

424
00:27:27.880 --> 00:27:30.119
comments were able to figure out right away that it

425
00:27:30.200 --> 00:27:33.119
was not, in fact a witch face, but a novelty

426
00:27:33.160 --> 00:27:37.400
item known as a laughin'head that was sold in souvenir

427
00:27:37.480 --> 00:27:41.799
shops in the nineteen seventies. The laughin'heads were a gag item.

428
00:27:42.160 --> 00:27:44.400
They had a little reservoir in them that you filled

429
00:27:44.440 --> 00:27:47.640
with water, and if someone pulled the pull me string,

430
00:27:48.079 --> 00:27:50.240
it would spit water at them, and then a voice

431
00:27:50.240 --> 00:27:53.480
of someone laughing would play while the tongue moved in

432
00:27:53.720 --> 00:27:58.039
and out and the eyes opened and closed. Okay, it

433
00:27:58.119 --> 00:28:01.119
wasn't a real face, but those laughin'heads were nightmare fuel

434
00:28:01.160 --> 00:28:06.960
with their black eyes, creepy laugh and wrinkled skin. Now

435
00:28:07.000 --> 00:28:10.799
with the little success's video got the place had been discovered,

436
00:28:10.839 --> 00:28:14.759
and Brandon's favorite creator, The Forgotten Past, made a video

437
00:28:14.799 --> 00:28:18.160
there that got a half a million views. If this

438
00:28:18.400 --> 00:28:21.559
was a few years ago, that number wouldn't be that notable,

439
00:28:22.000 --> 00:28:25.759
but abandoned videos are now passe, and having over one

440
00:28:25.839 --> 00:28:28.960
hundred thousand views for that type of video was great.

441
00:28:29.839 --> 00:28:32.480
The success of the Witch's House video led to his

442
00:28:33.119 --> 00:28:37.359
final production. A viewer with the online handle lost and

443
00:28:37.480 --> 00:28:40.599
Alone sent him a message stating that he knew of

444
00:28:40.640 --> 00:28:45.640
a practically untouched abandoned house in eastern Oregon that hadn't

445
00:28:45.680 --> 00:28:49.400
been vandalized, had not been filmed, and best of all,

446
00:28:50.000 --> 00:28:55.160
the owners abandoned the house, leaving everything behind. That's what

447
00:28:55.200 --> 00:28:58.640
got views. Nobody wants to see an abandoned house for

448
00:28:58.680 --> 00:29:01.599
the rot alone. They want to see how people used

449
00:29:01.599 --> 00:29:05.640
to live, or find glimpses of creepy things like old

450
00:29:05.759 --> 00:29:11.519
rotten dolls or hidden rooms. Brandon corresponded back and forth

451
00:29:11.559 --> 00:29:15.400
with Lost and Alone, gathering info. He wanted to know

452
00:29:15.480 --> 00:29:18.559
how rotten the house was. He had never explored a

453
00:29:18.599 --> 00:29:21.480
house in Oregon because he heard that because of all

454
00:29:21.480 --> 00:29:24.720
the rainfall, abandoned houses fell apart before they were old

455
00:29:24.839 --> 00:29:29.000
enough to be worth exploring. That's the Pacific Northwest for you.

456
00:29:30.079 --> 00:29:33.440
Brandon didn't know that eastern Oregon is mostly desert and

457
00:29:33.480 --> 00:29:36.680
got much less rain than the area surrounded by Portland

458
00:29:36.680 --> 00:29:40.480
did Lost and Alone confirmed that it wasn't rotten and

459
00:29:40.559 --> 00:29:43.000
told Brandon where he could meet him so that they

460
00:29:43.039 --> 00:29:47.200
could drive out there together. Brandon didn't like this idea,

461
00:29:47.359 --> 00:29:50.599
but he desperately wanted to build on the success of

462
00:29:50.640 --> 00:29:54.599
the Witch House. Who knows, maybe they'll find creepy books

463
00:29:54.640 --> 00:29:58.400
and symbols on the walls there. It annoyed Brandon that

464
00:29:58.480 --> 00:30:01.640
people in the comments on his videos theorized that he

465
00:30:01.759 --> 00:30:06.279
drew the symbols himself. He didn't. He held the abandoned

466
00:30:06.279 --> 00:30:12.240
code of ethics sacred document, not destroy or alter. He

467
00:30:12.359 --> 00:30:17.279
considered himself an explorer, not a criminal. They met at

468
00:30:17.319 --> 00:30:20.559
a gas station twenty miles from the house. Lost and

469
00:30:20.720 --> 00:30:22.920
Alone turned out to be a twenty two year old

470
00:30:22.960 --> 00:30:26.759
guy named Dan who just started his own channel and

471
00:30:26.799 --> 00:30:29.440
thought he could benefit from making his first video with

472
00:30:29.559 --> 00:30:32.480
somebody who had already been doing it for a while.

473
00:30:33.559 --> 00:30:36.960
Before they left the gas station, Brandon informed Dan that

474
00:30:37.000 --> 00:30:39.960
he would follow him in his own car. Dan was

475
00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:42.400
okay with this, saying, I just didn't want to give

476
00:30:42.440 --> 00:30:44.839
you the directions and then you make the video without me.

477
00:30:45.799 --> 00:30:48.440
I get that it's cool. I'm excited to see the

478
00:30:48.480 --> 00:30:52.200
place Brandon responded, Oh, you're going to love it. The

479
00:30:52.279 --> 00:30:55.680
house has been abandoned since the sixties. I believe my

480
00:30:55.759 --> 00:30:58.440
father said it was abandoned when he was a little kid,

481
00:30:58.480 --> 00:31:01.200
and that none of them dared go near it because

482
00:31:01.240 --> 00:31:04.799
it was supposedly haunted, you know, because of the murders

483
00:31:04.839 --> 00:31:09.279
and deaths. Dan explained. This made Brandon nervous, as this

484
00:31:09.440 --> 00:31:12.720
was the first time this fact had ever been mentioned.

485
00:31:13.559 --> 00:31:20.680
He questioned Dan about it, murders plural. Dan sighed and said, yeah,

486
00:31:20.839 --> 00:31:24.839
five people have died in the house. Wow, did they

487
00:31:24.839 --> 00:31:29.519
catch the killer? Dan sighed again and told him yes

488
00:31:29.559 --> 00:31:32.880
and no. The first two people who died were killed

489
00:31:32.880 --> 00:31:36.319
by their mother after their father left. She resisted arrest

490
00:31:36.359 --> 00:31:39.119
when the police came and was shot and killed. The

491
00:31:39.200 --> 00:31:43.119
house hasn't had anyone live in it since, Brandon thought

492
00:31:43.160 --> 00:31:48.039
to himself, what about the other two deaths. The drive

493
00:31:48.119 --> 00:31:50.759
to the destination was rough, but the air conditioning in

494
00:31:50.799 --> 00:31:54.039
his car made it bearable. The heat was the only

495
00:31:54.119 --> 00:31:57.039
part of the exploration that he wasn't looking forward to.

496
00:31:57.720 --> 00:32:01.079
His dashboard informed him that the outside temperature was one

497
00:32:01.200 --> 00:32:06.039
hundred degrees fahrenheit. The drive was ten miles of asphalt

498
00:32:06.359 --> 00:32:09.119
and then another ten miles of gravel and dirt roads,

499
00:32:09.640 --> 00:32:13.240
some with pretty deep ruts. They saw only a handful

500
00:32:13.279 --> 00:32:16.400
of houses that looked abandoned as well, except for the

501
00:32:16.480 --> 00:32:20.680
late model vehicles parked in the driveways. Brandon wondered to

502
00:32:20.759 --> 00:32:24.240
himself why someone would live out this far. The only

503
00:32:24.319 --> 00:32:27.799
other signs of life along the route were some grazing cows,

504
00:32:27.880 --> 00:32:30.400
some birds, and he thought that he may have seen

505
00:32:30.440 --> 00:32:34.400
a coyote. Being that this was the eastern part of

506
00:32:34.440 --> 00:32:37.240
Oregon and much of the land was empty, he found

507
00:32:37.319 --> 00:32:40.519
himself thinking about the old stage coaches and schooners that

508
00:32:40.599 --> 00:32:43.720
probably traveled this way on their journey west to the

509
00:32:43.720 --> 00:32:48.200
more populated areas during the Oregon Trail days. Brandon then

510
00:32:48.240 --> 00:32:51.519
thought to himself, I wonder how many people died of

511
00:32:51.599 --> 00:32:56.400
dysentery around here. Brandon's tripodometer, which he had reset at

512
00:32:56.400 --> 00:32:59.319
the gas station, showed that they had driven eighteen miles.

513
00:32:59.920 --> 00:33:03.240
Was getting excited that they were almost there. That was

514
00:33:03.279 --> 00:33:05.920
when Dan stopped his truck in the road and jumped

515
00:33:05.920 --> 00:33:11.000
out and started walking towards Brandon. Come check out the road.

516
00:33:11.559 --> 00:33:13.240
I don't know if your little car is going to

517
00:33:13.240 --> 00:33:17.160
make it past these ruts, Dan said, Brandon got out

518
00:33:17.160 --> 00:33:19.680
of his vehicle and cursed himself for not paying more

519
00:33:19.759 --> 00:33:22.440
to rent a pickup truck or at least an suv.

520
00:33:23.319 --> 00:33:26.880
What's another fifty bucks on the credit card. Brandon walked

521
00:33:26.920 --> 00:33:29.279
up and looked at the rut, which was about eight

522
00:33:29.319 --> 00:33:32.880
inches deep, and told Dan, I think I can make

523
00:33:32.920 --> 00:33:34.359
that as long as I hit the rut at the

524
00:33:34.400 --> 00:33:38.839
right angle. With that, they both got in their respective vehicles.

525
00:33:39.319 --> 00:33:42.480
Dan drove right through the rut, but Brandon's rental car

526
00:33:43.079 --> 00:33:47.079
got stuck. After a bit of discussion, Brandon decided to

527
00:33:47.160 --> 00:33:50.279
jump in Dan's truck and continue. The car would be

528
00:33:50.319 --> 00:33:53.160
a problem for later. They could pull it out in

529
00:33:53.200 --> 00:33:55.440
the dark, but they couldn't film in the dark, so

530
00:33:55.720 --> 00:33:59.720
documenting the house was deemed more pressing. We just have

531
00:33:59.799 --> 00:34:02.039
to watch out for the coyotes when we're pulling that

532
00:34:02.119 --> 00:34:05.720
car out, Dan told Brandon. I always heard that coyotes

533
00:34:05.759 --> 00:34:10.239
don't really attack humans. Brandon replied, typically no, but my

534
00:34:10.320 --> 00:34:13.079
buddy got chased by one around these parts, and I've

535
00:34:13.079 --> 00:34:17.320
never quite trusted them ever since. Dan replied, Brandon was

536
00:34:17.360 --> 00:34:20.519
frustrated with himself for not being prepared and for taking

537
00:34:20.559 --> 00:34:23.400
an unnecessary risk and trying to drive through that rut,

538
00:34:24.280 --> 00:34:28.440
those emotions drifted away when they got to the house,

539
00:34:29.639 --> 00:34:32.480
it was beautiful. It was a two story home in

540
00:34:32.519 --> 00:34:36.239
the Gothic style with a rusty wrought iron fence around it.

541
00:34:36.880 --> 00:34:39.559
The paint had long been beaten away from the wind

542
00:34:39.639 --> 00:34:43.679
and the sand, leaving a ghost of itself behind. Most

543
00:34:43.719 --> 00:34:46.599
of the windows were unbroken, and since they are in

544
00:34:46.639 --> 00:34:50.039
the desert, no ivy or trees blocked the view of

545
00:34:50.079 --> 00:34:54.159
the architecture. It had the classic arched roof with the

546
00:34:54.199 --> 00:34:58.360
decorative trim that was mostly intact. Brandon thought this was

547
00:34:58.639 --> 00:35:01.639
a real lost gem and knew that it would make

548
00:35:01.679 --> 00:35:05.360
for a great video, regardless of what they find inside.

549
00:35:05.719 --> 00:35:07.920
The thumbnail of the house alone would get him a

550
00:35:07.960 --> 00:35:12.639
ton of clicks, possibly more than the Witch House video.

551
00:35:12.800 --> 00:35:15.719
This house has really been abandoned since the sixties and

552
00:35:15.840 --> 00:35:21.039
not vandalized, Brandon asked. Dan replied, like I said, everyone

553
00:35:21.119 --> 00:35:24.079
is scared of this house. My friends were afraid because

554
00:35:24.079 --> 00:35:26.639
of the two kids and mother who died here. Enough

555
00:35:26.679 --> 00:35:28.719
time had passed by the time I was a kid

556
00:35:28.760 --> 00:35:31.159
that people started to dare each other to go up

557
00:35:31.159 --> 00:35:34.079
to the house. But nobody lasts more than a few

558
00:35:34.119 --> 00:35:37.000
minutes in there. They would hear a creak or claim

559
00:35:37.039 --> 00:35:39.760
to hear a scream, and then they would run back outside.

560
00:35:40.679 --> 00:35:43.719
With a bit of backstory, Brandon was ready to film

561
00:35:43.760 --> 00:35:48.920
his intro. What's up, fam, This could be the dream spot.

562
00:35:49.159 --> 00:35:51.800
If you thought the Witch's House was cool, you're going

563
00:35:51.840 --> 00:35:55.760
to love this place. Brandon then took his camera and

564
00:35:55.800 --> 00:35:58.960
faced it towards the house for a brief second. Check

565
00:35:59.039 --> 00:36:03.519
out that gothic architecture. This place is sick. Hopefully it's

566
00:36:03.519 --> 00:36:05.840
as cool on the inside as it is on the outside.

567
00:36:06.199 --> 00:36:08.559
Before we go any further, let me give you a

568
00:36:08.599 --> 00:36:12.760
little history of this house located in eastern Oregon. That's

569
00:36:12.800 --> 00:36:15.320
all I'm telling you for a location. I don't want

570
00:36:15.320 --> 00:36:19.920
this place found and ruined. Before Brandon continued, he lowered

571
00:36:19.920 --> 00:36:22.719
his voice, knowing he should be a little more respectful

572
00:36:23.159 --> 00:36:28.199
and less animated when talking about the deaths. This house

573
00:36:28.239 --> 00:36:31.920
has been abandoned since the nineteen sixties after a mother

574
00:36:32.079 --> 00:36:35.039
killed her two children and then was gunned down by

575
00:36:35.039 --> 00:36:38.800
the police. Five people have died in this very house.

576
00:36:39.559 --> 00:36:42.760
Brandon suddenly realized that he didn't have the whole story.

577
00:36:43.360 --> 00:36:46.360
Thinking on his feet, he decided to ask Dan about

578
00:36:46.400 --> 00:36:49.360
the other two on camera. He knew he would show

579
00:36:49.440 --> 00:36:52.000
Dan at some point during the video to help him

580
00:36:52.039 --> 00:36:55.039
get some views since Dan helped him get to the spot.

581
00:36:56.199 --> 00:36:59.280
Brandon walked over to Dan with the camera facing the

582
00:36:59.320 --> 00:37:02.360
two of them, and then started talking to the camera.

583
00:37:03.199 --> 00:37:06.480
This is Dan from Lost and Found. Check out his channel.

584
00:37:06.800 --> 00:37:09.719
He's brand new. He found this spot, so I'm sure

585
00:37:09.760 --> 00:37:12.159
his channel is one you are going to want to follow.

586
00:37:12.480 --> 00:37:15.719
Link will be in the description below. So, Dan, you

587
00:37:15.840 --> 00:37:19.280
said five people died in this house. You told me

588
00:37:19.320 --> 00:37:22.480
about three of them. Can you tell everybody about the

589
00:37:22.519 --> 00:37:26.880
other two? Said deaths? Dan looked nervous as he made

590
00:37:26.920 --> 00:37:30.559
eye contact with the camera for the first time. Yeah,

591
00:37:30.639 --> 00:37:35.199
it's really sad. Sarah and Adam were up here and

592
00:37:35.239 --> 00:37:39.519
it was Dan stammered a bit. He knew these people.

593
00:37:40.519 --> 00:37:43.480
It was really sad. Adam was a buddy of mine,

594
00:37:43.519 --> 00:37:47.239
and Sarah was cool. She was a cool person, and

595
00:37:47.280 --> 00:37:49.800
their bodies were found right in this house just a

596
00:37:49.880 --> 00:37:54.679
few weeks ago. Brandon looked over it. Dan shocked. This

597
00:37:54.840 --> 00:37:58.679
changed everything for Brandon. He couldn't film an abandoned video

598
00:37:58.719 --> 00:38:02.559
in a house where someone just died. Brandon turned off

599
00:38:02.559 --> 00:38:05.559
the camera and looked at Dan. People died in that

600
00:38:05.639 --> 00:38:08.679
house a few weeks ago. I can't film in this house.

601
00:38:09.000 --> 00:38:12.840
That's fucked up. You should have told me that, Brandon said,

602
00:38:13.800 --> 00:38:16.159
why would that be an issue? I didn't think that

603
00:38:16.199 --> 00:38:20.159
would be an issue, Dan replied. Brandon was furious, but

604
00:38:20.239 --> 00:38:23.559
tried to contain his emotions. Since Dan did seem to

605
00:38:23.599 --> 00:38:25.800
know the last two people who died in the house,

606
00:38:27.000 --> 00:38:29.159
the problem is that it makes me look like an

607
00:38:29.159 --> 00:38:35.480
insensitive asshole to film where someone just died. Brandon then

608
00:38:35.639 --> 00:38:39.719
stormed off, leaned against the truck and put his head down,

609
00:38:40.000 --> 00:38:43.519
grabbing the top of it with his hands. Whenever he

610
00:38:43.599 --> 00:38:46.280
was really frustrated and needed to think his way out

611
00:38:46.320 --> 00:38:50.760
of a situation, this is what he did. After a moment,

612
00:38:50.840 --> 00:38:56.320
Brandon said, Okay, tell me the story. Maybe I can

613
00:38:56.800 --> 00:39:01.119
make this work somehow. After a while while, Brandon came

614
00:39:01.199 --> 00:39:04.159
up with a plan to lie and say that they

615
00:39:04.199 --> 00:39:06.639
heard a rumor that the house was going to be

616
00:39:06.719 --> 00:39:10.199
torn down because of the incident, and that they have

617
00:39:10.280 --> 00:39:15.719
to document before that happens. Brandon didn't feel good about it,

618
00:39:15.760 --> 00:39:18.519
but this trip was costing him money and he couldn't

619
00:39:18.559 --> 00:39:21.199
walk away with the debt without at least getting a

620
00:39:21.280 --> 00:39:26.400
video out of it. Okayfam So normally we wouldn't shoot

621
00:39:26.400 --> 00:39:28.920
in an abandoned place that had a recent tragedy. But

622
00:39:29.639 --> 00:39:32.719
the rumor going around is that this historic house that

623
00:39:32.760 --> 00:39:35.920
has never been documented is going to be torn down

624
00:39:36.039 --> 00:39:38.960
because of the incident, and I feel like it's my

625
00:39:39.159 --> 00:39:43.119
duty to film this place. This house looks amazing and

626
00:39:43.159 --> 00:39:47.480
it needs to be documented before it's gone. Brandon and

627
00:39:47.599 --> 00:39:51.039
Dan entered through the agape front door with their cameras

628
00:39:51.079 --> 00:39:55.880
in hand. Inside they saw a typical nineteen sixties living room,

629
00:39:56.480 --> 00:40:00.079
though it was in a state of disrepair. The glue

630
00:40:00.119 --> 00:40:03.239
that held the green flowered wallpaper to the wall had

631
00:40:03.280 --> 00:40:06.039
long ago lost its strength, and much of it had

632
00:40:06.119 --> 00:40:10.079
peeled and fallen to the floor. Brandon was surprised by

633
00:40:10.159 --> 00:40:13.639
how intact the rest of the place was. The couch

634
00:40:13.800 --> 00:40:17.440
was still there in reasonable condition, though he could see

635
00:40:17.480 --> 00:40:20.119
where an animal had been chewing on it because of

636
00:40:20.159 --> 00:40:23.880
the off white stuffing sticking out of one of the cushions.

637
00:40:24.559 --> 00:40:28.199
More impressive was that the television was still there. That

638
00:40:28.519 --> 00:40:32.000
was always the first thing broken by teens when they

639
00:40:32.039 --> 00:40:36.000
snuck into an abandoned house. The four legs holding it

640
00:40:36.079 --> 00:40:40.719
up look worse for wear. They were chewed up. Probably rats,

641
00:40:40.760 --> 00:40:45.519
Brandon thought, But then again he thought if he even

642
00:40:45.559 --> 00:40:49.480
breathed on that television, those legs would give out, so

643
00:40:49.840 --> 00:40:53.760
maybe it was something larger. All he knew was that

644
00:40:53.880 --> 00:40:57.320
he'd better get some photos of it now before it fell.

645
00:40:58.559 --> 00:41:01.840
Brandon turned off the record on his camera and started

646
00:41:01.880 --> 00:41:05.119
taking photos around the room for use online to promote

647
00:41:05.119 --> 00:41:08.960
the video. First the television, then a photo of the

648
00:41:09.079 --> 00:41:12.559
round analog wall clock with the peeling wallpaper around it.

649
00:41:13.320 --> 00:41:16.239
He thought about changing the time to midnight for the photo,

650
00:41:16.480 --> 00:41:21.559
but one lie was enough for this video. The next

651
00:41:21.599 --> 00:41:24.199
shot he wanted was a low angle one of the

652
00:41:24.239 --> 00:41:28.320
blue couch while its white stuffing poked out, So he

653
00:41:28.400 --> 00:41:31.199
bent down and was working on getting just the right

654
00:41:31.280 --> 00:41:34.440
angle with his camera when he was startled by the

655
00:41:34.559 --> 00:41:40.159
unmistakable sound of footsteps above him. He looked around and

656
00:41:40.199 --> 00:41:45.079
realized that Dan was gone. What a relief it must

657
00:41:45.079 --> 00:41:48.599
have been, Dan, he thought. Then Brandon went back to

658
00:41:48.679 --> 00:41:53.519
framing his shot of the couch. That is when he

659
00:41:53.599 --> 00:41:57.920
saw her. Since he was framing an angled shot from below,

660
00:41:58.280 --> 00:42:02.199
the first thing he saw was her blue shoes and

661
00:42:02.320 --> 00:42:06.639
white socks. Her pale white legs were nearly as white

662
00:42:06.679 --> 00:42:10.400
as those socks. As he pointed his camera up, he

663
00:42:10.480 --> 00:42:14.119
saw that she had a blue dress that matches her shoes.

664
00:42:14.679 --> 00:42:18.280
She looked normal enough until he got to her shoulders,

665
00:42:18.719 --> 00:42:27.440
which were covered in blood. He saw the source of

666
00:42:27.519 --> 00:42:31.480
the blood when he looked up at her and revealed

667
00:42:31.519 --> 00:42:34.840
the bleeding dent in the side of her head. She

668
00:42:34.920 --> 00:42:39.480
stared back at him with her faint blue eyes. At first,

669
00:42:39.519 --> 00:42:43.719
he thought that her eyes were completely white, but he

670
00:42:43.800 --> 00:42:49.239
could just faintly make out the light blue irises. As

671
00:42:49.239 --> 00:42:52.519
he looked into her eyes, she began to open her

672
00:42:52.559 --> 00:42:58.079
mouth a A voice screamed from upstairs. Before the little

673
00:42:58.119 --> 00:43:01.880
girl could speak, Brandon wid sure the scream was Dan's.

674
00:43:02.719 --> 00:43:05.159
He looked towards the stairs and then heard the girl

675
00:43:05.199 --> 00:43:09.199
on the couch say get out, Get out. Brandon swung

676
00:43:09.239 --> 00:43:13.840
his head back in her direction, but she was gone. Startled,

677
00:43:13.880 --> 00:43:16.719
Brandon threw his body away from the couch, landing on

678
00:43:16.800 --> 00:43:20.639
his butt, dropping his camera. He quickly pushed himself to

679
00:43:20.679 --> 00:43:23.400
a standing position. He was about to run out of

680
00:43:23.440 --> 00:43:28.760
the house until he remembered Dan's scream upstairs. Brandon ran

681
00:43:28.880 --> 00:43:31.280
up the stairs as fast as he could, forgetting his

682
00:43:31.400 --> 00:43:36.159
camera and forgetting to check the stairs for stability. Luckily

683
00:43:36.280 --> 00:43:40.679
for him, the stairs were okay. Unlucky for him and Dan,

684
00:43:41.239 --> 00:43:44.440
who was running down the stairs, both were moving so

685
00:43:44.639 --> 00:43:48.400
fast that they ran right into each other. Brandon's momentum

686
00:43:48.480 --> 00:43:51.199
must have been a little more than Dan's because they

687
00:43:51.199 --> 00:43:54.840
were slammed upward on the stairs instead of down, which

688
00:43:54.880 --> 00:43:58.679
could have been deadly for both of them. Brandon was

689
00:43:58.719 --> 00:44:01.079
the first back up and help Dan to his feet.

690
00:44:01.440 --> 00:44:04.599
Before Brandon could get his story out, Dan started telling

691
00:44:04.679 --> 00:44:08.519
him what had happened. Holy fucking shit, I saw a ghost,

692
00:44:08.960 --> 00:44:12.199
according to Dan. He decided to go upstairs and film

693
00:44:12.280 --> 00:44:14.840
his intro so that when he talked to the camera

694
00:44:14.920 --> 00:44:18.760
it wouldn't ruin Brandon's audio. Once he was upstairs, he

695
00:44:18.880 --> 00:44:21.840
found a great spot. It was a room that appeared

696
00:44:21.880 --> 00:44:25.280
to be a little boy's. A small twin bed sat

697
00:44:25.360 --> 00:44:28.639
up against one wall, and on the floor he found

698
00:44:28.760 --> 00:44:31.880
little army men. Dan picked up a few of them

699
00:44:31.880 --> 00:44:34.519
and set them up on the dresser in a battle scene,

700
00:44:34.599 --> 00:44:37.079
thinking it would look good for the background for his intro.

701
00:44:38.079 --> 00:44:41.480
As he was doing this, he heard the floorboard behind

702
00:44:41.559 --> 00:44:45.719
him creek. He turned around, expecting to see Brandon, but

703
00:44:46.639 --> 00:44:52.280
instead saw a small boy. The child looked normal enough,

704
00:44:52.599 --> 00:44:56.320
a bit pale, and his clothes were old fashioned brown

705
00:44:56.440 --> 00:44:59.800
shorts and a white button up shirt. Dan asked the

706
00:45:00.039 --> 00:45:03.119
boy who he was. The little boy just looked at

707
00:45:03.199 --> 00:45:07.119
him and then walked past him. Dan turned to watch

708
00:45:07.159 --> 00:45:10.199
the boy, and that is when he saw that the

709
00:45:10.239 --> 00:45:15.039
back of the boy's head was bashed in. Dan could

710
00:45:15.039 --> 00:45:18.039
see the brain and that the blood from the skull

711
00:45:18.039 --> 00:45:20.480
had dripped down and turned the whole back of his

712
00:45:20.599 --> 00:45:25.679
shirt crimson. This was when he screamed. The boy then

713
00:45:25.760 --> 00:45:28.960
turned around and said nearly the same thing as the

714
00:45:29.039 --> 00:45:33.119
girl ghost had said to Brandon. It's not safe. Get out.

715
00:45:33.360 --> 00:45:37.159
That's almost identical to what happened to me. I say

716
00:45:37.199 --> 00:45:40.960
we should heed the advice, Brandon said. Brandon and Dan

717
00:45:41.159 --> 00:45:44.519
ran out of the house to Dan's truck. Dan started

718
00:45:44.519 --> 00:45:47.639
it and turned on the air conditioner. It's a bummer

719
00:45:47.679 --> 00:45:50.039
to not get a video out of this, but at

720
00:45:50.119 --> 00:45:52.719
least the ac feels great. Let's get out of here,

721
00:45:52.920 --> 00:45:57.880
Brandon said, we're safe, We're out of the house. Tell

722
00:45:57.880 --> 00:46:01.360
me what happened to you, Dan asked. Brandon told him

723
00:46:01.400 --> 00:46:04.239
the story about the girl with the dented head on

724
00:46:04.320 --> 00:46:07.119
the couch and how she too told him to get out.

725
00:46:08.199 --> 00:46:09.800
Why do you think they want us out of there,

726
00:46:10.159 --> 00:46:15.000
Dan asked, I don't know. Maybe they don't like the intrusion.

727
00:46:15.119 --> 00:46:18.239
They feel like it's their home. They might not even

728
00:46:18.320 --> 00:46:22.400
know they're dead, Brandon replied. Then a moment passed and

729
00:46:22.440 --> 00:46:27.320
Brandon continued, this is fucking crazy. Before today, I didn't

730
00:46:27.360 --> 00:46:30.280
even believe in ghosts. Now I'm trying to figure out

731
00:46:30.320 --> 00:46:35.039
their motivations. Dan looked over at Brandon and said, I

732
00:46:35.079 --> 00:46:39.000
wonder if my friends are ghosts too. Did they fail

733
00:46:39.079 --> 00:46:44.039
to listen to the warnings so they paid the price? Fuck?

734
00:46:44.440 --> 00:46:49.119
I have to go back in, Brandon said, why, Dan asks,

735
00:46:49.599 --> 00:46:54.559
I left my camera. Brandon replied, sighing in frustration, I'll

736
00:46:54.639 --> 00:46:58.559
go with you. You shouldn't be in that house alone, Dan said, Then,

737
00:46:58.679 --> 00:47:03.159
after a moment, he continued, even though that didn't protect

738
00:47:03.159 --> 00:47:06.719
Adam and Sarah. Dan opened his door and got out.

739
00:47:07.360 --> 00:47:11.199
You're not gonna turn off the truck, Brandon asked. Dan replied,

740
00:47:11.800 --> 00:47:13.480
We'll just be in there a couple of minutes, and

741
00:47:13.519 --> 00:47:15.639
I want to come back out to a nice, cool truck.

742
00:47:16.679 --> 00:47:19.360
Brandon entered the house and walked over to his camera,

743
00:47:19.840 --> 00:47:22.480
right where he left it. After he picked it up,

744
00:47:22.519 --> 00:47:24.920
he looked it over to see if there was any damage.

745
00:47:25.679 --> 00:47:31.519
That was when Dan started yelling. Adam, Adam, Sarah, are

746
00:47:31.559 --> 00:47:35.800
you here? Dan yelled while looking around the room. This

747
00:47:35.920 --> 00:47:39.840
angered Brandon. Dude, the fuck you want to alert those

748
00:47:39.880 --> 00:47:42.920
creepy kids to our presence again? I have my camera,

749
00:47:43.000 --> 00:47:46.639
so let's go, Brandon yelled at him. Maybe Adam and

750
00:47:46.679 --> 00:47:50.360
Sarah are ghosts too. Dan replied, well, I don't want

751
00:47:50.360 --> 00:47:52.280
to find out, and if so, I don't want to

752
00:47:52.360 --> 00:47:55.280
risk dying here and haunting a house in the middle

753
00:47:55.360 --> 00:48:00.199
of fucking nowhere. Suddenly a fact hit Dan and he

754
00:48:00.280 --> 00:48:03.960
expressed it to Brandon. They were found in the cellar.

755
00:48:05.079 --> 00:48:07.679
Dan then ran out of the room, looking for access

756
00:48:07.719 --> 00:48:11.239
to said seller. Brandon chased after him into the kitchen.

757
00:48:11.840 --> 00:48:15.280
Brandon couldn't help but notice how undisturbed and picturesque the

758
00:48:15.360 --> 00:48:19.360
kitchen was. He thought to himself, Man, this would have

759
00:48:19.400 --> 00:48:23.039
been a cool video. Then he thought that maybe he

760
00:48:23.079 --> 00:48:26.480
should be recording this just in case Dan goes psycho

761
00:48:26.599 --> 00:48:31.400
on him. Brandon then hit the red record button. Dan

762
00:48:31.519 --> 00:48:34.199
found the cellar. It was just off of the kitchen.

763
00:48:34.559 --> 00:48:37.000
He yelled for Adam and Sarah again as he swung

764
00:48:37.039 --> 00:48:40.679
the doors open and ran down the stairs. There wasn't

765
00:48:40.760 --> 00:48:43.639
much light except what was streaming in from one of

766
00:48:43.639 --> 00:48:47.679
the exterior doors of the cellar. Brandon started to follow

767
00:48:47.760 --> 00:48:51.039
Dan down the stairs, but when he was halfway down,

768
00:48:51.599 --> 00:48:56.000
he heard two voices say don't, don't, don't. Brandon swung

769
00:48:56.079 --> 00:49:00.199
back around, camera in hand. His camera captured the two

770
00:49:00.320 --> 00:49:04.679
ghosts from earlier, though in his camera they were transparent.

771
00:49:05.440 --> 00:49:08.920
They continued to stare and then repeat the phrase from earlier,

772
00:49:09.360 --> 00:49:14.280
get out, then they added. Brandon wanted to leave, but

773
00:49:14.480 --> 00:49:17.280
he needed to grab Dan. Plus they were right in

774
00:49:17.320 --> 00:49:20.440
the way of him exiting out through the kitchen, so

775
00:49:20.599 --> 00:49:25.840
he stood stunned, not knowing what to do. But suddenly

776
00:49:25.880 --> 00:49:28.840
he heard a low growl, and then another, and then

777
00:49:28.920 --> 00:49:32.599
footsteps coming back up the stairs. Brandon looked behind him

778
00:49:32.599 --> 00:49:35.760
and could see Dan running up as two coyotes chased

779
00:49:35.800 --> 00:49:39.599
after him. Brandon turned back around, ready to run through

780
00:49:39.639 --> 00:49:43.960
the ghosts, but they were gone. Brandon and Dan ran

781
00:49:44.079 --> 00:49:47.360
up the stairs and back into the kitchen. He grabbed

782
00:49:47.360 --> 00:49:50.480
one of the metal framed, green flowered patterned chairs and

783
00:49:50.599 --> 00:49:53.440
shoved it against the door to keep the coyotes from

784
00:49:53.440 --> 00:49:56.519
getting back in. Let's get out of here. To the truck.

785
00:49:56.920 --> 00:50:00.960
Brandon yelled, Dan didn't need to be told twice. Brandon

786
00:50:01.039 --> 00:50:04.559
started running and Dan followed right after, but their escape

787
00:50:04.639 --> 00:50:07.639
was stalled when they got to the front doorway and

788
00:50:07.719 --> 00:50:13.000
saw another coyote standing in their path. Seeing no other exit,

789
00:50:13.519 --> 00:50:18.719
they made the poor choice of running upstairs. As they ran,

790
00:50:18.840 --> 00:50:22.239
they heard the coyote following them. Once they got to

791
00:50:22.320 --> 00:50:26.360
the top landing, the two young ghosts appeared again, and

792
00:50:26.440 --> 00:50:30.800
then in unison they said, we tried to warn you.

793
00:50:31.039 --> 00:50:34.559
This amplified the fear that Brandon and Dan were feeling,

794
00:50:34.599 --> 00:50:37.840
to the point that they stopped in their tracks. The

795
00:50:37.960 --> 00:50:40.679
only thing that got Brandon moving again was hearing the

796
00:50:40.719 --> 00:50:44.840
screams of Dan behind him. Brandon ran, but stopped right

797
00:50:44.880 --> 00:50:47.280
before he was out of view of the stairs. He

798
00:50:47.400 --> 00:50:50.480
looked behind just in time to see the coyote, with

799
00:50:50.559 --> 00:50:54.840
its foaming mouth and sharp teeth, biting and tearing into

800
00:50:54.840 --> 00:50:58.519
the flesh of Dan's left leg. Dan screamed in agony

801
00:50:58.559 --> 00:51:01.920
as the coyote bit down hard and yanked him from

802
00:51:01.960 --> 00:51:05.760
the stairs. Dan's screaming did not stop when the coyote

803
00:51:05.840 --> 00:51:09.719
let go of him. His screams didn't stop until the

804
00:51:09.800 --> 00:51:15.000
coyote bit and ripped the flesh from his neck. Once

805
00:51:15.119 --> 00:51:18.960
Dan was dead, the coyote, with its blood covered face,

806
00:51:19.400 --> 00:51:24.400
looked up the stairs at Brandon. After seeing this, Brandon

807
00:51:24.480 --> 00:51:27.039
ran to the first bedroom, the little Boy's room. He

808
00:51:27.159 --> 00:51:32.079
closed the door behind him. Brandon felt safe momentarily. He

809
00:51:32.159 --> 00:51:35.559
at least had a little time to think. The room

810
00:51:35.639 --> 00:51:37.840
had a window, so he looked out to see if

811
00:51:37.880 --> 00:51:41.679
climbing was an option. It wasn't. There was nothing to

812
00:51:41.719 --> 00:51:45.119
hang on to, nothing to climb down, just a direct

813
00:51:45.239 --> 00:51:48.760
drop straight down. Brandon could see the truck with its

814
00:51:48.840 --> 00:51:52.920
headlights on. He thought about how nice that ac would feel.

815
00:51:52.960 --> 00:51:57.079
As he drove away to safety. He thought, if I

816
00:51:57.159 --> 00:51:59.920
get out, I won't even come back from my rental car.

817
00:52:00.880 --> 00:52:04.159
It wasn't long before he heard growling and scratching at

818
00:52:04.159 --> 00:52:07.119
the door. Brandon sat on the little boy's bed and

819
00:52:07.159 --> 00:52:13.199
faced his camera towards himself. Well, I guess this might

820
00:52:13.239 --> 00:52:17.440
be it. I'm uploading this video uncut because it might

821
00:52:17.480 --> 00:52:20.920
be the last video I ever make. Sorry for the

822
00:52:21.000 --> 00:52:24.079
lack of music and clean cuts. Right now, I'm stuck

823
00:52:24.119 --> 00:52:26.679
in a room with no way to exit and a

824
00:52:26.719 --> 00:52:30.800
coyote trying to get in and eat me. I didn't

825
00:52:30.800 --> 00:52:34.480
know coyotes ever attacked humans. I also didn't know ghosts

826
00:52:34.519 --> 00:52:40.679
were real until today, until this house. Brandon started to

827
00:52:40.760 --> 00:52:45.519
cry and then turned off the camera. Brandon fiddled with

828
00:52:45.559 --> 00:52:49.079
it to upload directly online, and when he was ready

829
00:52:49.079 --> 00:52:52.199
to submit it, he realized that he needed to title

830
00:52:52.239 --> 00:52:57.840
the video. First. He typed the ghost house and then

831
00:52:57.920 --> 00:53:03.159
erased it. Then he typed coyotes and ghosts and then

832
00:53:03.280 --> 00:53:09.000
deleted that. Finally, he typed the house that killed me

833
00:53:10.119 --> 00:53:14.360
and hit submit. An error popped up and said no

834
00:53:14.519 --> 00:53:18.199
internet connection. Video will upload when connected to Wi Fi

835
00:53:18.360 --> 00:53:22.719
or cellular network. Brandon had few options for escape. He

836
00:53:22.719 --> 00:53:24.719
couldn't go out the window, and he couldn't go out

837
00:53:24.719 --> 00:53:29.519
the door. He stomped around frustrated. Then the ghosts showed

838
00:53:29.559 --> 00:53:34.599
up again. Sh be quiet, they said. Brandon's first thought

839
00:53:34.760 --> 00:53:40.239
was fuck these ghosts, but then he realized they were right.

840
00:53:40.639 --> 00:53:43.559
If he stopped making noise, maybe the coyote would leave.

841
00:53:44.679 --> 00:53:47.719
This did seem to work after an hour, when he

842
00:53:47.719 --> 00:53:52.440
heard the coyote get up and walk away. Before exiting,

843
00:53:52.679 --> 00:53:56.000
Brandon looked back out the window. It was now dark.

844
00:53:56.440 --> 00:53:58.639
He could see the headlights of the truck were still on,

845
00:53:58.880 --> 00:54:03.599
so he made his escape. He opened the door slowly

846
00:54:03.960 --> 00:54:07.280
and walked down the stairs even slower, making sure not

847
00:54:07.400 --> 00:54:11.280
to create any creaks. Just as he got to the

848
00:54:11.280 --> 00:54:16.119
bottom of the stairs, he saw Dan's mutilated and half

849
00:54:16.119 --> 00:54:21.119
eaten body. Brandon wanted to scream, but thought to himself,

850
00:54:22.039 --> 00:54:26.400
how many coyotes are there. Brandon stepped over the body

851
00:54:26.599 --> 00:54:30.599
and made his way to the front door and stepped outside.

852
00:54:30.920 --> 00:54:37.360
Behind him, he heard Dan's voice. Do you hear that?

853
00:54:37.639 --> 00:54:41.360
Dan wanted to reply, hear what, but he didn't want

854
00:54:41.400 --> 00:54:44.880
to make a sound. Brandon turned around towards the voice

855
00:54:45.639 --> 00:54:50.280
and saw the ghost of Dan, who then said, I

856
00:54:50.320 --> 00:54:54.000
don't hear the truck running anymore. Brandon whipped his head

857
00:54:54.039 --> 00:54:56.800
around to look at the truck and was happy for

858
00:54:56.840 --> 00:55:00.880
a second because the lights were still on. They were dim,

859
00:55:00.960 --> 00:55:04.480
though at that moment Brandon realized that the battery would

860
00:55:04.519 --> 00:55:06.800
keep the lights on for a while after the motor

861
00:55:07.360 --> 00:55:10.679
had ran out of gas. Not knowing what to do,

862
00:55:11.119 --> 00:55:13.480
and at least knowing that the truck would be safer,

863
00:55:13.880 --> 00:55:18.039
Brandon ran toward it. He was within ten feet when

864
00:55:18.039 --> 00:55:24.159
the already dim lights went out. Fuck, Brandon yelled. The

865
00:55:24.239 --> 00:55:27.280
coyotes heard that, and within seconds he was pounced on

866
00:55:27.400 --> 00:55:32.760
by three of them. Brandon and Dan's bodies were found

867
00:55:32.800 --> 00:55:36.159
a few days later when two officers were out letting

868
00:55:36.280 --> 00:55:39.679
locals know that rabies was running rampant through the local

869
00:55:39.719 --> 00:55:44.920
population of coyotes. It seems that the test results came

870
00:55:44.960 --> 00:55:48.199
back from Adam and Sarah's dead bodies and confirmed that

871
00:55:48.239 --> 00:55:52.119
the bites were from a coyote and that traces of

872
00:55:52.199 --> 00:55:57.159
rabies were found later. After what remained of Brandon and

873
00:55:57.239 --> 00:56:00.239
Dan were taken to the morgue, their cell phones and

874
00:56:00.280 --> 00:56:04.519
cameras were taken in as evidence. At some point, a

875
00:56:04.639 --> 00:56:08.320
curious person turned on the camera, which connected to the

876
00:56:08.360 --> 00:56:11.960
open guest WiFi of the restaurant next door, and the

877
00:56:12.000 --> 00:56:19.480
footage went online. Within a day, Abandoned with Brandon was trending,

878
00:56:20.199 --> 00:56:34.000
and Brandon had his first million plus viewed video, Ghost

879
00:56:34.079 --> 00:56:40.000
Store by an ominous I remember it as if it

880
00:56:40.039 --> 00:56:43.679
were yesterday. I was young. I was young enough to

881
00:56:43.719 --> 00:56:48.079
taste the adventure, but old enough to know better. I'm

882
00:56:48.119 --> 00:56:52.199
still not sure how this was real. Too much happened

883
00:56:52.239 --> 00:56:55.599
and was seen to be the fanciful imagination of being young.

884
00:56:56.639 --> 00:57:00.639
One thing is for certain. I have not forgotten happened

885
00:57:00.639 --> 00:57:06.480
that night and I am certain I never will. It

886
00:57:06.559 --> 00:57:10.400
was fall, the leaves were just starting to turn, the

887
00:57:10.480 --> 00:57:13.159
days were still warm, and the nights were getting cooler.

888
00:57:13.880 --> 00:57:16.679
The County Fair had been in full swing and was

889
00:57:16.719 --> 00:57:19.960
the last night it was open. I was there because

890
00:57:19.960 --> 00:57:22.679
a friend had talked me into going, and I wanted

891
00:57:22.679 --> 00:57:26.360
to sample some kettle corn and caramel apples. There. I

892
00:57:26.480 --> 00:57:29.360
was waiting in line for the popcorn when we saw him.

893
00:57:30.119 --> 00:57:33.320
He was a boy about my age and my size.

894
00:57:33.400 --> 00:57:36.519
He looked like any other boy there, except his clothes

895
00:57:36.559 --> 00:57:40.559
were funny. He looked like he was dressed up in

896
00:57:40.679 --> 00:57:45.079
old time movie clothes. He was looking at us. My

897
00:57:45.199 --> 00:57:49.440
friend nudged me and nodded in his direction. We exchanged

898
00:57:49.480 --> 00:57:52.760
looks and began to walk toward him. As we began

899
00:57:52.880 --> 00:57:57.440
to walk, to my surprise, so did he directly for us,

900
00:57:57.480 --> 00:58:01.639
without looking away. When we were within speaking distance, I

901
00:58:01.719 --> 00:58:05.920
nodded and said hey. He nodded back and said hello.

902
00:58:06.119 --> 00:58:09.239
My name is Jonathan. I'm from here, but have been

903
00:58:09.280 --> 00:58:12.639
elsewhere for a while. I don't know anyone here now.

904
00:58:13.559 --> 00:58:15.360
I told him he could go with us if he

905
00:58:15.400 --> 00:58:19.480
wanted to. He nodded. We spent the next couple of

906
00:58:19.519 --> 00:58:22.199
hours riding the roller coaster, the ferris wheel, and the

907
00:58:22.239 --> 00:58:25.320
Tilte whirl, after which I thought I might hurl, but

908
00:58:25.440 --> 00:58:28.400
I managed to keep things together. We had found a

909
00:58:28.440 --> 00:58:31.679
bench to sit. Jonathan and my friend were working on

910
00:58:31.760 --> 00:58:36.400
some red vines when he asked if we liked scary things.

911
00:58:36.960 --> 00:58:40.199
We looked at each other and said of course, as

912
00:58:40.239 --> 00:58:43.559
if we would reply any other way. He asked if

913
00:58:43.599 --> 00:58:47.559
we knew where the house was down on Oak Street.

914
00:58:48.440 --> 00:58:51.639
He said he knew the house that was spooky down there.

915
00:58:52.840 --> 00:58:57.000
I was hesitant, but after some encouragement from Jack, we

916
00:58:57.000 --> 00:59:00.400
were soon headed out the gates from the fair into

917
00:59:00.400 --> 00:59:03.400
the night. As we made our way down through some

918
00:59:03.519 --> 00:59:07.320
neighborhood streets, it really began to cool off and there

919
00:59:07.400 --> 00:59:10.679
was definitely a chill in the air. A breeze was

920
00:59:10.719 --> 00:59:13.559
picking up, and a few leaves were blowing in between

921
00:59:13.599 --> 00:59:17.239
our feet as we walked. We were beginning to get

922
00:59:17.280 --> 00:59:20.039
far enough away from the fair now that I began

923
00:59:20.119 --> 00:59:24.559
to become uncomfortable with the distance, even though I knew

924
00:59:24.559 --> 00:59:28.440
where we were. It was just then when he said

925
00:59:28.880 --> 00:59:32.400
we're here. This had startled me as I realized we

926
00:59:32.440 --> 00:59:36.360
had all been walking in silence. A glance from Jack

927
00:59:36.519 --> 00:59:39.440
told me he was no more at ease than I was.

928
00:59:40.199 --> 00:59:43.800
I had this strange feeling of foreboding, and in retrospect,

929
00:59:44.360 --> 00:59:48.000
I know now that my survival instinct was trying to

930
00:59:48.079 --> 00:59:52.239
warn me. As I looked at him, he stood looking

931
00:59:52.320 --> 00:59:56.039
up at it. The house was huge. I can't believe

932
00:59:56.039 --> 00:59:59.199
I had never noticed it before. It was a sprawling,

933
00:59:59.320 --> 01:00:02.679
three story mansion with what appeared to have been a

934
01:00:02.800 --> 01:00:07.000
large yard all around it. It seemed to be well kept,

935
01:00:07.039 --> 01:00:10.719
but everything about it repelled me. I looked at Jack

936
01:00:10.760 --> 01:00:15.239
and the other boy. Jack was looking around nervously. The boy,

937
01:00:15.320 --> 01:00:19.559
though he had a radiant smile on his face, I

938
01:00:19.679 --> 01:00:23.400
noted he was actually breathing hard. I asked him if

939
01:00:23.400 --> 01:00:27.159
he was all right. He snapped his head towards me instantly,

940
01:00:27.239 --> 01:00:31.519
while taking a step toward me. Yes, he said, then

941
01:00:31.679 --> 01:00:36.039
slowly retreated one step back again. What do you think,

942
01:00:36.519 --> 01:00:41.199
he asked. Jack was barely audible when he answered, I

943
01:00:41.239 --> 01:00:43.400
don't think we should go in. If that's what you mean.

944
01:00:44.320 --> 01:00:47.440
Of course we should go in. I know who lives here.

945
01:00:48.119 --> 01:00:52.079
They aren't there yet, he said. I agreed with Jack

946
01:00:52.119 --> 01:00:55.679
and voiced my concern with getting into trouble. There will

947
01:00:55.719 --> 01:00:59.239
be no trouble. Let's just go, the boy said, and

948
01:00:59.280 --> 01:01:02.199
with that he began to walk up the walkway to

949
01:01:02.239 --> 01:01:05.440
the front door. I thought the walk to that front

950
01:01:05.440 --> 01:01:08.000
door was the longest twenty five feet of my life.

951
01:01:08.599 --> 01:01:12.960
Every step forward seemed to get colder, the darkness enveloped us,

952
01:01:13.239 --> 01:01:16.800
and the air seemed to become still. The repulsion I

953
01:01:16.880 --> 01:01:21.119
felt going forward was immense and progressive. I didn't know

954
01:01:21.199 --> 01:01:24.360
why I felt like this. I didn't want to seem scared,

955
01:01:24.440 --> 01:01:28.320
but I was, and I didn't know why, which made

956
01:01:28.360 --> 01:01:31.440
me confused. On top of the anxiety I seemed to

957
01:01:31.480 --> 01:01:35.440
be becoming overwhelmed with. I was following the new friend

958
01:01:35.480 --> 01:01:38.559
of ours and Jack. The boys seemed to be bursting

959
01:01:38.599 --> 01:01:41.880
with enthusiasm and excitement as Jack and I trudged along.

960
01:01:42.760 --> 01:01:45.760
As we approached the steps up, I took hold of

961
01:01:45.800 --> 01:01:49.760
the rail and realized my palms were sweating profusely. I

962
01:01:49.840 --> 01:01:53.599
became aware of my own labored breathing. I looked to Jack,

963
01:01:53.639 --> 01:01:57.719
who mouthed no at me. As we were almost to

964
01:01:57.760 --> 01:02:00.840
the top step on the porch. My mouth was dry

965
01:02:00.920 --> 01:02:03.360
as I thought of a hundred reasons not to open

966
01:02:03.400 --> 01:02:07.119
the large front door, but couldn't utter a single word.

967
01:02:07.840 --> 01:02:09.840
The boy stood in front of the door and turned

968
01:02:09.840 --> 01:02:13.159
to look at me. He simultaneously reached for the knob

969
01:02:13.440 --> 01:02:17.199
and turned it. I yelled no as he did, but

970
01:02:17.599 --> 01:02:20.239
to no avail as we heard the click and the

971
01:02:20.320 --> 01:02:28.239
door began to swing open. The door creaked and groaned

972
01:02:28.280 --> 01:02:31.960
in a way that sounded guttural as he swung it

973
01:02:32.000 --> 01:02:35.639
open wide. I could see inside into the middle of

974
01:02:35.679 --> 01:02:40.239
the room, but the darkness swallowed the perimeter beyond. Come in,

975
01:02:41.079 --> 01:02:44.159
was all he said as he boldly stepped in without

976
01:02:44.199 --> 01:02:48.400
looking back, without a word, Jack and I followed him in.

977
01:02:49.280 --> 01:02:54.880
The smell was overwhelming as we stepped inside. It smelled musty, earthy,

978
01:02:55.039 --> 01:02:58.519
and almost rotten, like a trunk that had been closed

979
01:02:58.519 --> 01:03:02.840
for years. I thought the windows looked broken out in places,

980
01:03:02.880 --> 01:03:06.000
but there was no air moving through the house. Now.

981
01:03:07.159 --> 01:03:10.280
I don't remember the door shutting, but I felt the

982
01:03:10.400 --> 01:03:14.079
uncontrollable urge to run, and I backed right into the

983
01:03:14.119 --> 01:03:18.079
shut door. Jack, in a panic, grabbed the handle and

984
01:03:18.159 --> 01:03:22.639
wrenched on it, but it didn't budge. He pulled with

985
01:03:22.719 --> 01:03:25.440
increased fervor, and I began to hit the door with

986
01:03:25.519 --> 01:03:29.159
my closed fist, and my hands began to tingle. I

987
01:03:29.280 --> 01:03:33.719
swung around to see the boy standing looking at us expressionless.

988
01:03:35.079 --> 01:03:38.519
A smile began to creep into the corners of his mouth.

989
01:03:39.159 --> 01:03:42.880
This twistedly sick look he began to have made the

990
01:03:43.039 --> 01:03:46.719
terror well up even more. As I began to scream

991
01:03:46.760 --> 01:03:51.000
at him. He suddenly turned and ran into the darkness,

992
01:03:51.800 --> 01:03:56.719
laughing maniacally. I followed a few steps after him, instinctively

993
01:03:57.119 --> 01:04:00.679
until I realized that, giggling, he ran out the stairs.

994
01:04:01.440 --> 01:04:04.559
Down the stairs seemed to be even blacker than the

995
01:04:04.639 --> 01:04:09.360
darkness that already left navigating nearly impossible. I turned to

996
01:04:09.440 --> 01:04:13.679
look at Jack, who was gone. I cried out in

997
01:04:13.760 --> 01:04:17.119
fear and frustration at our stupidity. Why would you ever

998
01:04:17.239 --> 01:04:21.079
go somewhere with someone you don't know? Yet here I am.

999
01:04:22.280 --> 01:04:25.239
Jack stepped forward into my field of vision and grabbed

1000
01:04:25.239 --> 01:04:29.960
my arm. He began to sob What's going on? Where

1001
01:04:29.960 --> 01:04:33.559
did he go? Why is this place so scary? What's

1002
01:04:33.599 --> 01:04:36.719
going on? I pulled him in and put my arm

1003
01:04:36.760 --> 01:04:40.280
around his shoulder. Look at me, We are going to

1004
01:04:40.320 --> 01:04:43.199
get out of here, I said, in as calm of

1005
01:04:43.239 --> 01:04:46.280
a voice as I could muster. I looked to the

1006
01:04:46.400 --> 01:04:49.559
side to a window and ran to it. I ripped

1007
01:04:49.559 --> 01:04:53.559
the floor length velvet curtains open and gasped to see

1008
01:04:53.559 --> 01:04:56.559
a window. I looked next to me to see a

1009
01:04:56.599 --> 01:04:59.559
small table and picked it up and banged it on

1010
01:04:59.599 --> 01:05:03.079
the glass. I wasn't sure what was going on yet,

1011
01:05:03.079 --> 01:05:05.760
but I wasn't fully committed to breaking out a window

1012
01:05:05.840 --> 01:05:09.320
because I'm scared this could be a prank done on

1013
01:05:09.440 --> 01:05:15.360
poor taste. Fear overwhelmed my rational thoughts and I swung it.

1014
01:05:15.360 --> 01:05:17.679
It didn't budge, and I felt as though I were

1015
01:05:17.719 --> 01:05:21.920
hitting stone. I was even more scared at this abnormal response.

1016
01:05:22.719 --> 01:05:25.480
I backed up one step and swung as hard as

1017
01:05:25.519 --> 01:05:28.880
I could to have the table splinter apart, with pieces

1018
01:05:28.920 --> 01:05:33.320
smashing against the walls, floor, and into my head. I

1019
01:05:33.440 --> 01:05:36.000
felt the point of impact to reveal on my head

1020
01:05:36.079 --> 01:05:41.320
a spot of blood. On my hand, the window appeared unblemished.

1021
01:05:41.760 --> 01:05:44.480
As I frantically turned to see Jack crumple into a

1022
01:05:44.480 --> 01:05:47.519
pile on the floor, crying, I want to go home.

1023
01:05:48.400 --> 01:05:50.679
I grabbed his collar and pulled him to his feet.

1024
01:05:51.199 --> 01:05:53.599
I went into the first open door I saw aside

1025
01:05:53.599 --> 01:05:56.679
from the staircase. That boy must be in on this.

1026
01:05:57.199 --> 01:05:58.960
I don't know why you would bring us here, but

1027
01:05:59.039 --> 01:06:02.119
you can be sure it's not good, I whispered, as

1028
01:06:02.159 --> 01:06:05.599
I pulled Jack along, who was now regaining his composure.

1029
01:06:06.559 --> 01:06:09.719
The doorway opened into a large room. It appeared to

1030
01:06:09.719 --> 01:06:13.320
be a library, as books lined the walls to high

1031
01:06:13.400 --> 01:06:16.159
windows which must have been three stories tall. As there

1032
01:06:16.159 --> 01:06:20.559
were balconies with ladders circumnavigating the room. I pulled us

1033
01:06:20.599 --> 01:06:23.320
to one side, as it seemed to offer a mirage

1034
01:06:23.400 --> 01:06:27.440
of protection versus being in the room center. I put

1035
01:06:27.480 --> 01:06:29.960
a hand against the shelf and looked at the books.

1036
01:06:30.639 --> 01:06:34.000
Most of the titles were in languages I didn't even recognize,

1037
01:06:34.400 --> 01:06:38.679
some with what appeared to be symbols. Only breathing hard

1038
01:06:38.719 --> 01:06:41.440
and looking around for the next move, I noticed there

1039
01:06:41.480 --> 01:06:45.679
were mounted heads of animals surrounding the room. They were

1040
01:06:45.760 --> 01:06:50.599
high above the books on the walls. Deer, bear, cougar.

1041
01:06:51.639 --> 01:06:54.480
They did not have content looks on their faces, rather

1042
01:06:54.639 --> 01:06:57.920
anger or fear. I looked to the next and found

1043
01:06:57.920 --> 01:07:02.320
the animal to be beyond description. I stared at its

1044
01:07:02.360 --> 01:07:05.840
cavorted face and studied it for a moment. It was

1045
01:07:05.920 --> 01:07:10.280
unknown to me. I glanced ahead and found another unrecognizable head.

1046
01:07:11.320 --> 01:07:15.320
Upon closer look, I gasped and nearly threw up. It

1047
01:07:15.400 --> 01:07:18.639
was the head of what looked to be a person,

1048
01:07:19.639 --> 01:07:23.320
but it had hair all over its face. Its simian

1049
01:07:23.519 --> 01:07:27.960
likeness was unmistakable, yet it seemed more human. Jack was

1050
01:07:28.039 --> 01:07:30.760
gasping at me, looking wildly in the direction I had

1051
01:07:30.760 --> 01:07:34.800
been staring, yelling what is it? He pulled at me

1052
01:07:34.880 --> 01:07:38.000
to follow him, and I stumbled along. We came to

1053
01:07:38.039 --> 01:07:41.000
a hallway with opposing doors. At the far end was

1054
01:07:41.039 --> 01:07:44.960
a door with windows on either side. Long velvet curtains

1055
01:07:45.000 --> 01:07:48.440
hung parted in the middle, showing the moonlight peeking through.

1056
01:07:49.360 --> 01:07:52.079
We took pensive steps towards the first door, and I

1057
01:07:52.159 --> 01:07:55.519
reached out to turn the knob. I cautiously edged the

1058
01:07:55.519 --> 01:07:59.000
door open and peeked inside. It was too dark to

1059
01:07:59.039 --> 01:08:03.519
make anything out visit usually, but I heard sounds. It

1060
01:08:03.679 --> 01:08:07.559
sounded like something some kind of animal, was stepping in

1061
01:08:07.679 --> 01:08:12.199
something wet and sludge like. Grunting and labored breaths intermixed

1062
01:08:12.239 --> 01:08:16.119
with ripping sounds came from somewhere within the room. A

1063
01:08:16.159 --> 01:08:20.319
barely audible whimper was immediately stopped by a low growl.

1064
01:08:21.479 --> 01:08:24.119
It was then Jack stepped back, and a squeak of

1065
01:08:24.119 --> 01:08:27.760
the floorboard suddenly alerted whatever was in there. There was

1066
01:08:27.800 --> 01:08:30.399
a rustling of something moving toward us, and I knew

1067
01:08:30.439 --> 01:08:32.560
beyond any doubt that I did not want to know

1068
01:08:32.640 --> 01:08:36.239
what was making that noise. I was able to get

1069
01:08:36.319 --> 01:08:38.880
us out and slam the door before the thing could

1070
01:08:38.920 --> 01:08:43.199
get there. Jack was whispering how badly he wanted to leave,

1071
01:08:43.600 --> 01:08:47.279
and clutching my arm in a near frantic manner. I

1072
01:08:47.359 --> 01:08:49.920
was unsure if we should look in any more rooms

1073
01:08:50.600 --> 01:08:52.760
or go try to escape from one of the windows

1074
01:08:52.760 --> 01:08:55.359
at the end of the hall. As I was gathering

1075
01:08:55.359 --> 01:08:59.199
my wits, I heard another moan. I thought it might

1076
01:08:59.239 --> 01:09:02.800
have been my imagine, but Jack's face registered that he

1077
01:09:02.840 --> 01:09:06.359
had heard it as well. Was that the other boy?

1078
01:09:07.119 --> 01:09:11.479
He asked in a whisper. I don't know, I replied,

1079
01:09:11.520 --> 01:09:15.159
as my voice broke. I had never, and have not since,

1080
01:09:15.319 --> 01:09:19.079
known fear such as this. Sweat dripped off my nose,

1081
01:09:19.159 --> 01:09:22.239
running down my neck and back. I was shaking and

1082
01:09:22.279 --> 01:09:25.680
could barely speak. I had thrown up again after shutting

1083
01:09:25.720 --> 01:09:30.079
that door. It just hadn't registered until now. I wiped

1084
01:09:30.119 --> 01:09:32.319
at my face, and it was apparent I had not

1085
01:09:32.439 --> 01:09:34.920
been aware enough to make any attempt to project it

1086
01:09:34.960 --> 01:09:39.079
away from my body. I had a sudden recall that

1087
01:09:39.159 --> 01:09:42.520
I had my cell phone. Funny how I had argued

1088
01:09:42.520 --> 01:09:45.119
how I wanted and needed one with my parents and

1089
01:09:45.319 --> 01:09:49.239
used the safety reason. How ironic I thought as I

1090
01:09:49.279 --> 01:09:54.840
frantically dug it from my pocket. No service, as I thought,

1091
01:09:54.880 --> 01:09:58.279
my spirit couldn't drop farther. The date under the time

1092
01:09:58.479 --> 01:10:02.640
seemed to be spinning like a dial. I had no

1093
01:10:02.760 --> 01:10:05.760
idea what had happened, but the realization it was broken

1094
01:10:06.359 --> 01:10:09.800
almost made me cry. If we made it out of there,

1095
01:10:10.279 --> 01:10:13.319
my parents would kill me for breaking it. I was

1096
01:10:13.399 --> 01:10:16.840
truly terrified as the tears began to run down my cheeks.

1097
01:10:17.319 --> 01:10:20.520
I was breathing fast and hard. My head was spinning

1098
01:10:20.600 --> 01:10:24.039
like I may pass out. Jack's sudden grip on my

1099
01:10:24.239 --> 01:10:27.960
arm again brought my attention back to reality. We must

1100
01:10:27.960 --> 01:10:30.079
have been moving the last few moments. As we were

1101
01:10:30.079 --> 01:10:35.079
standing in front of the next door, which unfortunately was open,

1102
01:10:36.560 --> 01:10:39.199
there was a shaft of moonlight coming from the window

1103
01:10:39.279 --> 01:10:41.680
across the room, and it fell on two of the

1104
01:10:41.720 --> 01:10:46.680
dirtiest foulst dogs I had ever seen. My mouth fell

1105
01:10:46.720 --> 01:10:51.159
open in utter shock at the putrescence of them. They

1106
01:10:51.199 --> 01:10:54.920
seemed to have what looked like some rotting skin in places.

1107
01:10:55.520 --> 01:11:00.399
One looked like it was partially disemboweled, and something rug

1108
01:11:00.439 --> 01:11:03.920
on the floor a short distance behind it. The first

1109
01:11:03.920 --> 01:11:07.399
one lowered his head with a growl, and saliva or

1110
01:11:07.479 --> 01:11:11.760
something like it dripped from the large fangs. It momentarily

1111
01:11:11.800 --> 01:11:15.560
glistened in the little light present. The smell coming from

1112
01:11:15.600 --> 01:11:21.079
them was nauseating. Sickly sweet, rotting stench with sulfuresque tones

1113
01:11:21.359 --> 01:11:25.439
burned my nose as I immediately recoiled from sight and smell.

1114
01:11:26.399 --> 01:11:29.359
The closer animal, if you could call it, that, began

1115
01:11:29.479 --> 01:11:32.399
to growl, although the sound seemed to emanate from the

1116
01:11:32.439 --> 01:11:35.640
hole in its side. I pushed Jack ahead of me

1117
01:11:35.720 --> 01:11:39.000
as panic again rose in me like a wave, commanding

1118
01:11:39.000 --> 01:11:43.000
me to run. In spite of the pathetic creature's aberrant appearance,

1119
01:11:43.479 --> 01:11:47.560
they could move quickly, their caws dug to gain purchase

1120
01:11:47.600 --> 01:11:51.520
on the old floor, shredding with each foot strike. There

1121
01:11:51.560 --> 01:11:55.960
were snarling jaws snapping, making saliva fling and spray in

1122
01:11:56.000 --> 01:11:59.960
the moonlight. Our complete terror must have been adrenaline fueled ina,

1123
01:12:00.560 --> 01:12:02.439
as they were nearly to the end of the hall

1124
01:12:02.520 --> 01:12:06.199
before I realized it. There was a perpendicular hall at

1125
01:12:06.239 --> 01:12:09.039
the end by the windows, and as Jack was slowing

1126
01:12:09.079 --> 01:12:11.920
to make a turn, I heard the hounds had stopped

1127
01:12:12.560 --> 01:12:16.800
or slowed. I turned to look and they had stopped

1128
01:12:16.800 --> 01:12:20.439
twenty feet back and were crouching down with tails tucked

1129
01:12:20.479 --> 01:12:24.680
between their legs, whining, and were turning back as though

1130
01:12:24.720 --> 01:12:29.159
they were afraid of something. I called to Jack as

1131
01:12:29.239 --> 01:12:32.640
quietly as possible to get his attention without drawing further

1132
01:12:32.720 --> 01:12:36.600
alert to our presence. We were stopped by the windows,

1133
01:12:36.600 --> 01:12:41.159
and I looked out My parents were walking down the street.

1134
01:12:41.640 --> 01:12:44.359
My heart soared as I hit the window, screaming their

1135
01:12:44.439 --> 01:12:49.239
names completely, throwing caution to the wind. They couldn't hear,

1136
01:12:49.960 --> 01:12:52.279
and kept going, as there was no way for them

1137
01:12:52.319 --> 01:12:55.760
to know I was here. I was supposed to be

1138
01:12:55.840 --> 01:12:59.279
at the fair. How sorry I was that I hadn't

1139
01:12:59.279 --> 01:13:01.680
done as I had seen said. I was going to

1140
01:13:01.800 --> 01:13:05.720
die in this house. I didn't know what this place was,

1141
01:13:05.920 --> 01:13:08.000
but it was so much worse than anything I had

1142
01:13:08.039 --> 01:13:10.640
conjured up as a haunted house in my head. I

1143
01:13:10.640 --> 01:13:15.079
would have given anything to be with my parents right now, safe,

1144
01:13:15.119 --> 01:13:19.359
not here in this terrible place, whatever this was. I

1145
01:13:19.399 --> 01:13:21.479
looked down the hall and at the far end was

1146
01:13:21.520 --> 01:13:25.520
what looked like an old servants staircase, narrow and steep,

1147
01:13:25.640 --> 01:13:29.199
going down, wanting to go anywhere but down. I looked

1148
01:13:29.199 --> 01:13:31.319
the other way and saw a door at the far

1149
01:13:31.520 --> 01:13:36.319
end and doors on opposing sides down the hall. More

1150
01:13:36.399 --> 01:13:39.840
doors made fear well up inside me again. The hair

1151
01:13:39.960 --> 01:13:43.000
began to stand up on my neck. There was a

1152
01:13:43.039 --> 01:13:47.439
faint crying sound that was slowly growing louder. Was it

1153
01:13:47.479 --> 01:13:52.960
a child, a woman? Was it the boy? I couldn't tell,

1154
01:13:53.159 --> 01:13:57.479
But as it grew louder and louder, it became more distorted.

1155
01:13:58.079 --> 01:14:00.520
It was a mixture of crying that was more from

1156
01:14:00.520 --> 01:14:05.119
a cry to laughter, with choking intermixed. I had never

1157
01:14:05.159 --> 01:14:07.319
heard a sound like that before, and if I never

1158
01:14:07.439 --> 01:14:10.960
do again, it would be a blessing. My fear was

1159
01:14:11.000 --> 01:14:14.680
already overcoming me, and this wretched cacophony was more than

1160
01:14:14.680 --> 01:14:17.680
I could take. I began to pull Jack to follow me,

1161
01:14:17.720 --> 01:14:20.760
and we began to run. We sprinted into the hallway

1162
01:14:20.840 --> 01:14:24.840
blindly in terror. I frantically grabbed at doorknobs to open one,

1163
01:14:25.119 --> 01:14:27.520
any one of them, in hopes to get refuge from

1164
01:14:27.600 --> 01:14:31.000
this horror. The light was so low I could barely

1165
01:14:31.039 --> 01:14:35.319
make out the shapes of the doors. The illumination was minimal,

1166
01:14:35.479 --> 01:14:37.840
and the color of the walls and doors appeared to

1167
01:14:37.880 --> 01:14:43.239
be various shades of black. I scraped and patted around

1168
01:14:43.279 --> 01:14:46.800
what I thought was a door, and scrambled along as

1169
01:14:46.840 --> 01:14:49.159
I jabbed and reached. As I searched, I felt my

1170
01:14:49.239 --> 01:14:52.720
fingertip catch on something sharp, and my skin hooked onto

1171
01:14:52.800 --> 01:14:57.520
whatever nail or splinter protruded. I felt the warm fluid

1172
01:14:57.600 --> 01:15:01.600
spread and drip. As I felt the casing for the knob,

1173
01:15:02.119 --> 01:15:06.239
I felt my fingernail pull off entirely. In my nearly

1174
01:15:06.359 --> 01:15:10.000
crazed search for a way out, the dark hall seemed

1175
01:15:10.000 --> 01:15:14.239
to lighten slightly. The sound was still screeching, crying, laughter,

1176
01:15:14.399 --> 01:15:17.880
constantly escalating to the point I thought my ears might burst.

1177
01:15:19.000 --> 01:15:21.079
I felt Jack hitting at me and looked where he

1178
01:15:21.199 --> 01:15:24.760
was staring. Coming down the hall was something I think

1179
01:15:24.880 --> 01:15:28.800
no mortal man was meant to see. It was distorted

1180
01:15:28.840 --> 01:15:34.279
and terrible, flowing with a jerking quality. Simultaneously, I was

1181
01:15:34.319 --> 01:15:40.119
suddenly captivated at the indescribable sight. Approaching it was sinister, abhorrent,

1182
01:15:40.880 --> 01:15:45.800
and mesmerizing. I knew if it reached us, all was lost.

1183
01:15:46.680 --> 01:15:49.279
My hand found the knob that was freezing cold. I

1184
01:15:49.319 --> 01:15:52.239
turned it As we fell back with the door opening,

1185
01:15:52.439 --> 01:15:55.840
I turned quickly to survey and found we were trapped

1186
01:15:56.359 --> 01:16:00.760
in a closet. In a completely reactionary measure, I slammed

1187
01:16:00.760 --> 01:16:04.600
the door just as the specter reached us. It roared

1188
01:16:04.640 --> 01:16:08.239
with an intensity that seemed impossible. It slammed into the

1189
01:16:08.279 --> 01:16:11.760
door with such violence that shards of wood, dust and

1190
01:16:11.880 --> 01:16:16.039
material blew out of the wall, spraying down on us.

1191
01:16:16.640 --> 01:16:20.199
For an unknown but seemingly endless time, the torrent of

1192
01:16:20.239 --> 01:16:23.760
anger and pure rage continued to pound upon the door,

1193
01:16:23.960 --> 01:16:26.399
and I do not know how it did not breach it.

1194
01:16:27.119 --> 01:16:31.880
At some point it stopped, if possible, The sudden silence

1195
01:16:32.000 --> 01:16:36.600
was even more deafening. Jack continued to lay on the

1196
01:16:36.600 --> 01:16:39.159
floor next to me as I lay curled in the

1197
01:16:39.199 --> 01:16:43.720
fetal position. After an indeterminate amount of time, I began

1198
01:16:43.760 --> 01:16:46.880
to notice a light coming from under the door. I

1199
01:16:46.960 --> 01:16:51.560
thought it looked like sunlight. I moved over and tried

1200
01:16:51.600 --> 01:16:56.119
to peer under. I could see what looked like daylight

1201
01:16:56.680 --> 01:17:01.039
on the old red carpet. I looked and listened, and

1202
01:17:01.159 --> 01:17:06.239
could perceive nothing outside the door. I reached up and

1203
01:17:06.319 --> 01:17:09.600
turned the knob with a creak that was the defining

1204
01:17:09.680 --> 01:17:14.319
noise of every haunted house ever. The door opened the

1205
01:17:14.359 --> 01:17:17.640
hallway was lit with the earliest rays of the beautiful

1206
01:17:17.680 --> 01:17:21.439
morning sun. It was such a welcome sight to the

1207
01:17:21.439 --> 01:17:26.199
soul sucking pitch black of the previous night. As I

1208
01:17:26.239 --> 01:17:29.399
took in the sunshine, movement in the hall caught my

1209
01:17:29.479 --> 01:17:33.880
attention and I recoiled back. The sunlight was just peeking

1210
01:17:33.920 --> 01:17:37.119
over the horizon through the windows, leaving shadows in between

1211
01:17:37.159 --> 01:17:40.880
each one. The far end of the hallway was bathed

1212
01:17:40.920 --> 01:17:44.960
in darkness. To the door and beyond, the terrible apparition

1213
01:17:45.199 --> 01:17:48.520
was hovering. Just at this boundary of light and dark.

1214
01:17:49.319 --> 01:17:51.319
It was almost too much for my mind, and I

1215
01:17:51.319 --> 01:17:55.159
thought I might pass out. It screamed and raged against

1216
01:17:55.159 --> 01:17:59.680
this boundary, seething and pacing back and forth. It seemed

1217
01:17:59.680 --> 01:18:02.720
to it rained with all its will until the last

1218
01:18:02.760 --> 01:18:07.319
bit of darkness was abolished with the wonderful sunlight. There

1219
01:18:07.359 --> 01:18:10.319
was an implosion of sound with some sort of vapor

1220
01:18:10.399 --> 01:18:13.239
or smoke, and when it dissipated there was a single

1221
01:18:13.279 --> 01:18:18.159
sheet with two eye holes cut out, perched at the

1222
01:18:18.239 --> 01:18:21.840
end of the hall where it had been. It seemed

1223
01:18:21.880 --> 01:18:25.439
almost comical, a cruel and mocking reminder that it was

1224
01:18:25.479 --> 01:18:30.039
not gone, not truly. We eventually came to the realization

1225
01:18:30.199 --> 01:18:33.039
that we were able to escape the house only after

1226
01:18:33.079 --> 01:18:37.359
we passed by the classic ghost. I felt taunted and

1227
01:18:37.439 --> 01:18:40.279
bullied by it. I wanted to knock it over, but

1228
01:18:40.399 --> 01:18:43.000
was so repelled by it I couldn't bring myself to

1229
01:18:43.000 --> 01:18:47.119
touch it. I didn't and don't know what was under

1230
01:18:47.159 --> 01:18:51.159
the sheet. We made our way through the house. There

1231
01:18:51.199 --> 01:18:55.279
was no resistance. Windows were broken out, exterior doors left

1232
01:18:55.319 --> 01:18:58.760
open absent in some places. As we exited the house,

1233
01:18:58.800 --> 01:19:02.880
we saw passing police and waved it down. The officer

1234
01:19:02.960 --> 01:19:05.479
listened to both of us, trying to relay the story,

1235
01:19:05.560 --> 01:19:09.840
and he became suddenly very excited when he heard our names.

1236
01:19:10.640 --> 01:19:13.319
We fell silent as he told us that we had

1237
01:19:13.359 --> 01:19:18.039
been reported missing six days ago and the entire town

1238
01:19:18.119 --> 01:19:21.359
had been searching for us. Come to find out the

1239
01:19:21.399 --> 01:19:26.000
authorities had actually presumed us dead. My parents were out

1240
01:19:26.039 --> 01:19:29.439
looking for me when I had seen them. My head

1241
01:19:29.520 --> 01:19:32.640
beginning to spin was the last thing I remember that day.

1242
01:19:33.720 --> 01:19:36.680
I'm not sure how many people believed us, if anyone.

1243
01:19:37.479 --> 01:19:39.640
Jack and I drifted apart, as I think both of

1244
01:19:39.760 --> 01:19:44.439
us couldn't bear the memories of that night. Although thankfully

1245
01:19:45.000 --> 01:19:49.359
I have never had another experience such as this, I

1246
01:19:49.399 --> 01:20:02.000
will never forget that ghost stories aren't always fun. Thrifting fail.

1247
01:20:02.359 --> 01:20:08.279
We're now haunted by Bruce Hayney. Sarah and Keith's day

1248
01:20:08.359 --> 01:20:11.119
had been a bust. The young couple had spent the

1249
01:20:11.199 --> 01:20:14.600
day thrifting and hitting yard sales while trying to find

1250
01:20:14.640 --> 01:20:18.359
a new vacuum cleaner for their apartment. While they searched,

1251
01:20:18.720 --> 01:20:21.600
they used half a tank of fuel, went to lunch,

1252
01:20:22.079 --> 01:20:25.039
and had a good time, but they never did find

1253
01:20:25.079 --> 01:20:29.119
a reasonably priced vacuum that was to their liking, and

1254
01:20:29.199 --> 01:20:31.920
for what the day ended up costing them, they could

1255
01:20:31.920 --> 01:20:35.960
have had a new one shipped to their door. Sarah

1256
01:20:36.000 --> 01:20:39.000
was excited about her fines. She found a dress that

1257
01:20:39.039 --> 01:20:41.640
looked new at a thrift store and found a small

1258
01:20:41.720 --> 01:20:46.439
lamp at a garage sale. Keith was both frugal and particular,

1259
01:20:47.000 --> 01:20:49.880
so he didn't find much. But on their way home,

1260
01:20:50.279 --> 01:20:52.479
after they had decided they were done for the day,

1261
01:20:53.079 --> 01:20:55.960
they saw a sign for a yard sale. Want to

1262
01:20:56.000 --> 01:20:58.920
hit it, Keith asked, then made the turn before she

1263
01:20:59.000 --> 01:21:03.399
had time to respond, and sure might still find a vacuum,

1264
01:21:03.880 --> 01:21:08.840
Sarah said, wouldn't that be nice? Keith responded it had

1265
01:21:08.840 --> 01:21:11.399
been a lovely day, but As they approached the house

1266
01:21:11.439 --> 01:21:14.319
with the tables and junk on their lawn, a few

1267
01:21:14.359 --> 01:21:17.800
clouds in the sky began to shift. They drifted in

1268
01:21:17.840 --> 01:21:21.000
front of the sun, blocking it and bringing darkness to

1269
01:21:21.119 --> 01:21:24.920
the street. The yard sale had nothing that interested Sarah,

1270
01:21:24.920 --> 01:21:28.079
but Keith was drawn to an amateur looking home made

1271
01:21:28.079 --> 01:21:32.079
ceramic bowl. She thought it was ugly, but it was

1272
01:21:32.119 --> 01:21:34.680
only a dollar and Keith was going home with something,

1273
01:21:35.199 --> 01:21:37.479
so she kept her mouth shut for the time being.

1274
01:21:38.520 --> 01:21:41.239
Back at their apartment, What are you going to do

1275
01:21:41.279 --> 01:21:44.880
with that thing, Sarah asked, I don't know. Put my

1276
01:21:45.039 --> 01:21:47.239
keys and wallet in it when I come home, I guess.

1277
01:21:47.720 --> 01:21:52.439
Keith answered, okay, Sarah said, I was just kind of

1278
01:21:52.560 --> 01:21:55.560
drawn to the thing. It is kind of cool looking,

1279
01:21:55.640 --> 01:22:00.560
with its uneven shape and poor execution. It's like punk

1280
01:22:00.640 --> 01:22:05.359
rock pottery. Keith said, while turning it over. I'm surprised

1281
01:22:05.359 --> 01:22:08.359
that it even has a maker's mark on it. Keith continued,

1282
01:22:09.239 --> 01:22:13.319
A maker's mark, Sarah asked, Yeah, like how an artist

1283
01:22:13.359 --> 01:22:17.119
signs their paintings. Someone who does pottery signed the bottom

1284
01:22:17.119 --> 01:22:20.199
of the piece, or stamps their logo or what have you.

1285
01:22:20.720 --> 01:22:26.720
This one is marked Sylvester, Keith said, and then laughed Sylvester.

1286
01:22:27.199 --> 01:22:32.680
Sarah asked, yep. Keith responded, like the actor. I have

1287
01:22:32.840 --> 01:22:35.279
never heard of someone having that name in real life.

1288
01:22:35.680 --> 01:22:39.960
Sarah laughed, pretty sure, it's not the actor. Keith joined

1289
01:22:39.960 --> 01:22:44.880
in the laughter. It wasn't long after that strange things

1290
01:22:44.920 --> 01:22:49.039
started to happen in their apartment. The first thing, though

1291
01:22:49.079 --> 01:22:52.319
it went unnoticed by the two, was that the ceramic

1292
01:22:52.399 --> 01:22:56.760
bowl was never exactly where it was left. It moved

1293
01:22:56.800 --> 01:22:59.199
an inch or two each time they would leave the room.

1294
01:23:00.119 --> 01:23:02.920
Keith was the first to notice it, but figured that

1295
01:23:02.960 --> 01:23:06.680
Sarah had just bumped it. One night, when Keith woke

1296
01:23:06.800 --> 01:23:09.920
up to use the restroom, he found the ceramic piece

1297
01:23:10.079 --> 01:23:13.680
on the floor. His first fear was that someone had

1298
01:23:13.680 --> 01:23:17.600
broken in and took his wallet in keys, but he

1299
01:23:17.760 --> 01:23:21.239
checked and they were where he left them, just no

1300
01:23:21.359 --> 01:23:25.359
longer in the bowl. Keith woke up Sarah. She knew

1301
01:23:25.359 --> 01:23:28.479
nothing about it, so they searched the apartment together looking

1302
01:23:28.560 --> 01:23:33.000
for other disturbances, with none found. They checked the locks

1303
01:23:33.359 --> 01:23:35.960
and that the windows were secured before they laid back

1304
01:23:36.000 --> 01:23:40.359
in bed to go to sleep. Ten minutes later, their

1305
01:23:40.399 --> 01:23:43.680
alarm went off. It was time to get up for work.

1306
01:23:44.840 --> 01:23:47.560
When they came home, They felt a false sense of

1307
01:23:47.600 --> 01:23:53.039
security because the ceramic piece hadn't moved well. It had

1308
01:23:53.159 --> 01:23:56.000
moved a little, but not enough for it to register

1309
01:23:56.119 --> 01:23:58.920
to them. It was Friday night, so they stayed up

1310
01:23:58.960 --> 01:24:04.479
watching spooky Moves movies despite their recent experiences. It had

1311
01:24:04.520 --> 01:24:07.399
been a long week and they got so little sleep

1312
01:24:07.439 --> 01:24:10.000
the night before, so before the credits could roll on

1313
01:24:10.039 --> 01:24:13.159
the first flick, they were fast asleep on the couch.

1314
01:24:14.119 --> 01:24:16.680
Sarah was the first to wake up and was about

1315
01:24:16.680 --> 01:24:19.319
to wake up Keith to drag him to bed when

1316
01:24:19.359 --> 01:24:23.680
she noticed the ceramic bowl sitting on her TV tray.

1317
01:24:24.680 --> 01:24:26.880
It was next to the diet soda and the oil

1318
01:24:26.960 --> 01:24:30.880
free corn based crackers she had been munching on. Sarah

1319
01:24:30.920 --> 01:24:34.039
shook Keith to point it out to him. They searched

1320
01:24:34.039 --> 01:24:38.079
the apartment again, leaving their bedroom for last. They didn't

1321
01:24:38.079 --> 01:24:41.239
find anything, so they were just about to head to

1322
01:24:41.279 --> 01:24:44.760
their bedroom when Sarah decided to run back to the

1323
01:24:44.800 --> 01:24:49.079
living room and grab the ceramic bowl. What are you doing,

1324
01:24:49.520 --> 01:24:52.960
Keith asked. Sarah said nothing as she walked to the

1325
01:24:53.039 --> 01:24:56.880
kitchen and put the bowl in the freezer. Let's see

1326
01:24:56.920 --> 01:24:59.800
it move around the apartment now. She gave Keith a

1327
01:24:59.840 --> 01:25:04.479
li smile and headed to their room. In their room,

1328
01:25:04.840 --> 01:25:09.039
there was a shape under their blanket, the shape of

1329
01:25:09.079 --> 01:25:13.119
a large man. When Keith hit the light switch, the

1330
01:25:13.199 --> 01:25:16.520
shape deflated and the blanket fell back to the bed.

1331
01:25:18.000 --> 01:25:20.760
That night, they slept on the couch, using a spare

1332
01:25:20.800 --> 01:25:23.479
blanket from the closet so they didn't have to use

1333
01:25:23.479 --> 01:25:27.119
the one from their bed. It was a bit thin

1334
01:25:27.279 --> 01:25:30.800
and scratchy, but it wasn't recently involved in a haunting,

1335
01:25:30.960 --> 01:25:35.760
so they made do. Sarah again was the first one

1336
01:25:35.800 --> 01:25:39.239
to awaken, but this time it was because of the

1337
01:25:39.319 --> 01:25:43.760
cold feeling she felt on her right shoulder. When she

1338
01:25:43.840 --> 01:25:46.760
opened her eyes, she saw a big man standing in

1339
01:25:46.760 --> 01:25:50.720
front of her, leaning over and touching her shoulder. The

1340
01:25:50.760 --> 01:25:54.079
cold radiated from that spot and she began to feel

1341
01:25:54.159 --> 01:25:57.960
chills all over. She knew the person touching her wasn't

1342
01:25:57.960 --> 01:26:01.279
of this world because she could see threw him and

1343
01:26:01.319 --> 01:26:05.600
there was a blue glow surrounding him. Sarah looked him over,

1344
01:26:05.760 --> 01:26:10.439
noticing his disheveled appearance. His apron, his shirt, and pants

1345
01:26:10.439 --> 01:26:13.600
were covered in paint and bits of clay from where

1346
01:26:13.600 --> 01:26:16.159
he had used them to wipe his hands off while working.

1347
01:26:17.359 --> 01:26:23.960
His teeth chattered as he spoke, sorry to disturb you, miss,

1348
01:26:24.720 --> 01:26:30.279
but I'm freezing, the ghost pleaded. Sarah just stared at him,

1349
01:26:30.600 --> 01:26:33.880
never taking her eyes off the apparition as she hit

1350
01:26:34.039 --> 01:26:37.560
Keith to wake him up. By the time Keith awoke,

1351
01:26:38.079 --> 01:26:41.720
it had lost its courteous demeanor and a scowl began

1352
01:26:41.760 --> 01:26:45.520
to form on his face. Keith screamed when he saw him.

1353
01:26:45.880 --> 01:26:49.039
Then the ghost screamed while moving his gaze from Sarah

1354
01:26:49.079 --> 01:26:56.520
to Keith. I'm cold, the ghost yelled. What Keith stammered,

1355
01:26:57.199 --> 01:27:01.760
I said, I am freezing. As the ghost began to

1356
01:27:01.800 --> 01:27:06.119
head towards Keith, something clicked in Sarah's head. She jumped

1357
01:27:06.119 --> 01:27:08.439
from the couch and ran to the freezer, where she

1358
01:27:08.560 --> 01:27:11.600
opened the door and grabbed out the ceramic bowl. She

1359
01:27:11.720 --> 01:27:17.159
then turned around to show the ghost, but he was gone.

1360
01:27:17.199 --> 01:27:20.359
Sarah and Keith spent the next morning driving around trying

1361
01:27:20.399 --> 01:27:22.560
to find the house they had bought the bull from

1362
01:27:22.920 --> 01:27:26.399
so they could return it. Sarah was sure she knew

1363
01:27:26.399 --> 01:27:29.159
the way, but without the signs and the tables of

1364
01:27:29.239 --> 01:27:31.560
junk in the yard, it was hard to determine which

1365
01:27:31.600 --> 01:27:35.600
house it was. Eventually, they agreed on a house that

1366
01:27:35.680 --> 01:27:40.479
they believed it could be nobody answered the door, but

1367
01:27:40.680 --> 01:27:43.439
they had been expecting that after spotting the for sale

1368
01:27:43.479 --> 01:27:48.359
sign on the lawn. What do we do now, Keith asked,

1369
01:27:49.079 --> 01:27:51.479
I don't know. I don't think we're going to get

1370
01:27:51.520 --> 01:27:55.199
any answers this way. We should just throw it out,

1371
01:27:55.600 --> 01:27:59.319
Sarah responded. Before they went back home, they stopped at

1372
01:27:59.319 --> 01:28:02.279
the coffee shop where they had their first date. It

1373
01:28:02.319 --> 01:28:05.039
was Sarah's turn to buy, so Keith found them a

1374
01:28:05.039 --> 01:28:08.359
comfortable spot to sit so they could talk. While he

1375
01:28:08.439 --> 01:28:10.960
waited for her, he got on his phone and did

1376
01:28:11.000 --> 01:28:15.159
a couple of quick searches. When Sarah came with their coffees,

1377
01:28:15.720 --> 01:28:17.840
he was ready to tell her what he'd found out.

1378
01:28:18.600 --> 01:28:21.600
As she handed him his quad shot over ice, he

1379
01:28:21.720 --> 01:28:26.159
told her all about Sylvester. I don't know the connection

1380
01:28:26.319 --> 01:28:28.920
to that house, but I think I found information on

1381
01:28:28.960 --> 01:28:33.720
our Sylvester. He was actually a respected artist, Keith said,

1382
01:28:34.479 --> 01:28:39.359
But that thing was so amateurish, Sarah argued, true. Do

1383
01:28:39.439 --> 01:28:42.960
you remember when you first started painting last summer? Keith asked,

1384
01:28:43.560 --> 01:28:47.760
Oh God, I'm glad I tossed all those awful early paintings.

1385
01:28:47.880 --> 01:28:54.199
Sarah replied, well, Sylvester like you got much better. According

1386
01:28:54.199 --> 01:28:58.199
to his Wikipedia page. Wait, he has a Wikipedia page.

1387
01:28:58.720 --> 01:29:02.800
It's not the actor, is it, Sarah interrupted, No, it's

1388
01:29:02.840 --> 01:29:07.560
not the actor. His name was Sylvester Helm. Displays of

1389
01:29:07.560 --> 01:29:10.640
his paintings in ceramics can be found in museums all

1390
01:29:10.680 --> 01:29:13.960
over the world, Keith said, reading a sentence from his

1391
01:29:14.000 --> 01:29:17.880
Wikipedia page. You bought that thing for a dollar. How

1392
01:29:17.880 --> 01:29:20.960
can you be so sure it's the same guy, Sarah asked.

1393
01:29:21.520 --> 01:29:25.520
Keith responded by handing her his phone. On the screen

1394
01:29:25.720 --> 01:29:27.880
was a picture of his maker's mark on the bottom

1395
01:29:27.920 --> 01:29:31.520
of a ceramic piece. It does look similar, but that

1396
01:29:31.600 --> 01:29:34.880
could easily be faked, Sarah said, with a little doubt

1397
01:29:34.920 --> 01:29:39.840
in her voice. Scroll, Keith said. Sarah did until she

1398
01:29:39.920 --> 01:29:44.000
saw a photo of the artist, who bore more than

1399
01:29:44.079 --> 01:29:47.640
a striking resemblance to the frozen man she had seen

1400
01:29:47.720 --> 01:29:53.920
in their apartment. Yeah, I think it's him, Keith said, Crazy,

1401
01:29:54.479 --> 01:29:59.960
Sarah said, keep scrolling to the death section. Keith instructed Sarah.

1402
01:30:00.000 --> 01:30:03.880
I read the short blurb out loud. Sylvester Leroy Helm

1403
01:30:03.960 --> 01:30:07.279
is assumed dead. The artist was last seen in twenty

1404
01:30:07.399 --> 01:30:11.000
ten at an antiquarian book fair. Helms had been a

1405
01:30:11.039 --> 01:30:14.039
lifetime collector of rare and obscure books of the occult.

1406
01:30:14.760 --> 01:30:17.319
After his disappearance, his aunt became the heir to his

1407
01:30:17.399 --> 01:30:21.199
fortune and reported that many of his rare books were missing.

1408
01:30:21.960 --> 01:30:25.960
A Death in Absentia was completed in twenty seventeen, as

1409
01:30:25.960 --> 01:30:31.760
he is presumed dead. Wow, so what does all that mean?

1410
01:30:32.800 --> 01:30:37.119
Why does that equal us being haunted? Sarah asked Keith

1411
01:30:37.159 --> 01:30:39.640
in a whisper. So other people in the coffee shop

1412
01:30:39.640 --> 01:30:43.760
wouldn't hear. I don't know. I don't think we have

1413
01:30:43.880 --> 01:30:46.960
enough pieces of the puzzle to figure it out. Keith said,

1414
01:30:47.640 --> 01:30:49.840
So we need to figure out what the next step

1415
01:30:49.920 --> 01:30:53.960
is to figure this out, Sarah said, or we just

1416
01:30:54.159 --> 01:30:59.359
don't pursue this further. Keith said, why not? Sarah inquired,

1417
01:31:00.640 --> 01:31:03.760
have you ever read H. P. Lovecraft or watched the

1418
01:31:03.800 --> 01:31:10.600
Blair Witch Project. Keith asked no, and yes. Sarah responded, okay, good.

1419
01:31:11.520 --> 01:31:14.119
Have you ever noticed that trend and horror movies that

1420
01:31:14.239 --> 01:31:17.359
have a deep lore or mystery to them that as

1421
01:31:17.399 --> 01:31:20.199
the people search, they become more and more screwed and

1422
01:31:20.279 --> 01:31:25.119
eventually go mad, disappear, or get killed. I mean, look

1423
01:31:25.119 --> 01:31:28.159
at Sylvester here. He did just that. He looked for

1424
01:31:28.239 --> 01:31:33.600
evil until it found him. Now he's stuck in the

1425
01:31:33.640 --> 01:31:37.319
worst piece of art he ever created. Yes, I want

1426
01:31:37.359 --> 01:31:40.319
to know what happened, but I'm not trading this beautiful

1427
01:31:40.319 --> 01:31:44.319
life we built together for that, Keith said, So what

1428
01:31:44.319 --> 01:31:48.920
do we do? Sarah asked? Could destroy it? Keith said,

1429
01:31:49.800 --> 01:31:51.960
but we don't know what that will do. Look what

1430
01:31:52.079 --> 01:31:54.560
happened when we put it in the freezer. What if

1431
01:31:54.560 --> 01:31:57.680
it appears in front of us, all mutilated and gross

1432
01:31:57.720 --> 01:32:01.279
from being broken apart? Sarah said, Do you think that's

1433
01:32:01.279 --> 01:32:05.079
what will happen? Keith asked, We have no clue, and

1434
01:32:05.159 --> 01:32:10.800
without further research, we won't, Sarah said. When they arrived

1435
01:32:10.840 --> 01:32:13.039
back at the apartment, Sarah took the bowl out of

1436
01:32:13.039 --> 01:32:16.560
her purse and set it on the counter. What can

1437
01:32:16.600 --> 01:32:20.399
we do for you, Sarah whispered towards it, not wanting

1438
01:32:20.520 --> 01:32:24.920
Keith to hear her. No response came, so she followed

1439
01:32:24.920 --> 01:32:29.279
it up with another question. Are you stuck? Sarah asked?

1440
01:32:29.840 --> 01:32:33.279
Again no response. Keith walked into the room and saw

1441
01:32:33.279 --> 01:32:36.199
her talking to the bowl and decided that he had

1442
01:32:36.199 --> 01:32:39.920
a plan. Keith walked over and snatched up the bowl,

1443
01:32:40.039 --> 01:32:43.159
then headed to the front door. What are you doing,

1444
01:32:43.479 --> 01:32:47.640
Sarah asked, I'm going to throw it away. Keith responded,

1445
01:32:48.439 --> 01:32:51.800
but what about when it goes into the garbage truck

1446
01:32:51.840 --> 01:32:55.920
and gets smashed. It seems like from the freezer situation

1447
01:32:56.039 --> 01:32:59.520
he can feel pain that that wouldn't be right for

1448
01:32:59.600 --> 01:33:03.159
us to do. He is scary, but I'm not sure

1449
01:33:03.159 --> 01:33:08.920
he's evil, Sarah explained. Keith thought about this for a moment.

1450
01:33:09.800 --> 01:33:11.319
What if I just leave it on the side of

1451
01:33:11.359 --> 01:33:15.680
the street, Keith asked, same result, It'll end up in

1452
01:33:15.720 --> 01:33:21.239
the trash. Sarah responded, okay, okay. How about I give

1453
01:33:21.279 --> 01:33:25.840
it to a thrift store. Keith asked, okay, yeah, I'm

1454
01:33:25.880 --> 01:33:30.600
okay with that. Sarah said that plan didn't work. By

1455
01:33:30.680 --> 01:33:33.760
the time they arrived home after donating it, it was

1456
01:33:33.800 --> 01:33:37.279
back on their counter. Later that night, they went back

1457
01:33:37.319 --> 01:33:40.359
to plotting how to get rid of the thing. After

1458
01:33:40.399 --> 01:33:42.800
the scare of the cabinet, Sarah was warming up to

1459
01:33:42.840 --> 01:33:46.600
the idea of just destroying the thing. There must be

1460
01:33:46.680 --> 01:33:50.960
another way. Why is it attached to us? What makes

1461
01:33:51.039 --> 01:33:56.159
us so special? Keith asked, we bought it, Sarah responded.

1462
01:33:57.000 --> 01:34:00.239
They both stared at each other for a moment. That

1463
01:34:00.640 --> 01:34:03.600
was the key. The purchase is what had attached them

1464
01:34:03.640 --> 01:34:07.920
to it. We have to sell it. Sarah told him, Yeah,

1465
01:34:08.560 --> 01:34:11.039
we might even make a pretty penny, being that it's

1466
01:34:11.079 --> 01:34:15.600
an authentic Sylvester Helm's piece. But every auction house an

1467
01:34:15.600 --> 01:34:18.800
antique store laughed at them when they presented the piece.

1468
01:34:19.479 --> 01:34:21.680
Nobody believed that it could be the work of the

1469
01:34:21.720 --> 01:34:25.960
renowned Sylvester Helms, so they did what anyone else would

1470
01:34:25.960 --> 01:34:28.920
do in that situation. They threw it up on a

1471
01:34:28.960 --> 01:34:33.479
popular online auction site and hoped for the best. That night,

1472
01:34:34.399 --> 01:34:37.720
they didn't wake up when their covers were pulled from them.

1473
01:34:38.760 --> 01:34:41.479
Sarah did wake up when she felt a hand on

1474
01:34:41.560 --> 01:34:45.439
her ankle. She woke up Keith with her screams and

1475
01:34:45.520 --> 01:34:49.000
the loud bang that came from her body hitting the floor.

1476
01:34:50.319 --> 01:34:53.520
They both knew things were escalating, and they hoped it

1477
01:34:53.560 --> 01:34:58.399
would sell quickly. They watched the auction eagerly, but Sarah

1478
01:34:58.439 --> 01:35:01.880
began to have a change of heart. I'm not sure

1479
01:35:01.880 --> 01:35:05.439
it's right to sell it, Sarah said, I don't care

1480
01:35:05.439 --> 01:35:09.159
if it is, you could have gotten really hurt. Keith responded,

1481
01:35:10.239 --> 01:35:13.760
the ankle incident was scary, but is it fair to

1482
01:35:13.800 --> 01:35:17.840
curse someone else with this? What if something worse happens

1483
01:35:17.880 --> 01:35:21.880
to them? Sarah asked, what if they knew it was haunted,

1484
01:35:22.479 --> 01:35:27.159
would it be okay? Then Keith asked, yeah, then they

1485
01:35:27.199 --> 01:35:30.359
know what they're getting into. I think that would be fair.

1486
01:35:30.920 --> 01:35:35.319
Sarah responded with that. Keith changed the title of the

1487
01:35:35.359 --> 01:35:40.880
listing to haunted ceramic bowl scary item. Then in the

1488
01:35:40.960 --> 01:35:44.720
description he wrote about what had happened to them. Then

1489
01:35:44.920 --> 01:35:48.239
something told him to list the item higher, asking one

1490
01:35:48.319 --> 01:35:51.800
hundred and fifty dollars instead of eight dollars would make

1491
01:35:51.880 --> 01:35:56.920
it feel more legitimate. An hour later, the item sold.

1492
01:35:57.720 --> 01:36:00.800
The next day they mailed the package off, and they

1493
01:36:00.840 --> 01:36:05.319
never saw the ceramic bowl or the ghost again. With

1494
01:36:05.439 --> 01:36:08.119
the one hundred and fifty dollars, they bought a new

1495
01:36:08.199 --> 01:36:12.920
vacuum cleaner and swore off thrifting, antiquing, and all yard

1496
01:36:12.960 --> 01:36:25.239
sales from then on out. Lucian, Grayshire and the Ghost

1497
01:36:25.319 --> 01:36:32.920
from Applebee's by L. F. Falconer. The three young girls

1498
01:36:32.920 --> 01:36:37.600
in the corner booth continued to stare, not due to rudeness,

1499
01:36:37.920 --> 01:36:44.840
Lucian determined merely out of morbid curiosity. Their parents attempted

1500
01:36:44.880 --> 01:36:48.760
to be more furative in their sidelong glances and struggled

1501
01:36:48.760 --> 01:36:54.000
with useless, hushed commands to curtail their daughter's blatant surveillance.

1502
01:36:54.840 --> 01:36:58.600
Lucian no longer cared. With three quarters of his body

1503
01:36:58.720 --> 01:37:02.479
severely scarred from house fire he'd survived as a child

1504
01:37:02.520 --> 01:37:06.680
forty years ago. He'd grown hardened to the horrified scrutiny

1505
01:37:06.720 --> 01:37:11.560
of others, the secretive glimpses, the whispers behind his back.

1506
01:37:12.199 --> 01:37:16.399
At one time his disfigurements brought him shame. Now he

1507
01:37:16.520 --> 01:37:21.680
wore these scars with honor, deeming his outer grotesqueness more

1508
01:37:21.800 --> 01:37:26.600
valuable than his business card. A man no one truly

1509
01:37:26.680 --> 01:37:31.239
wanted to see, yet one not so easily forgotten. If

1510
01:37:31.279 --> 01:37:35.560
he caused anyone nightmares along his journey through life, he

1511
01:37:35.720 --> 01:37:39.239
lost no sleep over it. Harried to the point of

1512
01:37:39.279 --> 01:37:43.000
distraction by their children, the two adults in the corner

1513
01:37:43.079 --> 01:37:46.560
booth remained oblivious to the fact that half their current

1514
01:37:46.640 --> 01:37:50.239
troubles were caused by the antics of the youthful poltergeist.

1515
01:37:50.600 --> 01:37:54.920
Hovering above their table. A spilled glass of milk, the

1516
01:37:55.000 --> 01:37:57.800
forks fallen to the floor, the plate of French fries

1517
01:37:57.840 --> 01:38:00.760
toppled onto the youngest girl's lap had nothing to do

1518
01:38:00.840 --> 01:38:05.000
with the carelessness of rambunctious children, and at this moment

1519
01:38:05.479 --> 01:38:09.159
the ghost was ever so slowly unscrewing the cap on

1520
01:38:09.279 --> 01:38:13.680
the salt shaker, Lucian savored the final bite of his

1521
01:38:13.800 --> 01:38:17.800
lemon chicken, then dabbed his napkin over the thin lips

1522
01:38:17.880 --> 01:38:21.840
below the cartoliginous remnants of his nose. He rose to

1523
01:38:21.880 --> 01:38:24.560
his feet and placed enough cash on his meal check

1524
01:38:24.760 --> 01:38:27.319
to cover his lunch, as well as a generous tip.

1525
01:38:28.199 --> 01:38:31.800
In response to his appearance, the server had neither bulked

1526
01:38:31.880 --> 01:38:36.279
nor over compensated. Shrugging on his wool jacket. He took

1527
01:38:36.399 --> 01:38:39.640
pity on the beleaguered parents in their challenge to maintain

1528
01:38:39.680 --> 01:38:43.760
a sense of decorum amid the chaos, especially as the

1529
01:38:43.840 --> 01:38:46.640
children's father had just ruined his own meal with a

1530
01:38:46.640 --> 01:38:51.840
full shaker of salt spilled upon it. The poltergeist above

1531
01:38:51.920 --> 01:38:57.960
the table glowed in rapid pulses of jade green. Leaving

1532
01:38:58.000 --> 01:39:01.119
his table, Lucian limped to directly to the booth the

1533
01:39:01.159 --> 01:39:06.159
family occupied. Everyone at the table fell transfixed, as if

1534
01:39:06.199 --> 01:39:08.720
they'd all just been caught with their hands in the

1535
01:39:08.800 --> 01:39:13.720
till Lucian greeted them with a courteous bow, good afternoon.

1536
01:39:14.399 --> 01:39:17.479
He raised his one good eye to acknowledge the ghost

1537
01:39:17.760 --> 01:39:23.399
hovering above bemusedly. The ghost cocked an eyebrow, then darted

1538
01:39:23.399 --> 01:39:26.359
to the left side of the table, taking refuge behind

1539
01:39:26.399 --> 01:39:32.159
a potted imitation philodendron. Lucian straightened his gaunt frame and

1540
01:39:32.199 --> 01:39:36.199
withdrew a business card from his inner jacket pocket. Allow

1541
01:39:36.239 --> 01:39:40.439
me to introduce myself. I am Lucian, Greyshire, and I

1542
01:39:40.520 --> 01:39:44.079
have a business proposal if you'd be interested. He handed

1543
01:39:44.119 --> 01:39:47.720
his card to the father, then glanced over at the ghost,

1544
01:39:47.720 --> 01:39:51.119
who peeked through the kelly green leaves, giving the young

1545
01:39:51.199 --> 01:39:54.920
shade a polite nod. The man at the table seemed

1546
01:39:54.960 --> 01:39:58.239
hesitant to accept the card, but once he took it

1547
01:39:58.279 --> 01:40:02.600
into his possession, scanned it out loud. Let the dead

1548
01:40:02.680 --> 01:40:09.159
bring your party to life. Grayshire Incorporated Unique Halloween Entertainment Services.

1549
01:40:09.840 --> 01:40:14.439
He looked up at Lucian with knitted brows. What's this about.

1550
01:40:15.479 --> 01:40:19.239
I'm in need of an assistant events coordinator. Lucian glanced

1551
01:40:19.239 --> 01:40:22.600
back over at the ghost. If you're interested, meet me

1552
01:40:22.640 --> 01:40:25.399
in the park across the street within the hour. He

1553
01:40:25.600 --> 01:40:29.119
kept his one eyed gaze on the ghost. I already

1554
01:40:29.119 --> 01:40:31.640
have a job. The man at the table tried to

1555
01:40:31.680 --> 01:40:35.079
hand the business card back, but Lucian stepped away from

1556
01:40:35.079 --> 01:40:39.119
the table and gave another slight bow. I'll be waiting

1557
01:40:39.159 --> 01:40:42.800
should you be interested. His papery lips smiled at the

1558
01:40:42.840 --> 01:40:48.039
ghost before he turned and departed the restaurant. A somber

1559
01:40:48.119 --> 01:40:52.920
sky loomed above gray, with pewter clouds billowing like dust.

1560
01:40:53.720 --> 01:40:57.680
Lucian breathed deeply of the air, still wet from last

1561
01:40:57.760 --> 01:41:02.439
night's tempest and laced with faint hints of pine, damp, bark,

1562
01:41:02.800 --> 01:41:07.000
and blight. Dying boughs and limbs, ripped from their hosts

1563
01:41:07.079 --> 01:41:11.920
and tossed haphazardly by the uncarrying gale, littered the park's greensward.

1564
01:41:12.560 --> 01:41:16.880
Lucian blessed the previous night's storm. The howling winds had

1565
01:41:16.920 --> 01:41:23.439
covered every muffled scream. The man's name had been Daniel.

1566
01:41:24.039 --> 01:41:28.600
He was sixty seven years old, and now he was dead.

1567
01:41:29.399 --> 01:41:34.319
October leaves in per simmon amber and blood crunched beneath

1568
01:41:34.399 --> 01:41:39.840
Lucian's feet, while crisp, lake eerie air nipped at his exposed,

1569
01:41:39.880 --> 01:41:44.359
disfigured flesh. He settled onto a park bench, his muscles

1570
01:41:44.399 --> 01:41:49.560
aching strained from last night's activities. Out of his jacket pocket,

1571
01:41:49.800 --> 01:41:54.279
he removed a well used paperback copy of Peter Nichols

1572
01:41:54.359 --> 01:41:58.159
a day in the Death of Joe Egg. He'd barely

1573
01:41:58.239 --> 01:42:03.079
read three pages, and an adolescent apparition tentatively drifted near

1574
01:42:04.119 --> 01:42:07.720
Lucian looked up from his book. Though little more than

1575
01:42:07.760 --> 01:42:12.239
a translucent shadow. The ghost featured a clinging, wet t shirt,

1576
01:42:12.720 --> 01:42:16.640
dark jeans, and high top athletic shoes. He looked to

1577
01:42:16.680 --> 01:42:19.560
have been maybe fifteen or sixteen at the time of

1578
01:42:19.600 --> 01:42:24.119
his death, his dark, damp ribbons of hair plastered against

1579
01:42:24.119 --> 01:42:28.239
his skull. Last night's events flickered through Lucian's mind in

1580
01:42:28.359 --> 01:42:32.319
high speed clips. Cold waters whipped to a frenzy by

1581
01:42:32.560 --> 01:42:37.039
boisterous wind, Daniel's hand clawing at Lucian's own as he

1582
01:42:37.119 --> 01:42:41.600
gurgled within the spume, the young shades scooted swiftly to

1583
01:42:41.680 --> 01:42:45.760
the left with a steady gaze. Lucian's good eye trailed

1584
01:42:45.800 --> 01:42:49.720
the movement. The shade darted back to the right, still

1585
01:42:49.800 --> 01:42:55.079
fixed beneath Lucian's magnetic stare, the ghost took a minor

1586
01:42:55.119 --> 01:43:01.640
step closer. You can really say, may Lucian closed his book? Indeed,

1587
01:43:03.359 --> 01:43:07.079
was this job offer really for me or for him?

1588
01:43:07.760 --> 01:43:10.279
The ghost jerked his head in the direction of the

1589
01:43:10.319 --> 01:43:14.840
restaurant across the street for you. Of course, I thought

1590
01:43:14.880 --> 01:43:18.479
i'd made that pretty clear. You was a bit fuzzy, mate.

1591
01:43:19.439 --> 01:43:22.039
I believe it would have been awkward to speak to

1592
01:43:22.079 --> 01:43:24.960
you directly when it's only I who am aware of

1593
01:43:24.960 --> 01:43:28.319
your presence. I'm not certain why you're trying to pull

1594
01:43:28.319 --> 01:43:31.600
off a phony accent. I happen to know you're an American.

1595
01:43:32.239 --> 01:43:36.399
The ghost took a step back, crossing his arms. And

1596
01:43:36.479 --> 01:43:41.880
what makes you so smart? Huh, Lucian winked his sighted eye.

1597
01:43:42.199 --> 01:43:46.479
I know many things. It's what I do. The ghost

1598
01:43:46.640 --> 01:43:50.000
jutted his chin forward. But I guess you don't know

1599
01:43:50.159 --> 01:43:54.960
my Mum's Canadian. Lucian flipped his jacket collar up to

1600
01:43:55.039 --> 01:43:58.359
keep the lake chilled air off his neck. Point taken.

1601
01:43:58.720 --> 01:44:02.359
But that's neither here or there. The important thing is

1602
01:44:02.359 --> 01:44:05.800
that you've come. You may call me Lucian, and what

1603
01:44:05.960 --> 01:44:10.119
may I call you? Anything you like? I suppose in

1604
01:44:10.199 --> 01:44:13.800
another life I believe they called me Patrick, but can't

1605
01:44:13.800 --> 01:44:16.479
recall the last time I heard the name. Could just

1606
01:44:16.520 --> 01:44:19.279
be a name I like. I don't know. There's not

1607
01:44:19.399 --> 01:44:23.159
much about life I can remember. He relaxed, looking Lucian

1608
01:44:23.239 --> 01:44:26.399
directly in the eye. It's kind of like a shattered

1609
01:44:26.439 --> 01:44:30.119
mirror life, I mean, my life, and I'm afraid if

1610
01:44:30.159 --> 01:44:32.680
I try to put the pieces back together, I might

1611
01:44:32.720 --> 01:44:35.600
not like what I see, other than looking like a

1612
01:44:35.680 --> 01:44:39.680
drowned rat. You're not a bad looking fellow, The ghost

1613
01:44:39.720 --> 01:44:43.479
faded slightly. It's not about my looks. I'm invisible, unlike you,

1614
01:44:44.079 --> 01:44:48.720
meaning no offense. But dude, really, Lucian shook his head.

1615
01:44:49.279 --> 01:44:52.159
No offense taken, and there's no need to pick up

1616
01:44:52.159 --> 01:44:55.399
the pieces. It could do you no good. Now, He

1617
01:44:55.520 --> 01:44:59.520
swiftly caught a wayward breeze blown newspaper page beneath his foot,

1618
01:45:00.039 --> 01:45:03.760
anchoring it to the ground. Patrick, it is then the

1619
01:45:03.840 --> 01:45:08.119
name suits you, so tell me, Patrick, would you like

1620
01:45:08.199 --> 01:45:12.800
the job? Patrick settled onto the seat beside him. What's

1621
01:45:12.800 --> 01:45:15.039
in it for me? I'm free to come and go

1622
01:45:15.079 --> 01:45:17.880
as I please and don't have to answer to anyone.

1623
01:45:18.199 --> 01:45:22.600
I dare say. You're rather bored and lonely, Lucian thought,

1624
01:45:23.039 --> 01:45:26.680
a feeling he knew too well, being little more than

1625
01:45:26.680 --> 01:45:30.159
a living wraith himself. But what a pitiful way to

1626
01:45:30.199 --> 01:45:35.279
spend eternity, tormenting children in a restaurant and an Applebee's

1627
01:45:35.319 --> 01:45:38.880
no less Ah, that's why you're wrong, mate. I've no

1628
01:45:39.039 --> 01:45:41.840
ties to the restaurant, and I wasn't tormenting the children.

1629
01:45:42.279 --> 01:45:46.239
I was tormenting the parents. You hold a grudge against parents,

1630
01:45:46.239 --> 01:45:49.479
do you? It would seem that way now, wouldn't it.

1631
01:45:49.560 --> 01:45:52.359
But I can't say for share. Could just be something

1632
01:45:52.399 --> 01:45:54.960
I do for kicks, you know, probably one of those

1633
01:45:55.359 --> 01:46:00.239
broken pieces. Patrick leaned forward, elbows on his knees. So

1634
01:46:00.640 --> 01:46:03.760
how come you can see me and hear me when

1635
01:46:03.800 --> 01:46:07.279
no one else can. The crackle of flames and the

1636
01:46:07.319 --> 01:46:12.520
smell of charred wood inundated Lucian's memory, smoke billowing beneath

1637
01:46:12.560 --> 01:46:16.520
the locked bedroom door. On the other side, his father shouts,

1638
01:46:17.079 --> 01:46:23.680
heavy footfalls, leaving help me, Daddy. Lucian's frantic cries, eyes

1639
01:46:23.760 --> 01:46:27.880
burning throat, constricting, hot smoke wrapping him in a shroud.

1640
01:46:29.000 --> 01:46:32.840
I was dead once myself, he admitted, glancing over at

1641
01:46:32.840 --> 01:46:37.680
the ghost beside him. A fireman resuscitated me. He had

1642
01:46:37.680 --> 01:46:40.600
been brought back to life. His mother and brother had

1643
01:46:40.640 --> 01:46:43.840
been more fortunate, not having to live the ordeal over

1644
01:46:44.359 --> 01:46:49.560
and over and over again. The nightmares had long ago disappeared,

1645
01:46:49.600 --> 01:46:54.640
making way for vivid waking memories. Patrick straightened in his seat.

1646
01:46:55.439 --> 01:46:58.760
That's how you got all them scars. Eh, that's rough man,

1647
01:46:59.239 --> 01:47:02.159
But that don't explain much. Other folks have been resuscitated,

1648
01:47:02.680 --> 01:47:06.079
but no one's ever seen me before, So why you.

1649
01:47:07.079 --> 01:47:09.920
For nearly a year during my recovery, I remained in

1650
01:47:09.920 --> 01:47:13.079
a state of flux, or half life, if you will.

1651
01:47:14.079 --> 01:47:17.199
Forced against his will, into a world of forgotten shadows,

1652
01:47:17.279 --> 01:47:20.800
Lucian continued to keep one foot in reality and the

1653
01:47:20.840 --> 01:47:23.840
other foot in the grave. A part of me still

1654
01:47:23.920 --> 01:47:27.239
dwells in the realm of lost souls. Some people might

1655
01:47:27.279 --> 01:47:30.359
consider that a curse, but I view it as a

1656
01:47:30.439 --> 01:47:33.840
unique gift. For I am in a position to offer

1657
01:47:33.880 --> 01:47:39.840
those in limbo some comfort. Limbo sucks, especially if you're invisible.

1658
01:47:40.439 --> 01:47:44.520
Patrick's voice broke upon his words. It was impossible to

1659
01:47:44.520 --> 01:47:47.800
give the boy a hug. Lucian had to rely on speech.

1660
01:47:48.520 --> 01:47:51.319
That's why you feel compelled to cause chaos. It's the

1661
01:47:51.359 --> 01:47:56.640
only way you can validate your dismal existence. Patrick leaned back,

1662
01:47:56.920 --> 01:48:00.199
clasped his hands, and twiddled his thumbs, staring at up

1663
01:48:00.199 --> 01:48:04.720
at the steely, cloud studded sky. A pair of starlings roosted,

1664
01:48:05.079 --> 01:48:09.239
chattering quietly in the bare tree tops above. Patrick shot

1665
01:48:09.319 --> 01:48:12.239
up like a rocket and thumped the branch, startling the

1666
01:48:12.239 --> 01:48:16.000
birds into flight. As Patrick settled back onto the bench

1667
01:48:16.079 --> 01:48:19.319
beside him, Lucian stowed his book away in his pocket.

1668
01:48:20.439 --> 01:48:23.560
What I'm offering you, Patrick, is a chance to do

1669
01:48:23.640 --> 01:48:27.000
something productive with your existence. I could use a man

1670
01:48:27.039 --> 01:48:30.640
of your talents. I have no talent, but you do.

1671
01:48:31.720 --> 01:48:35.359
Very few spirits have the ability to move objects. I

1672
01:48:35.359 --> 01:48:37.359
can only do it if they're not too heavy. I

1673
01:48:37.399 --> 01:48:40.319
can't budge anything over a couple of pounds. And I

1674
01:48:40.319 --> 01:48:43.560
don't know why you'd want a limbo ghost anyway, where

1675
01:48:43.640 --> 01:48:48.279
a pathetic bunch nowhere to go, nothing to do, bored

1676
01:48:48.439 --> 01:48:52.319
like you said, and boring to boot. I can do

1677
01:48:52.399 --> 01:48:55.439
nothing about whatever is holding you here, but I can

1678
01:48:55.600 --> 01:48:58.720
offer you a sense of purpose. After tomorrow, I'll be

1679
01:48:58.760 --> 01:49:02.640
moving on. This is an opportunity you may never come

1680
01:49:02.680 --> 01:49:06.680
across again. Patrick kicked at the leaves below his feet,

1681
01:49:07.079 --> 01:49:11.159
swirling them in a colorful dance upon the sidewalk, doing

1682
01:49:11.239 --> 01:49:16.279
what exactly? Helping me and my endeavors, that's all? What

1683
01:49:16.439 --> 01:49:21.960
kind of endeavors? What do you do? Besides no? Many things? Well,

1684
01:49:22.000 --> 01:49:26.199
for one, I throw parties, huge Halloween parties for the

1685
01:49:26.199 --> 01:49:31.560
filthy rich, excruciating extravaganzas. Really, but I always deliver on

1686
01:49:31.640 --> 01:49:37.159
my client's contracts, and they're willing to pay me quite well. Parties, huh,

1687
01:49:37.800 --> 01:49:40.199
I think there's more to it than that. You said

1688
01:49:40.279 --> 01:49:45.840
for one, So what's for two? Talented and attentive? Even better,

1689
01:49:46.000 --> 01:49:49.479
Lucian thought, allowing his good eye to wander the immediate

1690
01:49:49.560 --> 01:49:53.239
vicinity for a moment. The thread of more stormy weather

1691
01:49:53.399 --> 01:49:57.119
kept the park relatively deserted. Insured there was no one

1692
01:49:57.159 --> 01:50:03.239
near by, he quietly confided. For two, I kill people.

1693
01:50:04.079 --> 01:50:07.560
Patrick sprang from the bench. Hold a minute, He raised

1694
01:50:07.560 --> 01:50:10.000
his hand in a stop action and took a step back.

1695
01:50:10.760 --> 01:50:13.479
Tormenting folks is one thing, but I want no part

1696
01:50:13.479 --> 01:50:18.640
in killing innocence. Unapologetically, Lucian stared up at him. Only

1697
01:50:18.760 --> 01:50:21.720
children are innocent. The rest of us are all guilty

1698
01:50:21.720 --> 01:50:26.159
of something. Think of me as an extension of justice.

1699
01:50:26.199 --> 01:50:28.760
Are you like some kind of hit man? Or do

1700
01:50:28.920 --> 01:50:34.680
people only pay you for parties? Lucian hesitated momentarily. I

1701
01:50:34.720 --> 01:50:38.119
do get paid for hosting parties quite well, in fact,

1702
01:50:38.520 --> 01:50:41.640
Yet there are some clients who request an extra dash

1703
01:50:41.680 --> 01:50:45.640
of pepper on their salad, so to speak. Patrick paced

1704
01:50:45.680 --> 01:50:49.199
the concrete, stirring the leaves beneath his feet, back into action.

1705
01:50:50.079 --> 01:50:53.239
I dunno, mate, I start doing real harm to folks.

1706
01:50:53.279 --> 01:50:55.439
The next thing you know, I'm yanked straight into hell.

1707
01:50:56.239 --> 01:51:00.600
Lucian folded his gnarled hands, His sightless eye gleamed dully

1708
01:51:00.800 --> 01:51:04.000
in the muted daylight. I would never ask you to

1709
01:51:04.039 --> 01:51:09.760
harm anyone. That pleasure is reserved for me and me alone.

1710
01:51:09.840 --> 01:51:13.479
I simply need help in orchestrating my events, hence the

1711
01:51:13.600 --> 01:51:19.039
job title of assistant events coordinator. Your soul and conscience

1712
01:51:19.600 --> 01:51:24.079
remain unsullied. A young couple holding hands strolled by, giving

1713
01:51:24.159 --> 01:51:28.079
Lucian a wide berth. They passed through Patrick, causing him

1714
01:51:28.119 --> 01:51:32.239
to fade in and out. He stopped pacing and lunged

1715
01:51:32.319 --> 01:51:36.239
towards Lucian. Ripping the newspaper page from beneath his foot,

1716
01:51:36.600 --> 01:51:38.479
He swatted the couple with it on the back of

1717
01:51:38.520 --> 01:51:42.039
their heads before setting the page free in the breeze.

1718
01:51:42.079 --> 01:51:46.199
His bone colored face distorted by deep thought, he swept

1719
01:51:46.239 --> 01:51:50.159
back to Lucian's side. I'm still not sure this is

1720
01:51:50.159 --> 01:51:52.520
something I should be taking pot in, if you know

1721
01:51:52.560 --> 01:51:57.079
what I mean, he muttered, the killing pot. I understand

1722
01:51:57.079 --> 01:52:01.159
your concerns, Patrick, yet you seem to enjoy tormenting the living,

1723
01:52:01.239 --> 01:52:03.520
and that's all I would ever expect you to do

1724
01:52:04.359 --> 01:52:07.560
during the party. Would you be willing to give it

1725
01:52:07.600 --> 01:52:10.439
a trial run? I have an event scheduled tomorrow night

1726
01:52:10.479 --> 01:52:14.640
at Gates Hotel, a party at the Gates. Patrick snorted

1727
01:52:14.720 --> 01:52:17.279
and took a step back. While that should be a hoot.

1728
01:52:17.960 --> 01:52:20.960
Those two snobby sisters there don't much care for company,

1729
01:52:21.199 --> 01:52:24.159
dead or alive, carrying on like the world belongs to

1730
01:52:24.199 --> 01:52:29.239
only them. That's odd, Lucian said, I found them to

1731
01:52:29.239 --> 01:52:33.079
be rather charming. It had been those sisters who'd led

1732
01:52:33.159 --> 01:52:36.000
him to Patrick, who told him of the boy's talent

1733
01:52:36.399 --> 01:52:40.720
and revealed the details of his untimely death. And since

1734
01:52:40.760 --> 01:52:44.359
the hotel is slated to be raised before Christmas, Jasmine

1735
01:52:44.399 --> 01:52:47.039
and Ruby have graciously agreed to help me host this

1736
01:52:47.159 --> 01:52:51.640
year's event. One last hurrah for them. So to speak

1737
01:52:52.520 --> 01:52:55.159
with them, two, you've already got the best. What do

1738
01:52:55.159 --> 01:52:59.239
you need me for, Lucian spoke with a smile. The

1739
01:52:59.319 --> 01:53:03.359
sisters made capable of vivid manifestation and bone chilling audio,

1740
01:53:04.000 --> 01:53:07.680
but they cannot move things. The party guests will be

1741
01:53:07.720 --> 01:53:12.039
expecting a magnificent haunted experience. I prefer to give them

1742
01:53:12.039 --> 01:53:16.520
a night to truly remember. A green aura glowed from within,

1743
01:53:16.720 --> 01:53:20.840
and Patrick smiled. Most of these people are parents, right,

1744
01:53:21.760 --> 01:53:24.560
I would assume so, and I don't have to take

1745
01:53:24.560 --> 01:53:29.439
part in no killing. Lucian nodded, rest assured that contract

1746
01:53:29.439 --> 01:53:34.399
has already been completed. A small white lie. Sometimes a

1747
01:53:34.439 --> 01:53:38.399
party was simply a party and a target, a deliciously

1748
01:53:38.479 --> 01:53:43.560
convenient coincidence. Patrick gusted across the sidewalk, knocking the hat

1749
01:53:43.600 --> 01:53:47.039
off the woman pushing a baby carriage, then sidled back

1750
01:53:47.079 --> 01:53:50.880
to Lucian's side. Can I ask who it was? No,

1751
01:53:51.159 --> 01:53:55.039
you may not not even a clue. Lucian ran a

1752
01:53:55.119 --> 01:53:59.279
ragged finger across the thinly stretched skin of his missing lips,

1753
01:53:59.600 --> 01:54:03.079
as if zipping them shut. There was no need to

1754
01:54:03.119 --> 01:54:06.840
tell the lad it had been his father. Lucian's own

1755
01:54:06.880 --> 01:54:10.600
father may have been unsuccessful, but Patrick's had seen the

1756
01:54:10.640 --> 01:54:14.359
deed through. For thirty years, Patrick has wandered in the

1757
01:54:14.399 --> 01:54:18.439
realm of lost souls, and last night, the father, like

1758
01:54:18.560 --> 01:54:23.159
the sun, unwillingly surrendered his life within the cold, dark

1759
01:54:23.279 --> 01:54:28.319
waters of Lake Erie. He wondered, had Patrick fought as

1760
01:54:28.359 --> 01:54:32.560
hard to survive as Daniel had. Lucian rose from the

1761
01:54:32.600 --> 01:54:36.359
bench stick with me, Patrick, and I promise you will

1762
01:54:36.399 --> 01:54:38.840
never be forced to carry the burdens of my sin.

1763
01:54:39.720 --> 01:54:43.800
Now shall we go. There's a pair of fine nineteenth

1764
01:54:43.800 --> 01:54:47.960
century sisters i'd like you to meet. Lucian limped down

1765
01:54:48.000 --> 01:54:52.640
the walkway, the leaves beside him swirling in a kaleidoscopic

1766
01:54:52.760 --> 01:55:09.199
dance in the woods. By Bruce Haney. Dear Sarah, I

1767
01:55:09.239 --> 01:55:12.479
hope you never have to read this letter. You know

1768
01:55:12.640 --> 01:55:17.560
all my stories and secrets, except for this incident. I

1769
01:55:17.680 --> 01:55:20.159
never told you about it because I don't like to

1770
01:55:20.199 --> 01:55:23.840
think about it. Even in my own mind. I try

1771
01:55:23.920 --> 01:55:27.760
to pretend like it never happened. The sights I saw

1772
01:55:27.960 --> 01:55:32.800
feel impossible to have been true. It was in my

1773
01:55:32.920 --> 01:55:37.560
twenty seventh year that I came upon that house. It

1774
01:55:37.680 --> 01:55:40.920
was while I was hiking alone in the Alder Creek forest.

1775
01:55:42.079 --> 01:55:45.560
Rumor had it that an old, abandoned village was deep

1776
01:55:45.600 --> 01:55:49.439
in the woods, a village whose prosperous years ended some

1777
01:55:49.880 --> 01:55:53.319
hundreds of years ago, when the town of Shaniko became

1778
01:55:53.399 --> 01:55:56.600
the wool capital of the world, and no one needed

1779
01:55:56.600 --> 01:56:00.880
the wool from the town of Alder any longer. A

1780
01:56:00.960 --> 01:56:04.520
similar thing happened at Schenikoh a few years later, when

1781
01:56:04.520 --> 01:56:09.800
people again found wool cheaper elsewhere. But that is not

1782
01:56:10.000 --> 01:56:16.399
this story. That isn't my story. My story is about

1783
01:56:16.399 --> 01:56:21.239
the first time I searched for alder and found a

1784
01:56:21.319 --> 01:56:26.159
different place, one not found on any map, A place

1785
01:56:26.239 --> 01:56:31.960
I plan on going again tomorrow. But before I go,

1786
01:56:32.680 --> 01:56:35.439
I felt I should write up my experience in case

1787
01:56:35.520 --> 01:56:39.840
I don't make it back. I am writing this just

1788
01:56:39.880 --> 01:56:43.520
so that you know what happened. I plead to you,

1789
01:56:44.560 --> 01:56:47.359
do not come to look for me or send any

1790
01:56:47.359 --> 01:56:52.239
one to find me. As I told you before, it

1791
01:56:52.319 --> 01:56:55.319
was many years ago that I ventured into these woods.

1792
01:56:56.239 --> 01:56:59.000
I hope that enough time has passed since I was

1793
01:56:59.079 --> 01:57:03.720
last out there that it will now be safe. Because

1794
01:57:03.760 --> 01:57:07.399
I am in desperate need of what I found out there.

1795
01:57:08.840 --> 01:57:12.880
I could save you, dear, Only for you, would I

1796
01:57:12.920 --> 01:57:17.600
ever think of entering into those woods again, only the

1797
01:57:17.720 --> 01:57:21.920
love I have for you. I am scared of how

1798
01:57:21.960 --> 01:57:26.039
scared I am even to write this down. I am trembling,

1799
01:57:26.520 --> 01:57:29.079
but I must get this written, as the night is

1800
01:57:29.199 --> 01:57:32.560
passing so quickly, and soon it shall be time to

1801
01:57:32.640 --> 01:57:38.239
journey once again into those woods. It was a bright

1802
01:57:38.640 --> 01:57:42.239
sunny day when I first went looking for Alder, and

1803
01:57:42.319 --> 01:57:46.359
I was feeling quite optimistic about my journey. I brought

1804
01:57:46.399 --> 01:57:49.640
my pack a small tent, and I was using a

1805
01:57:49.680 --> 01:57:53.239
map I found in an old book called Ghost Towns

1806
01:57:53.279 --> 01:57:57.439
of the Northwest to guide me. I mentioned the town

1807
01:57:57.520 --> 01:58:02.159
of Alder, but I never actually found I got lost

1808
01:58:02.239 --> 01:58:05.359
and way off track. I worried that I was lost,

1809
01:58:05.399 --> 01:58:07.840
as I had walked at least three miles past the

1810
01:58:07.920 --> 01:58:11.800
distance I was supposed to have been walking. It was

1811
01:58:11.800 --> 01:58:16.159
getting near dark when I came across something peculiar. All

1812
01:58:16.199 --> 01:58:19.960
the way out there, deep in the woods where no

1813
01:58:20.159 --> 01:58:26.039
man would need to wander, I came across a carved

1814
01:58:26.199 --> 01:58:30.439
jack o lantern. It was a misshapen pumpkin. It was

1815
01:58:30.560 --> 01:58:33.359
taller than it was round, much like a human head,

1816
01:58:33.399 --> 01:58:37.760
but larger overall. It was oddly shaped and more bulbous

1817
01:58:37.800 --> 01:58:40.840
on the left than the right, which made its single

1818
01:58:40.960 --> 01:58:44.399
tooth smile look like the grotesque rotten mouth of an

1819
01:58:44.439 --> 01:58:48.319
elderly man who was suffered a stroke. Inside, I could

1820
01:58:48.399 --> 01:58:52.479
see something shiny. My curiosity took hold of me, and

1821
01:58:52.560 --> 01:58:55.479
I bent down to give the ugly thing a closer look.

1822
01:58:57.840 --> 01:59:00.840
The first thing I noticed was the eyes, unlike any

1823
01:59:00.880 --> 01:59:04.479
I had ever seen carved into a gourd before. Each

1824
01:59:04.560 --> 01:59:08.000
spot where an eye would be was four holes, giving

1825
01:59:08.000 --> 01:59:12.479
it the appearance of having eight eyes. After examining the

1826
01:59:12.560 --> 01:59:15.439
mouth and then the eyes, I looked upon the nose

1827
01:59:15.520 --> 01:59:20.399
with greater concentration. Something seemed off. When I touched it,

1828
01:59:20.720 --> 01:59:25.319
I noticed some movement behind. Before I could react, I

1829
01:59:25.399 --> 01:59:29.640
realized what it was, but it was too late. The

1830
01:59:29.680 --> 01:59:33.159
pumpkin was home to a nest of spiders that quickly

1831
01:59:33.199 --> 01:59:36.239
made their escape out of the pumpkin and up my arm.

1832
01:59:36.720 --> 01:59:38.920
I ripped off my coat and threw it as far

1833
01:59:39.000 --> 01:59:41.920
as I could before starting the task of wiping off

1834
01:59:41.960 --> 01:59:47.439
the remaining spiders from my arm. Then I stopped because

1835
01:59:47.479 --> 01:59:51.079
I was stunned. I glanced at the pumpkin and saw

1836
01:59:51.359 --> 01:59:54.199
that the top of it was rising up and off.

1837
01:59:55.439 --> 01:59:57.399
I was in such a state of fear that I

1838
01:59:57.520 --> 02:00:01.239
just stood there watching while a giant spot squeezed out

1839
02:00:01.279 --> 02:00:04.640
of the pumpkin. It was the scariest thing I had

1840
02:00:04.680 --> 02:00:08.840
ever seen up to that point. Imagine a black spider

1841
02:00:08.920 --> 02:00:12.279
the size of a baseball glove that is dripping with

1842
02:00:12.439 --> 02:00:16.920
pumpkin guts. I continued to stare until the spider turned

1843
02:00:17.600 --> 02:00:20.760
and looked right at me. I must have run two

1844
02:00:20.920 --> 02:00:24.239
miles before I finally felt safe enough to stop, and

1845
02:00:24.319 --> 02:00:27.199
then I only stopped long enough to catch my breath.

1846
02:00:28.079 --> 02:00:30.399
Now that I was even deeper in the woods and

1847
02:00:30.640 --> 02:00:34.079
completely lost, I decided it was best to try to

1848
02:00:34.159 --> 02:00:37.439
head back out of the woods. I could find older

1849
02:00:37.560 --> 02:00:41.159
another time. I figured it would be about three hours

1850
02:00:41.199 --> 02:00:43.760
of hiking to get back to where I had entered

1851
02:00:43.760 --> 02:00:48.319
the woods, but after walking one hundred feet back, fog

1852
02:00:48.479 --> 02:00:52.399
rolled in all around me. It would have been truly

1853
02:00:52.520 --> 02:00:54.920
foolish to try to find my way back through the

1854
02:00:54.960 --> 02:00:59.479
dense mist, So with disappointment, I gave up on trying

1855
02:00:59.479 --> 02:01:01.840
to make it out of the woods. That night, I

1856
02:01:01.880 --> 02:01:05.159
set up my small tent and climbed inside, and right

1857
02:01:05.239 --> 02:01:10.920
before I went to sleep, I remember thinking, God, please

1858
02:01:11.000 --> 02:01:14.760
don't let that spider find its way to me. I

1859
02:01:14.840 --> 02:01:16.720
was awoken in the middle of the night when I

1860
02:01:16.760 --> 02:01:20.079
heard a sound that was much like a door slamming.

1861
02:01:20.840 --> 02:01:24.279
My brain was full of questions. Was that a car door?

1862
02:01:24.800 --> 02:01:27.159
Am I that close to the road? Am I so

1863
02:01:27.399 --> 02:01:30.439
lost that I'm nearly out of the woods. I broke

1864
02:01:30.479 --> 02:01:33.560
down my tent packed up and then made my way

1865
02:01:33.600 --> 02:01:38.039
towards the noise. Luckily, the fog had lifted some for

1866
02:01:38.119 --> 02:01:41.479
the moment at least. I started to think that maybe

1867
02:01:41.520 --> 02:01:44.680
the sound had just been in my head. But then

1868
02:01:44.760 --> 02:01:48.279
I saw a light in the distance. Then the scent

1869
02:01:48.399 --> 02:01:53.560
hit me. It was fire. Oh my god, the woods

1870
02:01:53.560 --> 02:01:56.640
are on fire. I thought they must be. I'm way

1871
02:01:56.680 --> 02:01:58.319
too far out in the woods for there to be

1872
02:01:58.399 --> 02:02:01.840
some one else out here. But of course there was

1873
02:02:01.920 --> 02:02:07.840
that horrible pumpkin. Someone had carved that ugly thing. I

1874
02:02:07.920 --> 02:02:11.680
walked slowly in the direction of the fire. Step by step,

1875
02:02:11.720 --> 02:02:14.960
I listened until I arrived just outside of the clearing

1876
02:02:15.520 --> 02:02:19.119
and the blaze of the fire. The woods were not

1877
02:02:19.279 --> 02:02:22.640
on fire. I was relieved that this was a human

1878
02:02:22.760 --> 02:02:27.479
created controlled fire. It wasn't that cold out, but I

1879
02:02:27.560 --> 02:02:30.840
certainly missed my coat, so I approached the fire and

1880
02:02:30.960 --> 02:02:34.319
stood there for a bit to warm up. I hadn't

1881
02:02:34.319 --> 02:02:38.039
seen a person yet, but I noticed other queer things around.

1882
02:02:38.760 --> 02:02:42.279
There was a chair that was crude in appearance. It

1883
02:02:42.359 --> 02:02:45.560
was made from scraps of trees. The base was a

1884
02:02:45.640 --> 02:02:48.920
log in the back support was made from branches nailed

1885
02:02:48.920 --> 02:02:53.279
to it. Behind the big flames of this bonfire, I

1886
02:02:53.319 --> 02:02:57.560
could see a house. Well, a house is a bit

1887
02:02:57.600 --> 02:03:01.119
of an exaggeration. It was somewhere in between a shack

1888
02:03:01.199 --> 02:03:04.199
and a house. I walked around the tree line to

1889
02:03:04.199 --> 02:03:07.359
get a better view of the structure. It was old.

1890
02:03:07.840 --> 02:03:11.319
The architecture was unlike anything I had ever seen. The

1891
02:03:11.439 --> 02:03:14.880
roof was completely flat, and the house had more windows

1892
02:03:14.920 --> 02:03:19.960
than walls, windows that fogged and cracked from age. Some

1893
02:03:20.159 --> 02:03:22.600
of the cracks in the windows had been filled with

1894
02:03:22.720 --> 02:03:27.119
dirt or clay. The place gave me the creeps, and

1895
02:03:27.199 --> 02:03:30.840
a feeling of dread swept over me, especially when I

1896
02:03:30.880 --> 02:03:35.159
spotted more of those jack o' lanterns. There must have

1897
02:03:35.239 --> 02:03:39.439
been a pumpkin patch around there somewhere. I was afraid

1898
02:03:39.439 --> 02:03:45.680
that they would contain more giant black spiders. God, I

1899
02:03:45.720 --> 02:03:48.640
may never sleep soundly again after this trip, I had thought.

1900
02:03:49.479 --> 02:03:53.479
Instead of running, I found myself approaching the house, thinking

1901
02:03:53.520 --> 02:03:56.159
that maybe the occupant could help me find my way

1902
02:03:56.199 --> 02:03:58.640
out of these woods, or at least provide a shelter

1903
02:03:58.760 --> 02:04:01.079
for the night where I wouldn't have to worry about

1904
02:04:01.720 --> 02:04:07.600
giant arachnids. Before knocking, I decided to peek through the window.

1905
02:04:08.760 --> 02:04:11.680
The inside was nicer than I would have imagined it

1906
02:04:11.760 --> 02:04:14.920
was filled with old furnishing, but not as weathered as

1907
02:04:14.960 --> 02:04:18.520
the outside of the house. An antique collector would be

1908
02:04:18.560 --> 02:04:22.199
ecstatic to come across such a find. There was a

1909
02:04:22.239 --> 02:04:25.840
beautiful old couch and chair set. Both were covered in

1910
02:04:25.960 --> 02:04:30.119
velvet with detailed carvings in the wood. There was also

1911
02:04:30.279 --> 02:04:33.239
what looked to be a solid oak table. But what

1912
02:04:33.439 --> 02:04:37.439
really drew me in was an ancient looking trunk that

1913
02:04:37.600 --> 02:04:41.079
was covered in tan leather, similar to the color of

1914
02:04:41.159 --> 02:04:45.880
human skin. It wasn't made with the same craftsmanship as

1915
02:04:45.880 --> 02:04:50.600
the other furnishings. The seams were big and black and

1916
02:04:50.680 --> 02:04:52.760
went all over the place like it was made from

1917
02:04:52.840 --> 02:04:56.880
scraps of skin. I was about to walk to the

1918
02:04:56.960 --> 02:05:00.680
door when I saw the inhabitant enter the room. I

1919
02:05:00.720 --> 02:05:03.359
could only see the right side of his face, but

1920
02:05:03.399 --> 02:05:05.920
the man looked as old as that trunk, with skin

1921
02:05:06.039 --> 02:05:09.920
that looked just as leathery. He had unkempt hair and

1922
02:05:10.000 --> 02:05:14.000
an even longer beard. He walked over and opened the trunk,

1923
02:05:14.279 --> 02:05:16.520
and inside it was full of what appeared to be

1924
02:05:17.319 --> 02:05:22.199
gold and silver coins. I stood there awe struck until

1925
02:05:22.239 --> 02:05:26.359
he turned to me. I was shocked by his appearance.

1926
02:05:27.159 --> 02:05:30.399
The right side of his face was sloped, just like

1927
02:05:30.479 --> 02:05:35.760
that pumpkin. His smile revealed just one tooth, and yes,

1928
02:05:36.720 --> 02:05:42.920
just like that pumpkin, he had eight eyes. I have

1929
02:05:43.079 --> 02:05:47.119
never been so scared in my life. That is until

1930
02:05:47.159 --> 02:05:50.439
a moment later when his extra two arms and two

1931
02:05:50.520 --> 02:05:53.600
legs sprung out of his body, tearing apart his fake

1932
02:05:53.720 --> 02:05:58.600
skin suit, revealing him to be a giant, ugly black spider.

1933
02:05:59.680 --> 02:06:03.319
I ran, I ran at an Olympic gold medal winning

1934
02:06:03.399 --> 02:06:06.640
pace out of those woods. When I finally got out,

1935
02:06:07.199 --> 02:06:10.640
I was miles from my car. I never went back

1936
02:06:10.680 --> 02:06:14.079
for that car, and I never went near those woods again.

1937
02:06:15.560 --> 02:06:17.880
I know a bigger man would have gone back for

1938
02:06:17.960 --> 02:06:21.680
all that gold, but it wasn't worth losing my life

1939
02:06:21.960 --> 02:06:25.920
or even just seeing that thing again. That was enough

1940
02:06:25.920 --> 02:06:33.399
of a deterrent. But now, Sarah, my wife, you are

1941
02:06:33.479 --> 02:06:36.880
sick and the operation is more than we can afford.

1942
02:06:37.000 --> 02:06:44.560
So this is my only choice. Really, it is no choice.

1943
02:06:44.720 --> 02:06:47.239
I love you more than I care for my own safety.

1944
02:06:48.439 --> 02:06:53.960
Hopefully I make it back. Hopefully this is not the

1945
02:06:54.039 --> 02:07:03.159
last sentence I will ever write. Well, my spookies, if

1946
02:07:03.199 --> 02:07:07.560
you made it through all six of those, well, congratulations,

1947
02:07:08.039 --> 02:07:11.600
you're officially the kind of person who hears do not

1948
02:07:11.880 --> 02:07:16.359
enter and immediately starts looking for a flashlight with some

1949
02:07:16.479 --> 02:07:21.520
fresh batteries. We went from haunted rooms to murder houses,

1950
02:07:21.960 --> 02:07:26.800
from fair ground nightmares to cursed thrift store fines, from

1951
02:07:26.880 --> 02:07:31.079
restaurant ghosts to a house in the woods that feels

1952
02:07:31.199 --> 02:07:35.560
like it was built on bad decisions and old screams.

1953
02:07:36.039 --> 02:07:39.640
And now you're sitting there in the dark doing that

1954
02:07:39.840 --> 02:07:45.840
thing where you pretend you're not hearing footsteps in the hallway.

1955
02:07:47.239 --> 02:07:50.760
Here's what I want to know. Which story got you

1956
02:07:50.920 --> 02:07:54.199
the worst? Was it? The one that made you stare

1957
02:07:54.279 --> 02:07:57.800
at a shadow for a little too long, The one

1958
02:07:57.800 --> 02:08:03.760
that made your stomach drop, the one that made you think, okay, Nope,

1959
02:08:04.079 --> 02:08:08.199
absolutely not. And if you're still in the mood for more,

1960
02:08:08.359 --> 02:08:13.439
don't worry. The feed is always hungry, so subscribe and

1961
02:08:13.560 --> 02:08:19.399
come back next time, because there's always another door, another basement,

1962
02:08:20.039 --> 02:08:24.199
another great deal you should have left on the table.

1963
02:08:25.079 --> 02:08:27.359
Sleep tight, my spookies,