Haunted House Tales

by Riley Amitrani

  “Shit!”

  “What is it, Antony?”

  “The whole device just shorted out.”

  “You thinking what I am…”

  “Yeah, I do. I think they did not want to talk to us but they are definitely among us somewhere.”

  “Shorted out the device to say hello…that what you are thinking?”

  “I am. Hang on. Keep filming. I’ll grab our backup device and be right back.”

  Antony set the smoking device aside and gave Natalie a quick kiss before racing back to the foyer to get the replacement. Natalie was convinced as well. She felt her heart race as she let the camera run. They were on the verge of something big here…she could just feel it. Time seemed to stand still as Natalie sat at the ready. She waited and waited, but nothing appeared for them to film. It seemed like it was taking Antony forever to return with a new EVP device…he must be having some problems doing the calibration, she thought. Natalie was about to call out for him, but again was afraid her voice might disrupt whatever was in the works. Then she had a thought…

  I’ll Be Seeing You

  Natalie dropped the camera from her view and stepped gingerly into the bathroom once more facing the mirror where she had seen the face of the disembodied soldier. She knew it was likely a long shot, but at least this time she would be ready just in case. She looked up slowly and sure enough, to her utter shock, amazement, and now joy, the face was there again. However, instead of being far off in the background, this time the face seemed to visible just off her right shoulder. She stood still again, making her breathing calm as she snapped off a few shots. Natalie could hardly believe her eyes and her luck as the face looked crystal clear. It was like the man was still alive and standing with her for a portrait. She looked down at the view finder and the image was just as clear as from the shots she had captured.

  Just then, she heard footsteps, and she turned her head deliberately to see that Antony had returned to the bathroom door. Sensing something has happened while he was gone, Antony just stood still as Natalie looked at him and grinned. He knew instantly what that grin meant after having worked with Natalie for so long.

  “Come in here,” Natalie said in a whisper. “But move slowly and do not make any sudden movements.”

  Antony nodded and followed her instructions.

  “Come closer to the camera and take a look.”

  He did as she said and looked down to see what she had to show him. He looked up at her with a puzzled expression and mouthed “yeah?” Natalie, who had just wanted to see his reaction to her photos looked to the view finder as well. It was blank. She rapidly backtracked through all the shots she had taken and they were all blank.

  “But…he…I mean…in the mirror…it can’t be…”

  “Maybe it was just your reflection, Nat…”

  “No damn it! I saw him again! It was the soldier from before! He was just off my shoulder, I swear, Antony! I had him right here, I know I did!”

  Antony touched her lightly on the shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze.

  “Maybe you are just too tired, Nat…I’ll try not to leave you alone anymore.”

  Now she was royally pissed. She knew she had the photos. She knew it! Somehow, someway, the spirit of that soldier was messing with her. Maybe this was his idea of a joke. That was bad enough. But now Antony was suggesting that she was seeing things because she was too tired to function properly. It had happened twice now. Natalie was fuming. She stomped out of the bathroom and yelled after Antony as he was making his way back to the foyer.

  “Don’t you dare patronize me, Antony!” She had never felt her anger so close to being out of control in her life. All of a sudden, Antony was no longer her husband and lover, but this stranger who was questioning her judgement and perceptions.

  She stood in the center of the corridor, hands on her hips, realizing she might have just crossed a line she now immediately regretted. Antony turned to face her and walked calmly back to where she was standing.

  “No one is patronizing you, Nat. I have no idea what is going on here. And I know you are wiped out. I am sure you saw something, but right now there is some weirdness going on here that I cannot explain. I was just trying to support you—that is all. I am sorry if I offended you.”

  Once again Natalie felt ashamed. It was true. She was about to fall over from exhaustion. But she also knew she had seen what she had seen and that her level of fatigue had nothing to do with it. She had let her emotions over the implausibility of what she knew she had seen vs. what was actually in the camera’s memory control her…again. It seemed like her litany of apologies for her behavior were getting tiresome. They were to her, so she was sure they were wearing thin on Antony as well. She just nodded her understanding of what he had said and otherwise remained silent.

  “Maybe we should poke around in some new rooms.” Antony suggested, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had settled on them like a shroud.

  “Sure.” Natalie replied in a quiet and subdued voice. “Why not…”

  They repacked the equipment into the two backpacks, and Antony replaced the damaged EVP with the replacement device from one of the cases. They shouldered their loads again and pondered where to try next.

  “Just for a change of pace, how about a room upstairs?” Natalie asked. “Seems like I remember James mentioning the sighting of that young girl made by one of the tour participants as having occurred at the top of some stairs?”

  “Sure. I remember that as well. Let’s go.”

  The staircase to gain access to the upper level was off in a totally different direction than they had been looking at so far. Natalie was not sure if this was a good thing or not, but based on how everything had gone so badly for her thus far, she figured maybe a totally different location might be worth it. She was on Antony’s heels as he moved to begin the long climb up the wide L-shaped stairs when she nearly ran into him as he had come to a sudden and unannounced stop.

  “Something the matter, Antony?”

  “I’m not sure. Come around me and see if you see what I am seeing. Based on what we have encountered so far, I want to make sure of this.”

  It seemed an odd request, but Natalie complied and stepped over so she was standing side by side with Antony. She looked at his face and then followed his line of vision out past the beginning of the staircase. There was yet another of the many corridors that seemed to lead off in all directions from the foyer. It was dimly lit as well. Not as dark as the others they had tried, but certainly not in a location to take advantage of the sunlight that was illuminating the foyer brightly. She looked more closely as Antony pointed straight ahead. At first Natalie was not seeing what had caught his eye, but as her eyes adjusted to the dim hallway, she saw it. At the very end of the long corridor was a black hulking figure that appeared to be pacing back and forth.

  It was not like it was aware of their presence and at the same time the slow back and forth movement seemed to have no pattern or purpose to it. The longer Natalie looked the more it appeared to her like someone just lost in thought. Sort of like when she had a decision to make and she just needed to move about to let her mind open up and think.

  “You seeing that?” Antony whispered as he allowed her time to locate the roaming figure.

  “You mean the huge roaming black mass just wandering around like it has lost car keys?”

  Antony laughed lightly, amused that Natalie seemed to have recovered from her recent bout of anger.

  “Yeah. That one.”

  “Hard to miss. Any ideas?”

  “Not a one. From all that we read on the history here and what James told us, I cannot for the life of me seem to align that…whatever it is…with anything. You?”

  “Nope. Can you get to the EVP recorder without too much of an ordeal?”

  “Afraid I will cause too much of a distraction. How about the UV camera?”

  “I’ve got it right here, but even with the dim light I am afraid it is t
oo much extra illumination for it to be of any use.”

  “How about a regular camera?”

  “Buried in the bottom of my pack I am afraid.”

  “Damn! Think maybe we should move closer? See what happens?”

  “We’re not getting anything out of this now, so why not. But let’s move very, very slowly. No sudden movements. If we have to talk, keep our voices low and just speak in whispers.”

  “Good idea. Ready?”

  Natalie nodded. This was good. They were finally working together as a team. And for the first time since they had arrived at Woodchester, they were both seeing an apparition of some sort…no more having one of them trying to convince the other of a sighting. They inched closer taking care not to cause any more commotion than was absolutely necessary. As they approached, Antony held out his hand and grasped Natalie by the arm causing her to come to a quick halt.

  “Can you hear that?” Antony asked.

  Natalie cocked her head and nodded.

  “The whistling, you mean?” she whispered.

  “Yeah. It’s a song, but for the life of me I cannot place it.”

  “It’s ‘I’ll Be Seeing You’…”

  “You’re kidding. How did you know that?”

  “Liberal arts education. One semester of music appreciation that was required as an elective to give me a ‘well-rounded collegiate experience’. From 1938 by Sammy Fain and Irving Kahaj. Big jazz standard. You might have heard someone cover it…tons of singers did…Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Anne Murray, Barbara Streisand, Barry Manilow…Clapton even did a version.”

  Antony looked at her with unbelieving eyes amazed at her recall.

  “This may or may not help us here, but the lyrics are particularly spooky all things considered.”

  “OK…hit me with them…I guess.”

  “I don’t remember the whole song, but…something along the lines of…’who knows if we shall meet again’…um…’I’ll be seeing you again in all the old familiar places’…let me think…oh yeah…the last verse is ‘and when the night is new, I’ll be looking at the moon, but I’ll be seeing you’.”

  “Holy shit!”

  “Yeah. Holy shit.”

  Antony looked up again and the figure was still doing its walk about, but the whistling that had at first been a curious oddity was now giving him the creeps since Natalie had filled him in on the lyrics. He began to move closer when she held out her hand to stop him this time.

  “It seems to be oblivious to us at this point. I’ve got an idea.”

  “A duet?”

  “Very funny. Can you get the EVP device out and running now that we have stopped without too much fuss?”

  “I guess so. Why?”

  “Just do it. I think maybe it is time to try something more interactive and I think having the EVP recording when I try it is a good idea.”

  “What are you going to do, Nat?”

  “You trust my intuition?”

  “Always have.”

  “Then get it out and let me know when you are recording. Just follow my lead.”

  Antony felt, for the first time since they had arrived a shiver of his own creep along his spine. But this could be huge. And almost without fail, Natalie’s intuition had served them well. He eased off his pack and laid it silently on the cold stone blocks that made up the floor. With great care, Antony opened up the top of the pack and slipped the device out and activated it.

  “Ready?” Natalie whispered to him.

  “It’s on. It may not be fully calibrated, but I am thinking we may have just the one shot at this and we will have to take our chances.”

  “OK…here goes nothing…”

  Solidarity

  Natalie steeled herself and faced the pacing black figure. She moved to the center of the hallway so that she would be very visible to the figure. Antony came close behind but tried to stay as hidden behind her as possible so as not to startle the apparition as he recorded on the EVP device. In a soft and gentle voice, Natalie began.

  “Hello. My name is Natalie. It is wonderful to meet you.”

  The figure halted its seemingly random pacing and turned to what seemed to Natalie like it was now facing her. This was just her best guess, though, as the figure was not well defined, but more of an amorphous presence that from time to time flickered in and out of a solid appearance. It did not have anything that resembled facial features, just a kind of indistinct human form. The whistling had stopped as well.

  “Could you speak with us?”

  The presence just stood facing them but did not utter any sounds at all. Natalie paused wondering what to try next. The figure did not seem threatening at all, just like it was trying to figure them out. Finally, after a long silence, she tried again.

  “It’s OK…we mean you no harm. We just want to speak with you. Who are you?”

  There was still no response of any kind. It stood perfectly still. Natalie turned her head back toward Antony.

  “Any suggestions?”

  “Maybe try going closer to show we are friendly? Beats me…”

  Natalie nodded and took a few more measured steps toward the form. They had just covered about half of the remaining distance between themselves and the black shape when a loud, almost animal-like yell sounded behind them. Natalie could not help herself and she cried out in shock as she and Antony spun around as one in response to the guttural-sounding noise. As they were spinning around, the yelp was immediately accompanied by the slamming of an unseen door. However, as soon as they turned, the house fell silent once again.

  The hallway was just as empty and dim and silent as it had been when they had first entered it. Natalie looked up at Antony but he just shrugged. That bad feeling that Natalie had been fighting since they had arrived on site was back. Something was not right. She was torn between her anxiety of this and the possibility that they were just on the verge of a real break-through with whatever it was that was still living here, albeit in spirit form. She was fighting hard to push away her fears and the natural response of her body for self-preservation.

  Then, to top it all off, from behind them, the whistling of “I’ll Be Seeing You” once again picked up from where the black form had been standing. They spun again to the sounds of the song. The figure was no longer there, but the eerie strains of the melody continued. It was like the notes were all around them, coming from all cracks and crevices of the ancient walls. Just as Natalie felt as if the sound of the whistling was driving her mad, it abruptly ceased again, abruptly, like a water tap being suddenly turned off. Behind then once again more racket picked up as a loud banging on yet another door began. They spun and the banging stopped. Then the whistling resumed. This cycle went on over and over. Natalie was now petrified. Her fears were outweighing her desire for the investigation and she could not control the trembling in her limbs. It was like her heart was trying to burst out through her chest.

  She looked up at Antony, seeing the wild excitement in his eyes that she knew well. Without even talking further, she knew they were on vastly different pages here. All she wanted to do was leave this place—and the sooner the better. Deep in her heart, she could somehow sense that this was not going to end well for them. She grabbed Antony’s hand and squeezed it hard.

  “Antony! Let’s get the hell out of here!”

  “What?” Are you serious?” His eyes were alive with exhilaration and she could tell it might already be too late.

  “Yes! Something is not right with this place! We need to get out! Now!”

  “Are you crazy? This is exactly what we came here for! We can’t just run off now! We’ve finally hit pay dirt, Nat! Shows will be all over us for this!”

  “Please, Antony! I’m begging you! We need to get out! Maybe come back another day!”

  “Here…hold this.” He handed her the EVP device as he ran quickly to the last door where they had heard the loud banging coming from.

  “Antony! No!”

  But her word
s were either drowned out by a new round of banging on multiple doors and the return of the blood-curdling guttural cries they had heard earlier, or Antony had become so possessed and determined that he just ignored her desperate pleas. He reached out to the door that was now rattling wildly back and forth in its frame and grasped the knob firmly. It seemed frozen in his hand so Antony gripped the shaking knob with both hands and with what looked to Natalie like all his strength, he finally got the knob to twist.

  The latch released and Antony forced the stubborn old wooden door open as it scraped against the uneven stones in the floor. Even with all the noise of the banging on various doors up and down the corridor, there was an insidious creaking of the hinges on the door that Antony had opened that was piercing Natalie’s brain. She clasped her hands over her ears to try and block out the sounds, but it was no use. As Antony forced the door open, the dim light of the hallway disappeared and a sinister looking red glow filled the space.

  It was not coming from any light fixture that had been installed in the mansion, but was leaking up through the fissures between the stones in the floor and through the cracks in the stone walls. It even seemed to be seeping downward from the ceiling. In a contrast to the red glow, a bright yellow glare shot out from the open door making Antony almost invisible in its’ wake. Natalie had never been so frightened in her life. Antony then turned his head to her as he was laughing heartily.

  “Nat! You won’t believe what I’m looking at right now!”

  She was petrified as the sound of his voice seemed not quite right anymore. It was still Antony, for sure, but something in the timber and inflection of his words seemed off. She stood frozen in panic as Antony continued to laugh maniacally and was now urging her to come closer. From some depth of her soul, Natalie shook off her fear and began to move closer. It was like she was watching someone else walk closer as she edged her way along the corridor. The red glow was now overlaid with a damp and gauzy-like mist, only penetrated by the vivid, harsh yellow glare coming from the room where Antony stood.