Hauntings

by Lewis Stanek

  Rockford international airport isn't one of the larger airports in the country and it doesn't have all of the amenities one might find at O'Hare, or JFK for example. The runways aren't long enough to land the larger planes flown by most of the commercial airlines. Most of the air traffic here is primarily cargo flights flown by UPS and FedEx and such, but there are a few flights such as the one Aleister rode, flown by much smaller airlines flying air craft the larger airlines have auctioned off after they had become obsolete in the larger airlines view of things. Aleister assumed he could have gotten a better seat on a larger and better aircraft had he been willing to fly to O'Hare instead of Rockford, but the drive from the north suburbs of Chicago to rural Dixon, was too much of a delay. He settled on Rockford and lived with it's limitations.

  His secretary did say she was able to arrange a car rental for him and that he should be able to pick up the car at the airport. A hell of a lot of good it would have done him if he had couldn't pick it up at the airport and had to call a cab to get to the rental agency in the closest city. Aleister walked from the tarmac to the airport's entrance carrying his bags at his side. Once inside the terminal, he took his cell phone from his coat pocket and dialed the girl's number.

  A maddening metallic drumming followed by a girls sweet voice singing in Japanese “The sun sets, everything ends.” Clara grabbed the phone in her pocket looked at the caller id and pressed a button.

  “Hello.” Clara spoke softly, not wanting to disturb Oswald any more than her ring-tone already had.

  “Oh, When?” Clara paused to listen to whoever was on the other end of the call.

  “I'm at the cabin now.” Another pause.

  “Everything is fine, under control. I'll see you then,” she said then pressed another button on her phone and ended the call.

  “A call from a long lost suitor?” Oswald hazarded from his desk.

  “Not hardly.” Clara replied. “But it is someone I'll have to go into town to see tomorrow. Will you be alright while I'm gone?”

  “Clara, you know I'll be fine, but since you're going into town any way, would you bring back one of those delicious steamed burgers from Sam & Ella's?”

  “Sure thing,” Clara replied slipping her phone back into her pocket. Oswald returned his attention to work on his new laptop. He had managed to download the photographs he had taken of the site and the altar and now was providing captions for each picture. He hadn't quite gotten to the point of having an outline or a template for his report yet, but was still working on organizing the information he had collected so far. Oswald was certain Aleister Dyer and the regents would be suitably impressed with his discovery, but he didn't want to leave anything to chance. Every jot and tittle must be correctly placed. He soon was deep in thought, totally unaware of Clara's actions in the cabin.

  Clara, in the mean time was as good as her word making sure the generator had enough fuel to keep running providing electricity for the lights and computer, the fire place had enough wood to keep the chill out of the old cabin, and that the wood stove in the kitchen had enough wood to cook their supper and keep that end of the cabin warm. She checked what supplies Oswald had purchased on his last trip to town and decided to make a simple poor man's stew for supper. Clara cut some beef into bite sized pieces, threw the beef into the skillet to brown, then she cut up an onion, some carrots, and a couple of potatoes to add to the pan. She glanced about the kitchen to see what spices were available, found nothing more than salt and black pepper which she added to the stew to heighten the flavor.

  Although it was getting late, she put a pot of coffee on the stove so they would have something to wash down the stew. She decided to let the stew simmer and the coffee brew before announcing supper to Oswald. In that brief time she would take a peek at the bedroom to see what her sleeping arrangements would be like tonight. The bed was stripped down to the mattress, the bedding was laying across a chair in the corner of the room. It looked as if Oswald had started to prepare the room for himself, but never finished the job. The bed looked like it hadn't been slept in for quite some time. The aroma of cooking beef and onions wafted through the air and Clara returned to the kitchen to check on the food. Everything was done to her satisfaction so she set the table for herself and Oswald. Clara saw an old triangle hanging from a hook by the window. For fun she rang the triangle with the spoon she had been using to stir the stew just as she had seen countless wagon train cooks do to announce supper in old westerns.

  “Supper is ready!”

  “Supper? I can see you're going to spoil me, Clara. It smells delightful, What did you make?'”

  “Just some poor man's stew, nothing special.”

  “It's special to me.” Oswald replied, getting up from the desk and walking to the kitchen table.

  “That's kind of you to say, but really it's nothing special, but it should be healthy and filling,” Clara said while she ladled stew from the pan onto Oswald's plate. “Here you go,” she said, smiling while she handed him his supper. She found a two mugs in the cupboard and poured them both a cup of coffee.

  “It certainly is nice having someone around for company, and I get a home cooked meal to boot.” It was Oswald's turn to smile, he was sincerely pleased to have Clara staying at the cabin. Her company and cooking was as good as anything Freida could have made in her restaurant. He devoured the stew enjoying every bite. The coffee was good and hot and Oswald hoped would give him a little extra energy to burn tonight once he got back to his work.

  “Ozzie, I think I need to go home tonight and gather a few things if I am going to stay here as your assistant. Right now I only have the clothes on my back and the few things in my car. Besides there is someone I need to see tomorrow in town, like I said earlier.”

  “That will be fine Clara. I don't think I actually need an assistant. I can get by on my own, but I can see that my life would be lot easier if you took the job.”

  “That's settled then. I'll go home tonight and come back tomorrow after I take care of a few things. While I'm gone though I want you to think about seeing a doctor about what happened to you at the site today. When you get older you can't take chances, that's what my dad always says anyway.”

  “Clara you take care of what you need to do, and I'll take care of myself while you're away. Don't worry about me. I've been taking care of myself for longer than I'd care to say.”

  Clara finished her meal and got up from the table to pump some water into the sink to do the dishes. Before she had the sink half full of water Oswald suggested she leave now, before it go to be too late, and said that he would be glad to do the dishes himself, after all two plates two mugs a couple forks wouldn't be a strain on anyone. Clara agreed and left for the night.

  Oswald listened to the sound of her car start up and then fade as she drove down the dirt road through the woods. Once he was sure she was gone he returned to his work forgetting about the dishes, leaving them in the sink to soak as he used to say.

  Aleister signed the paperwork for the car, took the keys and was on his way. He knew the area and could have gone straight to Dixon and been there in a couple of hours, but he was tired and hungry. He followed the road away from the airport. Coming to a stoplight he had a choice to make he could go more or less straight and follow route 2 into Dixon, or he could turn right and drive a few miles into downtown Rockford. The light turned green and on impulse Aleister turned right. He decided to spend the night in Rockford, were he knew he could find a room in a decent motel and get a decent meal before going on to Dixon to talk to Clara and the others. Aleister drove a few miles then turned into the parking lot of a Holiday Inn. He hoped they'd have a vacancy. He thought the odds were good that they would as this was a week night, but one could never tell. He approached the front desk, rang the bell and waited for the night clerk to come into view.

  ”Can I help you?” The clerk looked to be no more than a boy, barely old enough to be legally working. In Aleister's day the boy would have sure
ly been called pizza face by his peers. His pimples in the florescent light gave him an ghastly appearance.

  “I need a room for the night. Do you have a vacancy?”

  “I do, can I see some identification, your driver's license will do and a credit card of course. The boy replied. Aleister handed him his license and credit card and waited patiently to sign the paperwork.

  “Is it too late for room service?”

  “The kitchen is closed, but you can order something from one of the local restaurants. Most of the pizza places deliver. You have room 216. The elevators are to your left, once on the second floor turn right and you'll find your room.“ Aleister thanked the clerk for the card key and directions to his room. Then carried his bags to the elevator, took it to the second floor, turned right and followed the numbers on the doors to room 216. Once inside he dropped his bags on the floor by the door. Aleister went to the bed and reached for the phone on the bedside table. He looked in the local directory for a restaurant, tonight pizza did not pique his appetite, but perhaps he could order an Italian beef sandwich with sausage and mozzarella and maybe some fries on the side. He knew he'd pay for the meal in indigestion later, but with some luck it would the taste would be worth it. He found a place called Portillo's in the directory dialed the number and ordered his meal, he asked if they deliver, they would for a small fee. All was well with the world for the time being.

  Aleister found the remote turned on the television and looked for something to keep his interest while he waited for his food to arrive. He settled on the local news and weather, staring blankly at the screen for some time, not really focusing on anything being said by the talking heads on the screen.

  Oswald was never really a friend, but as an acquaintance at the University he had aways been a decent fellow, Aleister hoped he would see reason about the altar, but he had his doubts it would work out well. There was a knock at the door.

  “Who is it?”

  “Portillo's delivery.” Aleister opened the door, paid the man, gave him a not too frugal nor too generous tip, nothing that would cause the delivery man to remember him. Aleister took his food to the table near the window, closed the drapes and began his meal. The weather report was next on the local news. They are predicting snow.

  “Just what we need, it will make for a beautiful contrast.” Aleister said aloud to himself. Then took another bite of his sandwich.

  In Dixon the sky was overcast and the wind was cold. Clara drove up slowing her car to a stop at the curb just outside of Sam & Ella's. She got out of the car and hurried inside. Freida was behind the counter rolling flatware into paper napkins to be used to set the tables later. Clara joined her step mother, wrapping place settings just like she did when she was a young girl still living at home.

  “Well look what cat dragged in,” Freida said with a smile, looking directly at Clara.

  “He's coming to town,” Clara stated flatly without emotion or expression.

  “Who is coming to town?” Freida asked.

  “Aleister Dyer. He will be here tomorrow. He wants to have a meeting.” Freida threw the last little bundle of flatware in the plastic bin.

  “Shit, shit, shit! I new that man coming to town would stir the shit and come to no good. Now what the hell are we supposed to do?”

  “You know as well as I do, but who knows maybe he'll surprise us.”

  “That's doubtful, Ed said coming out from the kitchen.”

  Chapter Ten

  Aleister was awake at dawn. He had some eggs and French toast from the breakfast buffet before grabbing his bags and checking out of the Holiday Inn. Dixon was only a two hour drive away. He'd stop at the cabin first and have a little talk with Oswald. If that went well there would be nothing more to do. He could enjoy the day in the country maybe make a long weekend out of it. On the other hand if Oswald wouldn't see reason, he would have to meet with the townsfolk after all. He performed his morning hygiene, packed his bags, and checked out of the hotel. It took him a moment to remember where he parked the rental car, but once he found the car he was on his way west to Dixon.

  Oswald awoke early this morning full of excitement. He felt absolutely young again. He now had something to give meaning to his life. He started a pot of coffee on the old wood burning stove, then went to the bathroom to prepare for the day. As he shaved, he reviewed, with excitement the progress he had made last night.

  The photographs of the altar all complete with descriptive captions, the standing stones however bothered him. What was he to make of the of the holes in the top of the stones? With Stone Henge he knew many suspected that if the standing stones were to be moved one would find the crushed remains of sacrificial victims beneath. He wondered if these could likewise be burial markers of some sort: smaller, but fulfilling the same purpose.

  He looked forward to showing his find to Aleister, he only wished he could show it all to him in person, but a drive back to Leicester now was out of the question. There is too much work to be done. Oswald would have to settle for sending the report to Aleister via email, that is if he can find someway to connect to the Internet nearby. Otherwise, it would have to go via the post office. The post office simply would not do, way too slow for something this critically important. Oswald decided if he had to drive to Sterling to find a Wi-Fi connection he would, but he would get this report to Aleister as soon as it was complete no mater what.

  Of course Oswald would have to confess to taking the Druid's book from Orney Library, but as a member of the faculty he may be let off with a slap on the wrist. They probably haven't noticed it is missing yet.

  Oswald wiped the last of the shaving cream from his face. Brushed his teeth and spit a mouthful of toothpaste foam into the sink. He realized he should bathe, but he couldn't resist getting back to work. He settled for clean shaven with fresh breath and went to the kitchen, poured himself a mug of coffee, sweetened it to his taste, and went to work at the desk in the living room. Soon the sound of the click clacking keys of the laptop filled the room as he worked on typing his report.

  He began with a brief summary of what was commonly known among the academic community regarding the Celts and their priests, the Druids. Following this introduction he discussed the similarities between the beliefs of the Celts and the Sauk. He mentioned what he found about the myths of the Sauk regarding sparrows, and the rituals that were performed to protect the tribe when sparrows gathered under certain circumstances. He discussed the discovery of the stone altar, obviously designed for human sacrifice. He described the altar in great detail specifically mentioning the carved spouts at the four corners of the altar carved into the shape of sparrows with their beaks open to let the fresh blood flow during a sacrifice. He continued by adding the data he recorded: the size and shape of the altar, the size and position of the standing stones, the size of the holes in the top of the standing stones, and of course the distance between one stone and another. He was tempted to add some conjecture regarding the alignment of the stones to the heavens, but decided against adding any conjecture at all, better to leave that to the reader. He wanted enough information to whet the reader's appetite for more so the regents would be in a favorable attitude for further funding and further exploration.

  There was a loud knock at the door, Oswald startled at the sound looked to the door. Before he could utter a word or get up from his seat, without invitation the cabin door creaked open. “Oswald, are you there?” It was Aleister. Oswald jumped to his feet, almost knocking the chair he was sitting on over, and hurried to the door to greet his friend.

  “Aleister, you came! I'm so glad. I hoped you would be as excited about this find as I am. I just completed the first draft of my report. Here have a seat, read it, tell me what you think.” Oswald stood up from the desk chair and motioned for Aleister to take his place.

  “Oswald, we need to talk.”

  “Oh, don't I know it. Don't think I would leave you out of this discovery. After all, it is your land. For that matt
er if it wasn't for your generosity, I wouldn't be here to find the site in the first place.”

  “It's not that Oswald. It's about my family. The Dyers have a checkered past in this area. At one time, they tried to drive us out of town. Now if you publicize that there is a Druid altar for human sacrifice on my property only God knows what will happen. I don't think it would be safe for us out here anymore.”

  “Aleister, I've met a few of the people out here and yes they tell some wild tales about your family and the cabin, but even they would have to see that the altar is at least hundreds of years old and has nothing to do with the present.”

  “Maybe, but I've tried to use this cabin as a summer getaway, I know how they can be,” Aleister complained remorsefully.

  “There is a girl here named Clara, she doesn't seem to let what the old timers say bother her. She has even offered to help me out while I am completing my research here.”

  “What did you do put an ad up on the bulletin board at Sam & Ella's?”

  “Nothing like that. She came out and found me at the site. I was a little dizzy, not quite myself, and she got concerned and offered to help. She wanted me to go to a doctor, but it cleared up before we even got back to the cabin. I did agree to her helping out around here though.”

  “I see. Is there anything I can say or do to prevent you from going on with this. I mean maybe we can just let it be for a few more years, and then send a team in quietly to do a little research.”

  “Aleister, I am already here. The research is already started. I'm sure we can keep it quiet. Even when we publish our findings I don't think anyone in Dixon is going to be reading the academic journals to review our find.”

  Aleister began to pace back and forth from the kitchen to the living room and back again to the kitchen. He clasped and unclasped his hands over and over again as he paced. Oswald didn't like the look of this, but he was not about to give up on the greatest discovery of his career.