by Alex Silver
Resigned to my fate, I followed on his heels. At least the floor seemed solid enough. Hard packed dirt with a few pale weeds eking out their survival in the weak sunlight that penetrated through the holes in what remained of the roof.
Other than its state of terrible disrepair, it looked about like I expected based on our tour of the more modern facilities. A large open aisle down the center with partially enclosed slips for cows along the exterior walls.
A couple were partitioned off with sliding doors to form the larger box stalls Jane said they used for horses. At the far end, there were more interior walls blocking off two rooms.
“That’s the feed room and a tack room for the horses at the end, they were later additions,” Jane pointed.
I had no interest in venturing near where the wall had given way under the weight of the fallen roof.
“This barn used to have four box stalls for cart horses. The rest was for the cows. Lara’s great-granddad converted one stall into a small farm office later.”
Daniel peered into the room Jane described and made some approving sounds.
“When they used this building, a couple farmhands bunked up in the hayloft. A sizable chunk caved in when the roof collapsed. Elmer Goodman kept a cot in the office for someone to stay close when they expected a cow was close to calving.”
“Interesting,” Daniel gave every appearance of being absorbed in Jane’s words.
As though the building’s creepy atmosphere didn’t put him off in the slightest. Something about the barn made my skin crawl.
The thick coat of dust on all the surfaces and the cobwebs made me imagine spiders skittering over my body. I chalked it up as nothing more than a primal fear of creepy crawlies making my hair stand on end.
“You can see there’s not much worth salvaging. Lara’s dad was sentimental about the old place. He wanted to fix it up, preserve the history. We’ve talked about demolishing it, but anytime we look at budgeting for it, we find money needed elsewhere, so it’s just been moldering out here.”
“But there have been incidents, right?” Daniel asked.
Jane twirled a lock of hair around her finger, considering her answer for a little too long before she said, “A few.”
“Would you care to share?”
“Lara swears that when they were kids, she and her brother were playing in the loft when they heard voices that couldn’t have been there, screaming.”
“Anything else?”
“Lara’s brother fell from the loft and broke his arm. He swears someone pushed him down the ladder, Lara says she was on the other side of the loft swinging on an old rope they had rigged up here.”
“A rope?”
“Sure, they tied it to the beams when the loft was full. They used to climb up into the rafters and swing down into the hay. Their mother swears it’s a miracle Leon’s arm is the only bone they broke between the pair of them.”
“Anything else?”
“Lara says they always checked the rope before they played, but once she says when she was climbing it snapped and dumped her into the hay. She got a concussion out of it.
“She says that after both incidents she and Leon heard laughter and footsteps. Otherwise it’s just minor stuff.”
“Care to elaborate?”
“Bad feelings, doors opening and closing. Weird noises. If you ask me, I think Lara’s just spooked about a couple of weird incidents. She gets the heebie-jeebies or forgets whether she left the doors open or locked. Or it could be Leon messing with her. The two of them enjoy their pranks.”
“Well if it’s a prank, we might find evidence of that. Are you and Lara prepared for evidence of a real haunting?”
“Lara is. I’m skeptical, but if you can put her mind at ease, that’s all I can ask. We have some stipulations about the videos you’re making. We don’t want the farm or the family portrayed in a negative light. You must understand, we are trying to run a business here.”
“Understandable,” I fielded that one, since handling the legal release nitty gritty of the negotiations was my job. “We can discuss your terms now that we’ve seen the proposed film site. Dan, are you ready to get back to the office to handle the paperwork?”
Daniel turned in a slow appreciative circle, taking in the broken down stable like a medieval lord surveying his domain. I shook my head at the silly image. He patted the support beam closest to him with a proprietary hand and nodded.
“Let’s get to it,” he said. He leaned on the beam as he collapsed the selfie stick and shoved his phone in his pocket. He looked more comfortable using the crutches without trying to film at the same time.
Jane led the way out and I couldn’t follow fast enough. The whole structure made me feel like I needed a long hot shower to scrub myself clean. An oppressive air of grime and rot lingered and the ethereal brush of cobwebs over my exposed skin made me shudder with revulsion. The less time we spent inside the barn, the happier I would be.
The warm sun on my face as we exited made me glad to be out of the gloomy building. I understood why people called it haunted. It had an odd atmosphere about it, strong negative vibes, if you believed in that nonsense.
Not that I was a true believer. That title went to Daniel, and the barn thrilled him. I understood his enthusiasm. The Goodman barn was picture perfect for the part of a haunted building.
ELEVEN
Dan
“Right, I’ve changed the line here, to grant you and Lara the right to review the edited video before we post it online. In exchange, we reserve the right to refuse to make any edits that materially alter our findings. After seven days we may assume the video proofs are to your satisfaction if we don’t hear from you. Is that agreeable?”
Jane pursed her lips and nodded, “We just want to be sure there isn’t anything in it that will hurt business, you keep full creative control.”
“I understand, but we stick to a production schedule. The usual turn around on Dan’s videos is only a few days once he gets them edited. I think you’ll agree, giving you a week to review is lenient on our part.”
“It’s fine, Janie,” Lara soothed. “We’re good with that, and we’ll do our best to get back to you ASAP once you send the proofs. Jane is our marketing expert, so she has the final word, but we’ll want to loop Leon in on this too. It shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Great, so if you are in agreement I just need you both to initial here, next to the addendum,” Chad handed the pen to Lara.
He pointed to the line he’d already changed and initialed on both copies of the filming contract. Lara signed. Jane read the new verbiage for herself before adding her initials.
“Perfect, so, if everything else is agreeable, we just sign here, here and here, and that should cover everything.”
They signed, then Chad passed me the pen. I added my name to both copies with a flourish.
“We’re looking forward to working with you,” Lara offered me a handshake.
Her grip proved as calloused and strong as her wife’s. I’d observed Lara wrangling an injured cow earlier, so I knew that the woman was strong from hard work. She shook Chad’s hand too.
“We’re old fashioned here, still like to close a deal with a handshake,” she said, sounding sheepish. I liked her already.
Chad’s handling of the papers impressed me. His grasp of my business needs in steering the negotiations pleased me. He had secured all hours access to the haunted site. The Goodmans agreed to provide dinners at the farmhouse.
As a bonus, they offered us an electric hookup for Vanessa from the house if we needed it. Not relying on solar power meant we could use my editing suite without worrying over depleting our battery reserves. It was a small extra that made my life easier. I often lost track of time during editing and worked late into the night. If we were low on power, I risked losing hours of work if the battery died.
I’d mentioned that tidbit during our drive from New Hampshire to Vermont. Chad asking about it meant he had
paid attention to my rambling. His attention to detail would make him excel at this work.
In addition, he got permission to film on the entire farm grounds. Lara and Jane had each signed a release for on-camera interviews. They had also agreed to arrange for us to interview current staff and Lara’s brother.
We still needed individual releases from anyone who appeared in the final cut. After today, I had confidence in Chad’s ability to handle that with as much efficiency as he’d handled everything else I’d thrown at him. I never wanted to let him leave.
Lara even offered to supply the names of former farmhands who had worked the farm when the haunted stable was still in regular use. This was going well so far.
With the contract out of the way, Lara invited us to tour the rest of the facilities. Jane had already provided a personalized version of the tour they offered to the public. Lara was eager to show off their automated milking parlor to us though, an area off limits to tour groups.
Chad and I sat in the back of the four by four while Lara motored around the grounds, taking us to the employee only areas. Jane explained farm operations and what they used various fields and buildings for. Lara interjected with fun facts about the herd, the history of the place and her family.
We wrapped up the tour with a meal in the stately farmhouse. After some brief banter to establish whose turn it was to cook, Jane prepared a hearty dinner of steak, potatoes and salad.
While Jane cooked, Lara sat with us on the front porch and regaled us with stories about the dairy’s history. When we sat at the table, I stuffed myself with thick slabs of home-baked bread slathered in the dairy’s butter. It was delicious.
Lara and Jane were gracious hosts, though the meal was a little rushed so they could go take care of evening chores. If today was indicative, I had a fantastic feeling about the next month.
TWELVE
Chad
Our first full day at the farm started to the sound of the rain drumming down on the van’s roof. I must have rolled in my sleep because I woke lodged against the solid dividing wall between my bunk and Daniel’s.
In the hazy moments as I came to awareness, I could almost imagine I felt his body heat through the divider. Pure fancy on my part. A product of my overactive imagination.
Much like the pleasant dreams in which I had vague memories of kissing someone who looked an awful lot like my dashing boss. Not that I planned to snuggle with Daniel. It would be nice to have someone to snuggle with, someday. Not Daniel though.
He was my boss. Someone I admired—that was all he could ever be. He’d been upfront about his no dating employees policy. Simple as that.
Too bad the van didn’t offer much privacy. My vivid dreams left me rather in need of a few moments to take care of things below the belt. I could hear the sheets rustling on the other side of the divider, a telltale creak in the bedframe that heralded Daniel worming his way out of his bunk.
With his injured leg, it took him some time to get out of the raised bed. Thumps, bangs and muffled curses serenaded me as I stole a few more moments of rest. The swoosh of the fabric curtain on his bunk as he drew it back into place followed. I listened to the asymmetric thuds of his footsteps as he maneuvered around the kitchen area. My cue to rise and shine.
By the time I’d squirmed out of my bunk, Daniel had coffee brewing for us over a propane burner. The large hourglass shaped stovetop espresso maker he used produced a strong cup of joe. I had zero complaints there. Bonus points for not dealing with filters.
“Morning,” he said, glancing over at me as I got my bearings.
“Morning.”
“Ready to dig into some editing?”
“Video editing?”
“Yeah, we’ve got to finish the video wrap up for the Miller House series. Releases tomorrow. Might as well give you your first lesson with the software while I’m working. Then we can sink our teeth into the history here.”
“You know it. Where do you want to start? With the Goodman Haunting, I mean.”
“Local library should have archives of the town paper, we can look back around the stories Lara mentioned at supper. The farmhand who disappeared in the 30s. The injuries in the old barn. Check for anything newsworthy leading up to the first incidents.”
“Sounds good,” I agreed.
“We should set up interviews with the old stable hands Lara mentioned too. They might offer some insights.”
I scratched my jaw, enjoying the feel of bristly stubble under my fingers. I needed to shave, but I liked the tangible reminder of my masculinity. Confirmation my appearance reflected the real me now never got old. Not even after years on T.
“I don’t want to be that guy, but do you think it’s possible this might be a publicity thing the twins have cooked up between them?” I suggested what I’d been thinking since we first arrived at the dairy.
“It’s always a possibility. Hauntings can be a draw, especially going into the fall. We’ll investigate and let the facts speak for themselves.”
“I guess.”
“If it’s an elaborate hoax, our investigation should uncover that too.”
“Will you go public, if it is?”
“I doubt the Goodmans would sign off on that. You agreed to give them editorial control over what we say.”
“Sure, but we won’t lie, right?”
“No. We won’t. Let’s not borrow trouble. If they are trying to use us for publicity, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Honestly, I’m flattered that you think I’m popular enough to be worth the effort to fool me into covering their farm.”
I flushed at the teasing note in his tone. He was that popular. Daniel and his show might not be a household name, but he had a sizable following. His audience only grew the more videos he produced.
“You know what they say about publicity, it’s all good, right?”
“Right,” Daniel shot me his million watt grin and my heart pounded at being its focus. “So, like I said, we’ll devote today to editing. Tomorrow we can dive into background research. Sunday I want to film a bit for the product review and unboxing video. Just as well we aren’t filming today, the rain will screw with the sound quality on anything we record in the studio this morning.”
“That sounds like a plan,” I considered a moment. “The only problem will be if the library isn’t open on weekends, if we need to go today instead, we could edit tomorrow?”
“That’s a possibility, I hate to cut it too close to the wire though. Why don’t you check the library hours while I make us breakfast? Is French toast okay? Need to use up the bread.”
“Sounds delicious. Is your leg up to standing?”
“I’m fine. Yet another advantage to having a tiny home, everything is within arm’s reach. I’ll just prop myself up at the counter, almost no strain on the leg. If you’ll grab the eggs and milk out of the fridge for me?”
I got out the requested ingredients. Daniel rummaged around for everything else he needed to cook. True to his word, he gathered his supplies without moving from where he had his hip leaned against the cabinetry.
“I can call around to the witnesses and try to set up appointments for next week, too.”
“Good thinking, the sooner we get those scheduled the better.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
The coffee maker grumbled and hissed as the last of the water boiled. Daniel flicked the burner off and poured the brew into our mugs. I took mine, sipping from it even though it was still piping hot. Daniel grimaced as he added heaping spoonfuls of sugar and whitener to his cup.
“Don’t burn yourself,” he commented.
My only response was a contented sigh. He made good coffee.
THIRTEEN
Dan
I stole a glance at Chad as he pored over the old archives across from me. I’d sweet-talked the chatty librarian on duty until he helped us pinpoint the most likely sources for the information we sought. Now we sat up to our eyeballs in archives.
/> Chad had the patience of a saint, poring over the documents like it was his job. Well, it was his job for today. I liked the furrow in his brow when he concentrated. It pleased me to see him so focused on learning the job. It gave me hope he felt invested in doing it right and sticking around for the long haul.
Yesterday, he’d picked up the video editing software faster than Stacy or Zack. His grasp of the business side of matters surpassed theirs too. Comparing him to previous PAs set too low a bar, but he cleared it with ease.
If he left, he’d be all but impossible to replace. I knew that already, and it was still his first week. I needed to ensure he wanted to stay.
Priority one, figure out what made him tick so I could make sure he stayed happy working for me. I could almost convince myself that gave me a good excuse for staring at him like a creeper. It didn’t though—nothing could happen between us.
To act on my attraction would be a surefire way to lose him. I should quash the little crush I’d noticed growing toward him with ruthless prejudice. Despite that, I had to admit to myself that I had a crush. The fact watching Chad work held more interest than what I should be doing was proof enough.
To be fair, the records made for dry reading. It wasn’t a large town and their paper reflected that. New store openings got full page spreads. Event announcements ranging from town meetings and a temperance society social to a local amateur theatre production took pride of place.
Plenty of articles extolled the virtues of agricultural techniques. Ads filled much of the space. For everything from local goods to cough remedies. The layout made the paper hard to follow with too much clutter.
The archive read like a typical small town paper from its day. Gossip printed in the guise of editorials. Political rants. Local tragedies rated mentions too. A fire here, an accident there. I skimmed through the pages of death notices, birth and marriage announcements.