The Haunting Past

The Haunting Past (Original) It all started when I noticed something odd about a letter that my friend, Tami, received. When I stopped by, to say "hello", Tami was already prepared to throw the letter away. I think that the reason why I noticed the envelope was because of what seemed like drawings, of ghosts, along the envelopes borders. When I asked Tami about the letter, Tami told me that it was nothing. Just a piece of junk mail, the kind where the sender agree's to provide large prizes, if recipients accept, and complete, a dare. Tami was going to just throw the letter away, until I asked her to show it to me. When I saw the letter, I realized that she was right, atleast about one thing. The letter concerned a "dare" contest. According to the letter, the rules, of the dare, were simple. If Tami agreed to spend a weekend at a place, reputed to be "haunted", she would be eligible to receive ten million dollars. The condition, of the challenge, was that Tami would remain at the location, for the entire weekend. If she departed, before the weekend was completed, she would receive no more than a return trip ticket, to go home on. What caught my eye was the lack of details, in the letter. About the only information even resembling a "detail", was the inclusion of a trip date (To be confirmed based upon responses, to the initial letter). I could tell, by the look on Tami's face, that she was about to throw away the letter. This is why I asked her permission to send an inquiry/response, asking for more details, of the offer. Tami said she had no problem with my proposed action. While we waited upon word of the weekend, I informed my boss, on the CASH-pay crew, of my intention to take some time off. He said "No problem", and just remined me of the rule regarding "return to work". Anytime a worker left the job, they would go on a "back-up" list, upon return, and wait for an opening. I didn't mind, since I would have my benefits, to live on, when I returned. I could afford to wait for an opening. Tami had no problem with the trip, either. She also lived on benefits, since she had Paranoid Schizophrenia so bad that, compared to her, I had no mental problems, at all. In fact, the main reason why she had a "payee", to control her money, and medications, was because, at one, single, time, during severe depression, she had taken one whole overdose. Since then, she had nurses dispense her medications, and verify that she had food to eat. Tami had told me, once, how much she HATED her life, on S.S.D.I.. She had thought that life, on government benefits, would be much easier than life in the "work-force", since she would not have to deal with bosses constantly growling "You're NOT doing enough work! If you expect to keep your job, I better start seeing improvement, right NOW!" Tami was placed on benefits after running away from three jobs. Each time that her case- worker called the boss, each boss said that Tami was just not WILLING to work. (No one bothered to ask Tami about her side.) It was after her case-worker had spoken to four other employers, each of whom said that they could not be limited, in dispatching workers duties, that Tami's "controlling" agency had listed her as "un-employable". When Tami told me how, at her hearing, that the A.L.J. (administrative law judge), had accused her of being a "dope-head", since she was on multiple medications, for various reasons, I brought a smile to her face, by telling how I had backed down my OWN hearing judge, when they changed my testimony from "I WOULD fail a drug test, IF I took one, due to the medications, which I take", to "I have already failed drug tests, and will fail more, due to medication usage". (Boy, had MY judge given ME a deadly look, when I challenged their interpretation. The judge had grown even MORE angry, when the court reporter agreed with ME. As the saying goes: If looks could KILL, I would be dead). When Tami mentioned the suicide attempt, she said that she didn't remember it. She only rememebered that, one moment, she was at her place, eating a meal, and preparing her next dose of medications, and, the next, she woke up, in the hospital, strapped down, and with no memory of what had happened. All she knew was that staff told her that they had pumped a belly-full of pills out of her. She was accused of trying to kill herself, with an overdose. She said that she would give anything to know what REALLY happened, that day. All she knew, now, was that her medications were dispensed, to her, on a daily basis, by a nurse. She had no control over her money, and she was told that this was to prevent her from buying drugs with which to try another suicide attempt with. As a result, her daily routine was simple. Out of bed just before the nurse arrived, then a lousy, tiny, "dinner" tray, and take her pills, in front of the nurse. After that, her vitals were taken, and the nurse would say "Goodbye". Later, her lunch, and medications, would be delivered, by a service. At dinner, a nurse would bring her a dinner plate, and her medications. The rest of her day was just watching t.v., reading books, or just being bored. I could agree with her that life, on benefits, was NOT the "picnic", which so many people think that it is. No, if it is anything, it is the opposite of "picnic". Days flow into weeks, and into months, with each the same as the one, before. Without some type, of community activity, it is oh so very easy to lose track of time. This is one of the primary reasons why I worked to remain on the cleaning crew. This way, I knew mondays from fridays. Ofcourse, the cash-pay was a great way to suppliment my benefits. Like many disabled people, I worked for cash since, un-like payrol checks, cash is un-trace-able, by federal investigators. Although I never "soap-boxed", about the issue, I did mention, to many people, that I agreed with them, that living on just $700.00 per month, (including rent, utilities, medications, personal hygiene, and so on), leaves very litte money to actually "live on", once the bills are paid. I had been warned, years before, about working payroll, even part-time, by other disabled people. No matter what Washington D.C. "said", about people being allowed earnings, to suppliment benefits, the federal government is very rapid, in reviewing the cases, of anyone, seeking some extra spending money. The "rationale" is: "If you can work, for spending change, then you can work, period". Questions such as how wheelchairs are to travel, through winter snows, are never considered. I had suggested that Tami try working for cash as well, but she was just so terrified of failing that she wouldn't risk it. With the contest, though, I showed her just how little risk there was. I guess that this is why she agreed to TRY it. Ten days after my inquiry letter was sent, Tami received another letter. This one, confirming transportation arrival time, at the local bus terminal. The only other "information" the letter contained was an instruction for Tami to bring atleast two changes of clothes, and any other items, such as hygiene products, that she might need. Although there were additional pages, to the letter, even re-reading these pages, multiple times, left no understanding, or gave additional information. It was just ad copy, about how "dangerous" the weekend might become. After Tami and I discussed the matter, and agreed that she could USE the money, we decided to accept the offer, with an understanding, between the two of us, that, if we did not feel comfortable, at any point, in the process, we would not question one another. We would just respect one another enough that we would back out of the deal. No questions. No (snide) comments. Just quiet respect. Our mistake, fostered by myself, was in thinking that the weekend would be a dignified affair, from start to finish. By the time we realized what it really was, it was way too late to avoid embarrassment. On the date in the letter, Tami and I took a taxi to the bus terminal. We did this since the terminal had been moved out of downtown, and to the edge of town. There were no city bus routes anywhere near the bus station, not like there had been, when the bus station was right at the edge of downtown. When we arrived at the bus terminal, Tami and I saw a crowd, to the side, gathered around one of the rear bus stalls. I agreed with her that I hoped that this was NOT our bus. At the ticket counter, however, this hope was dashed, as Tami and I were informed that the bus in question WAS our bus. Although the bus we were to ride had been relegated to the rear-most stall, this was because of time-slot scheduling, NOT because of what the bus looked like. Had our host made reservations, a couple of months in advance, the bus could have reserved stall Number 1, for just a small, additional, fee. Even in the rear stall, however, the garishly decorated bus could be spotted from a "mile away". When Tami and I stepped through the crowd, and saw that huge banner, on the side of the bus, stating "Bus for Haunted Castle TEN Million Dollar Mystery Weekend", I noticed that Tami and I reached for one anothers hands, at the same time. The real humiliation, though, began as I showed our passes to a man, standing by the bus door, and dressed like a game-show host. What I had to remind myself of, next, was that the man was, no-doubt, being paid for this performance. When the man had our passes in hand, his voice was loud, and VERY acoustic, as he informed everyone, within ear-shot, of who we were, and what we were doing. Tami just froze, in near-panic, and let me handle this guy. Him and his "Do you expect to see any ghostly or ghoulish things, this weekend?" and other equally stupid questions. Oddly enough, the guy was amazed when I countered his "fan-fare", with quiet, dignified, answers. I did not play into his farce, not with my friend present. Had Tami not been present, I would have been tempted to do my own thing, and make a monkey out of this guy. Instead, though, I let him finish his routine, then he allowed us to board the bus, with "Mr. Game Show" entering the bus behind us. Once all were aboard the bus, the driver closed the door, pulled the bus out of the terminal, and we were on our way. Once inside the bus, I noticed that Tami and I were NOT the only riders. The other four couples had been hiding, out of sight, while the bus was in the terminal. It was not until we were away from the terminal that the other "guests" introduced themselves. The bus would travel, for thirty minutes, before entering another terminal, just the Illinois-side of the Missouri border. Here, we would watch as "Mr. Game Show" went through his routine. This time, however, the "victims" bowed their heads, in shame, and departed, in total embarrassment. (For some reason, when Mr. Game Show returned to the bus, he seemed more sullen, and less animated, than he had been, previously.) When Steve (One of the other "guests") told me that this procedure had been repeated, at each bus terminal, atleast since Steve, and his wife, Monica, had boarded the bus. Another "guest", Bruce, stated that he, and his wife, Nancy, had been aboard, longest, and Bruce could confirm Steve's story. Although Tami and I had boarded the bus, at about 10 a.m., by the time the bus would pass through several more terminals, and Mr. Game Show would scare off other guests, we would be on our way, to our destination, by mid-afternoon. It was not, however, until after we departed the final terminal, and were on our way, that Mr. Game Show would begin telling us the story of our destination. To hear him talk, going into many disgusting, morbid, and sexual, details, as possible, it would seem that our destination was to be a castle. A REALLY old style place, built long before Christ was born. (According to Mr. Game Show, atleast) According to what we were being told, legend held that the first owner had, deliberately, searched for a piece of land, rich in spiritual energy. On this site, he built the castle, in hopes of increasing his control of the spirit world, and, hopefully, control the material world, as well. Although it was rumored that, after the completion of the castle, the man had gone insane, the only historical reference, to the place, was that the man was taken, and hanged, by a mob, where he was left to dangle from one of his own turrets. For an un-defined period, after the mans death, the castle was devoid of life, for an extended period, before some Duke, or Earl, or somebody, took an interest in the place. The castle was, then, renovated, and the new owner moved in. No one knows for certain about this account since official records were not kept, in any reliable way. According to legend, after acquiring, and renovating, the property, the man had ascended to rule a kingdom. After that, something bizzarre happened. Allegedly, the king had married some women, then had them put to death. Reason unknown. Some would say that the king had heard voices. All that was known was that the king had three women put to death, for un-specified crimes. Legend has it that, even though the final queen tried to explain what had caused the kings previous actions, no one WANTED to listen. Because she wanted to be a romantic, and maternal, queen, NOT an imperial queen, she turned the power, of government, over to a trusted group, of knights, then brought all five of the kings children together, and the group left the castle. History says that the family, eventually, renounced their regal titles. After the queen vacated, the new rulers felt so un-safe, that even they fled the castle. After all human life had vacated, the castle, again, sat empty, for centuries. During the "Holy Wars", the castle played host to a series, of short-term occupants, none of whom stayed in residence long enough to lay claim, and many of whom met with violent death, while occupying the property. By the time Mr. Game Show finished with his "naration", not only were we passengers hungry, but so was the bus driver. Besides, with the winds blowing against the bus, the fuel level was growing dangerously low. A "pit-stop" was definitely, called for. When Mr. Game Show tried to argue the point, that the bus was due, the driver asked if the man wanted to walk. When Mr. Game Show declined this, the bus driver called for a rest stop. Wouldn't you know it, the driver would choose one of those convenience store places. Sure, it was designed for fuelling buses, but it was designed for some thing else as well. While the driver fuelled the tanks, we went into the convenience store/cafe, where the other passengers paid as much as $20.00, and for what? Two tiny pieces of chicken, a biscuit, and a coffee? Although Tami and I decided just to have an energy bar, and a soda, the cost was, still, $10.00. Once the bus was fuelled, and our wallets were emptier, the bus got back on the road. What I found un-settling, about the trip, was how we might have started out, on modern highways, but, as the day drew out, we turned from 4-lane highways, to 2-lane interstates. After this, we went to two lane black-tops. As for scenery, we went from counting ranches, to observing mid-size towns, then small, road-side, towns, then to farms, then to nothing but open country. I was not the only one who was concerned, when the bus pulled off the road, and onto a trail. One of the other guests mentioned that people could walk around this location, all day long, in the nude, and no one would notice. We passed through a grove, of tree's, before seeing the castle, for the first time. As the castle came into view, silhouetted against the night, and the moon. The growing darkness made the castle seem both huge, and ominous, as it stood before us. Unknown to the guests, at that moment, was the fact that we were seeing the castle from quite a distance. By the time the bus drew close enough to the castle, for us to make out details, the castle looked so huge that it dwarfed everything in sight, and made our bus look like a toy, alongside. For myself, I can say that this was, definitely NOT the kind of castle that I had expected to find, or visit. As we approached the outer wall, one of the male guests remarked "I have seen penetent- -iaries which look more inviting than this place". To add to the weird atmosphere, the bus had to cross a creaky, old style, drawbridge, before entering the castle property. As for the entry gate, itself, it was massive, deep, high, and was built in the finest traditions of medieval Europe. A garrison could have protected a population, in-definitely, from invaders. Inside of the protected, outer, wall, a large fountain sat in the middle of a circular drive, which was big enough to hold twenty cross- country busses. There were four, HUGE, main, buildings, encircling the courtyard, and each of these seemed to make up a different corner of the exterior wall. Man, this place was massive. The tops, of the buildings, seemed to reach for the sky. Although the courtyard was not brightly lit, there was enough light to see by, and just enough to distinguish the features of the front stairs, and the main door. There weren't a lot of steps, leading up to the door, but the rise angle, from the ground, to the threshhold, was just enough to trip a person, if they did not know to step UP. At some time, in the distant past, I have no doubt that the front steps were smooth, even, level and maybe even polished. After centuries of having an un-countable number of feet, treading their surfaces, the steps were rough, dull, and irregular. The hand-rails, were also made of the same stone, as the steps were, however, the rails had two details that the steps did not. The first was that the stone walls, of the hand-rails, had openings, at three intervals, shaped like crosses, and each one matched another opening, on the opposite side. In addition, the hand-rails were capped with stone chiselled into a rectangular shape. On each side, of the steps, one side of the triangles sloped towards the stairs, while the opposing slope was exactly opposite this. The door frame, and the door, itself, were of cathedral style design, and ornate, but what I noticed, most, was how much the thick stones protruded out, in front of the door opening. It is just a guess, but I would say that the door was inset atleast a foot into the wall. When the massive door opened, with just a slight squeek, I made a point of noticing the thickness of the door. It had to be close to a foot thick, if it was an inch. This, and the fact that, like the exterior portion of the wall, the stone, maikng up the interior wall, protruded twelve inches farther into the room, than the door did. I just wondered if what I was seeing was stones, three feet thick, or more conventional foot-thick stones, formed up to LOOK like a triple-thickness wall. Although the entry hall was not very wide, just some twenty, or so, feet across, the two-story ceiling gave the area a cavernous feeling, and an echo effect. Even to my un-trained eye, not one piece of the stone-work seemed of modern design. Either our host had spent some good money (A lot of money) making the place LOOK old, or it really WAS old. Much of the stone was engraved with a variety of religious symbols, charms, and protective "creatures". As for the furnishings, the furniture that we saw: benches, tables, and coat tree's, were all made of solid wood. What surprised even myself, was the fact that not one piece, of furniture, seemed to be made in the standard, factory, style. This could mean only one, of two, things. Either our host had paid a small fortune, to have this furniture specially made, OR they had paid a fortune, to buy the furniture, at auction. When our group investigated the furniture, all of it was solid, and of ample size, and weight. I was just amazed at the detail, of the carvings, in the wood, and that the wood was so well preserved. Our attention was drawn from the furniture when we heard foot steps, originating on the floor above us. We did not know what we would see as we watched the staircase. The design, of the stair-case, was different than any even I had seen, before. Starting at the ceiling, of the first floor, a set of stone steps flowed halfway down the height, of the first floor. What I found so different, about these stairs, was that they faced AWAY from the front door. From the public area, one could hear foot-steps, of a person approaching, but the actual person, who was approaching, could not be seen. At the mid-point, of the stair-case, there was a stone landing, maybe even a single slab, which extended from the left-side wall, to the right. The hand-rails were made of decorative stone, and carved with religious engravings. At the top of the landing, three, tall, enormous, stained-glass, windows were set, deeply, into cathedral-style openings, side-by- side and, if I am not mistaken, the stained glass figures represented therein were the figures of "patron saints", of centuries past. The window ledges sat about three feet off of the ground, and the tops, set into the arches, was atleast twelve, or more, feet high. The stairs, leading from the landing, to the first floor, were twice as wide as the upper stairs, and extended from the left, exposed, side of the right exposed. As our group watched the stairs, we could hear footsteps coming in our direction, from overhead. Soon after the footsteps, a face was silhouetted, in one of the landing windows, with the face being lit by a candle. When a proper-looking, white-haired, man appearred, at the landing, he bid us welcome, and encouraged us to place our hats and coats, on the coat tree's. After we had done so, he walked down the stairs, turned to our right, then opened a pair of massive, wooden, doors, and said "Follow me", as he lead us into a room which he called the "Great Hall". The place was huge. If it was less than fifty wide, and two hundred feet long, and close to fifty feet high, it was a miracle. Along the two, massive, outer walls, more stained glass windows were mounted deeply into openings set just above the height of a tall man. From what I could make out, the scenes, in these stained glass were religious, just as the other ones were. There were eight windows, per wall, and each window, there was mounted what appearred to be the banners, of many warrior clans. At the far end, of the room, stood a massive fire-place, complete with more religious engravings. To the right and left, of the hall, between the door, and the fire-place, were long, wooden, tables which extended almost the entire length of the room. In the fire-place, a warm fire crackled, while candle holders were set, at intervals, along each table, to provide most of the illumination, in the room. The tables were massive, both in size, and in thickness. The only things present, of twentieth century design, were the comfortable chairs, which we would sit upon. Once we were seated, our host made a dramatic entrance, from somewhere behind the fire-place. His large, form was carrying atleast 250 pounds, if not, probably, much more than this. The man was not "plump", or "full- bodied". He was just FAT. He had a well- manicured beard, and fingernails, and his head was covered in dark hair. For as large as he was, he made himself presentable, in his business suit. He even wore a wide smile, as he welcomed us, for the weekend, then introduced himself. When one of the other guys was about to ask the host about the castle, the man, known to be a reclusive billionairre, held up a hand, in a gentle manner. The host asked us to be patient. He assurred us that, after we ate our dinner, that ALL would be explained. With that, he made a hand-gesture, and several, large, wheeled, steam-tables, were wheeled out, from behind the fire-place, and placed before us. The food was hot, and in good supply, so we started eating, buffet style. Naturally, the women ate less, to keep their figures, while we men ate, for energy. It was only after a filling dinner that our host started reciting the castles history, in a dramatic fashion. Although he was a bit graphic, concerning the construction, this was nothing when compared to his recitation of the stories of each of the previous owners, of this castle. When he filled in too many details, it was not long before the ladies became ill, at what they were hearing, however, when the guys started "losing it", I was the one to suggest that our host just stick to the facts. What I did not realize, at the time, was that our host was playing the same "game" as Mr. Game Show had been playing, outside of the bus. A "game" designed to run guests off, and save our host some money. Now, it was our host, himself, who was trying to run us off, with his stories. He would have succeeded had we, not, all agreed to tell him to "knock off the dramatics". After the host finished his story, he cautioned us about certain area's f the castle. It seems that "renovation was underway, and he didn't want anyone getting hurt. Once staff members brught us personal copies, of maps, showing the caution area's, our host let us finish our dinner, then had his staff show us to our rooms. Yes, it HAD been a long day, and with full bellies, we would leave the great hall, travel up the stairs, and follow the butler as he assigned our rooms. Oddly enough, even as we received our assignments, the sky would become over-cast, and the moon would take on a glowing aura, as it shown through the clouds. A soft rain had, also, begun to fall. When the butler showed us to the rooms, Tami and I were given seperate rooms specifically because we were not married. If the other rooms were like mine, then each guest room was as large as a small cave, with dimensions of no less than forty feet, wall-to- wall, and ceilings of no less than twelve feet. Each room would have three of those stained glass windows, embedded in massively thick walls, and atleast the light rain, on the glass, muffled the sounds of a persons own foot steps. The beds were just as massive, and antique, however, as the staff assurred us, even though the beds were very old, the mattresses, sheets, pillows, and so on, were not. The bed-boards, however, were ornately carved as well. When I went next door, to check on Tami, I found that her room WAS, basically, the same as mine. Each of our rooms had a large bed, three cathedral stained-glass windows, a medieval fire-place, with fire crackling within, and a massive table, containing two candle holders. Although the rain pattering against the stained glass was soothing to the nerves, what was bone-rattling was when the thunder started crashing, at irregular intervals. Talk about being jumpy, when the thunder crashed, outside the windows, it sounded like a ton of T.N.T. going off, inside the room. It was almost deafening. Thank god it was not continuous. Still, Tami was as outwardly shaken as I was. This is why I invited her to my room, so she could relax. Despite the growing level of the sound of the rain, Tami and I would relax, and have a gentle, quiet, conversation, as we enjoyed one anothers company. To me, though, it seemed that some minutes passed before Tami allowed me to embrace her, and touch her. In fact, I had just started touching her, in a romantic way, while embracing her, and our lips were on the verge of meeting, when the mood was shattered, by a blood-curdling scream. Not a moment later, Tami and I heard a loud groan, as though someone were moving heavy furniture around, over our heads. Then came the sound, of breaking glass, and, a few seconds later, came a loud thump, as something crashed against the stones, of the building. Fortunately, Tami was turned away from the window, so I was the first to see the object, swaying in, and out, by the side of the building. After I told Tami to stay put, I went to the window, and opened it, only to find the body, of one of the other guests, a charming, and gentle, young, woman, swinging in the breeze. There was a good, strong, rope, tied about her neck, and the look upon her face was beyond words. It looked as if she had been terrified, or horrified, at the moment of her death. When the other guests entered my room, I recruited two of the guys to help me lift the girls body into my room, and place it on the floor. Thanks to an ornamental sword, the room had, as a decoration, the hanging rope was easy to sever. The question, of what had happened, came up, and, naturally, the first thought was "suicide". The "poor" girl had "chickened out", and, to prevent embarrassment, over her early departure, she had chosen a "dramatic" exit. Sure, that was the easy answer, but, what about the sounds which Tami and I had heard, just BEFORE the girl had "jumped"? Was it just her way of "setting the stage?" Personally, I wanted to know, for sure. This is why, with one of the other guys along, I went up to the nurses room, and here is where nothing made sense. First of all, when we reached the upper floor, I noticed something, odd, which I pointed out, to Steve. I had to show him my "evidence", before he would believe it, though. I actually pointed toward the stone floor, and the dust settled upon its surface, Dust which was un-marked, by any foot prints. When Steve asked "Big deal, so she was wearing high heels, or something. What difference does it make?" I couldn't get him to understand that ANY shoe would make an impression, in the dust. HOW could anyone have gotten onto this floor, and gained access to the room, without leaving a single print? When we reached the girls room, Steve made a cursory glance, while I went looking into details. Details such as the cord, used as a noose, and the table Sure, given enough time, the girl could have cut the drapery cord, to use as a noose. The trouble, with this idea, was that, like everything else, in the castle, the drapery cord was in good enough condition that, even with a sharp knife, it would have taken a petite woman DAYS to cut through the cord. Since we had been here, only HOURS, and the girl had been with us most of the time, this idea went out the window even faster than the body had. A better piece of evidence, which really, changed our thinking, was when I showed my companion the deep gouges, made by the table, as it was "dragged" across the stone floor. When my companion argued that the table could have been moved, by the nurse, herself, I had them try to move it. then we tried to move it, three, seperate, times. Each time, we met with failure. We were just not strong enough. This left the question: If two, strong men could not move the table, how could a petite woman do it, and by herself, yet? Before returning to the group, I would pull the rope back inside the room. While I did so, I would think about what I had seen, when the body first caught my attention. I mean, if a person is jumping to their death, in an act of suicide, I would have thought that the jumper would just almost straight down. This would leave the body bouncing like a yo-yo. In other words, the body would have dropped nearly straight down, into sight. By contrast, the girls body had swung against the stone, slapping the stone, hard, as if she had jumped out as far as possible. The question was: WHY? Why would a person, committing suicide, do such in a blatent method of attention-gathering? Another oddity was the fact that, at suicides, it is a well-known fact that messages are left by the victim. This is why, after checking the room, and finding no signs, of any messages, I was not so certain that this was a "suicide" after all. When we returned to the group, the women were consoling one another while the guys were discussing what to do about the body. By this time, though, atleast the host was present, and he was just as concerned about the bad publicity, which a suicide would generate, as he was, about the possibility that the police would close the castle down. I had to wonder which DID concern him, most: his "pet" project, or the death of a guest. When the host asked us what we wanted to do, I told him that the first, required, step, was to call the local police, and let the police take charge of the body. When the host agreed, I asked him where the phone was, and thats when we learned that the castle had no standard phone lines. The host did, however, have a cell-phone, and agreed to call. While the host went out, to call the police, we guys started discussing the suicide, and this is when I questioned the assumption that the girl had committed suicide. When the guys asked why I would question this, I told them what I had learned, and seen. Fortunately, I was able to raise some doubts, in their minds. The problem was that, no-sooner did I have the guests questioning the girls cause of death, when the host returned, telling us, guys, in private, that he was having trouble making his mobile phone work. Even on his satellite phone, he seemed unable to contact the authorities. After a couple of the guys tried the hosts phones, themselves, we took out our own phones. No matter which phone we tried, all the display read was "No Service". This is when I asked the host if he had any back-up communications gear. The host agreed that he did, in fact, have a citizens band unit, for emergencies. I suggested that this situation qualified as an emergency, and that he should make the call. We decided NOT to tell the women about the communications trouble, especially since the storm was growing steadily worse. No sense in causing undue panic, especially over something which none of us could control. After I confirmed that the women were okay, and staying with my friend, to provide mutual comfort, we guys decided to check out the buffet, and find out if there was anything left, from dinner. This excluded myself, since I, alone, suspected that foul-play, or skull-duggery, might be affoot. As a result, while the other guys went down, to the buffet, I returned to the third floor, and conducted an impromptu search for either electronics, or special-effects, equipment. I wanted to know what was going on, and I wanted my friend to be safe. I knew that the only way to secure her safety was to know what was going on, around this place. Earlier, I had been surprised to find that, aside from the girls room, and one other guest room, the rest of the third floor was un-used and basically abandoned. The dust, and dirt, on the floor, confirmed that no one was even cleaning, on this level. So, why assign the nurse to this floor, all by herself? By herself, on a floor with no furnishings. Just stone walls, floors, and ceilings. The only discovery that I made, up here, was when I found an open window. My curiousity got the best of me, and I decided to see what the view looked like, from up here. On my last visit, I did not have the time to check out the view. I was too wrapped up in investigating the girls death. When I glanced out the wondow, at the ground, below, I could not believe my own eyes. Was I seeing what I thought I was seeing? As I looked down, through the rain, I could swear that I saw a "Headless Horseman" on the grounds. My first thought, as I viewed the spectral rider, was that someone had watched "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" too many times. Observing the scene, I noticed that both horse, and rider, had a sort of "ghostly irridescence" (for lack of a better description), and I thought "Man, either someone is trying to make the most out of this "haunted weekend", or our plump host was pulling out all of the stops, and using every trick in the book, to scare his guests away". Just to be certain that I was, actually, seeing SOME-thing, and not just imagining things, I put on my coat, and made a discrete reconnaissance of the grounds. I was just fortunate that, by the time I had my jacket on,, and went outside, the rain had slackened, to a light drizzle, and the most noticeable weather feature was the intermittent rolls of thunder. Aside from the now-light rain, and periodic thunder, the weather was pretty much tollerable. I made a point of checking in, with Tami, about what I thought I had seen, and my plan, to check it out. When I left the castle, I was, fully, prepared to walk the grounds, finding all kinds of electronic gear, and holographic equipment, which would be used to generate the image I had seen, from upstairs. When I found no remote equipment on the grounds, I began to suspect the use, of remote controlled equipment, that might be anchored to the castle walls, themselves. IF it were true, that our host was using holograms, to scare us away, and save his money, I would think that he would have used remote optics, to receive the signals, and create the images. This would, atleast, have saved him money, on hiring actors, and projectors. Using remote emmitters, without point of contact lenses, would require much more power, and the cost would more than soak up any savings, from scaring the guests away. The question would, then, be "Why spend one hundred million dollars, just to save a few million?" What I found puzzling was that not only did I fail to find any remote equipment, on the grounds, but I found no emmitters anchored to the walls of the castle, either. This could mean only one, of two, things. Either money was no object, to our host, and he was willing to spend as much as was necessary, to scare away his guests, OR, perhaps, just PERHAPS, these were not holograms, after all. When it struck me that the "Headless Horseman" may not have been a theatrical effect, after all, this was when I would take a moment to stop, and consider what this could mean. While I was considering the possible ramifications, should the headless rider turn out not to be an illusion, my attention would be caught by a noise coming from somewhere, nearby. It was just odd that I did not sense the sound coming toward me, at ground level. When I realized that the wailing, or moaning, or whatever that weird sound was, it was coming from someplace overhead. My first thought was to look toward the castle, to see if I could see some speakers. (Makes sense, doesn't it? A loud-speaker, mounted high, on the wall, producing sounds that SEEM to come from overhead) The problem was that, as I looked toward the castle, I continued to hear the sound, coming from above the tree tops, and NOT from the direction of the castle. Once I realized that the sound originated in the sky, I looked away from the castle and, there, high in the sky, a group, of shimmering, yellow, lights would appear, in a section of the cloud cover. Emerging from these clouds would be something I, never, would have believed had I not seen it, for myself. At first, it was just an indistinct greenish ball of light, with no recognizable form. As it descended from the clouds, however, the image took on a more "humanoid" form, and I was, both scared, and impressed, by what I was seeing. The floating apparition was "wrapped" in a shmmering, green, robe, complete with hood, and with sparkling, silver, "stars" shimmering on the green fabric. The "holes", where the face, and hands, should have been, were dark black, and the only evidence, of a "face" were those two piercing, yellow, wedges, where the eyes should have been. Although there was not much wind around me, at the moment, I noticed that this green "apparition" (called a banshee, in Europe) robe seemed to flutter a bit, as though moving along a breeze. I continued to watch this "vision" as it floated towards the castle, and disappearred directly into the stone surface of the wall. I guess that the reason I had thought to call the vision a banshee was because I had seen things, like this, in movies such as "Darby O'Gill and the little people". What I could not figure out was that eerie, yellow, glow, that seemed to surround the "vision". When I started to, seriously, consider what I had seen, that night, I began to wonder. If our host wanted us out of the castle, so badly, who knew where, or IF, he would draw the line. Just in case the man was determined enough to do ANYTHING, to get us out of the castle, BEFORE monday, while keeping his prize money, I decided that I should report my suspicions to Tami, and the other guests, and prepare to leave the castle before anymore of us wound up dead as the nurse was. As I entered the main door, of the castle, I noticed that the rain started picking up, again. I heard something else, as well. The sound of voices, arguing, and not from the bed chambers, or the dining room, either. These voices seemed to originate from downstairs, where I was at, and from an area where our host had claimed was off-limits, for safety reasons. The voices seemed urgent enough that I decided to investigate, before checking in on Tami. This is why I followed the voices beyond the taped off "safety point". I wondered if our host was telling the truth, about these areas being un-safe. OR, was it that he was hiding something down here. Something he did not want us to find, or know about. Once I had, stealthily, approached within ear-shot, I could hear the host speaking, none too kindly, to his worker, about some device. The first sentence I heard, clearly, was that the host was, definitely, upset over the girls death. Although the furniture, in ALL of the rooms had been "modified", to move about, for the purpose of scaring the guests out of the castle, the idea was supposed to be to have us be provided with plenty of room, to escape, SAFELY. The special effects were NOT designed to scare the guests into jumping to our deaths. When the worker informed his boss that the worker could not understand what was going on, and reminded his employer that the worker had not even been able to bring the electronics on-line, the host reminded the worker that there were, at present, a specified number of guests, still in the castle, and that the host had just until monday morning either to scare us away from the castle, or pay our winnings. Several times, though, the host had repeated that he wanted his guests to leave the castle both early, and ALIVE! When the host saw the very real trouble that his worker was having, with the electronics system, the host told the worker to concentrate, first, on the phone lines. The police had to be notified about the girls death, and the host was adamant about NOT being accused of impeding justice. The last thing the host needed would be to have the police searching the grounds, and finding all of his "toys". This would lead to a full, public, disclosure about how the host had managed to scare his guests away so often. (What neither the host, nor the worker, could figure out was the reason why the electronics set-up was failing to operate. It was not failing to operate, properly. It was failing to operate, AT ALL. While the host, and his worker, were trying to figure out what was keeping their "bag of tricks" from working, I had a question, of my own, to ponder. The question that, IF what I had seen was not just a high-tech illusion, then WHAT was it? By the time I returned to my room, the other ladies had departed, and my friend was sleeping, comfortably. Because I did not know what was going on, yet, I made myself comfortable, and we spent the night, together. The following morning, the caterers were nowhere to be found, and the kitchen was in no condition to cook in. As a result, the "breakfast buffet", that morning, would consist of cold donuts, and water. When a few of the guests complained about the "breakfast", our host put on a wide smile as he said that the bus could be ready as soon as the guests were ready to depart. Naturally, leaving early would void the peoples chances of claiming prize money, from the weekend, but, if we felt we wanted to leave, the host would arrange our departure. ( I noticed how VAGUE he was, about the details of how to get the bus back, if he could) With most of the group in agreement, to leave, a vote was taken, and the guests were astonished when I voted to stay. When I told the guests that I wanted to find out what was going on, around this place, the other guests disappointed the host, when they announced that, if I could stay, they would stay. (None of the guys wanted to be seen as "wimping out") This is why we ate the food, then each couple made their plans for the day. As for me, I KNEW what I was going to do. Although the morning was dark, and dreary, and a light rain was, still, present, I would make my way to the rear of the castle where, in the imposing gloom, of morning, I would find a wonderful view, of a shore line, below the castle. While I stood there, for awhile, just listening to the sound, of the water, below. I heard a voice, over my shoulder, which I failed to recognize. As I started to turn my head, to see who was speaking, the voice told me NOT to look, just to listen. I was to enjoy the sounds which were around me. When I agreed not to look, the voice warned me that the castle was a place, of tortured spirits, doomed to suffer, forever, and to be denied release to the next world. I was just about ready to believe the voice until it told me that the woman I was travelling with loved me. If I loved her, as well, I would make every effort to be certain that the two of us left the castle, IMMEDIATELY. When the voice mentioned both love, AND abandoning the prize money, I realized that this was, no-doubt, just the latest, in a series of pranks, designed to encourage the guests to vacate the castle. I mean, Tami and I were just friends. Then came my first encounter with the "Headless Horse-man". I heard a horse breathing, just to my side,and making horse- sounds. What I expected to see was one of the local horses, not the one that I saw. My "companion", in the clearing, was a grown horse, with a glistening, black, mane, and eyes a red so deep that I was paralyzed with fear, for a moment. It was not until the rider let out a laugh which I hope never to hear, again, that my body agreed with my mind, in saying "Lets get out of here!". I dont recall my legs ever moving so fast as they did, that day. Still, I had no illusion that I could beat an adult horse. As I ran, for the castle, the horse-man made several slashes, with his sword, and I have no idea how he missed my head, so many times. His sword was like fire, and all that I recalled, about his body, was that it wasn't topped with a head. I know that I jumped over, and snuck under, various objects, on my way back to the castle, but the horse-man was relentless. He followed me all the way to the castle wall. What amazed me was that the rider didn't follow me inside of the castle grounds. When I got up the courage, to look out, through one of the archers ports, I was amazed to see a flaming red eye looking back at me. The horse-man knew where I was, so why didn't he attack, inside, as well as outside? This question I took with me, when I reported back to Tami. I just wondered if she would believe me since I wasn't sure that I believed it, myself. A real headless horse-man, who would believe such a story? I know that, if anyone had been watching Tami and I, in the moments just before the "suicide", they may have gotten the IDEA that we were lovers. The "Peeping Toms" would not need hidden camera's, either. Medieval castles were notorious for having secret passages, and peek-holes. Anyone familiar with the layout of the castles passages could have observed my friend and I. Still, I took the mention, of my friend, VERY SERIOUSLY. Either we abandon the money, and leave the castle, or my friend would be hurt, or killed. All because of my curiousity. Although the voice had seemed directly over my shoulder, I was just in the process of warning the voice NOT to hurt my friend, when I spun around to find no one near me, or in the entire meadow, for that matter. (It would have been impossible for any human to traverse the distance, to the nearest tree's, in the moment that I spun around.) This left the question: WHO, or WHAT, had I just spoken to? After pondering this, and other, thoughts, for awhile, in the drizzle, I decided to return to Tami, and discuss our options. When I found Tami, I asked her to come to my room. When she agreed, I closed the door, behind us. After this, I explained my "encounter", in the meadow, including how the voice had mentioned that Tami and I loved one another. I would try not to frighten her, as I told her that the voice had threatened to hurt her, if I did not "butt-out". I noticed that she responded to my report with a smile and, although she questioned various parts, of my account, the one part she did not question was the part about us loving one another. In fact, she neither confirmed, nor denied, this. What she DID do, in response, to my concern, for her safety, was to give me a big kiss, and a whispered "Thank you for caring". Even as we stood there, by the foot of the bed, sharing an embrace, and a kiss, one of the stained glass windows exploded in, on us. I had to act fast in order to shield Tami from the fragments. After the glass exploded, the room started shaking, violently, and we ran out, to the hallway, to escape potential injury. When other windows began to explode, and rooms started to quake, everyone ran down, to the meeting room, and there was a buzz, of conversation, about what to do, next. Not to mention that we were all clueless as to what was going on. When the others quieted down, I informed them of what the voice had told me. When I reached the part about my friends life being threatened, this is when I announced that I was taking Tami out of here. I was not about to lose a dear friend just to satisfy my curiousity. After this, I left open the offer. If anyone wanted to join us, in abandoning the castle, Tami and I would accept the company. The only embarrassing time, for my friend, and the only time I saw her blush, was when one of the ladies asked her if she DID love me. When Tami answered "Yes", the inquiring lady sounded victorious as she said "I was right!" When I reminded the group that issues of safety, and survival, not love, should be our priorities, half of the group decided to join us, in vacating the castle. The others decided to bide their time. By the time we had agreed to bail-out, the host would come to us, claiming not to be able to reach anyone who could aid, or evacuate us. I would tell the host that this would be no problem, especially if he had a car on the property. When our host agreed that there was a car, in the garage, at the end of the courtyard, I picked up Tami's bags, and headed out the door. Under those drizzly, cloudy, skies, I was just walking down those front steps when I received the shock of my life. The shimmering, headless rider, came racing around the corner of the building, wielding its shimmering sword as though in preparation for cutting some poor victim to pieces. I can only guess that our host was scared by this mostly because this shimmering "thing" had not been part of his original plan anymore than the girls death. The time when we knew that this was, definitely NOT an illusion was when the husband, of the other couple, who had agreed to leave the castle, with us, decided to put on a show of bravado, and find out just how "real" this specter was. Even when our host tried to warn the man that the host had never even thought of programming a "Headless Horse- man", the man just stood there, in the specters path, challenging the specter to prove its powers, and reality. Our host grabbed the mans wife, and dove for cover, right behind my friend, while we watched, in horror, as the phantom blade severed the mans head, as quickly, and cleanly, as a warm knife cutting butter. The cut was so quick, and clean, that almost thirty seconds would pass before the body would realize that it no-longer had a head. Only then did the body drop to the ground. As the "ghost", or whatever the thing was, came around, again, swinging the blade, as though preparing to slice another victim, it gave a loud, hideous, laugh which we all heard, very clearly. We didn't need any additional encouragement to run for the safety of the interior of the castle walls. Only after we were, safe, within those stone walls, did the host decide to come clean, and tell the truth. He DID admit that he HAD, in fact, planned to orchestrate a series of special effects, designed to scare the guests into giving up the money, and leaving the castle. The host even admitted that he had done this, several times before. When challenged about WHY he enjoyed killing people, our host was quick to admit that, although his tricks were designed to SCARE, he insisted that none were lethal. When one of the female guests mentioned the recent deaths, asking our host if he considered this situation "non-lethal", our host was quick to put in that, for some un-known reason, none of HIS electronic tricks were working, this weekend. When asked "Then, what IS that thing out there?", our host said that he had no idea what was going on. The host claimed that even the weather was not going as predicted. When we asked about the caterers, and any other staff, including the one who had been working on the effects system, all that the host could say was that some of his own staff had not been seen, for almost twelve hours. Our host claimed to have no idea of where any of his ownstaff members were. This would lead me to another speculation: What if the "master" of the "game" had become a pawn, to whoever was really controlling the game? In other words, what if the staff had decided to give their employer a taste of his own medicine? I knew, even as I suggested that we FIND the missing workers, that I might live to regret suggesting this idea. To protect the women, as well as possible, the men would TRY to place the women in the safest room that we could think of, while we searched for the workers. Un-fortunately, the women were not in favor of such treatment so the women joined in the search, even as we searched the upper floors, most of which were deserted, while the host and I would search the down-stairs, including the "hazardous area's". After two hours of searching dungeons, utility rooms, and so on, the host would come to me, in a deadly-serious, flat, voice, and say "I found him". When the host showed me where the technician lay, we found the technician slumped against a wall, his eyes wide, frozen in fear. His face a mask of some terror so extreme that it had killed the man. Because there were no, obvious, signs of foul- play, I would doubt that this was an overt act of violence. The most likely cause of death, at this time, would seem to be that the man had been scared to death. Well, the fact that Rigor Mortis had set in said alot. No doubt about it, the technician had been dead, for hours, and this removed him from the suspect list. As the afternoon wore on, the host would return to the task of trying to contact local authorities, while we "guests" continued the search, for the missing persons. It would seem that we felt more comfortable having something to do, especially as the storm, outside, grew worse, and worse. By late afternoon, the storm would have reached such an intense ferocity that the sounds could be heard reverberating throughout the upper levels of the castle. We were trapped inside a classic chamber of horrors, with no obvious way out. By early evening, we had located the bodies of the caterers, in the same state, of terrified death, that the electronics worker had been found in. Something had scared these people to death, as well. When Tami and I made our report to the group, I noticed that my friend was much more willing to stay very close to me, for the rest of the evening. As for the remainder of the guests, no one wanted to be alone, so guests paired off, and tried to relax as the minutes drew into hours, and the clocks slowly ticked away. As the stormy night continued, a variety of "visions" would be seen, throughtout the castle. Although most were no more than sight, without substance, others would seem far more substantive. Some were solid enough not just to touch, but solid enough to attack guests, as well. I mean, attack as in to leave cuts, and bruises. The only thing we learned, for certain, that night, was that the apparations did not care if the viewer was solo, or if many viewers were present. I think this may have been the main reason Tami expressed her deep desire, to have me spend the night with her. When we tried to retire, though, the storm was no less intense than it had been earlier in the evening. About the only good thing to say about the evening was that no more bodies fell into the windows. Because the windows, of our original rooms, were blown out, we would take other rooms. The trouble was that, no matter where we tried to rest, the storm just kept echoing through the castle, as loud as a heavy metal band. Even talk, of seduction could not take our minds off of what had occurred that day. Although we would make an effort, the inclement weather was a real "mood killer". Finally, just as we were giving up, on seduction, I looked at Tami, and found her staring at the foot of the bed. When I turned to see what she was looking at, I saw what appearred to be a woman, dressed in a flowing gown, with long, dark, hair, staring right back at us. Once the apparition had OUR attention, and without movement of the mouth, I "heard" the apparition "say" that my friend and I were in danger, and that we needed to leave the castle, immediately. When I informed the apparition about the head-chopping headless rider, and asked HOW we were expected to get past this "thing", the apparition just smiled as she "said" "If you, truly, care for one another, you will leave the castle, NOW!" After that, the vision vanished as gently as a puff of wind. Well, I had seen more than enough, and this was when I got Tami together, and told her that, until the storm broke, we would find someplace else to sleep. With that storm crashing down, like a war- zone, battle-front, no one else could sleep, either. This is when I asked our host if there were anyplace, in the castle, with very few windows, and lots of wall space between us, and that storm. Our host said that the only such place, in the castle, was near the old dungeons. I know it sounded odd, trying to find a resting place, in a place of torture, is no picnic, however, atleast here, away from the public area's, the storm seemed so distant that we could relax, talk softly, and be heard, in soft tones. Despite the solid stone surfaces, ur group were too tired to care. As a result, we were able to relax and, with our level of exhaustion, the group members each curled up, in our choice of locations, and slept until dawn. It was not until morning that a group of tired, sore and hungry, house-guests would count our numbers, and we would realize that we were short by atleast one member. When we realized that the recent widow was not among us, we would check her room, where we would find an empty bottle, of sleeping pills, at her bed-side. Although this circumstantial evidence might have lead the others to suspect the suicide, of a grieving widow, I found it suspicious. By the look, on the corpses face, it was clear that the woman had been scared to death, just like the others had been. I was so sure that I was right that I would have wagered a full months wages, on a bet, had anyone been willing to accept. I just wonder why someone was trying to set a stage where it would APPEAR that the women, attending the weekend, were committing suicide? Why such a contrast with the deaths, of the men, when the men loooked like they had been scared to death? Suicide, for the women, and "natural" death, for the men? Why the difference? It made no sense that the women were being staged, as voluntary deaths, when four of us had witnessed the murder, of one of the men. Why the difference? With this most recent death, I decided to take Tami, and make a mad dash for the local authorities. Even if we did not survive the attempt, atleast we would not have been just sitting around, waiting for death to come for us. Our host agreed with my decision, and even told me that, because Tami and I would be leaving the property, on OFFICIAL business, to return with the police, we would not forfeit our chance at the money. Not with considering all that had happened that weekend. As Tami and I left the safety of the stone walls, of the castle, the fact was that, even after we were well out, in the open, and totally vulnerable to attack, there was no sign of the "Headless Horse-man". The good news was that the weather had imporved, significantly, and only a drizzle was falling, with low, distant, thunder. Aside from this, all was peaceful. All-the-same, we wasted no time, and ran for the car, which we had been told was in a nearby car-port. It was not until we opened the garage door that we saw the "Headless Horse-man" again! Strangely enough, however, the "Headless Horse-man" was near the front door of the castle, not near the garage door. It was attacking the point where our host had stepped outside the door, to visually verify our escape. The headless rider, un-fortunately, was right there, ready to cut the man off. Still, even after ducking several swashes, of the shimmering blade, the host would glimpse our escape prior to returning to the castle interior. Oddly enough, although we would have to drive directly past the headless rider, to escape, on the draw-bridge, "IT" made no attempt to stop the car, or to ride after us. It was not until we were, safely, off of the castle property that Tami and I would look back, and Tami would ask me if I thought that anyone would believe the truth. When I assured her that no one could debate the presense, of the bodies, and promised her that I would not mention the "other" events, she agreed. The rest just sounded too "fantastic". Our story, in approaching the local police, would be "Just give the facts". When we reported the deaths, to the police, naturally, they questioned us, about our "part", in the preceedings. It was not, however, until the chief of police bcame interested that the chief, himself, decided to lead a small force to the castle, to investigate our claim. Ofcourse, the police followed procedure, and asked Tami and I to wait until the police had investigated our report, just as a matter of routine. When the group of police arrived, at the castle, searched the property,and found the bodies, of the remainder of our group, all dead, the police chief, naturally, had his suspicions. He would only decide to change his mind, a short time later, when HE saw an apparition appear before him, and it came on the attack. Although the chief would escape the "thing", the chief would take a moment, to compose himself, then he would wonder why he was "attacked". When the other police re-grouped, with him, the chief would learn that a few of his men had been attacked, while others had not. Because of the attacks, on the officers, the police made the decision, to retreat from the castle grounds. Back at police headquarters, the chief would request armed back up, at the castle. When asked his reason, the chief would say that he had some "psycho", on horseback, wielding a sharp blade, and slicing people to ribbons. (Not exactly the truth, but close enough too gain support from nearby, tacticle, forces. Within 24 hours, a group, of heavily armed soldiers would venture to the castle, to remove the bodies, for the coroner. The heavy armament was to ensure the officers safety, and security. Back at the police station, the chief ordered his officers NOT to discuss what had happened, or what they had seen, at the castle. When asked his reason, the chief explained that the public would not trust an police officer, who claims to have seen either ghosts, of flying saucers. While the police held their forensic examinations, to determine the cause, of each death, Tami and I received local motel, accomodations, just until the case was concluded. That night, it was about half past twelve when the ghostly woman appearred to Tami and I, again. To our amazement, she was off of the castle grounds. When she appearred, she, telepathically, told us the reason why we had been spared. According to the ghost, each of the other guests, including our host, had some dark secret. Some "skeleton", in their "closet", so terrible, in their past, that the spirit world had decided to exact its own punishment on criminals whom mortal law would not prosecute. When the spirit started listing the crimes, for us, the list was, almost, too fantastic to believe. Take the young lady, for instance. The one who had gone out the window, on the cord. She may have SEEMED pure, innocent, and nice, but she had provided false evidence, against three, seperate, men, having sex with each, then her victims of rape. When this plot back-fired, she made sure she was found having sex with her best friends fiance. Because the friend had thought that her guy had betrayed her, by seeking the affections of another, she would not listen to the truth. Not even from the man who loved her. No-sooner did the mans fiance hang herself, over her broken heart, when the seductress was trying to seduce the grieiving man. When he rejected her, flatly, she felt slighted. After all, she HAD pursued HIM, bothering him until he gave her what she wanted, just so she would leave him alone. Now, feeling guilty, over the engaged womans death, the seductress devoted herself to a career in nursing. As for the caterers, they had built up a business, by staging false situations, on the premises of competitors businesses, on inspection days, then causing competitors to lose their licenses. After the businesses lost their licenses, the caterers would come in, buy everything up, at "bargain basement" prices, and expand their own business. They had destroyed dozens of lives, and families, to build their own security. As for the executed couple, they had, over the course of several years, caused the deaths, of several persons they had been contracted to care for. Their patients had been the most vulnerable. The very young, the old, and the sickly. Our host was responsible for ruining tens of thousands of lives, by buying up companies, then reducing staff sizes, and reducing wages, and then turning an insane profit on his products. His societal crimes had caused tragedy, for hundreds of thousands of families, including many families, with children living at home. The man was proud of his actions. He would die under the weight of guilt, for destroying so many lives. When I asked why Tami and I had been spared, the ghost told us that we were, still, "pure", and innocent, of anything un-forgiveable. In time, we might be guilty, but, at this time, we were not. Just before the spirit departed, I would ask her identity. She would tell us that, in life, she had been the king's fifth wife and that, NO, she had not forsaken her title, or moved out of the castle. Although she had lovers, AFTER the kings death, she, never, found a man as loving as her late husband had been. This is why she just ruled the country, from behind a legion of knights, and finished raising her husbands five children. After this, the woman departed, and Tami and I rested up, for our trip, the next day. What I noticed, about our packing, was how dis-appointed Tami looked, as she packed her stuff. When I asked, she said she was, really, in no "rush" to return to town. After all, what was she heading back to? Endless days, of eating, and taking pills? Watching television, and reading books, to pass the time? How was this "living"? Strangely enough, the next day, before boarding the bus, Tami and I would watch lightning strikes, against the castle, caused not by explosions, and damage, but, with each strike, another part of the castle just dissoleved, into thin air. By the time the clouds would clear, later, and the sun shone, in the late afternoon sun, even the castles foundation would have vanished, as if it never existed. When the police would check the land, they would find it "un-touched", by man. What Tami and I did not know, as we rode a bus back to Illinois, was that our carefully worded story was being reviewed by people we did not yet know existed. We had no clue about how our lives were about to change, forever. All we cared about was getting home, and resting. Self-indulgence. A crime? Who knows.

Return of the Headless Horseman

THE RETURN OF THE HEADLESS HORSEMAN It would be almost two centuries since the dreaded horseman would have caused the disappearance of school teacher Icabod Crane, from the tiny community of Sleepy Hollow. Over those centuries, rumors would come, and go, about Mr. Cranes fate. Some would say that he ran away, for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, fear of Brahm Bones tricks, or, perhaps, that he had just run away, and started a new life, far from Sleepy Hollow. These were some of the suspicions, about the school- teachers disappearance, while others were sure that the headless horseman had claimed another victim. Since Mr.Cranes disappearance, however, there have been no further attacks. Some say that the horseman has been seen, wearing Mr. Cranes head, but most of these witnesses were fresh out of taverns, and so their descriptions were under suspicion. What IS known is that the horseman has been seen, by many persons, but none of these good citizens has reported being attacked. Over time, the legend has became the stuff of fire-side chats, but little more, as this community would look towards its future. In modern times, the idea, of a headless horse-man, would become an idea, not to be feared, but to be joked about. Maybe, thats the reason why the horse-man would choose to make a come back. Maybe, it has something to do with a letter, recently discovered in the U.S. mail, and seemingly penned by the late Mr. Crane. According to the letter, which was authenticated by police, and a librarian, comparison to Mr. Cranes known writing, the new letter stated that the horse-man was "most dis-pleased" at being considered a laugh by these modern people. A warning was issued, in the note: Respect for the past is the only way to be safe, in the future. If insults persist, the horseman will ride, again. Then, in a more insistent hand were written the words: Profaners Beware! Although local law enforcement did not think, for a moment, that Icabod Crane was, still, alive, after all these years,the threat was taken seriously, no matter what its real source. The police agreed with the post office, to keep the whole thing quiet, to see if anyone DID come forward, either to claim responsibility, or to put on a costume. If someone came forward, without publicity, then the police would have their suspect. Atleast three officers did inquire what they should do if anyone did try to act like the headless horse-man, including the swinging blade, the sheriff, and the police chief, said "Wound them, if you can. We want them alive, for interrogation". When the horse-man did begin to show up, the police were left in a bind. There seemed no rhyme, or reason, for the attacks. The victims were honest, hard-working, people who never harmed a soul. As it would turn out, though the "key" would be family ties. All of those attacked by the horse-man, were related to those who made jokes, or laughed about the horse-man. This became clear when one loud-mouth came into the oldest, local, bar, and, in front of the police, said "You all listen up. I am the one who has made jokes, about that dumb old horseman. If any of you wants a fight, over this, come outside and bring it on, with me, direct. Leave my family out of it. I have spoken, not them." Moments later, after the man stormed back out of the tavern door, a scream sounded, from the street, yet the sheriff, and other witnesses, were not prepared for what they would see. The loud mouths wife had been run through, with a blade, and was lying in the street, dead. Over a dozen witnesses would testify to watching the ghostly rider gallop a short distance down the street, then turn, and give the very laugh which people had feared, for centuries. A laugh which made blood run ice cold. On another day, the sheriff would empty his revolver into whatever it was, but to no effect. The headless horse-man would gallop towards the sheriff, then dissolve, into thin air, leaving behind just another hideous laugh. In yet another, quite un-expected, attack, the horseman, again struck, without warning. This time, the location was the Sleepy Hollow high school, and the event was a celebration, of one of the schools teams, which had just won a national title. The schools faculty had, long, promoted such victories, since these occassions drew public attention away from stories of the horseman. The school, and its faculty, wanted to be known for its quality of life, and its educational opportunities. Not as the hunting grounds for a maniacal spirit. The celebration was well underway, and all present were enjoying themselves, until a cart was rolled out, into the gymnasium, and the middle of the celebration. On the cart stood a merry-go-round horse, with a rider, whose costume was cheap, and an obvious fake. The rider had a vlack sack, over their head, and a childs plastic sword, in hand. The crowd was having the expected laugh, inside the gymnasium, when screams, of sheer terror, came inside, through the open doors. When party goers rushed to the doors, which lead to the school parking lot, they found students, on the property, running, and screaming, as they tried to avoid the sleek, black, horse, and the fiery blade, of the phantom rider. The headless horseman let out the hideous laugh, as his blade slashed the air, near his potential victims. Celebration attendee's were struck, dumb, as they watched the scene, before someone called out a name, and said "Enoughs enough. Knock it off. This is supposed to be a party, not a horror movie" At that moment, a fake "rider" came forth, asking "Who are you talking to?" The attendee's then looked on, in surprise, as they realized that their pretend horseman was standing beside them. When someone asked "If you are here, WHO is THAT?", pointing at the "real" horseman, which was chasing a young couple. This is when the rider (the real horseman) came forward, at a trot, then pointed its blade at the group, and, in that ominous, booming, voice, said " Profaners Beware!" Then pointed its sword at the fake rider, saying "Such insulence will not go un-punished, should it continue" When the fake rider removed his mask, and said "Hey, jerk, it was just a joke", the real horseman cleanly removed the fake riders head, before repeating its warning "Insulence will not go un-punished. Profaners beware!" With that, the horseman turned its horse arund, and began to trot away, leaving dozens of dis-believing eyes behind, even as the horseman simply dissolved into the night. After this, the sheriff would request special ordinance, to deal with whatever it was. He was willing to try anything. Sleepy Hollow was, soon, gripped in a panic not seen, for centuries. The question, of WHO the headless horse-man was was replaced by the question of WHAT the horse-man was. The sheriff said he drew down fire, right at the rider, and there were no sounds, like bullets hitting metal, or kevlar. What else could the horse man be? Over the coming weeks, several land-owners would report firing rifles, right at the horse-man, but to no effect. Spent casings confirmed that shots had been fired. The only binding clue, which linked all of the victims, was that each had a family member who had insulted the horse-man. After months of reports, and sightings, as well as thousands of rounds, of ammunition spent, police did the only thing they could think of, to do. All of the threatened family's were joined together, at the community center. The idea was to use them as "live bait". When the idea was put into action, the police actually hoped that it would fail. They didn't like using friends, and neighbors, as "live bait". The trouble was that the horse-man did not care. Just as expected, he materialized, out of thin air, and launched his attack, with that hideous laugh. He rode right through the barrage, from a variety of weapons, including a flame-thrower. His blade was like fire, and it cut the air in a scream which no one ever wanted to hear, ever again. When a few men tried to jump the horse-man, they found themselves jumping right through the thing, and landing on others. Finally, though, the attack ended, with the horse-man stopping on the street, looking back upon the towns- people, and telling those assembled: "Beware! Mockery will be avenged! Beware" With that, the horse, and rider, just dissolved. Then, it was time to count the injured. It was not until the living stood up, and brushed themselves off, that the dead were found. Atleast one member, of each hecklers family, lay dead, eyes peering at nothing. What was puzzling was how people were run through when they were in the middle of a crowd. How could one person be dead, if the persons right next to them, had not a mark on them? When one grieving family member shouted a curse, at the departed horse-man, for killing her sister, the horse-man re-appearred, sliced off the womans head, with a single swing of the flaming blade, while capturing the gruesome prize on his hands. Before the very eyes, of witnesses, the horse-man sat the dead womans head atop its own shoulders, and it seemed to come to life. The voice, however, did not change. The headless horse-man then repeated its pronouncement, before riding off, and vanishing. The sheriff wondered how he would file this, in his report. What would turn out to be even more baffling would be when the horse-man would appear at such places as the local lumber yard. The horseman would be reported as "appearring out of nowhere", waving that blade, scaring workers, then just dissolving, right back into "thin air". The attacks only seemed to decrease when the sheriff, and the police chief, called in the national guard. It seems that the horseman was not prepared to deal with powerful weapons such as machine-guns, mortar launchers, and so on. What baffled the machine gunners was when "got lucky" and reported firing right at the horse-man, at point-blank range, yet their rounds had no effect. When asked, they replied that they had not heard bullets bouncing off of Kevlar, OR body armor. An investigation, of the event, proved that the machine gunneers HAD fired at something. Spent shells were found, nearby. With no rational explanation available, the soldiers stayed around, for a couple of weeks, until all were pretty sure that no more attacks were coming. To be on the "Safe Side", Sleepy Hollow would create a new "rule". It was an un-written law, but it was enforced the same as any written rules. Town council ruled that no one was to speak about the horse-man. Those who defied the rule were encouraged to be silent, or leave the area. Months later, when another note was found, also allegedly in Mr. Cranes handwriting, the note was locked away, in a vault, never to be opened, or read. No one wanted another visit from the area's most un-welcome visitor. As for the horse-mans victims, they would be laid to rest, during a public ceremony. The weather was awful, that day, and noon as some remarked, seemed more like late evening. The bodies were laid to rest, in basic coffins, while the local minister said a generic service. The minister kept it generic since that is how the death certificates read. Simple fact was that no one was willing to give credit to the horse-man. For most of the victims, cause of death was listed as "organ failure". In the next county, a tombstone cutter was tasked with making a bulk shipment of head-stones. These would be the markers, for these victims. During the service, people thought that they were seeing things, when they thought that they saw the horse-man riding past the grave-yard. That evening, the horse-mans dreaded laugh was heard all over town. The police tried to say that it was just the wind, but only until morning. The cemetary's groundskeeper demanded an official report be filed, on the damage he found, when he reported for work, that morning. Every head-stone, of the horse-mans victims, was smashed. This left the police chief queesy since the department had received more calls, from that area, the previous night, than from any other area. A week later, when the headstones were replaced, the horseman re-materialized, with a booming, spectral, voice, saying: "You dare honor those who spoke ill of me?!" With that terrifying laugh, and the whinnying, of the jet black steed, horse, and rider, rode among the last of the headstones, smashing them to bits, right in front of the police. Then, with a final: "Beware profaners, Beware!" The horseman, and horse, would dissolve into the night, just ike most ghosts are reported to do.

CEMETARY TERROR

CEMETARY TERROR In an area, barely even marked, on any map, there lies a cemetary, with a long, and mysterious, past. According to most legends, the cemetary was created by eastern colonists. Some legends say that the cemetary was started when a wagon train got caught, in a blizzard and half of the settlers died. Other legends say that the settlers began fighting, among themselves, over possessions, such as food, or companionship. Still other legends say that the settlers were ambushed, and sacrificed, possibly to Satan. Whatever its origins, since the cemetary came into being, locals have held a fear for the old place. One of the older stories says that the iron perimeter fence was erected in the 1600's, after a settler allegedly drove over some graves, thereby disturbing the occupants. (Whether it was true, or not, history does not say). All that history says is that, once the offending wagon was removed, from the cemetary, that a wood, and barbed wire, fence was erected, until the permanent iron fence could be installed. What purpose the iron fence was to serve remains unknown, beyond old rumors, and tales. Some rumors claim that the black-stained metal was used to hold the spirits, of the un-dead, on the property. If this were true then someone should have told the builders not to bother. Despite the fence, spirits are seen wondering the local area, especially on nights when the fog is heavy, and the moon is full. Ofcourse, there are, also, the stories, about why the iron fence posts are topped with crosses. Stories which include dark witchcraft being used to make slaves, of both the living, and the un-dead. According to legend, the iron crosses, and iron parts, have been blessed, by a holy man, using rare herbs. The goal being to let the dead rest in final peace. This story also tells of why five of the graves, in the graveyard, were, never, marked. Legend says that these five graves contain the cursed remains, of the five dark witches, who attempted to turn locals into mind-less laborers. Although no living person ever saw the dark witches remains, it is said that, when holy water was applied to the corpses, that the witches cried out, in death agony, as the purity, of the Lord, was upon them. After the holy water, crosses, and other, anti-evil, marks, and emblems, were applied, to the remains, it is claimed that the dark witches cries could be heard, as their coffins were lowered into their un-marked, resting places. So many stories. So many fables. Who is to know what is true, and what is just make believe? Make believe: Like the stories about a single, dark, witch, who escaped punishment, and, even now, roams the area, seeking dis-obedient children, for sacrifice. Stories? Fables, to make children obey rules? Who is to say what is, and what is not? What no one seems to know is when the old church, next to the cemetary was built. Local records show that services were performed at this church, since the 1600's. As to the identity of the builders, and why they chose to build, in that place, there are no surviving records. All that anyone knows is that the church has stood watch over the cemetary, for centuries. According to legend, though, each October, it is said that the church seems to arch its body, as if watching for, or over, something. Every October, the churches shadow seems to fall more over the cemetary than at any other time of the year. What has been baffling locals, just as much, is the yearly rash, of vandalism. Sure, there were tricks, right from the start, but the real trouble began when many of the original wooden markers, which were decayed and falling to pieces, were replaced with headstones. Each year, by November 1st, head-stones are smashed, and seem to be hurtled about. There are, also, reports, of yearly "parties". Some legends say that, each October, the spirits, of the long dead, come out, for a month of nightly parties. Some say that the parties can get pretty wild. Sometimes, gun-shots (or is it champaign corks) can be heard. Then there are reports, of deep, throaty, growls being heard, as well as hideous laughter, which would make ones blood run cold as ice, and oneshair stand on end. The local police have grown accustomed to the usual, October, reports, of glowing ghosts, banshee's, and even a few fire-breathing demons. Tall, short, and everywhere in between. There have been those, either brave of heart, or totally stupid (depending on ones point of view), who have braved the mist, of the October nights, for a first-hand look at what goes on. In some cases, though, the observer(s)is found....dead. For those who survive, few will believe the tales, which observers come back to town with. Tales of seeing dark witches stirring cauldrons, while demons, and imps, dance, and frolick about. Are there, actually, werewolves, vampires, and even witches, buried in this place? Only the dead (or, perhaps, the un-dead) have the answer to this mystery. As for what it is, which is seen gliding silently, across the October night sky, no one is willing to reject that it might be either the spirit, of the surviving, dark, witch, or the spirit of one, perhaps a light witch,who was put to death, by mistake, centuries ago. The cemetary has no alarm system, since none will operate, in this ancient place. The same is true, of the church. the only building, in the area, without electric lights. For centuries, the church has been lit, by candle-light, and so it may be, forever-more. All that anyone will say is that, if one wants to watch the "festivities", inside the cemetary, on an October night, it is best to observe from the far side of the nearby road. It is also best not to use a favorite car, since it is said that some sprites love to hurtle pumpkins, and other items, over the iron fence. Whether their target is a paint job, or a tire, they can be heard laughing as pumpkin innards, or other objects, smash against an un-wary car. What is said to make the sprites especially happy is when they hit, and break, windows. Some sprites are reported to jump 15 feet into the air, when glass is heard breaking. This is why it is best to take an old clunker, for any stake-out. How old is the cemetary? No one knows. How long will it last? No one can say. What is the truth, about the old church? If anyone knows, they are not speaking up. All that is known is that the cemetary casts a dark shadow, during October, as the dark outline, of the old church, with its peeling paint, broken windows, and rotting shutters, keeps watch over the cemetary. A dark, and lonely, sentry, keeping watch. But, over what?

HAUNTED HOUSE

HAUNTED HOUSE The house was well-known, to one and all, within a distance of 200 miles. The house sits, all alone, at the crest of a small hill, just a mile beyond the city limits. No one would live, or build, any closer than this, to this house, since no sane person would go near the house, after sunset. As for the reason, this is simple, as well. According to local legends, the house was built by a pioneering businessman. The business man would "set up shop, in this area, since there was no competition, for local labor. Result, he could hire local labor, for pennies, since labor had no other options, for employment. Best of all, since locals were not educated, he could pay whatever wages he wanted, thereby keeping a fortune, in profits, for himself. He would, ofcourse, make sure that his own children were well-schooled, especially in finances. In fact, in the early days, the upper floors, of the house, were full of the sounds, of the youngest children, at play, while, on the lower floors, older children were hard at study, with lessons. The main floor was reserved, strictly, for adults. During the early years, the home would bbe painted bright colors, and would sound of music, and gaity. The home was well-maintained, and would be considered a landmark, in the towns early days. Then, had come the dark times. After years of life, and laughter, the house would grow strangely quiet. No longer were the windows filled with light, after dark. No more did the workers come, to keep the paint looking fresh, and new. No more did the landscapers tend to the property. Alll of this changed, in one night, which no one would forget. Rumor says that, on that fateful night, so long a "vision" was beheld, by those living in the local village. A vision so ominous that, to look upon it, was enough to frighten even the bravest. On that same night, sounds would begin to be heard. Sounds which no trapper recognized. Sounds which turned the blood to ice water. Howls, screams, and cries, which no one hoped to meet. That night, it is said that the house came to "life", turned toward the village, and let out a growl, which sent locals fleeing for their lives. Since that night, it is said that, from time to time, especially on dark, dreary, nights, that a yellow glow is cast, from the homes upper windows, and the house seems to overlook the land, as if looking for someone, or something. Ofcourse, it is also claimed that, from time to time, tracks are found, on the property. Tracks which match with no living creature. Still, it is due to these stories that no one will go near the house, even as its paint flecks, and its shuuters grow crooked, with more seasonal storms. The once-beautiful home now stands, silently, on top of the hill. Its secrets safely tucked in its crawl-spaces. As for the businessman, and his family, all that anyone knows is that none were seen, again, after that night. This is the story, as it has been handed down, through the generations, and between this, and the occassional sounds, and mysterious lights, sometimes seen, on the property, local usually keep a distance, except for Halloween. The local sheriff always knew when Halloween was at hand, since this seemed like the only time when even teens went near the old, very old, property. One thing everyone could count on, every October 31, was the mysterious thunder, and lightning. Where it came from, and why, puzzled even the best minds. Thunder and lightning, from a cloudless sky? One Halloween night, a young man is driving home, with good news for his family, and his girlfriend. He has landed a new job. The job he had sought since entering high school. As he drives through a storm, on his way home, the storm only seems to get worse, the farther he drives, until the cars engine seizes, and stops. Fortunately, by this time, he has reached the outer edge of the storm. Maybe, if he lets the car sit, for a moment, the engine will start, again. As he waits the usual ten minutes, which his father taught him to wait, for the car to reset itself, the storm would fade to a light drizzle, then stop. Even after waiting for twenty minutes, however, the engine would refuse to turn over. Great!, he thought. Stuck by the road side, and on Halloween, of all nights. Looking out of the windshield, into the distance, he could just make out what appearred to be flash-light beams, in the general area where the old, supposedly haunted, house stood. Since the car would not start, yet, the young man decided to brave the thunder, and the wind. Following the sheriff's instructions, given at a recent community seminar, the young man took a pad of paper, and a pen, out of the glove compartment, and wrote this note: Dear sheriff or finder, This car is the property of Clyde Arthur, and it has stalled, during a severe rain. It just wont start. I see some lights, up at the old house, and I hope that atleast one of them has a mobile that I can use. If nothing else, maybe I can be reported as a "trespasser", and get a ride with a deputy. Just as the sheriff had taught, at the seminar, the young man placed the note on the dashboard, in front of the steering wheel, closed the door, and began walking. As he drew closer to the old house, he noticed that the moon had revealled itself, appearing from behind the clouds, and the old house seemed to alter its appearance from a stark, black, silhouette, and was changing into a dull grey silhouette. As he drew closer, he remembered some of the interesting, and even some of the foolish, stories, about the lights that he was seeing. Some said that the lights were fairies, while others said the lights were demons. Some said that the Devil, himself, was present, and being honored, by his minions. Among all of the stories, there was the "common" motive, of a party. One story, which few even wanted to consider, was the story of how the Devil would be presented with a human sacrifice, just not the stab to death type of sacrifice. One of the young mans friends said that the Devil had been observed carrying on, with his minions. The towns-people silenced this story, as soon as it was known. People understood that no one would want to live in a town of weird Devil-worshippers. Besides, on Halloween night, there were no public walks, or door-to-door "trick-or- treating". No, nowadays, children, and teens, would go to a "safe" Halloween party, sponsored by the community. The young mans favorite story, of the "dancing" lights, however, was that they were flash-lights, used by pranksters, to mess around on the old house property. This story made sense, especially when the lights went out, just as people approached. Maybe the lights wouldn't go out, on his approach. Maybe, he could get a ride. He, then, wondered what to do, if the pranksters left the property before he arrived. To this, he thought "Simple, If I reach the house, it is only a mile, back to town." Un-fortunately, he was still out of range when all of the lights just winked off. He hoped that this meant that someone was trying to hide. As he approached the house, however, he would see the phantom candles, in several windows. For many years, these candles had been the subject of more than one ghost story. One, wild, claim was that each candle represented one person, who had died at the house. When a college professor said that, more than likely, it was just a trick, of the moon, or the town lights, few people listened. People like a good spook story, and the town knew it. On Halloween Night, the young man stood before the old place, its dark, imposing shape making him feel like a scared 5 year old, all over again. Looking away from the house was little better since, as he looked towards the woods, he wondered what had happened to the lights. Were the pranksters gone, or were they arrested. While he looked about, however, he would hear a low growl, and twigs breaking, as well. That was how he know that someone was about. When he called out, but got no answer, he decided to wait for help, on the old houses front steps. When he looked up, at the sky, he thought that he saw the house looking down at him. Was it his imagination? All alone, there was no one to ask. When a chill wind came out of nowhere, he decided to enter the house, but only for a moment. Leaving the door wide open, he entered the old relic, and sat beside the door, to rest, for a moment. If someone came by, and saw the door open, he could, still, get a ride to town. If nobody came, he would have only a mile to walk. Inside the house, he kept thinking that he saw people moving about (or was it just the wind, in the tree's, outside.) What he knew was that, as soon as he had his breath back, he would be on the road, and away from this place. As he sat there, trying to catch his breath, he found that he was having a harder time breathing, with each passing moment. With each moment, his legs seemed to get weaker, and his voice dropped to a mere whisper. If he didn't know better, he would think that the house was draining his life energy. Finally, when a young girl came into the house, in a princess costume, the man said hello, and asked if the girl would help him. When she asked how, he suggested that she go for help. He thought it odd that the child said that she was not allowed to leave the property. When he said "I'm not feeling well", and asked her to help him, he was surprised when she said "I already am". When he asked "What do you mean?", the girl pointed to an interior wall, where a group of people stood, as if waiting. When the man called out, for help, the people just stood there, even as the child said "They cannot help you, either". then added "Soon you will be with us". For a moment, the young man looked at the people, then a deep growl drew his attention back to the girl. When he looked back, the child was gone. In her place stood the most horrible vision that the young man had ever seen. With a scream which should have been heard, across the county, the young man faced a horrible truth. He remembered the story of a pretty child, who was said to haunt the property. Legend said that she lured people to their deaths, but it never said how she did it, or why. Just before he lost consciousness, he had a revelation. This was the girl. With that, he passed out. The next day, the sheriff's office would receive an abandoned vehicle report, and the sheriff would find the car, where it had been parked. When he read the note, the sheriff would drive the young mans family up to the old house. Inside the open front door, the young mans body would be found, an expression, of utter horror on his face. What puzzled the sheriff was that the young man had been seen just the day before, yet this corpse looked months old. Just like the previous victims.