~Shadowed ~ Scare III~

A dampness covered the massive foyer; something more than years of neglect and decay. Dust covered everything. The particles pierced Kaycee’s nostrils in warning; like even the atoms feared what lurked down the halls and up the grand staircase. She couldn’t help but glance over the once rich décor. The evidence of the Hanovers’ wealth was apparent, even with the years rotting away at the tables, the chandeliers. Kaycee caught her reflection in a full-length mirror at the foot of the staircase. She saw her pale skin, her brown eyes turned black in the dim light. She saw Norma… and she saw it!

Her head whipped around, looking down the hall that led to the left. But it was gone. If it had even been there to begin with. Norma leveled her flashlight at Kaycee and understanding flushed her otherwise dry cheeks. “Which way?”

Kaycee tried to swallow her pounding heart. “Down… the hall.”

Norma tapped the Bible reassuringly. “Psalm 44, Kaycee. We’ll start there.”

“Start what?” Kaycee’s whole body shook. But Norma was already moving down the hall, her flashlight creating a narrow tunnel. Kaycee somehow found the motor skills to open the Bible and follow her at the same time. Her fingers moved stiffly with unexplained cold. Vague moonlight gave her minimal guidance through the pages. She tried to remember the Bible book song from Sunday school; anything to take the terrified edge off her nerves.

They inched along the hallway, Norma’s flashlight the only beacon of life. But Kaycee knew there was something else… she could feel it no matter how hard she tried not to. Nehemiah, Ezra, Job… The pages continued to flutter softly. Kaycee watched them in hope and desperation. If God was going to send them thunder or lightening, now would be the time.

“There!” Norma’s beam shot into a doorway just off the hall. Kaycee almost dropped the Bible when she saw Jane, pressed and clawing at the doorframe, sunken into a ball on the grimy floor. She cried out as the light hit her. Her eyes focused on nothing. Saw nothing. They were as round as baseballs, the whites popping out in terror and torment. Her fingers clenched the wood with rigid, white knuckles, shoulders shaking beneath her coat.

“I see you, you overgrown slug!” Norma shouted beyond Jane and Kaycee felt the wind again. Jane pulled into herself even more, feeling the same power Kaycee felt in the wind. Power and… annoyance? Could wind be annoyed? Ignoring her own question, Kaycee looked back at Jane, starting for her. What comfort she could offer, she didn’t know…

Norma stopped her with a touch to the shoulder. “Leave her. We’ve got to deal with them first. It’s the only way any of them will be able to walk out of here.”

Oh, Lord God, help me! Kaycee grid-locked her knees. Sweat from her hands stained the Bibe, making it slippery and she pressed it to her chest.

“Start reciting.” Norma cautioned, stepping up beside Jane, only to look beyond into the dark belly of the room. The dark of the foyer had been nothing compared to this. If there were any windows, they’d been sealed long ago. Kaycee looked back down at the Bible, squinting her eyes at the print. Psalm 118! She’d gone too far!

“AAAGGHHH!” a tortured voice screamed from the room and Norma turned her light toward it. They now saw that they were in a once spotless dining room. And lain on the rotting carpet was Van; hovering over him, was the enemy. Even years later, Kaycee couldn’t remember the sight of it. Maybe she’d blocked it out because it was so hideous. But, she’d always remember the smell. Thick and sooty, like burning oil, only more poisonious. It was up her nose and in her eyes before she could even think.

“Kaycee!” Norma called from somewhere. “Read!”

The page was before her eyes, but it was blurry… the words and spaces had blended. Just like they wanted! Kaycee’s head jerked up, seeing it coming for her. “Lord, save us!”

The shadow fell back as though it had been stung. It hovered between Van’s still form and the edge of Norma’s light. It held no real form or features, but Kaycee felt its eyes on her. Eyes so cold, they burned. And with their deadly rays came voices. There were too many at first, but then they came clear as they took turns insulting her. Hypocrite… traitor… liar…

“Kaycee, keep going!” Norma cried amid the whispers. “Our God did not give a spirit of timidity, child! Use it!”

A slithering voice came at her, but Norma only thrust her flashlight farther in. “Uncomfortable yet, you worthless heap of hellfire!”

Kaycee would’ve wondered at the wisdom of that, but she only forced her eyes back down to the Bible. “You… are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob.
Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes.
 I put no trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever.”

The demons shrieked, she now noticed, every time His name filled the air. It was like an acid to their ears, a flame of higher bite then theirs.

Because it is. Kaycee’s mind and eyes widened with the realization. There were so many in the room still, but the battleground had shifted. It was God’s now and He was pushing them farther and farther back!

“There now.” Norma had come to kneel beside Van, touching a trembling shoulder. “It’s alright now… you hear me?”

Van didn’t answer, only whimpered, like Jane had. A whimper that was far from alright, but he allowed Norma to sit him up. She looked up to Kaycee. “There were six of you… who’s left?”

“Cain.” Kaycee’s heart quickened and she looked around the dining room. The boarded windows only let in a few splinters of moonlight, hardly enough to see around the busted and broken furniture. Somewhere though was her friend; her non-Christian friend. Would Satan claim him? Panicking, Kaycee stepped further out with the Bible. “Cain?”

“Kaycee wait!” Norma cried, but the flashlight’s beam had already left her. Kaycee hadn’t noticed how it had been on her this whole time... Instantly, the wind and voices rushed in. From every side the pressure hit Kaycee, making her gasp in surprise and pain. In her jerk, the Bible fell to the floor. Her eyes followed it in shock. Pick it up, Pick it up!

She would’ve, she really would’ve, but there was a hot iron against her chest, keeping her from doing so.

It won’t save you… the hissing came back. How could it, a lying, deceitful wretch like you?

The words bit deep into Kaycee’s chest, seeped in sadness, loneliness, and fear. Fear at the truth and how they could so easily claim her through it. You came here when He didn’t want you to… You ignored Him, failed Him…

Her legs were going weak as the last year traveled back through her mind. Visual accusations of the betrayals to her faith; not just the one tonight. In Kendall’s car, in the high school’s halls, around the fire… Kaycee’s eyes suddenly lifted. The campfire. She didn’t see it amidst all the choking black smoke, but she remembered. Remembered her fear there, and what she’d done to conquer it.

“God!” she squeaked out, trying to get past the flam in her throat. The pressure on her pulled in tighter, but she forced her voice to be faster. “Our God is greater… o-our God is str-onger. God, You are higher than any other!”

The shroud on her back fell away, feeling returned to her limbs and organs. It gave her courage and another octave. “Our God is healer… awesome in power, our God.” She took a breath. “Our God!”

The flashlight found her again, brighter then she remembered. She kept up her tune, taking up the Bible, and searching among the few rays for Cain. She’d almost reached the end of the chorus when she spotted him. He laid flat like Van had, motionless and senseless. The shadows weren’t over him, but they were there. They glared from under the chairs, crouched in the corners of the ceiling, and slinked up and down the walls. Kaycee couldn’t see them all, but she felt them there, looking her over like a ripe cherry to crush between their teeth.

“Keep singing!” Norma ordered and it jolted Kaycee into a different song as she kneeled beside Cain. “Here I am to worship, h-here I am to bow-w down… Cain?”

“Kaycee.” He surprisingly answered her. A slant of light from the nearby window gave her only half of his face, but Kaycee ignored the details, grabbing his hand. It was like ice. “We gotta go, Cain. We gotta get out of here.”

His voice shook. “Th… They’re e-ever-rywhere! They’ll t-t-take turns eating us!”

Kaycee didn’t allow that image to settle, yanking on his arm. “No Cain. God won’t let them.”

“You, maybe.” He became stoic then, yet to have blinked. He stared at the ceiling, stared at them. Kaycee didn’t dare look. “Cain, stop talking and start walking.” She finally pulled him up to a sitting position. “We need to…”

Don’t think sooo… A cackle of evil filled the air and something hit them both from behind. Kaycee sprawled forward, almost losing the Bible again. Norma’s beam lost them; she felt its warmth leave her and her eyes scrambled for Cain. He was right beside her, on his stomach, but he wasn’t what Kaycee registered first. It was the gnarled, skinny fingers digging into his shoulder. Fingers or claws she couldn’t be sure, but they dug into Cain either way, drawing blood through his coat. At Cain’s scream, the cackle came again. Mine! All mine!

“NO!” Kaycee shrieked fiercely. She reached out, her own nails digging into the claws. “I have been crucified with Christ and no longer live in the body! We are conquerors through him who loved us! What can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!?!”

At her tri-fold of holy words, the claws dispersed like ash and bright light hit Kaycee full in the face. But it wasn’t Norma’s trusty flashlight. The shine was pale blue and it sent the shadows shrieking like never before. Hand still on Cain’s shoulder, Kaycee looked up in the direction of the blinding rays. They came from the window, where the broken boards and glass shook. As they shook, they began to fall away, revealing more of the white-blue light. The moon!

Their evil weight lifted from her and Kaycee pushed up, pulling Cain with her. The voices snapped at them, but Kaycee dragged her friend fully into the light before their claws could reach them. Somehow her legs supported her and Cain and she braced them both. “You are Lord of Lords, You are King of Kings! You are Mighty God, Lord of everything…”

The moonlight burst through the windows with every word, brightening the dining room in its blinding hues. Shrieks became howls, howls became moans. Kaycee tried to keep her breathing up with her singing. “You’re my saving grace, You will reign forever…” She charged then through the demon-freed path to Norma and Van. “You are ancient of days!”

The chain of blessings and praises she kept repeating until her voice echoed like an archangel’s. They came to Norma, who’d snapped Van back to earth enough to walk, and they headed back for the door. Kaycee went on. “My Savior, Messiah, oh Redeemer and Friend!”

The moonlight’s florescence matched the power of her voice. They were all running from the dining room now, Kaycee nearly colliding with Jane who stood, but still trembling and stared. Kaycee merely grabbed her arm and she followed. “You’re my Prince of Peace!”

“Run!” Norma screamed above her as the light exploded behind them into an unimaginable brilliance. Only instead of a resounding boom, it stole away all sound. By the time Norma was shoving them all back out the front door, all was silent and dark again. Jane went flying into Linda’s arms, Van fell onto the steps and Kaycee crumpled to the ground along with Cain’s weak limbs. His breath came heavy and cautious, like he’d only risen from a fitful sleep. Feeling her own exhaustion, Kaycee sat next to him; her mind still reeled. She looked back, catching Norma looking at her. The old woman stood as wilted as them, the relief on her face the first emotion she’d shown all night.

Lord, was it only just a night? Kaycee turned back at the sudden sensation to her hand. She pulled it away from Cain’s shoulder and stared at the dark stains. His blood, from where the demon had grabbed him. Kaycee stared back once more, further up at the house. The famous Hanover house. All the moments of a chill or a tremble through her life came flooding back to her; they’d all been substantial… had they been warnings? Had they been God’s protection? A lot of good they’d done on her stubborn ears. Kaycee looked away from the house, sitting, deceptive in its silence. Yeah, it’d only been a night. A night between Heaven and Hell.

~To Be Continued~ 

~Shadowed ~ Scare II ~

           

           

            Kaycee didn’t scream along with Jane and Linda. Rather her whole body, mind and blood, froze with a clutch of Cain’s hand. Van had jumped back and tripped over his log, and was struggling to get up. He swiped up a stick, swearing into the dark. “Who’s there?”

            There was silence, and then a pale yellow beam shone right into his face. “Your doom, pretty boy, if you don’t get off my property!”

            The old voice became a body, an old woman with heavy boots, stepping into their circle. Her face was folded thrice with wrinkles, wide green eyes popping out beneath gray-tipped brows. A hat smothered her hair, white and pale as her eyes, one gnarled hand on the flashlight… the other on the trigger of a double-barrell. Linda shrank farther into Kendall’s arm, but Kaycee didn’t buy the same fear. She found herself actually relieved at the woman’s presence.

            “Geez, who do you think you are!” Jane cried, jumping up beside Van. “You scared us half to death.”

            The woman set her jaw. “You’re trespassing and have five minutes to beat it before I have the police scare you the other half!”

            Kaycee was already up, but Van only scoffed. “Yeah right. Nobody owns this land, Grandma; we’ve got every American right to be…”

            The shotgun’s end rose and stopped only an inch from his throat. Kendall was on his feet then, but he was the only one that moved, maybe even breathed. The woman’s eyes pierced each of them, Kaycee’s heart missing a beat when they lingered on her. So pale, so deep… so deprived of what a person’s eyes should look like. God, please…

            “You have many rights, I reckon.” The woman’s lips curled at Van. “But you youngins fail to realize how easily it all can be taken away. If you prefer to stay in the dark about it, then you’ll git. Now.”

            Though her words were soft, they pounded in Kaycee’s ear like a warning siren. She found the shoulder of Cain’s shirt and yanked him up, glancing at Kendall. “We’re going. We’ll go… just ease off.”

            The woman nodded stoically, shotgun lowering. “Be quick about it; it’s late.”

            The fire was put out with a wicked hiss, the smoke eerie in the beam of the woman’s flashlight. Cain’s flashlight, then Jane’s, soon joined hers, everybody gathering up their blankets and thermos. The old woman barely moved, watching them leave, then turned her beam the other way… deeper into the woods.

            “Crazy bat!” Linda shuttered as they broke through the treeline. “I almost had a heart attack!”

            “I about peed my pants.” Cain muttered.

            “Any mention of her in the Hanover haunt?” Jane punched Van’s side. He glared at her. “You mean of some ancient hermit stalking the forest brush? Never heard of her!”

            “Or her shotgun.” Cain commented, too late for Kaycee to elbow him. Van whirled on them. “Shut up, Cain! Don’t act like you weren’t cowering behind your girlfriend.”

            Kaycee scoffed. “The last thing I am is his girlfriend.”

            “C’mon Van.” Kendall sighed from the front with Linda. “Cool off. She spooked us all. Let’s just get back to the car…”

            “No.” Cain spoke out, surprising everybody. “We came here for a reason; we haven’t finished it yet.”

            “You can’t be serious!” Kaycee jerked his arm so he faced her. “That house is creepy enough, but now there’s a…”

            “She told us to get out of the woods, right?” Van shrugged, his eyeline still on Cain. “The house is out of the woods.”

            Kaycee’s heart shook with fear. “That woman’s got a gun! You wanna find out if she can use it!?”

            “Awe,” Van shrugged, eyes scrunching. “Where’s your faith, Kaycee?”

            Jane and Linda snickered. Kaycee squirmed, though she hoped the darkness hid the fact. She looked hard at Van. “I could ask you the same thing.”

            “Oh please.” Linda rolled her eyes, nudging Kendall. Kaycee saw his lips go tight and it saddened her. She had somehow found the courage to invite him to church earlier in the week. A possible answer was the only reason she’d convinced herself to come with Cain tonight. Maybe he’d have given her an answer… maybe he’d have asked her out, made her laugh, given her a first kiss…

            “Let the boys have their fun.” Jane giggled, her hand patting Kaycee’s shoulder, very demeaningly. “It’s amusing to see them try to out-macho the other. Not a sin, is it?”

            Kendall gave her a look, his composure back. “And I thought you stayed around for our stunning personalities.”

            “I don’t see it that way.” Linda cooed, lacing her fingers with his.

            “If you ladies are done.” Cain motioned, now headed fully in the direction of the Hanover mansion. “You can come watch me make history.”

            “Yeah,” Kaycee called after him. “By way of your obituary! Seriously, Cain…”

            “If Miss Church is going to keep whining, can she at least do it in the car,” Linda pushed past her, following Kendall and the rest, who followed Cain’s lead. She looked back and her eyes- mean and cruel- bored into Kaycee. “She’s spoiling everything.”

            I’m just the only one here with a brain. Kaycee defended against the barb, trailing behind the group. With each step, she felt more stupid. She’d come here seeking popularity- and yeah, sure, a guy- but instead, this was turning out to be the loneliest night of her life.

            I get it, God. Kaycee crossed her arms in shame. You come first.

            She took in the sagging face of the Hanover house as it came to loom over them. The wind-blown roof blocked them from the half moon and its shadow fell on them, dark and cold. Kaycee felt the shiver again; like an ice pick running its frigid tongs down her spine. Her body and heart were choked by it, urging her to run. But run where? It was four miles back to town and they’d only driven up in one car. She’d just have to tough it out; lay in the bed she’d made, as her dad would say.

            “Well.” Van brought their parade to a halt before the front porch. The broken steps were only a foot from him and Cain… though neither were moving to take the first step. “here we are.”

            There was a creak from somewhere, making Jane yelp. Cain gave her his ‘don’t-worry-bout-it’ smile and bounded up the steps in one leap. They all held their breath, but whatever they thought would happen, didn’t. Cain’s grin turned satisfactory. “Comin’ Van?”

            The jock only grunted, matched his leap to the top of the steps, and was to the front door in two strides. “Ready when you are.”

            “Oh, wait!” Jane came up after them, their numbers giving her courage. “Need to get a picture! Everyone on Facebook’s going to want to know about this.”

            “Someone put their hand on the knob.” Linda squealed. Kaycee caught Kendall’s eyes over her head. His held fear too and that prompted Kaycee to speak. “Cain, maybe we should…”

            Her words were swept away with a scream and a wind. A powerful gust came from the still night and knocked Kaycee on her back. The scream was Jane’s, but it wasn’t like the one before, in the woods. This one ripped the night along with the wind, a howl of terror that about sent Kaycee deaf. She barely absorbed the shock of her fall before she struggled up. “Cain?!”

            There was no answer… because there was no one on the Hanover porch. No Cain, no Van, no Jane… The door wavered open though, gaping like a dismal, hungry mouth.

            “Van!” Kendall jumped up from where he had fallen.

“Jane!” Linda echoed, but it was soft and bewildered through her trembling lips. Kaycee stood cautiously, her eyes unable to leave the open door. Waiting for Cain to pop out laughing, so she could kill him. But instead, the whole house groaned; each board, in its own monotone, filled the night and the few shudders still attached flapped wildly about the windows. But there wasn’t any more wind. Another scream went up through the house. Kaycee couldn’t say whose it was. Kendall shot forward, but Kaycee grabbed his wrist before he could mount the steps. “DON’T!”

Kendall shook her off. “Something’s wrong! We need to…”

“Listen to her!” a cracked voice came up behind them, gluing Linda to Kendall’s side. The three looked back to find the old woman staring up at the house. Linda cringed when she glared at them. “I won’t waste time saying ‘I told you so’. It’ll be a serious understatement before we’re done here.”

“What happened to them?” Kendall recovered his voice.

“What else?” the woman seethed, unshouldering a pack that was unnoticed before. “Something evil. That’s what you kids were wanting, wasn’t it.”

No. Kaycee’s throat quick-dried.

“So…” Linda’s eyes went wide. “This place is… I mean, it’s…”

“It’s not haunted.” The woman shook her head in frustration. “There’s no such things as ghosts, unfortunately. There’s only worse.”

Demons.

The answer numbed Kaycee’s brain and she found it hard to shallow; figuratively and physically. She didn’t know how, but she knew the woman was right. The Bible certainly had enough to say about them… Satan prowling like a lion, the Nephilium, their flaming abysses.

“You two wait here.” The woman pointed at Linda and Kendall, approaching Kaycee. “I need you to come with me.”

Her insides twisted with bile. Kaycee gulped the feeling down. “Wh-Where?”

The woman’s eyes softened in their pale pools. “You know. We need to save your friends.”

“You’re nuts.” Kendall jumped in. “Whatever joke you’re pulling…”

Another scream from the house froze all thought and talk. The woman waited until it had passed. “Do I look capable of pulling a ‘joke’ like that? I’ll put this briefly for you. Demons live in that house and neither of you are protected from them. Your friend here, is.”

“My name’s Kaycee.” Kaycee managed out. “And I’m not… I…”

The woman placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “Kaycee, my name’s Norma. Answer me this; do you know what’s in there?”

Kaycee didn’t dare look at the house to contemplate her answer. It’s peeled gray paint and broken windows would only confirm it. “Even if I did, why…”

Something was placed in her hands, familiar in size. Kaycee looked down and in the single beam of light saw the glow of the words Holy Bible meet her eyes. Relief immediately washed over her.

“You feel that, right?” Norma eyed her closely. “Because if you do, then you’re safe. He will keep you safe.”

Kaycee’s fingers clenched the Bible like a life jacket, but she couldn’t answer. Could it really be that simple, against whatever was in there?

“Stay here!” Norma ordered Kendall and Linda. “Kaycee, follow me.”

“Kaycee, don’t.” Kendall shook his head. “I don’t trust her.”

Kaycee wasn’t sure if she did either. But she did trust God… and there were Cain and the others to think about. Kaycee left Kendall with an encouraging look, taking the porch steps with Norma. They creaked louder than before, bringing the fear back with them. Norma paused just before the door’s molded threshold. Kaycee felt the hesitation.The darkness inside was alive somehow. She could hear it breathing. It sounded ridiculous, but it was true. “Norma…”

“We do it fast, it’ll be over fast.” Norma nodded firmly, her hand on Kaycee’s arm. And with her lead, they stepped through. 

~To Be Continued~

~Shadowed ~ Scare I ~

         

 

          The longer the shadows grew out from the flames of the fire, the more convinced Kaycee became that this was a mistake. It was a little late to realize it now though. An hour past town curfew and her parents were confident that she was snug and secure at Jane’s house for a sleepover. And tomorrow morning, she’d show up with a smile and the sugar-coated truth. At least, that’s what Jane called it.

            Why are you even here? Her conscience demanded . Kaycee’s eyes lifted, looking around to the five fellow figures around the fire. Oh yeah… to be popular. The dream of every high schooler.

            Admittedly, being popular had never been high up on her teenage list, but it was on Cain’s; her best friend since second grade, whose big mouth had talked her into this little stake-out. It’d grown into something of a dare between him and Van last Wednesday, and somehow by Friday had become an expedition for all six of them. So it was her, Cain, Van, Jane, Linda, and Kendall. They were to camp out in the murky woods until midnight, then make their way to the Hanover mansion and see who- Van or Cain- could last the longest inside the house. The haunted house.

            Content, Vermont was like any suburban American town. Fridays were football games, pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, a 4^th of July Festival… a haunted house. The Hanover mansion was the only real sense of legacy their town had; a three-story Victorian, complete with dagger spires and rotting walls since 1897. This year made it 115 years old; Kaycee found it mind-boggling the town council hadn’t ordered its destruction yet. It stood on a hill just outside the town limits, like an evil shadow always ready to bash out the brightest light. Kaycee had never liked the house, or the stories about it. Again, begging the question, why was she here?

            “The time has come!” Van suddenly stood from his log, spreading his arms out in a taunting manner. He was easily here for the attention, which the football season spoiled him on. Jane, the ever-doting girlfriend, smiled devilishly up at him. Cain squeezed Kaycee’s elbow in anticipation. We made it! It seemed to say. Just a couple more hours and we’re in!

            “The legend,” Van pointed dramatically through the trees behind them, where the lay in silent darkness. “Of the Hanover mansion becomes fact once again, as tonight, its history is unearthed.”

            Some things are best left unburied. Kaycee thought, not daring to look back at the house.

            “Eleven score and five years ago,” Van started out, his voice going low. “A rich couple sailed into the harbors of New York, looking for a quiet hill to build a quiet home. No one of Content knew who they were or from where they came, as the rich man had the mansion built in expensive stuff they’d only dreamed of before. Aside from a maid and a groundskeeper, no one was ever invited to see its spoils. No shindigs were ever made for the town to meet the newcomers. Curiosity soon turned to suspicion, especially when the maid brought forth a name…’

            Van’s arm passed over his face like Count Dracula. “Albus Hanover and his wife, Lilana. The wealthy son of a family of oil tycoons, it was rumored Albus had traveled the West Indies, and Lilana was a girl of those islands. According to the maid, Lilana had brought back some dark curse from those islands; she described her eyes as wild and white with almost no pupils. She was always barefoot, and had scars along her cheeks and arms. Today, we’d call her mental… but then, it was called bewitched. And it only became more evident as the Hanovers’ weeks in Content turned into months. Albus came to town often, but Lilana never did. The rumors grew worse with every gossip from the maid and the groundskeeper. Lilana screaming for no reason, hiding in the strangest places from the littlest things, or…” Van tweeked his eyebrows. “Crying blood! Literally, the red would pour from her eyes!”

            Kaycee shuddered at the image, but also at the feeling. A feeling of lonliness, sadness, a quivering spirit. How tormented Lilana Hanover sounded…

            “THEN…” Van ominiously drummed into his next paragraph. “In October of 1896, the maid entered the Hanover house after a long weekend off. Not even an hour later, she ran into town, screaming her head off… the groundskeeper was dead, murdered! And everyone knew who had done it; Lilana Hanover. A mad mob was barely stopped from storming Albus’ mansion. Only Albus explained that his wife had been in New Hampshire for the week, ‘visiting family.’” He air-quoted. “Naturally, no one believed him until Lilana appeared two days later, luggage and all. It was the first many had seen of her in the four years since the Hanovers had moved to Content. And they saw the truth, her wide eyes and the scars. But with nothing to prove she was there at the time of the murder, there was no arrest. No arrest and no peace of mind for the people of Content.”

            Van let the sentence linger through the smoke and up their spines. Linda rolled her eyes, nudging shoulder-to-shoulder with Kendall. Kaycee’s chest tightened, but she quieted her hormones. Though her crush on Kendall was a preferable feeling to the fear this night was invoking. And it didn’t come from the story; every child of Content had grown up with it. No, it was the shadows. Ones that the crackling of the fire weren’t scaring away. Kaycee felt them over her shoes, her back weighted in their damp evil. She blinked hard at the flames, concentrating on anything but the here and now. My God is not dead…

            “Things were thought to have settled down,” Van went on with the gruesome talk. “Until eight months later.”

            He’s surly alive... Kaycee went on too. Living on the inside…

            “When great howls came from the mansion.”

            Kaycee thrust her fingers toward the only warmth. Burning like a fire…

            “The town rushed to the Hanover’s door once more,” Van’s voice gained momentum. “To burst in on Albus’ body…

            He’s living on the inside…

            “…Swinging from the banister!”

            Kaycee’s breath hitched. Jane leaned forward. “And Lilana?”

            “She wasn’t found until the next night.” Van lowered himself to his knees, deepening the black rings under his eyes. Kaycee squeezed her eyes shut. Roaring like a lion!

            “Cold and blue on the riverbank near the house.”

            Roaring like a lion! Kaycee repeated and she took a breath. It was helping and she continued with the second verse.

            “How did either of them die?” Van threw a twig at the fire. “No one could say. But, every year since…” He rose, pointing a finger through the trees, toward the crumbling house. “Things happen within those walls. Unexplained sounds, lights, and winds.” His face turned toward Cain, smiling creepily. “And if any were to enter…”

            “DEATH!”

~To Be Continued~