The Ghost Within the Walls
Hello Everyone. You may call me Faith if you wish. Anyways, I have just joined and I have this story that I've been working on for about a year. I know that it was gotten very far, but I had to rewrite it a bunch of times. All I know right now, is that it is about a young girl who was called Madelyn in the late 1800's, and died in 1864. Her death was caused by her father who burned her to death with boiling water. She haunts the house that she was killed in, which is in the small town of Muddy Waters, and is accompied by a demon called Seth. Seth was summoned by some devil worshipers and opened a door that let him enter our world. They are alone in the house for years and years untill one day a young girl, Skylar, and her father buy the house for their new family.
I have absolutely no idea where this story is going. No idea. Just got the idea one night, wrote down the prologe and what I thought it should be about and just started writing. :)
Hopefully I can get some help with any grammar and verb tense. I think i change that alot in the story. But hopefully I can get help on where this story should go! Haha :)
Just to let you know, this story is in different point of views in almost every chapter. The name under the chapter will tell you who is telling the story.
And here is my story:
I am the ghost within the walls; I have lived in this house for countless years. And for most of that time I had lived alone. No friends, no company, no future, just marking a path of my own, all alone, wondering if anyone would accompany me.
But, when he came, so full of fear that it seemed fake, I failed to see his ways. To see the true spirit within young Seth that threatened my very existence.
For countless years Seth accompanied me on every path I set and retraced. The look in his eyes as they flickered uneasily about made me nervous. But, still, Seth was a friend and I was stuck with him for eternity. This old house in the middle of nowhere was more likely to rot than sell.
Long ago, the realtor had died. No one had bothered to change the old sign, so now, staring out of a window, I hear it creak in the wind and I watch as more of the blue letters which had once spelt out ‘Ray Donald’, fall to the ground among the tangle of weeds and plants.
A sigh escapes me as I hear him coming. He does not speak but lightly raps the wall with his knuckles. I do not want to answer, but, ever since he imprisoned me I must.
I fear the demon who lives under my skin and who watches my every move.
Chapter 1
The ghost
Staring out the window I watched the trees sway in the wind. The old for sale sign creaked and groaned as it swung back and forth. Sighing, I turned my back and slowly headed towards the door. The sound of tire on gravel caught my attention and I zoomed back and looked out. Seth floated in the room and pushed me aside to see. A frown washed over his face, as a tan car stopped in front of the house. I smiled and clapped my hands together, but it didn’t make any sound. He whipped around and glared at me. I cowered back and decided to investigate.
Out of the large bay window in the main floor, I sat on the bench and watched a man and a young woman climb out of the car and slowly approach the house, climbing over weeds and vines. The woman was clearly not my age, and she was dressed oddly, like a boy. Looking down at myself, I saw, like always, my red and white checkered dress down past my knees and a white apron with lace. I looked normal, her not so much. She was wearing a white colored shirt with no sleeves, just string and some type of pants that I had never seen. Her hair was odd looking too. It was not braided but hung straight and had the colors of eggplant and watermelon intertwined with strands. Tilting my head to the side, I watched them with eager eyes as they unlocked the door and stepped in. As the door opened, Seth glided down the stairs, to ‘meet’ the visitors. I stood up and walked over to them. I think they liked the house, because they went everywhere. The girl, whose name I learned, was Skylar. I followed her around the house, like a puppy dog. She started in the kitchen and then the dining room and was amazed by the large cobwebbed chandelier that hung in the center. Slowly she made it into the main living room and the library; she was in awe of the large collection of books that lined the walls. This was my favorite room, when I was alive. I used to spend hours and hours reading and rereading the books. My parents urged me to play outside, but I only left that room to sleep, or go to outhouse and the school. Seth growled at us and disappeared, not wanting any of this. Returning to the foyer, she climbed the stairs. On the second floor, she went to the two bedrooms and the newly installed room that looked like an indoor outhouse. Down the long hallway, one door remained closed at the end. Skylar walked towards it. “No! Do not go there!” I called; she cocked her head but shrugged it off. I grabbed her shirt and pulled but I was not quick enough. She turned the knob; I covered my face as she opened the door and heard her gasp and she yelled for her father.
The large man came running, the breeze whipping me around in circles. “What?” He asked her, holding her arm. She pointed into the room, I stole a glance. I was forbidden to ever enter this room or he would get very angry with me. A fireplace was boarded up and in a cherry colored paint was a weird star like thing in the center. Wilted flowers lay on the ground next to a circle of candles. This was where Seth was summoned and that was the day I hated.
A group of people broke into this house. They were wearing the color of the midnight sky. During a storm they chanted as the lightning flashed and thunder crackled. When Seth appeared they fled and now I’m stuck with him.
When the door shut, it broke my thoughts, and I blinked the image away and followed them downstairs.
Chapter 2
Skylar
What a weird house. I looked around and sniffed the air filled with dust and musty. I walked into the kitchen and looked down at the tile floor, lifting a foot; you could see my footprint in the half inch layer of dirt. It was a beautiful kitchen but it needs new appliances. The wood stove sat in a corner next to a pump and a sink, and an ice box. A lot of new things, but we can’t get rid of the amazing chandler that hung in the dining room, above a large mahogany table with matching chairs. “Angie and the kids will like it.” My dad broke my evaluation as he entered the room. “What do you think?”
“Wow, that’s a first. Ever since you got married to that leech, you never ask me what I want. An improvement in progress;” I crossed my arms over my chest and chuckled at the look on his face. “I really do like it. But we never checked out the third floor or the basement.”
“Don’t worry. I looked at the basement and the third floor is all one room so, I was thinking that it could be your room.” He smiled a crooked smile, as he saw my eyes light up.
“Really!” A jumped up and ran up the flight of stairs to the second floor and walked over to the stairs hidden by a door. Slowly, I made it up the steep steps, and entered the space. “Wow,” My eyes glazed across the wooden room. The walls and floor were made of wood which I thought was great, a large window was actually a door to a balcony and another window faced the front of the house. There was no closet but I’m sure he’ll build me one; one that is deep and wonderful, full of new clothes and shoes. I can imagine it already, unless the witch decides that I don’t deserve such treasure.
“You like it?” The voice made me jump as I turned to my dad leaning against the wall. For a dad, he wasn’t bad looking. He was strong with lots of muscle, a flawless face and hair of wheat framing his face. Surprisingly he was married a woman that looked like she went under a thousand surgeries and did not look good at all.
“I love it!” I ran up to him and hugged his belly and smiled, “Are you going to build me a closet?”
“Of course, when we renovate the house, it will be placed in. Don’t worry.” He took a deep breath in and continued, “Honey, are you upset about Angie?” I looked up at him shocked.
“Me? Upset? No,” He saw right through my lie, “Okay, a little, because when she moves in, I won’t be your little girl anymore. You’ll have the other kids to play with and spoil. I’ll just turn out to be the rotten teenager like Angie says I am.” I let go of him and walked away, rubbing my arms. “You won’t be my dad anymore, you’ll be their dad and I’ll miss you. We won’t have anymore fun because you have to take care of her and the gang. Plus with more little babies around the house, that will make me the all time babysitter.” He chocked on his salvia.
“What!? Back this wagon up, more kids? Where did you get that idea?”
“Angie. She told me that on her honeymoon, that will be the first kid, then after that one is born she wants sextuplets.” I smiled and walked away, leaving him drowning in my words.
“Oh great,” I heard him mutter,
“Make an offer on the house!” I called back and continued down the stairs.
Chapter 3
Skylar
A week later, we packed up the little things that we had from our apartment and went to the new house. The beds in the apartment had to stay there so, Angie promised to buy us all new beds, and a real soft one for her and dad. While we were moving in, we had people come and redid the roof, and install a bathroom, laundry room and electricity along with Television and internet.
We meet Angie and her FIVE children at the house, they had two large moving trunks with them with all of there stuff. I felt poor, because dad and I only had our small flat bed truck full of boxes. My dad walked up and kissed Angie and hugged the kids, I hung back and started carrying things up to my room.
When I came into my room, my bed was set up already. I groaned and set the box down. Grabbing a hold of the frame, I pushed in around so, the head was against the wall and the end was facing the stairway. “There,” I grunted with a huff as I wiped my hands on my shirt. “Just right,” The knocking of the workers was quite annoying as I opened up all my boxes of belongings.
“Skylar!” A call came from downstairs,
“Yes?”
“You need to be out of the room, while they work on your closet.” I smiled and dropped what I was doing and walked down to the second floor. As I exited, four workmen stomped up the stairs, dragging dirt and crud with them.
“Clean up after you’re done.” I howled to them, as they disappeared, all I heard was ugh and moans.
Stepping out into the hall, the loudness and excited voices buzzed and bit at my ears. If you stood in the middle, you would be able to tell, what side the girls’ rooms were on and the side the boys’ rooms were on. Ballet music and Hannah Montana flowed down to mix with rap and the sound effects from video games coming from the boys’ room. I guess Angie put the girls on the side that my hidden room was. At the far end of the hall, my dad and Angie were arguing about something. Walking down, I pounded on the door with my fists. “I can hear you!” and it fell silent,
“Skylar, please come in.” My dad called and I opened the door. The pale room that it used to be was now a baby blue. Angie stood next to the wall, holding a paint brush in one hand and a rag in the other. Her usual rich clothes were now sweats that were covered in pant and her hair back in a messy bun.
“What are you fighting about now?” I asked crossing my arms over my chest,
“Nothing.” My dad said flatly glaring at me and stormed out of the room and away.
“Did you tell him?” Angie yelled at me after my dad was out of hearing range.
“Not exactly,” I muttered rolling my eyes.
“You selfish inconsiderate…” She paused at a swear word,
“I had to tell him! He was going to find out anyways! I mean look at you. You’re very large, and you don’t eat so yeah.” I shrugged and walked out, slamming down the door behind me. With the music blasting I pounded on the door of the closet room. The door opened and standing there wearing only tights and a leotard. “Whoa, what are you wearing?” Covering my eyes with the back of my hands,
“For your information I’m practicing for ballet and I don’t need your sass.”
“My sass? Kaylee I don’t need your attitude. Anyways, turn it down or turn it off. I live upstairs and I don’t need to hear, lada dee ladda da lada dee.” I sang and walked away, hearing her slam the door. The next door down, the Hannah Montana music blared out, knocking, the door opened and standing there in a Hannah Montana shirt and jeans. “Hey Alexis, can you please turn down your music?”
“No.” She said straight forward, “I’m trying to organize my room. So, go away.”
“Sorry Alexis, but it needs to be turned down.” I pushed her aside and twisted the volume knob on her stereo.
“NO!” She screamed and slapped my arm; I shrugged and walked out of her room closing the door behind me.
Trudging down the stairs, I could hear my dad on his cell phone. Tiptoeing up to the kitchen doorway, his conversation shocked me. He was talking with my grandmother about the little baby or ‘problem’ as he put it. Even from five feet away I would hear her yelling. Not wanting to get caught, I slipped away and headed for the front door. Opening the heavy door was not easy but it was cool. When I stepped out on the wooden steps and closed the door behind me, the sharp air caught me off guard. Luckily the workers already cut and trimmed the grass and bushes. Golden orange leaves blew across the yard like tornadoes. The long driveway was no sprinkled with the leaves. The ancient oaks towered and reached for the sky with their limbs covered in a wash of oranges and reds. Smiling, I walked around the house and into the back. Although this is a big house, and with all the windows, the ones facing the back were boarded up, so this is the first time to see the backyard. When I turned the corner, I stopped dead in awe. A shining lake blinded me, the soft waves licked at the sandy shore. Sitting on the shore, a rotting dock stretched out into the water, I’m sure my dad can fix it up. Running back inside the house, I threw on my swimsuit and wadded into the shallows. Surprisingly it was quite warm and clear, no weeds. Pulling down my goggles I dove under to get a good look.
Chapter 4
The ghost
I haven’t seen Seth for hours, probably because I was bust examining all the rooms. The colors, toys and books were very different. Floating out of the ‘bathroom’, I think that’s what they called it, a scream echoed through the house, running to a window, I saw Skylar running. What she was wearing caught my eye. I don’t know what it was but man I was showing a lot of skin.
Hearing the slam of the door and frantic breathing I went downstairs. Her father had a hard clamp on her upper arms, his hands holding her still. Pressing against the wall I listened.
“What happened?” Her dad asked,
“I…I was swimming in the lake.”
“What lake?”
“The one out… outback. I wasn’t very deep, I came to a drop off and wanted to see what was at the bottom, so I swam to the surface and took a deep breath and dove under. I stopped to see if the cliff wall was smooth or covered with muscles. When I turned around…”
“What?”
“This face was staring at me. It wasn’t a human face. I was white, no eyes just black holes. It was wearing a black cloak.”
“Okay, it’s okay.” Her father held her close and I wanted to cry.
“What’s she crying about?” A lady walked over separating them so she could hug Skylar’s dad.
“She saw something in the lake; I’m going to go check the lake out.” He unhooked her arms and walked away. The first thing that came to my mind was Seth.
“Saw something in the lake? Are you under something?” Skylar glared at her, her eyes filled with tears. She shook her head and ran upstairs crying. Lady snickered and skipped away happily. I wrinkled my nose and went to find Skylar.
Upon entering her room, Skylar was pulling on a pair of pants, and talking under breath. I closed the door trying not to make a sound but it clicked shut. Her head snapped up and for a second I was positive she saw me. After seconds of silence she continued on and leaped on her bed, lifting a grey square from the floor. Curiosity tempted me over and I looked over her shoulder. She opened it like a door and was now an ‘L’ shape. The bottom had keys like a type writer but was smaller; the top light up with strange colors. A small arrow flicked across the screen and a white piece of paper popped up and the words appeared fast. Looking down, I saw her fingers move, tapping the keys, she was typing.
When I was alive, I was a pro at typing. My father installed on in the library, and I would sit and type school work or announcements when we would have parties or meetings. My teachers and other mothers disagreed about the stories that would flow from my fingers onto the paper.
As Skylar left and was standing by a shelf, I typed in a simple phrase, ‘Hello, How are you.’ The small clicking of the keys made her run over and she read and reread my message. “Okay I did not write this.” She whispered, “Huh,” Skylar typed another message, ‘A little scared, who is this?’
‘Do not be afraid, I lived in this house a long time ago.’
‘So you’re like a ghost.”
‘You can say that.’
‘Were you at the lake?’
‘No.’
‘Is there more of you?’
‘Yes, it was Him.’
‘Who is him?’
‘Cannot tell you, he is coming.’ Seth floated in and frowned, Skylar’s eyebrows creased as she read my message and I tried to run out of the room but Seth grabbed me and pinned me to the wall. “Listen to me you child, I am in charge. If you ever, ever talk to any of these humans, or someone will get hurt.” I fell to the floor as Seth dropped me and I fell through the floor. As I hovered back into the room, Skylar called for me.
“Are you still here?” My hands shaking I answered, ‘Yes, I am still here.’
‘Where did you go?’
‘Through the floor.’
‘What is your name?’
‘Madelyn.’
‘Cool.’
‘You are Skylar.’
‘How do you know?’
‘Your father calls you that.’
‘What is your last name?’
‘Family name is Storm.’
‘Storm. What is his name?’
‘He calls himself Seth.’
‘Seth, how do you know him?’
‘He was summoned, by people in black.’
‘Where?’ I did not type back, I did not want Seth to find out, and shaking my head I drifted away.
Chapter 5
Skylar
With no answer from the ghost who calls herself, Madelyn, I walked over and connected the laptop with the printer and printed out the conversation. When I was out, I pulled on an Aeropostale sweatshirt and tromped down stairs, running down two at a time. My dad caught me right as I was heading for the door. “Where do you think your going?” I squirmed out of his grip and smoothed out my jacket.
“To the town library.”
“Why?”
“Because, I want to see who lived in this house before us.”
“No, I cannot allow you out of this house.”
“I’m just riding my bike. I won’t be gone long.” I opened the door but he shut it again. “Let me go!” I ordered, whirling around to look at him.
“Skylar I cannot allow you to go into town while there is much to do in this house.”
“Like what? My room is done. I have nothing to do.”
“Go help the other kids.” I crossed my arms, “Angie might want help too.”
“No. I hate those brats. I am not helping them.” I snapped back and glared at him.
“Now!” He roared and treaded away heavily. I waited till he was out of hearing range and silently opened the door and slipped out. Unlocking my bike, I hopped on and rode down the driveway.
As I walked my bike over the top of the hill, I stopped to gaze at the small town. People walked along the many family owned shops, peering into the windows. A woman sat on a bench with her baby on her lap, the baby gumming on a toy, a toddler ran up to people who walked by waved and I think said hi and ran away giggling. The mother scolded her but the passing couple shook their head and began a conversation with the tiny family. Sighing, I began to walk down the hill, but was stopped by a small group of girls that stood in front of me. “Can I help you?” I asked them holding the brake,
“You’re new, right?” The leader asked flipping her hair,
“My dad and I moved here with his wife and kids.” I answered.
“Where are you going to school?” Someone asked in the back,
“The local middle school, and if you don’t mind I need to get going.” I continued walking but again was stopped,
“What house did you move in?”
“I don’t know, I was going to go figure that out.”
“Whatever see you at school.” They all flipped their hair and strolled away. Rolling my eyes I go on with my task. The library sat in the middle of town; actually it was in the Town Hall.
I leaned my bike against the wall and hiked up the large marble steps and pulled open the large wooden door and stepped in. My eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, and I walked over to the door labeled ‘Muddy Waters Library’. The room was very large; the carpet was worn, the colors fading. The walls were lined with tall bookshelves, and tables sat, in the middle some with computers. The soft thudding of books being shelved mixed with the soft tick of the clocks. I walked over to the large librarian desk, and smiled. “Can I help you young lady?”
“Yes, do you have any documents of the history of the houses in this town?”
“Sure, what house are you thinking about?”
“The old house on Willow drive?”
“That’s the oldest house here.”
“Cool,” I took the folder from her and walked over to a table and sat down. I placed my messenger bag on the table and pulled out a notepad, pencil and the conversation with Madelyn. Slowly I opened the folder, and pulled out the stack of yellowed papers. A black and white picture of the house sat on the top page, the floor plan on the bottom. I scattered the pages and looked at the history. Smiling I read on:
The House on Willow drive was built in the late 1800’s. A rich man by the name of William Storm bought the land for his future wife Mary Gate. The cost to build the house was estimated to 3000 $. During the construction of the home, Mary gave birth to her first child, a girl which they named Madelyn. William Storm owned most of the town and businesses while his wife worked in the fabric shop, where she sold many designs and colorful yawn. Madelyn was not usually seen outside. The young girl sat inside reading or making up ridiculous stories.
I flipped to the next page, which read:
Madelyn Storm, funeral September 23rd 1864
Madelyn Storm, the daughter of William and Mary Storm, has died to unknown reasons. Mr. Storm has announced that the funeral will be private and simple, for Mrs. Storm does not want to have to much grieve. Madelyn died at the age of 9.
Pictures of Madelyn littered the page, although it was not in color, I could tell the most of her features. Her hair was pulled back in two loose braids, bangs swept on her forehead; her eyes were round and looked soft, for the lightness that they were, they must have been a blue color. Her dress when down to her ankles and a white apron covered the front. “She’s so cute.” I muttered and read the next page.
On the account of the death of their daughter, Mr. and Mrs. William Storm decided to sell the house and move away from Muddy Waters. Unfortunately, the house did not sell, and the bank boarded it up and left it to rot. No one knows the whereabouts of the couple today.
I shook my head and continued to read, but before I could continue my phone vibrated. “Hello?” I whispered,
“Where the heck are you Skylar?”
“At the library,”
“I told you that you could not go. Come home right now.”
“I’m a little busy.”
“No right now. If you don’t you will be grounded and I will take your laptop away.” Click. My dad hung up and I stood up and went to return the papers.
“Excuse me, but can I borrow this?” I asked the librarian.
“Sure, do you have a card?”
“No, I just moved here.”
“Well welcome to Muddy Waters.” She smiled and handed me a tiny card, “The first one is free. Come back soon.” She waved and I walked out the door, clutching the folder in my hands, my bag slapping my legs as I rode home.
Chapter 6
The ghost
The friendship between Skylar and I began to grow after the conversation we had. It took what seemed like hours for Skylar to return from town. The bad energy in the house from her father was overpowering Seth. He paced in front of the large bay window, rubbing his chin. When I heard the door open, I raced down but I saw her father, the lady and Skylar yelling at each other. “Skylar Marie Jackson, where have you been?”
“I told you, at the library.” Skylar began climbing the stairs but was blocked.
“That’s not what I heard.”
“Oh really what did you hear?” Her eyes glanced at the lady,
“That doesn’t matter. What does matter is what’s in your bag.” She burst out into laughter.
“You think I’m on drugs? Dad, I just went to the library and got one book and came home.”
“Skylar,” The lady said in an I’m-really-don’t-care-but-have-to-fake-it voice. “I know seeing you dad happy and having a new mom and a new family and home may be hard for you but hurting yourself by doing drugs isn’t going to make all of this to disappear. I was also planning on naming the baby Ariel after your dead mother.”
“Okay, one I like seeing my dad happy; two you’ll never be a mom to me; three that ‘family’ you mentioned are all stuck up brats; four I’m not doing drugs and five you do not have permission to name that stupid baby after my mom.” Skylar’s voice slowly rose as she talked. Quickly the lady swiped Skylar’s bag and pulled out the contents. Everything except some papers fell to the floor.
“What is all this?” The lady asked,
“Well, the print out paper is a conversation I had with the ghost that lives in this house, and the older yellowed papers are things about this house.”
“Ghosts? See what your daughter is talking about!” She screamed at Skylar’s father, and burst into fake tears and ran up the stairs. Turning to her father he just shook his head and walked away. Gathering up her stuff, she looked up and five heads looked down at her. Stomping up the stairs she slammed her door to her room, leaving me confused.
For the rest of the afternoon Skylar sat in her room the glow from her typewriter highlighted the tear trails on her cheeks. A soft knock made her look up, “What?” her voice was horse, the door opened and light flooded the dark room. Walking up, her father smiled holding a paper bag. Blinking, Skylar shut her typewriter and gently took the bag. When she unfolded the top, a wonderful smell floated to my nose. Memories of the local bakery flashed in my mind and I licked my lips. “Why?”
“Why what?” Her father sat on her bed,
“Why did you marry her?” She said between bites.
“Because I love her, and I thought you would be happy.”
“Well you thought wrong! You thought she could replace mom!” Skylar stood up and stood by the window.
“You know I miss her too but we have to move on Skylar. Angie can give me…I mean us a lot.”
“Oh sure,”
“And what was with the ghost stuff?”
“That’s it! That’s why you came up here. Angie told you that she was ‘worried’ about me. I am not lying! There was a little girl that used to live here that died in this house and a greater evil is holding her here.”
“Skylar honey, I think you’re doing this to get attention.”
“Get. Out. Now.” Skylar said through clenched teeth and her father let.
Chapter 8
Jake Jackson
I shut Skylar’s door with a click. The argument reeled in my mind as I headed down the hall and down the stairs. On the first floor, my room sat between the stairs and the kitchen and dinning room. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door and smiled at Angie. “So?”
“So,” I said peeling off my shirt and throwing on a flannel.
“How’d it go?” Angie sat on the bed brushing her gorgeous blond hair.
“Fine, she understood where I was coming from.” I lied,
“Good,” She walked over and wrapped her arms around me, her hair tickling my chin. “Now let’s talk about the baby.”
“Um okay…Yaaawwnn.” Slipping under the covers I leaned my head into my pillow. “Skylar told me.”
“I know, aren’t you happy about this?”
“Um, yeah I am but I don’t know what Skylar thinks about it.”
“Don’t worry about her. Worry about me, and the other kids.”
“I know I shouldn’t but she sounds serious about the ghosts.”
“Ugh, she’s just doing that to get your attention.”
“Yeah I know.” I turned the clock, it glowed 10:48 P.M. “They kids start school tomorrow and we have to be up very early.” I clicked off the light and quickly slipped into a deep sleep.
Chapter 9
Skylar
Drip…Drip…Drip… I opened my eyes to look at the doorway of the kitchen. When did I get up? Rubbing my eyes, my hands as tan as they are, are now clear. I must be dreaming. Clanking of pots and pans got my attention and I peered into the kitchen. Standing next to the wood stove is a man smoking a pipe. His curly brown hair stuck out from under his hat. “Madelyn!” His deep voice echoed through out the house.
“Yes papa?” The delicate voice answered, a little girl skipped in, her dress a little too small for her. ‘This little girl must be Madelyn and the man must William Storm.’ I thought, William looked down upon his daughter.
“Where have you been?” Madelyn trembled as she held up some papers.
“I wrote you a poem about the wonderful season of autumn.” Snatching the papers, he read the poem. I expected him to smile and hug his daughter but instead he crumpled it up and slapped her right across the face. She fell to the floor, her eyes filled with fear.
“A poem? You should be doing other important things like sewing and cooking.” William yelled, “A girl like you should be outside doing the laundry not being in the house making up ridiculous poems and stories!” At thought the conversation was over, Madelyn stood up and smoothed out her dress and her long braids. William whipped around and poured boiling out water on her. Screams echoed in the house, I looked away and saw Madelyn’s mother running towards me. Her boots clicking as she hiked up her dress and rushed past me. “William! What have you done?”
“This inconsiderate child is not worthy enough to be in my family. She mouthed off and she needed to be punished.” His voice covered in venom.
“My child! My baby!” Mary knelt next to her child, the life full happy eyes sat almost empty as her life was drained out of her.
“Mommy,” Madelyn’s voice horse, “I’m sorry I am a disappointment to you.” Tears filled Mary’s eyes when she knew her daughter was dead and her killer was the man whom she loved. Sadness turned into anger as she gazed up as him, she stood up.
“How could you?” She picked up a pan and threw it at him. William grabbed her wrists and pulled her towards him.
“Say one word about this your reputation in this town will be destroyed.” He hissed,
“I have nothing else to lose.” She hissed back as she dropped to the floor. William scooped up her child. Seeing the scene of Mary weeping did not interest me; what did was what William did to Madelyn. Slipping out of the kitchen, I followed William out of the house and out by the lake. From the outside, the house and lawn were very different. The original color of the house was light brown, the shutters painted a darker brown. Instead of tall weeds and untrimmed grass, a garden sat in full blood, dark green grass surrounded it and the tall trees. Hooves on cobblestone, lowing of cows, cry of a rooster, bark of a farm dog, meow of a feral cat and the sound of laughter flooded and bit at my ears. This place was full of life; you would never think anything bad would happen. In my state of awe, I remembered what I was doing. Kneeling in the sandy shore, he began to cry, a fake cry that filled me with rage. A nosey neighbor ran over,
“What in God’s name happened?”
“My little girl…she…she drowned playing in the lake. I…I told her not... not to go swimming until I was able to watch her but she didn’t listen.” The neighbor patted him on the back and whispered something that made him nod. Watching him walk away I started to float, not wanting to leave I tried to grab a hold of something but nothing worked. With a single blink, the scene changed to a dark day. A light mist fell from the cloudy sky as a casket was lowered into the ground. ‘I’m at Madelyn’s funeral.’ I thought looking around; signs told me that I was in Muddy Waters Cemetery. As quickly as I came the scene disappeared. An annoying beeping made me open my eyes. Now I stared at my ceiling.
Chapter 10
Skylar
The rest of the week was uneventful. I went to school, fought with Angie, talked with Madelyn, and go to sleep. But on Friday night, my dad and Angie decided to go out and all of the brats were over at sleepovers. I sat up in my room, typing an essay about the War of 1812 when I heard the faint sound of thunder. O great, I thought as I heard the pitter patter of rain attack the roof, like little darts. One crackle of lightning flickered the lights, once, twice and three times their out. Groaning, I looked around once and continued my work. Something moved behind me, and I whipped around, nothing; just the wall. Taking a deep breath, turned back around, and now my computer went out. “Okay Madelyn, very funny, turn it back on.” Nothing happened, “Madelyn!” I scolded looking around. Slowly, I glided off my bed walking across the wooden floor, I hesitated at the door, exhaling slowly I stepped out into the hall.
The flashes of lightning reflected off the walls and created long shadows. The wooden floor creaked with each step I took; I placed my right hand on the wall to guide me. My ears rang from both the intense silence and the pounding of blood.
I stopped, at the top of the stair case and tensed when I heard a door screeched open. Slowly, ever so slowly, I turned my head to look down the long hallway. The nursery room was open, the lights on. Thinking that the power was back, I flipped a light switch, nothing. My stomach did a flip-flop causing it to heave. Gulping, I started towards the room. I felt something or someone brush my hand; low whispers came from that room. This cannot be happening, I thought as I stared at the slightly open door. Without taking my eyes off of the door, I positioned my hand on the wall where I thought a light switch was. I misjudged where I was standing and fell down the first flight of stairs. I crashed and tumbled down the wooden stairs and landed with my back against the wall with a thud. I breathed heavily as I evaluate where I was. Slowly exhaling, I stood up. I was on the first landing, hopefully all in one piece. When I was standing the lights flicked on, of course. Taking grasp of the handrail, I cautiously tip-toed down the last six stairs to the ground floor. I walked into the kitchen and flicked the light switch, all normal. I opened the fridge was welcomed by a blast of cold air and I grabbed the milk to have a bowl of cereal.
I looked up from my bowl when I heard the front door open and Angie laughing. They walked into the kitchen with their arms wrapped around each other. “Skylar? What in world’s name are you doing up?”
“I should be asking you the same thing.” I grumbled and stuffed another spoonful of cereal into my mouth. Angie slammed her purse onto the granite counter and put her hands on her hips.
“Skylar Ann, do not talk to your father or I like that. We are adults and can stay out late, unlike you who are a child and needs her sleep.” Angie scolded and looked at my father for back up; he just shook his head and cracked open can of Pepsi. “So go to bed, now.” I glanced up at her from my bowl of now soggy cornflakes and narrowed my eyes into black slits. The stare down carried on until my father burped and we both looked at him.
“Skylar?” He said,
“Yes?” I answer,
“What happened to you?” He questions and scrambled over to me.
“What are you talking about father?” I asked in bewilderment,
“Your face and your arm. Your all scraped up and bruised, and you gettin’ a mighty fine shiner on your right eye.” Instantly my hand flew up to my face and my fingers gently sweeping over the inflamed skin. I looked down at my arm and the elbow was turning a shade of purple, ouch.
“Oh.” I gasped, “I, uh, fell down the stairs.” I heard Angie snicker when I said that, I shot her a look.
“Fell down the stairs? How?” My father asks as he examines my eye and my arm, “Forget it, I better get you to the doctor.” He reaches around me and clutches the keys to the truck and throws me his jacket which is when I realize that I’m only wearing a tank top. I follow him out of the house and climb up into his red rusty truck. Angie was standing at the large bay window, I blinked and standing there, next to Angie, stood Madelyn, and in a blink she was gone.
Chapter 11
Jake Jackson
“Skylar, Skylar, Skylar.” I shook my head as I drove down the long windy highway. “What am I gonna do with you?” She just looked at the window and pulled my jacket closer to her body. “Answer me Skylar.”
“I don’t know dad, I don’t know what you are gonna do.” She rolled her eyes, “I’m not a mind reader.” We were arguing and we weren’t even in town yet.
“So tell me the story.”
“What story?” She snapped,
“About what happened to you.” I answered gently drumming on the steering wheel.
“You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.”
“Try me.” She sighs and opens her mouth to talk but shuts it quickly.
“Well, you know how I told you that there was a little girl that died in our house a long time ago, Right?” I nod, “When I went to the library, which is really in the city hall, I asked the lady working there if she had any papers about the house and she gave me a manila folder full of papers about the family and the house and everything. The family that owned the house before us built it. The man, William Storm, was like super rich and owned all the stores and built the house for his pregnant wife Mary who worked at the fabric shop. She had a little girl named Madelyn, and Madelyn was a child that liked to read and stuff instead of play outside like other children. And one day when William called Madelyn to him, she showed him a poem about autumn that she made and he got mad and hit her and then poured boiling water over her, which killed her but pretended that she drowned in the lake. They had a small funeral that was private in the local cemetery here in town. She still haunts the house, she’s still there. And remember that weird room with all the devil worship stuff? Well that’s where Seth came-“
“Seth?” I interrupted,
“Yea Seth. He is an evil demon and is keeping Madelyn from passing on. He’s the one that I saw in the lake. Tonight when there was that big lightning storm, the power went out and I went downstairs to see if it was just the wiring in my room. When I got downstairs, the nursery room lights were on and the hallway lights didn’t work. I was hearing whispers and the door was slightly open. And misjudged where I was and meant to put my hand on the wall to see the light switch but I fell and went down the stairs. I’m positive that that was Seth that was in the nursery room.” Skylar looked over to me and I just blinked, pulling into the emergency room parking lot.
“I don’t believe you Skylar. You’re just doing this for attention. There are no ghosts in the house, no one died, and that was just a bunch of kids messing around.” Skylar stared at me in disbelieve,
“I told you that you wouldn’t believe me!” She yelled and opened the truck down and slammed it shut. I quickly followed her into the ER; I could feel the anger pulsing off of her from two car lengths away.
Chapter 12
Angie Jackson
I was silently searching the internet for a baby crib, I heard the front door fly open and slam shut twice. "Skylar! Cant we talk about this?" I heard Jake yell from the foyer.
"No! Because you don’t believe me dad! You never will!" Skylar screamed back and I could hear her stomp up to her room and yet again, slam the door. There was a shuffle in the hallway and Jake walked in taking his jacket off.
"Everything alright?" I asked and set the laptop aside, Jake looked at me and sighed.
"No, Skylar's arm is broken so she is wearing a cast and the dumb *** doctor thought that it was a child abuse case and sent in a child service worker! Can you believe it? I had to sit and sign about fifty billion papers to prove that I wasn’t abusing Skylar. Ridiculous." Jake sat on the bed and pried his shoes off.
"Oh, Jake, I’m so sorry. I hope Skylar is okay." In reality, I don’t very much care about that girl. But to keep Jake happy, I must pretend to like her. I sat up and touched his arm.
"Yes, she's okay. Just a little banged up. Broken arm, fat lip, broken nose and a black eye. Quite a mess from just falling down the stairs." Jake smiled and wrapped his hand around mine. "Thanks for the concern. Love you for that." I smiled, just to keep the man happy.....
Chapter 13
The Ghost
I watched the sad scene in Skylar’s father’s room, but I could still feel the strong pulse of anger from Skylar’s room, two floors up. The house was absolutely quiet, like it had been before this family moved in.
