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What if a haunted house is a loving thing? A record. A memory. A being itself that longs and loves. Maybe haunted houses aren’t scary things. Maybe haunted houses are extensions of your family, are your family. And maybe those hauntings, those things that you see, are little loving messages, reminders, or warnings. A house loves you like a mother loves you. We should all believe in something beyond death, if even story, because stories keep us connected to each other and the fabric of space. *Cynthia Pelayo, Vanishing Daughters.
“Well this is not exactly how I envisioned us spending Halloween.” Juliet sighed and wiped the back of her hand across her forehead. She leaned into the worn couch and tried to refocus her attention on the Kindle in her lap.
Thomas grinned from where he was sprawled out on the small, faded area rug playing a game on his phone. Even after shaking out the dust on the porch it was hardly clean, but it was better than sitting on the bare, wooden floor.
“You can still wear your costume later just for me.”
Juliet raised an eyebrow.
“Perhaps if you’re good.”
Thomas scoffed.
“I’m always good.”
“Thomas, the only person who would agree with that statement is possibly our almost three-year-old goddaughter.”
“Mmmm. I think you think I’m pretty good a fair bit of the time.”
She paused once more in her reading to look down at her boyfriend. He’d rolled over onto his stomach and had his chin propped up on both hands. She narrowed her eyes, but that just made him grin harder and start kicking his feet back and forth in the air like a child.
“Need I remind you, you are the one who agreed to take on this…strange job and therefore have no one to blame but yourself if I don’t make it into my costume tonight.”
“Awh Higgy, come on! How was I supposed to pass up the opportunity for us to spend Halloween in a real haunted house?!”
“It’s not haunted, Thomas. The Marris family simply wants us to make sure no one breaks in.”
“Because people think it’s haunted.” He rolled over onto his back and was on his feet in less than a breath. Juliet did her best not to let her appreciation of his physique show, but the heat in her eyes gave her away. Thomas flashed a knowing smile before situating himself next to her. He threw an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him. Juliet gave up trying to read and let the Kindle slide off her lap onto the couch cushion.
“Lindy specifically said kids have been daring each other to sneak in at night because people believe this place is haunted by her late mother, Theresa. They're almost ready to put the house on the market, but they’re concerned about people using Halloween as a last hurrah to get in here. She paid us, in cash, so how could I say no? Aaand,” he shimmied closer. “My super brave girlfriend is going to hold me when I get scared of the bumps in the night.”
Juliet failed at stopping the laugh that tumbled out of her mouth. She palmed his smiling face and gave a little push, but not enough to shove herself out of his arms. He licked her hand in retaliation and it was his turn to laugh at her noise of annoyance.
“You really are the most insufferable man.” It was hard to make her point when she couldn’t stop laughing.
“But you love me anyway.” Thomas wiggled his eyebrows and angled his head. Juliet sighed but inclined her own head for a kiss.
“Heaven help me, but I do. And any bumps in the night are probably going to be rodents in the walls or a loose shingle blowing in the wind. Didn’t Lindy also say it’s been eight months since the house was occupied? Any number of structural things could have happened since then.”
Thomas groaned.
“Just because you and Rick followed the noises of a lost cat through a spooky house once doesn’t mean that’s the answer for all spooky houses.”
Juliet sighed again, resigned to the fact that this was her life now. Well, she thought, if we’re stuck here on Halloween might as well make the most of it.
“What exactly has led to people believing this place is haunted anyway? I’m guessing it all hasn’t been bumps in the night.”
Seemingly thrilled about the question Thomas nestled further into the couch and coaxed his partner to rest against him.
“Lindy said her mom passed away in February after a short battle with cancer. Her family knew she was sick, but apparently she hid just how bad it was. Imagine their surprise when they got a call from a hospice nurse saying they needed to come to the house immediately to say their goodbyes.”
Juliet made a pained noise.
“My word. I can’t even fathom—” Thomas squeezed her tighter, knowing exactly what was going through her mind. “It was awful watching my mother decline, but at least I knew what was coming.”
“I guess by the time they all got here her mom was fading fast. Lindy said she kept trying to say something, but was so delirious nothing made sense. They were all upset with the hospice company, but their mom had made them put it in the contract that they wouldn’t tell her family until the very, very end.”
“God that’s heartbreaking for everyone involved.”
“Mhmm. Anyway, Lindy said it didn’t take long for people to start calling and texting her that they were seeing lights in the house and shadows walking past the upstairs windows. Lindy didn’t think much of it at first because the electricity was still turned on and figured it was just a bad lamp. Well, they came out and unplugged everything and got the utilities turned off and yet they were still getting reports about it. Then a neighbor called her one night after sunset wondering who was in the house. Lindy said nobody, but the neighbor was adamant they saw a figure in the window overlooking the street. They called the police but no one was here when they arrived and there was no sign anyone had been here. Nothing was taken or broken.
“Afterwards, the family installed some wireless cameras at the front and back doors, and a couple of motion sensors in the house thinking that would solve the problem, but instead it just led to more questions.” Thomas paused dramatically and only continued after Higgy rolled her eyes and asked what other questions.
“Neighbors still reported seeing a figure moving throughout the house, but every time Lindy checked the cameras and sensors and nothing was amiss. Then word started spreading about the house and that Theresa was haunting the place. Unfortunately that did lead to several groups of teenagers, and a couple adults, sneaking around and jimmying open a window or two to sneak in.”
“And did these miscreants ever find a ghost waiting for them?” Juliet tilted her head from where it rested against Thomas’ shoulder so she could see the boyish grin she knew he was sporting.
“As a matter of fact,” the grin grew even wider. “Lindy showed me footage of a couple of them running, screaming in terror from the house. Of course when word spread about that it brought even more delinquents out. Which is how we find ourselves here tonight. Lindy hoped the car in the driveway and our presence would scare off any would be trespassers.”
A faint thump suddenly sounded from over their heads.
“And we see how well that’s worked out,” Juliet said shifting. Thomas’ hand stops her from rising.
“I don’t know, Higgy. You set up your own cameras outside and none of them have even registered a light breeze since we’ve been here.”
“Thomas, you’re really not about to suggest what we just heard was anything more than some vermin or a juvenile searching for adventure, are you?”
“Hey, let’s just keep an open mind here. Tonight’s the night the veil is thinnest, after all.”
Another thump came, heavier than the first, now almost insistent. Juliet whipped out her phone and double checked the handful of security cameras they brought with them only to find no notifications. Her brows furrowed in annoyance.
“Something must be interfering with my signal.” She moved towards the stairs where Thomas stepped in front of her. She looked up at him in amusement. “I thought I was going to hold you when you got scared.”
Thomas scoffed.
“What kind of White Knight would I be if I let you go up the stairs first to where the ghost or escaped serial killer or local teens might be hiding?”
Juliet laughed in spite of herself.
“Lead on then, White Knight.”
Carefully, trying to avoid any loose stair that might give them away, the investigators climbed to the second floor, ears straining for any indication of where the intruder might be. They paused at the landing for nearly a minute but heard nothing out of the ordinary.
“Do you think they could have gone back out the window?” Juliet whispered. The security app was still open on her phone and still showing no indication anyone or anything had triggered them. As if summoned by her words another thump, the loudest so far, followed by several softer ones reached their ears.
“Does that answer your question?” Thomas mumbled as they made quick work of the last set of stairs. They paused again at the top, wondering which way to go. A series of knocks to their left answered their unspoken query.
“Stay behind me,” Thomas said. He reached into the pocket of his shorts and pulled out a small flashlight. “If it is some teens I’ll blind them with the light then we can grab them, or at least knock them to the floor.”
Juliet only just stopped herself from rolling her eyes at the sheer idiocy of her boyfriend’s plan, but was forced to admit it was the best course of action they had. At least until the knocking suddenly came from the opposite end of where they’d heard it originally.
Juliet’s hand gripped Magnum’s arm as both of their heads whipped around. The sun had finally set leaving the house cloaked in shadows and pockets of darkness. Thomas was hesitant to turn on his flashlight and give away their position, especially if they were already being flanked.
“We have to split up,” she whispered. She didn’t like the idea, but she also wasn’t about to let someone sneak up behind them. And by the way Thomas’ muscles tightened under her hand she knew he felt similarly.
“Be careful.” He finally relented. “If you have to let them escape, do it. No badass hero nonsense.”
“That goes doubly for you, White Knight.”
Noises at both ends of the house brought them back to the problem at hand. It was almost as if whoever was in the house wasn’t even trying to stay quiet. With a shared look the partners split off into opposite directions.
For the first time ever on Halloween Juliet found herself wishing she was in some ridiculous couple’s costume at La Mariana while Rick handed out some ridiculous trophy to someone else whilst Thomas whined about no one ‘getting’ their costumes. It wasn’t that she didn’t enjoy Halloween, it was just that she preferred spending the night on the couch snuggled under a blanket with Thomas watching some cheesy horror movie, or even sitting at the gate with Thomas handing out candy to trick or treaters. What she did not want to be doing was spending the night in a dark, empty house chasing trespassers away, even if they were getting paid. And speaking of trespassers.
Juliet crept along the hallway, keeping close to the wall while trying to figure out which door their uninvited guests were behind. For some reason she was having a hard time isolating the noises. She’d hear a thump then a few seconds later hear another one that sounded like it was coming from a completely different area of the house. Then she thought the doorknob of the first door she came to had turned just enough to click. But when she swung the door open all she’d found was a shallow linen closet that had long been emptied.
I could have sworn that knob rattled. She shook her head as if to clear some cobwebs then closed the door with nary a sound. Perhaps it was a draft.
What draft? There’s no electricity to the house and therefore no AC or heat. And there’s no windows in this hallway.
She shook her head harder and moved on. But before she could take another step something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. Something flowy, gauzy, and ethereal moved across the hall; like someone in a robe or dress. Juliet froze, feeling exposed and completely out of control. She was so focused on scanning the hall for another person that when another thump came she let out a tiny noise of surprise.
“Bloody hell. Get a hold of yourself, Juliet. It’s probably a family of raccoons.” Three more thumps came from somewhere deeper in the house. Before she could overthink it, or call for Thomas, Juliet strode forward to the next closest door and pressed her ear against it. Nothing. Just to be sure she opened the door and found a small guest room. A twin sized bedframe sat against one wall along with a matching nightstand and small bureau. At first glance they looked heavy and well made. Juliet assumed Theresa’s family planned to sell the furniture along with the house. She could almost see a little girl making herself at home in the room. She backed out of the room, closing the door gently, only to find herself stepping into a pocket of ice cold air.
Juliet gasped as goosebumps peppered her neck and arms. Her breath formed a cloud in front of her face as she struggled to keep her equilibrium.
This is impossible. I’m dreaming. I must be. I fell asleep on the couch at home watching a horror movie and this is what my subconscious conjured up.
That thought was ripped apart when the sound of something heavy hitting the floor came only a few feet from her. Juliet spun, attempting to locate whatever or whoever was behind her. She pulled out her phone, no longer caring about giving up her position. She needed to see what she was up against. With shaking fingers she activated the flashlight app just in time to see a black mist rush towards her. She barely had time to scream before it overtook her and everything went dark.
Thomas tiptoed down the hallway doing his best Scooby-Doo impression. He actually had to stop himself from laughing when he imagined what he looked like. However he couldn’t help but grin at their current predicament: stuck in a haunted house on Halloween creeping through the upstairs hallway in search of mysterious noises that he had to admit were more than likely a raccoon stuck in the wall or a bunch of kids who bit off more than they could chew. He just hoped, for their sake, he found them before Higgy did.
Oh come on, you love it when she yells at someone who’s not you.
Thomas mentally shrugged then was torn from his little daydream by a noise inside the wall he was sliding past. He would be forever thankful he and Higgy had split up and she didn’t hear the little yelp he let out. A second, softer, sound came and against his better judgement Thomas pressed his ear to the wall.
“Hello?” The house wasn’t that old, maybe twenty years, and Lindy hadn’t said anything about any secret passages in the walls, but it still didn’t stop his imagination from running wild. “Is someone in there? I don’t think the family wants to press charges. They just want you to leave the house alone.”
He waited for a response but when none came he laid a hand against the drywall. It was barely even a breath later when he felt another thump beneath his fingertips. He tapped lightly then more insistently.
“Hello?”
Thomas nearly jumped out of his skin when a single knock came from the wall on the opposite side of the hallway and a cold breeze swooped across the back of his neck. He spun, pressing his back to the wall and brought up his flashlight. Someone had to have snuck up behind him. His heart leapt into his throat when the light illuminated nothing.
“There must be a draft somewhere,” he mumbled to himself.
From what AC, genius? You checked the electricity yourself when you got here. Nada.
“Maybe Higgy was right. Maybe there’s a hole in the roof somewhere.” But at a quick glance everything appeared in working order.
That air was ice cold, too. Not even a hole to the outside would account for that. This is Oahu, not Canada.
The knocking resumed. This time it came from the floor. It was so close he felt the vibration in his feet and up his calves. If Thomas didn’t know any better he would have said it was almost annoyed that his attention was elsewhere.
“Alright,” he said, shrugging. “Here goes nothing. Uh, ghost?”
THUMP
Again next to his feet. He cocked his head.
“Theresa?”
THUMP THUMP THUMP
He jumped when they came this time from directly beneath where he stood.
“Theresa, do you need help with something?”
THUMP THUMP THUMP
Thomas tried to think back to his conversation with Lindy. She’d said something about the end. When they’d been called to Theresa’s bedside but she was already fading fast. Lindy said her mom was trying to say something, but it came out all garbled. Everyone just assumed she was delirious from the pain medicine.
“Theresa, are you looking for something? Or trying to tell your family something?”
THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP
“Higgy’s never gonna believe this.” He wasn’t even sure he quite believed it. “Okay. Can you show me?”
That was when he heard Juliet scream.
“Higgy!”
Thomas tore off down the hallway like the place was on fire. The house wasn’t big and it shouldn’t have taken him any time at all to find her, but somehow he felt like he was running forever; as if the walls were stretching like taffy. His blood stopped in his veins when he finally discovered his partner crumpled to the ground trying to right herself.
“Juliet. Hey, hey, hey. Easy.” He was at her side in an instant, hands checking for any injuries. He was more relieved than he could say when he heard a familiar groan of annoyance.
“Bloody hell.” She let him maneuver her into his arms, grateful to have something solid and alive to lean against.
“Did you pass out? What happened?” One of his hands ran through her curls searching for bumps.
“I don’t think so? But everything did go dark for a second. Something—” She paused, not even knowing how to explain it to herself. “Thomas, something was in the hallway with me. But I don’t know what or who. It—I could feel it but I couldn’t quite see it.”
Thomas ran a hand over her back, trying to bring her some sense of comfort.
“You’re gonna think this is crazy but it’s Theresa who’s here with us. She’s trying to get a message to her family. She needs our help.”
THUMP THUMP THUMP
The noises were right next to their heads inside the wall closest to them. But this time they were softer, less insistent and more yearning, almost sorrowful. The sound brought a lump to Juliet’s throat.
“I think she’s been trying to get our attention, but maybe overshot it a little. I don’t think she meant to scare us, or knock you to the ground.”
Several consecutive tiny knocks bumped up from the floor next to Juliet’s hand. She let out a noise that was something between a laugh and a half-sob, suddenly overcome with emotion for this maternal spirit. Someone she’d never even met when they were alive.
“It’s alright. I’m sure it’s frustrating trying to communicate with someone like me.”
Another quick series of soft knocks came. It didn’t take a psychic medium to figure out Theresa was telling her not to talk about herself like that. Thomas chuckled then helped Juliet to stand when she said she was able.
“Okay, Mr. Ghostbuster, what’s next?”
Thomas lifted his head.
“Theresa?” Thomas spoke softly as if talking to another client.
THUMP
“We’re ready whenever you are. Just show us where you need us to go.”
THUMP THUMP THUMP
They followed Theresa to the last door at the end of the hall. It opened onto a nice sized room that they quickly realized had been Theresa’s room. A queen sized bedframe along with matching nightstands and a chest of drawers completed the bedroom set. As with the other bed Juliet had found, the mattress and box spring had been removed but because of the size and weight of the furniture they assumed the family chose to include them with the sale of the house.
The thumping crawled across the room, around the bed, then focused itself on one of the nightstands.
THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP
“In the nightstand?” Thomas opened the top drawer then the bottom. “They’re empty.”
THUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMP
Juliet looked around back and beneath while Thomas double checked the drawers for any false bottoms.
“Is it possible it’s the other nightstand we need?” Thomas asked.
The nightstand in question began to vibrate, softly at first then hard enough that they both needed to hold it down or risk it bouncing across the floor.
“Okay,” Juliet soothed. “Okay, Theresa. We’ll look again.”
The nightstand stilled.
“I have an idea.” Juliet crouched in front of the piece of furniture. “Thomas, help me take these out.”
Knowing better than to question her when she had an idea, Thomas made quick work of the two heavy drawers made of solid wood. He shined the flashlight into the empty space as Juliet reached in to feel around.
“Thomas!”
He jumped a foot in the air.
“What?! What is it?! Are you okay!? Is it a rat!?”
Juliet laughed and even Theresa gave a series of small taps that couldn’t have been anything but her version of laughter.
“I’m fine. And no, it’s not a rat.” She fiddled with something for another few seconds before pulling back. In her hand was a thick envelope. Written on the front in beautiful script was Lindy and her younger two siblings' names.
“You wrote them letters, didn’t you, Theresa?” Juliet asked. Her voice was thick with emotion. “But then you either forgot or got too sick too fast.”
THUMPTHUMPTHUMP
“Then they got stuck in the drawer and when your family came to clean everything out they missed them. You’ve been trying to get someone’s attention for months, haven’t you?”
THUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMP
“Oh, Theresa. I promise we’ll get these to Lindy first thing in the morning.” Juliet clutched the envelope to her chest and leaned her head against Thomas’ shoulder. They sat in silence for several moments, ruminating on their night. Just before they moved to replace the drawers a sudden blanket of cool air covered them. Goosebumps popped up on their arms, but instead of it feeling oppressive it was like being enveloped in a motherly hug.
Thomas buried his face in Juliet’s hair as she turned further into his chest. Their minds raced with memories of their own mothers: Thomas saw his mom cheering on the bleachers after his first Little League homerun, while Juliet recalled her mother’s proud smile during her first piano recital when she performed a complicated piece none of the older students had had the courage to play. Their hearts ached thinking of everything their mothers had missed out on and everything still to come that they’d never get to see, but after their night with Theresa they both would go on to believe that perhaps their mothers weren’t missing anything at all.
The rest of their time in Theresa’s house passed without incident. As agreed upon with Lindy, just after midnight the couple left the house and returned to Robin’s Nest. They took a very long, very hot shower before tumbling into bed for a sleep that rivaled the dead.
The following morning they met Lindy and relayed everything that had occurred. When Juliet produced the envelope Lindy burst into tears.
“Do you think she’s still there?” The hope in her voice was audible.
“I don’t know,” Thomas said honestly. “But even if she’s not in the house anymore I think she’s always going to be here.”
Thomas tapped his chest just over his heart and a fresh wave of tears filled Lindy’s eyes.
“Thank you.”
Later still on the lanai sharing a drink Thomas couldn’t help himself.
“Are you ready to admit that spending Halloween in a real haunted house was a good idea?”
Juliet rolled her eyes so hard she swore she caught sight of her own brain for a second.
“I don’t know if good is the word I’d use. I think, once again, you lucked into being in the right place at the right time.” Her eyes softened and so did her words. “But also once again, we were able to bring some closure to people thanks to that big heart of yours and your desire to help.”
She watched his chest puff out in pride.
“But if you take a job like this at Christmastime, there will be no gifts for you under the Christmas tree this year.”
“Awh, come on, Higgy! You should know better than anyone about the tradition of telling ghost stories at Christmas!”
“Of course I do, but I’d much rather do it snuggled under a blanket with you in our own home than in one without running water or electricity.”
Thomas laughed then clinked his bottle against hers.
“Okay, I’ll make sure to keep that in mind.” He paused and the familiar mischievous twinkle entered his eyes. “Unless of course someone wants to pay us in Christmas cookies and peppermint bark.”
“Magnum!”