I’m at the Manor tonight. We all are.
They’ve ‘seen the face’ so there didn’t seem to any reason for them to
see it again. If it had tried to
communicate with us, it might have been a different story but Derek is of the same
opinion as me – this ghost is resident in her own past. Drake raised an interesting point at the
daily planning session this morning. He
asked, as all the McFarlanes were alive when they left and only men had lived
in the Manor since, what had happened to this woman here that, when she
eventually died, she came back? From
all the evidence gathered, it wasn’t because she’d been happy living in the
Manor, not if the crying and screaming is any indication.
I had a good opportunity to study that
face last night and, while I cannot be 100% sure, not from a cursory exam, I
don’t believe I detected any signs of madness or mania in her eyes or her
expression, just a complete and consuming sadness. Therefore, I don’t think this is one of those ‘insane relation’
stories, where the unfortunate family member is chained in the attic away from
light, love, and denied any kind of normal life. Taking that 1 stage further, the screaming and crying must be for
a different reason. That theory makes
an assumption – that the crying woman (which, thru observation, must be the
face) is the same woman as the one heard screaming. I’ve listened to the recording and I don’t believe it’s a man
making that sound. But there were 2
other women here, so I could be wrong.
I’ve also listened to the recording of last night’s incident and I’m
glad I wasn’t here to witness it in person.
The Manor has a sullen feel to it
tonight. It’s almost like it resents us
being here but it can’t stop us. We’ve
already had an incident – early, for once – and I’m damned if I can figure out
where this one falls in the sequence.
Laughter. A woman’s voice again
but laughing this time. Joyful, open,
not in any way false.
Today’s other events: Drake spent a
lot of time in the cellar, working on his films. He showed us the results tonight just before we left to come up
here. A mixed bag, I think. Some prints show a pale, oval blur which
might be the face; others are a little clearer and you can make out
details. The rest show classic signs of
paranormal activity – distorted images, orbs of light, arcs of energy. Drake is thrilled. While we’re all here tonight, our cameras are still at the lodge
ready to capture evidence should the face return again.
Andrew went into town to visit with
his father, at Florence’s request.
Apparently, there is no data on the gatekeeper but Andrew’s father might
have some family gossip handed down from his grandmother. We’d left before he returned but he did come
back with Chinese takeout seeing as he hadn’t cooked supper.
Florence and Alex have managed to find
Dr Carver and are now tracing his medical records. There are some security firewalls to get around first but Alex is
hopeful she can do it. I have no
objection to this as the medical records concerned are for people who are
deceased. Alex is different today, more
relaxed somehow. After being here and
subject to that noise last night, I can only assume there must be another reason. Maybe Peri told her what she needed to know
.. which doesn’t necessarily mean it was the truth.
Derek, Nick and Peri worked on the
recordings today. There are other
voices in the background of the screaming tape but too faint to pick out
words. However, the sounds/words are
short, almost commands.
As for Carrie and me, we’ve been
talking about the situation here. The
words she used and her voice say to me she has it under control and she’s
taking control of her reactions. Carrie
feels sad for the woman and she wants to learn the truth but, as to getting
this in the right sequence, she’s had no more luck than I have. To assess her recovery, I asked her views on
a séance and, to my surprise, she’s keen.
She said what we’re all starting to feel – it could be the only way to
find out what happened.
*****
Dereliction of duty. I missed doing supper. However, I was on a mission so I hope I can
be excused. I’ll explain. But, first, I have to record that, when AM
and PB returned this morning, they told us what had happened in the Manor. Scary.
I’m glad I wasn’t there. They
didn’t seem too bothered by it though, just very cold. Florence also stopped me to have a quiet
word before we all turned in – she’d struck out on DR’s request to find out
about the gatekeeper so could I go visit my Dad and ask if he knew
anything. I told her I’d go this
afternoon.
I slept well considering. There was a huge sense of anti-climax which
started around 3:00 a.m. and I felt a little depressed when I lay down. Maybe all the excitement had worn me out
more than I’d realized. When I woke, I
felt fine. Not depressed, just
determined. I prepared lunch, ate
rather too quickly for good digestion, then drove to my parents. I’d hoped to be back 4:30. It wasn’t to be.
Littleriver is such a small town that
I couldn’t wait to leave. I never wanted
to travel the world – except maybe Japan – but I did want a city. San Francisco, LA, Sacramento. Somewhere with big houses with people who
needed a butler. And, like just about
every other kid in this country when they get to a certain age, I didn’t have
time for my parents or their pasts, or their families’ pasts. My Dad is a gold mine. I discovered that today. He was surprised to see me again but, after
Alex’s visit, he wasn’t surprised at the reason I was there. He asked me if I’d experienced anything at
the Manor, if I’d finally achieved my ambition. I told him everything (well, not about Drake’s fake
pictures). He accepted it, didn’t laugh
at me, but didn’t really comment. I
think he believed me. Then I asked
about the gatekeeper at the time my great grandmother was the cook there. When the rest of the staff was dismissed,
the gatekeeper was kept on. It had to
be the same guy.
My Dad told me what he knew. The gatekeeper’s name was Richard
Mildenhall. He’d first started work
there as a groom in the stables – that’s when Chuck McFarlane was still
alive. He’d gone on to be the
chauffeur, and then the gatekeeper/estate manager. At the time of Constance McFarlane’s death, Richard Mildenhall
was in his middle to late 50s. He was
tall, large boned, a heavy build, balding and not handsome. He was a quiet man, utterly devoted to the
family, never spoke a word against any of them. He knew his place. His
manner could be abrupt. When he finally
left Haystone, he moved to Mendocino and married a widow. I asked if it might be possible that he’d
seduced and had an affair with one of the daughters. My Dad thought that was funny.
Never, he said. Not even if hell
froze over.
Then it was getting late and I had to
leave. It was nearly 5:55 by then so I
stopped and got Chinese takeout. It
breaks another rule of the permit (we’re allowed sandwiches and soup but no
other food in the Manor) but what else could I do?
Drake showed me his prints when I got
back. He’s thrilled with them. I got a report from DR about the analyses
they’d done on the tapes. More voices
but too faint for details. I told
Florence what my Dad had told me. She’s
working on Dr Carver and his records now.
The Manor feels different again
tonight but at least we’ve had no crashing, booming noise. We have had laughter from one of the
upstairs rooms. It’s quiet now and has
been for a while so DR has started work on the analysis. He also mentioned to me about my views on a
séance. I said I’d think about it but,
if we are going to do it, tomorrow’s the right night. It’s Halloween.
*****
I still can’t quite believe I’ve seen
a ghost but I just need time for it to settle in. After we celebrated, I got back on the research. Dr Carver has a few mentions but I couldn’t
find anything meaningful so I switched to trying to find something on the
gatekeeper. I struck out there too, so,
after Alex and Peri had come back and told us what we’d missed (and I’m glad I
did!), I spoke with Andy. Played my top
card. I asked him if he could go talk
with his Dad. He said he’d go this
afternoon.
Alex was frozen when she got
back. She told me the Manor had been
really angry that we’d unlocked the doors and it had tried to punish us. Lucky for us, Alex is made of stern stuff and,
while the atmosphere had made her uneasy, the noise hadn’t put her off. Then we slept. I didn’t tell her I hadn’t done a good job, that I’d basically
had a wasted night. I left that till
we’d had lunch. She was very
understanding and said that these things often happen. Sometimes, to get a result, you have to
think outside the box and asking Andy to go speak with his Dad had been a very
good idea, and that made me feel less guilty.
She was also pleased for me that I’d seen the face.
Then we got down to work again. I showed her what I had found on Dr Carver
and she used that to start again from a different angle. From there, it was a zigzag journey to
success. We located a database. But, unfortunately, it has firewalls. I work in a hospital so I understand
confidentiality of patient files. But
Dr Carver is dead and most, if not all, of his patients are dead too. Certainly, the McFarlanes are dead. Those are the records we’re interested
in. Alex is trying to get around the
firewalls. She thinks she can do it.
Drake wasn’t around much today. He was down in the cellar, working with his
chemicals and stuff. Andy was at his
parents all afternoon. Derek, Nick and
Peri worked on the tapes. The ‘noisy’
recording from last night was just noise.
They isolated some sounds they could recognize – doors slamming – but
that was all. I never knew houses could
have tantrums. It must have been
terrifying to be there when it was going on.
The other tape – the screaming tape – it turns out there were at least 2
other people there. There are 2
distinct voices in the background. One
seems to be murmuring something – platitudes maybe; it sounds like the kind of
voice I’d use if I were trying to get someone to stop screaming, or to show
support for them. The other, well,
they’re short words. Orders
perhaps. Instructions. Short and terse, not sympathetic. But we can’t make out the details. Drake brought his prints to show us just
before we left. They are really very
good. He’s promised me copies for my
vacation scrapbook.
At 8:09, we had tonight’s
incident. It wasn’t scary, just
bewildering. After everything else
we’ve heard here, tonight we have laughing.
How the heck does that fit in?
And who was laughing? It sounded
like a woman again. Or maybe someone
was there with her, telling jokes.
We’ll know tomorrow.
Alex has just asked me a
question. She says she’s trying to
learn opinions. How do I feel about a
séance? I said I’d think about it. For the record, I’ve tried séances
before. A group of us thought we made
contact but none of the facts checked out so I think someone was cheating. A séance with Alex and the Foundation would
be very different. But .. I think it’s
the only way we’ll know for sure what happened in this house. And what a night to do it! Halloween …
Trick or treat. I’m a little
scared but I think I’m going to say yes.
*****
Aquila found out what Drake has in the
cellar today. She’s never seen her own
picture before. She’s getting an ego –
says she looks amazingly good in leather.
When he took a comfort break, she destroyed all the prints of herself on
the prowl. At least we know now why he
suddenly started avoiding me. Can you
imagine what would have happened if he’d sold them to the Inquirer? They had to go.
Tonight’s incident was laughing. I’m bewildered by this. I can’t figure where it comes in the
sequence. At the end? Or maybe at the start? And who’s laughing? If it’s the same woman we’ve heard before,
she had a miraculous recovery from depression, and, if it’s someone else, she
was pretty sick to be laughing at the other’s misery. Tomorrow has to be the big night. If we’re going to nail this down, it’ll be tomorrow. It’s Halloween. I called Evan today, just to gently remind him to be alert. I think he’s insulted.
Andy went to his parents today to find
out what else his Dad knows. Drake
worked in the cellar. Derek, Nick and I
got the recordings. More background
voices to the screaming. The noise is
just noise. Rachel and Carrie continued
the therapy session. Carrie’s
apologized to me, told me she thought I was a fraud or a fake and I’d been
doctoring the tapes. She admits she was
wrong. I accepted it. She’s a much nicer person now. I can’t honestly say I’m her friend but she
isn’t my enemy. She’ll be fine. She’s discovered a lot about herself these
past few days. Alex and Florence have
really drawn the short straw with Haystone.
I have never known a house or spirits be so reluctant to spill their
guts. The McFarlanes .. we’ve learned
so little. We don’t, with one
exception, even know when they died.
Now, that’s interesting. Puts a different slant on the events
here. While everyone was asleep this
morning (me included), Aquila read Derek’s book on Haystone. To recap – because this is important – the
house was sold in 1918 to Augustus Jessop who never lived here. Instead, there was a series of tenants, some
of whom lived here with no trouble at all, and some who experienced
disturbances. The interesting thing is
.. were the McFarlanes still alive at the time? One was – she didn’t die till the 40s. So, if the others were still alive .. what caused the
disturbances? Maybe we don’t have
ghosts here at all – well, there’s the face but that’s at the lodge. Here, we just have sound bites. Aquila says there’s energy emanating from
the locations of the sounds but we haven’t seen anything, haven’t tracked
anything, nothing’s registered on any of the sensors. It could be one of those imprint on time things. The events have all had deep emotions
attached to them, strong emotions – anger, guilt, shame, pain, misery, joy (if
the laughing’s any indication). Those
could be enough to generate the energy to replay the imprints. Maybe.
And, maybe, it was enough to pull those souls back here when they died,
instead of letting them go over .. so we could have ghosts now which the early
tenants didn’t have. Wow, that’s pretty
complex. I’ve not come across that scenario
before. I may have it totally wrong but
it seems logical to me.
Derek was talking this afternoon about
a séance here tomorrow. I’m in 2
minds. I think it’s the only way we’re
going to get the truth but it’s also risky.
These spirits (if they are here) don’t like showing themselves. They hid from the world when they were alive,
they may not want to change that in death.
I’ll back him if that’s what he decides to do but I think it could be
dangerous. It’s Halloween after all. Andy and the others may see it as exciting,
something which goes well in the ghost club, but it’ll be more trick than
treat.
*****
We got back to the lodge at 6:20 and I
was so cold. I brought the tape with me
for Derek to listen to. I didn’t think
he’d find anything on it and it’ll be a good addition to our archive. The mood
in the lodge was mixed. Florence,
Drake, Andrew and Carrie had seen the ghostly face and had been
celebrating. Derek, Rachel and Nick
hadn’t been able to communicate with her so they were a little down. We told them about our experiences –
apparently the Manor had lit up about the time we were being deafened –
strange, the lights never came on where we were. Breakfast was hot and I so needed that. Florence wanted to talk before we
slept. She told me she’d spent most of
the night on the computer. In turn, I
told her about the Manor being angry with us.
Then we slept. When we woke,
Florence added that, despite the time she’d spent, basically she’d struck
out. Well, I have been there so many
times that I really wasn’t surprised by the admission. After lunch, I took a look at what she had
found and used that as a starting point.
It took a couple of hours but, at last, we found a database. As it contains confidential files, there’s a
firewall but I’ve seen similar ones before so I can get round it with
time. Maybe by the early hours of
tomorrow, I’ll be in.
The other area of research Florence
was given by Derek was to find out about the gatekeeper in the lodge. This information was not available online so
she used her initiative and asked Andrew to ask his father. He was gone all afternoon. When he came back (with Chinese takeout), he
spoke with Florence and she told me – the gatekeeper had nothing to do with
anything. I’ve reported this to
Derek. It appears that, whatever
happened here, it involved only the McFarlanes.
Derek, Nick and Peri worked on the
recordings this afternoon. It was only
a brief analysis. I think with time the
screaming tape could be cleared up more so that the actual words being spoken
in the background would be audible. As
it is, there are 2 voices, one high, one low pitched, possibly a man and a
woman. The ‘noisy’ tape has doors
slamming – and I bet I can guess which doors – but nothing else. That is and will be forever inexplicable.
Rachel and Carrie spent the afternoon
talking in the small sitting room. I
think Carrie’s come thru this really very well. Rachel seems positive about her future. As for Drake, he was in the cellar all afternoon and emerged just
before we left with the results of his photo session. For an amateur, they’re not at all bad. Some are fuzzy, but others are a lot clearer. He’s over the moon – as he told us
frequently.
Tonight’s incident took place early,
not much past 8:00 p.m., and it was laughing.
We’ve all been puzzled by this.
So far, we’ve been treated to dark sounds – shouting, a gunshot,
screaming, crying. It put a dark tone
to the picture we’ve been forming. And,
now, laughter. It’s thrown the sequence
into disarray.
Derek mentioned to me earlier about
holding a séance here. He asked me to
ask Florence to get her opinion, even though Andrew will have the final
say. I think what Derek wants to know
is if the idea has backing or not. If
everyone’s against it, he won’t suggest it to Andrew at the planning session
tomorrow morning. My own view is that
it’s something we have to do. Only
hearing the events isn’t helping us and the fact we’re hearing them out of
order makes it harder. There again,
we’ve all done this many times before.
I don’t think Andrew has, not seriously. The ghost club is, essentially, a fun thing. They’ve learned these past days that it
isn’t all fun. It’s often a lot of very
hard, very painstaking work. A séance,
here, on Halloween night could be the culmination of their vacation but it
could be very dangerous for us. I
accept the danger. I just hope the
others realize what might be involved.
*****
I think I’m looking forward to going
back to work. It isn’t that I want the
vacation to be over .. well, part of me does.
A very small part wishes I’d never come here. Most of me, however, is glad I did. It’s given me the chance to take a step back, really look at my
life. I feel different and I want to
start changing other areas of my life, including my job. I’m not saying I’ll quit and go work
someplace else but .. I want to change how I do things, the approach I take to
things. Stop being so defensive and
aggressive, start being a woman with ordinary human failings and with important
strengths. And all this is down to a
woman, who lived a long time ago, crying alone. I guess what I’m saying is that I don’t want to end up like her.
I made a start this afternoon by
apologizing to Peri. She was the
easiest of them all because I haven’t known her all that long. I told her that I’d thought she was a fake,
bringing prerecorded tapes in and playing them, and that I was wrong to think
that. Peri accepted my apology. She smiled at me, said I was going to be
okay. It’s strange but, coming from
her, it means a lot. She’s suffered as
much as I have, in her own way. I listened
to the tape of last night’s incident.
I’m pleased I wasn’t there. I
would’ve been terrified. But she and
Alex came back this morning more cold than scared.
The action plan was over quite fast
this morning. We decided to go back to
the Manor. In the afternoon, Drake
worked on his films and Andy went to visit his parents. Alex and Florence continued researching in
the dining room. Nick, Peri and Derek
worked in the lounge on the tapes. And
Rachel and I sat in the small sitting room and talked. Rachel didn’t say much but she listened
carefully and nodded. I told her I feel
sad for the woman and I want to learn the truth. She asked me if I could put the events in order. I couldn’t.
It’s difficult when you can’t see what’s going on. Then she asked me a strange question ..
although, I guess, it isn’t really that strange – what are my views on
holding a séance? I told her I thought
it was a great idea, and that we should definitely do it. It was going to be the only way to find out
what happened.
Drake showed us his pictures just
before we left. They’re very good. He’s said I can have copies. Andy hadn’t returned by then so we left
without him. I really didn’t mind going
back to the Manor. I thought I’d be
scared but I wasn’t. Uneasy, yes, but I
wasn’t alone and that made all the difference.
I have friends now. Andy showed
up with Chinese food. It broke the rules
but I was hungry.
At a little past 8, we heard laughing
upstairs. It stopped us all in our
tracks because it was so unexpected. I
found I wanted to laugh too. It was a
wonderful sound. Yet also very
confusing. If I couldn’t guess at the
sequence before, I definitely can’t do it now.
We haven’t had any more disturbances but the smell in here is as bad as
ever. I’ve told everyone that I can
smell it. I tried to describe it but
I’ve never smelled anything like it before.
Derek, Andy and Nick are working on the tape of tonight’s laughter. Earlier, they detected 2 more voices on the
screaming tape. Listening to them, I
have to say one sounds like a man issuing orders and the other sounds like a
woman trying to soothe or comfort. In
fact, she sounds a lot like Rachel.
It’s Halloween tomorrow. I’d hoped I’d get to spend Halloween in
Haystone. Now I will. If we’re going to have a séance, tomorrow
has to be when we do it. It isn’t
because it’s a spooky thing to do. I
just feel it’s the right thing, the only thing, on the only night we have
left. If we let this chance slip, we
won’t be the only ones to regret it.
The spirits of Haystone need our help.
*****
Hindsight is a wonderful thing and we
all have it. Unfortunately, apart from
to teach us important lessons, it serves little purpose except to give us
regrets. I had hoped to make
significant progress by contacting and communicating with the ghostly presence
in the lodge. I failed on all
counts. And Alex returned this morning
to tell me of a grand disturbance up at the Manor. In one way, I am pleased Andrew and his friends were not there to
witness it. In another, I am
disappointed again that I chose to be in the wrong place at the wrong
time. The disturbance lasted at least
an hour, off and on, and threatened to return at any second. This is the 1st disturbance directly related
to our presence in the Manor. I would
have liked to have been there.
Be that as it may, Alex brought the
recording with her and, apart from being frozen half to death, she and Peri
suffered no ill effects that several hours sleep would not cure. For myself, I slept quite quickly as I knew
I would have something to do when I woke.
Before we joined with the others for
lunch, I asked Rachel and Alex to canvass opinions on holding a séance. I wanted to assess the general mood before I
suggest it formally to Andrew. I feel
it is the only way but it must be his choice.
I would mention it to him and Drake in passing and, later, either act on
or dismiss it. I did not get my chance
to ask either of them this afternoon because Andrew left immediately after
lunch to go into town, and Drake vanished into the cellar. Nick, Peri and I worked on the
analyses. We listened first to the
‘noisy’ recording from last night. It
is incredible. We managed to isolate
the sound of doors slamming violently shut but the rest is just a cacophony of
booming and pounding like a giant heart beating, huge feet stamping, huge hands
thumping on walls and doors. Peri told
me there had been no bright lights inside the Manor – at least not in the
library and not where Aquila was walking.
It is inexplicable, even for us.
We turned our attention to the ‘screaming tape’ and had a better
result. It was only a basic pass but we
located 2 more voices in the background.
We cannot determine the words but it sounds like a man and a woman. Nick is confident he can clear it up a lot
more once we return to the city and the computer in the control room.
Drake displayed his prints before we
left for the Manor and they are acceptable for an amateur. He is thrilled and feels fully justified in
coming here. Andrew returned with
supper (most welcome) and we had no sooner finished eating when tonight’s
incident occurred (a woman’s voice, laughing).
I am at a loss to explain it or even to know if I should. It may be a vital clue in solving the
mystery or it may be a red herring and have nothing to do with the main
events. Before I began work on
analyzing this recording, I spoke with Andrew and then with Drake. Andrew said he would think about it and let
me know but his eyes seem to suggest he is agreeable. Drake was initially reluctant – he feels, with his photographs,
there is nothing more Haystone can give him – but, later, he decided it would
be a good idea. His motives are a
little shallow, I believe – tomorrow is Halloween and a fitting way to bring
his vacation to an end. But he will
take part if he is asked.
One further avenue of investigation
closed today. Andrew’s father confirmed
(as best he can on hearsay evidence) that the gatekeeper was not involved in
any of this. We must trust in the
ability and willingness of doctors to write down their secrets. Alex is sure she can break into the database
before dawn tomorrow. Dr Carver is the
last independent witness and we can only hope he is able to help us.
Tomorrow is Halloween, the one night
of the year when the veils are thin. If
we are going to understand this house, tomorrow is our last chance.
*****
Well, I cannot say they have the crisp
clarity of fashion shoots but they are really not at all bad for the lighting,
conditions, a hand held camera, and a shaky hand holding it. I didn’t sleep very well today – nervous
excitement. My God, I’ve seen a
ghost! It kept going round and round in
my head. The ghost club has FINALLY
gotten a result. It’s weird – if
anything was likely to keep me awake or tossing and turning in my bag, I
would’ve said for sure it was Alex’s news this morning about how the Manor had
gotten mad with them and tried to scare them off. But, no. Scary as that
must have been, it was the thought that I might screw up developing my 1 roll
of film and ruining my evidence which gave me a restless day.
We listened to Alex’s report first
thing over breakfast and debated what we should do tonight. We decided the Manor has to take
priority. We have to be out November 1st
(but, maybe, we could stretch that by another day if we have to). After that, we got no choice. We have jobs in the city and
responsibilities we can’t throw over.
I wasn’t sure how we were going to do
it in 2 days but, later, I was asked by Derek what my views are on holding a
séance. Between you and me, journal, my
very first thought was ‘great idea, let’s do it’. The ghost club hasn’t held a séance before. It would be the right thing for us to
do. The perfect way to round off the
vacation. That was my first thought. My second thought, which came almost
instantly on top of the first, was ‘whoa, no way’. Diametrically opposed (I have no idea what that means, but it
sounds good). The reason I thought that
was a séance with the Luna Foundation running it would not be a group of kids
playing around for a quick thrill. It’d
be serious business. Chances are, with
their experience, we would definitely get the real McCoy. Hence my wariness. Plus I have my photographs; I don’t really NEED any more. But then I had a third thought which kind of
combined the best of both – middle ground, I guess. It is the right thing for us to do, it is Halloween
– the perfect night, and the Luna Foundation does have experience with the real
McCoy. As for our own experience, well,
we haven’t sat around in Haystone twiddling our thumbs, have we? We’ve heard a whole lot. Seen a face at the lodge. Isn’t as though we’re complete virgins. We’d have the best support. So .. later, I told Derek it would be a good
idea. If we decide to go ahead, sure,
count me in. If nothing else, it’s a
validation of Andy’s choice in coming here, Carrie’s ordeal and Flo’s dogged
perseverance with the research.
She and Alex were still slogging away
at it this afternoon. Andy took a break
away from the estate to go visit with his parents. Actually, I found out later that he’d gone for a reason. Something about the gatekeeper. It crashed
and burned, whatever the idea was.
Derek, Nick and Peri worked in the lounge today on the recordings. I heard the ‘noisy tape’ from the
cellar. Man, I’m glad I missed out on that. As for me, I bit the bullet and developed
the film. Weird sensation down
there. I almost expected to see the
face but I didn’t. I did feel like I
wasn’t alone but no one else was there.
The time the prints were in the developer … Longest time of my life, I swear. When I got the results, I was over the moon. Some are fuzzy. Some have strange lights, lines and balls on them. But a few, a precious few, have the face. Not quite exactly as I remember seeing it
with my own eyes but it’s there. On
film, and in print.
Today’s incident was laughter. What did these people have to laugh about? I think a séance is the only way to go. We have to do it – for us and for
them.
*****
Tomorrow’s Halloween, Merli’s busy
night of the year. I think she called
Profelis today, just to remind him she isn’t around. I don’t know exactly what she can do here but she won’t
quit, not till she knows.
I
knew something big had gone down at the Manor last night but I never guessed it
would be what it was. She and Alex were
frozen when they got back this morning.
She told me the house had tried everything to punish them for unlocking
doors which should’ve stayed shut – driving them out with deafening noise,
freezing them out. I heard the
recording later – I can only imagine what it must have been like in there at
the time. Weird thing is, there’s
nothing in those locked rooms. They’ve
all been stripped out – bare floors, no furniture, nothing to even hint at what
went on inside. There’s only the
decoration on the walls to suggest whether it was a bedroom or some other kind
of room.
Thinking
about that and the way everything seems to happen in the same general area (the
top floor), maybe originally that was the nursery floor and, as the children
grew up, they just redecorated rather than move out to new rooms lower
down. What does that tell me? They were happy there? They were resistant to change? The close knit atmosphere of childhood had
an appeal so strong they couldn’t give it up?
We
decided to come back to the Manor tonight.
Yesterday was physically gratifying but ultimately fruitless. The Manor is where it’s at, that’s where we
have to be. Then, decision made, we
slept. After lunch, Andrew took a drive
into town to check out some information with his old man. Drake went to the cellar to develop his
film. Alex and Florence vanished into
the dining room to hit the keyboard, and Rachel and Carrie talked in the small
sitting room. Derek, Merli and I
analyzed 2 recordings, first the noisy one from last night, then the screaming
tape from the night before.
The
screaming tape has 2 other voices on it.
One is male by the pitch and seems to be giving orders. The other is female and, from listening to
the tone of the voice, appears to be soothing or comforting the screaming
woman. My gut’s saying torture isn’t
involved here for all that the screaming does have a very raw edge to it.
Andrew
hadn’t come back when it was time to leave so he didn’t get to see Drake’s
pictures till later. They’re okay. For a 1st attempt, Drake’s very pleased with
them. He certainly feels justified in
coming here. Andrew turned up around
7:00 with Chinese food and we ate in the library. Carrie’s definitely a lot looser – she said to hell with the
rules, let’s eat.
Just
past 8:00, we got tonight’s performance.
I’m damned if I can figure this one.
Peals of laughter. Top floor
again. I’d say it’s a woman. Someone must have told her a very funny joke
for her to laugh like that. It lasted
.. 5 or 6 minutes and then shut off, like someone closing a door.
Derek
said today about holding a séance here tomorrow in a last ditch attempt to
learn the truth of Haystone. Alex and
Rachel are agreeable if subdued about it.
I don’t think it’s because they don’t want to know what happened, it’s
more that it could be rough. Only
hearing events gives a one dimensional picture. It’s flat. We don’t know
what was happening around the voices.
Merli was silent – I could see she was in 2 minds. She’ll back us up, no matter what, and I’ll
do what I’m told.
It’s
Halloween. If there was ever a time to
force spirits back to account for their actions, it’s tomorrow. It has to be Andrew’s decision but he’s the
leader of the ghost club. He’ll say
yes. Despite everything he’s learned
and seen working for us, I don’t think he has any idea what could happen or go
wrong. We might just be opening a big
can of worms.
Continue to Day 14
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