THE HAUNTING PAST MYSTERY OF THE CORPORATE LODGE

THE HAUNTING PAST: MYSTERY OF THE CORPORATE LODGE Although Mr. Brown had been promising Tami and I a well-deserved vacation, especially after our previous vacation had been "cut-short", thanks to Dr. Donald West. The ghost, of a man, born in the distant future, yet murdered, while on assignment, in the past. Boy! Was that ever a report, to fill in. Dealing with the ghost, of a man who would not be born, for un-told centuries. Mr. Brown was, usually, good for his word, but it seems that Tami and I were just too good at our job. It seems that we were so good, at laying spirits to rest, that we had a LONG list, of clients, who wanted our services. Mr. Brown kept sending us out since none of our cases ever made its way into national headlines. Man, though, were we putting the miles, on our plane, though. If this were a commercial aircraft, Tami and I might have close to one million "frequent-flyer" miles. Even more than myself, though, Tami never seemed to lose her excitement, for going onto new cases. I guess that I could understand her reason, though. After all, the only time when she was not heavily medicated was when we were on a case. The state, though, had loosened its grip, on Tami, ever since the Richmond Incident, and the agencies ensuing investigation. There was just too much risk, of the facts getting out, and the states practices being exposed. No doubt, this is, also, why the state "relaxed" its "driving, for work only" condition, on Tami's drivers license. Besides, what good was this restriction, anyway? The only time when Tami drove was when we were ON a case. I guess that I had nothing to complain about, either. After all, the only thing I had given up, for this job, was being a minimum wage, cash-pay, janitor. I had given up dumping trash, in return for jet-flights, chasing spirits, and making a fortune, in commissions, off of satisfied clients. Tami and I HAD been looking forward to a spirit-free vacation, but our hopes were dashed when Mr. Brown asked us to review another case. Tami and I knew something was "fishy" when Mr. Brown would say "I dont think it is anything more than a joke, but I would like your review." Well, atleast as long as we were "on-duty", Tami and I could indulge in some Italian food. Courtesy of our expense account. As Tami and I were, soon, to learn, this case did seem a bit strange, as in suspicious. After all, according to the file, the property had been in the same family, for centuries, yet, only recently had the property become spiritually active? According to the file, the same family had owned the property, for centuries, with no problem and, according to the file, the family only sold the place when they could no-longer afford the taxes. Now, some corporation had bought the place, to turn it into an "executive retreat", or rest area. Only now that the place was under corporate ownership, was the place being suspected of being haunted. Tami was first to notice that, although the same family had owned the land, for centuries, there was no mention of the home, itself, being centuries old. As for the reports, of spiritual "activity", it was being alleged that workers were being "thrown out" of windows, or "dragged through" doorways. What drew our attention, though, were the reports of the vandalism. If the reports were accurate, the site foreman would no-sooner sign off, on completed work, at the end, of one work day, when the crew would return, the next morning, to find all of the new work torn from the walls. Allegedly, the property was secured, each night, and the foreman signed off, on this, as well. Each morning, the foreman would un-lock the property, and find the vandalism. The time, when workers walked off the job, saying the place was "off", was the day when, it is claimed, a worker was dragged to a window, in broad daylight. IF the incident report was accurate, nearly a dozen workers, and the foreman, watched as the worker, in question, was dragged to the window, then thrown through the glass, to land two stories below. Tami's question was to wonder just WHAT had happened, to set off the attack. After all, Tami and I knew that neither animals, nor spirits, attack, without provocation. What could have provoked the spirit? No matter which angle Tami and I approached the question from, we "dead-ended" at the some place. When Tami reported our suspicions, to Mr. Brown, he agreed with our conclusion, that a first-hand, site evaluation, was in order. Result, all that Tami and I had to do was await our planes turn, at the fuel pumps, before setting off, again. The good news, we received, while enroute, was that there was a place, already cleared, on the property, for the plane to land. According to the information, though, this space was not cleared, in anticipation of the plane's arrival. The space, in question, had been cleared, in preparation for the construction of tennis courts. It just happened to be large enough for our plane to touch down. I dont know why but, from the moment, when the plane touched down, Tami, myself, and our pilots, agreed that we were being watched, just as we were watched, on the castle case. Upon arrival, though, I could see why the former owners had considered this property a "maintenance headache". The main house was so large, and sweeping, and the lawns, so wide, that it must have cost a fortune, just in labor, to maintain the place. If the file was correct, though, the same family had owned the place, for centuries. Tami, though, was hooked on the part, of the report, which stated that the family had owned the "property", for centuries. From her previous research, Tami had learned that most families list home ownership, primarily, and property ownership, as a secondary asset. She wondered WHY this family had chosen a different way of posting ownership. While Tami went about, searching records, and doing her best work, of talking to people, I would start with our ground-penetrating radar, just to see if anything, underground, might be causing atleast some of the problems. What I found was confusing, to say the least. In fact, when the results began coming in, I decided to check the interior, of the foundation, to see if the information was factual. With a key, supplied by the property owner, I went to the basement, where I found more than one surprise. The first surprise, which I documented, was that the current house was not built on its own foundation. For reasons, unknown, the current house was built on top of an older foundation. This was obvious by the fact that the foundation "floor" was nothing more than dry soil. As for the walls, they were the classic rubble-stone, of early American homes. In colonial days, people actually just piled such stones, to shape rough walls, then pack the joints with sod, mortar, or other materials. The evidence, of more modern building practices, was evident in the fact that the foundation, of the current home, was leveled, using something, like lime mortar, to level the stone tops, so that red bricks, and then stone, could be added, on top. Then, there was the patch. A section, of wall, obviously added later, forming an archway, which was bricked up, with red brick. Now I understood the G.P.R. results. What the radar was picking up was abandoned sections, of an older house, upon whose foundation, the current house, was built. After reviewing the foundation, I took a walk over to where the report said that "lights", like river-boats used, were being seen. Maybe I was about 250 feet from the house when, before I came to the small creek, which ran along the property, I noticed evidence, of landscaping work. Were I not a student, of architecture, myself, I woulld have missed the signs, of a re-modelled landscape. As for the creek, itself, there was no doubt that the waterway was man-made. Although the sides were quaried, to give the appearance, of natural weathering, the seams were too regular, and the grout did not match the material. Besides this, the sides, and bottom, were too shiny to be natural. It was obvious, even to me, that this creek had been installed as a "water feature", once the rest of the waterway was filled in. When I measured the distance, from original shore-line, to shore-line, I realized that this waterway had been a river, wide enough for shipping, in colonial days. That evening, while Tami and I compared notes, Tami verified that, at one point, this place had been a "working dock", complete with hoists, and cranes. It seems that locals built the dock at a time when the kings taxes were making life impossible, for colonists. The dock was built of whatever the locals could find, and manned by local labor. There was even a sort-of water-front town, to serve the ships needs. This town included a general store, and, of course, a whore-house. The dock was destroyed only after word came forth that imperial forces were on patrol, looking for such places, which were "denying the king his due" (taxes). By the time the red-coats arrived, in the village, eight months later, all evidence, of the dock, was erased. The river was even diverted, with only a small channel, to provide water, to the new creek. The red coats must have accepted the villagers story, about the waterway, since it is reported that the soldiers just rode off, to check on other reports. According to Tami's research, the family, who owned the property, must have made enough money, from the dock operations, since part of this money was used to build an older version, of the current house. Whether this older house was the foundation, which was buried, under the current house, even Tami was not for certain. According to her research, and interviews, atleast four homes had sat, on this land, at different times. Tami would say that one owner, who was too lazy to work, just spent his life lounging, and selling off property, when debts were due. Then, the next owner spent years buying the land back, for restoration work. Another story said that the lands had been parcelled out, at one point, and that a community was built, on the location. As Tami pointed out, though, so much, of this information, was nothing more than "word-of-mouth". Very little was verified. That afternoon, as Tami and I were enjoying some "sliced chicken strips, with garlic enhanced wheat flour" (chicken and garlic bread), the planes visual sensors came on alert, for something neither of us expected to see. As if out of "nowhere", a white fog enveloped Ghost Ship One, and Tami and I could make out nothing. Even the planes own radar was blank. The fog was so thick that it reminded Tami and I of trying to see through a bed sheet. When the fog passed, neither of us could believe our eyes. No longer was our ship sitting on the un-finished foundations, for tennis courts. Now, somehow, our plane was sitting in the middle of a village, with locals looking upon the plane like we were some kind of monster. After several strikes, from what sounded like clubs, stones, and so on, the "fog" "enveloped" the plane, again, for several moments. When it cleared, we were back on the homes grounds, and our pilots were asking where we had been. (According to the pilots, the plane had not vanished, for a few minutes, but for a few days). When the planes chronometer was checked, it, and our gear, was found to be almost four days behind all other equipment. Still, this did not answer the question of WHO might be haunting the place, and WHY. Tami and I would be on-site, for almost three weeks, before we had our own, first encounter, with on-site spirits. What seemed to baffle the spirits, though, was the fact that we did not scare, easily. One spirit even skulked around, for nearly an hour, after Tami responded to the "mans" best scare tactic, by saying "Is THAT the best you can do?" When the ghost asked "You are not frightened of me?" Tami would ask "What for? I have seen much worse, before". I had to laugh, when a female ghost tried to scare me, claiming she could reach inside my trousers, and remove my man-hood. I told her "I would love to see you try". After trying a series, of cheap, haunted house, tricks, such as ratting chains, moans, and so on (oh, yeah, one ghost even tried the old headless act), the spirits seemed annoyed that Tami and I were not scared. Why should we be? After all, no ghosts had ever actually done us any harm. Although it took a bit of patience, on Tami's part, the spirits did begin to divluge the reason for the increase, in spirit activity. To put it simply, the spirits liked the house, the way that it was, and the noise, generated, by the work crews, was "maddening", to those who were trying to "Rest In Peace". (Yes, it seems that spirits, often, prefer quiet spaces, for rest, and reflection, as we as humans do). Besides the noise, there was the fact that, as workers tore out sections, of walls, to install new systems, the spirits felt as though part of they, themselves, was being "torn apart". When Tami assembled a group, of the most predominant spirits, who, regularly, haunted the property, she left it to me to work out a possible compromise. Boy, when I suggested the spirits take up residence, elsewhere, the spirits "stood their ground", suggesting that the humans should look elsewhere, for their accomodations. After all, humans could move about far easier than spirits can. One spirit even reminded Tami that, for spirits, the place, where they die, is the place they are condemned to haunt. The female spirit suggested that Tami consider it a form of paranormal "maximum security prison". For the deceased, though, there was no such thing as "parole". This is when I made another suggestion. Due to the size, of the property, I suggested that the corporation could build another house, on the lands. The spirits could keep their home, and the living could have their space. Each would keep clear of the other. To my amazement, a man, who seemed a sort-of "leader", of the spirits, added another condition, to the offer. When he said he wanted to be sure that, if the dead kept the peace, that the living would show mutual respect. No wild parties, loud music, and so on. Each side would respect the rights of the other. After Tami agreed that we would take this offer, to management, and we returned to the plane, for a video conference, neither of us was shocked, by Mr. Brown's reaction, to the proposed deal. When Mr. Brown asked "Just HOW are we supposed to enforce this agreement, provided that management agrees?" If the ghosts make trouble, just WHAT action CAN be, legaly, taken, against dead people?" For Tami and I, the question was more a concern, of the living. HOW could a muti-billion-dolar corporation be held to account, if its personnel got "out of hand"? Never mind the spirits. What if the humans got "out of hand"? THIS was the spirits main concern. Although Mr. Brown would promise that Mr. Blue would take the offer to corporate management, the agency was not willing to promise the spirits anything. Besides, HOW does one hold a dead person to a contract? The last time a living person tried to hold dead people accountable for their actions, the living person had been sent away, for a "long rest". Currently, this person was under observation, at a very PRIVATE care facility. Two days later, even as Tami was interviewing the spirit, of a long-dead, former, owner, of the land, and the man was verifying that his home had been burned down, by a servant, who was hoping for "special consideration", for their efforts. It was something to do with conditions of a will, or dowery. Something about, "As long as the house stands, the couple must remain married, whether the union is good, or ill". The servant had waited until the wife, and children, were away, and the man was sleeping in his usual place. A shack to the rear of the house. When the fire gutted the house, the wife wasted no time packing herself, and her children, back to Boston, where her own family had maintained a residence, for centuries. The man used part of his portion, of the family fortune, to rebuild the house, and another portion, to build the docks, and the small town. The spirit even told Tami "That was the best move I, ever, made. I may have paid out half of my part, of the fortune, to build the venture, but I was able to re-pay this, within two years of the dock being open." When Tami asked "What of your wife?" The man said "The family sent word, a few years later. It seems that my wife took up with a man, whom, she thought, was of far better breeding than I was. Turns out, he forged everything, then worked a deal which left him in total control of my wifes finances. By the time her father found out what was going on, the man had "raided" my wife's funds, and was working on the family's fortune, when her father found him out." When Tami asked "Did he go to prison, for his actions?", the spirit said "No, my girl. The family did not want it known that they were being pilferred, so they handled things, nice and quiet." When Tami asked "As in?" The spirit said "To my knowledge, my wife was dis-inherited, and ended up working as both a wash-woman, and a whore." When Tami asked "Your children?" The spirit bowed his head as he said "All I heard was rumors. Some say the children were left to starve while others say they was sold off, as slaves" Tami was about to press the man, asking why he had not gone to the police, for search warrants, but, she caught herself, remembering that search warrants, drag nets, and other crime-fighting tools were 20th century inventions. None had been invented, while this man was alive. The spirit did admit to a couple of affairs, after the dock turned into a success. He fathered four, more, children, by local women, and made sure that both the mothers, and the children, were taken care of. He said "It was odd, but my women never asked for much. Just enough to keep the children fed, and a roof over their heads. This, even as my own fortunes were growing, along with the dock." The spirit would add something else when he mentioned "One thing was odd, and I never figured it out". When Tami asked "What was that?" The spirit said "Even while the dock was in operation, and I was earning large sums, of cash, some fellow kept offering to burn the place to the ground, and let me take the insurance money." When Tami would ask "Arson for hire?", the spirit would say "I never found out. All I know is that, when word, of the red coats, reached the dock, and my friends and I were considering how to cover our tracks, the man just suggested, as calmly as you please, "I can make the dock go away, for just a small price. All I need is twenty-four hours" When Tami asked "What happened?", the spirit said "When local villages sent out word, that the red-coats were coming, my friends and I stripped whatever we could hide, from the docks, then I paid the mans fee." the spirit then added "True to his word, within twenty four hours, the dock was nothing more than cinders. Once this was done, we diverted the river, built the creek, then put on our best "innocent" faces, when the regulars came to town" When Tami asked about the story, about a former owner pawning the lands, since he was too lazy to work, the mans spirit said "My women would, never, allow such a thing. They insisted that our children WORK for what they wanted." This would be when another gentleman came forward, and told Tami "The man you speak of was MY son. The lazy, good-for-nothing. Spent his whole life spending his inheritance, like there would be no end, to the money. Eventually, I have to "cut him off". Gave the rest of my money to my other children, and just let him live on, in the house." When Tami would ask "Then, what about the story, of his pawning the lands? How could he do so, without approval?" The spirit man would say "Dear girl, in YOUR century, everything is done via paper, with people talking to one another, even over great distances. In my day, though, a mans word was his bond. No such thing as "background-checks". Especially not with the people my son did business with. He was allowed to run up as much debt as our lands were worth. He, then, had to sell much of the lands, to cover his debts. By the time he died, he had sold everything that he could, and spent his final years in a small shed, at the edge of the property." When Tami asked "If he blew his inheritance, then WHO bought the lands, and restored the estate?" The spirit would say "My other children pulled their resources, then re-purhased the lands, after no one would have anything to do, with my son, any longer." When Tami asked "What about the house? It looks old, yet its construction is early twentieth century. Why?" This is when the spirit, of a nun, came forward, saying "In life, I was in charge of the family records. I will show you how history came to be". As if surrounded by a mist, which seemed to swirl up, from the stone floor, Tami and the nun, watched as house-after-house was built on the land. When times were plentiful, and resources abundant, the house was added onto, until it was like a grand palace. In leaner times, though, sections, of the house, were closed off, and allowed to fall into dis-repair, even as lots were rented out, to cover home maintenance costs. As the nun "moderated" the "tour", her soft voice would cause Tami to relax, even as the nun spoke of her own story. "I was studying at the nunnery, at Yale, when the Catholic Church sent word of my assignment. I was to be sent to one, of the lesser, American, colonies, where I was to provide aid to the local group, of sisters. According to the church, I was to expect lodging in a small cabin, which the sisterhood operated. It would not be much, but, since I would spend my time ministering to the local populations, I would not have much time to consider my accomodations. By the time I arrived, it seems that the sisters had sent word, to other churches, as well, and two, other, sisters were using my assigned space. Although I was prepared to "make do", with whatever I could find, it seems that the owner, of this land, was a good son, of the church, and offered me lodgings, until mine became available, with the sisters. As a result, I had a warm, dry, bed, a private room, and more comfort than I could have hoped for. The mans "price" was minimal, as well. He only asked that I preside over any rituals, such as holidays, births, marriages, and so on. As long as I fulfilled my duties, to the church, I would be allowed to remain on the grounds. I just never thought that I would remain in these surroundings, for so many years. In fact, I not only gave Christenings, but I watched the family's children grow to adulthood, then I presided over their children. As for the reason for my prolonged presence, it seems that this was two-fold. In the primary sense, not matter how many times I contacted the church, asking if I might be needed, elsewhere, all the church would respond was "The mattter is being considered" Tami would say "In other words, Dont call us. We'll call you" The nun would say "How quaint, yet, essentially, correct. I would find the family willing to retain my presense, far past my usefulness, to the church. In fact, by my later years, I would find that the family was caring for my aged body, MORE than I was caring for their spiritual welfare. Still, I made myself useful, not just with helping the wife with the home, and property, but, also, by cataloging every bit of information, which was available, not just to the family, but to the community, as well. When Tami would ask "Were you here, during the dock, and river-side town, days?" The nun would say "Heavens, no. I came upon the settlement at a time, after the colonies declared independence. The church sent the nuns in the hope of bringing the rebel colonies back under his majesties divine protection. The throne remaining loyal to the church." After the nun would add that she was buried on the property, Tami had a terrible thought, and asked the spirit "Do you remember WHERE you were buried?" The nun would say "Heavens, child, in my day, every property had a cemetary facing the light of the Divine Star". When Tami would ask "Divine Star? Dont you mean the North Star?" The nun would say "Every cemetary faced the direction where the Light, of the Lord, proclaimed the coming Birth, of Chirst, Our Lord". When Tami asked the nun to point out where that spot was, the "misty tour of time" evaporated, the nun looked out of a window, and said "About where those men are standing, in the distance, there. By the way, WHAT are they doing?" Tami would say "I have a feeling that they are about to dig you up". With that, Tami would rush out of the house, trying to stop the construction, before Tami could verify any grave-sites. She was too late, though, as a worker let out a yell, which bordered on a shriek. Tami did not have to SEE what had caused the scream since she was sure of what had been found. When a worker called out "Who the hell would be stupid enough to bury bones, on private property?" Tami would say "The former owners, back in the day, when such burials were legal, and church sanctioned". When the worker would tell Tami "No offense, but the law says we cannot disturb graves. How do we set the foundation in a graveyard?" Tami would say "If you ask your boss, no doubt, they will tell you to move your equipment elsewhere." When the worker asked "Where? Over there?" Tami would not mention that the spirit, of the nun, was present, and gesturing as to how far, and in what directions, the cemetary stretched. The problem, which Tami saw, was that three, major, buildings, were planned, for the middle of the cemetary. Tami would have to act, fast, before the corporation just ordered the bones scooped up, and carted off. What baffled Tami was how, when she approached the local clergy, THIS time, the ministers were not so evasive, about Tami's inquiries. THIS time, the ministers were willing to verify that the cemetary existed, and that it was on local records. Even before the corporate entourage arrived, with a court paper, the ministers had encouraged the local sheriff to take out a local order, prohibiting desecration of a cemetary. To managements annoyance, the ministers staff was more than willing to outline the boundaries, of the old cemetary. The church also took care to mark the "firm" banks, of the old river, and not to suggest development, too close to the shore. It was when the chairman, of the board, proclaimed "I will teach these ghosts a lesson. As of tomorrow, I will start LEVELING this place! Lets see these ghosts try to haunt a pile of rubble". Tami and I could have predicted what would happen, next, just as it had happened, before. There was a loud clap, of thunder, then a voice BOOMED, as though from over-amped speakers, as the voice called out "Who DARES threaten this noble house?!" When the chairman said "I DARE! Thats who!" The next thing everyone saw was the chairman being "levitated" some fifty feet from the ground, as the voice boomed "Puny mortal. We have resided at this place, for centuries. What right have you, to destroy our home?" Tami and I, both, whispered "Dont say it." But the man did, anyway. When the chairman said "My right, of ownership. I OWN this place. Pack your crap up and get out!" The spirit, of the previous owner, must have lost his "self control", since he hurtled the man across the distance, and against a tree, hard enough to break the mans neck. After the entourage saw their boss meet his fate, and turned to the spirit, saying "You have killed him. Thats illegal. Charges will be...", then the lawyer realized they were speaking to a ghost. Their proud stance suddenly dissipated as they realized how stupid it would be, to try to bring charges against a ghost. As Mr. Brown had asked, previously: "Just HOW would one prosecute a ghost?" As well as the question of "What good would a prison term be, for someone, already dead?", and the ever-laughable "What good would a life sentence be, on a dead person?" When the corporation would ask our agency how the corporation should handle this matter, Mr. Brown would suggest donating the land, to the local church, and let the clergy worry about the place. Mr. Brown would, suggest, though, that, prior to the donation, it would be a great "gesture of Goodwill", if the corporation were to restore the house, and the grounds. Great publicity. The corporation would agree. Later, just as Tami and I were getting ready to relax, for awhile, Mr. Brown would say "Sorry, but I would ask you to review another case. This one, though is a real "dousy". The client claims that ghosts are chasing them about. And not just at home, either." Well, atleast Tami and I would be treated to a farewell dinner, of fabulous, homemade, pizza's, and garlic bread, as well as salads, and drinks, courtesy of a greatful city, and its, now "Resting In Peace" deceased.