THE HAUNTING PAST MYSTERY OF THE WITCHES EXECUTION

THE HAUNTING PAST: MYSTERY OF THE WITCHES EXECUTION After the case of the "evil" volume, Mr. Brown did, in fact, keep his promise, to allow Tami and I some relaxation. This relaxation would come in the form of a "day treatment", at a spa which, normally, only the super-rich were allowed into. What Tami and I could not get over was how relaxed one could feel, while receiving a massage. Yes, ghost-hunting was a strain, but the rewards! Oh, the rewards! What I could not understand was the reason why, after the massages, Tami turned bitter, remarking something about "If you wanted "some", you could have come to me. You didn't HAVE to go to those others". Okay, not that I knew what she was talking about, but, later that day, we had seperate tables, for our "victory" dinner. When I asked Tami "Did you really not like the massage, THAT much?" and she said "Not as much as you did, and did you REALLY have to be so audible, about it?" When I asked "WHAT are you talking about?" Tami said "Dont play dumb, with me. I know you too well. My god, was it sickening, listening to that racket". When it was time for our daily reports, Tami took one glance, at my report, and asked "Dont forget to tell the boss about those bimbo's. He will need to know how much they want, for their "services". When I asked "What bimbo's?" Tami would say "I told you. Dont play dumb, with me. I SAW you! You and your bimbo's" When I told her "Tamara, I have news for you. The only woman I saw, today, besides YOU, was my masseuse" When Tami counter-charged, giving "details", of what she had seen, while on her own table, I told her, honestly, "I wish I had been there. Sounds fun", Tami would say "Men!" When our seperate reports went in, and Mr. Brown responded "I want verification, from both of you, regarding this." Tami said "Fine, you want FACTS. I will give them to you". After brazenly telling me that she needed "room", and I backed away, Tami would work her "magic", and review the camera footage, for what she was sure to find. The problem was that, after reviewing a few minutes, of the footage, then scanning a larger portion, looking for whatever she thought had happened, Tami would mention "I dont understand. It SHOULD be RIGHT HERE!" When I looked at the footage, showing me, lying on a table, with the massage worker doing her thing, and I asked "WHAT are you looking for?" Tami replayed the footage, five times, looking for something. Finally, she asked "Where is it?" When I asked "What?", and she said "Fine, lets try the audio, from MY room. Lets atleast HEAR you carrying on". When I suggested "Why not go for video. The whole nine yards. Lets SEE, as well as hear, what you think is happening". It was when Tami hacked the video, from her own session, that she got the shock, of her day. Sure, even Tami admitted that she dozed, atleast a couple of times, during her session, but, what she could not believe was what the video showed. According to the video, when Tami "dozed off", the camera showed her being wheeled OUT of her assigned room. Tami then "accessed" various camera's, in the spa, until she found one which showed her coming out of her assigned room, and being rolled into another room. It was in this OTHER room, where the sounds, of people, having wild sex, awoke the woman, and Tami thought she noticed something, about my voice. She figured that the muffling sound was just my face in a womans cleavage. What Tami just now remembered was that she did not recall if the worker was present, for her own massage. If the worker was not present, where were they? After a bit, Tami remembered dozing off, again, and this is when, on video, we watched, as Tami was wheeled OUT, of the OTHER room, and back to her own. When next she awoke, Tami remembered that her worker whispered "Slowly, miss. Rise slowly. Dont want to re-kink those muscles." When Tami looked at me, as if to say "Sorry, I thought it was real". I told her "It can happen to anyone. The only question is "What did it "buy"?, and For WHOM?" When the message came, by morning, and via e-mail, Tami and I had a hard time holding in the laughter, as we read the message: "Dear Mrs. Ghost Hunter, Wanted you to know what your husband was up to, while you were getting a massage. Mr. Ghost Hunter was busy getting laid. See the enclosed file, as proof" When Tami said "They think we are married? Whatever gave them THAT idea?" I told her "I have NO idea". As for the video, it was just blurred enough that voices, and body parts, were generalized, so that it could be video of anyone. When Tami boosted the audio, she smiled as she said "Doesn't even SOUND like you, once you listen close enough". Tami gave the e-mail response, to the message. (To me, her message was far too soft, but Tami said "Discretion is best") Her response: Better luck next time. Also, please review your FACTS, before jumping to conclusions. No one will pay attention to half-truths. While we were packing, to return to work, another message came in, claiming "Since you wont play ball, this has gone on the internet. TRY to stop it, now" Tami and I just laughed, finished packing, and returned to work. Back, at the Brown Agency, Tami would apologize, for her actions, and for not checking her facts, before condemning me. All Mr. Brown would say was "Dont let it happen, again". By evening, the video had gone "viral", and dozens, if not hundreds, of people, were trying to take credit for the contents. Even the fact that the video was titled "Mrs. Ghost Hunter, what is your husband doing?" meant nothing, to the internet. While the internet was enjoying the joke, Tami and I were busy, reviewing our latest haunting case. As it seems that this case would be a more weird mix, of the old, and the new. IF the contact was telling the truth, it would seem that a woman had been hung, in the twenty-first century, on a conviction of "Practicing Witch Craft". IF the report were accurate, the charge, and the conviction, were based both upon "lights" being seen, and "sounds" being heard, from the womans property. The report claimed that, when taken, and charged, the woman had been wearing a witches black robe, and pointed hat, and had been spotted stirring a cauldron(?) Since the woman, reportedly, had an ancestor, who was, also, hung, as a convicted witch, locals saw no reason to question the modern accusation. Then, the case file got "weird". If the information were true, it was reported that, after the hanging, when SOME-one decided to BURN the body, it is claimed that, although the coroner verified that the woman was dead, prior to burning, that the body cried out, in agonizing pain, while burning. There was, also, a completely un-verified report, that a demon might have shown up, at the burning. Tami and I had to laugh at the idea of a horned, winged, demon, showing up, at a burning. Tami would say "I will bet $1,000.00 that the "viewer" was either high, or drunk, at the time, of the burning." When I said "No way", Tami would whisper "chicken". The problem we were being called in, to deal with, was the question of how much power a witch has, AFTER death. If the report was accurate, it would seem that the womans death-cries were being heard, each night, by the whole community. Also, the woman was, allegedly, being seen, in public. Some were saying that it was possible that the witch was writing people messages. Well, even I knew that, in the age of technology, ANYONES voice can be faked, and recorded. As for the sightings, it could, easily, be either mis-identifications, or actors, trying to scare people. Thanks to the invention, of laser scanners, it is even possible to program a persons hand-writing, to create documents, which the "victim" never wrote. Allthough Mr. Brown agreed with us, he emphasized that the contact wanted PROOF. Whether this was just a terrible prank, or something supernatural, our client wanted it documented. When Tami and I agreed to take the case, our pilots would say that we had found a "wind-fall", in atleast one way. It seems that, for the first time, our deliveries, of ration packs, were, ALL, of the kind we could eat, and in generous quantities. If there was a problem, with this flight, it was the fact that air traffic control, at our destination, wanted us to set Ghost SHip One down, in a football stadium. When our pilot asked "And just WHERE do we hide the marching bands, cheer-leaders, mascots, and so on?" All air traffic control would say was "Take it or leave it". Our pilot, politely, said "Leave it". When the next set, of coordinates, came in, and our pilot checked, against G.P.S., Our pilot would ask air traffic control "And just HOW are we supposed to park a fifty ton, freight handling, jet, on a lake?" Finally, the last message came through. "Our final offer: A stone quarry. It should be large enough, and D-R-Y enough, for your plane." When the pilot used satellite zoom, and computer enhancement, to verify size, the pilot said "Done". While enroute, to the case, the pilot asked Tami and I to attach a canvas bag to a winch, then strap in, when we were within five miles of the target site. We had no idea what the pilot had in mind. Turns out that "five miles out" was the location, of the lake and, upon approach, the pilot took us into hover mode, as he dipped the canvas bag into the lake, picking up maybe 20-25 gallons of water, before proceeding to the landing site. Over the landing site, the air force pilot used a surgeons precision, not to DUMP the bag, onto the ground, but to WASH the landing area, like a parent washing a child. By the time our landing gear touched the stone quarry floor, the stone reflected our ships lights. Once again, Tami and I were impressed with these mens abilities (and we STILL wondered WHY the U.S. Air Force had let these men retire). After touchdown, when Tami and I asked the pilots about the water-drop, our pilot would explain "Its like this, the same stone dust, which most people just dust off, and which quarries rinse off, of finished stones, is the same dust which, if ingested, by the jet engines, would be equal to trying to fly, with machine guns firing at the engines. The dust would have shredded the engine parts, and the plane would have had to go in, for major repairs". When Tami would ask "What about AFTER the case? By then, I am sure that the stone will be dry as a bone". The pilots had a plan, in the making. A plan which, if successful, would allow the plane to take off, from an equally wet surface. My own curiousity made me wonder WHY the community had offered us such bizzarre choice of landing sites. First, a football stadium? Second, a lake? Third, a stone quarry? Was it my imagination? Or, did someone NOT want us investigating this case? While the pilots began work, on their plans, for take-off, Tami TRIED to do what she did, best. She drove into town, and TRIED to talk to people, about the community. It would seem, though, that someone had gotten to the people before we did. Tami would be left to report "Would you believe it, no one would even come near me. It was as if the entire town has been placed under a "gag-order". I was not even allowed near the retirement center." My own news would be no better. When I tried to approach the so-called "witches" home, I think that no less than three rifles sent "warning shots", in my direction. Come nightfall, though, even our pilots heard the cry, of a person, in mortal agony. It was Tami, though, who said "Sounds female, to me". The pilots were suspicious, though, as they closed eyes, turned full circle, then said "Someone is "playing" with us." When I closed my own eyes, and listened, I found that the pilots were correct. The sounds seemed to come from multiple directions, OUTSIDE of the reflective walls, of the quarry. When Tami asked "Then, why does the cry sound human?" The pilot would suggest "The best I can come up with is that one of the cries is real, and the others are a distraction. A way to keep the curious away." When I asked the pilot how the air force would counter such measures, he would say that nuclear bombers are equipped with headsets, which filter out false content. Using speech recognition, the head-gear only allows orders from voices, which it recognizes. When Tami would say "Swell, and just WHERE do WE come up, with a tacticle, nuclear, bomber?" The pilot would smile as he would say "I never said we needed a bomber. All we need is some of the head-gear." When I asked "Can YOU use your contacts, to gain us some of the gear?" The pilot would ask "Do bulls have horns?" Thanks to the U.S. governments penchant, for overuse, of paper-work, and ambiguous definitions, to cover covert operations, our pilots were able to secure a case of the head-gear, for our use. Like the pilot cautioned, though "If any of this equipment is stolen, or worse, destroyed, it MUST be reported, since these units are on LOAN, from a flight, which is down, for routine maintenance". Still, even with the head-gear, the womans scream tore at our hearts, atleast until Tami found a sample, of the womans voice, from her mock-trial. Once the head-gear produced a voice-print, for the filters, and we donned the gear, just before night-fall, and the filters not only screened out the fake cries, but, based upon computer records, we verified that the fake screams were coming from concealled, stereo, speakers. Now, it was obvoius, as to the reason why the town wanted us to park, in the quarry. The area had been rigged, with stereo speakers. Thanks to the head-gear, though, the cries lead us directly to the meadow, where the accused had been burned, to ashes. Although Tami really didn't need the testing kit, having found dis-carded beer bottles, and the buts, of "joints", at the site, Tami still did a foot print analysis, of the area. Not only did the client want definitive proof, of what had happened, but Tami wanted this proof, as well. Although Tami DID find some kind of hoof, or claw, print, near the ashes, what laser measuring produced was a shoe size, and a makers mark. When we scouted the area, after the cries died out, it was the co-pilot who found the demon costume. The only problem was that the costume was too tall, for any of us. When the co-pilot asked how tall a man would have to be, the pilot would say "On stilts, he could be four feet tall, yet seven feet, in the suit." In our daily report, we informed the Brown Agency of our findings, including the beer, Marijuana, and the demon costume. We also noted the hidden, stereo, speakers. This is when Mr Brown would say "It seems you are closing in, on this mystery, since locals are going to such effort. After all, if this were just an "urban legend", then WHY bother with all the props?" The first local, who spoke to Tami, was a woman, who was on her death bed. Although reminded of the consequences, of her actions, the woman would tell the person, issuing the warning, "I am dying. WHAT can you do to me?" The woman then shared a story with Tami. A story, handed down, through the generations. A story, of a woman, who wanted more out of life, than a husband, and family. A woman who wanted to BE somebody. Seems that local religious groups branded her an "outcast", since she wanted a better life. She wanted to see what life had to show her. Legend said that the woman had, initially, shown no interest, in withcraft, yet had taken to the practice, after she had to stab two, drunken, men (on seperate occasions), since each was determined to marry the woman, no matter what she said. When the suitors failed to force the woman to marry, the woman, fearing a coming attack, by villagers, who lived by the WORD, of the Gospel, were coming, to attack this "freak", the woman turned to a known witch, for a spell, with which to protect her home. The spell might have worked, but the attacks did not stop. After the woman was declared un-holy, un-righteous, and so on, the attacks, on her land, became more aggressive, until the woman bowed, to the witches teachings, and sent the village a "message", which they would, never, forget. Out of blind fear, the villagers would wait until one night, when the woman was asleep, and her powers were at their lowest, and this is when her cottage would be stuffed with kindling, then set on fire, while a priest invoked the Lord, asking that the sinner be banished to Hades. The old woman would say that, for YEARS, after the woman was burned, alive, in her own home, her cries, of agony, could be heard, every night, after sun-down. At the very time she was burned alive. When Tami would say "So, they burned one woman, alive, just for being "different". But what does that have to do with today? If the woman had no children, why did the events not stop, with her?" The old woman would say "In that family, there were several sisters, and some split their time between being wives, and mothers, and developing the craft. It is from one of these sisters that the recent victim was descended". When Tami asked the obvious question "Are there other members, of the same family, living locally, I mean?" This is when I would notice that one of the men, in attendance, would depart the gathering. When the dying woman would say "There are a few, but most have married into other families. Even I have lost track of some of them, over the years." Moments later, an explosion rocked the building, and the speakers issued the normal alert: "Check ALL patients, check all rooms, check all exits. Explosion, and fire, on the premises". When I went to check, on Tami's car, which we had driven, to the home, for the visit, I noticed that it was HER car, which had exploded. Although we had checked the car, for fuel, prior to take-off, to me, it seemed as thought the flames were being fed by more fuel than the cars tank could hold. When I snuck out of the convalescent center, and got close to the fire, I smelled something, which I should not have smelled, either at a care facility, or in a cars gas tank. I would swear it was charcoal lighter fluid. I would have to thank Tami, later, for insisting that, on this visit, we carry disposable evidence bags. Ofcourse, her reasoning had been excellent. After all, the community had gone to the trouble, of rigging stereo speakers, to stall our investigation. How FAR would they consider Too FAR, to go? After taking a sample, then hiding, while the fire department put out the fire, I listened as the fire chief, very quickly, ruled the fire "mechanical failure". After calling Ghost Ship One, for my Jeep, which the pilot delivered, himself, the pilot drove us back, to the plane, where he said he left the pilot under orders not to let anyone near the plane. By the time we arrived, at the plane, though, the co-pilot had signalled an alert. From the planes own camera's, we could see the scorch marks, from where someone had set off some charges, just off the side of the quarry wall. Thankfully, these old, air force, freight haulers are constructed, of reinforced metals. The stone, which was blasted away, just bounced off the ships skin. Shortly after this, our band scanner picked up calls, saying that two, local, houses were on fire. This, even as the computer read that my sample was, in fact, concentrated lighter fluid. The problem, which small towns, like this one, had, was that, since the town was not "large", by any definition, and fires might be decades in between, it had been decided that the city needed only ONE fire station. As a result, with two, major, blazes, at the same time, the fire department tackled the fire, closest to the station. Volunteers would have to handle the second fire. When Tami filed our daily report, even Mr. Brown said "Someone, definitely, does NOT want this case reviewed. Not with a car-bomb, two house fires, and your plane attacked, all in the same evening." When Tami added "Doesn't it seem strange that all of these events happen just after an elderly lady tells us that an accused witch may have relatives, in the area?" In the morning edition, of the local paper, primary mention was made, of the fact that the burned homes had members who, once, belonged to the family, of an accused witch. Although the newspaper would print a retraction, of the story, the original story got out, thanks to the internet. By the afternoon, in one neighborhood, locals, it seems, made "Citizens Arrests", of two youths, who were spotted carrying gas cans past a family home. Although the youths claimed they needed gas, for their car, the police first verified that the youths licenses were suspended, for drag racing, near some old couples farm, then arrested the youths, officially, for driving on suspended licenses. Although neighborhoods went "on alert", that night, another house was, somehow, doused with gasoline, then neighbors reported seeing flaming arrows come "out of the sky", and set the house on fire. Later that night, while collecting evidence, Tami and I both thought we saw a woman, who seemed to match the burned witches description. The problem was that the sighting was too brief, and from too far away, to make a positive identification. Come morning, though, hand-written messages were found stuck to tree's, with arrows, at each incident site. One arrow was found near Tami's burned car, one near each of the fire locations, one near the house, which the youths tried to burn, and one was, even, found on a tree, near the edge of the quarry. Although no one seemed surprised, when the messages turned out to be in the womans hand-writing, it would be Tami who, using our own gear, would show locals how easily a persons signature can be forged, using scan technology. Right in front of the silenced gathering, Tami not only crated a duplicate, of the notes, but created fake adultry notes, and two notes, threatening to kill people. Placing the papers, in front of the audience, Tami would say "You have just watched as I created some of the documents, right before your eyes. What makes you think that the others are anymore "real" than mine are?" Silence enveloped the meeting. That night, and for the first time, in decades, many people locked doors, and windows "as a precaution". While locals sept, something set off the planes perimeter alarms, atleast five times. Seeing nothing, on the screens, we checked the planes position, twice, then the pilot suggested, aloud "I will set the automatic guns. If anything comes by, the guns will shred it" After that, no more alarms. Over the next few evenings, though, we did have more sightings, of our own, primarily of the woman. When we viewed her, though, Tami would note that, unlike fake phantoms, which TRY to gain attention, this "phantom" just seemed to watch goings on. Like she was just an observer. Each night, like clock-work, at the same time, the cries, of anguish, came, from the same direction. Although our own sensors did not register anything, Tami and I had that same feeling, of "being watched", that we had, at other locations. When Tami tried calling some names, which she looked up, on historical databases, the response was most unusual, even for us. For each name, which Tami called, asking "Are you...?" something we could not see hurtled rocks, or branches, alternately, at Tami. When one struck her, especially hard, and Tami said "Ouch! that hurts!", I suggested "It seems that the spirit definitely does not like THAT name". Tami would retort "Really? You THINK so?" It would be hours, of name-calling, before Tami found a name, which caused the woods, about the site, to come alive, with a womans laughter. When Tami would say "That is NOT the name, of either woman, who was burned.", and I asked "Who was she?", I felt like someone clubbed me, in the left arm, and hard, too. When Tami said "Hurts, dont it?" I said "Very funny". Tami would tell me "According to history, this woman lived a long, Christian-based, life, and was a life member of the local church." When something swatted her back, Tami called out "Ouch! I am just repeating what history says" It was when I suggested "Maybe, she is saying that history is wrong?" The voice called out "HA!" This is when Tami would suggest "Okay, so someone has re-written history. What does that have to do with two women being burned, and this, other, damage?" When I suggested "Maybe, the women were "railroaded?" Tami would say "Sounds reasonable. Still, why not just come forward" A second later, Tami called out "Ouch! Stop doing that", as she touched the back of her head. This is when I suggested "If we provide you with paper, and pen, would you write your intentions, so we dont have to play guessing games, all night?" No response. When Tami and I returned to our plane, we were surprised at how hungry we were. No question, it was time to break open some ration packs. This was the one thing we could, never, figure out, about ghost hunting. WHY it was that, once we gained a spirits attention, our energy levels took the same "dive", as electronic batteries did. Every time we ended a session, it felt like we had just finished a major league work-out. Thankfully, military rations are packaged for the hunger of large, muscular, bodies. People, who spent their days, or nights, carrying weapons, and other equipment, sometimes, for LONG distances. Still, we each packed away atleast two of the rations packs, before calling it a night/morning (depending upon ones point of view). When we returned to the meadow, during the day, all that we found, on the note pad, was what looked like doodles. No other way to explain what looked like nothing more than cartoons. Although there were more alleged "sightings", of the "witch", that day, Tami found the lack of detail, to be most annoying. The most "description", that anyone gave, was of a white woman, about five six, or so, in a black cape. Tami did notice that not all of the statements mentioned the conical hat. Coincidence? By evening, the pilots had followed our directions, and linked a series, of batteries, in series, to a laptop computer. More batteries would be used, for a camera, which would monitor the computer keyboard. A remote feed would allow us to view anything happening, at the computer, from the plane. It was a good thing that we wired up the extr batteries since the primaries, and the first back-ups, went dead, sometime after the evening "wailing". On the remainder, of the battery power, we would watch, from the planes screens, as some invisible "hand" began typing, on the keyboard. Some of it was gibberish, but some of it was intelligible. Words like "murder", "frame", "deceit", "theft". That, and some names, as well. Names which Tami had not found, in her history search. When Tami wondered, on the plane, "Could these be the names of a coven?" This is when, in the meadow, the word "YES" was typed. When I asked "Could it be that the coven was hunted down, or driven out?" the keyboard typed "Yes, Yes". Tami was about to ask "WHY", but then remembered past cases, and how people were driven away, just for being "different". Society did not need a "reason". All it needed was an excuse. Instead, Tami would ask "How many of you weere there?" The keyboard would type "Many". When Tami would ask "Locally?", the keyboard would type "Wide". I would suggest that this meant "Over a wide area, such as a county, or a state". When Tami would ask "How many of you were put to death, here in town?" It would be minutes, as if someone were counting, before answering. This is when I suggested "I THINK it will be a LOT of spirits". "Swell", was Tami's response. She remembered the last case, where hundreds had died, and how she had spent two weeks just taking down information. Sure, our pay-scale was GREAT, but the work could be so tiring. When the keyboard produced an answer, it said "Twenty-five sisters, among others". Now, we were getting somewhere. Now, the question was "Are they Wiccans, or dark witches?" The only response was "We serve the Master". Tami would ask "Wouldn't a Wiccan say "We serve the powers, of knowledge, and enlightenment"?" I would agree. To say "We serve the Master" would, PROBABLY, mean "We are dark witches". Wouldn't you know it, just at that moment, the Enforcer would show up, along with the Mother Superior, and both for the purpose of saying "Dont assume. Let your investigation lead your way". When Tami would ask "Just WHAT are we dealing with, here?" Mother Superior would say "We cannot become involved. We can only caution you to proceed carefully." Swell, the ultimate, in immortality, and all they can spew is riddles. Tami and I would spend the next few days just sifting through questions, and trying to determine who was what. Believe me, when I say it was not easy. Based upon what we learned, though, it would seem that a Wiccan coven had been approached, by a dark coven, which had HOPED to use Wiccan power for their own, dark, uses. The "scheme", however, had backfired, as the witches learned more, about Wicca, and about personal empowerment. It seems, however, that, just as Wicca was finishing converting the witches, to Wicca, locals decided that both groups were "evil", and most tried to flee, while some provided cover. What none had expected, though, was for carefully planned escape routes to be blocked, and the Wiccans "coralled", until a local minister could proclaim judgement. When no amount, of holy water, had any effect, on the Wiccans, the minister proclaimed "Their evil is beyond this world. We must send them back to the darkness". Result, the women were doused in kerosene, and alcohol, then set on fire, while the priest read passages from the Bible. When Tami asked about the other souls, the answer was that these people had been put to death since their arrivals coincided with either disease, death, of disaster. When Tami asked "If they are innocent, why do they not just pass through, to Heaven?" The response was "A curse, placed upon the site, by that priest. A curse which states that the "un-holy" must wander the Earth, until salvation is upon them". Tami would say "In simple English, you mean that they are stuck until their "records" are cleared, of any wrong-doing". "Essentially correct" was the response. Now, our task had become not so much finding out the CAUSE, of a single haunting, but tracking the movements, of dozens of people, and from a period of time, when record keeping was all but non-existant. What the community found odd, as in strange, was how, once our investigation was underway, the after dark cries died away. After Tami managed to "clear" the names, of a half dozen spirits, we received some reports, of passers by, hearing children laughing, in the meadow. If Tami's information were correct, atleast two, of the men, who were killed, were priests, enroute to new parish posts. When Tami cross-referenced this information, with modern church records, she was able to verify that SEVERAL priests had started the journey, yet had, never arrived. It was assumed that they died, while enroute. Several spirits would, also, inform Tami that, although they were either members of the church, or people, travelling on business, the people left "official" clothes packed in luggage, and wore regular street clothes, for the journey. This is why panicked locals assumed that the people were just trying to save their own skin, by SAYING they were church members. While Tami worked on the "Who's WHo", of this group, I would work on the WHERE, where the villagers would have stashed the bodies, to prevent an investigation. After all, no one would believe any community could be "Gospel", with a "mountain" of decaying corpses, laying about. No, the bodies had to be disposed of. The question was "Where", and "How". Even scanning the landscape, via my bicycle, I could have found either too many, or not enough, places, to hide bodies. It was not until I found an area, which was over-grown, with weeds, that I found what seemed like indentations, in the ground. After checking, to make sure these were not just wild animal tracks, I would contact Tami, and ask if there might be an old grave-yard, hereabouts. I dont know why I bothered to call her since the Mother Superior appearred, at my side, saying "Yes, young man, this was, at one time, a parish grave-yard. Only, not a grave-yard for the Gospel. A grave, for the un-holy". When I asked "Is that why there are no markers?" The Mother Superior would say "Correct. These souls were not deserving of being remembered. They were not Gospel". When I asked "Does not being "Gospel" mean that they were not members of the local church?" The Mother Superior would say "That is most correct". When I asked "How many are buried, here?" Mother Superior would say "None are "buried" here. None, here, deserved burial". When I asked "No matter WHAT you CALL it, how many bodies are here?" Mother Superior would name almost the exact number as those who had been haunting the land, since their deaths. It would be Tami, though, who would ask "Why did the spirits only become active AFTER the latest woman was put to death?" The "leader", of the spirits, would say "Although she is too young to manifest, the woman has rallied our group, to speak out, and seek justice". When Tami would ask "Was she a Wiccan?" The response would be a laugh, as a spirit would say "She is not even interested in our ways. She just wants her record cleared, just as we all do." Although the spirits would suggest bringing the living to justice, for their crimes, Tami would have to inform the spirits that this was impossible, since those, who committed the crimes, were dead, themselves. Maybe, for centuries. When a female spirit would ask "What has become of our families, and what will become of us?" Tami could only say "If you would like, we can TRY to notify your living relatives of your fate. Beyond that, though, we really dont know what will await each of you". Thankfully, Mother Superior would appear, at Tami's side, saying "there may not be any "Welcome" mats, for you, in Hades, but I am sure we can find you accomodations, in the realm of Our Heavenly Father. That is, ofcourse, for those of you who wish to make the journey". I really dont know HOW the Mother Superior managed it, but, when the spirits looked upon the ancient grave-yard, with sadness, in their eyes, Mother Superior waved her ghostly hand, and, as if by magic, the weeds were swept away, from the graves, and flowers appearred. Shortly after this, Tami negotiated another, of her agreements, by having the community agree to recognize, and maintain, the cemetary (Which, amazingly, very few people knew about. And in their own community, yet). With another "agreement" in her "portfolio", Tami and I would want to take a couple of days, just to relax, however, this was dashed, as a contact,with the main office, would yield the response "We need you, two, for another case". Tami would respond "At the end of the next case, we do not send final results, until we get some time to rest. Agreed?" I said "Agreed". Who was I to dispute the finest negotiator, and researcher, on the planet? After a few rations, of Supreme Pizza's, and some snacks, our pilots would ask if we were ready for take off. The way he said "Hold on to something", made us wonder what he had planned. Reaching, for a length, of rope, which had been pulled into the cockpit window, days before, the pilot gave the rope a gentle pull, and what could be described as a miniature Niagra Falls flowed down, over the walls, of the quarry, drenching the walls, and floor, even as it washed our planes tires, of the stone dust. With the area cleared of any dust, the pilot switched on the engines, and Ghost Ship One lifted off, as gently as a whisper. After some locals saw us lift off, atleast one child would be heard to ask "I wonder if I could fly a plane, like that?" A parent would say "You would have to join the air force, just to qualify." Onboard our plane, Tami would ask me "We have been sent after ministers, nuns, demons, and who knows what else. What do you think our next mission will be?" I could only say "With our track record, all I know is that it wont be alive". What else should a ghost investigator say?