THE HAUNTING PAST MYSTERY OF THE HAUNTED HOUSE

THE HAUNTING PAST: MYSTERY OF THE HAUNTED HOUSE Talk about "Happy Halloween". According to our latest case-file, people were going into, but not OUT of, a Halloween attraction. The Brown Agency was being contracted to find out how it was that SOME people entered the attraction, and emerged, at the end, while other customers went in, but failed to come out. According to the report, the police had conducted a thorough search, of the attraction, numerous times. Even security tapes had been reviewed, to see if pranksters were using the emergency exits. The problem, with this theory, was that, for safety reasons, the attractions emergency exits had alarms attached. If anyone had used one of these exits, security would have known WHO, immediately. By the time Mr. Brown showed Tami and I the file, Mr. Black, and his tech team, was scouring the video, looking for any trace of either the missing people, or any attempts at trickery. After 48 hours, of round-the-clock review, all that Mr. Black's team had to show us, was video, in which, in some frames, the customers were enjoying the Halloween thrill, while, in other views, the people had just vanished. When Mr. Black began listing the techniques, used, to document the footage, Mr. Brown would interrupt, saying "I am certain that your team did its very best. Now, lets move on." (Mr. Black would leave the room, confident that his team HAD done its best.) Now, it seems that it was our turn. Mr. Brown would say "As of today, all that we know, for certain, is that people are missing. No ransom demands, nor threats, of any kind. All that we have is a Halloween attraction, which seems to be "gobbling up people"." When Tami would ask "How long do we have, with this case, seeing as how close Halloween actually is?" Mr. Brown would suggest "If you need to, go through the entire property, including the attraction. Law enforcement wants ANSWERS, and they want them, in time for the Haunted House to be able to enjoy the holiday thrill, before the holiday arrives." When I would mention "That gives us less than two months." Mr. Brown would say "Think of it, this way. The calendar says that you will have two, full, moons, as your guide." Swell, now even our BOSS was thinking that the full moon was a source of information. At Ghost Ship 2, our pilots would have even MORE "good" news. According to our pilot: "You are not going to believe this, but those people are setting aside a landing site, for us, in the shape of a BAT! How are we supposed to remain "undercover", with that much exposure?" Tami would suggest "Are there any sites, nearby, which could be used, safely and stealthily?" Our pilot would say "I was hoping you would ask that." Sure enough, once on-board the plane, the pilots brought up an image which impressed us with its total seclusion. Sure, it was ten miles away, from the attraction, but we could avoid being detected, better. Tami was more excited than even I was as she told our pilots "Go for it!". While cruising towards our destination, Tami and I began our normal review. Past homes, owners, rumors, myths, legends, curses. While the land, on which the attraction sat had, at one time, been a home, for a Christian family, Tami and I discounted this, since these Christians were reported as being "Sunday Christians." The family was willing to help, when friends, or neighbors needed aid. What they were not was Bible-bangers. Willing to help, when wanted, or needed, but not the kind of people who used Scripture, to answer for every incident, that happened. There were, also the normal round, of ghost stories. Stories about Devil Worshippers, Human Sacrifice, and so on. After all, what good is a haunted house, without the rumors, and legends? Then we ran into the normal problem. One of the original subject house's, on this location, was built back in the days before modern record keeping practices. This would mean that Tami would be off, to look at dusty, old, ledgers, while I scouted the grounds. I know that I have mentioned it, before, but our retired Air Force pilots knew how to keep things "low-key". Since G.S.2 was covered in the black material, of a stealth bomber, our pilots made the excellent choice to land after sunset. Result, only local wild-life would be aware of our landing. The problem would be the homes location. Before landing, our pilots had given Tami and I a full, overhead, view, of the haunted house. Thanks to our planes various, vision sensors, we could make out five, maybe seven, previous, homes foundations, in the landscape. Question: Could one, of these homes, be the one, which was causing the problem? Another question would be: Why were only certain people being "taken", while others just enjoyed the show? With up to seven, previous, foundations, in the ground, I knew that Tami was right, NOT to rule out trap-doors, and cages, below ground. Still, this left the question of "Why no ransom notes?" I would have suggested our thermal imagers, except that thermal had been tried, DAYS ago, with no luck. This is why the Brown Agency had been called in. It would be our job, to find out the who, what, when, where, why, and how, of the disappearances. On top of this, we had less than two months to do what law enforcement had been un-able to do. About the only "good news", that we received, upon arrival, was that the attraction was "temporarily closed", due to "minor adjustments". I must admit, however, that the crew, who designed, and built, this place, must love Halloween, as much as I do. Were it not for the fake cob-webs, I could see myself relaxing, in this kind of place. While I was left to re-examine the grounds, with an eye towards ancient passages, Tami would be doing a combination of reviewing the oldest, available, records, and the task, at which she is best. (Taking people on trips, down memory lane) In this case, Tami would have to report, to the Brown Agency that "Upon review, of what this town calls its "hall of records", I have found that this place is about as "complete", any many "In search of..." documentaries. This is why I am abandoning the county clerks office, and focusing on the memories, of locals. Their memories cannot be any WORSE, than that records center." As for my part, of the search, while I was, originally, assigned a young, able-bodied deputy, it was not long before we went from talking facts, to talking about rumors. Since rumors, and legends, are, normally, Tami's department, I recommended that I be assigned either an older officer, or, better yet, a retiree. Since the oldest officer, on the local police force, was forty years old, I was happy when I was referred to a group home, which was run by retired officers. It would be here that I would learn about what events had occurred, over the years. The kinds of things, which do NOT look good, on an official, police, report. I was even grateful when a group, of the retiree's, agreed to join me, at the attraction. When one of the oldest men said "Stupid place to build this thing." When I asked "Why is that?" The man would say "Grounds been un-stable, since I can remember." When I pointed just a short distance away, to both the parking lot, and the four lane highway, just beyond, asking "If this land is un-safe..." The retiree would say "That land, where the parking lot, and road, are. That land was backfilled a few years ago. Ground is solid, over there." When I asked "But, not over here?" The retiree would say "Last time it was checked, there were either tunnels, or natural caverns, below this land." When I asked "Was the land surveyed?" The retiree would say "Until this were built, there was no need. Only the land, for the parking lot, and road, was surveyed. Law says surfaces MUST be SAFE, for motor vehicles up to 50 tons, I think." Another retiree would say "That sounds about right." When I asked "What about the land, where the house is built?" The retiree's would say "Who knows? Could be anything, from an old cemetary, to Pagan altar, maybe even devil worshippers." When I asked "Who would I speak to, in the modern day, to gain entry into that underground?" A retiree would say "Dont waste your time, son. The man, in charge, of that, dont let NOBODY go underground. He acts like every bit, of the underground, for miles, is his own, private, home." I would say "Thanks for the warning, but I could use a name." The retiree's would say "Digger. Thats his real name. Digger Robes." After dropping the retiree's, at their group home, I would return to G.S.2, to ask the Brown Agency to arrange an appointment. When Tami checked in, with both the plane, and the agency, she would report "While the hall of records is a "bust", I am learning even more than the file contains, both about this town, and its past." When I would ask Mr. Black "What do you make of those indentations, in the ground, from the ships camera's?" Mr. Black would say "Your recon is good quality. We have confirmed atleast eight foundations, so far. The best that I can offer, so far, is that each house was built, after the previous one was gone." Tami would add "Some of the homes were burned down. Some fell victim, to Mother Nature. Other just fell into disuse, and decay." When Mr. Brown beat me to asking Tami "You say some of the homes were BURNED down? Have you learned of a reason?" Tami would say "The most popular reason is that the church ordered the burnings. The WHY, of each burning, is dependent upon which story we choose to believe." When Mr. Brown would ask "Is this more of that "My name shall have its revenge, upon my murderers" type stuff?" Tami would say "I am afraid so. This includes women, burned, for "witchcraft", as well as men, burned after being accused of being warlocks." When Mr. Brown would ask "Any GOOD news?" I would suggest "The sooner you can gain me the right to access what is UNDER the attraction, the better handle I will have, on eliminating, possible tricks." When Tami would look at me, asking "Not more underground tunnels." I would say "While you are talking, with people, on the surface, I will be touring the city's underground." Then, to Mr. Brown, I would ask "Sir, would it be possible to allow one, or more, of the retiree's accompany me, under the ground?" Mr. Brown would say "I will see what I can do." The next day, Tami would activate her "I am being followed" alarm, once she saw the same squad car, more than four times, in the same morning. When the alert sounded, at agency H.Q., Mr. Black put up the mornings, satellite, recon, from every "bird", over the area in question. Sure enough, by lunch time, Mr. Black was able to verify, to Mr. Brown "It seems that someone is using a local cruiser, to keep tabs on Tami." When Mr. Brown would ask "Not the actual police?" Mr. Black would say "Nope. Just LOOKS like a cruiser. No transponder freq." Mr. Brown would send a flash message to Ghost Ship 2, telling the pilots "As of this moment, exercise extreme care. Tami is being surveilled, by persons, as yet unknown. Inform her partner to be cautious, as well." With a precision, honed of years, in the military, the retired pilots would launch two, stealth, drones. One to monitor Tami, and the other, for me. Now, our pilots would be our "baby-sitters". What I could not understand was why this Digger Robes delayed giving me permission, for two days. After all, people were missing. Why was this man hampering our investigation? It would seem that, once Mr. Blue was out of patience, and would inform Mr. Robes "At this point, sir, I am referring this matter to the state police. You can..." And this is when Digger Robes would agree, saying "Lets not be hasty. We dont need the state police. I will authorize your people, on this one condition: Our city holds NO liability, if anything happens, while the people are underground." Mr. Blue would say "Fair enough. You have a deal." Personally, I would not have called it a "deal". I would call it more like an "Indiana Jones" movie. While the accessable passages were barred, with gates, the retiree's had first-hand knowledge of how local kids accessed the caverns, when they did not want to be caught, using drugs. (Primarily, smoking pot). This was one thing the retiree's promised me. Even before the so-called "War on Drugs", local kids never went in, for the "hard" stuff. The only time when teens had needle marks, on arms, was either for physicals, or for health, and injury. Smoking a "joint" seemed to be the most the kids ever did. When I asked, atleast three retiree's told me "We watched them enter, then watched them leave. No harm, ever, done." That is when one retiree would say "Except for Jimmy Lester. That boy, and his vodka." When I asked "Bad?" The retiree said "The one time I had to arrest him, he was so drunk, he urinated, right in front of my criusers camera. Had to take him in, on that one." As we entered the tunnels/caverns, I am happy to report a complete absense of both rats, and spiders. Atleast nothing terrifying. With my own head gear set on record, from the moment before we stepped into the space, I will say that this place was not as bad as Digger claimed it might be. I would not call it "safe", for a childrens playground, but I would call it "safe enough" for adults, who know to be careful. Since the opening was two miles, from the attraction, I think we were, ALL, glad, that we wore fishing/hiking boots. And, yes, we DID have to move around some spaces, where the ceiling had caved in, but, to me, the sets, of the "Indiana Jones" movies, were much worse, than what we were treking. I think it took about two hours, for us to reach the area, which sat below the attraction. I just dont know WHO was more surprised, by what we saw. Myself, or the retiree's. Using a variety of lights, we discovered that iron beams had ben sunk, not just into the ground, but, from what we could see, the retiree's would tell me "Those look like coffins." This is when a voice, from behind us, would say "Very astute. You were, always, a good student." When the retiree turned, and looked behind us, he stood, slack-jawed, as he looked the man in the face. When the retiree would say "But you are..." The man would say "Yes, I know that I am dead. So what? I am here because my grave has been desecrated, as have those, of these poor souls." When the retiree's would ask "How many coffins have been pulverized?" The dead man would say "Over a dozen, in this location. That is why I was summoned." When I would ask "Pardone. Summoned, by whom?" The spirit would say "By those, who wish to rest in peace. These I-beams. I can promise you that they are NOT comfortable. Not even for the dead." When a retiree would ask "What would the spooks like us to do?" The spirit would say "FIRST of all, STOP calling us SPOOKS! We are spirits. We may be dead, but we, still, have feelings." When I would ask "May I ask what action that the spirits would recommend?" The spirit would say "Since I was, once, one of you, as in I was a police officer, I have been entrusted to inform you that, unless this disgrace is not moved, before Halloween, my fellow spirits are willing to make life most un-comfortable, for the living." When a retiree would ask "In what way?" I would counter with "A better question would be "When, where, and how, do we move the house to." The spirit would say "An intelligent question. The spirits say that, if the house is moved, to Cranberry Acres, then all will be at piece. Any other questions?" I would ask "What has become of those, who have vanished, inside the haunted house?" The spirit would say "Call it insurance. If the humans cooperate, and let the dead rest in peace, then the missing will be returned, un-harmed." When a retiree would mention "As a former police officer, I think you know that kidnapping is a felony. You could go to..." The spirit would ask "Where could I go? Human justice does not apply to the spirit world. Kidnapping may be a felony, but how do you intend to incarcerate dead people?" This is when I would add "In that case, I will begin the paper-work, as soon as possible. With any luck, the house will be moved, in time to open, for Halloween." Tha was a promise, which I had intended to keep. That is, until the problem was brought before the city council. This is where the HUMAN part, of the problem, began. The mayor, and atleast half of the city council, held firm that the haunted house would NOT be moved. If the spooks wanted trouble, then the police could begin making arrests. When a police officer would ask "Mayor, HOW do we arrest spirits? HOW do we hold them?" The mayor would growl "You have a JAIL, dont you." The officer was abut to speak, when the mayor said "Put them in jail, until they release their hostages." Outside, of city hall, the officer would ask me "Sir, HOW do I arrest, detain, and imprison, spirits?" I would mention "Officer, would you believe that, in my previous cases, I have heard peoople, who drew guns, on spirits, only to be asked, by other people "What good will that do? They are already dead." I would, then add "We need to find a way to move that house, and restore those graves. This is the only way to appease the dead." When the officer thought about it, for a moment, he, then, told me "You know. Until this moment, I never thought that the dead HAD feelings. I thought that feelings died, with the body." I told him "Dont worry. In MY line of work, I learn more, about death, everyday." When the officer would ask "What about Heaven? If the dead hang around, on Earth, is Heaven a myth?" I would promise the officer "Not all spirits remain on Earth. Only those who have business to attend to. That is where my partner and I, come in. We learn what that "business" is, then we resolve it. As for Heaven, I have it on the very BEST of authority, that Heaven is not only real, but that God/Jehovah, Ishmael, whatever name you use, is the Chairman of the place." When the officer would ask "Heaven has a chairman?" I would repeat Mother Superiors words, in asking "Do you, really, think that Heaven runs on "automatic?"" Later, during a discussion, among retired, and working, contractors, and police officers, all working on the problem, of moving the house, a contractor would ask "According to my family minister, the Arch-Angel, Gabriel is a real fire-and-brimstone type, of judge. Do you know if this is true?" I could only say "According to the spirit of Mother Superior, Gabriel has gotten a "bad wrap", on Earth. She says that Gabriel is a nice man, if you give him a chance." When a police officer would ask "I thought he was the guardian of the gates of Heaven, allowing only the righteous to enter." Soon, a female voice began laughing like she had just heard the best joke of the year. When those assembled would ask "Who, or what, is that?" I would say "I think you are about to meet Mother Superior, in the flesh, so to speak." When the nun appearred, and was asked "What is so funny?" The nun would say "You, mortals, are so hilarious. Just because one, or two, versions, of Scripture suggest fire-and-brimstone, you believe that Gabriel is some conquering dictator. I swear. If you only knew that man, as I do." When a retired contractor would say "While I praise the word of God, let US get back to HOW to move that house." Once Mother Surperior regained herself, she would state "I was sent here, not only to laugh at your joke, but to provide this information. Should you require assistance, in completing this task, the Chairman says that he will keep a "team" on stand-by. Now, what details have I missed, prior to the joke?" I would tell the nun "It seems that, in order to build a fun house, for the living, that the city council has driven I-beams into the ground. Many of these have penetrated forgotten graves. The dead are upset, at their rest being interrupted. Since the city council will not listen, to them, the spirits have begun taking hostages. The spirits only promise to return the hostages, AFTER that house is removed, from their graves, and re-located." A police retiree would add "Dont forget to tell her that the dead want their graves to be returned to the condition that they were in, before that house was built." Mother Superior would say "A tall order. Let me see what I can arrange, from Heaven, while you work the problem, from Earth." As atleast three contractors would point out, the house, itself, was not the problem. It was, actually, a "kit", purchased from a company, which builds attractions, for year round use. The house was bolted to the foundation, with standard, construction bolts. It would take a total of four days, to prepare the house, for removal. The problem was those I-beams. The ones, which penetrated the graves. The spirits wanted the metal GONE, but there was a problem. A problem, which contractors had been ordered NOT to report. When the I-beams had been driven, the contractors KNEW that they had penetrated coffins, since, when the beams met up with cast concrete pilings, pieces, of bone, had to be pulled from the steel. Worse, yet, atleast two contractors reported having to move coffins aside, to place footings. It was no wonder that the spirits were in such an uproar. Now, the question was "How to remove the I-beams, without causing more pain." It seems that causing pain, to the deceased, was something which most had never considered, in either career. While Cranberry Acres was very willing to allow the house to be moved, it was Mr. Brown, who ordered the geo-phys units, to scan the ground. The Brown Agency had no intention of laying one group, of souls, to rest, only to disturb another group. The best news, of all, was when the scanners found a solid chunk, of rock, about ten feet down, and about 70 feet wide. With just a bit of digging, the foundation could be anchored to the stone (and NO I-beams would be needed). Once the house was moved (over the city councils stern objections), the process, for the gentle removal of the I-beams, was discussed, and planned. The contractors would decide to treat this problem like one which many had previous experience with. The problem, of workers being trapped, and the delicate task, of rescue. A task, which was made, suddenly, easier, when Mother Superior returned and said "By the authority of the Chairman, I encourage the deceased to come forth, and stand aside, while the living repair your places of rest." While the living stood, slack-jawed, as no less than 23, spirits rose, from the ground, and stood beside the nun, Mother Superior would tell the living "Lets get this thing moving. After all, we do not have all eternity, to fix this problem." The local undertaker even aided in the process, by identifying the remains, of coffins, crushed by the I-beams. The only thing the undertaker was concerned with was having to ask the deceased if they wanted the same model/style, of coffin, as they, originally, had. The deceased did ask one favor, of the living. "Instead of burying us where we will be disturbed, again, why not bury our remains, in that beautiful place, out by the grove." The undertaker could noot believe that he was negotiating, with dead people, as he mentioned "That property is a PRIVATE grave-yard. People PAY for plots, in advance." When the deceased would ask "Would it hurt, to ask?" The undertaker would say "I will make the inquiry. In case the owners accept, who should the bills be sent to?" While negiotiations, for grave-sites went forward, the dead annoyed the living, by saying thing slike "That is NOT my arm-bone. This is HERS." The grave-diggers found themselves taking orders from spirits. While this was going on, Tami was working ANOTHER, of her deals. This time, the deal was for HOW the "guests" (how the spirits referred to the living, whom they had grabbed.) would be returned. Locations, memories, condition, and so on. Tami wanted every item spelled out. This way, neither the dead, NOR the LIVING, could claim "I never agreed to that." Tami and I would stand by, on location, as descendants, of family, would say farewell, again, to the departed. This, while local ministers handled services. When the city council demanded the return, of the I-beams, but declined to say WHERE to put the metal, the trucks, finally, DUMPED their loads, on the lawn, in front of city hall. Between Tami, and Mother Superior, all 23 spirits were processed, and forwarded to Gabriel. Mother Superior even agreed to take the lead, saying "Dont worry, Gabriel is, really a nice guy. As long as you did not do anything REALLY awful, such as murder, or other, major, crimes, I am sure that you will like him." Tami and I wondered what it would be like, when it was OUR turn, to meet Gabriel. Closing out the case went about per usual. The spirits were laid to rest, for a second time, and, per contract, the living were returned, with no knowledge that time had passed, at all. All were examined, and released, from hospital, in fine health. I remain suspicious, about one thing. In the final weeks, before Halloween, haunted house visitors remarked at how amazing it was to talk to people, then to watch the people dissolve, into thin air. I wondered if the dead were having some Halloween fun, of their own. After all, spirits were people too.