House of the Damned
Surprise Guest
Just like I’d been doing for the past few days, I got ready for bed and waited for whoever was still awake to fall asleep. Tomorrow, Sunday, I wouldn’t have to wake up too early. Normally we had a Sunday late breakfast around ten or so at some restaurant, but I had no idea if we’d still be doing that.
Keeping an eye on the clock, I dug out the book I’d been reading earlier and flipped to the chapter about ghosts again. It was a little harder to make out the words on the page—the lights in my room were fairly dim, not to mention coated with a fine layer of dust. I had to squint at the page.
A ghost, be it friendly or not, may stay in this world for a variety of reasons. Concern for loved ones, important or lost possessions, revenge on those who wronged them, or even a simple refusal to pass on are all common reasons.
Furthermore, they do not leave involuntarily; even if their purpose has been fulfilled, some decide not to leave. However, if they choose not to leave after they have accomplished the unfinished business which caused the spirit to separate from the body, they will be barred from the next world. The ghost shall remain to tread upon the earth, tortured by their isolation forever.
I stopped reading at this point and stared at the green wallpaper decorated with pictures of intricate twisting vines, thinking.
Surely Frank—and the other ghosts for that matter—were desperate to move on, away from the mansion they were trapped in? Was there anything I could do for him?
But then again, what was he staying here for? Sure, he had been murdered, but I doubted he could 'get revenge on those who wronged him' if they were as dead as he was…
I hadn’t been hearing any noises outside for a while, so with that afterthought, I shelved the old book, made my way across the hall, and pushed open his door.
“Frank?”
“Hey.”
I jumped a little when I saw where he was standing. Instead of sitting in the corner, he was leaning right by the door waiting for me with the trace of a smile.
He seemed to have finally relaxed.
“I’ve got a lot to tell you about.”
His grin faded. “What?”
“Well, there’s this girl, Elise. We…don’t really get along. But there’s been some stuff happening in the other wing. The younger kids are getting really freaked out because of the...other ones…I didn’t do it, obviously, but she’s trying to pin it on me.”
Frank opened his mouth to reply, but I quickly finished, “I’m not asking you to help me, I’m just letting you know. If she tells any of the caretakers, I might be shut up in my room or something, and not be able to come talk to you.”
“Oh,” he sighed. “I would offer to talk to them, you know…but those guys who’ve been there for decades, they’ve gone insane. They won’t listen to what anyone tells them, I…” His voice trailed off.
When I realized he wasn’t going to say anything else, I continued, “I also wanted to ask you a question.”
“Go for it.”
“If there was any way…for me to help you, you know, get out of here and pass on—“
Frank was silent for a moment, then laughed. “I really don’t think that’s possible, Karen.”
“But there has to be some way! I can’t just leave you here forever.”
“And what would that be?”
“If I could…somehow get the woman who killed you to leave—then wouldn’t that—“
“It might work,” he said thoughtfully, eyes boring into mine. “There’s no guarantee that it would, though, and I don’t even know what she—“
Suddenly, the door flew open and slammed against the wall. It cut across my shoulder, and I jerked back in surprise.
A woman stood on the threshold, seething with anger. She was a ghost, no doubt about it—but much more terrifying to behold. Her hair was matted around her, her dress torn, and her eyes didn’t just glow red. They flashed and flickered like living fire, and even cast a tinge on her exposed teeth. Unlike Frank, she had no chain to restrain her.
She leered at me, and I stepped back in shock, shrinking into the corner and shaking. My heart pounded somewhere in my throat.
“And who might this be, Frank?”
Keeping an eye on the clock, I dug out the book I’d been reading earlier and flipped to the chapter about ghosts again. It was a little harder to make out the words on the page—the lights in my room were fairly dim, not to mention coated with a fine layer of dust. I had to squint at the page.
A ghost, be it friendly or not, may stay in this world for a variety of reasons. Concern for loved ones, important or lost possessions, revenge on those who wronged them, or even a simple refusal to pass on are all common reasons.
Furthermore, they do not leave involuntarily; even if their purpose has been fulfilled, some decide not to leave. However, if they choose not to leave after they have accomplished the unfinished business which caused the spirit to separate from the body, they will be barred from the next world. The ghost shall remain to tread upon the earth, tortured by their isolation forever.
I stopped reading at this point and stared at the green wallpaper decorated with pictures of intricate twisting vines, thinking.
Surely Frank—and the other ghosts for that matter—were desperate to move on, away from the mansion they were trapped in? Was there anything I could do for him?
But then again, what was he staying here for? Sure, he had been murdered, but I doubted he could 'get revenge on those who wronged him' if they were as dead as he was…
I hadn’t been hearing any noises outside for a while, so with that afterthought, I shelved the old book, made my way across the hall, and pushed open his door.
“Frank?”
“Hey.”
I jumped a little when I saw where he was standing. Instead of sitting in the corner, he was leaning right by the door waiting for me with the trace of a smile.
He seemed to have finally relaxed.
“I’ve got a lot to tell you about.”
His grin faded. “What?”
“Well, there’s this girl, Elise. We…don’t really get along. But there’s been some stuff happening in the other wing. The younger kids are getting really freaked out because of the...other ones…I didn’t do it, obviously, but she’s trying to pin it on me.”
Frank opened his mouth to reply, but I quickly finished, “I’m not asking you to help me, I’m just letting you know. If she tells any of the caretakers, I might be shut up in my room or something, and not be able to come talk to you.”
“Oh,” he sighed. “I would offer to talk to them, you know…but those guys who’ve been there for decades, they’ve gone insane. They won’t listen to what anyone tells them, I…” His voice trailed off.
When I realized he wasn’t going to say anything else, I continued, “I also wanted to ask you a question.”
“Go for it.”
“If there was any way…for me to help you, you know, get out of here and pass on—“
Frank was silent for a moment, then laughed. “I really don’t think that’s possible, Karen.”
“But there has to be some way! I can’t just leave you here forever.”
“And what would that be?”
“If I could…somehow get the woman who killed you to leave—then wouldn’t that—“
“It might work,” he said thoughtfully, eyes boring into mine. “There’s no guarantee that it would, though, and I don’t even know what she—“
Suddenly, the door flew open and slammed against the wall. It cut across my shoulder, and I jerked back in surprise.
A woman stood on the threshold, seething with anger. She was a ghost, no doubt about it—but much more terrifying to behold. Her hair was matted around her, her dress torn, and her eyes didn’t just glow red. They flashed and flickered like living fire, and even cast a tinge on her exposed teeth. Unlike Frank, she had no chain to restrain her.
She leered at me, and I stepped back in shock, shrinking into the corner and shaking. My heart pounded somewhere in my throat.
“And who might this be, Frank?”