Haunter 1: The Shadow of the Haunter

2. Noises and Rumors

So I took all the books and scrapbooks with news clips to the east parlor, the closest to the kitchen and one of the first-floor restrooms. I dropped everything on the coffee table, sat on the couch under the window and started reading. And taking notes. And then reading some more.

Over the next days, I read until my eyes hurt, oblivious to Mike and Susan, and the continuous little noises all around me. I brought my guitar down from the third floor, to play and sing in whispers whenever I needed to give my eyes a break.

Soon I noticed that most of the noises ceased when I played and sang one of the ballads Mom had taught me. Weird. The moment I strummed the first chord, the noises seemed to sound closer, then ceased completely, and a surreal silence filled the big old house. Weirder still, for some reason I felt like the ghosts, if there were any, stopped whatever they were doing to listen to me. Weirdest of all, I felt fine about it. The idea of invisible beings around me didn't upset me at all.

Maybe Susan was right and the house had a mind of her own, and it was already affecting me.

By Sunday noon, I was done reading about the Blotters. To my surprise, nothing tragic or gross had ever happened in the Manor's 150 years.

Joseph Blotter had built it for his wife Ann Marie and their three children. They'd lived long, good lives and died of natural causes at their home. Edward, their firstborn, had moved back in some time before, to assist his parents through their last years, bringing along his own wife and children. The house never had tenants outside the family other than Miss Grace's, and the Blotters lived there generation after generation, all the way down to Grace Blotter, Joseph and Ann Marie's direct descendant, who had decided to leave it to me.

Most of the Blotters had grown up in the Manor, and had come back at different times of their lives, mostly to spend their retirement years and die there, sharing it for a while with the younger generations.

The Manor had always been full of life and love, and maybe that was why the Blotters still lingered around after passing. It was a place of good memories. Whatever life threw their way, all of them knew the Manor was a safe haven for them to take shelter, recover from any setback or sorrow, restore their souls and get ready for the next fight.

I looked up from my notes, at the parlor door and the hallway.

"You guys had a wonderful thing going here," I said aloud.

Then, on a whim, I stood up, walked out of the room and faced the hall and the stairs.

"If it's true you're still here, I want to apologize for being so rude," I said, loud and clear. "I'm Fran Garner, and Miss Grace, whom I never had the pleasure to meet, trusted me with your gorgeous home. I already love it, and living here is the best thing that ever happened to me. So, if you can hear me, please know that I'll be happy to do anything you may need. I mean, other than leaving, 'cause I have nowhere else to go."

The complete silence that filled the whole house sent chills down my spine. I could feel the goosebumps all over my skin. Then I heard something like a distant whisper. It sounded like a woman speaking from the east parlor I'd just left, but miles away.

"Hello."

A sudden fear overcame me, and I had to fight myself to keep from running out the front door to lock myself up in my car.

The next faint whisper almost caused me a heart attack. This time, it was a man from the north parlor.

"Hello."

"Is it you I'm hearing?" I cried. "Or am I going crazy?"

Somebody shushed me from the top of the stairs, but I couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman. I covered my mouth with both hands, waves of heat and cold washing all over my body.