The Loud House: Tower of Terror

Chapter 5: Researching the past

Researching the past

Seventh Floor, Room 708:

Lori: Where is Lincoln? He was supposed to be up here with us.
Lisa: Probably snooping around this abandoned hotel in search of clues to his unknown mystery regarding his unhealthy mental fantasies about these deceased specters he claims to have seen.
Lynn: I think maybe he needs a therapist or something. But I'm starting to actually believe him about the stuff he and Lola saw last night.
Lisa: What they saw in the kitchen last night regarding the green hydrogen droplets and silhouette along with the headless body with a meat cleaver they encountered last night was perhaps nothing more than a series of pranks done with special effects and Halloween props set up to scare them.
Lana: I don't think these are pranks, Lisa. It all looked too real to be a prank.
Lisa: I still fail to see how it would be possible that specters of the deceased are walking among us in this place.

Then came Lincoln again running in like a frantic fox.

Lincoln: Guys! Guys! I saw them. I saw those people. On a TV screen in the library. A video I watched revealed what happened here. This place was a bustling glamour resort in the 1930's until a lightning storm in 1939 killed 5 people in the elevator, one of them including a bellhop, who was Billy's brother. The other 4 were patrons of this hotel. I think the ghosts that I saw are them. They looked the same, it's no coincidence. It was all over the news back then.
Lucy: My spiritual senses are tingling. I can indeed confirm that it is indeed those terrible that transpired many years ago that haunts this very establishment.
Lisa: Do any of you have any visual evidence of these spiritual happenings? Of course not, but I do have every reason to be concerned about the possibility of anything strange regarding said circumstances of our stay in this hotel.
Lincoln: Does that mean you're starting to believe in what's happening with these ghosts, Lisa?
Lisa: Not my exact point I was trying to make, but yes.
Lincoln: Well, at least you're starting to.
Lori: Alright, everybody. Let's get moving. Hollywood awaits, ladies!
Lola: It's Lola Loud's time to shine!
Lucy: Sigh.
Lincoln (turns to camera): Well, the stuff we do today should get my mind of the ghost stuff for now at least. But I'm still curious about it all. Maybe I can find some more info on what happened.

They all gathered in the car and drove off. It was a great day for them viewing landmarks such as Grauman's Chinese Theater, taking back lot tours, going behind the scenes of some of the greatest cinematic masterpieces, even going down the Hollywood walk of fame. Lola felt like a Hollywood star trying on various outfits. During a fancy lunch at a Hollywood restaurant, Lola manged to actually get a chance to text Bobby and finally got a hold of the parents.

(Loud House, Royal Woods, Michigan)

The phone rang and Mrs. Loud answered quickly.

Rita: Hello, Loud Residence.
Lori: Hey, Mom.
Rita: Lori, honey, I've been worried about you all. Are you all having fun?
Lori: Yeah, sure. Our hotel has pretty terrible phone reception service.
Rita: Well, no wonder I hadn't heard from you. How's Lincoln? Is he enjoying himself?
Lori: I guess so. He's been acting really strange. Like he's having some kind of mental breakdown about our hotel or something.
Rita: Honey, what hotel are you all at?
Lori: An old place off Sunset Blvd. Pretty horrible upkeep but reliable service. Nice place, though. Hollywood Tower Hotel it what it's called.
Rita: How fun, sweetheart. Enjoy yourselves. And be nice to your brother, okay. Whatever is wrong with him, I'm sure we'll find him some help or whatever.
Lori: Okay, Bye mom.
Rita: Bye.

Rita hung up and called her husband. And Lori noticed something.

Lori: Where's Lincoln?
Luna: I don't know.
Lynn: Yeah, He just vanished while you were on the phone with mom.
Leni: Wait, we're looking for Lincoln? Where is he?
Lori: Unbelievable. Spread out, Sisters. Check the restaurant, the shops, everywhere.
Lana: I'll check the bathrooms and sewers.
Lola: Lana, have you no decency?
Lana: What?
Lincoln: Guys, I'm right here. I just went to the bathroom.
All sisters: Oh.
Luna: You had us worried, bro.
Lucy: Stop just disappearing like that.
Lincoln: hey, while you guys go out and do stuff afterwards, I'm going to ask around about the hotel and the history of it.
Lori: More ghost stuff, Lincoln? I already told mom and now she's getting worried.
Lincoln: Lori, why don't you believe me?
Lori: Because I don't believe in ghosts or spooks. That's Lucy's thing. But you're really losing it, bro. If there really is ghostly stuff going on in that old hotel, I have to see it to believe it.

There was portly man nearby who had overheard their conversation.

Man: Are you kids staying at the Hollywood tower hotel?
Lincoln: How did you know?
Man: I overheard you all talking. You're not supposed to be up in there. That place is evil.
Lincoln: Have you been inside once.
Man: No, but I know the stories. I work for the media.
Lincoln: Do you think you can get us newspapers dating back to Halloween 1939?
Man: Of course, I'm the keeper of the archives. If you need it, I can get it for you.
Lincoln: You can.
Man: Yeah. Police investigations, missing person's reports, headlines. You name it we've got it. Come by my office in an hour or two. and I'll have it all ready for you. Here's my card.
Lincoln: Thanks. I'll be there soon.
Lori: Hold it, Twerp. You're not going over there by yourself. I'll go with you.
Lincoln: You will?
Lori: You seem to be obsessed with this ordeal from the 30's that I need to make sure you're not really going loco about it.
Lincoln: Okay, Lori.

Later, true to her word, Lori went with her brother to the newspaper office.

News businessman: Here you go. Everything you need.
Lincoln: Thank you, sir.
Lori: Let's go, we can look over this stuff somewhere safe with Lisa. If anything she can make something out of this.

They found a nice place where they could review everything and met Leni and the others there so they could review it with Lisa.

Lisa: As I expected. Lincoln's suspicions of the hauntings of the hotel being ghostly apparitions are indeed rather accurate for the most part. But alas, any potential leads of where the individuals may have gone to are nowhere to be found in these reports.
Lincoln: People don't just randomly vanish upon death, especially when being electrocuted, but was there anything that happened in that place after Halloween night before the closure?
Lisa:No, the hotel was closed shortly after the incident as per your story, however some did say they had heard unconfirmed rumors that the hotel was re-opened for business, but these turned out to be unofficial statements. But it seems people did enter the vacant hotel and went missing in the years after the closure. No reported deaths to be noticed following 1939. According to police reports, there was nothing to be found of any of the victims of the lightning strike that evening. Everyone believes this be some kind of tragic accident.
Lincoln: I'm not sure it was an accident. I saw Billy in the library video, he looked rather gloomy about it and not affected by it at all.
Lynn: Don't say things like that, Linc. He was probably having a hard time coping with it seeing as one of those victims that night was his brother.
Lisa: Now according to more of these articles, there was a party taking place at the tip-top club that night on the 12th floor that night. One of the passengers of that elevator, a singer named Carolyn Crosson, whose stage name was Claire Poulet.....
Lola: Poulet? That's chicken in french.
Lincoln: Really?
Lola: Yes, it is.
Lisa: If you don't mind, I'm trying to tell a story.
Lola: Oh, sorry.
Lisa: Now, according to these reports, she was supposed to make her stage debut at the party, and was actually close friends with an actor named Gilbert London whom was in fact another of the unfortunate souls who vanished that night.
Lincoln: So, the party, that must be where there were all headed. In that video I was watching, I saw glimpses of a dance party. I'm guessing there were all headed for that same one that very night until...
Lisa: yes, but then lightning struck the main elevator and took the lives of said individuals and sending the elevator plummeting down.
Luan: Which explains why we were taking the Maintenance elevator in the basement.
Lana: Exactly. So how do we stop these hauntings? Is there anything on that?
Lisa: Lana, unfortunately, there is nothing in here regarding any way to cease these disturbances. We are not dealing with your average everyday ghosts here.
Lincoln: perhaps we can discuss more at the hotel. We need to head back.

Lori: Alright, everybody back to the car. I think we're done for today.

They huddled into the car and drove back to hotel.

Billy: Good evening, Miss Loud. I trust you and your siblings enjoyed your day out.
Lola: It was a pleasant day today, sir. Most glorious.
Billy: Wonderful, dear princess. Absolutely wonderful. (Notices Lincoln walking past) Young, Master Lincoln, I trust you feel better compared to this morning.
Lincoln: A little bit. Billy, I saw a video in the library about what happened here. It was rather shocking to see it. It must have been hard for you having an entire hotel all to yourself after your brother died and vanished.
Billy: Yes, tragic night indeed.
Lincoln: You loved him, didn't you?
Billy: We were very close as children, you might say.
Lincoln: What about that little girl? Who was she?
Billy: Sally Shine was a very special person to us all here. She was a talented movie star and a very sweet little girl. She starred in over 6 films, and 3 Broadway plays since she was 6 years old.
Lincoln: That's pretty amazing.
Billy: A tragedy to lose such a talented young star so suddenly, and she was just coming home from a publicity trip that night.
Lincoln: How close were London and Crosson as friends?
Billy: There were very close indeed. And Miss Partridge, Miss Shine's nanny, she was a rather stern but kind woman with dear Sally. That night she was attempting to get Sally with her parents that night, and they were supposed to meet at the tip-top club.
Lincoln: Really?
Billy: Yes, really.
Lincoln: What was Gilbert London heading to the party for that night?
Billy: He had recently returned from the premiere of his latest film at the time.
Lincoln: How sad that he died right after.
Billy: You have any more questions, sir?
Lincoln: Not at the moment.
Billy: Very well, then.

Lincoln went to catch up to his sisters as Billy watched with a rather unusual concentration.

Billy: The boy is rather persistent in unraveling the mysteries left behind, I fear he's beginning to know too much. I'll have to keep a closer eye on him.

And then he suddenly disappeared into thin air.

Lincoln finally pondered to himself, "Billy most definitely knows something about the incident. He's starting to get suspicious about me, that's for certain. I'll have to be extra careful".