The Hanging House

Ryan Case gazed up through the branches of the giant, gnarly oak tree at the towering house as the van pulled into the long gravel driveway. The large, old house was a beautiful sight to behold, but something about it, perhaps its vastness, perhaps the vines and cracks creeping up the sides, but something gave him a chill. The van stopped just short of a large gate as it pulled in. “I’ll be just a second.” His father, Phil was enthusiastic about the family’s newest endeavor. They’d moved from the west side of town on a whim. Phil popped open the driver’s door and hopped out of the van. He did a slow, but joyful jog to the center of the gate, where an old, but sturdy lock kept the gate together.
April, Ryan’s mother, a shorter, but beautiful woman, adjusted the rear view mirror to look at their kids in the back. “So, are you two stoked to be moving?” There was an air of sarcasm to her words. Ryan continued gazing out the window, paying no heed to her words. He didn’t like moving away from his friends on the west side of town, but at least he hadn’t moved all the way out of the city. There was still hope. His sister, Megan spoke up, though. “I’d be more happy back at our old house. Why’d we have to move, anyway? This place sucks!” Megan never had a problem speaking her mind when she felt the need.
“You know your father. He felt this would be best for us and for his writing.” Megan sighed audibly.
“What writing? When was the last time he sold a book or manuscript? We’re just floating on royalties, aren’t we? Hell, I can’t remember the last time I saw him actually trying to write anything!” April whipped around and glared at Megan sternly, “First off, watch your mouth around me, Missy. You may be seventeen, but that doesn’t mean you can swear all you want. Secondly, we looked at several different places and this seems to be the best location for him to be able to concentrate on a new manuscript. I should make you write an apology essay to your father for that, though.”
Megan bit her lip and grumbled, “Sorry, Mom…”

Ryan finally spoke up, “I don’t know. It’s a nice house, but there’s just something about it. I don’t like it.”
April sighed and turned back to see Phil arguing with himself as he tried to unlock the gate, “You two really need to just give it a chance first. We’re still in town, just on a different side. You two will be going to a different, better school after the summer. We just have to give this place a chance.” Ryan wasn’t totally convinced. He’d heard his parents fighting about the move the month prior one night. She’d said she didn’t think it was really necessary. His father argued he needed a new place to think and it would be cheaper than trying to add on a new room to their already cluttered home. It was true, their old house was a lot smaller than this new one. A part of Ryan did agree with his dad based on that, but he still wondered if there was no other way he could have found a more peaceful location to write. They were almost out in the boonies with the new house.
“Mom?” Ryan asked, he still stared out at the window, his hands folded in his lap.
“Yes?” April looked into the mirror.
“What’s taking Dad so long?”
“He left the key in the van.” She held up an older-looking key from the center console. She beeped the horn, which made Phil jump. Before he was able to shout at her from outside, he saw the key. He stuck his own key ring back into his pocket and looked off as he trotted back to the van.

“Why didn’t you say anything before?” He griped as he opened the door.
“You shot out before I had a chance. Then I got caught up talking with the kids. Anyway, here, let’s get inside. The movers will be here soon.” Phil took the key and gave April a small peck on the lips. “Thanks.”

He unlocked the gate and pulled the lock from the loopholes. He then pushed the heavy metal barrier open and gazed out at the land they’d just purchased. He took a deep breath and turned back to the van with a smile.
“I think we’re gonna love this place,” he said as he hopped back into the van. “Don’t you all agree?”
Nobody said anything. He pulled the van up to the house. Everyone eagerly exited the vehicle, not for joy of the new home, but just to be able to stretch their legs. Traffic had been the worst. The movers were still nowhere in sight.
Pulling the ring of keys from his pocket again, Phil this time took only a moment to open the front door. It squeaked loudly. “Gonna probably start repairs with a little oil, me thinks.” He chuckled to himself. “Well, let’s have a look around! I mean, your mother and I already have, but you kids go explore. Pick out your rooms.”

The house smelled of musk and dankness. It was definitely old. Cobwebs clung to the bare walls for dear life like dusty hammocks on a flat mountainside. “Step two: we’re gonna have to clean this place out some.”
Ryan and Megan both sighed at the same time. April ignored her husband. She didn’t really care about the improvements or repairs or the cleaning. She just wanted to get settled in as quickly as possible. The movers arrived approximately an hour later.

It took the family a couple weeks, but they were able to clean the cobwebs from the walls and corners and rearrange the furniture to make the house more their own. Megan and Ryan spent a lot of the time griping while April spent more time washing linens and hanging clothes. Phil claimed a corner of the house for his writing almost off the bat and in between what seemed like a reinvigorated penchant for penning, he would make the needed repairs around the house. A lighting fixture here, a broken floorboard there. They were all very busy getting settled, but progress was being made.
The night they’d re-organized all the knickknacks in the living room April made them a special dinner. “For all the hard work we’ve been doing, I’ve made a little something for everybody. Think of it as my thank you for us all getting along and getting it done.”
“Hope you put all those cobwebs in Ryan’s.” Megan laughed. April gave a disapproving look at Megan, “Well, that’s rather mean-spirited. How about I gather those cobwebs and put them in your food?” She asked as she walked back into the kitchen. “Sorry, Mom…”
“That’s what I thought. Now apologize to your brother.” She added as she walked out the kitchen carrying several plates, each with a different food. “Sorry, Ryan.” Megan half-heartedly apologized.
“That’s better. Now, who’s hungry?” She passed the plates around. Each had their favorite food on it. For Ryan, it was a big, juicy hamburger. For Megan, pancakes. Phil had a juicy steak, medium rare. April made herself a nice pasta with pesto.

Dinner went swimmingly.

“Alright, kids, you can do the dishes before bed. I’m beat.” April said. Both Megan and Ryan began to groan, but caught themselves when Phil glared in their direction after finishing his steak. “It’s not like we ask much of you kids. Just get it done, it won’t be long if you work together.”
“It’s cool, we’ll do it.” Ryan said. He didn’t want the evening to be spoiled over lack of motivation. He wanted to do the dishes even less, but if he called rinsing ahead of time, it wouldn’t be so bad.
“Rinsing.” Megan’s face twisted into a wry smile at her brother, as if she’d read his mind. Ryan sighed and reluctantly picked his plate and glass up, carrying them to the kitchen to begin with the cleaning.
“Thanks, kids.” April and Phil spoke at the same time.


“Thanks a lot.” Ryan spat at Megan as she sat back in the kitchen chair, texting on her phone. He’d been scrubbing plates and cups for the past fifteen minutes, but she hadn’t yet lifted a finger to rinse. “Don’t be mad you weren’t quick enough on the draw,” She snarkily commented. “Besides, you’ve barely started cleaning. I’ll be there in a just a minute. I’m having a great conversation with my friend.” Ryan wasn’t impressed.
“Whatever.” He quipped and reached for a glass from the counter. As if it jumped away from his hand, the cup flew off the counter and hit the floor with a loud crash! Megan jumped up from her chair, startled, almost dropping her phone. “What the hell is your problem?? I said I’d be there in a second!”
“I didn’t—I mean, I didn’t even touch it!”
“What’s going on in here?” Phil rushed into the kitchen holding a hammer. He’d been about to pound a few nails poking out in the living room.
“Ryan’s throwing a tantrum or something! He just broke a glass on the floor!” Megan shot out as Phil entered.
“Ryan! It’s just washing dishes! What the hell, son??” Ryan stood there confused. The wash towel in his hand was dripping on the floor. “But, I swear I didn’t—”
“I don’t want to hear it! I thought we could make it through this night without anymore drama from you kids. Guess I was wrong. After you clean this mess up, go to your room and don’t come out until I say so.”
“This is bullshit!” Ryan threw the dish towel into the sink and went to the closet for the broom and dustpan.
“You better watch yourself, young man! I swear, I don’t know what’s wrong with you tonight.” Phil returned to the living room and began pounding nails back into the boards.
“Wait, who’s going to finish the dishes?” Megan asked.
“Guess you can handle that.” Ryan retorted as he dumped the shattered glass into the waste bin and put the broom and dustpan up again.
“This is bullshit. I thought you grew out of throwing tantrums to get your way.” She said.
“I told you, I didn’t do it. I mean, at best, it was an accident, but to be honest, I hadn’t even touched it. It just kinda flew across the kitchen.”
Megan cocked an eyebrow. “Weird. Well, go ahead and get the hell outta here before Dad gets really pissed. I’ll finish up in here.” She pocketed the phone and put her shoulder length blonde hair into a ponytail with a hair band that had been stretched around her wrist.
“Whatever. Smell ya later.” Ryan sighed as he walked to the living room door.
Megan laughed, “What? This isn’t the 90’s, you loser!”


“I don’t know what’s wrong with those kids lately.” Phil said as he and April got ready for bed. “Honey, they just need time to adjust. I’m sure Ryan didn’t mean to break that glass in there. Maybe you should go a little easy on him, huh?” Phil furrowed his brow, “I don’t know. I don’t want to go too easy on him and let him think he can get away with anything he wants. You remember his tantrum phase.”
“I guess. I’m just saying it’s a simple matter. He’s acting out because he misses his friends. Me misses the old house. I’m sure it’ll iron out soon enough. Just give it time.”
“Fine.” Phil ended the conversation by closing the bathroom door and brushing his teeth. April laid back in the bed and thought more about the subject.

Upstairs, Ryan had just gotten undressed and ready to lay down when he heard a knock at the door. “Who is it?” The door creaked open. Megan entered. She was wearing a fresh set of clothes and smelled as if she’d just gotten out of the shower. “Going somewhere?”
She smiled, “Yeah, I got a date tonight.”
“Are you serious?” Ryan replied.
“Yeah, I kinda didn’t tell Mom and Dad, so I need you to cover for me, just in case.” She smiled, “Oh, c’mon. He’s cute and I know  you’re gonna want to go on dates when you get older.”
“Fine, fine, you just better get back in time. I won’t cover for you long.”
“I knew I could count on you, little bro!” She put Ryan in a headlock and proceeded to give him a light noogy.
“Ow!” Ryan fought his way out of the headlock and kicked his sister in the buttocks. “Get going before I change my mind now!”
“Shhh—shhh! Gotta be quiet! Thanks again!” And with that, Megan snuck out the room and made her way silently downstairs.
Part of Ryan resented his sister sneaking out like that, but another part of him didn’t really care so much. It was her ass, after all.

Ryan got dressed in his favorite pajamas and laid on his bed. He wasn’t tired, but he also knew for his sake, he wasn’t going anywhere, so he grabbed a comic book and began reading. Just as he’d finished his third super mutant adventure comic, he heard a small knock in the hallway. His alarm clock told him it was almost midnight, so his parents should have been asleep. He decided to investigate.
The bedroom door creaked again as he poked his head out. The hallway was dark, lit mostly by the light of the moon, but partially due to a string of night lights left on for midnight bathroom runs. “Anyone there?” Ryan whispered. No answer. Ryan hung out the door more and looked down the hall in the direction of the noise, letting his vision adjust for the lower light. He couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. He didn’t want to chance getting in trouble, so he closed the door and went back to reading comic books. Again, after a few more issues, there was another knock, this time louder than the last. Ryan started feeling a bit scared. They didn’t have any pets in the house and his sister was off gallivanting about town with her date. As far as he knew, his parents were asleep and had no reason to be hanging around his room.
“Hello?” Ryan stuck his head out the door again. This time he could see a small table had been toppled over in the hallway. Luckily, there was nothing breakable on it, but this still disturbed Ryan greatly. His palms began to sweat as he held onto the doorknob. “Wh—who’s out here??” He looked up and down the hall, but there was no indication of anybody being in the hall. He tip-toed out to the table and did his best to quietly pick it up and set it proper against the wall. As he knelt down to pick up the cloth runner still on the floor, he noticed the light in the hallway began to dim some. He whipped around to see the door to his room closing on its own. His pulse quickened, but he did his best to rationalize. There must have been a draft. He turned back to put the runner back on the table when he noticed something was off. When he looked down, in the darkness of the night, he could make out a thick red liquid staining his skin. He leaned in and sniffed it. It smelt metallic. It was blood and the runner was coated with it!
Ryan freaked and threw the runner down, turning just in time to catch the door to his room closing all the way. This sent a chill up his spine. He turned back and ran to the stairs, flicking the light on as he passed it. A moment later, he was banging on his parents door downstairs. Each slam adding more and more of this thick, red liquid to the white finish of the door. “MOM!! DAD!! OPEN UP, PLEASE!!” He cried.
“What in the hell is going on??” Phil opened the door, barely catching Ryan’s fist as it swung down in an attempt to strike the door again. April wasn’t far behind him. She was still putting her robe on over her night gown. “Ryan, what’s wrong?” She asked. They turned the lights on in the living room and Phil followed Ryan back upstairs. April stopped to curiously examine the stains on the bedroom door.

Ryan spent the majority of the morning scrubbing ink from the hardwood floor in the hallway outside of his room. The thick ichor that had coated him that night was nothing more than the fluid from a well that had been resting on the table. The commemorative pen that completed the set had been broken. Phil was furious to find this out in the wee hours of the morning. He was even more furious when he caught Megan sneaking back upstairs while he and Ryan were examining the spilled mess.

“Thanks a lot, loser.” Megan chided Ryan as they both scrubbed the floor. Both their foreheads were coated in a layer of sweat. “It’s not my fault, I didn’t say a thing to Dad. Besides, you shouldn’t have knocked over the table last night. That scared the hell out of me.”
Megan stopped for a moment and looked at Ryan, “I wasn’t even here, remember. I couldn’t have anything over. I didn’t show up until you and Dad were throwing a hissy-fit over some ink.”
“Something isn’t right. There’s got to be something going on here. Sis, do you believe in ghosts?”
“Never have, never will.”
“Then who or what made this mess? Mom and Dad were in bed and I heard a noise out here, then this happened.”
“I have no clue, but you can’t just jump to the supernatural. Maybe it’s those comic books you always read. Maybe if you cut back on those, next time you won’t freak out over every little bump in the night.”
Ryan resented hearing that, but a part of him felt she was telling the truth.
They did the best they could scrubbing up the ink, finishing by lunchtime. As they were washing the red ink from their hands and faces and forearms in the upstairs bathroom, Phil was putting the finishing touches on the paint job he’d given the bedroom door. “It’s gonna be wet for a while. May have to give it another coat because of all the ink, but it’ll look good as new tomorrow.”
“I hope so.” April said as she sat on the bed, her vision on the floor in front of her. There was something in her voice that made Phil ask, “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know. I mean, all that last night just got to me. Ryan freaking out like that and then Megan getting caught sneaking out. What’s wrong with our kids?”
Phil leaned up against the door frame and looked at April. Unbeknownst to him, he’d accidentally brushed a smear of white paint across his forehead, “You said it yourself, they just need time to adjust to this house, right?” April looked up and couldn’t stifle her laugh well enough. “What?” He inquired. She stood up and paced over to Phil and planted a kiss on a clean spot on his cheek. “I have to make lunch. You should get cleaned up.”
Phil looked up and saw the swath of white across his face in a mirror, “Dammit.”

April made breakfast for lunch. Waffles. Maple syrup. Eggs. Bacon. The kids devoured their meal almost as quickly as she was able to get it ready. “Whoa, slow down!” She said, “Were you two able to get all that ink up from last night?” They grunted and nodded. They were famished. As part of their punishment, they were forced to skip breakfast and get to cleaning immediately in the morning. “Oh, while you were scrubbing that up, Ryan, your friend, Sandy called. I told her the new address, so she should be here later. Hopefully, your father isn’t too adamant on your grounding.”
Ryan swallowed, “Yeah, I haven’t seen anyone since we moved, let alone my best friend.”
At that moment, Phil walked into the kitchen, fresh from the shower. “So what are we having?”
“The breakfast we missed this morning.” April planted another kiss on his fresh face as he walked in and sat down. She had a plate ready for him already.”
There was a knock at the front door. “I’ll get it!” Ryan called out as he shot up from his chair. Phil began digging into his food almost immediately.
At the door, Ryan was surprised to see Sandy had already made it to his house. She seemed winded. “Did you bike all the way over here??” She nodded. “Come on in, come on in. Check the new place out!” Ryan held the door open for her and then ran to get her a drink of water. Sandy plopped down on the couch, giving herself a few moments to catch her breath before she did anything else. “I can’t believe you did that.” Randy said as he came back with a large glass of ice water. “Thank you.” She said. “I couldn’t help it. It’s been two weeks and my mom wasn’t going to drive me. I actually told her I was going to the park, which I did, but then I realized it wasn’t too far from there to get to here. I won’t lie, it was a bit of a struggle, though.” They laughed together. “You can use the phone and call her if you want. I don’t want you getting in trouble on my account.” Ryan said.
“It’s fine. I’m not gonna stay long. Maybe you could grab your bike and come to the park with me?”
Ryan shook his head, no, I kinda got myself grounded last night.”
“Bummer.”
“Tell me about it. Wasn’t even my fault.”
“What happened?” Sandy asked as she sipped on the cool water.
Ryan explained the happenings of the night before. “That’s bananas.” She’d always been a believer in the supernatural. At a point, Sandy had told Ryan she believed her house was haunted. Of course there was no solid proof, but she adamantly believed. “I’ll come back tomorrow. My mom has a Ouija board I can try to channel some spirits with. It definitely sounds like there’s something going on over here.”
“Will she let you use it?” Ryan asked.
“I don’t see why not. Or I could just take it. Either way, we’ll figure this out.”
“Sure. Anyway, wanna see the rest of the house?” Sandy nodded. Ryan took her empty glass and showed her around the newly repaired, but still creepy abode. She was amazed at the size of the place more than anything. “Just wait til you see my room. It’s pretty sweet, actually.”
“Hold on, you two.” Came a voice behind them just as they were about to head up the stairs. It was Megan. “What do you think Mom and Dad would say?”
“Well, they never cared before, so why would they now? They know they can trust us.”
Megan smirked and cut between the two, shooting up the stairs to her own room. “She’s still kinduva bitch, I see.” Sandy said when she heard the door close. Ryan shrugged, “What can I say?” They climbed the stairs and stopped at the upper landing. Staring down the hall, Sandy said, “I swear it just got colder up here.”
“It’s probably the insulation. It’s an old house, you know.”
“It’s the older ones that have the most history. I guarantee you there’s something here trying to get your attention. Tables don’t just flip themselves.” They started walking to Ryan’s room, stopping one more time to gaze on the spot where the ink spilled all over the floor, where the stained runner used to lie. “You did a good job cleaning the mess up, though.”
“Thanks.”

They spent the next few hours catching up. Ryan telling Sandy about all the cleaning and repairs they’ve done. The way he felt when they first showed up at the house. Sandy told him about how most of their friends had moved away during the summer. Some would be back for school, but it didn’t really matter since he couldn’t really see them anymore unless they met somewhere. “Yeah, I’d give this room up to be back at our old house any day. I miss you guys.” They hugged and went back to reminiscing. When it came time for Sandy to leave, they hugged again and he walked her out the front door. “Are you sure you don’t want my dad to drive you home?”
“Yeah, I don’t want to put him out. Plus I was supposed to be at the park, remember?”
“True. Be safe.” Ryan closed the door behind her.

The day passed as normal as they could fathom. Phil complained of a mild, persistent headache. The Cases enjoyed another nice dinner and got ready for bed. Ryan was the last to get a shower upstairs. As he got out, he reached for the towel he’d hung on the rack near the door. It wasn’t there. “Dammit, Megan…” He said to himself. It’d been a while since the last time they’d played any real pranks on each other, but after last night, he couldn’t put anything past her. Ryan wiped the water from his eyes and reached around almost blindly for another towel. He finally found one pushed further down the rack. He immediately dried his face and looked through the steam at the mirror. It was fogged up, but he could see, written in the steam, words scribbled that made his blood run cold.

GET OUT.

“This isn’t funny, Megan!” Ryan yelled at the bathroom door. He’d expected she’d be waiting outside the door to hear him scream. Ryan wrapped the towel around himself and began wiping the message from the face of the mirror. That’s when the dark image caught his eye. The form of a small boy sat in the corner. Ryan froze as he stared down at the youngster. He was mute of color, his eyes darkened circles. “He’s coming…” the boy whispered.
“Who—wh…” he stammered and then whipped his head around to see nothing. There was nothing in the corner. He couldn’t tell if at this point he was still dripping wet or sweating all over again. All he knew was he wanted out of that bathroom and back to his room. He slowly and deliberately made his way to the door, watching every angle around him to make sure his eyes were just playing tricks on him. When he got to the door, he flung it open and ran straight to his room. Ryan got dressed and threw himself under the covers. As he lay in bed, there was another loud knock in the hallway. He refused to get out of bed this time.

Ryan woke up the next morning before anyone else. He still had the last night’s shower on his mind. He hadn’t forgot the thumps in the hallway, either. He poked his head carefully out the door, looking both ways. The table was turned over again, this time, though, the ink well landed on its base, saving him another mess to clean. Ryan was a little relieved. It didn’t help, though, the table had turned itself over again. What was going on here?

Later that morning, during breakfast, Ryan brought up the table, “I think there’s something funny going on upstairs. I mean, I heard it again last night and when I got up this morning, that table was turned over yet again. And I know I didn’t do it.” He looked at Megan.
“Hey, I was a good girl last night, I didn’t do it, either!” She exclaimed. Ryan didn’t know if she was telling the truth, but something told him she was.
“Well, we didn’t do it.” Phil said as he held the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.
“Are you okay, honey?” April asked.
“Yeah, just can’t shake this damned headache.”
“Have you taken anything for it?”
“I’ve been taking medicines for it for the past two days or so. It just seems to be getting worse.” He said in a low voice, as if agitated by her questions.
“Well, we’ll see if we can find a local doctor for you to visit. Maybe you just need to take a bit of a break from your writing, what with all this work you’ve been doing around the house.”
Megan added, “It could be allergies. There’s still a lot of dust around here, and that big tree outside.”
“Maybe.” Phil said. “Maybe not. I don’t know. I’ll be fine, though, don’t worry about going to the doctor.”
“But honey—”
“Drop it.” Phil interrupted. They finished their breakfast in silence.


After breakfast, Ryan retreated back to his room, this time taking the cordless phone with him. He dialed Sandy’s number, hoping she’d pick up.
“Hello?” The voice on the other end answered. It was Sandy’s mom. She didn’t much care for Ryan.
“Um, hi, Mrs. Turnbull, it’s Ryan. Um, is Sandy around?”
Though she’d cupped her hand over the mouthpiece, Ryan could still hear her call, “Sandy! That boyfriend of yours is on the phone!” Sandy picked up on the other line, “I got it, mom!” There was an audible click.
“’Boyfriend’? Since when?” Ryan chuckled.
“Shut up. What’s goin’ on?” She retorted.
“Um, you know that Ouija board you were talking about? Think you could bring it by tonight?”
“Maybe. Mom’s going out to play bingo, so I’ll be home alone. Why tonight?”
“Well, more weird stuff happened last night. I swear, I saw something in the bathroom.”
There was a momentary pause. “All right. I’ll try to bring it by tonight. I don’t know I’ll be able to make it, but I know mom will be out all night.”
“Cool. I’ll see you tonight then.” They said their goodbyes and disconnected. Ryan wished they had cell phones to text each other, but one thing their parents had in common was that they didn’t believe they were old enough yet.

Later that night, after dinner, Phil went to bed early. His head still throbbed, even worse than before. April sat with him, rubbing his back as she watched television in the room. Megan listened to music in her room. Ryan sat in his room waiting for Sandy to show up. It was soon after his parents had fallen asleep that he heard a light tic at the window. He opened the curtains to see Sandy waiting below with a book bag slung over her shoulder. He opened the window. “Meet me at the front door!” Ryan whispered down. He flew out of his room and down the stairs, albeit quietly. Thanks to all the housework they’d done, the doors had been recently oiled, so he didn’t worry about making much noise there. They both snuck as quietly up the stairs as Ryan’d snuck down.

“So, I imagine we don’t have a lot of time, do we?” Sandy whispered in the hall as Ryan clicked the his bedroom lamp on. He turned off the overhead light, causing the room to instantly grow dim while maintaining some visibility, “What do you mean?” He closed the door behind her.
“Well, if there’s some spirit here trying to contact you, normally that means something’s going down soon. At least that’s been my experience.”
“You’ve actually gone through this before?” Ryan asked.
“Well, not exactly, but I’ve seen a lot of movies.” If Ryan wasn’t skeptical at this point, he’d begun leaning towards it at that moment. Sandy could see the doubt in his face. “Look, are we gonna do this or not?” She inquired. Ryan cleared an area on the floor of comic books for them to sit and place the board without saying a word. Sandy set the book bag on the bed and knelt down, placing the planchette in the middle. “Okay, we have to both lightly touch the planchette before we can welcome any spirits to talk to us.” She put both her index and middle fingers lightly on the planchette as she’d mentioned. Ryan sat cross-legged and put slowly put his fingers on the planchette as well.
“Okay, what now?” Ryan asked.
“Close your eyes and repeat after me…”

They spent the next forty minutes chanting, trying to reach a spirit, any spirit. There was no response.
“I think it’s broken,” Ryan said. Sandy peeked one eye open, “Maybe you’re just not trying hard enough, Mr. Smartypants.” Ryan bit his lip in frustration and put his hands back on the planchette. They tried for a little while longer before Sandy had to stop herself.
“I’m sorry, I gotta get back home.”
Ryan looked confused, “I thought your mom wouldn’t be home all night.”
“Yeah, that’s the thing. I can’t stay all night. First, there’s your parents. Then I don’t exactly know when my mom’ll be home anyway. I just say ‘all night’ because she doesn’t get home until extremely late.”
“Fine, fine.” Ryan gave in. “Can I at least keep the board for a little while? I promise I won’t tear it up or anything.” Sandy took a few moments to deliberate before she agreed. Ryan waited up for her to get home. To avoid waking his parents up, Ryan called Sandy in forty-five minutes, just enough time for her to make it home and pick up the phone. “I’m here.” She said as soon as she put the receiver to her ear.
“Good. I was worried a little. It’s so late, ya know?” Ryan replied, sounding relieved.
“Yeah, it was kinda scary, but I made it.” There was an air of victory in her voice, though more than anything, she sounded out of breath. After a brief moment of silence, she said, “Alright, I’m gonna go to bed now. You should probably do the same.”
“Yeah. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Sure.” They disconnected.

Ryan looked at the board and planchette when he got back to his room. Something about it made him feel uneasy, though nothing had happened that night. Ryan laid down,leaving the board where it lie, and turned off the lamp. After a few moments, he turned the lamp back on and tossed a few comic books over the board. It seemed to bother him more than he thought, even if only a little.

The next day went by rather smoothly, albeit Phil’s continued suffering of an ever-progressing headache. He spent the majority of the day taking pain medication and nursing a drink, though April didn’t quite approve. “Are you sure you don’t want to go see somebody about it?” April sounded sincerely concerned. Phil only glared and growled, “I said I’ll be fine,” he took a sip of his scotch on the rocks, “It’s just a headache. It’ll go away.” Sweat occasionally dripped down his forehead in beads. April decided to leave him alone. She didn’t want to come off as a nag, but she did worry tremendously about Phil’s health. At dinner Phil didn’t say much. They had pork chops with mashed potatoes and asparagus. As per the norm, Ryan and Megan forked their asparagus around their plates. They hated the stuff with a passion.
April frowned as she watched the two not eat their vegetables, opting to all but play with the food stuffs instead of cleaning their plates. Phil sat at the table staring straight ahead, not eating. April noticed.
“Honey, are you not going to eat?” She asked. Phil turned his head slightly in her direction, “I’m not hungry.” His answer was short and succinct.
“But you haven’t eaten all day. Are you sure?”
“I said I’m not hungry.” He spoke through gritted teeth. Ryan and Megan stopped fooling around with their asparagus and watched their father intently. There was obviously something wrong with him. They shared a glance at each other, as if also sharing a thought. Had there been a fight they didn’t know about? They both wondered at the same time, what’s wrong with Dad? “I’m going to bed.” Phil stood without another word and left the dining room. Before April was able to say a thing, he slammed the door behind him. Ryan and Megan began eating their asparagus, hoping to make their mother happy. They didn’t notice the single tear that welled in the bottom of her right eye. She dabbed it with a napkin before it fell and became a non-stop stream of sadness. “I’ll go check on your father and make sure he’s okay,” she said shakily. “He’s been under the weather lately.” Ryan and Megan looked at each other as April stood and left the room behind Phil.

“Dude, something is up.” Megan under her breath as soon as their mother left the room.
“No shit, Sherlock,” Ryan retorted. “Dad never misses out on pork chops.”
“No,” she sighed, “I mean something else. Did you see how Dad was acting? I mean something serious is up.”
Ryan took another bit of asparagus. “Yeah, that was pretty weird. Have you seen how he’s been rocking that vein in his forehead all day? It’s like he’s just been drinking and getting more and more pissed off.”
“Yeah, angry writer syndrome, I guess.”
Ryan didn’t laugh. He got the joke, but he just couldn’t laugh. Something serious was going on and he had a feeling it was related to the strange things that had been going on lately.

That night after everyone had gone to bed, Ryan decided he’d take a chance and try to use the Ouija board himself. He’d been thinking about it for the majority of the day. He didn’t expect much, if anything, to happen. He turned off the big light after once again flicking on the lamp. He knelt down and cleared the comic books from the board and placed the planchette down on it. He closed his eyes and placed his fingers on the planchette. “Hello?” He whispered. Nothing happened. “Anyone there?” He decided to forgo the chanting like they’d done last night and simply ask questions. “Anybody?” He waited for something to happen and then sighed as the planchette sat in silence. “This is stupid.” he said to himself and began to sat up. Just as he pulled his fingers from the device, it slid.

HELLO

Ryan stopped in his tracks. A chill shot up his spine. He wanted to hide under the covers and pretend it hadn’t happened, but this was real. Something, someone had responded to him. He knelt back down. “Are you there?” The planchette slid again.

YES

“Who are you?”

TONY

“Did I see you in the bathroom?”

YES

“Why do you want me to get out?”

CURSE

“What curse?” The planchette sat. “What curse, Tony?” Still no movement. “Are you there?” Just then, there was a low rumble. The board began to shake as well as the lamp. Ryan jumped onto his bed and hid under the covers. The rumble grew into a full-on quake. Ryan began to fear for his life as his room was tossed about. He wanted to scream for his parents, but the shaking ended as quickly as it began. Ryan didn’t know what had happened, but suddenly, he felt a tremendous feeling of sleepiness come over him.

The morning came quickly. Ryan rose from under his covers to the sounds of birds in the tree outside his window. He flopped back onto his pillow. Though he’d apparently been asleep, he felt exhausted and spent. “What the hell happened…?” He whispered to himself as he traced his hand against the wall behind his bed. There he felt something strange. A board shaken loose. Ryan rolled over and tried to get a good look at the board, but found it difficult due to the location. He hopped off the bed and pulled it away from the wall, careful not to make any noise. Then he was able to see not only was the board loose, but a small section of the wall had actually opened up. Was this from the quake last night? He was sure of it. Ryan looked into the hole to find a small stack of papers, newspaper clippings. He was astonished to find they were dated over the past couple decades. They mentioned hangings and brutal murders. What struck him the most was the oldest clipping depicting a young boy. Tony. In it, it stated he’d gone missing from the area. There were no leads at the time. Ryan wondered if he, Tony, had died in the house.
Ryan brought the clippings down to his parents’ room to see if they were up. He knocked several times, but nobody answered. “They went into town.” Ryan turned to see Megan standing behind him eating a toaster pastry. “They were fighting this morning, I’m surprised you didn’t hear it. Mom’s worried about Dad. Dad just wants to get more supplies to fix this place up. He was talking about adding a new room.”
“Is that it? Did they say anything about last night?” Ryan asked.
“What do you mean?” Megan bit the corner of the toaster pastry. Crumbs rolled down her chin.
“You mean you didn’t feel it? It was like an earthquake or something last night.”
A look of confusion spread over Megan’s face, “I slept like a baby. I mean, I woke up to them shouting, but that was about it. If there was a quake I would have felt it. I’m amazed you didn’t wake up earlier, honestly.”
“I…don’t know what to say.” Just then Megan snatched the clippings out of Ryan’s hand. “What’s these?”
“They’re clippings I found in my room.” Ryan said, annoyance permeated his words. “Clippings?” His sister asked. “Where at in your room?” She continued as she looked over the newspaper bits, puzzled.
Randy explained what had happened the night before. Megan couldn’t help but stare at him with amazement and puzzlement. “You snuck a girl in the other night?!”
Randy sighed, “You’re missing the point. Besides, it was just Sandy. Anyway, I swear, I saw that kid in the clippings a few days ago. And I talked to him last night. Are you sure you didn’t feel anything at all?” Megan shrugged. “That is so crazy. It was strong enough to open a hole in my room, but nobody felt it?”
“Apparently. Let’s go see if there’s anything else in that hole before Mom and Dad get back.” Megan said.

Ryan and Megan pulled the bed back from the wall once again. Megan was amazed at the size of it and wondered how she could have slept through something that produced a hole that big. Breaking through the veil of wonderment, she instinctively stuck her hand deep into the hole to see if there was anything else withing its boundaries. Her first couple of attempts produced nothing more than dust and tattered pieces of paper too torn and disheveled to read. “Let me try, I’m a little bit smaller.” Ryan said. Megan acquiesced and moved out of the way. This time, Ryan stuck his arm in as far as he possibly could. He couldn’t feel anything until just before he gave in, his fingers tipped something hard, like a book. “I feel something. I need to get in deeper, though.” He stuck his head into the hole to give himself more room to search. A moment later, he produced what looked like a small notebook with tattered, frayed pages. He flipped through some of the pages, “It’s a diary, I think.”
“What’s it say?” Megan was anxious to know.
Ryan began to read aloud, “’We moved into this house several weeks ago and strange things have begun to occur. My siblings are complaining of headaches that can’t seem to end and my mother has taken to drinking like a fish. Things were so much better before we moved here. I did a little research at the library and found some articles that seemed to make things make sense. Many have died here and I think their spirits are trapped within the walls. One in particular is a little boy, Tony. He seems to be the most friendly of them all, though a bit flaky.’” Ryan and Megan looked up from the diary at each other. “I’ve seen him.” Ryan finally spoke up.
“Yeah, you told me. I think I might be believing you now.”
“Good. At least somebody does. Are we going to tell Mom and Dad?”
“We have to, don’t we?”
“I don’t know. They’ve been acting strange, like in the diary. You think they’re being affected by the house?”
“Possibly. Seems Dad’s getting the worst of it if they are. Haven’t you seen how weird he’s been acting lately? The headaches, the anger, the drinking?”
Ryan looked at the book even more, “Yeah, I hear ya. Maybe there’s something in here about how to stop it.” He flipped through page after page hoping to find more information. The pages went blank soon after the entry about Tony. There wasn’t much information to be had.
“Maybe we could use that Ouija board and try to talk to Tony tonight?” Megan suggested.
“Or somebody else. Going by this entry, there’s more than one and it seems they’re not all positive. Tony said something about a curse. I think that’s why Dad’s been acting so odd. We may need to just get out of here before anything else can happen.” Ryan responded.
“That means we’re gonna have to convince Mom and Dad somehow.”
“Yeah…”


Later that morning, April and Phil returned to the house. Neither seemed to be angry as when they’d left. They even seemed to be…happy. When they opened the door, they set several bags on the floor. By the looks of things, they’d done more than shopping for just house fixing supplies.
“Okay, so, what do we do now?” Megan whispered to Ryan. They’d expected the worst when their parents returned, expected evidence that the house was still messing with them, but when they saw the smiles on their parents’ faces, they had no choice but to let their guard down. A part of Ryan wondered if it was all just a big ruse. He couldn’t get past the fact that there was a hole in his wall that verified he wasn’t crazy.
“You two seem to be in good spirits.” Ryan said, coyly. Phil laughed and hugged his child’s head. “I’ve never felt better. I guess I just needed a break.”
April smiled, “You kids want to grab these bags?” The two hesitated for a moment, but then quickly grabbed the bags and carried them into the house to the kitchen. “Where all did you go?” Megan asked.
“Here and there. There’s a couple things in there for you two as well.”
As soon as the bags hit the counters, they eagerly dug through. Nails, paint brushes, a diary. A diary? Ryan held the empty book in his hand, almost shaking. It looked almost exactly like the one he’d recently found in his room. “This is freaky.” Megan said. Ryan turned to see she had pulled another identical diary out of a different bag.
“Yeah.” Said Ryan.
“You like them?” Asked Phil as he walked into the kitchen. “I saw them while we were out and figured it couldn’t hurt for you two to put some of your feelings down on paper. You know, maybe be a bit like your old man.” He put his arm around April and had a big grin on his face. A small trickle of sweat streaked down his temple.
“Uh, thanks.” Ryan coughed up. “Yeah, thanks, Dad.” Megan followed. They both took their respective books and retreated to the upstairs.
“I think they’re going to get a lot of good use out of those.” Phil said.

“What are we going to do?” Megan asked as Ryan closed the door.
“I don’t know. We still have the Ouija board here, we could try to get help.”
“That’s an idea. Or we could try to get the hell out of this place.”
Ryan looked at Megan, “Alright. Which do you think will happen first? Convince Mom and Dad there are rogue spirits in the house and that we need to get out or have a conversation with one and see if there’s a way out of this mess?”
“Fine, fine. We’ll do it tonight. For now, let’s just keep an eye on Mom and Dad.”
“Deal. Now what do we do about these creepy diaries?” Ryan quipped.
“No clue. I mean, at the least, we can write in them and keep tabs.”
“Fair enough.”

The rest of the day played out eerily normal. Too normal. Phil wouldn’t stop smiling, not even for a moment. During dinner, he ate, grinning at his two kids and wife. Ryan and Megan didn’t speak much, nor April.
“Did you notice Dad?” Megan asked when they got to Ryan’s room afterward.
“Yeah. It was kinda creepy. He wouldn’t stop smiling.” Ryan grabbed the Ouija board from under his bed.
“You think whatever it was is still messing with him? This house, maybe?”
“I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest.” He set the planchette in the middle. “You ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be. So, how do we do this?”
“It’s really not that hard. We both just…” Ryan explained the process. Megan seemed a little nervous, but complied as best she could. They placed their fingertips on the planchette and began to call…
“Tony? Are you there?”
YES

“Can you help us?” Inquired Ryan.
NO

“Why not?” Megan asked.
TOO LATE

“Too late?!” They looked at each other. Just then there was a loud thump downstairs followed by a scream. They immediately jumped up and ran for the door. There was another scream. It was April! When they descended the stairs, there was a puddle of blood with a clump of hair. There was a broad streak of blood and gore stretching from the spot and heading towards the kitchen. As they neared the kitchen, they could hear the sound of thwacking—a hard thump followed by the sound of a wet sloshing. Their hearts sank into their guts. They didn’t want to open the door, but knew they had to.
“I TOLD YOU I’M ALL RIGHT!!!” Yelled Phil as they slowly opened the door. He was leaning over something hidden by the kitchen table. The trail of blood smeared around and behind the table. His face was half covered in blood. Ryan moved closer and saw something that made him want to vomit. He could see his mother’s shoes poking out from behind the table. Her leg twitched slightly. Phil crooked his head, “Do you NEED something, kids?” The horror in his voice sent chills up their spines. They were unable to respond. Phil stood up straight. In his hand was a blood and hair covered hammer. The hammer he’d been using to perform most of the repairs around the house. Ryan began to back his way to the door. The two of them had begun to fear for their lives. It had really become too late. Their dad had gone berserk and it seemed there was nothing they could do about it. “I asked a question. What the hell do you want!?” Phil began to edge towards Ryan. He turned and bolted for the door. Megan turned to run as well, but slipped and twisted her ankle. She screamed as she fell to the floor.
“Meg, get up!” Ryan called as he tried to hold the door to buy her some time. She scrambled to her feet and hobbled towards the stairs.
“Come on Ryan!” She screamed just as Phil began to bash at the door with the hammer. Ryan let go of the door and ran for the stairs behind his sister. Phil kicked the door open and stood menacingly in the shattered frame. “I think you two brats need to be put to bed.” He slowly ambled towards the two as they climbed the steps to the upstairs. “Get back here, children. Come to daddy…” All the while, he continued to grin. Sweat and blood streaked his face, mixing into a reddish mask of perspiration and death. He began to climb the stairs behind the two, hammer still in hand, just as the two made it to the top. “Shit, where do we go??” Megan gasped.
“What have we told you about using naughty language, Megan?” Phil stomped slowly up the stairs. Megan and Ryan ran down the upstairs hall, toppling the side table in the process. “You’re gonna clean that mess up!!” Phil screamed at them. He was getting closer to the top.
“I have an idea!” Ryan screamed. He picked up the side table and threw it towards the stairs, letting it topple down and hit his father. He rolled backwards down the steps and crashed back onto the floor below. Ryan and Megan both made a beeline for Ryan’s room, locking the door behind them. Phil slowly got up at the bottom of the stairs, grabbing his hammer and began to climb again, kicking and smashing broken pieces of wood out of his way.
“What do we do now?” Megan asked. Her breathing was frantic and worried.
“Hide!” Ryan told her as he knelt down to slide under the bed. She pulled herself into the closet and shut the door, covering herself with clothes and shoes. They both made an effort to camouflage themselves among the clutter of Ryan’s room in hopes it would fool their now-deranged father.
“Come out, come out wherever you aaaare!” Phil called out as he hit the top of the stairs. He began walking down the hall slowly, deliberately. “I’m going to find you kids. And then I’m gonna make you PAY!!” Phil kicked in the bathroom door. The hinges splintered and cracked out of the wood causing the door to fall haphazardly towards the floor. Only one hinge kept. The door was a lopsided swinging mess. Phil entered the bathroom and looked around. Nothing was out of the ordinary. The toilet seat was up. Randy. The shower curtain was pulled. Phil snatched it down. Nothing. Phil screamed and smashed the bathroom mirror with the hammer. The reflective shards tinkled to the ground and crunched underfoot as he stormed out. Next he moved to Ryan’s room. Nothing out of the ordinary here, either. Crap scattered everywhere. “Come on out, Ryan! Clean your room, RYAN!!” Phil was still grinning. His face covered in blood and sweat. A large vein throbbed across his forehead. His headache had never truly gone away and now it thudded in the back of his skull like a timpani being struck with the utmost fervor. Phil clutched his head with his free hand. His nose began to run with his own blood. “Ggghhaaaa!!” Phil grunted in pain. Ryan trembled under the bed, Megan listened and shook under the pile of clothes. With his hammer, Phil began swinging wildly about the room. First he struck the lamp on the night stand. The porcelain shattered and rained down on the carpet in chunks and shards. Next, he embedded the hammer in the wall. Taking a  moment to catch his breath, he clutched the handle of the hammer and tore it from the wall. In its wake a gaping wound. “WHERE ARE YOU FUCKING KIDS?!” He screamed and stormed back out of the room. Ryan hesitated and then slowly parted a hole in the clutter shielding him. He didn’t see anything resembling his father still in the room.
“I think the coast is clear. You see anything?” Ryan asked. Megan shifted in the closet, throwing clothes from over her.
“I think so.” She peeked through the slats of the closet. Their father was nowhere to be seen. She crept slowly out the closet. “C’mon. I think he’s gone.” Ryan cleared out the mess from around himself and slid from under the bed. “We gotta get out of here!” He said under his breath as they inched toward the door. They could hear their father smashing around in the hallway nearer Megan’s room. “Now’s our chance!” They bolted from Ryan’s room just as Phil plunged the hammer into the wall.
“GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE SHITS!!” Phil screamed as the two hurried back to the stairs. “GET BACK HERE!!” Blood still streamed from his nose.
“Run!” Ryan shouted as they closed in on the top of the stairs. Just then Phil cocked back and let loose the hammer he was holding. It caught Megan in the back of the head, causing her to tumble down the stairs. “No!! Megan!” Ryan chased after her as she continued to roll and fall. Phil slowly lurched towards them. The pain in his head was slowing him down, but he kept moving. Megan lie at the bottom of the stairs in a growing pool of blood. The wound to the back of her head exposed bone and brain. The fall broke her neck. She was limp and unmoving, like a rag doll tossed aside. Ryan couldn’t help but break out in tears at the sight of his sister lying there, dead. “Oh my god, this isn’t happening!” Ryan cried just as Phil reached the top of the staircase. He slowly descended, step by step. Ryan knew he had no choice but to run. The question was where, though? He didn’t have much time to ponder this question as his psychotic father was ambling down the stairs, getting closer and closer with each passing moment. He could run to the kitchen and find a knife or to the front door and simply leave. He had options, but no time to exercise them. Phil was closing in on him. Ryan chose the kitchen. There he would be able to find himself a weapon and stop his father from wreaking anymore havoc. He hated the idea and wanted to run, but it seemed necessary. Ryan fled quickly through the kitchen door. He couldn’t help but stop in his tracks when he saw his mother laying there in a pool of her own congealing blood. In order to reach the knives, he would have to step over her corpse. It both sickened and frightened him to finally see her face, or what was left of it. Bashed in. Pulp. He came close to vomiting at the mere sight of it, but he knew he needed to protect himself. “I love you, Mom.” He said with tears in his eyes as he leaned over and reached for the largest knife he could grab from the counter. He was now ready to take on the monster his father had become.
“I’m gonna get you, you little bastard…” Phil spoke as he pushed the kitchen door open. Everything seemed normal. The table was still in place, chairs pushed up to it. April still lay on the floor, her pool of blood thickening and still. But Phil noticed something, footprints in the blood. They became lighter as they moved from the body, but they led to the nearby laundry nook. “I know where you are, Ryan.” He whispered as he brandished his hammer. He was ready to simply destroy Ryan’s skull. He was going to pulverize his only son’s head in. As he crept toward the nook, he watched the footprints. They were light, but he could still see the tread of Ryan’s sneakers. And then he saw it. One of the very shoes peeking from underneath the slatted door where the washer and dryer hid. He crept closer and closer and then slung the door open to find nothing but a pair of bloody shoes. Suddenly, there was a hot, searing flash across his neck. From behind, Ryan had sliced open the throat of his very own father. Fresh, hot, red life squirted from the wound. Phil tried to scream. It came out as more of a gurgle. He put his hand over the slash wound in a futile effort to stop the bleeding. He could feel the warm liquid oozing and running between his fingers. He could taste the blood in his mouth. He fell to the ground almost immediately and seemed to convulse. Ryan dropped the knife and began to back away from his father’s body. He choked back tears. His insides felt torn up, churning like an unbalanced washing machine. He wanted to vomit, but did his best to shake the feeling. He’d done what he had to do. It was now over.
Ryan turned to the corpse of his mother. She lay there still, silent. Ryan wondered if she’d found peace with Phil being stopped. He wondered the same about his sister. His family was no more, but there was a sense of calm. There wouldn’t be anymore killing. Ryan shook his head and walked out of the kitchen to the body of his sister. Her eyes were open, staring blankly into nothingness. The back of her skull was open and ragged. Her blood and hair clotted on the floor and stairs behind her. Ryan knelt down, shaking. He brushed his palm down her face, closing her eyes. She felt cold already. It pained him to see her there, dead. He stifled another deluge of tears, though they welled in the lids of his eyes almost relentlessly. “I love you, sis.” He was barely able to choke out. “It’s over. It’s really over.” Ryan stood up and slowly walked through the living room towards the front door. He turned the handle and stepped out into the night, past the gnarly oak and down the driveway, never to return to the house again.