Haunt

By S. Graham and TBD

Uncover a spine-chilling ghost story set against the breathtaking coastal backdrop-a forgotten structure teeming with dark secrets and an unsuspecting couple determined to carve out a new beginning. Can they escape the clutches of a haunting past, or will they unleash an ancient curse that lurks within the shadows? Prepare to be captivated as yo

• Language: English
• Publisher: S. Graham
• Release date: Oct 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9781088070215

Book preview

HAUNT

S. GRAHAM

The Paper House

Copyright © 2023 by S. Graham

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred.

For my four-legged writing companion.

My two pounds of perfect, my Mats.

CONTENTS

Introduction

FORGOTTEN

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

REMEMBERED

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Also by S. Graham

INTRODUCTION

The average person goes on vacation and never thinks twice about the history of the hotel, motel, or Airbnb they are staying at.

They just expect to book, sleep, and leave having the most pleasant of experiences. You trust the establishment and everyone that works there that it’s safe, positive and will leave you contributing to (hopefully) a five-star review and a memorable trip for you and your family.

What most people don't know is that they never have to disclose the deaths or horrendous history of things that have occurred near or around the area. Now, there is an app for everything; you can really take a deep dive and pull up full information and experiences from people who have stayed there previously. However, if you aren’t really looking for "Is this hotel haunted," will it ever really show up to warn you?

Nonetheless, if you take a minute to ask the bellman or maybe ride the elevator with the maintenance worker like I did. You can hear the full story that no one will tell you. The things they have personally experienced and warn you what rooms not to check into.

What if it’s not just the establishment that’s haunted, but what if it’s something else? What if a supernatural entity is attached to a personal object in your room? Could it be the antique mirror hanging by the door? The same one that had once witnessed such a horrendous death that seeps negative energy into your room at night. Or maybe that antique 13th-century vase that you bought on your last vacation that’s now used to decorate that perfect spot in your home. But, was once clutched by a dying bride, murdered on her wedding night. Her last words cursing her killer and all who have what she cannot. Has something maybe not felt right since your last purchase? Do you feel a thickness in the air? Maybe an unexplained sound coming from down the hall in the darkness of night?

You honestly never know the true story behind each establishment or the items that occupy it. You never know if you are about to witness something that has never crossed your mind. That maybe you never believed until you bring home something completely unexpected… and it turned your life upside down.

So next time, when you lay your head on the pillow at your next home away from home and hear that unexplainable whimper from the dark corner of your hotel room in the middle of the night, trust your gut; there’s a story behind it. There are multiple paths for an entity, both good and bad, to become tethered to you. You are trusting an establishment that requires your money to stay in business. How far are they willing to go to hide those secrets?

Truth is, did you really pick this home away from home for your entertainment purposes?

Or did it pick you?

Welcome to HAUNT.

FORGOTTEN

CHAPTER ONE

Bryan pulls up and abruptly stops his silver Nissan rental right alongside the waiting black luxury sedan, spitting a coat of dust all over the waiting vehicle. A young, slim blonde woman opens the door and steps out. She’s mid-late 20s and very well put together with enough Botox in her face to hide her scowl of disapproval at him. Wearing a vintage Versace dress down to her knees, a medusa blazer and finished off with Jimmy Choo diamond Talura stilettos; she wreaked of success and money. Making her way over to Bryan's car, he steps out, letting out the slightest snicker escape of satisfaction at her reaction.

Sorry, Vera, Bryan chuckles while closing his car door and wiping his hands on his dirty blue jeans. Bryan has always been a jokester; you’d think at the age of 21 it would start tapering off with maturity, but it was not. Some people call him immature; others say he is young at heart. His playful banter, dirty blonde hair, blue eyes, smile and charm are the same as they were on the multiple Zoom calls with Vera. Now, showing his more playful side in person to a very serious, now irritated, realtor.

Hi, Bryan. Nice to finally meet you in person. So, here stands the house you so urgently wanted to view. It will be interesting to see if this is what you and your new bride Emily have in mind. It’s too bad she couldn't make it out with you.

Yeah, she just couldn't get the time off work, he replies.

Bryan and Emily had been married three months after a very small ceremony. Emily just had her sister, and her parents attend. They were so happy for the two of them and couldn't ask for a better match. Emily knew after just months of being together that he was the one. Not long after, they were living together and after a long engagement, the adventure of union started.

Bryan was an only child and his parents had been gone for years, leaving him with nothing but debt and burden upon him. He was eager to start a new chapter somewhere that wasn't tainted with the void of family in his life. He was never really close with them and they never really showed affection towards one another or him, which he always noticed. So, when he met Emily, he knew it was something incredible, something he had been missing his entire life. He wanted to show his affection all the time and knew she completed him. She brought out the absolute best in him; with no doubt in his mind, she was the one.

Bryan, I know this is the only house you’re interested in, so let's get a feel for it in person. Are you sure you’re not interested in looking at some new listings? A couple more came available this morning?

Absolutely not. This is the one we’re interested in.

Along the Gulf Coast you can very much find many beautiful communities that keep that small town vibe. New Malias was just that, with a population of 2500, and this listing was just on the outskirts of town. This house has a very short walk to the crashing waves and soft sand on your feet, leaving you with daydreams of beauty and wonder. Until that is, when you turn around and cast your eyes on a vacant, run-down, overgrown Victorian mansion that looks like something straight out of a horror movie. With unmanicured oak trees and overgrown shrubs, the house is well hidden behind the neglected vegetation.

I have no idea why you would call me and be so interested in this place all the way from Alabama, Bryan. I think you are possibly the only one in the world. It needs a massive amount of work. We have it listed very low on purpose, practically giving it away at $75,000 and not one person has requested to view it on the first couple of days it came onto the market. So, I guess what I’m trying to say is, it looks like you will have no competitive offers at the moment. However, it will be on all social media platforms tomorrow morning, so if you really want this place, today may be your day. I’m sure it will pique some interest to some more non-local folk like yourself.

Yeah, I know. I heard about this place through a friend in Houston who’s always hunting for properties to flip or flatten. He thinks it has a lot of potential here, and I think he just may be right. He recommended a teardown and rebuilt with a possible condo, but I have something else in mind.

Oh yeah...What’s that? Vera asks, intrigued.

With the size and location of this place, I think it would make an incredible bed and breakfast or even a home to settle down in and raise a family.

Vera says nothing at all and does not break eye contact with Bryan. Her mother taught her, if you have nothing nice to say, you say nothing at all. Remain silent. So, that is exactly what she was going to do at this very moment.

Vera hands over the flier to Bryan with interior photographs of the house from every angle and a complete breakdown of history as they both start making their way up to the front door. Vera tries very hard to walk smoothly on the gravel driveway and not break an ankle in her lavender Jimmy Choo’s.

This house is 6,000 square feet, built in 1861 with a total of ten bedrooms, three full bathrooms and two half bathrooms. You can find four fireplaces throughout and a beautiful brick carriage house hidden in the back behind the shrubs. Taking the first step onto the rotten wooden deck, it lets out a crack as if it were to give out right from under the weight of her foot. Pausing, she continues to step lightly, This is a fixer-upper failure. It’s been on and off the market several times with never anyone permanently residing here. Everyone comes in and relists it within three months. The small town is just a little under 30 miles away with locals who have been here since the dawn of time.

I know, Bryan smiles. He’s done his research on this house and the surrounding area.

Walking onto the huge wrap-around porch and up to the deteriorated and faded green door, Bryan waits for the reveal. Vera unlocks the door with an antique brass barrel skeleton key. With a turn of the handle, it lets out a loud creak of caution but invites them in. She motions for him to go first.

Scared? He asks.

No! She barks back.

He steps into the stuffy, dusty foyer and looks immediately at the hand-carved curved staircase at the entrance. Running his hands along the smooth railing, he smiles in delight.

Now, this is what I’m talking about; look at this woodwork.

This house has four floors; however, the fourth floor hasn't been accessible for years. To the right, you will find a very old, manually controlled elevator by the back of the house. It was one of the first elevators in the area back in the day. I don’t recommend really using it or walking too much on the upper levels until you’ve had a home inspector in here. I don’t think it’s safe with the age of everything and years of neglect. This house is dangerous; it’s been sitting for a very long time, completely forgotten, and has made it through many storms.

Standing in the foyer, she studies Bryan, watching him running his hands around the walnut paneling as if completely hypnotized by the house. Suddenly, wood floorboards creak on the second floor above their heads, breaking their silence and immediately making them look directly at each other.

Vera’s heart starts racing, and she wants to get out of this house now. She knows it’s dark history and desperately wants to close this deal, to put this house behind her. This house has been known as the house that will never sell nor stay sold. More like a curse at the agency. All the veteran agents get a chuckle by dumping this listing on the greenest of agents. Vera has been stuck with this house since coming on a couple of weeks ago. Bryan makes his way past Vera, taking his first step up the spiral staircase.

Are you kidding me? You hear a sound on the upper level and just want to go up to investigate? Let’s go over this house a little more, and then you can explore more on your own. Don't forget to FaceTime your wife and show her around. I can wait outside until you’re ready with an answer.

You are scared! Bryan pipes up.

Yes. Honestly, Bryan, yes. This place gives me the creeps. This house has a history and it’s not the best. Hence why it can’t sell to anyone local and also, the locals don’t want to work on the house at all from their own personal experiences. So, contracting out of town would be your only option. You see, in the early 1920s, the coast had a hurricane come in the very early hours with no warning at all. The hurricane brought a surge of water with it, washing over the entire area. The water kept rising and rising and no one really had time or knew what to do. It devastated this area completely, leaving nothing but thousands and thousands of deaths. After the storm passed and daylight came, cleanup started. It revealed so many countless deaths and the continuing screams of survivors trapped under the collapsed rubble until they too, fell silent. Not everyone was reached in time, and it forever scarred this small town. It never fully recovered after that. People moved away and many never came back, leaving everything behind. The smell of death was strong for weeks after. I was told helpers were given the strongest whiskey to drink in an attempt to erase the horrific images they were seeing, and that was burned into their memories.

That’s horrible, Bryan responds, frozen in shock, I know about the history of this area but not like that.

No one will tell you it like me, a local, who grew up with the heartbreaking stories from my family that forever changed them. Bodies were eventually buried where they were found because there were so many and nowhere to put them. This house has that history embedded in its bones. People say family members and victims of that storm haunt this house for their own reasons. Lost souls not at rest. I just thought I should disclose everything to you. I’m sorry. I’m sure you won’t be interested in it now, and I completely understand. I don’t want to waste your time or give you something you may one day regret. Vera looks down at her now dusty stilettos, ready for Bryan to agree and march past her, no longer interested in this house of horrors.

We will take it! I’m going to FaceTime Emily and show her around. This house is due for a positive change, and the potential outweighs the history. Let’s do it! He grins, I’m up for a challenge.

Vera looks up, caught off guard and confused, not believing what she’s hearing. He’s not hearing this, right? I’ve told him it is rumored to be haunted, and he still wants it? Releasing a sigh of relief that she never even knew she was holding; she beams from ear to ear. This house will finally no longer be her problem. Vera has been known to be the best in the industry, and this sale will show her new coworkers just that. She bolts out the door and immediately calls the sellers, letting them know they have a deal and to expect the paperwork shortly before Bryan changes his mind.

The floorboards creek again upstairs. Bryan takes no notice of it because he knows there’s always a logical explanation first: like the floors creaking can be caused by poor underlay, and this house needs a lot of work. Bryan finds a place in the house with a good signal and connects his phone to FaceTime, waiting for Emily to pick up.

Well? She asks anxiously, waiting.

It’s perfect, he responds. See? He starts walking her through the foyer and into the room to the left. Revealing lime green walls missing half their drywall and wood beams with debris all over the floors.

Most of the wood is salvageable and I really think we can make this work.

Bryan, you know that’s almost all our savings plus cash from my parents for the wedding. This leaves us with just enough to survive and renovate slowly.

"Yeah, but we both want an adventure, and I need work. What better place to work than our own house? We’ve talked about our dream home by the ocean, and this could be it. At this price we can’t go wrong. An opportunity like this may never come again. I honestly think I can get this place up and running in no time. Not only can we make money off this place but