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“This is the most perfect house in the history of houses.” Paige couldn’t help but admire the beautiful, old-fashion kitchen
whilst setting a box of dishes onto the nearest counter.
Ever since seeing the “For Sale” sign in the front yard eight months ago, she had dreamed about living in this eighteenth century, three story house. Never in a million years did she ever believe it would actually become a reality. It would probably take her and Nathan a good twenty years to fill all eighteen rooms with furniture, but what did that matter? They had their entire lives to do so.
The sound of huffing and puffing shattered Paige’s woolgathering. She turned just in time to see Nathan drop a large box. She cringed when it made a strange rattling noise the moment it hit the floor, and watched with interest as he lifted the lid and peeked inside.
“What on earth did you pack in here? It feels heavy enough to be filled with bricks.”
Paige pushed a long, blonde lock of hair out of her eyes.
“If only it was.” She tapped the label on the side of the box. “It was your grandmother’s china.”
He swiped at her butt and grinned when she squealed.
“Gran will never know.”
She shushed. “Don’t say things like that. You never know when your loved ones from the other side are listening.” She looked up, heavenwards. “Sorry, Granny.”
Before Nathan could reply a loud crash at the back door made them both turn.
Paige found her five year old daughter, Kippy, beside a toppled pile of boxes she’d somehow manage to knock over just walking into the house. “Are you hurt?” Paige asked as she stacked the boxes back in place.
“I’m okay.” Kippy grinned, hugged her doll and skipped out of the kitchen.
Paige glanced over at her husband. “She’s definitely your daughter. All thumbs and no grace.”
Nathan grabbed a dish towel off the sink and threw it at her but it fell well short. She laughed at his lousy aim, and now at his comical expression.
He shook his head. “Woman, that’s our sweet, precious daughter you’re talking about.”
Paige shrugged and winked. “Sorry, but we don’t have time to chit-chat. Half our junk is still on the truck and we have to return it in less than three hours.” She laughed at his pained expression, but understood. Every muscle in her body ached and she had been fantasizing for hours about a long hot soak in the huge bathtub upstairs.
Just as Nathan joined her at the backdoor on his way outside, a bloodcurdling scream froze them mid-step. Then they almost tripped over each other in their haste to get to the living room. By the time they’d jumped over boxes and furniture the screaming had stopped. Nathan stopped so suddenly in the doorway that Paige plowed into him, almost sending them both sprawling.
Paige slipped under his arm only to find Kippy happily playing on the floor with her favorite doll.
Paige knelt down beside her daughter. “Are you okay,
Sweetie?”
Kippy wrapped both arms around the doll and squeezed it hard. “A really scary man tried to take Sally away but I saved her.
I told him she’s my best friend.”
Paige shot Nathan a confused look. He shrugged then toured the large room, peeking behind furniture and boxes.
“Where did this scary man go?” he asked as he drew near Kippy.
She pointed at the closet. “He ran in there,” and then shook her head, her eyes huge and solemn. “But he told me not to tell anyone.”
Trying not to panic, Paige stood and came between Kippy and the closet. It hadn’t occurred to her that someone might be hiding, but then she was used to her daughter’s wild imagination.
It was nothing new for Kippy to invent new playmates.
Paige nodded at Nathan and they moved over to the closet. She reached for the doorknob first, but he grabbed her elbow, put a finger to his lips and motioned her to back away. As she did so, he picked up a lamp and held it over his head before yanking the door open.
The closet was empty.
Paige punched Nathan on the shoulder and giggled. “A lamp? You were going to knock this guy out with a lamp?”
Sheepishly, he set it back on the floor and shrugged. “It was that or the couch,” and he grinned.
She slugged him in the shoulder again, more out of nervousness than anything else. “Come on, Big Guy. We’ll let Kippy’s new imaginary friend keep an eye on her while we finish unloading the truck.”
As they headed out, Kippy said, “Sam I Am would like that. He said he liked little girls.”
Paige and Nathan stopped dead in their tracks but Paige soon knelt down by her daughter again. “What does Sam I Am look like?”
Kippy looked thoughtful. “He’s very tall.” She touched her cheek. “He had a big red mark right here.” She looked back down at her doll and shrugged. “He said his mommy hurt him once, but that was okay because he fixed her wagon.” She giggled. “I hope he fixed it better than Daddy fixed mine, because
the wheels keep falling off.”
Since everyone was very tall to Kippy, that was of little or no help. Clearly it was all they were going to get out of her so
Paige stood and ruffled the girl’s hair. “Well, if he comes back, you scream again and your dad will throw a lamp at him.”
Kippy giggled and went back to playing with her doll again as if nothing had happened.
Paige followed Nathan back out to the truck. Before climbing in, he turned her a concerned look. “I hope you’re right about this Sam guy just being an imaginary friend. That was a pretty graphic description she gave.”
“You know just as well as I do that your daughter loves to create new playmates. Besides, didn’t you see the book she had next to her? You must have read that story to her a million times.” She giggled. “Sam I Am, indeed. It’s just an overactive imagination at work. She’ll be the death of us one day.”
**
“Mommy! Daddy!”
Paige opened one eye and looked at the red numbers on the clock on the dresser. Twelve-thirty-six. Her back was killing her from unloading and unpacking since five am the day before. Paige lay as still as she could and prayed Nathan would hear the screaming. With any luck he would think she was still asleep and go see what their daughter wanted.
That hope was shot to hell the moment he nudged her.
“I’ll pay you twenty dollars if you go see what she wants. I hurt so much, even my ass is cramping.”
“But she’s all the way up on the third floor. I’m not certain
I have enough strength to climb one more flight of stairs. Besides,
I was the one who got her dressed for bed and tucked in.”
He nudged her shoulder again. “Yeah, but it was your idea to put her all the way up there. If I remember correctly, I told you it was a bad idea.”
She’d clearly lost the battle so sat up and dangled her feet off the bed, dreading the thought of touching her sore feet on the hardwood floor again. She grumbled, “But you liked the idea when I said it would give us more privacy. I think you even suggested we could buy a few sex toys, like handcuffs and whips, to spice things up a tad.”
“Mommy! Daddy!”
Nathan nudged her hip. “I swear I’ll never mention handcuffs and whips again if you go see what she wants,” and he buried his head beneath his pillow.
She stood and shuffled toward the hallway, grumbling all the way. “There’s probably a serial killer up there and you’re going to just lie there sleeping the entire time we’re being hacked into tiny pieces.” There was a loud snore and she glanced back at him. “You could have at least waited until I was out of the room.”
It took every ounce of strength Paige had to climb the stairs to Kippy’s room. It was actually the best in the house, enormous and with stained-glass windows. Although really too large for their small daughter and her twin bed, Kippy had loved it the moment she’d laid eyes on it. It had been more her idea to claim it as her own than Paige’s intention to give her and Nathan more privacy. In the daylight it was a great room, but after the lights were out, it was filled with weird shadows and creepy house-settling sounds.
The moment Paige walked in she was tackled and nearly brought down.
“Mom! Sam I Am is in my closet. Can I sleep with you?”
Paige unwrapped her daughter’s arms from around her thighs and picked her up. “Honey, we both know that Sam I Am isn’t real. Besides, you’re going to have to learn to get used to sleeping up here by yourself. It’s perfectly safe. Your Dad set the burglar alarm earlier and he’s checked all the doors and windows. No one can get in without us knowing about it. Daddy and I would never let anyone hurt you.”
Kippy dug her face into the curve of Paige’s neck and whispered, “But he’s in my closet. Dad couldn’t have locked him outside if Sam I Am is already in there. I think that’s where he lives.”
Paige carried her over to the bed and sat down, still holding Kippy in her arms. “Baby, you know Sam I Am isn’t really here. He’s just a character in one of your books. People in books can’t hurt you. They’re just colored ink on paper.”
Kippy shook her head and tightened her grip around
Paige’s neck. “But he’s really real, Mom. I promise. He took my doll in the closet with him.”
Paige managed to pry Kippy off and sat her on the bed before going over to the closet. “Mommy’s going to prove to you that Sam I Am isn’t real. Okay?”
Kippy nodded but looked uncertain so Paige clicked the closet’s light on and opened the door as wide as it would go. She stepped back so Kippy could see it was empty. “See? There’s nothing there, certainly no one in your closet.”
Kippy peeped past Paige. She seemed satisfied enough now that no one was inside so Paige switched the light off, closed the door and went back to sit on the bed beside her daughter. “No more crying, okay? Your dad and I are worn out. Go to sleep like a big girl and I’ll make you waffles in the morning.”
Kippy jumped back into Paige’s arms. “Please, don’t leave me. Sam I Am said he eats little girls for breakfast.”
Paige was too exhausted to argue so she patted the bed.
“Climb in. I’ll sleep with you tonight, but you have to promise that if I do, you’ll sleep by yourself tomorrow night. Okay?”
Kippy climbed under the covers and nodded. “Okay, but
Daddy has to promise to get Sam I Am out of the house.”
**
Someone was trying to suffocate her. When Paige finally woke up, it took several seconds before finally realizing that her daughter had thrown her entire body across her face. It took some doing, but after carefully tugging several times, she finally managed to move Kippy’s limp, sleeping body down beside her.
She then slid out of bed doing her best not to wake her daughter. If she was going to make those promised waffles, it was going to take some digging through unpacked boxes to find the waffle iron and silverware.
On her way out of the room she just happened to look over at the closet door and saw that it was standing wide open. No wonder the damned thing was freaking Kippy out if it was swinging open by itself. She would ask Nathan to take a look at
it.
Before heading to the kitchen, Paige decided to check on Nathan and grab her bathrobe. Seeing he was still dead to the world, she tiptoed in and got her robe off the foot of the bed. He certainly deserved a little extra sleep after doing most of the loading and unloading by himself. Besides, she suspected the moment he smelled bacon and coffee he would be downstairs driving her crazy until one or the other was ready to consume.
Paige was bent over, head in a cardboard box when a knock came at the backdoor. They hadn’t had time to hang curtains over the its window, so when she straightened and looked out, she saw a middle age woman waving at her. She did a little mental foot stomping. There must be an unwritten rule somewhere that said there always had to be at least one noisy neighbor, no matter where they lived.
Paige plastered on a fake smile before opening the door.
“Good morning.” She held her robe together at the neck since she hadn’t been able to find its tie.
The woman forced a warm, wrapped loaf of bread into her hands. “Banana nut bread.”
Paige must have looked confused.
“I made it this morning and figured you and your family would be needing something for breakfast, what with everything still being packed and all.” She nodded to the mess in the kitchen and smiled knowingly. “I’ve moved a few times in my life. I know how it is.”
Paige’s good manners finally kicked in so she backed out of the door and motioned toward the littered kitchen table. “The coffee is just about ready if you would like to come in and have a cup.” Of course, she kept to herself, that would require finding the cups, sugar and creamer. She held her breath and prayed the other woman would have enough manners to beg off.
The neighbor stepped inside. “I would love some.” She grinned. “My name’s Rose. Rose Allen. I live with my husband, Ralph, two houses down on the left, toward Elm Street.” She waved vaguely at the window. “I would love to have you and your family for dinner one night as soon as you’re all settled in.” She walked over to the table, took some shoes off a chair and sat down.
Seeing Rose was going to be here for a while, Paige closed the door and carried the banana bread over to the counter. “I’m Paige Conner.” She dug around until finding the box the coffee cups were in, dusted them out and then poured two cups of coffee before placing them on the table. Visiting was the last thing she wanted to do with so much to unpack and organize. She certainly didn’t want to get off on the wrong foot with their new neighbor, though, and so she smiled as she sat herself down.
Rose accepted the coffee and took a small sip. “Before selling you her house,” she said, “did Mrs. Matthews tell you about the hauntings?”
Paige almost choked on her coffee and sat her cup back on the table. “Hauntings? Are you suggesting this house has ghosts?”
Her petite neighbor nodded. It was clear she was dying to tell everything she knew. “Oh my, yes. Poor Mrs. Matthews. She had such a bad time of it these last couple of years.” She took a sip of coffee before adding, “There were police over here all the time before she finally moved in with her son and put the house up for sale.”
It took every ounce of strength Paige had to keep from sounding as horrified as she felt. “Surely you don’t believe this house is really haunted. Mrs. Matthews never mentioned it to me or Nathan, and we walked through the place with her three times before finally making an offer. In fact, she only had glowing things to say about how much she loved living here.”
A smirk replaced Rose’s grin. “Well, I doubt she would mention the ghost if she was trying to sell it to you. It’s just not the sort of thing you would bring up if you were trying to unload a haunted house. It’s been on the market for over eight months you know. I reckon she thought it would never sell.”
“Mommy.”
Paige smiled at Kippy as she came into the kitchen. “Hey, Baby. Come on over and meet one of our new neighbors, Mrs.
Allen.”
Kippy walked over and climbed onto Paige’s lap. Once settled, she rested her head against Paige’s chest. “Sam I Am told me to thank you for the cereal and milk.”
Paige looked over at the kitchen sink and for the first time saw the dirty empty bowl with a spoon sitting in it. “What have I said to you about asking before you get milk out of the refrigerator?”
“But it wasn’t me. It was Sam I Am. He said he would have asked but you were sleeping so soundly he didn’t want to wake you up.”
A chill shot down Paige’s spine but imaginary friends wasn’t something she wanted to discuss in front of strangers.
“Are we still having waffles for breakfast?”
Thankfully, Rose must have realized she was in the way and stood up. “You’re busy so I’ll come back and visit after you’ve had more time to get settled in.”
Paige stood, putting Kippy down where she’d just been sitting, and walked to the backdoor with Rose. “Thank you for the banana bread. I can’t wait to eat a slice.”
**
“Kippy!”
The sound of tiny feet walking overhead and then coming
down the stairway echoed through the entire house. In a matter of seconds, her daughter ran into the kitchen with a huge smile on her face.
“Yes, Mommy?” She held her favorite doll in a death grip,
between her arm and body.
“I see you found your doll.” Paige held out a jar of peanut butter and its lid. “How many times have I told you that if you’re going to fix yourself a snack to clean up after yourself? You left the lid off the peanut butter again, and please don’t blame it on Sam I Am again. I’ve had enough of your imaginary friend. That excuse is getting old.”
“But, Mom, I didn’t get into the peanut butter.” Kippy kicked her shoe against the kitchen counter.
“If you can’t tell me the truth then go up to your room, and don’t come back down until I call you for dinner. I don’t like being lied to, young lady.”
“But, Mom”
Paige pointed toward the hallway. “Upstairs this instant.”
Kippy gave the cabinet one last hard kick before throwing her doll under the kitchen table and running from the room. It was tempting to call her back and make her pick it up but Paige decided against it. It might be better to let them both cool down.
Paige considered going upstairs several times to see exactly what Kippy was up to before Nathan got home from work. She was making so much noise that at times it sounded like there were several people running around on the third floor. She suspected it was Kippy’s way of getting back at her for making her stay in her room so Paige reckoned it was best to ignore her. Maybe then she would tire of her little game of getting-evenwith-mom.
“Where’s Kippy?” Nathan called as he came in.
Paige pointed a spatula at the ceiling. “Can’t you hear her?
It sounds like there’s a herd of elephants up there with her.”
“I take it she’s in trouble again.” Nathan threw his jacket and tie across the back of one of the kitchen chairs before kissing Paige on the cheek. “Smells wonderful.”
She grinned and went back to stirring the chocolate pudding. “The food or me?”
He smiled and backed away. “Both of you.” He stuck his finger in the pan and licked a dollop of pudding from it. “Did you find time to take a long hot bath?”
“I ran the water as soon as I’d put Kippy down for her nap, but I kept hearing the strangest noises coming from behind the walls. I also had the feeling that someone was watching me so I let the water out and came back down here to finish unpacking.”
He stuck his finger in for more pudding. “I hope we don’t have rats. If dinner is about done, I’ll go upstairs and herd the elephants down.”
**
“Can I sleep with you and Daddy tonight?” Kippy clutched her doll against her chest.
Her soulful eyes were filled with unshed tears and her
bottom lip quivered. The sight was almost enough to make Paige relent but she really wanted her daughter to get used to her new room and not get into the bad habit of sleeping with them every night, especially since they were thinking about having another child.
“I thought you loved your new room.” She tucked the bedspread under Kippy’s chin and kissed her forehead.
“I did, but Sam I Am said that this is his room and he doesn’t like me in it at night.” She looked over at the closet.
Without thinking, Paige looked there too. She stood and walked over to it. “I’m going to show you one more time that no one is in this closet, and then you’re going to go to sleep.” She opened the closet door, walked inside and then back out again.
She closed the door and sat on the edge of Kippy’s bed.
“You know very well that Sam I Am doesn’t really exist. It’s one thing to play pretend but another to use your fictional friend to get you out of trouble, or to try convince me to let you sleep with us.
If you’re afraid of the dark, I’ll leave the light on. You really must learn the difference between pretending and telling an outright
lie.”
Kippy stuck her bottom lip out. “But I’m not lying. Sam I Am is real and he did say this is his room. His mom wouldn’t let him sleep with her either. That’s why he killed her.”
“Kippy Lynn Conner!” Paige was so shocked she was at a loss for a suitable reprimand. She stood and went to the bedroom door. “We’ll talk about this again in the morning. Goodnight.”
**
“Two victims in the master bedroom, and so far we haven’t been able to locate the little girl.” Detective Hooper stepped back so one of the forensic team could carry in more equipment. “Is the girl’s grandmother still outside?”
“One of the neighbors offered to let her stay at their house until we were ready to talk to her again. She was so upset I couldn’t get much out of her besides confirmation that the couple in the bedroom were her daughter and son in law. She also gave me a recent picture of her granddaughter. Obviously she’s beside herself with grief and worry, but she doesn’t have a clue who would want to harm her family.” Detective Caine lowered his voice. “You don’t think...”
Detective Hooper held his hand up. “Please, don’t even ask if I think this has anything to do with your grandmother’s crazy notion that she shared this place with a ghost. A ghost didn’t do this.” He waved in the general direction of the blood soaked bedroom and mutilated corpses. “And a ghost doesn’t kidnap little girls. We’re dealing with just the facts here. The little girl is depending on us to find her. So, let’s focus on that and not an old lady’s rantings about ghosts and evil spirits.”
Detective Caine blushed. “Of course the house isn’t haunted, but you can’t blindly dismiss the fact that this isn’t the first time a murder has happened here.”
“They never found your mother’s killer, did they, Sam?”
He ran a finger down the scar on his cheek. Even after all these years he could still hear his mother’s screams. If he had his way, there were some secrets this house would never reveal, and bodies no one would ever discover. He couldn’t wait for everyone to finish up and leave. There was a beautiful little girl tied up and gagged in the hidden stairway. Sam I Am had big plans for his latest playmate, but then he always enjoyed playing with little girls the most. Their high-pitched squeals were the most beautiful sound in the world.
The End
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Regina Puckett writes sweet romances, horror, inspirational, picture books and poetry. There are several projects in various stages of completion and there are always characters and stories waiting for their chance to finally get out of her head and onto paper.