“Okay, I’m going to the boathouse. I’m going to talk to Mrs. Cynthia Tabor, Amelia’s mother! It has to be her ghost in the boathouse. That is, if it is a ghost.”
LeAnn ran up to her room to put on some warmer clothes. After pulling on a sweater and jeans, she decided to take her hoodie also. She caught her reflection in the elegant floor mirror, and once again admired the carved wood. She thought about how heavy it really had been moving it with Matt. But she had been bound and determined to get the mirror out of the attic. And there was no way she would have let Matt know it was too heavy for her. It had been dumb and thoughtless on her part. If the mirror and fallen out of the attic and broken, it could have hurt Matt. She hadn’t thought about that at the time and felt guilty thinking about it now. She was such a stubborn, determined person, and sometimes she hated that about herself.
She hurriedly left her bedroom and ran down the stairs to the mudroom to get a flashlight.
Just as she snatched the flashlight from the shelf, and headed for the front door, she caught a glimpse of the bat. She thought a second and then decided to take it with her. “Well, if I’m nuts, I might as well be an armed nut!” She laughed. If nothing else, she knew Adam would be proud of her.
With keys, flashlight, and bat in hand, she headed for the boathouse.
It was a cool night, a sure sign that fall was just around the corner. She turned on the flashlight and walked down the pathway. As she approached the boathouse, she started to slow down. “Good God, LeAnn, do you know what you’re doing?” she said aloud “It’s midnight, and you’re outside going to a large dark building by yourself.” Her heart started to beat faster as she got closer to the boathouse. The moon was out but it was only a half moon, therefore, it wasn’t very bright. It was bright enough, though, to make the boathouse look extremely scary. She imagined all of the doors and windows had people staring at her. “Okay, LeAnn, you can do this. Quit freaking yourself out. This is your property, and no one is here.” Just then an owl hooted and she jumped and let out a little scream.
“Damn you!” she yelled. Hearing her own voice echoing in the dark, she put her hand immediately over her mouth. Now her heart was really beating fast. She took long deep breaths. “Yoga breaths, LeAnn, yoga breaths. Slow down your breathing. In one, two, three, four, out one, two, three, four. Repeat.” She did this a few times until her heart slowed down somewhat. Now she was ready. She walked to the stair tower and climbed up. “Boy, it’s dark out here. What a difference from the suburbs. At least in Denver there are streetlights,” she thought.
Slowly, she climbed the stairs, using her flashlight to guide her on to each step. “Make a mental note, LeAnn. Put in some lights around this boathouse and in this stair tower!” Maybe with control switches in the main house, she said in a whisper.
She inserted the key in the lock but…. “What? Why is this door unlocked?” she whispered. She definitely had locked the door when she was out here the other day. Now she regretted her decision to come out here alone. What an idiot I am, it’s midnight! Why hadn’t she asked Matt to come back?
She pushed gently on the door, and it slowly opened. Her heart started to speed up again. She really didn’t want to go in, but she was here now, and being the stupid, stubborn woman she was, she continued. Quietly, she leaned the bat against the door jam. Switching the flashlight to her right hand, with her left hand she felt the wall next to her for the four light buttons. She felt the first button and pushed it. She shut her eyes quickly and cowered, not knowing what or who was going to jump out at her. The first chandelier came on but did not give off much light. Most of the bulbs were burned out. Her eyes darted around the ballroom searching for anything that moved. Nothing. Of course nothing.
Obviously, she had left the door unlocked. Deep down she knew that wasn’t true. Before going farther into the room, she remembered the band stage next to her and slowly reached for the bat. “Oh, please God, don’t let there be anyone hiding in the drapes,” she prayed in a whisper. She picked up the bat and slowly entered the room. She peeked and looked at the stage, and to her relief, no one was there, and the drapes were not moving.
She relaxed, somewhat, and walked into the center of the ballroom. She closed her eyes, took in a breath then said, “Mrs. Tabor are you here?” Her voice sounded louder than she had intended. LeAnn listened for any sound. Silence. “Mrs. Tabor, are you looking for your daughter? Are you looking for Amelia?” Still no sound and no light. “Are you the light I see here at night?” Then, LeAnn heard it. The music. Low at first, but then, slowly becoming louder. She turned around quickly to look at the stage. “Oh no!” she whispered, realizing where the music was coming from. She didn’t know where to hide. How can there be music coming from up there? There was no band!
The door slammed behind her. Tears weld up in LeAnn’s eyes as the fear started to take over. Her hands started shaking and she ran to the door but it was now locked. Why’s the door locked? Who had locked her in? “Noooooo!” she screamed, “Let me out! Let me out of here now!” She pulled and turned the doorknob with all her strength.
“Why are you doing this to me Mrs. Tabor?” Tears streamed down her face as fear took hold of her. She ran from one French door to the other to the other trying to get out, but none of them would open. The music grew even louder. It was the same music she heard each night. Only now, it was no longer beautiful. It was frightening!
LeAnn ran back to the carved door and tried to get it unlocked. It wouldn’t budge. “I’m sorry if I’ve done anything to offend you,” she cried out. “I won’t read your daughters journal anymore if you don’t want me to. Please! Please! Just let me out! I want to get out!” Her heart beat so fast, she felt she couldn’t breathe.
Covering her ears to block out the loud music didn’t help. The music was too loud!
She screamed out, “If it makes you feel better, Amelia is still alive!” Suddenly, the music stopped. LeAnn heard her own sobs as the large ballroom became quiet.
She looked up and slowly took her shaking hands from her ears. What had happened to the music? Is that what the ghost wanted to hear, that Amelia was still alive? What should she do now? Did she dare try the door again? But, what if she still couldn’t get it opened? Her feet felt frozen to the floor. She couldn’t move, fear had taken over. Her heart was beating so fast she thought it would come right out of her chest. Then she heard a great wind building up growing stronger and louder. LeAnn looked out the French doors and saw the shadow of trees. They were not moving. Turning towards the stage, the heavy velvet drapes were starting to sway slowly from side to side.
“Oh God,” she moaned. She realized the wind was in the ballroom, not outside. The wind grew stronger and stronger. Suddenly, every door blew open. A strong wind, followed by a great howl, filled the ballroom. How can the wind be inside and blow the doors open? This doesn’t make sense! she thought, as she fought to stand up against the force. LeAnn couldn’t look up because the wind was so intense. It was so strong she couldn’t walk. What is happening?
“Who or what are you? Why are you so angry? What have I done? Why are you doing this?” she yelled at the top of her lungs, but knew she could not be heard. Her fear was so great now she could not stop crying. I’m trapped, how I can get out of here? LeAnn was sure she was going to die.
She fell to the floor and curled into the fetal position. She let out a loud scream with all her might, “Moooommmmmyyy!”
Silence.
It took LeAnn a couple of minutes to realize the wind had stopped. It was quiet. She was afraid to move; fear had paralyzed her. Her whole body shook uncontrollably.
Peeking through her fingers, that covered her face, she looked around. Slowly, sitting up, she looked around the ballroom. No music, no wind. The doors remained open and a couple swung back and forth, ever so slightly.
She slowly got to her feet on shaky legs and cautiously walked to the carved door to see if she could get out. The door was wide open. Her mouth fell open in shock as the chandelier lights started to blink on and off. “Oh, no!” she cried, afraid the lights would go out and she would find herself in total darkness. She hurried to the light buttons and pushed the remaining buttons. The other three chandeliers came to life but they too, started blinking. LeAnn ran out the door almost losing her balance and falling down the stairs.
She ran up the path as fast as her weak legs would allow. When she reached the porch steps, she dropped on the ground. Terrified, she broke down into uncontrollable sobs.
She regained a little control of herself. She knew she’d better get up and go into the house. Cold and shivering, she realized she was covered in sweat–from fear, shock, and running.
As she half crawled and half walked slowly up the steps of the porch, she willed herself not to turn around and look at the houseboat. The urge was too great. Very slowly she turned and looked at the boat house; there was the light on the walkway. “Oh, no! No!”
Slamming the door quickly behind her after she made inside, she reached for her cell phone on the table. She fumbled with shaking hands to dial Matt’s number. On the third try, Matt answered.
“Hello?” She could hear loud music in the back ground. “Who’s there?” Matt yelled into his phone.
LeAnn couldn’t find her voice. Then after a second, she managed to squeak out, “Matt?”
“Hello, who’s there?” He sounded annoyed. Before he hung up, as if an after thought, he quickly said, “LeAnn? LeAnn, is that you? I can’t hear you, speak louder. What’s wrong?”
“Oh, Matt….” She could barely get the words out and started crying again.
“Hold on, honey, I can’t hear. Stay on the line, LeAnn. Stay with me, baby. I need to go somewhere that is quieter.”
He walked fast towards his office. It would be quieter and he would be able to hear her.
“Okay, I can hear now. Are you there? What’s wrong?” he asked urgency in his voice.
“Matt, I need you. Please come. Please, please.” The last two words were so low he could barely hear her.
“I’m coming! I’m coming! Don’t hang up! I’m running to my boat right no!”
She heard him yell to someone named Sam that he had an emergency, and for him to close up the bar.
She lost all strength in her legs and slid to the floor.
“LeAnn, are you still there?” She didn’t answer. “Oh, please, LeAnn! Answer me, please!” He could hear her crying. He ran faster now out the door towards the pier where his boat was tied.
Matt didn’t hang up the phone, but there was only silence on the other end. He kept the line open, hoping in some way it made her feel better. He kept talking so that she would know he was still on the line and assured her that he was coming.
He raced across the lake and pulled his boat to the pier next to the boathouse. The boathouse was dark as usual, but he noticed every light in her house was on.
“I’m here, LeAnn. Hold on!”
He ran up the path and through the front door. He found LeAnn on the floor with her phone in her hand. Her hair was matted, her clothes were smudged with dirt, and she looked dazed.
“LeAnn, honey, I’m here. It’s me, Matt. What happened?” He was on the floor next to her, not sure if he should touch her or not. He thought she might be in shock.
LeAnn just stared at the phone in her hand then, slowly she looked up at Matt. The tears were still spilled down her face. Without warning she grabbed him.
He held her as tight as he could. What in the world had happened to her? She was shaking all over and starting to scare him a little. Slowly he picked her up and carried her to the couch. He started to lay her down, but she clung to him tighter and screamed,
“No!”
“Okay, okay. I’m right here. I’m not leaving. Can you tell me what happened?” He just held her on the couch. Her body was so cold and shaking so hard it was like he had pulled her out of a freezer.
After about fifteen or twenty minutes she started to calm down. “LeAnn, let me go get you a glass of water or something, honey. Okay?”
“No, Matt, please don’t leave me alone.” She pleaded franticly, starting to shake and cry again.
“Okay, I won’t. I’ll stay right here with you. Can you tell me what happened? What in the world has scared you so bad?”
LeAnn looked up at him with swollen eyes. “Matt, it was awful! I went to the boathouse to talk to Mrs. Tabor….”
“You what?” He knew his voice sounded louder than it should, but her words shocked him. “Oh, honey, I didn’t mean to yell, but, LeAnn, Mrs. Tabor is dead. What are you saying? What were you thinking going out to the boathouse so late?”
“Matt, I went out there, and the music started and it got louder and louder, and then the wind, and I was trapped and…” she was starting to get hysterical again, and screamed, “Something was trying to kill me!” Now out of control and sobbing.
“Shhhh. Okay. Okay.” He held on to her and quickly decided that the best thing to do was to get her to bed. He wished they were at the resort so he could call a doctor to come and look at her.
“LeAnn, I’m going to take you upstairs to bed.” She started to protest and clung onto him for dear life. “I’m going to stay with you. Don’t worry, I won’t leave you alone. I promise.”
He stood up and pulled her with him. He couldn’t get over the way she looked. She was so pale, too pale. It frightened him. He walked her slowly toward the stairs and he helped her one step at a time. When they reached her room, he sat her on the bed. “I’m going into the bathroom to get you a washcloth.” She looked up at him with a scared “don’t leave me” look.
“Just going in the bathroom right over there, honey. I’m not leaving.” He turned and quickly went into the bathroom. Grabbing a washcloth off the rack, he turned on the warm water. He kept talking to her consolingly to assure her he was still there. He looked in her medicine cabinet to see if there was anything he could give her to help her calm down and sleep. He spotted a prescription bottle of Valium. Perfect. Probably from when her parents died. He filled the glass on the sink with cool water and took the washcloth and pills back to the bedroom.
LeAnn was staring at the carved floor mirror across the room from her.
“Here, take a couple of these.” Matt said. The bottle read, take two for anxiety. I think this situation qualifies, Matt thought, as he handed her the pills and helped her drink the water. She wasn’t saying anything; in fact, she wasn’t moving much. He was really concerned. If she’s not better by tomorrow, I’m taking her to the clinic, he decided to himself. He was afraid of what might happen if he tried to get her to his boat tonight to take her to the resort. He didn’t think he could get her past the boathouse. Not now.
He touched the washcloth to her face. Without moving she sat there letting him wash away the tears, sweat, and dirt. He looked at her clothes and saw they were covered partly in dirt. Did she fall? he wondered. He went over to her closet and found a long tee shirt hanging on a hook. It had a picture of a bunny on the front, and he assumed this was what she slept in. He took it off the hook and walked back over to her on the bed.
“LeAnn, I’m going to unzip your hoodie and then take off your clothes so that I can put this tee shirt on. Okay? I want you to get some sleep, and I know the valium is going to hit you soon. Is it okay?”
She said nothing she just kept staring at the mirror. Slowly, he unzipped her hoodie and slipped her arms out of the sleeves. He noticed she was wearing a sweater and hoped she had a bra on under it. He didn’t want her freaking out in the morning thinking he had seen her naked. Pulling the sweater over her head he noticed that, yes, thank goodness, she was wearing one. He immediately put the bunny tee shirt over her head and pulled her arms through. “Honey, I’m going to pull off your jeans now okay?” Still no response. He unbuttoned the jeans, unzipped them, and tried pulling on the jeans to get them off. Not so easy with a person just sitting there. With a little effort he was able to get them off.
Matt stood LeAnn up so that he could pull down the blankets and lay her in bed. She lay down and as he covered her she grabbed him. “Don’t leave me,” she begged in a whisper.
“I’m not. I’m going to turn out the light and…..”
“No! Don’t turn out the light! No! Please!” her eyes huge and panicked.
“Okay, I won’t. I won’t. Lie down. it’s okay. I’m right here.” He lay down next to her, and she clung to him again. She was breathing hard and fast, but then she began to calm down. After about ten minutes he could tell the valium was kicking in. Her body was starting to relax
He would wait until she was fully asleep and then take his shoes and jacket off. He was not going anywhere. Not tonight.