Vic spent the day reading through Virginia’s diary and Edward’s journal. She wanted to show Michael the journal, but with his son missing there were more important things for him to be doing. She stayed mostly in her room, out of the way of the family. She ventured out a few times for food. She could hear them moving about searching the home over and over again. She had done that a few times as well. She was sure that nobody had kidnapped Liam. Many people had gone missing over the years never to be seen from again. Where did they go? Their bodies were never recovered, so it’s not like they died here. It made no sense. The disappearances were a mystery.

  She sat at the desk and searched for information about the house. People believed it was haunted. There were many anecdotes about the house. Occasionally teens would sneak in on dares, party, get spooked, and run away with a thrilling tale to tell. Sometimes one of them would go missing. Virginia had noted every single one that occurred while she was alive. One of her nieces disappeared when she and her husband came to visit with their children.

  July 18th, 1916

  My niece Henrietta has disappeared. She and her husband George came to stay with me for a few weeks to keep me company. We were all in the garden enjoying the day drinking lemonade. She excused herself for a moment and went into the house. She never returned. Almost an hour had passed before we thought to question it. George got up to look for her. He returned to us shortly to tell us he could not find her. Alarmed, we all went into the house to look.

  I engaged the staff to help us look. We thought maybe she locked herself in a room. We spent hours searching the house and grounds to no avail. I sent one of the maids to fetch the police. She has not been found. Something horrible has happened to her. I can feel it. George made arrangements to send the children off to my sister Adeline, Henrietta’s mother. George is staying until we find her.

  Henrietta was never found. Further diary entries talk about the toll it took on Virginia and her sister’s family. What a tragedy to lose one’s mother, their daughter, their wife, and never see them again. Not knowing what happened to them must be what hurts the most.

  In the evening, there came a knock at her door. It was Michael. His clothes were disheveled, and he had bags under his eyes. She let him in and walked back to her small desk.

  “How are you? How is Megan? William?” She set the diary on the desk.

  “I couldn’t sleep and Megan cried all night. She won’t let William out of her sight, so he slept with us.” He put his hands in his pockets.

  “Have you found anything, or heard from the police?” She leaned against the desk.

  “Megan made me call, but they had no news.” He yawned. “We searched the house multiple times. We’ve looked in every nook, cranny, and cupboard. He just disappeared.” His voice hitched.

  “I’ve done the same. I’ve also been going through Virginia’s diary and Edward’s journal which I found in the sub-basement. He also had a…what do you call it? A spell book, grimoire.” She picked both up from the desk and handed them to him.

  His eyebrows raised as he reached for the books. He looked over the diary, opened it, and flipped through its pages. Then he turned his attention to the spell book with its pale yellow color and waxy smell. He ran his hands over the cover, smelled it, and inspected it. “Fascinating. I think it’s bound in human flesh.”

  A look of disgust came over Vic’s face, “What? Eww.” She had touched it. A shiver ran down her spine.

  He handed the books back to her, but she wouldn’t take the spell book. Instead, he set it back on the desk. “I’m interested in looking at both of them later. I have to get back to Megan. I just wanted to see how you were doing.”

  She sighed. “I’m fine, I’m just worried about you, Megan, William, and of course Liam. I feel useless, so I’ve been going through these books. I’m awaiting translation of the spell book. I copied it over last night and submitted it to a forum for historians. Hopefully somebody there will be able to help.”

  “I look forward to reading it.” He turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.

  Vic showered, crawled under the warm blankets, and went to sleep. She found herself standing in her room, the door open. She saw movement and looked. Passing by the door was Edward Charles dressed in black and wearing his signature black top hat. They made eye contact as he walked by. The black pools of darkness that were his eyes pulled at her. He continued down the hall and she followed. The threadbare hallway was larger than in reality, and things in the shadows moved like tentacles in the dark.

  The hall stretched into the distance and Edward turned right at the end. She scurried to catch up. Dim light made the shadows darker and she felt them reaching for her as she ran down the corridor. Around the corner, he was far ahead walking casually toward a grand staircase, but it looked different. The carved wood was more elaborate, and the stained glass window depicted the imps killing the woman and the unicorn. Imps covered the woman, their spears pierced her body, and blood spilled from the wounds. The unicorn suffered the same fate. Gleeful expressions were upon the faces of the imps as they impaled the unicorn, its throat slit, and its lifeblood draining away. The imps laughed as they stabbed their victims, Vic hurried down the stairs after Edward.

  The hall loomed up before her, dark shadows writhed in the corners, and the ceiling held up the weight of the house. The ghost of a servant crossed the room as Edward passed through a door. A knife flashed as the ghost of another servant that she didn’t see came from the side. She ran after Edward and pushed through the solid wooden door. He wasn’t far now. He was just ahead of her. She followed him through several rooms, down corridors, and into the basement. He then led her down a spiral stone staircase into the bowels of the earth.

  He led her to his ritual room in the sub-basement. She wondered if this was where he was trying to lead her the whole time. Seven men in tattered robes stood in a circle around the symbol on the floor. She recognized them as the ghosts she saw when she was with Michael in the cellar the night the power had cut out. Lit candles sat around the outside of the ritual circle, as well as several lit candelabras that sat in different places about the room. The natural cave roof stretched upward into the darkness, which roiled with the movement of something that could not be seen. The atmosphere felt charged and electric.

  Edward put on a set of black robes and filled a goblet with a liquid she couldn’t discern. He tucked the spell book bound in human flesh under his arm, grabbed the goblet, and a bowl filled with something that may have been dirt, and walked over to the circle. The men began chanting in Latin. He passed the bowl of dirt to his right, the man grabbed it and with a pinch tossed it into the circle. The man passed the bowl to his right. Edward took a sip from the goblet and passed that to the right as well and opened the book and began chanting something different than the men. The man to his right took a sip from the goblet and passed it to his right. Around the circle went the bowl and the goblet.

  Edward opened the book and began chanting.

  in nomine tenebrarum ad te venimus

  In nomine tenebrarum te rogamus

  in nomine tenebrarum ad te vocamus

  Audi nos

  Exaudi orationem nostram

  Infernum rogamus ut aperiat ostium

  Aperi ianuam

  Infernum rogamus ut aperiat ostium

  Tenebras rogamus ut velum partiatur

  Velum dividatur

  Hac oblatione tenebras petimus

  Aperi ianuam

  Patitur illud

  Volumus aperire ianuam

  Velum transfigere volumus

  Hanc oblationem damus ad ianuam aperiendam

  Donamus hanc oblationem ad terebrandum velum

  Ostium apertum est

  Velum divisum est

  Gratias agimus tenebris

  Gratias agimus tenebris

  humiles sumus ante tenebras

  Vic watched from the doorway as they chanted over and over again. The room began to shake violently and stones fell from the ceiling. An eerie wind howled through the room. The men broke their circle throwing their arms up to protect their heads. Edward disappeared as if pulled out of existence, and the men began to turn inside out one by one. One gravely injured man was crawling toward her, toward the door, using all the strength he had left. And then the candles sputtered out. Cast in darkness her stomach jumped to her throat. Seized with terror it was difficult for her to move her muscles, turn, and flee down the hall toward the staircase. The beast was waiting at the top of the stairs waiting for her when she opened the door. Virginia raised her clawed hand, blood-red eyes, with red veins streaking away brought her claws down upon Vic’s front. Vic fell back and stumbled, claws tore slashes in her shirt. She regained her footing and skidded down the stairs, stumbling and tripping all the way.

  Vic awoke with sweat slick on her skin, and the chill pressing in against her in the darkness. She didn’t have to guess, she knew where she was. She also knew what Edward Charles wanted of her. She knew, or thought she knew how to stop her nightmares and sleepwalking. First, she had to get out of this creepy, cavernous room. Her bare feet on the stone were freezing as she shuffled through the darkness looking…feeling for a wall to follow. Her skin prickled with nervousness. She did not want to see a ghost, hear a ghost, or god forbid be chased by a ghost. Being scientifically minded did not take away her fear of this new unknown. She didn’t know what they could do. Her hands found the front of her sleep shirt as she remembered the claws that swiped at her in her dream. There were slashes where there shouldn’t be. She moved faster. She wanted to be done with this nightmare. She found the wall and after taking it in the completely wrong direction she finally found the door that led out of the room.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  She ambled down the hallway to the curving stairs, up, up through the house until she came once again to her room. The house was still haunted. She hadn’t realized at what point the house didn’t feel friendly to her anymore. The shadows had darkened to their unnatural dark once again, and she could hear the whispering coming from nowhere, and everywhere. She turned on the lights and crawled into her bed. Her feet were like ice and she did her best to warm them before she fell asleep again.

  In the morning, she got up, made herself a cup of tea, and sat down at her computer. She opened it, checked her email, and found messages from Professor Dr. Imani Senft, who taught Latin studies at the University of Amsterdam.

  Dear Ms. Grey,

  I was delighted to see your request for a translation of an old Latin grimoire that you found. What an absolutely amazing piece of history you found. I bet any museum would be happy to have it should you wish to part with it. I found it quite interesting. The book is older than it looks. The copy you have is one of several and goes back hundreds of years. Your copy seems to have been made in the seventeen hundreds. Who knows how old it really is? There are some passages that look to be Sumerian or Babylonian, which would suggest this grimoire to be one of the oldest books in existence. There’s no telling where the original book could be now, or even if it still exists. There could be several completely different copies floating around. It looks as if it was copied, recopied, and added to over the years. Should you wish to share more of the book with me I would be happy to translate the rest. Feel free to email me to talk about this book. I’d like to know more.

  Dr. Imani Senft

  Attached to the email was a translation of the spell book. She opened it up and scrolled through it. She took a double take at one spell, or ritual, and read it through three times before making notes on a pad of paper. She tore it off the pad, folded it up, and put it in her pocket. She got up, grabbed her coat, and purse, and headed out. There were a few items she needed to pick up. Plus she wanted to stop by her mom’s house and double-check her family photo album.

  She left her room and could hear Megan sobbing from down the hall. It was a gut-wrenching, heartbreaking sound. She hoped Liam would turn back up but she feared he was another victim of the house. She decided not to take the grand stairs, the image from her dream of the stained glass with the imps impaling the woman and unicorn was fresh on her mind. She turned to her right and went to the servants' staircase. The house was so quiet that she could hear it creak in the wind.

  She exited the house to a gust of wind that blustered up into her face, pulling the air from her lungs. She coughed and made her way to her car. The drive to her mother’s house was short and traffic was light. Her mother was at work so she let herself into the house and retrieved the photo album from the living room. She sat on the sofa and opened the large book. The photos were arranged from newest to oldest. She flipped through the memories of her life. Her mom had taken a lot of photos. In one photo she wore a cap and gown and held a diploma. In another, she was on stage at a dance recital. Pictures of her and her mom taken by her grandma. They had a lot of happy memories.

  Then there were the photos of her mother growing up with her mom. The further back the photos went the fewer the photos. Soon she came to a few photos of her great, great, great grandmother. She pulled the photo from the journal out of her purse and compared the two. They matched.

  Her great-great-great grandmother was the maid in the photo that fell out of Edward Charles’ journal. She had so many questions. She took out her phone and took a pic of the two photographs side by side. Virginia Charles had cursed her three-times great-grandmother for having an affair with Edward, and she and her descendants never found lasting love. Virginia was a good woman who didn’t deserve what her husband did to her. She could relate after dumping a cheating boyfriend, but she and her mother, grandmother, and the rest didn’t deserve the fate they got. She wondered if something could be done about the curse. Her diary entry said that she’d used Edward’s book. Does that mean the spell book she now possessed? She would have to look more closely to see if there was a spell to undo that curse. Maybe then her mother could find another love, and maybe so could she.

  She closed the album and put it back. She then hopped in her car and drove to the grocery store. She had a few items to pick up and hoped the store-bought versions would be adequate. She felt odd walking around the store, what with everything going on back at the house, and Liam's disappearance. Everything here felt too normal. The lights were too bright, the objects too real and concrete, and the people bustled around like they weren’t living in a nightmare. She hurried through the store and gathered what she needed. Once in her car she used her phone to find a specialty store and drove there.

  The store was called Pandora’s Box and it was located in the corner of a dingy strip mall in the suburbs. Door chimes jingled when she entered, the scent of incense thick in the air. To one side stood shelves of books, and the other had shelves and tables full of candles, incense, tarot cards, and all manner of occult paraphernalia. Interested, she slowly perused the books. She found books on UFOs, Aliens, How to align your Chakra, and other books on Wicca and Witchcraft. She did not find any books closely related to the spell book she had found. She located a clerk and told them what she was looking for.

  “Yes, we have that. I collect it locally myself. It’s a little hard to gather it at this time of year so I usually stock extra during the warmer months.” The clerk grabbed the item she needed and rang her up. Vic paid the clerk and left.

  This November was colder and snowier than previous November’s. The sky was overcast with thick, dark gray clouds heavy with snow. Soon it would fall to earth and she didn’t want to be on the streets when it did. She was lost in thought as she drove. She had to show the translation to Michael and tell him what she planned to do. She thought he would go for it, but they had to keep it secret from Megan. There was no way in hell she’d ever go for it. And if she found out they might not get to do it. Could she get him alone? Would he even want to try with his son missing? She hoped the opportunity arose to talk to him.

  After her morning out she stopped at a cafe for a somewhat healthy lunch and went back to the house. It loomed up over the street menacingly, its dark windows like watching eyes. She peeked into the library and found Michael sitting at the desk drinking.

  “How many have you had?” She walked into the room.

  He looked up at her. “I’m on my third.” He slurred.

  She set her bags on the floor, took off her coat, and then sat in a chair opposite him. “I got the translation of the spell book this morning, and I found this picture in Edward’s journal.” She handed it over. “It’s my Great, Great, Great Grandmother.” She showed him the side-by-side comparison photos that she took with her phone. I’m a descendant of…”

  Megan was shouting as she burst into the room clutching a crying Liam to her chest. William also crying followed holding onto her clothing, and the cat sauntered in behind them. Her eyes were puffy and had dark circles under them. Michael jumped from his seat and rushed to them, grabbing Liam. He was lovingly crushed between his mother and father.

  “Oh Liam, Oh my God!” He checked him over for bumps, bruises, cuts, or anything wrong with the boy. “Where? How?” He looked at Megan.

  “He walked into the bedroom. I was lying on the bed with William and Liam called to me. I sat up as he ran to me and flung himself into my arms.”

  “This is a miracle!” Michael laughed. He ushered Megan toward the sofa.

  They sat next to each other, with Liam on their laps, while William crawled up next to his mom. Vic spun the chair around to face them.

  “What happened Liam? Did somebody take you?” Michael held onto his son.

  Liam hugged his dad. “I missed you and Mommy.” He buried his face in his dad’s shirt.” He pulled away. “I couldn’t find you.” Snot dripped from his nose. Megan took a tissue from her pocket and wiped it away.

  “Mommy was so worried. We looked everywhere.” Tears streamed down her face.

  Vic sat there in disbelief taking it all in.

  “You had us worried Champ.” He hugged his son again and then Megan pulled him closer to her.

  “Nobody took me. I was here the whole time. I couldn’t find you. Kitty was there.” He said.

  “Liam, everybody looked for you. The police looked for you. We shouted your name. Checked every room multiple times. Someone must have taken you away.” Michael’s tone was harder.

  “He said nobody took him. Calm down, you’re going to scare him.” Megan held Liam tighter. “He must have gotten in somewhere we didn’t check. It’s an old house and he’s very small.”

  He took a deep breath, “You’re right. Can you tell us what you remember?”

  Liam looked at his mom, dad, and Vic, and then back at his dad. “I was here. I didn’t go nowhere. I looked for you and Mom, and even Vic. Kitty was my friend. He would sleep with me in your room. I was too scared to go anywhere. When I went downstairs to look for you there was this scary lady who tried to get me. There were strange people all over and their clothes were funny, just like the pretty lady. I followed Kitty into the room and I saw you. I’m really hungry. Can I have some food?”

  They all laughed. He seemed okay. Where had he gone? He said he’d been here the whole time and slept in their bed. But everybody looked multiple times. It must have been the house thought Vic. He must have been wherever they went when they disappeared, but the cat had brought him back. Could the cat come and go as it please? Where did this cat come from? Virginia had a cat whose description looked like this cat, but it would have to be over 100 years old. Cats don’t live that long. It must be a coincidence.

  “Let’s go get you some food.” Michael stood and scooped Liam up into his arms, and Megan grabbed William by the hand as they left the room.

  Vic followed after. “I’ll be in my room if you need me.” She headed for the grand stairs with her bags and her coat over one arm. The family needed time. Her heart felt lighter now that Liam was found. She still couldn’t imagine how it must have been for Michael and Megan. Hopefully, those boys won’t remember this trauma when they are grown.

  She quickly passed by the stained glass window on the stairs. She tried not to look at it, but couldn’t help it as she passed. She took a glance and swore she saw some imps move. She hustled the rest of the way. She was not taking chances. Soon she would be outta here. All she had to do was talk to Michael about what she wanted to do, and then she was going to quit. She could give expert assistance over the phone and through email. Plus she had enough material for her paper. It was going to be one colorful paper. Maybe she’ll write one for her dissertation about the architecture, and one about the history of the house, then she could use all the anecdotes.

  In her room, she put her purchases away and sat at the desk. She grabbed a pad of paper and a pen. She opened her laptop, brought up the translation she received, and copied down the spell she needed. She made some notes and organized things. She spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening going over the diary, journal, and spell book, trying to piece the whole picture together like a puzzle.

  The gist was that Edward Charles had a first wife with whom he had a son. The wife died, and when their son was fifteen he married Virginia. Two years later tragedy struck when his son died in a freak accident. He grieved deeply for over a year, before showing up emotionally for Virginia. Getting into spiritualism, as one did at the time, he planned a grand mansion with a secret sub-basement for his ritual work similar to that of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. He kept the sub-basement a secret, but Virginia and their staff knew it was there. Virginia found out she was pregnant with her first child when they moved into the house. They went to seances and began hosting seances at the house as well. Edward was contacted mentally during a seance. This “great one” he spoke of told him he could bring his dead son back to life. He then created a cabal, and they would meet in the sub-basement and perform rituals. They failed many times to open a portal that would bring this ‘great one’ through. Edward began cheating on his wife while she was pregnant with their first child, but he’d likely done it before. He was a bit of a letch. This all continued through the years until Virginia found out that he was having an affair with Vic’s very own Great, Great, Great Grandmother. She confronted Edward who told her he would not stop sleeping around. She fired Vic’s Great, Great, Great Grandmother and then cursed her to forever be alone, Using Edward’s book to do it. On New Year's Eve, Edward’s cabal met at the stroke of midnight to attempt the ritual one last time, but it didn’t work because Virginia sabotaged it somehow. The men were found slaughtered the next day looking like they’d been turned inside out, but Edward’s body was never found. The police covered it up and said they’d died in a fire. Soon after the haunting started the staff quit left and right. Shortly after she lost one child after the other, and over the years family members disappeared never to be seen again, and sometimes, just sometimes somebody visiting would die.

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