The Scent of Death

by Shelby Skabelund

  It was obviously a very fancy hotel. It must have been around for a long time as well judging by the style. Joe was walking around to the side of the building to what looked like the guest check in area. It had a small pull through drive right up to a pair of brass doors. Joe put his bike up against the wall and motioned to Nick to do the same. “You have to leave your bike here. The front is all chained up, but there is a way in around back!” Joe whispered.

  “Why are you whispering?” Nick said back.

  “We aren’t supposed to be in here, so I don’t want to draw any attention”, Joe said through tight lips. “Just follow me and be quiet. Once we are in we can talk all we want.”

  The two slipped around to the back of the building to what looked like the loading dock. Joe climbed up onto the dock and hurried over to an old garbage bin on wheels. He bent over and pushed his shoulder into it and it slowly moved over about two feet. Nick could see what he was doing now. Right behind the garbage bin was a 2 foot by 3-foot opening. Nick recognized it as an old coal chute. He saw a lot of these back in Maine. People used to purchase coal from the local heating company who would deliver it through the coal chute. The old door was missing, just leaving a big hole in the side of the building. It was black inside and Nick didn’t quite know if he was going to be squeezing into that hole anytime soon.

  Without warning Joe disappeared into the hole feet first. Nick could see him drop out of sight and could hear the sound of his feet hitting some type of floor below. “Hurry up” came an echoing voice. So, Nick got down on all fours and peered into the dark space below. “Don’t come head first, slip your feet in and drop down.” Joe ordered. Nick did just as he had been told and slid his feet into the darkness and dropped in. The floor was further down than he thought and so when he hit, he couldn’t keep his balance and sprawled out on his belly. Nick could hear Joe laughing and then realized a bright light was shining in his face. Joe had turned on his flashlight only after he had landed to see what had happened.

  “Thanks for turning that on after I jumped!” Nick snapped at Joe. Nick noticed that he was in what had to be an old boiler room, from what he could see in the light of Joe’s flashlight. Old pipes were running all over and there was a big black shape against the far wall. From what he could see, everything, including the walls and floor were black. “Is this where the fire started?’ Nick asked. “No one really knows?” Joe said, “But I’m not saying anything until we get upstairs, follow me.”

  Joe led the way with his flashlight. There were some stairs in the far corner. They followed them up the black stairwell to the main floor. Nick couldn’t explain why, but his hair started to stand on end and he had goosebumps everywhere. He could now see some light coming from the windows in the front of the building, but the light was distorted by the melted blackened glass. When they reached what must have been the main lobby, Joe piped up “Have a seat. I can tell you the story right here where they found thirty of their charred bodies.” Joe said creepily. Another shiver went up Nick’s spine. Something just didn’t feel right about this place.

  Nick sat down on the floor eager to hear the story now. He was interested to hear what had happened here. When he sat down Joe turned off his light. All he could see now was the soft gloomy glow coming from the windows and the shape of Joes head in the darkness. “Well, let’s see, hmmmm, how did it all start? Oh yah. It was in the fall almost 10 years ago. This used to be the nicest Hotel in town. It was always very busy, filled with all the fancy “Big Wigs” from the different Gas companies, horse racers, and travelers who were stopping through. The Hotel was nearly sold out. The lobby was completely full of guests. This street used to be the place where all the best dining and entertainment was.”

  Nick could imagine the streets busy just as he had been thinking. He was imagining to himself that the Hotel lobby where they now sat was completely full of people, checking into the hotel and just lounging in lobby chairs. As his eyes had adjusted, he noticed that by the blackened remains of what had to be the Registration Desk, there was what looked like an old-fashioned bar. Behind it he could make out misshapen bottles that were still in their original place when they had been heated until the glass had softened and allowed the necks to droop. He could imagine that no one expected a thing and were all just enjoying themselves.

  “Was it an explosion?” asked Nick.

  “Well, that is where the legend comes in. It was about 8:30 PM and just getting dark. Witnesses from neighboring businesses say that it was the most shocking thing they had ever seen. Suddenly there was a flash of bright yellow light that glared from the windows, and the front doors blew wide open and billowing flames blew out into the street like a flame thrower. The heat was so extreme that people standing on the other side of the street were severely burned. There were people standing on the stairs, and a few cars directly in front of the door. The cars were burned so badly that the paint was completely removed, and all the glass melted into puddles inside and around the cars. They say that the people on the stairs didn’t even have time to let out a scream. When we leave I will have to show you where the cars were at.”

  “Anyway, the odd thing was that not a single window was broken but the fire had blown the doors wide open. Everyone in the entire hotel was killed. The only screams that were heard were from the top floor of the hotel.”

  “They figured that the fire had come from the basement from the coal piled up in the boiler room where we came in. Some say that the natural gas lines that run behind the hotel must have been leaking and somehow filled the entire hotel with gas without anyone noticing it. They think that when the maintenance man was shoveling coal into the boiler that a spark must have fallen into the coal storage and started the whole load on fire. When the fire got big enough and the gas had reached a point just right for it to catch fire the whole place ignited in a gleaming fireworks display. Most of the people from town figure it different.”

  “There was a huge investigation to see if the gas company was the cause of the fire. They shut down the entire street and it went on for months. They counted over two-hundred and fifty burnt bodies. Some were found in the shower charred with the water still running. In the boiler room they found metal rivets from someone’s pants, a belt buckle and charred bones and teeth of what they expect were those of the maintenance man. They figure that the heat from the coal completely consumed anything in the room that would burn.”

  “Upstairs on the third floor was the most gruesome sight of all. This is the only floor that the windows did not melt. Most all the furnishings were still intact but scorched, but there were signs that the fire was not as strong in these areas. The heat from below was so intense that it had bubbled the people’s skin and flash roasted them according to the autopsies. Their bodies were intact and some of them were found draped over the radiators under the windows with their hands stuck to the metal window frames. They figure that they were struggling to get the windows open but died in their frantic attempt to open the windows.”

  “After five months, one day the investigation was over. Everything was packed up and they left. The gas company was never named as the culprit and they never had an official cause. It was all a mystery. They reported that the only thing that could have happened was a gas leak from inside the hotel and that the burning coal would have added to the problem. It left everyone asking if it was a gas fire, then why wasn’t there a massive explosion when it was ignited and how did the windows melt and not get blown into the street below?”

  “That is when the rumors started to fly. People were saying it was a terrorist attack. Others were claiming a cult was responsible and others were blaming the whole thing on a naturalist group that wants to shut down the gas company for ruining the wilderness areas where they run their pipelines. The oddest claim of all is that some locals believe it was a curse. A curse because the hotel was built on an old Indian burial ground. They believed that it was the power of their ancestors, “Dark Magic”. As Joe said this
his voice faltered a little and Nick felt his hair stand on end again.

  “The store owners had been unable to run their businesses because the investigation had shut the entire area down for safety. They didn’t want to endanger anyone else until they could figure out the problem. With hopes that the gas company would have to pay retribution for the damage and loss of business many of the store owners waited to see the outcome. When there was no one to blame, they had already lost too much money to be able to start up business again. The popularity of the street had turned to that of horror and everyone started to avoid coming here. Most of the businesses that had insurance that would cover their losses relocated to Main Street. John Croft moved his Pharmacy and grocery store first and everyone else followed. The city boarded up the empty shops when JP Commercial couldn’t pay the loan they had on the buildings they owned. A few of the property owners that were insured could, but the others just declared bankruptcy. The city purchased the property at the auction in hopes of reviving the area, like I said there is a lot of history here, but no one has ever done anything with it”.

  “So, the question is, what really happened? For some reason, I don’t think it was old Indian Magic, but every time I come here, I get the feeling that something isn’t right”. For a few moments it was deathly silent. Nick had to wonder if he were sitting where someone had died ten years before. Suddenly Nick broke the silence. “I can feel it too! It’s weird, hard to explain, but real creepy.”

  Joe snapped out of his trance and said, “Let me show you around.” Nick looked at Joe hesitant. He had come in here willingly, but after hearing about the two-hundred and fifty people who had died, he felt as though he were in a tomb. The building still had the smell of an incinerator from a crematory. “Aww c’mon, they removed all the dead people during the search, and they are buried in the city where their families were from. You won’t be running into anything too scary.” Joe poked at him.

  “I’m not scared, let’s look around.” Nick said loudly, trying to convince himself.

  Joe led him upstairs and turned off his flashlight. Now Nick saw why he was in black. He wanted to scare him. All Nick could see was some pale form of Joe’s head floating off the ground at what looked like the correct height. They walked up to the second floor, and as Nick rounded the staircase that headed up to the third, he couldn’t find Joe anywhere. “Joe, where are you?” Nick asked loudly. He could hear a muffled laugh that he thought came from up the stair case. He hurried up the stairs and noticed that as he got to the landing halfway up that it was getting lighter. This added to his courage and sped his steps upward. “Joe?” he called again but this time he heard nothing.

  As he entered the hallway from the stairs on the third floor, Nick noticed what Joe had said about the heat from below. The once white walls were black at the bottom but turned into a dark brown that went to a dirty tan to an eggshell color at the very top of the walls and ceiling. He noticed that the floor must have been covered with fancy carpet, but all there was now was black stubbly fingers as though it had all melted under tremendous heat. He could see where all the light was coming from, a door in the hall was opened into one of the guest rooms and light from outside was pouring out into the dark hall.

  Nick cautiously walked toward the room. It seemed like the closer he got to the room the more eerie this building seemed. He finally reached the door and slowly edged his way in. All the furnishings were still in the room. They were not their original colors and were singed. The carpet was melted just like in the hall. The bottom of the bed posts were completely black and the finish completely bubbled on every piece of woodwork left in the room. The wallpaper in this room was charred and hanging in pieces all over the room.

  Nick walked over to the window remembering what Joe had just been saying about the people who were found with their hands stuck to the metal frames. He looked down at the frame just above the seal. He could see two marks with something black stuck to the frame about shoulders width apart. He wondered if this was where someone had fought for their last searing breath trying to escape the unbearable heat. Although the windows weren’t melted, they were coated with black and dust. Nick could barely see the outlines of the street below.

  Just then he heard something. It was a breathy low whisper, “Help me.” Although his first thought was that it was Joe, He couldn’t keep the shiver from going deeper into his soul than ever before. “Joe!” he shouted a little frustrated but tinted with worry. He heard it again but louder this time. There was a plea to the voice. “Please, help me!” Nick could hear it coming from what he assumed was the bathroom. “Joe, serious, I’m not an idiot!”

  Nick couldn’t help but move closer and closer to the door. Just as he got to the door he heard it again, “Helllpp meeee!” It was coming from behind a blackened linen shower curtain. Before he knew what was happening, the shower curtain was pulled back and a gruesome face was jumping towards him and all he could hear was a haunting scream. Every part of his body jumped, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe. He fell backwards onto the blackened floor. Instinctively he pushed himself towards the door with both of his feet trying to stand back up. As he got to his feet he heard the unmistakable laughter of Joe. He turned his head back toward the gruesome face that had just come for him and realized it was hunched over and shaking in rhythm with Joe’s laughter. “You jerk!!” shouted Nick. As he punched Joe in the shoulder. “I, wish…I caught that…on video.” Joe barely managed to push out between his fits of laughter.

  Nick was just getting his breath back, but his hands were still shaking. For a moment he felt as though the rubber Halloween mask was real. He thought that a victim from the fire had somehow survived or a ghost had stayed to haunt the old hotel. Either way he had never been so scared in his entire life. Joe was still laughing to himself as they walked down the third-floor hall towards the other stair case.

  Even though it was lighter on this floor than the others, it wasn’t by much. It felt so weird, like a bad dream that you might have. Everything was black or at least darkened by the fire. It just left a haunting feeling in his stomach. Something just wasn’t right about this place, and he couldn’t figure it out. With every step toward the other staircase, the darker it started to get. Joes head started to “float” again. Joe started to laugh again and that was it. Nick broke the silence “Stop laughing Joe it isn’t that funny.” “Oh yes, it is!” Joe managed to get out before he started into another fit of laughter. “You’re dead!” yelled Nick just before he started for Joe. At that, the laughter stopped, and Joe started to run down the dark stairs. Nick hurled himself into the dark towards Joe. They rounded the landing on the second-floor and started down into the dark of the main floor. Nick was so close to Joes floating head now. He reached out to try and grab his shirt and lost his footing on the stairs. He caught Joe, but not like he had planned. He crashed down on top of him pushing Joe down the stairs face first. Luckily Joe got his hands under him as he came crashing down the stairs with Nick on his back. They both crashed into something as they fell, and it was coming down the stairs with them. Everything sounded twice as loud in the dark of the burned-out hotel. The two came to a halt when they hit the main floor.

  For a moment it was quiet, then “Are you okay Joe? Sorry, I didn’t mean…” Laughter split the air. Joe was laughing even harder than before. This time Nick joined in. They both laughed until they thought they were done and then one of them would make a small noise and it would start again, even louder than the time before. After what seemed like a good twenty minutes the two finally got themselves together. They were still sprawled out on the floor where they had landed. “What did we break?” Joe asked. “I have no idea.” replied Nick forgetting how angry he had just been with his new friend. The darkness was finally broken by Joe’s flashlight shining back up the stairs they had just fallen down. It was blinding at first. Nick hadn’t realized how his eyes had adjusted to the dark.

  Joe whirled the light around to where
they were. Pieces of what was left of an old burnt grandfather clock lie all over the floor. By the looks of it, it had already been destroyed by the fire, but it must have been standing when the two crashed into it on the landing between floors. Blackened gears and other metal pieces were all over the place. As they looked through the pieces of clock all over the black floor, something caught Nick’s eye. There was something white running along a door that sat right near the bottom of the stairs. Nick grabbed Joe’s arm and forced the light over to the door. “That is weird.” Nick said. “Wooaaao” Joe let out. They walked closer to get a better look.

  It seemed so out of place. There in the middle of a fire ravaged building, was bright white paint. It looked as though it had just been painted this morning it was so clean. A piece of the main clock face lay at the foot of the door. “I swear on my life, I have been in hear a hundred times, and I have never seen this. That piece of clock must have nudged the door away from the wall.” Joe said quietly. Nick reached out his hand and pulled the door away from the wall. They both took in a deep breath when the back of the door caught the light. While the front of the door looked as if it were turning into charcoal, the back side was clean and crisp just like it was brand new. It was a fine walnut with a perfect finish. It was clean and smooth just like it had barely been installed. Nick broke the baffled silence. “How in the world?” he asked. “This is really weird.” Said Joe “I have been in here so many times and I have never seen this.”. “You just said that Joe.” Nick reminded him. “Yah I did, it’s just so weird.” Joe said again.