“Oh hell yeah.” He pulled a stick of gum from his shirt pocket, pulled the wrapper off to pop it into his mouth. “Every kid in this county fed into that idea.”
“I never knew how the story got started. Just seemed like a given that that damn place was haunted, and the old woman was a witch.”
“Could be from all the evil done out there. I don’t know about you, but I was always looking around when I was there, almost like I expected something to come crawling up on me.”
“That’s bad enough, but when the big rumors started making themselves heard is when my ears really perked up about that place.”
“What rumors are those?”
“About the president paying a visit to the mansion?”
“What? Who told you that?” Jenkins whirled to stare at him.
“Hell, it was all over the county for a while.”
“That one of our presidents actually paid a visit to the Prescott Mansion?” He laughed, trying not to be too obvious about his disbelief.
“I didn’t start the fucking rumor. I just heard it.”
“Okay, and what was he supposed to be doing out there?”
“Overseeing the experimentations.” Simmons’s voice was dead pan and he kept his face turned to the side.
“What the shit! Now you’re telling me there were animal experiments?”
“No, not animals. Newborns.”
“What the fuck are you trying to say here, Phil?”
“I’m not trying to say anything.” Simmons refused to drop his gaze. “I’m saying it. Rumors were going around that our president was overseeing experiments being done on newborns out at the Prescott Mansion!”
“And you actually listened to that bullshit?” Jenkins wiped a hand across his eyes, trying to gain some control over his laughter.
“It wasn’t just me who heard the shit. Hell, everyone in school had gotten wind of it.”
“All right so what were they trying to prove with these… experiments?”
“I don’t know.” Simmons laced his fingers behind his head and stretched his long legs out in front of him.
“Did anyone actually see anything? I mean something that could stand up in a court?”
“Not that I’m aware of at the moment. As widespread as the rumors were, there has to be someone around we can talk to.”
“I can check around the station. I have to tell you, even entertaining the idea that a president of the United States of America could be involved with hurting children is more than I can fathom.”
“You would think. But then, I’m of the opinion that a lot more evil goes undiscovered than we know about.”
“Oh hell yes it does. Being in law enforcement these past twenty years has changed how I look at things completely. I’ve seen shit that would frizz your hair.”
“I don’t doubt it. Especially being a cop out in L.A. before coming back to this same-shit- different-day town.”
“Phil, you don’t know how good it feels to be back here. The freaks in L.A. go nonstop! But, getting back to the Johnston girl, what happened when the police went out to the house to check out the girl’s story?”
“No one checked out her story. She refused to say where the abortion happened.”
“That doesn’t make any sense. They almost killed her, and still she wouldn’t give them up?”
“I think she was scared shitless of the repercussions.”
“I’m surprised someone even took a chance on bringing her to the ER in as rough a shape as she was in. He could just as easily have dumped her out in the sticks to die.”
“I find that strange too. Almost sounds like someone out there might have a heart.”
“Makes you wonder how long he kept that heart. You and I both know if there’s a fuck-up and someone almost dies, they’re not going to let them live to tell the story.”
“May want to check the back files and see if there is a case of a body found a few years back that has never been solved.”
“There was. Two years ago out in the sand dunes. Couple of guys in one of the jeep clubs found him lying partway in the water.”
“How was he killed?”
“According to the autopsy, his heart gave out.”
“How old a man was he? Not that it matters. Heart attacks happen to the young too.”
“He was in his early fifties.”
“Then maybe it wasn’t foul play. He could’ve been a hiker or someone who went to the dunes to relax and suffered a heart attack. Nothing strange on the surface.”
“Someone going out to relax wouldn’t think to remove all his I.D.”
“Then what the hell did the medical examiner put on the death certificate?”
“Said he died of a massive heart attack.”
“Well there you go! Christ! It’s like pulling teeth to get anything out of you.”
“I don’t find it strange he died of a heart attack. What I find strange is what the medical examiner thinks brought on the heart attack.”
“And that was?” Jenkins was losing his patience.
“From the expression on his face, the doc thinks he was scared to death.”
Chapter Ten
When Willie answered the door, he was surprised to see Butch, Donna, and his aunt and uncle standing on the front porch.
“Well, good God, I didn’t expect to see all of you this evening,” Julie said as Willie stepped out of the way to let them come in.
“We thought about calling, but then thought we’d just come on over.” Bill’s voice sounded strange, even to him.
“You don’t have to call before coming over; thought you’d know that by now.”
Dave clicked off the TV as he heard his brother’s voice. He looked up as everyone walked into the family room.
“You got company,” Bill told him, trying to appear relaxed and failing miserably.
“What’s going on?” Dave felt uneasy and didn’t know why. “You sound like shit and look even worse.” He motioned for them to be seated on the long sectional.
“I’ll get us all something to drink, and you can fill us in on what’s going on,” Julie told them, trying not to let her imagination get the better of her.
Willie tried to catch Butch’s attention, but he kept his face turned away.
The look on Donna’s face as she sat across from him told him what they were there for.
“Okay.” Julie handed everyone something to drink before seating herself in a chair beside her husband. “Now, let’s hear what’s going on in the family this time.”
“Butch told us tonight that he and Willie have been spending time at a hay fort they made on the old Prescott property,” Rita said.
“You two should know better than to mess around there.” Dave leaned forward in his chair, his dark brown eyes raking both boys. “No one has anything good to say about that place. Lucky you didn’t get your asses shot!”
“We just wanted to build a hay fort for some place to hang out,” Willie said.
“So what’d you do? Get caught farting around over there, and they called the sheriff?”
“It’s not quite that simple, Dave,” Bill told him. “Seems the boys stole some jars from an ole bus parked in the pasture.”
“You stole shit from there?” Dave was all the way out of his chair now.
“We just wanted to see what was inside,” Butch said.
“How many times have your mother and I told you if it don’t belong to you, leave it the hell alone?”
“I know but…” his voice shuttered to a stop as his dad grabbed him by the arm to yank him to his feet.
“I don’t want to hear any ‘buts,’ Butch! You better hope they don’t take you to court over this, because if they do, you’re both going to sit your asses in juvie!”
“I’ll second that statement,” Dave said.
“Now what the hell did you steal?”
“Some jars.”
“I know you stole jars. What I want to know is what was
in the jars.”
Butch tried to speak but found his mouth and throat were so dry no words would come forth.
“All right, since Butch can’t tell us, I guess it’s up to you, Willie.” His dad turned to glare at him.
“The jars we took were filled with deformed fetuses.”
“Oh my God!” Julie felt her stomach plunge with revulsion.
“Are you sure about that? Neither of you have ever seen a fetus, so how did you come to the conclusion that’s what you found?” Bill tried to make sense of what he was hearing.
“We gave the jars to our biology teacher—Mr. Simmons—and he said the jars were filled with deformed fetuses.”
Donna did not miss the knowing look passing between the four adults.
“You’ve heard the stories going around about what goes on at that house too, haven’t you?”
Julie was the first to respond. “I think anyone who has lived in this town for any length of time has heard about the Prescott Mansion.”
“Why would someone want to kill innocent little babies?” Willie asked, his stomach crawling with revulsion. “That’s just out and out sick.”
“I agree, Willie,” Rita hugged her nephew to her, “it is sick.”
“Something I want to know is why a teacher would be talking with young boys about fetuses?” Julie glanced around the room. “That’s a little much, don’t you all agree?”
“He told us because we said we wanted to know what we’d found,” Butch told her. “We’re not babies.”
“No, just thieves,” Dave said and saw both Willie and Butch shutter.
“So, has anyone said they’re going to press any charges?” Bill asked.
“No, but a detective that our teacher knows said he is going to call both our parents,” Willie murmured.
“A detective talked to the two of you about this?” asked Dave.
“Just a little bit. Then he told us that if we didn’t want to talk to him, we didn’t have to, but he would be calling and talking to you guys.”
Bill glanced at his watch and withdrew his cell phone from the pocket of his jeans. “It’s still early, might as well find out what we’re up against. Do you know what the detective’s name is?”
“Detective Jenkins,” Butch said.
“When the detective comes to talk with us, you two will tell him the truth about where you found those jars,” Dave said.
“Is he gonna make the old witch leave us alone?” Butch said taking a seat beside his uncle.
“That old woman can’t hurt you. I won’t let her,” Dave told him, placing an arm around his shoulders.
“I hope you can keep her away from us, because she means to do us harm.”
“She shows her face around here, I’ll sic Brody on her.” He laughed as a little white dog came bounding across the floor to jump into his lap.
“Willie, did the old woman threaten you and Butch in any way?” his mom asked.
“She made us have an OBE, so I guess that was a threat.”
“Explain what you mean by that. I know Donna said what an OBE is, but I still don’t quite understand it.”
“An OBE is when your spirit leaves your body to roam around while you’re asleep.”
“And why do you think you had one of these…OBEs?”
“Because Butch and I had one together. We were walking around the mansion and talking to the ghosts of the kids who have been murdered there.”
“What in the hell are you talking about? You sound like you’ve lost your damn mind,” Dave snarled.
“Mom asked me about an OBE, and I’m trying to explain what it is.”
“Dave, let him tell me about this,” Julie hushed him.
“Go ahead, Willie. You and Butch were walking around the mansion. Then what happened?”
“At first we thought we were dead because a big black crow flew right through me.”
Julie remained quiet, letting Willie get his story told without interruption.
“That’s why we thought we were dead,” Butch explained. “Then we saw the ghost kids.”
“You saw ghosts?” Dave rose from his chair, shaking his head and trying not to laugh. “I need another beer.”
“Go ahead, Willie.” Rita came over to sit on the couch. “Then what happened?”
“We were talking to the ghost kids and they were gonna tell us how they died when they got real scared and disappeared.”
“What scared them?” Julie asked.
“They saw the old witch and she made them leave before they could tell us anything,” Butch said.
“So, you’re saying the old woman was there in your dream too?”
“We weren’t having a dream, Mom; I told you we were having an OBE.”
“Well, if you were having an OBE, how did the old woman come to be there?”
Butch plopped himself down on the far end of the couch. “The old woman is the one who made us have the OBE. She’s a witch.”
Dave walked back into the room. “All right. I’ve heard all I want to hear about witches and ghosts and what people think goes on at the Prescott house. All I am interested in hearing about is what prompted the two of you to take something that didn’t belong to you.”
“I know we shouldn’t have taken the jars. It was stupid.”
“Okay, I just spoke with Detective Jenkins, and he wants to talk with the four of us tomorrow afternoon at 3 P.M.,” Bill said as he walked back into the room.
“Are we going to be there too?” Willie spoke up.
“No. He wants to talk with the parents first.”
“Are you going to tell him where we got the jars?”
“No, Willie, I’m not. You and Butch are going to tell him that yourselves.”
“Then why are you, Mom, Aunt Rita, and Uncle Bill going to talk to him without us?”
“Because it’s the law. You and Butch are minors and can’t be questioned without your parents present. We’ll find out what all he wants, then you and Butch will be brought in to tell everything that you know and everything that you did at that house,” Bill said.
“And when we do, the old witch is gonna come after us again.”
“You should have thought about all this before you went on her property and stole from her.
“We were just curious about what was in some jars. That shouldn’t be enough to send us to prison or get us killed,” Willie whispered.
“Oh for Christ’s sake, will you two knock it off with this witch shit? You’re starting to sound like you’ve taken a side road to the psych ward,” Dave growled.
“Okay, go ahead and laugh, but when you see something that ain’t human crawling through the door, don’t shoot it because it’ll probably be me.” Butch tipped the can of soda, swallowing until the can was empty.
“I think we’ve said all there is to say for the night, so we’re gonna take off,” Bill told him.
As the door closed behind them, Dave looked at Willie and tried to think how anyone could actually believe that one old woman could have the power to do someone harm.
“Witch my ass,” he grunted to no one in particular.
“Willie,” Julie advised, “if you tell the detective the truth, you’ll probably come out of this without going to court.”
“When the old witch knows we’re talking to a detective, we won’t have to worry about going anywhere.”
Chapter Eleven
That afternoon, two sets of parents sat in the office of Detective Jenkins, sipping coffee and waiting patiently.
Without warning the door burst open, startling all present. “Sorry you had to wait on me. It’s one of those days when everything is about three hours behind,” Jenkins apologized.
“Happens to all of us,” Dave said, trying not to fidget. He really needed a cigarette.
Jenkins laid his burden of papers down on his desk. “I’m Detective Jenkins.” He stuck out his hand and shook with everyone present.
After the formalities had been disposed
of, he grabbed up the coffee pot. “Does anyone want a refill before we get into why you’re all here?”
All four shook their heads.
As Bill moved to throw out his empty coffee cup, his eye caught a glimpse of something he knew shouldn’t be there. A black compact tape recorder sat upright on a small shelf.
“Well, well,” he reached out, picked up the recorder, saw the tape was already rolling. “We’re not recording a conversation without permission, are we?”
Todd Jenkins could feel the red flush creeping upward, knowing he had been caught trying to pull a fast one. He picked up the waste basket, held it out to collect the other cups. “Believe it or not, I was going to tell you our conversation is being recorded. Just hadn’t gotten around to it yet.”
“All right,” Bill sat forward in his chair, “how about we cut to the chase and talk about why we’re here?”
“We’re here because your kids stole something from the Prescott Mansion,” Todd came right to the point.
“How do you know this?” Bill was in his element. All the nights of faithfully watching his favorite police shows was finally paying off. “Did someone from the Prescott Mansion press charges, or are you only guessing that’s where the jar came from?”
“Are you saying the jar didn’t come from there?” Jenkins refused to be out-thought on his own turf.
Bill started to respond then grew quiet as Dave picked up the jar sitting on the detective’s desk.
“I take it this is what all of the hullabaloo is about?”
Both women turned away as Dave held the jar up to get a better look at what was inside.
“Yes.” Jenkins nodded as Dave placed the jar into Bill’s outstretched hand.
“My God.” He quickly set the jar down on the desk. “I thought the boys were only making it up. There really is a baby in there.”
“No, they were telling you the truth. It’s not only a fetus, it’s a deformed fetus.”
“What I want to know is why were you talking to the boys about something this gruesome? They didn’t need to be hearing about this shit!” Dave said.
“I talked with them about the contents because I want to know where they found it, and I also want to know how many other jars are out there.”
The Hay Fort Page 7
