The Haunting of Lovesong House

by G. F. Frost

  Massey stirred in her sleep as Jenkins growled more. A bitterly cold wind gushed in through the open door and past Theo. Jenkins howled as he ducked under the bed. Theo fell back onto the bed and sat mesmerized as the icy wind began to swirl around the room. He watched in silence as the old diary lifted off the nightstand and flew across the room. The door to the closet began to open and slam shut loudly. Massey never woke. Suddenly, the lights in the room began to flicker on and off, and Massey covered her sleeping eyes, never waking.

  Theo rose and walked through the cold air towards the book on the floor. He bent down to pick it up and suddenly a cold icy hand shoved him and he fell to the floor. Wild, hysterical laughter surrounded him. He covered his ears and sat up on the floor watching the flickering lights and the twirling curtains move in the room. Standing to his feet, Theo yelled.

  “Stop!”

  As suddenly as it had all began, it stopped, and the room became still and silent once more. The curtains dropped into place and the lights went out. The room was dead quiet.

  “What did you say?” Massey asked softly from under the covers.

  “Nothing, go back to sleep,” Theo said firmly.

  He laid the book back on the table and climbed into bed. Even though his heart was pounding, Theo wasn’t afraid. He felt more anger than fear. He decided that he would have to take matters into his own hands. He decided that Lovesong House was really haunted, and he would call Father Patrick tomorrow. No one or nothing would threaten his home and family, especially Massey. He sat leering into the darkness from his bed the rest of the night daring something to happen.

  * * * *

  When Massey woke up, Theo was sitting up in bed asleep. He sat with his arms folded and his head resting back on the headboard. Massey remembered waking him in the night. She felt bad that she may have caused him to lose sleep. She tried to climb out of bed quietly, but the movement of the bed woke him.

  “You’re really sleeping late today,” she said. “I’m sorry that my nightmares woke you. I’m sorry that I’m such a titty-baby.”

  “I’m not going in today. I didn’t sleep much, so I’ll take a personal day. You didn’t keep me up,” Theo said as he yawned.

  Personal Day? Theo never uses his personal or sick days, she thought. Maybe he was just too keyed up over the jewelry. He probably wanted to take care of the bank and insurance thing himself anyway. She was glad for him to do it because she had to cook for Father Patrick, and she wanted to have time visiting with him. She ran downstairs and opened the door for Jenkins, and then she went into the kitchen to turn on the coffee. She’d take it to Theo in bed, she thought.

  She decided to put a pork loin on for Father Patrick. She’d have that, vegetables, and a chocolate cake all ready for him by noon. She was humming as she began to pull items out of the pantry. She was walking to the back door to call for Jenkins when she realized that the tune she had been humming was the one she had so often heard coming from her bedroom. She didn’t know the name of it; she had never even heard the song until moving to Lovesong House.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Jenkins jumped across the back veranda and in through the open door before Massey could call him. He was so frisky and happy in the mornings. Massey wished she were a morning person, like Jenkins. She took a tray of coffee and a warm honey bun up to Theo. When she walked into the room, she was surprised to see him looking in Marie’s diary. He quickly laid it down when he saw Massey walk through the door.

  Theo turned on the television and sat up against the back of the bed as he drank his coffee. Massey would have to bring him another to have with the bun. She made her way to the kitchen to get him another. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she could see something sparkling through the front door glass. Walking to the door, she opened it and looked down the row of oaks. The Spanish moss was glistening like glitter; a frost had come that night. As the moss blew from side to side, the morning frost almost twinkled in the sunlight. Massey stood watching the beautiful show.

  After Theo had downed his second cup of coffee and the warm honey bun, he joined Massey in the kitchen. He told her that he planned to go to the bank to place the jewelry in the deposit box and then call their insurance agent. Massey agreed that he should be the one to take care of that business. She told him to try to be back by noon because Father Patrick was coming by for lunch.

  “Good,” Theo said.

  Massey looked at him curiously and then began to peel potatoes. Theo retrieved the hidden box from his study and headed for town. He waved to Mister Grant as he drove down the drive. Even he noticed the twinkling frost on the moss as he drove through the trees. He looked into his rearview mirror as he neared the end of the drive and thought of last night’s events. He was glad he hadn’t shared them with Massey.

  * * * *

  It seemed that he had just left when Massey heard Theo’s keys in the door. He had visited the bank, safely locked away the jewelry, and returned home within an hour. He walked into the kitchen and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

  “Something smells so good. It’ll be nice to have home cooking for lunch. Maybe I should take more personal days,” he said as he slapped her on the bottom.

  “Maybe you should!” Massey replied happily.

  “So, is our bounty safe and sound?” she asked as she stirred the sautéed zucchini, onions, and eggplant.

  “It’s safe and sound and I’m heading to the study to call our insurance agent.” Theo dipped his hand into a bowl of chocolate frosting.

  “Uh uh!” Massey said as she turned to him.

  Theo licked his finger and walked out. He made himself comfortable in the old desk chair and made the call. As he was waiting to receive a fax from the insurance company, he noticed the stack of files Massey had left on his desk. He flipped through them reading bits and pieces about the Duseaus.

  Theo thought about the dreadful night he spent in the bedroom. He had to find a way to talk to Father Patrick on his own. He didn’t want Massey to be upset anymore. He thought she believed the house blessing had taken care of everything. He shook his head. He had always been the ultimate skeptic, a skeptic about everything from Bigfoot to aliens, Loch Ness, and especially ghosts. Theo had spent a lifetime laughing about the fact that there were actually people who believed in such things. Now, without a doubt, he was one of those people. He tried to rationalize everything he had experienced since moving to Lovesong House. He couldn’t, and it really bothered him. He didn’t want to give up his skepticism. He shook his head again.

  Massey was standing at the door of the study watching him for a few minutes before he noticed her. He was looking at the picture of the mist in the cemetery that Father Patrick had taken. When he realized she was watching him, he placed the papers back into the folder and looked at her.

  “What ya doing?” Massey asked sharply.

  “I had just called on the insurance and was waiting on the binder to be faxed to me. What are you doing?” he asked as he smiled at his pretty wife.

  “Just watching my handsome husband raffle through my papers,” she said.

  Theo rolled his chair away from his desk and patted his legs. Massey walked over and sat down on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. She placed her hands on each side of his face and kissed his nose.

  “You just love me for my jewels,” she said, looking into his eyes.

  “Funny, I was about to say the same thing!” Theo said jokingly.

  “Well, I’ve always loved you for your jewels, mister.”

  Theo winked at her as he tightened his arms around her. She loved his hugs. He reached down and pulled at the front of her blouse peeking down to her chest.

  “You think I might get lucky tonight since there’s a deposit box with your name on it sitting in the bank?” Theo asked.

  “I think you’re lucky I didn’t run off with sexy Mister Grant when we discovered it!”

  Theo howled with laughter. Nobody had as quick
a comeback as Massey.

  “I guess I’ll have to watch you and Mister Grant. I didn’t know you had a thing for men with missing teeth.”

  “It’s his tools,” Massey answered as she hopped up from his lap.

  Theo never missed a chance to pop her on the bottom, and now was no exception. She turned and gave him and enormous smile as she walked out the door. He knew just how to get her going. She thought about Sadie as she entered the kitchen. She hoped Sadie would find an awesome husband too one day. She knew Theo was one of a kind though, jewels or not.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Theo was napping on the sofa when Father Patrick rang the doorbell, and Massey was drying her hands on a dishcloth as she opened the door. The cold air had caused Father Patrick’s cheeks to turn a rosy red, which made his blue eyes even bluer. Massey smiled when she saw him. She reached to give him a hug.

  “Another man after my wife,” Theo said as he walked into the foyer.

  “Add a cache of jewels to beauty and you’ve got an irresistible combination. How are you, Theo?” Father Patrick asked as he reached to shake Theo’s hand.

  “I’m good Padre, how about you?”

  “I’m great. The Christmas pageant rehearsals are well under way and going good, and there aren’t any parishioners in the hospitals, so I have much to be thankful for,” Father Patrick said happily, following Theo into the parlor.

  Theo motioned for Father to have a seat on the sofa and Massey returned to the kitchen to check on their lunch. The two men sat and discussed the unbelievable story of the safe as Theo showed Father Patrick the pictures of the jewelry on his camera. Father Patrick was amazed. He commented on how he had believed that Mrs. Purdue’s story about a hidden safe was probably just that, a story. He joked to Theo about making a huge donation to the church as Theo sat down next to him on the sofa.

  “Father, I need to discuss something with you,” Theo whispered.

  Father Patrick noticed the serious look on Theo’s face.

  “Okay, is it something we should take to the confessional?” Father Patrick asked solemnly.

  “Oh, no, nothing like that. It’s about some things that have been going on around here,” Theo replied.

  Father Patrick glanced quickly up at Theo. Theo nodded and looked towards the kitchen as he placed his finger to his lips. Father Patrick nodded.

  “Come and get it!” Massey yelled from the kitchen.

  Theo rose first and led the priest to the kitchen table. After a short blessing, they dove into the tasty meal. Theo passed on dessert, but Father Patrick ate two pieces of cake before taking his napkin from his lap and setting it on his plate. Massey smiled. It seemed that nobody appreciated her cooking as much as Father Patrick.

  After complimenting Massey on the fine meal, the two men walked towards the front door.

  “Father and I are going to walk around the property to work off some of that delicious meal, honey,” Theo said as he opened the door.

  “Okay, but don’t let him leave before I show him the diary,” Massey called back.

  “You got it, master,” Theo replied.

  Father Patrick knew that the stroll through the enormous yard was not going to be a pleasure walk. He waited for Theo to speak first. He said a little prayer to himself as the two men walked towards the barn.

  “Father, you know I’m not a churchgoing man but I was brought up in the church, just like Massey. I know you know too that I’m the world’s biggest skeptic, bar none. But, since we’ve moved into Lovesong House, a lot has changed.”

  Theo kicked at a clod of dirt as they walked past the old barn. Father Patrick listened carefully as Theo continued. He told the priest about the things that had happened the night before in the bedroom. He told him that Massey was having bad dreams again, and he even mentioned the story Massey had said about the sounds in the attic.

  “I don’t think the blessing took, Padre,” Theo said shyly.

  Father Patrick stopped and put his hand on Theo’s shoulder.

  “All blessings take, Theo. There must be something more to it,” he said kindly.

  Theo nodded. He was beginning to see the priest as a friend. Father Patrick noticed the tired look on Theo’s face.

  “Did you sleep any last night?” Father Patrick asked.

  “Not much,” Theo replied.

  “Why don’t we talk again in a couple of days, and if you still feel uneasy or threatened, I’ll come over this weekend, and we’ll try to get to the bottom of it.”

  “That makes me feel better. I guess I’m beginning to understand how Massey must have felt. It always helps to have a friend on your side,” Theo said as he began to walk again.

  “You have more than a friend on your side. Don’t ever underestimate the power of prayer,” Father Patrick said softly.

  “Spoken like a true man of the cloth. Come on, let’s go inside. It’s getting cold out here.”

  Father Patrick smiled and nodded as the two men began walking back towards the house.

  Massey watched through the kitchen window as Theo and Father Patrick made their way back around the barn and towards the house taking a moment to stop at the cemetery gates. She saw Theo raise his arms and make a gesture towards Joseph and Marie’s graves. She wondered what they were saying.

  Massey met the two of them at the kitchen door with a cup of coffee. She told Father Patrick to make himself comfortable in the parlor while she ran upstairs to get the diary. Theo lay back on the sofa and kicked his shoes onto the floor. By the time Massey returned, his eyes were closed and Father Patrick was sitting comfortably in Theo’s big chair by the fire. Massey took a seat on the ottoman near the priest and handed him the dark brown leather journal. Father Patrick pulled the reading glasses from his shirt pocket and looked at the embossed cover. As he opened it to the first page, he began to read. After reading the first couple of pages, he took his glasses off and looked at Massey.

  “Do you mind letting me read it after you’re finished with it?” he asked.

  “That’s the least I can do,” Massey answered.

  Father Patrick glanced over at Theo who was lying on the sofa snoring. He smiled and handed the book to Massey. She looked down at it. She would have a little time to read it this afternoon if Theo stayed asleep she thought.

  “I guess I’d better get back to the church now. Thanks for the delectable lunch. You never disappoint,” he said as he rose from the chair.

  Massey smiled and followed Father Patrick to the foyer, helping him on with his jacket. She stood at the front door and watched as he drove away.

  Tiptoeing back into the parlor, Massey picked up the diary and fell into Theo’s chair. She flipped past the pages that she had already read and began to read on. She hoped to finish as many of the pages as possible before Theo awoke. She couldn’t help but believe that knowing more about Marie’s life would help answer the questions that haunted her and help quench her obsession. She looked around the room and imagined what life at Lovesong House must have really been over a hundred years ago. She felt that the house itself needed her to know.

  * * * *

  Father Patrick glanced back at the figure of Massey standing in the open doorway waving. He gave a short honk from the car horn as he lost sight of her. He looked down at the ring on his finger as his hand rested on the steering wheel.

  He drove slowly on his way back to the church. He was thinking about all the things Theo had said. He kept picturing Massey standing in the doorway as he’d backed his little car into the yard. Something about her tugged on his heartstrings. There wasn’t a day since his first night with her at Lovesong House that he hadn’t thought of Massey.

  Father Patrick had a lot of praying to do today. He was beginning to think that he was the one who seriously needed to visit the confessional. How could a man who had managed to keep his mind off women for years now, suddenly become bewitched by a woman eight years his senior and married. Heaven help him. Maybe it was just the pressure
they had all been under, maybe it was the circumstances, maybe it was the fact that Massey made him feel needed and more like a man than he had ever felt. He had to pray about it all.

  * * * *

  Suddenly, Massey raised her eyes from the book and looked at the picture of Joseph and Marie. She thought of sweet Father Patrick. See remembered the red cheeks and bright blue eyes that greeted her at the door today. She looked at Theo and laughed. He lay on the sofa with his head pushed deeply into the little throw pillow. His eyes were half open and so was his mouth. He was snoring loudly and made choo choo blowing sounds with every other breath. Massey had to cover her mouth to keep from waking him with her laughter. She wanted to give him a kiss, but didn’t. Theo never took naps, and she didn’t understand why he was so tired today.

  As Massey read further in the pages of the old diary, she realized what a privileged but sad life Marie had known. Coming from a wealthy plantation family, she lived in a beautiful home and went to the best of schools. As was often the case, growing up privileged in that day also meant being raised by servants until you were of the right age to be sent away to boarding and finishing schools, which was usually before the age of ten. This had been the case with Marie. Her parents showered her with the best of everything except their attention and love.

  Once Marie’s parents had her carted off to the most expensive finishing school in New Orleans, she wrote that she longed for her home in the country. She missed her parents, brothers, and sisters. With all the balls and trips and cotillions, Marie’s diary still told a story of a young girl yearning for love and attention. No wonder her love for Joseph was so powerful, Massey thought as she read on. Joseph had given her everything her parents had not, his total love, devotion and time. He made her the most important thing in his world, and that meant more to Marie than breathing.

  Massey thought about Sadie and how much she and Theo missed her since she moved out on her own. She couldn’t imagine sending her away as a child or even missing out on those dreadful teenage years. It just seemed wrong. Theo and Massey were still lost without Sadie in their home. People had just done things differently in that era and especially by the wealthier families.