Shadows of Eternity: The Children of the Owls (Frost and Flame Book 2)

by Rick Kueber

  I threw the car into park, shut off the motor, and covered my face with my shaking hands. I rubbed my face and pulled my hands down across my cheeks and lips hard, stretching my face slightly as I did. My hands slid into a prayer position and my lower lip was caught and pulled between my index finger-tips. I exhaled heavily and tried to regroup myself.

  Climbing out of the car, I wandered to the road, leaving the door open and the door alarm dinging. I whirled around, frantic and bewildered, calling out, “Ashley! ...ASHLEY!” But, there was no response. “Ashley Sue!!! Are you here?” Again, there was nothing. I stood there silently in the middle of the road and wondered how long these visions and glimpses of the past would continue.

  Meandering towards my dinging car, I surveyed the situation. Other than a few rows of irreparably damaged corn and some scratches to the already somewhat dulled paint on my little car, things seemed mostly unharmed. My car started up with a whir and I counted my blessings that there had not been a ditch between the field and this stretch of road. I placed the gear shift into drive. Slowly and cautiously, I pulled back onto the road and was clearly alert and focused for the remainder of the drive home.

  I opened the door to my apartment and stepped inside. Locking the door behind me, I dropped my keys on the end table and stumbled through the darkness to my room. I tried to lie down and sleep, but it was no use. I had to tell someone what had happened... I had to tell everyone. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and sent a group text message to Jenn, Katie and Theo.

  *** Theo walked through his front door and was greeted by his tiny companions, Cleopatra and Precious, his Chihuahuas, starving for attention and scolding him in their own way for leaving them alone again. The three curled up in bed to finish watching the movie he had started earlier that day, but it was to no avail. Theo quickly fell asleep as the movie played and Cleo and Precious nuzzled up next to him. For such little dogs, they certainly knew how to hog the bed.

  Barely minutes into sleep, a vivid dream came to him. Some twisted mix of memories and imagination had invaded his peaceful slumber, or perhaps it had nothing to do with memories or imagination. He found himself being chased through a huge old house. It was empty and dark and he had no idea who or what he was running from. All he could sense was that he was running for his life and fear was all he could feel. He found himself fleeing down a set of wooden stairs, and halfway down his footing failed him. Theo felt himself banging against the stair nosing and landing hard on the oak floor at the bottom. The fear remained all too real and over whelming. Turning, he took off with a shot down the hallway next to the open spindles of the banister. Midway down the wall was a glowing, brass doorknob. He feverishly grabbed the knob and with a turn opened the door, rushed into the empty storage space under the stairs, and quickly shut it tight behind him.

  His eyes began to adjust to the faint light that came in through the crack at the bottom of the door, and between he and the door stood someone. A young girl was there facing him. As she spoke, the space between them began to lighten somewhat. He could clearly see the sadness in her bright blue eyes, and hear it in a voice that seemed to come from her, though her lips never opened.

  “Help them. Help the children, before it’s too late.”

  “Ash, Is that you?” Theo thought out loud.

  “Help the children, before it's too late!” Her only response was now pleading, desperately, with his heart. The light between them grew brighter and brighter, until it was nearly as gleaming as the light of day, and the floor and walls surrounding them began to growl and grumble.

  “Ash! What am I supposed to do? What Children?” He begged for an answer. The growling had grown to the point of rattling and rumbling, and the dust grew thick in the air between them. The walls began to shake as he watched them crumble around him. Ashley began to crumble along with everything, and her voice echoed one last time, “Help the children, before it's too late.”

  When the dust began to settle, the rubble simply disintegrated as if it had been absorbed into the floor that Theo was kneeling on... the floor of his own bed room. Hearing the familiar 'gwuff' he looked to his left to see the two Chihuahuas still sleeping soundly in his bed.

  Before he could stand, there was another familiar sound. “Beep-Beep...Beep-beep” The text alert on his phone was going off, announcing a new message. He pulled the charging cord from his phone and opened the message. All it said was, EVP RICK: “I saw Ash tonight. I'm not crazy.”

  ***

  The rest of the night, which didn't include much sleep, and a good piece of the next day, I sat in my room and wondered when she would visit again. When lunchtime had come and gone, I realized I couldn't just hide in my room forever, besides, I already knew she would find me wherever I was. I finally grabbed up my laptop and logged into my email account. There they were, like two foreboding omens, the unopened emails awaited my attention. Scanning over them in the inbox list, I noticed quickly that they were from the same sender, which eased my mind slightly. I opened the first, which had the subject line: 'Numerous spirits frightening our patrons. Please help!' and the sender was barb-owls@xxxxx.com.

  The email read: Dear EVP Investigations,

  I am writing on behalf of our private club, the Order of the Owls #30. We have been in the same

  location for many years, and there have been several patrons die here over the decades. Our members have always had experiences, and now they have become more frequent and some of our membership is becoming more

  and more uncomfortable. We would like you to come and either validate or disprove our ghosts. Please respond as soon as possible. Thank you,

  Barb and Del Heerdink I breathed a sigh of relief. This sounded like just the kind of investigation we needed, not menacing, no one fearing for their lives. Even the fact that these experiences have been happening for years made this more of a 'ghost hunt' than an investigation. I smiled, returning to the inbox to read the second email.

  Email #2:

  Dear EVP Investigations, I just wanted to let you know that as soon as

  I sent that email from the office here at the Owl's Nest, there was a chill in the room. The door was closed and

  the A.C. was not running. I saw someone's shadow outside the door, so I went out to see who it was, but no one

  was there. We hope to hear from you soon. Thanks, Barb and Del I was actually looking forward to telling the team about this one, and even felt pretty positive about the case itself. Not to make light of paranormal research on any level, but this investigation almost sounded like it could be fun. I had begun to reclaim my desire and drive to be a part of the paranormal research community once again. It was time to make a few phone calls and get the interview scheduled.

  It was Sunday at 3p.m. when I sent the text message to Katie and Jenn, telling them about the emails and asking when they might be available to meet to do some initial interviews. They were both quite eager to get this new investigation started. Something told me that they were most likely feeling the same as I was, ready to put some distance between us and the burning girl, Ashley Sue. We had all decided that Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday evening after seven would be options. So, I responded to Barb and Del with my typically professional sounding email.

  Barb, Del, and the Order of the Owls,

  The team of Evansville Paranormal would be pleased to meet with you to discuss your

  experiences and the situation you believe you have. We would like to conduct our interviews with you one evening this week. We can be available at, or after, 7p.m. on either Tues., Weds., or Thurs. Please respond as soon as possible so I may add

  this to our schedule. Sincerely,

  Rick Kueber- Founder, EVP Investigations 'Keep your eyes and mind wide open' With the click of the mouse, the email was sent. I ventured out of my bedroom, popped a breakfast bowl in the microwave and opened an ice-cold Mountain Dew. I turned on the television, and heard the sound of 'Tears for Fears' playing on one of my favorite 80's movie
s. All was right with the world. I was feeling much more like myself, and less like someone who had just returned home from a true life horror movie. I put the fiery terror of the past month out of my mind, and lost myself in Mt. Dew, bacon, eggs and cheese, and Molly playing another charming high school teen looking for love and acceptance.

  *** When the movie was over, and I was feeling very couchpotato-ish, I decided it would be best to get up and at least wander around the apartment for a bit. I eventually found myself in the office, clicking the mouse to clear the screen saver. Much to my surprise and pleasure, there was a reply from the Order of the Owls.

  EVP Team, Thank you for responding to us and agreeing to meet with us. Wednesday

  evening after 7pm would work best for us. I will gather up all of the information

  we have and see you then. We will meet you by the front door. Just call the number

  below when you arrive. Thanks, Barb and Del – 812-454-xxxx Quickly, as if it really mattered, I sent a text message to Jenn and Katie, confirming the time and date of our interview. Within minutes I had their enthusiastic responses. Once again, it was time to play that dreaded waiting game. Wednesday was only a few days away, but this new potential investigation was all I could think about. Three different times that week I had to stop myself from casually 'popping by' the Owl's Nest just to peek around, but I managed to control myself, though it wasn't easy. I just kept telling myself, 'it wouldn't be fair to do that without the rest of the team.'

  With each passing workday, and evening, I found myself thinking less about the last investigation, though it still crossed my mind several times a day. Every day, I was feeling more like me, and less like someone who might never get past those recent life changing experiences.

  Chapter 2 At First Glance

  Wednesday evening had finally arrived, and so had I. I had scrubbed down, and dressed up...in my favorite EVP shirt and hooded team jacket. I stood in the parking lot of the huge building, and was awestruck by its sheer size and the interesting mixture of architecture that encompassed several periods. It was quite obvious that there had been a few additions and changes to the structure over the years. Though the original brick building was still quite intact, it had an eerie appearance. Several of the upstairs windows had been boarded up, tastefully done and painted, but boarded up just the same, which gave the place that 'abandoned, haunted house' look. I had a good feeling about this place... haunted or not, I knew it would be interesting to investigate, and the history alone would be an adventure to uncover.

  I hadn't stood there long, in the cool of the evening, when Jenn showed up, eager to move on to another 'ghost hunt' and, much like myself, put the past behind her.

  “Welcome, welcome! Glad you could make it.” I called out across the rows of cars to where Jenn had emerged from her black Camry, with its silver scorpion emblem, shining in the bluish glow of the parking lot lights.

  “Wouldn't miss it!” she said and chuckled as she crossed the parking lot to give me a hug, as always. I was surprised to see her carrying a notepad. Jenn had always been a digital recorder kind of girl.

  “Notebook, huh?” I teased lightheartedly. “Your digi broke?” “Nope.” She replied smugly. “Got that too… Just brought this in case there was anything I needed to actually write down, or draw out… or you know, if somebody else needed to write something down...” She trailed off, leaving the statement open ended, but I knew what she was getting at.

  “I know, I know... I'm notorious for leaving the note taking to you and Katie when we're all meeting for interviews. I don't do it intentionally, I swear!” I defended myself as best as I could.

  “Yeah, yeah... sure you don't.” Jenn teased as Katie's truck pulled into the lot slightly too fast and almost screeched into its parking spot.

  It was five minutes until seven when Katie rushed over to us. “I'm sorry I'm late.” She said out of breath with that one of a kind, puppy-dog-eyed, bottom-lip-stuck-out, chin-crinkled, pouty face look, that only Katie has.

  “You're not late chica. We're just early.” Jenn said reassuring Katie with a smile. “You aren't gonna believe what E.V.Prick here just tried to B.S. me with... He actually said that when we all come for interviews, and he doesn't bring anything, no note pad, no pen, no recorder... that it's totally unintentional.”

  Katie rolled her eyes up and to the left, in my general direction, and said, “Really? And we're supposed to believe that?” She stuck out her bottom lip and crinkled her chin again. She was mostly kidding around like Jenn, but I knew deep down, there was a little part of them that believed I did it on purpose.

  “Think of it as a compliment... I know you two will be well prepared and my brain just automatically blocks that I'm supposed to bring that stuff.” A poor defense at best, I knew. “It's all I got...”

  “Well, we'll forgive you this time, but don't let it happen again.” Jenn truly enjoyed ribbing me at every opportunity. “I may not have been late when I got here... but we're all late now! We better get inside.” Katie said, looking at the pink dial on her watch.

  I snatched my phone from my pocket and called Barb as we strolled up to the door. It was still ringing when I reached for the pull bar and opened the door to see a very happy and very smiley couple, around my age, or a few years older, standing in the doorway. The woman had her ringing phone in her hand, so I pressed the end button on my phone and spoke.

  “Barb, Del?” I queried. “Yep, right on both counts.” Del said cheerily and shook my hand. “You must be Mr. Queber.” Almost everyone mispronounced my name, and it was something I had grown all too comfortable with.

  “Oh, no... That’s my dad. I'm Rick, and it's a German spelling, so it's actually pronounced- KEEBER.” I jokingly said. “And this is Jennifer Kirsch, with a 'c', and that's Katie Collins... also with a 'c'.” I said, actually remembering to introduce them for a change, (I had always been horrible about that) and most likely confusing the heck out of our new acquaintances with my 'c' comments. The truth was that for some reason, when I was writing or typing her name, I often spelled it 'Kirsh', when it was actually 'Kirsch'... yet another thing that Jennifer scolded me about, which, I think, she enjoyed just a little too much.

  “Come in, come in.” Barb smiled, ushering us in and directing us down the hall way. “We knew who you were from your website.” The interior was very dated, but not in a bad way. The walls were plaster in this area, and covered in rows of photographs of Order of the Owls presidents, past and present, along with numerous photos and paintings of various owl portraits. That in itself gave us a foreboding first impression. We walked down the short hallway and it seemed that the owl's eyes followed us (and even a few of the presidents) until it opened up into a bar room, which was actually fairly quiet.

  “Is this alright?” Del asked pointing to a long rectangular table with eight chairs.

  “Seems fine to me.” I answered looking back and forth at the girls, raising my eyebrows and shoulders, asking for their approval. They both looked back, wide eyed and awkwardly nodded, saying nothing. So... we sat down, Jenn, Katie and I on one side, and Del and Barb on the other.

  “So...” I began awkwardly, “tell us about what kind of activity you have here, and where it happens, who it might be… if you have any ideas, that is... just the basics for now.” I started off, and prepared myself for some incredibly hokey story about flying apparitions, and screaming banshees, and of course the gruesome and ghastly, chain-rattling victims. Don't get me wrong, I didn't think they were trying to fool us, or have any reason to distrust them, but we had learned through some past experiences, that often times a business would have an investigation as a publicity stunt. So, as always, I hoped for the best, but prepared for the worst.

  The tales of their encounters as well as the experiences of patrons, (some of which were actually there and were called over to recant their stories) were all quite legitimate. Most were similar stories of unexplainable cold spots, the shadow of someone passing
by when no one was actually there, the same man in a yellow shirt seen in the same place, the strange feeling of being touched on the shoulder, or on the ear as Barb had experienced numerous times, and the sound of someone walking upstairs, even though that area was closed to the patrons, and was only used to store holiday decorations and things such as that.

  We took a brief tour of the main level which included the bar-room, a large dance hall, a card room (for those Texas hold 'em fans), an enormous kitchen filled with stainless steel appliances, work areas, and bustling people prepping orders for the customers. We were then shown the offices, and miscellaneous hallways and restrooms. As we explored the areas, Del and Barb explained to us which areas were parts of the original house, and which were additions.

  The music played in the background, along with the smoky conversations of longtime friends and new acquaintances. As we crossed the bar room, Del pointed to a door with a push/pull bar, telling us that it would lead us to the lower level. We followed the two of them through the door and down to the lower area. Going through the door at the bottom, we found a large room filled with cafeteria style tables and folding chairs. At the far end was another bar, complete with a bartender. Only a few people were in this room, and they were gathered in huddled groups of three or four at the end nearest the bar.

  The cheerful couple offered us a seat at one of the tables and followed up by offering us a drink. We accepted graciously, and though it was not our policy, we all enjoyed one adult beverage of our choice... Crown and Coke for me, as always. There were several closed doors down the left side of the room, but Del suggested that it would be better to leave that for the night when we have the building to ourselves. I believe he was afraid that we might have some of the customers and members follow us if we opened those doors.