“But why pick on us?” Blair couldn’t understand why Ethan had directed so much of his anger at them.
“He didn’t want us to find out what happened. The closer we got to discovering the truth, the madder he became. He was still doing anything possible to protect himself from being found out. Even in death, he didn’t want the label of a murderer,” Charlie explained.
“I almost hate to ask this, but which room did he use?” Cate prayed it wasn’t one of the rooms they used regularly.
“It was the upstairs living room. It was the only room her father didn’t go in. It used to be set up as a kind of study. The three sisters would take their lessons there and also practise their music. Lord Reign said music was just a distraction.”
“Why did they leave some of her things here?” Blair asked. “Why bury her diary?”
“That’s the only thing I don’t have a concrete answer for. My best guess would be that they couldn’t bear the thought of throwing out such personal things but didn’t want to take the items away with them either. They didn’t need the memories to follow them. So they left the possessions here and made sure no-one would find them. They did a pretty good job too. It took people more than two hundred years to find them.”
“Why us? Why didn’t they do this to all the other people that had lived here? We were just visiting over the summer,” Blair tried to grapple with the fact they had been chosen. He hoped it wasn’t something they attracted.
“I think it’s because of Alice. She was helping Eve and trying to get her away from Ethan. Alice was related to James so if she had any chance of getting human intervention, it was going to be with her family. Sure, we personally aren’t blood related to James, but Rahni is. She was the conduit for all of this. She is the one that linked Alice with us.”
“But the psychic said you had a gift. Couldn’t that have helped Eve pick you?”
“Maybe. I know I felt really close to Eve, like I could understand her. Perhaps we are just similar so she felt comfortable being able to come to me. More than anything, I felt like I had to help her. I guess I did when she used my body. I did say I would do anything to help her. I guess she heard me.”
“It’s just so sad. Do you think Eve is finally away from Ethan now?” Cate had tears in her eyes. Everything was just too overwhelming.
Charlie nodded. “I could feel Eve cross over. She’s out of his grip now and with her family again. I’m sure she’s resting peacefully for the first time since she died.”
They were interrupted from their conversation when Rahni appeared in the doorway. They all turned to look at her.
“You have to come and look,” the little girl stated. She waited for a moment and then ran back down the hall, confident she would be followed.
Blair helped Charlie to stand, she wrapped a dressing gown around herself. They slowly made their way into the corridor and down the hallway until they found Rahni in her playroom. She was standing in front of the fireplace, staring at the mantelpiece. They all lined up beside her and saw what she was looking at so intently. There was only one thing left on the shelf, everything else had fallen to the floor. It was the statue of the pink ballerina. No longer was it weeping from porcelain eyes. Now, it was basking in the light as a ray of sunshine hit it.
“She’s happy again,” Rahni whispered.
Chapter 16
Breakfast never tasted so good. While weary from the long night, it had done nothing but expedite their appetites. They hungrily tucked into toast and cereal. The mess in the kitchen that greeted them was a sobering reminder they had a lot of cleaning to do from the party the night before. There were plates, napkins, and cutlery everywhere. Obviously cleaning hadn’t been in the caterer’s department.
The moment the clock struck nine o’clock, Cate picked up the telephone. She dialled Melanie Lucas’s number, hoping she would be available. After three rings, the bright voice of the psychic answered.
“Hello? Melanie Lucas here.”
“Melanie, it’s Cate Sinclair from Sage Manor. We’ve had a bit of an incident here and I was wondering if you could come over? We think the spirits have gone.”
“Sounds intriguing. Are you sure they’re gone?“
“Pretty sure. The house has changed completely.”
“In that case, I’ll be right over.”
They closed the line. Cate returned to the kitchen and started to stack the dishwasher. Both Blair and Charlie helped to clear the mess. They cleaned for almost an hour before they heard the sound of a vehicle in the driveway. They hurried to the front door and greeted Melanie with much more enthusiasm than they ever had before.
“You have to tell me all about this ‘incident’,” were Melanie’s first words. They filled her in on the events of the previous night, trying to be as detailed as possible. Most people would have thought they were crazy recounting such a wild story, but Melanie just nodded her head.
“Sounds like you have had quite a time. Are you okay now, Charlie?”
“I’m fine. A bit sore from where I hit the floor but it’s getting better by the hour.”
“Melanie,” Cate started, “do you think you could do something to cleanse the house? Now they have gone, we want to keep Ethan away.”
“Of course. I brought my sage and white candles with me. I’m going to need all of your help in the ritual,” Melanie beamed. She opened her large bag and pulled out bundles of sage tied with white ribbon. Next, candle after candle were produced and handed around. Melanie bent down and handed one to Rahni. “You need to help me too, okay?”
Rahni nodded and accepted the candle. She gripped it with both her hands, making sure she was going to do a good job of helping. Each candle in turn was lit from a pink lighter. Holding a bunch of dried sage above the flame, Melanie started it burning. Grey smoke starting wisping from the leaves.
“Right, now follow me,” Melanie declared. She led them through each room of the house. Occasionally she would mutter something underneath her breath, a prayer of sorts. She took her role seriously, not speaking to the others as they walked. Once finished with the downstairs, they headed upstairs. Melanie turned left at the top of the stairs and made her way through each of the bedrooms and playroom. She left the upstairs living room until last. Deliberate or not, it didn’t go unnoticed by the others.
Eventually, they entered the room. Usually it would spark a sense of dread in their stomachs. Now, it seemed normal, just like every other room of the house. Melanie led them around the room and then back out again. She returned downstairs and they stood once again in the foyer. They had formed a circle, all five of them looking inwards and waiting for their next instruction.
“Excellent work. I think this was a huge success. You may put out your candles.”
“Is that it? Is the house normal again?” Cate asked.
“Almost. That lovely woman I heard from the other night is still here. She walked with us around the house,” Melanie looked at Rahni. “You saw her, didn’t you? Thank you for not mentioning it before. It would have distracted us from the cleansing ceremony.”
“Alice told me not to,” Rahni explained, smiling. She was happy her friend was back.
“Alice has a few things to say. She wants you to know that Eve crossed over safely. She helped her last night to find the light and follow it. She is now safe and sound with her sisters.”
“Thank goodness,” Charlie muttered.
“She tells me you were all very brave last night. It would have been terrifying feeling them entering your bodies and taking over. You did a really good thing for them.”
“We didn’t get much of a choice,” Blair stated.
“I asked Alice if she wanted to cross over too. Alice told me she was happy to stay in the house, providing she was welcome. She loves watching over the family, especially little Rahni here.”
“We would love to have Alice watching over us,” Cate replied. Even as the words left her mouth, she was surprised to hear them. She
had never thought she would have believed in ghosts, let alone welcome one to stay with them.
“Excellent. If you need her, just talk to her. She will be able to hear you and will even reply if you keep your mind open to it. She is a lovely soul and I guarantee your life will be better for having her in it,” Melanie smiled.
“Well, tell her that I will do my best,” Cate couldn’t help but return the smile. She couldn’t remember what she had disliked so much about Melanie.
“I have one more message but it’s very private. Cate, is it alright if I say it in front of everyone?”
“This is my family, I don’t mind.”
“James said he ‘hopes you liked the ring’.”
No more words were needed. Cate broke down in tears at hearing the message, as did everyone else in the room. They hugged each other tight, letting the emotion wash over them. For once in her life, Cate was ready to believe anything. She hadn’t felt as close to James in that moment as she had since he passed.
Melanie didn’t need to say it, but she could see the sixth person standing in the circle. He was wrapping his arms around his wife and sending her more love than imaginable. Words didn’t need to describe it.
Epilogue
A few days later, there had been one more thing Charlie insisted they needed to do before the end of the summer. They had visited the local stonemason and had a proper headstone made for Eve. It simply read “RIP Eve Reign. Always remembered.” Adding more words to it didn’t seem right. Sure, she was sadly missed and much loved but by whom now? It seemed empty to add slogans.
She wasn’t sure of the legalities exactly, but Charlie felt for sure it was illegal to erect a tombstone in a graveyard without the proper authorisation. They knew there was no scientific way of proving the Jane Doe grave was Eve’s so they skipped the formalities. Never in their lives had it felt so good to break the law.
It was creepy sneaking into the cemetery in the middle of the night. They all jumped at every rustling branch or stray cat slinking about. Blair dug out a space for the headstone and placed it in front of the existing one. They prayed no-one would remove it. They hoped people would see it exactly how it was intended, as a memorial and not vandalism. At least now, Eve would have a proper grave.
* * *
“Are you sure you’re going to be alright?” Charlie hugged Cate for the hundredth time that morning.
“Of course I am. You need to get back to University and get smarter. Rahni and I will be fine. We have Alice,” Cate smiled.
Blair was finally finished packing their car and ready to leave Pickerton. Summer was over and the new semester was just about to start. They left their departure as late as possible, for no other reason than they just didn’t want to leave. Charlie had her reservations about leaving Cate and Rahni. She knew they would be alright, she just didn’t want to leave them on their own again. It was still a big house for two people. She had, however, noticed a remarkable change in not only the house, but in Cate herself since that fateful night. The house had a serenity to it. No longer were the corridors filled with tapping and footsteps, now all you could hear was the chirping of the birds outside.
Cate was stronger, you could tell just by the way she carried herself now. She was ready to tackle anything the world threw at her. It was exactly how Charlie remembered her sister before she had lost her husband.
“You’re definitely staying then? You promise me you’re not going to put this place on the market as soon as we’re down the road?”
“Are you kidding? Rahni and I are going to be living here for a very long time. We didn’t go through all that just to run away from it now it’s not evil anymore,” Cate laughed. “Seriously, I feel closer to James here than anywhere else in the world. I’m not selling Sage Manor for anything.”
“Good. Promise me you’ll call me every day?”
“I’ll try,” Cate leaned in close to her sister and whispered. “You make sure you keep a hold of Blair. He’s a keeper.”
“I will, I promise.”
They all hugged again before climbing into the car. As Blair and Charlie backed out of the driveway, they waved. Tears started to spring into Charlie’s eyes. She wiped them away quickly, hoping Cate wouldn’t see. They reached the road and turned right, heading out of Pickerton.
They drove in silence for a time until they were on the highway. It had been one hell of a summer. One that they wouldn’t be likely to forget any time soon.
“What are you thinking about?” Blair asked, more to break the silence than anything else.
“I’m thinking what a shame it is that Eve never really got any justice for her murder. Ethan was always able to live his life like normal. It’s such a waste of a sixteen year old girl’s life.”
“That’s true, but what else can we do? Ethan is long gone now. Even people that knew him, or his relatives, would be dead by now.”
“There’s one thing we can do for Eve.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m going to write a book about it. I’m going to tell Eve’s story and everything we went through this summer.”
- The End -
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jamie Campbell grew up in the New South Wales town of Port Macquarie as the youngest of six children. A qualified Chartered Accountant, she now resides on the Gold Coast in Queensland. At the age of ten years, Jamie and her family lived in a house which inspired most of the occurrences in this novel. Experiencing a real haunting was terrifying at the time, but it gave a new appreciation of the paranormal.
Visit www.jamiecampbell.com.au now!
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