It was etched. A circle had been made that touched the edge of each side of the square. Inside the circle was a five pointed star.
“Oh my God!” Paige gasped. “It’s a Pentacle!”
“An upside down Pentacle. That makes sense,” said Amanda. Her voice was rock steady and ice cold. She passed Avril to her sister and squatted down. She picked up the horseshoe and began to smash it down onto the stone. “Get thee back demon!” she shouted. “Never again here!” She kept pounding the stone until it was reduced to a collection of small rocks. When she was done, she said to Julian, handing him the flashlight “Go to the house and get one of the packing boxes we used. They’re in the spare bedroom.”
Julian took off. “Thanks, Mom!”
Amanda stood up and took Avril back in her arms. “Turn on the lights, Paige. I don’t know where the switch is.”
Paige was able to stumble around in the dim light from the moon coming through the door and turned on the light.
“Okay, I’ll bite. What tipped you off that this is for real?”
“Pooka. That’s what they call a demon in Ireland.” Amanda shook her head. “I had a friend in my dorm when I was away at college who was pretty weird. Lindsay was into Satanism for a while.”
“Whaaa—”
Amanda waved her free hand. “It wasn’t me, but we did talk about it. It got kind of weird for her, and she backed off big-time. I remember when she was in it, she wore an amulet. It was made of the same stuff as that.”
“What is that?”
Amanda snorted. “It’s called ‘Serpentine’ believe it or not. She pointed with her chin at the debris. “And that amulet she wore had the same symbol as what was on that crap over there.” She turned back to Paige. “It’s the Satanic symbol.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen it before.”
Amanda shook her head slowly. “But the thing that got me going tonight was that name Avril said. Lindsay told me that when a demon is trying to worm its way in to someone’s life, it calls itself a ‘Pooka’. It’s such a nice and friendly sounding name isn’t it?” Avril stirred in her arms and she stroked the child’s back and shushed her.
“Didn’t they make an old movie about that? With a big rabbit in it or something?”
“Yep. Back around 1950; a real classic. It was called ‘Harvey’.” Amanda scoffed. “Best PR for the devil in years!”
Julian came through the door holding an empty box that in a previous life had shipped a dozen bottles of chardonnay. While Amanda supervised, he and Paige gathered all of the pieces of the broken stone into it. Together they went out to the end of the dock on the lake. Paige got into the aluminum boat and rowed out to the midpoint. She lowered the box and debris into the lake, filling it with water. When it was full, she released it and it sunk. She rowed back and they went back to the barn.
Amanda took the gas can and as the others stood at the door she splashed all five gallons along the base of the walls. Returning to the doorway, she told Julian, “Do the honors.”
With a glint in his eye that only boys possess, he sparked the lighter and touched the flame to the boards. They ignited immediately, and the four of them walked back and watched as the entire structure became engulfed.
They stayed there until dawn, and went to bed leaving the now smoking embers behind.
“Nobody called the Fire Department,” Amanda said.
“Yeah…” said Paige. “I didn’t even think about it.”
“Nobody thought about it,” said Julian. His face had that same expression from earlier that night, and his voice the same steady tone of certainty.
“What are we going to tell your father?” Amanda asked.
“He’ll be okay.”
“You sure?”
Julian’s eyes had that funny look again. And in the same voice he said, “Yes. Yes I am.”
And then he smiled brightly.
Chapter 36
Three months later...
The sweet smell of baking filled Paige’s nostrils when she stepped into the house from her day at work. She shrugged out of her coat and slipped the warm leather boots off, looking over through the living room arch where Julian and Avril sat glued to the T.V. watching a Christmas movie. It was the third time this week they were captivated by The Grinch.
She ambled into the room and picked up Avril, planting a big kiss on her cheek. She glanced at the picture of the two kids hanging on the wall. It hung straight as an arrow and she wondered when she’d ever stop checking it whenever she came into the room. Probably never after what they’d gone through.
Julian looked up and flashed a wide grin. “Hi, Aunt Paige. Do you want to build a snow fort after the movie is over?” He sat Yoga style on the floor with Barney’s head on his lap, cuddling and petting the dog softly. For his part, Barney wasn’t minding the attention at all, his little stump of a tail wagging.
Despite the weariness of putting in an eight hour shift at the group home, Paige nodded. “Sure.” She turned to Avril, “You want to help?”
“Ya! Let’s go now!” The little girl’s round eyes sparked and she squirmed to get down.
“Hold on a second. I need to get changed and I want to see your mother. Besides, the movie isn’t over. You want to see the Grinch give the presents back don’t you?” Paige set the excited sprite down on the sofa and turned to go into the kitchen where Amanda was.
Amanda was rinsing the pans and dishes from her baking and smiled when she saw Paige. “How was the driving? Have the snow-plows been out clearing the roads?”
“It’s not too bad.” She could see the flash of concern in her sister’s eyes and added, “The major highways are always cleared first. Josh should be okay driving home.” She spotted the plate of chocolate chip cookies and wandered over to the island to take one. She smiled when the warm chocolate melted in her mouth.
Amanda finished the last pan and set it on the rack to rinse. “So...got any plans for tonight? Are you getting together with Matt?”
Paige grinned. “We’re having dinner with his aunt Barbara. Do you mind if I take some of these cookies for dessert? They’re really good!” She sat down on the stool watching her sister. Amanda was more like the woman she’d once been, full of energy and laughter. There was no indication that she was slipping into depression. The house was resplendent with Christmas decorations, all thanks to Amanda’s efforts.
“I’m going to look for an apartment in the New Year. I think it’s time that I had my own place. This has been nice, being here with you and the kids but—”
“Oh no! They’re going to really miss seeing you every day. Heck, I’ll miss it.” She wiped her hands and sat down across from Paige.
“Yeah. I’ll miss it too.” She thought back to their first days in the house, how scared they’d been and how tempted she’d been to convince her sister to just leave. “The house is really nice, Amanda. And especially now at Christmas. It’s something right out of Currier and Ives.”
Amanda got up and wandered over to the desk perched under the large window. She opened a drawer and scooped out Barbara’s red scrapbook. Paige felt a coldness seep through her core. She hadn’t thought of the scrapbook since that awful day.
“I’ve been reading Barbara’s entries and all the newspaper clippings. The things that happened here, Elmer Larkspur and then Cora...all the deaths and tragedy that happened on this farm. The years were 1939 and 1968. Barbara makes a good case that a lot of bad things happened in those years. Assassinations and the holocaust. I think we may have dodged another tragedy here, thanks to Barbara and you.” She set the book down in front of Paige.
“Actually, I’m glad that you don’t want to leave until the New Year. At least get this year behind us. When I read the news on line...all the terrorist attacks, the endless wars. I think we’re living in one of those...” Her eyebrows drew tight together, “...what did Barbara call it?”
Paige swallowed hard and she spoke, “Precarious times. Times when the veil sepa
rating this world from the next is thin—when bad entities are more easily able to get through.” She sighed and her voice was soft when she added, “I think we did our part, don’t you?”
“More than anyone would ever know, Sis.”
Amanda looked up at her. “More than we’ll ever know probably.”
Paige chuckled. “I think we know enough, what do you say?”
Amanda giggled in agreement.
Paige got to her feet and placed her hand on her sister’s shoulder. “I’m going to get changed so I can take the kids outside to build a snow fort. Want to join us?”
She shook her head. “I’ve got to get dinner on. Plus, I’m still chilled from this morning out there. You go ahead.”
Twenty minutes later Paige and the two kids were bundled up in snowsuits and boots sloughing through the tall drifts of snow that blanketed the lawn. They settled on a spot near the back door to build the snow fort.
“We need to clear a spot for the floor and then built the walls.” Paige used the side of her boot to push the snow to the side.
After watching her for a few moments, Julian and Avril mimicked her actions until a spot five feet in diameter had been cleared. Paige knelt down in the snow and began scooping up handfuls, piling them and patting them down on the outer edge. Beside her, Avril’s hands in woolly pink mittens worked pushing snow to the wall.
“Hey! C’mon Julian. This fort won’t get built with you lolly gagging around.” She looked over at the boy who was standing still as a statue looking over to where the barn had been.
Julian had been absolutely right about Josh not being upset over the fire. He didn’t ask many questions about it, and never even filed an insurance claim. He told their company that it had been taken down, and they got a reduction in premiums.
His Christmas bonus from his company was going to be more than enough for him to build a nice workshop/man cave in a small barn. He’d been perusing prefab buildings online and was planning on ordering one in the Spring.
“Hey… Jules…” she said softly. “Everything okay?”
“It will be a full moon tonight, Aunt Paige,” he said in an even voice.
Another chill went through her. She hadn’t heard him speak like that since that night. “Oh?” she said. “Is that important?”
He nodded. “Three moons… yes, it is.” He walked over to where the barn had been. They had cleared out all the debris; the only sign it had been there was the bare earth of where the floor had been. It was now snow covered.
“Hey, Julian…” she called.
The boy stepped over to where the center of the building would have been. From the pocket of his coat he withdrew a glass jar. Without having to look closely, Paige knew it was the same vessel Barbara had used the day they cleansed the house.
Mumbling, he poured the water on the ground.
He turned around and came back to where Paige was standing.
“Now,” he said, looking up at her with that sweet smile, “now we’re done with it all.”
She took his hand and they went back home.
The End
A Note From The Author…
When I was a young girl, around the age of 10, our family was spending a day with friends in the countryside north of Kingston. They had children of their own and one of the sons told us about a home that was abandoned and haunted. Naturally, the rest of us were dying to see it!
It took us over an hour to ride our bicycles out there. It was down at the end of a graveled country laneway. Turning up the drive, you could tell that nobody lived there. The front yard was overgrown and turning wild. It was an older home, unpainted clapboard siding had been turned a bleak grey by weather, and the wrap around veranda was covered in old, dry leaves.
We crept up to the house and peeked in the front windows. In the living room the furniture was coated in dust. The front door was locked, so we creeped around to the back door. Peeking in the kitchen, I saw breakfast dishes still on the table; it was set for two people, including tea cups.
Even though it was a warm summer afternoon, I can recall becoming chilled as we stood peering in the window. One of the children began to speak, and the others shushed him. It was then that one of us mentioned how deathly still it was out there. That phrase, ‘deathly still’ scared the bejezus out of us and we fled in the glaring cold summer’s light.
I never returned to that home at the end of the lane, and now years later, I wouldn’t be able to find it. And perhaps that’s for the best. Even so, that childhood experience was the seed for this novel.
***
Thank you for reading The Haunting of Larkspur Farm. I hope you enjoyed this tale as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you could leave an honest review on Amazon I would greatly appreciate it. Reviews are ambrosia to new authors as they try to establish a career, but more importantly, your honest opinion will help other readers such as yourself make informed decisions on how to spend their precious time.
To leave a review, simply click on this link.
Again, thank you for your readership.
Michelle Dorey
Table of Contents
About This Book
Contents
Before we begin, a word…
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
The Haunting Of Larkspur Farm (Ghosts and Haunted Houses): A Haunting In Kingston (The Hauntings of Kingston Book 4) Page 17
