The Haunting of the Creole House

by Blake Croft

  “I bet you put him up to this. I bet you told him to act sick so you could leave. That’s it, isn’t it?”

  Abbie felt like she had been slapped. Richard looked convinced, as if the truth had just dawned on him, and it made Abbie sick to the stomach. Was this their marriage? “You’re deranged.”

  “And you aren’t going anywhere.” Richard picked up his mug. “I’m not going to waste more money hiring a housekeeper to cook and clean for me.”

  Her nails dug into her palms, making bloody crescents. Her jaw tightened, and the muscles on her shoulders bunched up as she watched him saunter away to his study.

  “Dave! Aiden!” Abbie shouted. “Breakfast!”

  She picked up the knife, the blade reflecting the sun, and went back to chopping fruit. Dave shuffled into the kitchen. Abbie put the blade down again, breathing heavily to gain control over her emotions. She made scrambled eggs and put them on a plate with bacon and pancakes for Dave. He didn’t pick up his knife and fork.

  “Eat something, honey.” Abbie coaxed. “Aiden! Don’t make me come up there.”

  “You grounded him,” Dave croaked. “He didn’t like that.”

  All the anger left her. She slumped against the kitchen counter, chewing her lower lip, tears stinging her eyes. She made a plate for Aiden, drowning the pancakes in maple syrup and bananas the way Aiden liked it.

  “Eat up, sweetie. I’ll be back, okay?” She kissed Dave on the head and left the kitchen. The staircase was cooler than the rest of the house but as she climbed the stairs it got warm, and then unbearably hot, as if the top floor was a furnace in the unforgiving heat. God, she hated this place!

  The children’s bedroom door was closed. Abbie felt a twinge of regret for her behavior yesterday. How could she have been so cruel to her baby? He must have been really upset.

  “Aiden?” Abbie knocked on the door before opening it. “Aiden, honey, I’m sorry for—”

  The room was empty. Both beds looked like they had been slept in. Aiden’s was a mess of sheets thrashed away with legs throughout the night, but Dave’s was strangely unmade. The sheets were half covering the bed, as if they had been dragged off by someone pulling from one end.

  Toys were scattered all over the floor.

  Abbie was a little disappointed that Aiden had taken his punishment to create a mess, and not pass it quietly, but then she thought she was being too hard on a child of five.

  “Aiden?”

  Placing the plate on a bedside table Abbie checked under the bed, but Aiden was nowhere to be seen. She checked the closet, but it was empty.

  Walking at a slow pace, trying not to panic, she checked the hall bathroom, then the master bedroom and its bathroom. She checked all the rooms on the top floors twice before she was convinced that Aiden wasn’t up there.

  She took the plate back downstairs, eating a few pieces of banana as she went. Dave was still sitting in the kitchen, his large eyes watching Abbie carefully.

  “He isn’t in his room,” Abbie said, setting the plate down on the counter and picking up a fork. “Did he sneak out to the beach? You know he’s not allowed to do that on his own.”

  Dave shook his head.

  Abbie ate some of the eggs, taking a bite of bacon.

  “You know where he is?”

  Dave nodded, his lower lip quivering.

  “Don’t worry. He’s not in trouble. Just tell me where he’s hiding.”

  Dave swallowed. Abbie ate some more eggs.

  “He’s gone.”

  “Gone?” Abbie’s fork stopped halfway to her mouth. “Gone where?”

  “Just gone.” Dave burst into tears.

  Chapter Eleven

  — ∞ —

  June 16th – 8:57 AM

  Lakeshore Drive, Mandeville – Louisiana

  S he ran, panic coating her throat now. She checked the living room, the reception room, the dining room and even the study where Richard was wolfing down a breakfast plate he had made himself while she was upstairs, but Aiden was nowhere to be found.

  “Aiden!”

  “Maybe he went to the beach,” Richard shouted from his study.

  Visions of a hungry wave snatching her boy away to its murky depths burst forward in her mind. She shoved it to the back, in a blind panic.

  Abbie ran to the back door and down the path that lead to the beach. A group of teenage boys and girls were busy picking up towels and dismantling tents by the water. The remainder of a fire was a black accusatory mark in the center of their camping site.

  “Excuse me?” Abbie tried to control her voice but it was high and erratic.

  They stared at her.

  “Have you seen a small boy?” she asked, waving around the region of her thighs. “He’s this tall. Blond hair like mine.” A sob escaped her lips. “Did he come by?”

  “No.” A girl with auburn pigtails shook her head. “We’ve been out here all night. We didn’t see any boy.”

  “How’d you know?” a boy guffawed. “You were asleep all night.”

  “I was awake.” A gangling boy with severe acne on his chin said. “I’m sorry. I didn’t see anyone come down the beach until about dawn. But that was a man with a dog.”

  “Old man Moonshine?” A girl piped up. “He might have seen something.”

  “Where does he live?” Abbie tried to hold on to their words, to calm herself down but her eyes kept turning back to the roaring waves that crashed on the beach. How easy it would be for such a force of water to take her little boy and smash him against hidden rocks like a rag doll. She shook her head.

  “The pink house down that road,” the girl said. “You can’t miss it. I really hope you find your boy.”

  Abbie didn’t have time to thank them. She ran pell-mell up the beach and onto the road. She walked down the street to where the girl had pointed. Her entire body was cold, her hands were shaking, and she could feel black spots invading her vision. Her body wanted to shut down rather than consider the appalling fact that her son was missing. She fought through her own body’s survival tactics and pushed on.

  After three minutes, the house appeared from behind a copse of trees.

  The house was painted sugar pink, and was smaller than the one they had rented, but there was a dog outside and he began to bark as soon as Abbie turned the corner. A man sat on the wide porch eating an apple.

  “Shut your hole, Pug!” the man shouted at the dog, but the animal was excited by the new face. “May I help you?”

  “I’m… we’ve rented the house down the way.”

  “The one with blue walls?” The man was in his late fifties, his skin tanned to leather.

  “Yes. Have you seen a young boy come by? He’s blond and about this high.”

  “Can’t say I have.” The man scratched his chin. “Pug here would have made a hell of a ruckus if a boy would have passed by. The dog barks at flying birds, he’s so paranoid. Haven’t heard a peep from him all morning till you came by.”

  The disappointment threatened to shatter her but she struggled through it. “Maybe you saw him on the beach? Some kids were camping there and they said you walked on the beach this morning.”

  “I did indeed, but I didn’t see no blond boy.” The man shook his head.

  “Will you please let me know if you do? Or talk to anyone who has?”

  “Sure.” The man nodded. “And be sure to tell me if you find him. Bet he’s just wondered off too far along the beach, is all.”

  “I hope not,” she managed to say. “He can’t swim. Thank you for your help.”

  Abbie walked back to the house.

  Dejection weighed her down like a heavy stone was sitting on her back.

  Richard was standing on the front porch.

  Abbie’s heart leapt into her throat. She hadn’t been so happy to see Richard in a long time. He was going to tell her Aiden had been in the study after all, hiding under the desk or behind some door or curtain. He was going to tell her Aiden was all right and
that she shouldn’t be too hard on him. And for once she wasn’t going to argue. She would simply walk in, take her baby in her arms, plant kisses all over him, and then feed him a large stack of pancakes.

  “Did you find him?” Richard asked.

  Abbie’s feet stopped moving mid stride and she fell on her knees scraping a wide patch of skin on her legs and palms. The pain in her hands and legs didn’t register, nor did Richard’s comforting hands around her. All that she felt was an impending sense of all-consuming loss, as if something was being taken away from her, some essential organ in her body without which she would die.

  She screamed for her son.

  Chapter Twelve

  — ∞ —

  June 16th – 12:25 PM

  Lakeshore Drive, Mandeville – Louisiana

  “I s there any reason Aiden might have left the house?”

  Abbie sat on the sofa in the living room, completely numb. A young police officer no older than twenty-eight was sitting in front of her, asking her questions.

  “Mrs. Coltrane, I know this is difficult but I’m going to need an answer.” Abbie read the nameplate Dupree on the officer’s chest.

  “I grounded him yesterday.” Abbie sniffed. “I told him he couldn’t have dessert. I’m a terrible mother.”

  “Please, Mrs. Coltrane. Children get grounded all the time.” Officer Dupree smiled. She placed a comforting hand on Abbie’s arm. “I’ve lost count of how many times I was grounded, and that has made me closer to my Mom. Don’t worry, Aiden will come back.”

  “It’s still too early for us to file a missing person’s report.” The other officer, older and weather worn, stood with his thumbs hooked in his pocket. “But we’ll ask the patrol cars to keep an eye out for your boy. It's not every day Shell Beach police get to serve a national treasure.” The man smiled ingratiatingly at Richard.

  Abbie saw Richard swallow and smile his best fake smile.

  “I appreciate it, Officer Bundy. Thank you.”

  “My pleasure.”

  “Is there anything else that has happened in the past twenty-four hours we should know about?”

  Richard licked his lips. Abbie watched as he ran his hands through his hair, his lips very white. His entire face was glistening with sweat.

  “Richard?” Abbie was suddenly cold. “Did anything happen?”

  Richard avoided looking at Abbie. He turned to Officer Bundy.

  “I heard strange sounds from down the hall last night. I thought I heard Aiden.”

  Abbie clutched the arm of the sofa. Pain rushed up her arm from the scrape but she only dug her nails further in the fabric.

  “And you’re just telling me this?”

  “I was half asleep. I didn’t remember this till now.”

  “Mrs. Coltrane, please calm down.” Officer Dupree turned to Richard. “If you heard noises it might be that there was an intruder in your house last night. Officer Dupree, check the children’s room.”

  Richard turned very pale. “Are you suggesting Aiden was kidnapped?”

  “What are you talking about?” Abbie was breathless with shock. “Why would anyone do that? What are you talking about?”

  The panic she had been trying to hold back came flooding through the gates. The bedsheets dragged off of Dave’s bed flashed before her mind, only now she could see Aiden’s small fists clamped around one end, trying desperately to hold on.

  “Why didn’t you check on him? Why didn’t you do anything?” Abbie was out of her seat, her voice rising higher and higher. “What happened to Aiden? Who took him?”

  “I don’t know!” Richard snapped. “I heard him cry out last night. I nudged you to go check on him. Didn’t you go?”

  Abbie couldn’t believe the words coming out of her husband’s mouth. Of all the neglectful things to do, and now he had the balls to blame her. She jumped at him like a wild animal, nails raking at skin, feet kicking wherever they found flesh.

  “Why didn’t you check on him? You’re his father. You should have checked!”

  Hands clamped around her abdomen and pulled her away from Richard. He stood against the wall, blood dripping from where her nails had scraped his cheek.

  “Please, calm down Mrs. Coltrane.” Officer Bundy handed Richard a tissue. “We’ll fast track the missing person’s report, if we suspect it’s a kidnapping. You should get some rest.”

  Abbie pulled herself free and stormed up the stairs to the children’s bedroom. Maybe there was a clue she had missed. The room was just as messy as it had been a few hours ago, and Abbie avoided looking at the unmade beds. She supposed she shouldn’t be in here because the police officers would be combing the room for clues, but she couldn’t help it. Standing here, she felt closer to Aiden somehow.

  She looked at the closet and gasped. The teddy bear Aiden had found was propped up against the closet. She picked it up, hope flaring inside of her. Maybe Aiden was hiding in the closet. Maybe this was just a game.

  She wrenched the doors open but there was nothing inside, only darkness and some hanging clothes.

  Abbie began to sob.

  “I told you they wanted to take us.”

  Abbie whirled around.

  Dave stood in the doorframe, his big eyes round and anxious.

  “What do you mean, Dave?” Abbie came closer, teddy bear clutched to her chest.

  “The closet. I warned him about it but he wouldn’t listen.” There were tears in Dave’s eyes. “Now it’s swallowed him up. I told—”

  Smack!

  Dave’s head swung back with the force of the slap. Abbie’s palm stung. Her breathing was ragged. She took hold of Dave and pulled him roughly to her, taking him in a tight embrace as they both started to cry.

  Richard entered the room. He looked around at the mess, his eyes glazed as if he wasn’t really there. Abbie hated the very sight of him. She couldn’t see what she had seen in him all those years ago. How had she ever loved him, or let him be the father of her children?

  “Why didn’t you check on him?”

  “Why didn’t you?” Richard shot back.

  “I was asleep.”

  “So was I.”

  “No you weren’t. You heard him. I didn’t hear him.”

  “I tried to wake you but you were drugged out of your mind. Maybe you shouldn’t have taken a sleeping pill. I’ve told you not to self-medicate but you never listen to me.”

  “I was exhausted.”

  “That’s no excuse.”

  Classic Richard; turning things on Abbie.

  “No, you don’t have an excuse for not going to check on Aiden. How could you sleep after hearing him cry out?”

  “Oh, shut up!” Richard snapped, his eyes wild. “I’m sick of hearing you saying the same thing over and over again. I’m a bad father, is that what you want me to say? Okay. I’m a bad father. That make you happy? Are you satisfied now?”

  “This isn’t about you, you selfish idiot. I don’t care what kind of father you are. I just want my son back!”

  Richard stood for a moment, looking straight at Abbie as if he had something to tell her. But then he closed his mouth and walked back to his study, completely ignoring Abbie’s sobs.

  Chapter Thirteen

  — ∞ —

  June 17th – 10:30 PM

  Lakeshore Drive, Mandeville – Louisiana

  A bbie was in the master bedroom holding tightly on to a sleeping Dave. Richard hadn’t had the heart to slip in bed with her. There was still too much resentment between them.

  Richard slumped lower in his study chair. The laptop was open in front of him. He refreshed his inbox again. No emails. His phone was fully charged and he was getting a full signals, but there had been no calls, no messages, no mails.

  “What are you playing at?” he muttered under his breath, and picked up his phone.

  He dialed a number, his nether regions going cold as the dial tone rang in his ears. They picked up on the fifth ring.

  “You hav
e some nerve calling us, Coltrane,” a voice growled.

  “Give me back my son, you bastard,” Richard growled back. “You tell Lemmy I’ll send you the money within minutes if you can give me proof of life. If you’ve harmed even one hair on his head—”

  “Are you tripping?” the man on the other end interrupted. “What are you talking about?”

  “My son!” Richard screamed in his phone, all caution and discretion thrown to the wind. “You took him, now give him back to me!”

  There was a moment’s silence.

  “Did you get any picture in the mail? Any message saying we know where you live?” the man asked.

  “N… no.” Richard’s heartbeat was slowing down to a steady pace.

  “Then it wasn’t us.” The man sounded sympathetic. “Coltrane, we have our methods. In our experience a picture of a rat’s family is enough of a threat, and there’s zero mess to clean up.”

  “You don’t have him?” The cold in Richard’s gut spread lower until it was in his legs.

  “If we did you’d be the first to know,” the man said. “Coltrane, missing kid or not, we want our money back.”

  The man ended the call, and Richard dropped the phone on the table.

  His head dropped into his hands and he sobbed both with relief and self-contempt. If Lemmy hadn’t taken Aiden, it absolved Richard of any guilt, but then who had?

  Chapter Fourteen

  — ∞ —

  June 19th – 2:23 PM

  Lakeshore Drive, Mandeville – Louisiana

  T hree days. Abbie stared at the calendar in the kitchen over the sink full of dirty dishes. Three agonizing days of spiraling hope and crushing disappointment had passed since she last saw her baby boy. There was no news. The police had checked the usual suspects, sent urgent reports to the surrounding counties, and set up alerts at airports and bus stations, but no one had seen Aiden anywhere. They interviewed the teenagers camping on the beach the day Aiden disappeared, but they confirmed what they told Abbie when she talked to them. To dismiss the possibility of drowning, the police sent a diving team to scour the lake and checked on the shores, but found nothing. The police hadn’t found any sign of intrusion in the children’s room, nor on the rest of the house.