BLACK VELVET ROSES

by Marianne Spitzer

  Kellie nodded and thanked him. She was secretly happy not to hear the details.

  She followed the group through the dining room, kitchen, and a large storage area next to the kitchen, but her mind was on the library.

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  “The music room has the original wallpaper on the east wall. It has been preserved with a special solution. Please don’t touch it, but take a close look at the intricacy of the workmanship of the times,” Nicki suggested.

  They ended their first floor tour in the library. While the others listened to Nicki explain about floral carpeting, exquisite paintings, and the imported marble fireplace, Kellie scanned the room searching for the photo.

  She saw it sitting on an ornate end table next to a floral embossed fabric loveseat. Reaching out to pick it up, she felt a slight electrical charge before her hand was six inches from the frame. Kellie pulled her hand back. She looked at the photo and as far as she could tell, the roses were black. Kellie couldn’t see anything that might be red shading.

  The electrical charge let Kellie know there was a spirit in the house that would prefer she ignore what she saw in the picture. The black roses were becoming a bigger clue.

  ########

  The second floor tour was not as interesting as the first. Nicki explained the décor and explained the use of each room. The bedrooms were obvious as was the nursery and playroom. A sewing room with a lovely view of the side garden intrigued Kellie. Hand stitched embroidered pieces adorned the walls. One was a quaint sampler made by a child. Kellie felt a similar electrical charge as she did in the library, but it tickled. She was also sure a spirit of a child resided in the manor house.

  The elderly man having recovered his breath from the climb up the stairs from the first floor addressed Nicki, “What’s on the third floor?”

  “Servants quarters, sir and the stairs to the attic and the towers.”

  I don’t need to see that. It’s boring. You go. I’ll sit here in the hall.” He sat down on a gold brocade bench while the others ascended the stairs to the third floor.

  Kellie thought the man was right. This was boring. “It’s like the third floor of the Malone mansion,” she mumbled. The attic was the same. She didn’t feel any presence of spirits in the attic, but that didn’t mean they weren’t there. She climbed the circular stairs to the tower. The view was breathtaking. The visitors returned to the second floor, but the elderly man was nowhere to be found.

  His wife said, “He may have gone out for a cigar. He’s not supposed to smoke them so he sneaks them when he can.” Nicki made a quick check around the building and couldn’t find him. The visitors spanned out and looked around the inside of the manor house. A few minutes later, the man’s wife screamed.

  The scream came from the back of the house, and everyone hurried to find her. She was standing at the open doorway leading to the basement.

  “What are you doing?” asked Nicki. “That door is always locked. Even I don’t have a key.”

  “Well someone did,” she stammered. “Look, my husband fell down the stairs.” She was gripping the door frame for support. Nicki helped her to a kitchen chair and dialed 911.

  The man’s cane was lying on the floor about three feet from the door. His wife noticed it and screamed again. When she calmed a bit she stammered, “My husband can’t walk without that cane. He would never have gone close to the stairs without it. Someone had to be with him. They must have pushed him. Someone killed him.” She grabbed her chest and collapsed falling off the chair to the floor. Nicki and a second tourist hurried to her side. She was moaning, but alive.

  Kellie glanced down the stairs and felt the cold soak into her bones. No one else seemed to notice. One gentleman had gone down to assist the elderly man, looked up at Kellie, and shook his head. Kellie felt the presence of one evil spirit and knew he was responsible for the elderly man falling down the stairs. She also felt other spirits, but didn’t detect they were evil. Either the spirits were hiding something or calling for help. She felt smothered by the feeling and decided to walk outdoors. She left by the closest exit in the kitchen. It led to the backyard, more beautiful gardens, and the line of trees she had read about in the story. Several of the other visitors to the manor house had followed her out.

  Kellie meandered toward the trees when one of the women in the group said, “Look, there’s a white rose on the ground just the way the legend says. This place must be haunted.” Kellie walked over and picked up the rose. It was a perfect white long stem rose. Within seconds the white rose began to fade, and it turned black as a moonless night. The woman gasped and raced around the side of the building toward the parking area.

  A feeling of deep sadness overcame Kellie and she dropped the rose. She heard the sirens in the distance and walked with the others to the front of the building to wait for the sheriff and paramedics.

  Chapter Nine

  Taylor, Hunter, Cole, and Andrea arrived at the Country Retreat Hotel a little before eleven for their long weekend. Kellie met them outside since Hunter was bringing Rufus, and she knew he missed her. Cole opened the door to his car, and Rufus leaped over the seat. He pushed off of Cole’s lap, and ran up to Kellie nearly toppling her. Hunter doubling over in laughter from the front passenger seat saw the pain on Cole’s face and said, “I’m glad I didn’t drive. Are you okay?” Cole nodded.

  “Down boy,” she dropped to her knees and petted Rufus until he calmed down. She looked up at her friends and said, “Go and check-in. I’ll walk Rufus to the kennel around back, get him settled, and come upstairs. Our rooms are next to each other. Do you have Rufus’ leash?”

  She clicked his leash onto his collar. Kellie and Rufus ran around the hotel to the rear entry of the animal kennel. Rufus was wagging his tail and licking the workers in the kennel area. A young man smiled at Kellie and said, “He’s going to be easy to dog sit. He’s a great dog. How long will he be here?”

  “At least today, tomorrow, and Monday. After the three-day weekend, we’ll see if we stay longer.” She sat with Rufus and played with him for about fifteen minutes. Then she patted his head and stood. Rufus pushed his nose against her hand, and she ruffled his head. “You be good, Rufus.” He barked. The young man took his leash, and they began to walk toward the kennel area. Rufus stopped and whined. Kellie said, “It’s okay. I love you, too.” Rufus barked and wagged his tail. Kellie smiled as she headed back to the main hotel.

  ########

  Kellie made her way back to her room and let her friends know she had returned from the kennel. Andrea and Taylor knocked on Kellie’s door and plopped themselves on her bed. “What have you been up to besides checking out strange places?” Taylor asked.

  Kellie blushed. “Not much really. The pool area is nice, and I went down the large waterslide.”

  “Look at her face,” Andrea said to Taylor. “She did more than swim in the pool”

  “Okay,” Kellie said, “Randy took me to dinner.”

  “Hmm nice, here at the hotel?” asked Taylor.

  “Yes, at the four star restaurant downstairs.”

  “Uh huh, and what did you do after?” asked Andrea.

  “Nothing, why?” Kellie turned and pretended to be looking for something in the desk drawer.

  “Because to dine there you must have been dressed up and knocked his socks off. How about his pants? Did he spend the night?” Taylor stared at Kellie.

  Kellie turned and stared back.

  “I knew it, he did. Good for you. I won’t ask for details.” Taylor dropped back on the bed laughing.

  Kellie sat on the edge of the bed, “Please keep this between us. It’s not that I want to hide the fact, but Hunter or Cole could accidentally mention it to Drew. Not that he would care, but he might think it is one more thing I took from him. I know he doesn’t love me, but his mind is fragile, and we all know he blames me for everything that’s gone wrong in his life.”

  Both young women agreed just as they heard a knock at the d
oor. The guys were there and hungry. “Okay, but it’s a little early. I want to drive past the Gotz Manor first. It’s an interesting place.”

  ########

  Kellie drove them to the manor house. They were surprised by the beauty of a place that could hold such terrible memories. Going on a tour later that day seemed like a great idea. It wouldn’t be open until two o’clock. Kellie mentioned the incident with the rose and the death of the elderly gentleman.

  “You find mystery wherever you go,” said Cole.

  “I think it calls me,” Kellie smiled.

  She explained her encounter with the elderly gentleman that died during the Gotz Manor tour. “He told me that the town has hidden the truth in fear that it will hurt tourism. He said there are a lot of stories that people have passed from generation to generation. I think we can get information from some of the locals. Instead of going toward the hotel, let’s take a drive in the opposite direction and find a quaint diner. We could find someone who knows something.”

  After a fifteen minute drive, the five friends found themselves in a quiet little town. They found a diner with a broken, neon sign blinking “Dwayne’s Diner.”

  Andrea was a little leery about entering the place. “This reminds me of a place out of a horror movie.”

  “Do we have to have lunch here?” asked Taylor.

  “Of course,” Cole said. “This is a great place to find some locals and maybe some stories.”

  Hunter held the door open for the rest of the group.

  The diner was small. There were six brown leather booths and ten matching brown leather stools. They were mended in places, but clean as were the floors and table tops. The five sat in one of the empty booths. A young woman with a brown bouncing pony tail and wearing a pink waitress uniform approached them.

  “Hi,” she said. “Welcome to Dwayne’s. What can I get for you to drink?” She handed them menus. Her name tag, hanging diagonally on her uniform pocket, read ‘Kimberly.’

  “Thanks, Kimberly,” said Cole. He smiled at her. She returned the smile, her big, brown eyes sparkling as she looked at Cole.

  When she returned with their drinks, she asked about their lunch choices. “Okay, cheeseburgers and fries all around. I’ll be back.” She winked at Cole.

  Cole whispered, “When she comes back let me ask her about the odd goings on at the manor house. She seems to like me.”

  “A little too much,” said Andrea sitting with her arms crossed.

  Taylor smiled. “Cole’s right. She might talk if he asks her. She looks like she’s lived here a while. Maybe she does have a story or two.”

  Kellie was listening to her friends while she glanced out the window. She saw a general store with a bench in front. Two elderly gentlemen sat there talking. She wondered what they might know.

  Kimberly returned with their food. Cole was hitting the bottom of a ketchup bottle trying to get more ketchup. Kimberly smiled again and said, “Here, let me get you a fresh bottle. She hurried back to the kitchen and returned with a new bottle.”

  “Thanks, do you have a minute?”

  “Sure hon, what’s on your mind?”

  Cole explained their curiosity about the possibility of a dungeon in the Gotz Manor. “Do you know if there might be one and if the crazed caretaker was the sole killer of the women we were told disappeared?”

  “Not many people talk about that anymore, but my great-granny used to tell me stories. I never knew if they were true or if her mind wandered. She was sure there was a dungeon. She heard the crazy caretaker dragged women down there and used a rack or chained them to the wall until he was ready to do whatever it was he had on his mind.”

  “A rack,” Taylor shuddered.

  “Yes and a few other torture devices. They supposedly left them down there. Rumor has it many of his victims didn’t come back out in one piece. He buried pieces all over which is why so many girls were never found. Some people say many ran away from the harsh, boring conditions of a small town, but others swear he killed them all. Can I get ya a refill on your sodas?” She smiled at Cole.

  “Thanks, we’re fine.”

  Kimberly headed back to serve customers at the counter.

  “That was interesting. Her great-grandmother believed there was a dungeon, and the old man’s brother-in-law swears there’s one down under the manor house. Question now seems, how do we find out?”

  Kellie said, “We’ll take the tour this afternoon. It’s closed tomorrow. If the guys look for a way in, we could go back tomorrow and look for clues when the place is empty. They won’t let anyone into the basement area. I’d like to get down there.”

  “Sure,” Hunter said. “I think Cole and I can handle that.”

  Cole raised his eyebrows and nodded. “Might be fun.”

  They paid their bill and walked out to the SUV. Kellie said, “Before we leave, let’s check out the General Store. You guys buy something. I’d like to talk to those elderly men. I bet they have stories.”

  ########

  While Cole, Hunter, Andrea, and Taylor meandered through the General Store, Kellie waited outside. She smiled at the two men, and they smiled back. “Excuse me for asking, but have you lived here a long time. It’s a pretty little town.”

  “Sure have, me and Hank here were born and raised not far from this spot.” He grinned at her.

  “I was on a tour of the Gotz Manor and one of the other people on the tour believed there was a dungeon under the manor house. What do you think?” She squinted in the sunlight and brushed her hair from her eyes.

  “By golly you’re right about that,” Hank said. “Everybody around here knows the crazy caretaker kidnapped women, hid them in the dungeon, tortured them and well, a gentleman doesn’t speak of such things in front of a lady. He got caught burying body parts. They hung him about a block down Main Street at the old town square. They buried him in unhallowed ground, in a field outside the old cemetery. No one cares where.” He leaned back and lit his pipe.

  Kellie saw her friends coming out of the store and thanked the men. They waved, and she relayed their conversation to the others as they walked to the SUV.

  “That’s why he’s haunting the place. They buried him in unhallowed ground,” Hunter said.

  “Don’t ghosts haunt where they die. Wouldn’t he be in the town square?” asked Taylor.

  “Not necessarily,” Cole added. He might be drawn to where he committed the murders and where he feels comfortable. He’d be happy in the dungeon.”

  Andrea hit him in the arm, “You watch too much TV.”

  Everyone laughed as they began their drive back to Gotz Manor.

  ########

  Kellie parked the SUV and the five walked to the front of the manor house. Nicki was waiting on the steps for the expected tourists. When she saw Kellie, she rolled her eyes, “Before you even ask the basement is off limits. The police put an additional lock on the door. They don’t want more accidents.”

  “Don’t you mean murder? His wife said someone took his cane and moved it. He must have been pushed.” Kellie tapped her foot and looked up the stairs at Nicki.

  “The police and coroner have ruled it an accident. If you insist on causing problems when the other tourists arrive, I’ll have security remove you.”

  “You have security? Where were they when he fell?”

  Nicki’s cheeks turned red, “In another part of the manor house. Do I need to call them?” She lifted her cell phone to her ear.

  “No, you win. I won’t ask about him again.” Kellie lifted her hands in surrender.

  Other tourists began to arrive. When Nicki decided that no additional tourists were going to arrive, she began the tour. The tour was exactly the way it was when Kellie took it alone. Kellie was quiet through the tour except to whisper to her friends about the black rose in the painting, the picture in the library, and the white rose that turned black outside. Cole and Hunter asked a few questions only to convince Nicki they were there for the tour
and not to case the place for the next day’s break-in. Kellie was relieved she didn’t find another rose outside.

  Nicki ended the tour at the base of the foyer stairs. She showed everyone to the front doors. Kellie heard a small whisper, “Don’t forget to come back.” She nodded and hurried out. Kellie explained what she had heard.

  “Looks like you made a friend,” Cole said. “She may be useful if we encounter a nasty spirit tomorrow.”

  “I hope we don’t,” Hunter said and laughed. “But it might be fun to find one.”

  “How can you say that?” asked Taylor. “After all we went through with Kellie’s grandfather, you want to see another ghost?”

  “Who knows, maybe this one will be playful,” Hunter laughed again.

  Taylor, irritated by his attitude, ignored him on the ride back to the hotel.

  Kellie hoping to change the subject asked, “Did either of you find a way in for tomorrow?”

  Cole answered, “Yes, there is an old lock on the French doors in the library. I unlocked it. You can’t see it because of the curtains on the door windows. If we’re lucky, security will miss it. Even if they do lock it, it’ll be easy to break. Neither Hunter nor I could find any security system. I hope they never bothered to put one in, but we’ll see tomorrow. Our best bet is the door we unlocked.”

  ########

  Hunter went to the kennel to take a run with Rufus while the rest went to the water park. Cole was excited to try out the water slide.

  “He’s never grown up,” Andrea smiled. “We’ll be back in a few minutes and walk down with you.” Everyone hurried into their rooms to change.

  Hunter caught up with them about thirty minutes later, and the five friends enjoyed the rest of the afternoon poolside. Cole went up the stairs and down the slide so often that Andrea commented, “His legs will be sore tomorrow, I hope he can walk. I think I’ll coax him into the hydro jet tub tonight, maybe it’ll help.”