Willis Benson stood in his upstairs bedroom window and looked out over the small family cemetery that sat on the other side of the narrow dirt road in front of his house. His eyes followed the small figure of his wife as she made her nightly visit to the mausoleum where the dead body of their infant son had been laid to rest. He noticed a flash of lighting off in the distance and realized that a summer thunderstorm was brewing. He thought of going to his wife and making her come back inside but he knew that would be foolish; she would not come back until her motherly duties were finished.
Willis shook his head. He couldn't believe that he had given into his wife's grief and allowed her to still care for the child. He shuddered when he thought of her as she changed the diaper of and fed their dead son. He pictured her sitting in the rocking chair humming lullabies as she rocked the child to sleep. His brow furrowed as he thought of the money spent installing the gas pipeline and light that stayed forever lit because the child was afraid of the dark.
A loud clap of thunder startled Willis out of his musings. Turning his back from the window he had planned on going to the kitchen to make a pot of tea when a shrill scream made him pause. Another scream sent the man running from his bedroom, down the stair case and out into the summer storm. Moving as fast as his legs could carry him, Willis ran straight for the mausoleum. He pulled the door open and the sight he saw was one that would haunt him for the rest of life.
"Hey dad, this place sounds interesting listen to what I was able to find," Sam said as he ate his breakfast in yet another roadside diner, "The Gate Cottage that was once part of the State Hospital for the Mentally Impaired before it closed down in 1995 has been turned into a museum. The Gate Cottage, the Quad along with a very distinctive Queen Anne water tower, Noble Lodge and a small chapel are all that remain of the old hospital; everything else has been torn down.
The museum is used as a satellite learning center for the psychology department of the local university and in the spring of 1997 it opened to the public. The museum gives a history of the hospital from the day construction began, in 1854, to its final operating day in 1995 as well as a history of psychiatric care through the years.
The Gate Cottage was so named because it is located near the entrance of the hospital grounds. The cottage had for a time been used to house women patients. There has been talk of the place being haunted as early as the 1870's. There is even a story about a murder-suicide that took place in the cottage," Sam scratched the back of his neck and wrinkled his nose. Looking up from his notes he glanced at his father then back down, "I guess that is the reason we are going isn't it? I mean to check out the supposed haunting. This is real interesting all the victims appear to be women. What's even more strange is that the victims are always pregnant.
It says here that when the attacks first began any woman who was found to be pregnant was removed from the building. Patients would be sent to another ward and nurses would be transferred. The attacks had stopped or at least slowed after that measure was put in place. In the early 1900's the building was switched to house male patients and it stayed that way until 1995 when it was closed. When the male patients were there no attacks occurred but the usual tell tale signs of lights flickering, cold spots, voices and scratching still occurred. All this happened at around the same time every year, during the last week of July or the first few weeks of August, before and after these weeks no activity is evident."
John reached out for the paper his son had been reading. He scanned the print out and smiled, for all the complaining that boy does he sure is a whiz when it comes to research, he thought. He couldn't help but feel proud of his youngest; Sam had grown so much in his seventeen years that he hardly recognized him. Sam was a good 3-4 inches taller than both him and his older brother, which was something Sam took great pleasure in reminding his older sibling about every chance he got. He had put on muscle and carried a good strong build. He handled a gun as well as anyone and was just as good a fighter and his researching abilities were unmatched; he was growing into an accomplished hunter. There was just one problem his attitude, and lately there was a lot of it to be had.
John had been growing concerned over the fights they had been having lately. He didn't understand why Sam wouldn't accept things as they were; why he had to keep looking for more; why he couldn't be more like his brother. He realized that this life, the life of a hunter, wasn't an easy one; but, it was their life. John sighed and watched as Sam finished off his breakfast, his nose stuck in a book lost in the story the pages held. That kid needs a hair cut and bad, John thought then quickly pushed the thought aside. No fights today Winchester, he reprimanded himself, Sam did good he came through with the research. Allow yourself to be proud of him, leave the fighting for another day.
"Sam could you go check on your brother he's been in the bathroom long enough, I'll pack things up here. Tell him to get a move on I promised Hal we'd be in town by dinner and it's an eight hour drive from here."
"Ok," Sam said then snickered, "I bet he's talking to some girl."
"He better not be if he knows what's good for him," John replied.
Sam headed off in the direction of the bathroom while John started to clear off the table. He picked up the research papers Sam had printed out at the local library and placed them in the worn backpack Sam carried. Next he picked up the book that Sam had been reading and placed that in the backpack He checked to make sure he had gotten everything before he zipped the pack shut.
As he waited for Sam to bring his missing brother back to the table John finished the rest of his coffee and thought about the upcoming job. He had been called by Hal an acquaintance of his, and was asked to come check things out. Hal told him about the museum and of how a friend's wife had been appointed the director about a year ago and at that time nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Then about a month ago they found out that she was pregnant. And, just last week she was pushed hard from behind. She heard a laugh that seemed more like a cackle and the air turned increasingly cold. Since then things have progressively gotten worse.
At first they looked for alternative answers to what was going on, they refused to believe that the place could be haunted, or that the stories surrounding the place could be true. Then when his friend's wife was pushed down a small set of stairs they asked Hal to call John and arrange for him to come look the place over. Luckily the wife only suffered a few bruises and the baby was left unharmed.
John was brought back from his thoughts when his oldest son stepped up beside the table. He stood up, took the check off the table and headed to the counter to pay their bill. Turning back he saw that his boys had already grabbed their things and had headed out to the parking lot. By the time he caught up to them Sam had already settled himself into the front passenger seat of his brother's car. Dean, his oldest, was leaning against the hood waiting for his father.
"We have about an eight hour drive ahead of us. I promised Hal that we would be in town about dinner time; that means we should be at his place no later than six. It's already nine; we're going to be cutting it close. Stay tight behind me, minimize the pit stops and we should make it. If it looks like we're going to be late I'll give him a call." John walked over to his truck that was parked next to his sons car, got in and turned the engine over. He pulled up to the parking lots exit and waited for his son to pull in behind him before he turned out and headed off towards their next hunt.