Hmm..no reviews but a thanks to RainbowShelby and Kiyofugi for the alerts!.
When is everything has turned to black
You don't know where to go
You need something to justify your soul
Silences are broken
Confidence is gone
When everything you're holding onto falls
All the people selling truths on every corner now
They wait until the fear has knocked you down
All the rules are changing now
You're living in sin
Everything around you is caving in
And all you're holding onto slipping like water through your hands
And you sing la la la la
La la la la
La la la la la..
Yeah you sing La la la la
La la la la
La la la la la…
…Kari Kimmel (Black)
Chapter 2
"I just know that we're going to forget something. I had dreams about it last night"
I looked over my shoulder at Mandy who was busy with her nose down in a notebook taking inventory of all the cases of equipment by my front door.
It had been a month since I had talked to Rebecca at Bobby Mackey's Music World and confirmed the date to investigate. Which was a month of prepping, studying, and working on the stomach ulcer I was sure I had acquired from stressing out. The girls and I couldn't afford even the smallest hiccup in our little operation.
"Stop!" Mandy threw her arm around my neck in a partial headlock "We've checked over all our equipment four times already. It's all here."
"You're right" I sighed "I just wish we would've kept all this stuff at your place. I don't need things to go missing suddenly like they usually do."
"My apartment wouldn't be any better." Mandy said, dragging one of the cases to the door "The other day I was late for work cause my car keys were missing from the tray by the front door. When I finally found them, they were on top of the washing machine in the laundry room."
I furrowed my brows "So?"
"I drove to the gas station earlier that day. I haven't done laundry in two days.
I laughed. Ever since we started this occupation, sometimes things would follow us home. We've all been lucky enough to not have anything bad attach itself, but every now and then we'd get a restless spirit or poltergeist that was hell bent on making itself known.
Outside the screen door, there was the sound of steadily increasing music followed by a horn honking loudly in the driveway.
"Let's get this show on the road ladies!" Shelly yelled, jumping from her large SUV.
"You should not be this awake this early" I yelled to her "If that's the case you're doing all the driving."
Shelly gave me a giant smile and reached back into the van, presenting Mandy and I with two Starbucks coffees. Mandy squealed and snatched it out of her hands.
"This still doesn't get you off the hook" She said taking a drink "Jess and I have been packing up all the gear for the past two hours. You're driving."
Shelly pouted and grabbed a case from the front door. "I barely slept last night. I was too excited. Not just for the investigation, but also getting out of town with my girls for a few days"
"Well it's work Shell. Not a vacation." I reprimanded.
"Meeeow" She shot back. "I'm just saying.."
Mandy threw an arm over my shoulders "Don't mind her Shell. She's been a brat all week. She'll loosen up."
I shook her off and stuck my tongue out at the both of them.
XXXXX
Seven hours seemed to fly by in the van. We only stopped a couple times to grab gas and road snacks, all the while talking about Bobby Mackey's dark history in between singing to the radio and giggle fits from all the caffeine. Just as my eyes were beginning to grow heavy, our van pulled into the parking lot of the hotel.
"We're heeerrre" Shelly sung, throwing the beast into park.
"Ugh" Mandy jumped out and grabbed her rear "All I wanna do is crawl into bed and take a nap."
"Nope" I shook my head "We got enough time to check in, change and head to Mackey's. We're supposed to be there by 2 for the walk through."
Both the girls groaned and started taking out bags from the back of the van while I went to check us in.
I walked into the hotel lobby and looked around. Aside from a bar off to the side with a bartender that was staring at me curiously, the place was eerily empty. My sneakers squeaked on the floor prompting a young brunette to suddenly come to life behind the desk.
"Welcome to Wilder. Ms. Blades I would assume?"
"Been waiting for us eh?" I asked.
"Well it's been slow around here lately so I figured as much" She smiled and began clicking at the keys on her computer. "Most people stay at the bigger hotels but this one is closer to Bob Mackey's so it's pretty much the only time we get people booking rooms in groups."
I raised an eyebrow "How did you know we were going to Mackey's?"
"Cause Bobby is my uncle and he told me you were going to be doing an investigation of his place." She smiled "Small town living. Everyone knows everyone."
"Ever had any experiences you'd mind talking about? We could use some interviews for our website."
The girl laughed and ran her fingers along the keyboard "Sure. But I should let you know I promised Aaron and Nick that I would do an interview for them too. I don't know if that would complicate anything."
"Nick and Aaron?"
"Oh sorry" She laughed "Nick and Aaron are from the Ghost Adventures crew. They've been coming her since they first investigated Uncle Bob's place. Every time they've come out to do a show on his place business gets really good so I kind of feel obligated…"
"It's okay" I interrupted, trying to keep my annoyance in check "anything you could offer up would be just fine. I know they claimed their spot first.I gave her my credit card and she passed it back with three room keys. "Well maybe you can discuss it with them. Ya'll we'll be staying on the same floor."
Great. I wanted to say but didn't want to sound rude. Instead I smiled and headed back out to the parking lot to get the girls. Bad enough our time would be cut short because of those guys but now there was the definite possibility of running into them.
I walked outside and laughed, watching Mandy and Shelly already making friends with a guy in dark jeans and a gray t-shirt by the van. I couldn't make out what they were talking about, but the conversation was very animated and both girls faces read intrigue. His eyes followed theirs as they both looked up when I approached. Mandy was the first to stand up and awkwardly pull at the bottom of her tank top, like a child that just got caught doing something that they weren't supposed to be.
"Oh my god! Can we please go into the air conditioning now. Even if it's just for a few minutes? I need actual food and some Red Bull." She said, avoiding my confused stare.
"We're all checked in. Got about a half hour before we gotta head out."
The man in front of me smiled a very friendly smile and shoved his hands in his pockets. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence before Shelly broke the tension.
"Jess, this is Nick."
"Nick Groff right?" my memory finally catching up with me and remembering the goatee and gelled back hair from the you tube videos. I extended my hand.
"Yeah" he took my hand in a shy manner and scratched the side of his head "I was just telling the girls here about our experiences at Mackey's. Think it's really cool you guys are going to get to see it for the first time."
I nodded and smiled politely. I know he was being nice but in my mind I saw it as cockiness. It must have been evident on my face as Shelly practically threw one of my bags to me.
"Well it was nice to meet you Nick." She yelled back while walking me towards the entrance to the lobby "We'll see you guys around the next few days."
"Good luck girls."
Once the doors shut behind us, I gave them both a wide eyed look as if to say What the hell?!
"He was nice and started talking to us. We're like the only people in this hotel." Mandy shot back. "We're gonna run into them eventually."
"I didn't say anything." I started heading towards the rickety elevator and could almost feel Mandy and Shelly's eyes burning my back. "What?" I shrugged.
"Well if there was any chance in us being 'friendly' that might have just ended with the death glare you gave him." Mandy snorted.
I rolled my eyes as the doors shut behind us. I wasn't here to make friends. I was here to work.
XXXXXX
I threw all my things on top of my bed and changed into a basic red tank and a pair of jeans. I pulled out all the notebooks and binders full of all the information that I gathered in the last few weeks about Mackey's. The stories and experiences from witnesses were almost overwhelming. I wanted to go over everything again before we left but there was no time. I grabbed a fresh notepad with a couple pens and shoved my key card in my back pocket. It was nice to know we wouldn't have to load all the equipment till the actual investigation in two days. Today was just for meeting with Bobby Mackey and getting to know the areas that were most active. I was surprised to find Shelly and Mandy already waiting for me outside in the hallway. They were both dressed rather risqué for a simple walkthrough and were parading themselves up and down the hallway like a couple of supermodels.
"What are you guys up too?"
They both jumped and started giggling. Mandy ran over and grabbed my arm while we walked to the elevator.
"Well…I know you don't like the fact that they're here, but Shell and I wanna get a glance of the "boss man."
"Boss man?"
"Zak Bagans" Shelly said, coming up to capture my other arm "You said there was no fraternizing with the enemy but you didn't say we couldn't look."
"I never said you couldn't 'fraternize' with them. I said I didn't want them in.."
Mandy held a finger up to my lips "We know how you feel. But we need a hot guy to pine over while we're here. So if we're good little girls and do everything mommy tells us can we PLEASE play with the other kids?"
Her pout made me laugh.
"Okay. But I want all business while we're at Mackey's. No Zak. No Ghost Adventures. No nothing but what we came here to do."
"Yes ma'am" she said, giving me a mock salute.
XXXXXX
I held a hand above my eyes to shield them from the sun as I looked up at the old bar. Bobby Mackey's Music World. Finally. As we grew closer, I felt my stomach flip a few times. I brushed it off as nerves and proceeded trail Mandy and Shell to the entrance. The place already looked spooky from the outside. Perhaps from age or the lack of customers due to it being closed in the daytime. It was like a sleeping giant waiting to spring to life the moment the sun went down. I was so focused on the building itself I hadn't realized Shelly had already knocked on the door and I almost jumped when it clicked open and swung back with a loud moan. An older man in a beat up cowboy hat now stared back at us with a warm inviting smile.
"You must be the 2 o'clock"
"Um..y..Yes" I said, springing to back to life "My name is Jess and this is Mandy and Shelly. We're Chicago Paranormal."
"Nice to meet you ladies" he tipped his hat "I'm Bob Mackey. Come on in"
The girls and I both smiled at one another as Mr. Mackey held the door open for us. My stomach flip flopped once again, spinning till it was almost painfully tight. My feet crossed the threshold and I suddenly began to feel like prey that had just been swallowed by a ravenous beast. There was a gust of cold air that blew passed my cheeks and tickled my eyelashes as the door shut behind me. Air conditioning I assumed. The lingering smell of cigarette smoke, stale beer and hard alcohol invaded my nostrils immediately. It was like any other bar, but there was a strange unfamiliarity I couldn't put my finger on. The flash of Shelly's camera broke me from my thoughts. I looked over to see her snapping away at the old mustard colored sign by the entrance that warned about the building being haunted. Below it was newspaper clippings and articles about all the ghostly encounters and advertisements for ghost tours.
"Take all the pictures you want" The older man said, pulling a bandanna from his back pocket to wipe the sweat from his brow. "If you ladies have any questions feel free to ask. Don't think there's anything I haven't been asked before." He smiled.
Mandy and Shelly jumped at the invitation and began asking the usual things. When did you purchase the building? If it's housing evil spirits, why do you continue to keep it?
I fumbled through my oversized bag to find my research papers and small camera so we could begin to film the interview, when I noticed my hands trembling. It was small tremors that led to uncontrollable shaking. I wasn't cold. I wasn't scared. I took a deep breath and tossed my hair over one shoulder.
"Here I'll get it. You're the one that knows more then Shell and I do." I hadn't heard Mandy come up from behind me to remove the camera from my hand. She looked at me quizzically "You alright chick? You're shaking like a leaf."
"Yeah. Yeah. I'm alright" my lips twitched in the attempt to smile "To much caffeine and not enough food."
My excuse must have been sufficient enough for her as she nodded and began making adjustments to the camera. I turned my attention to Shelly and Bob talking to one another near the bar.
"I really appreciate you letting us talk with you Mr. Mackey. I know you're place has had a lot of investigators. We were just happy we could be one of them."
"Please call me Bob or Bobby." He smiled back at me "And it's my pleasure. Things like this are good for business."
"Okay. Well we're just going to ask some questions that were sent to us by the fans of our website and then if you would give us a tour of you're place we'll be out of your hair in an hour or two.
"Sounds just fine" He said in a southern drawl.
Mandy began filming the interview while Shell took pictures all around the bar, pausing a few times to review them quickly. We discussed the highly publicized exorcism of former caretaker Carl Lawson back in 1991 and the legend of Johanna the dancer when it was the Latin Quarter club who was pregnant and committed suicide when she found out her father murdered her lover. I was trying so hard to focus on the questions I had written down but I could feel my voice shaking with every passing minute. The feeling in my stomach only seemed to get worse. It had gotten to the point where I had to tell Mandy to stop filming so I could get some water in me.
"Not use to this Kentucky heat" I told Bob as I took an uneasy drink from my water bottle.
He looked me over once before shaking his head and pulling a chair out from one of the tables for me to sit down at. He perched himself at the opposite corner of the table.
"Don't be embarrassed. Wouldn't be the first time."
"What? City folk always passing out from heat exhaustion in you're place?" I laughed.
"Aw hell girl. Ain't no sunstroke makin' ya sick and ain't no air conditioner makin' ya shake like that." He held up one of his hands to the vent above us, prompting me to do the same.
"No air." I whispered.
"We don't leave the air conditioner runnin' all day while no one's here. We don't turn that on till couple hours before we open." He shrugged "Some people are just more sensitive to this place then others"
I looked over at Mandy and Shelly on the empty dance floor flipping through the pictures together. Biting the inside of my cheek, I slid my chair a little closer to the table and looked up at Bob.
"Can I ask you something? OFF the record?"
He nodded.
"What about the claims that none of these stories are true? That through the years all these stories became so fabricated because of the media that the real stories are no longer being told. I mean this place is supposed to have the "Gateway To Hell" in it. Sounds like someone watched Amityville a little to much."
I suddenly felt like I had said way to much by the way he adjusted his hat and scoffed at my last statement. Aw crap. He's going to tell us to get our shit and get the hell out of here.
Instead, he looked over at me and shrugged "I'd tell those people to stay a night in this place and then they can tell me how "fake" it is."
He looked up at the clock behind the bar and rose back to his feet.
"We gotta get this moving again. I got the boys coming in a couple hours. Think you'll be alright to continue?"
"Yeah" I pushed my chair back in and grabbed my water from the table "I didn't mean to offend you or.."
"Oh hell I ain't offended" he laughed "I used to be a skeptic too. Up till my something spooked my wife so bad she hasn't stepped foot in this place and then Carl havin' to be exorcized, I thought they were just stories that would be good for business. You'll learn. We all do. Come on" he waved towards the back door. "I'll take you to Hell's gate."
"Holy shit Jess look at all the orbs Shelly caught." Mandy ran up with the digital camera and practically shoved my face into the screen.
I pulled back and scrolled through. She was right. Not only were there orbs but they were perfectly formed orbs which were rare to catch on camera.
"Wow that is awesome" I said, passing it back.
"You didn't see the best one. Kinda freaky." Shelly took the camera and scrolled through to the beginning before passing it back to me.
My eyes grew wide. There was a picture of me standing at the table when I was looking for the video camera. To the right of my arm, was a large perfectly round orb and another near my leg on the other side.
"I think they're sweet on you sugar" Mandy joked, doing her best southern belle accent.
"Well good." I cleared my throat "That gets you guys out of having to go into the worst spots in this place for the investigation. I'll save them for myself."
There was a blast of hot air in the room as Bob held open the door to lead us out of the bar and into the attached building.
This is what I was waiting for. This was the place I had memorized every night. The huge hole in the ground where the well once stood. The well that Pearl Bryans head was allegedly tossed into for a ritualistic sacrifice. The place where most of the attacks on caretakers, employees and investigation groups had occurred.
This building looked like a house. It was old and falling apart in comparison to the brick bar attached to it. Outside the wooden door stood another man. He was tall and heavy, not just with extra weight but with muscle. He wore a security hat and matching security shirt. His lips drew up into a tight smile when his eyes landed on us.
"Well hello." Shell said in her usual saucy way.
Mandy and I both chuckled into our hands so not to seem rude. Bob stopped just shy of the door and gestured towards the other man.
"Girls this is where I'm gonna leave ya. I don't really go in there anymore and Matt here can answer all you're questions. Zak and the guys are gonna be here in a little bit and I gotta do some work in the office 'for they do. I'll see ya'll when you're done."
We waved and turned back to Matt who was looking at us like he had just hit the jackpot. Shelly put her hands behind her back and rocked back and forth from her heels to the tips of her toes then back again like a little girl with a wide grin on her face.
He wrestled with the lock on the door for a moment before throwing it wide open and giving us a rather mischievous grin.
"Well ladies..Welcome to Hell's gate.
"Thanks" I rolled my eyes. Thanks wasn't exactly the appropriate response to that, but I was more focused on the inside of this place. Unlike the bar, this place was unsettling right from the get go. I could tell I wasn't the only one feeling that way. I noticed Mandy bite the corner of her lower lip and draw closer to Shelly who was inching closer to Matt. This place was really like a tomb. Silent and cold despite the random dust covered bar paraphernalia that was sprinkled around the open space. The knot in my stomach twisted farther with every step I placed on the cold deteriorated cement.
Matt reached over and flicked the light switch on the wall and a lone bulb swinging from a cord on the other side of the room blinked on. The dim orange glow did little to make the place look any less menacing. I waved for the girls to start filming and taking photos but both seemed hesitant to back away from the giant hovering behind them.
"Where is the hole where the well once was?" I asked.
"It's off to the left over that way" he pointed a chubby finger in the direction "Be careful near the railing though. It's falling apart and can't hold weight.
Shell was the first to grew heroic and drift away from Matt's side. Her hands shook as she lifted up the camera to her eye. Mandy took a deep breath and held the camera up to start filming. I grabbed a small flash light from my purse and shined it where light was absent around the large dark hole.
"A..alright Matt. Tell us what happens down here. We know the story about Scott Jackson and Alonzo Walling allegedly killing Scott Jackson's pregnant girlfriend Pearl Bryan and tossing her head down the well.."
"Satanist right?" Shelly asked, peaking over the camera.
I nodded and looked back at Matt who straightened up and pulled at his shirt once he noticed that Mandy turned the camera on him.
"Um..yes. Yes, that is story. Scott implicated Alonzo in the murder and both were convicted and the last to be hung in Newport in 1897."
I nodded again in response to the exact historical facts "And what kind of personal experiences have you had down here Matt?"
"Oh man let's see" He ran a large hand back and forth against his facial stubble "My second night working at Mackey's, one of the bartenders asked me to grab some extra chairs in here for a party we had coming in that night. Well, just as I was about to take the last chair out I heard someone say my name. Not even like a faint sound or whisper but a very distinct voice.
"Was it a male or female voice?" Shelly asked, leaning down farther to snap another picture of the dirt and broken floor boards surrounding the dry hole.
"Well that's just the thing." he continued "I would say it was male but it was deeper then any mans voice I've ever heard. Almost like a growl. Raspy I think is the word."
Just as I opened my mouth to ask another question, there was a loud slam behind us and the light above our heads flared before burning itself out. I would have yelped in unison with Mandy and Shelly had a cold burst of wind not rendered me momentarily speechless. The only light in the large storage area was my flashlight and the failing afternoon sunlight peeking around the entry door.
"Sorry." Matt laughed "happens a lot down here. Electrical wiring in these old buildings ya know?"
"Yeah. Electrical wiring" Shelly put a hand to her chest to steady her heartbeat "I think we got what we need for now right Jess?"
I didn't respond. My attention was drawn to the back of the room now. Out of the corner of my eye I could have sworn I saw something move. Something big.
"Jess?" Mandy asked again, lowering her camera "Are we good?"
"Y..Yes. We'll do some more filming tomorrow. I..um..I think we got it for now." I stuttered.
I looked back over my shoulder and watched Matt begin to usher them towards the door. I turned back to the cluttered dark corner of the room and removed my phone from my back pocket, turned on the camera and snapped a few pictures
"Jess come on. I wanna take more pictures of the building" Shelly called from the door.
Just as I turned to follow, a new smell past my nose. It wasn't the musty, moldy smell that greeted us when we first walked in, but worse. This was the smell of rot and decay. It smelled like meat that had gone bad and only grew stronger as I walked towards the door. I held up the back of my hand to my face, hoping that I would get some remnants of my perfume to try to dissolve the odor. Just as I neared the exit, I felt another cold blast of air. This time, however, it was so strong the old wooden door slammed shut in front of me, blocking me from leaving. Mandy's shocked face was the last thing I saw before the darkness swallowed me whole. My small flashlight blinked out and I could hear the girls and Matt on the other side wrestling with the door.
"Just pull it" I yelled to them.
"We're trying! It's stuck!" Shell shot back.
I suddenly became very aware of the icy chill running up and down my body. It felt almost like breath moving in and out across my skin. The smell was so bad now my stomach lurched and I thought I might be sick.
"Come on guys! I want out of here!"
"Hold on Jess! We got back up!" Mandy called back to me.
I now heard Bob's voice along with a few others I couldn't place. I thought I saw something move next to me as the chill in the air seemed to dip lower. It moved up the side of my neck till it caressed my earlobe. My eyes grew wide as a gravelly voice spoke directly into my ear.
"No ones coming. No one cares. Mine now."
I tried to yell for them to help me but found myself frozen to the spot. My mouth opened and closed a few times in an attempt to make any kind of noise but nothing came out. The cross necklace I always wore felt as if it shifted slightly like someone was trying to pull on it. I squeezed my eyes shut, afraid to open them and see something I didn't want to. In my head I tried to remember the words to the "Our Father," but even my thoughts were jumbled up.
"Move away from the door!" A man's voice called from the other side.
There was a snap next to me. Almost like the sound of a match striking. It seemed to rise up from the ground till it to inched closer to my ear. It was hissing now. Slow and soft and gathering momentum the closer it got. Just as I was about to release one of the most terrifying screams the last of my energy would allow, the door slammed open and off it's hinges. I felt my strength gather and my feet nearly catapulted me out into the open air. Out into the open and straight into a brick wall of a chest. I fell back onto my butt and tried to catch my breath. My eyes were still as big as saucers and my whole body shook uncontrollably. I looked up at a man clad all in black. His face shadowed by the glare of the sun.
"Holy shit. Are you okay?"
XXXXX
I know this story lacked the GAC, but there is going to be PLENTY of Zak and the boys in the next chapter. Please review!