"I don't like the idea of you moving so far away, Emmaline. Especially in some old dusty house in the middle of a swamp." Mrs. Louisa Devereaux complained to her daughter.

Emmaline rolled her eyes and continued driving down the heavily shaded road. She had heard of a house that had gone up for sale, incredibly cheap. She wasn't sure why it was so cheap but judging by the listing and the pictures she had seen, it was too good to pass up. As far as she knew, it was an incredibly old house and usually very expensive. Restoring things to their former beauty was a passion of hers, something she shared with her late father.

"Emmaline! Are you listening to me?!"

"Mama, I'm driving and the road is a bit hard to navigate. I don't want to end up going into the bayou."

"That's another thing! Why on earth would you want to live in this sort of place?" Her mother snipped.

Emmaline quirked a brow at her, but kept her eyes on the road."It's...something different." She pondered, "I like different, Mama, don't you know that?"

Louisa half-shrugged at her daughter's reponse and the movement was caught in Emmaline's peripheral vision.

The red head sighed inaudibly through her nose and reached for her mother's delicate hand. "I can't stay in Georgia forever Mama..."

Louisa's scowl shifted into a gentle and forlorn stare out of the window. She too, sighed.

"I know chéri..."

"I like to think of it as a new adventure. Just think, when I get it fixed up and cleaned, we can host grand balls like no one has seen in at least a couple of centuries. Besides, Daddy would have loved this place. I'm doing this for him. You know it was his dream to do something this big, and I feel if I do it, his dream will come true and he'll be proud of me."

Her mother didn't get a chance to reply as they pulled up in front of the gates that led up to Gracey Manor.

"Look at the size of the gates! Talk about your extra security." Emmaline breathed. "Either that or they have big possums out here."

Louisa looked unimpressed at the sight. "The state of the yard leaves much to be desired."

"It's another project to do. Think of it this way, once it's cleaned up, I may call on you to design it anew. I know you have an eye for that sort of thing." Emmaline wheedled, trying to get her mother to see the good in it. She didn't get a reaction so she sighed and drove up further to the gate before honking, hoping that the realtor was already inside and would come open the gate.

"Emmaline!"

"What? The gates don't have a call box. Maybe we're early." Emmaline unbuckled and got out of the car, heading to the gates despite her mother's protest. She ignored her mother when she huffed angrily and got out as well. She was too busy looking at the gates that were chained shut with a heavy padlock. "I guess he's not here yet."

"Well that settles it. Let's go home Emmaline." Louisa said a bit too cheerfully as she turned back to the car.

Emmaline groaned and followed after, not planning on going home just yet. "Mama, the realtor must not be here yet." She was about to continue when the groan of the gate behind them startled her.

Both women turned to see the gate free of it's chain and slowly creaking open to admit them.

"Mama, did you see anyone near the gates?" Emmaline asked, looking at her mother.

Louisa shook her head.

Emmaline wasn't one to get easily spooked, but she'd be lying if she said she wasn't spooked at that moment. "Well... It's opened. Come on Mama." She got back in the car, Louisa not far behind her.

They drove up the drive and parked in front of the house. They got out again and walked up to the door. Emmaline lifted one of the heavy yet impressive knockers and brought it down a few times. The doors slowly creaked open and Emmaline poked her head in before stepping inside, Louisa not far behind her. Neither woman saw anyone near the doors.

"Mama... Look at this place!" Emmaline breathed in awe.

The front foyer was truly a sight to behold with a fantastically grand staircase on either side leading up to to the upper levels of the house, two more staircases breaking off to wings of the house. There was a long hallway between the two stairs right in front of them, but it was rather dark so Emmaline could only guess where it led to. There seemed to be another room off to her right, with a thick curtain in front of it. Emmaline moved towards it but was startled when a voice suddenly rang out behind them.

"Beautiful isn't it? You just don't see homes like this anymore. It's a timeless classic." The African American man spoke, Emmaline assuming he was the agent she spoke to on the phone about the house. "Jim Evers of Evers and Evers Real Estate, devoted to helping you find the perfect house so you'll be happy for evers and evers." He stepped forward to shake Louisa's hand, a big smile plastered on his face. "You must be Miss. Deveraux."

Louisa eyed the man, looking completely unimpressed by his tardy behavior.

Emmaline stepped forward. "Actually I'm Miss. Deveraux. This is my mother Louisa Deveraux. It's nice to meet you." Emmaline shook the hand that was offered, since it was clear her mother was not inclined to shake his hand. She knew her mother did not appreciate lateness, so the man was now on her mother's bad side.

"Well, alright! Let me give you a tour of the place." Jim gestured for them to follow him.

Emmaline was in complete awe throughout the entire tour and couldn't wait to move in. She knew there was a possibility of hidden passages and she vowed to find them out. The attic was locked, but she was sure she could either pick it or have someone come in and take care of it for her.

Her mother seemed to be impressed, until they reached the backyard. "Emmaline... There's a cemetery back here..." Her mother drawled, her face blank.

"Hey, it happens. Some people have pools, others have private graveyards." Emmaline replied still cheerful. She reached out and held onto her mother's arm as she tried to book it. "Mama, they're dead. They're not going to come to life and get you."

Louisa scowled, clearly unamused by her daughter's joke. "That's not funny Emmaline."

Emmaline snickered as she gazed out over the grounds. "Look at all of them! It must extend for several miles! This must have been in the family for centuries!"

"Oh joy. There's lots of dead people in yard that have been there for hundred of years." Her mother droned. "The foundation is probably rotted."

"Mama, calm down. Mr. Evers, why is this place going so cheap? Isn't this one of the multi-million dollar homes that's also a very old house?"

Jim looked a bit uncomfortable. "By law I'm supposed to disclose any incidents that happened in the house. Apparently the last owner of the house... Well, he hung himself."

"What?!" Louisa squawked.

"He did? Why?"

Jim shrugged. "Some love affair or something or other. The house was in this guy's family for years until he died. No one wants to buy it because they all think it's haunted. Not that I believe that sort of thing. There are most certainly no ghosts in this house!"

There was a loud crash from somewhere inside, almost like the house was contradicting the statement.

While Louisa and Jim looked spooked, Emmaline looked elated. "Where do I sign?"