The Only Exception
I think you ought to stay away from here. There are ghosts in the walls and they crawl in your head through your ear. - unknown
Autumn was on her way back up to the house after a trip to the grocery store when she noticed it. She pulled the car over to the side of the driveway and just stared. "For Sale?" The sign was sitting innocuously in the snow near the base of the driveway, advertising Butterfield's Realty complete witha phone number.
Of course, that wasn't the number she was suddenly interested in. Pulling out her cell, she quickly punched in the digits for her uncle. As soon as he picked up, she snarled, "What the hell, Chuck? Are you just kicking me out of the house now?"
There was a moment of silence on his end and then, "Kicking you out? I thought you already went back to the city."
"Who the hell told you that nonsense?"
He sighed. "Karen did. She told me you had packed up your stuff and were heading home, so I was free to put the house on the market if I wanted. I guess a few people were really interested in it as a landmark piece of property."
"Charles, I'm still living here! I can't believe you fell for that," Autumn groaned. "That woman's been harassing me since I got here..."
"I'm really sorry, sweetie," he actually sounded concerned. "I'm gonna give her a call and straighten this mess out."
Autumn snapped her phone shut with a growl and tossed it on the passenger seat. Putting the car back in gear, she eased up to the house and pulled her butt out. Groceries in tow, she hustled through the door and dropped the bags onto the table before pacing the kitchen agitatedly.
"Curses!" she howled.
"On who, babes?" Betelgeuse popped his head into the kitchen and gave her a frightful grin. "You wanna put the stink on someone, just say the words."
The image of Karen Butterfield running around with snakes for hair that suddenly flew to mind made her grin inwardly, but she suppressed it. "You remember that god-awful woman who woke us up at the crack of dawn about selling the house?"
He nodded.
"Look outside."
Betelgeuse disappeared for a moment and when he returned, his eyes had taken on a dark cast. "Selling the place right out from under our noses eh?"
"I already called up my uncle, but I don't know if I can count on him to sort this out in a timely manner..."
"What do you say we give the wench a visit?" He waggled his eyebrows at her. She shook her head.
"Gods no! Have you forgotten that I have to answer for all your troublemaking now," she screeched. "I'll take care of that myself and...if she's really persistent then maybe I'll give you free reign to scare her skirt off. Until then, sit tight."
It wasn't difficult to find the house. Autumn stood outside on front stoop and raised her hand. After a breath to steady her resolve, she knocked. Loudly. Angrily. Repeatedly. Until the door opened and Ms. Butterfield appeared, looking startled.
"Goodness!" she exclaimed. "What's all this so late at night?"
"You tell me." Autumn muttered, fixing her with a dark glare. "Please explain the sign in front of my house."
Karen raised an eyebrow. "Your house? You mean your uncle's house. And he was more than happy to sell."
"Because you lied," Autumn insisted. "Why on earth would you tell him I'd left?"
All pretense at friendliness vanished from Karen's demeanor. "Winter River is a quiet town full of nice people, family types. Ever since you showed up, people have been uneasy. The last time we had some weirdos up at that house, all kinds of unsavory things were happening."
"Unsavory?" Autumn quirked a brow. "Elaborate, if you don't mind."
"Those Deetzes," the word came out of her mouth like a swear. "They brought all their fancy cars and did all that strange remodeling in the house. Your uncle was even considering buying out the town for some...supernatural exhibit!"
The young woman on the stoop scoffed. "Are you sure you aren't just making all this up? Starting a supernatural exhibit hardly sounds like the sort of venture my uncle would invest in. He's a business man, not a ghost hunter."
"Oh, he was serious all right," Karen smirked. "Complete loony, just like the rest of your family. And now you're here. But not for long - I've got a buyer for your haunted little house, Miss Deetz."
Rage was boiling just under Autumn's skin, but she kept it in check. She had her own ace in the hole. So instead, a fake smile plastered itself on her face. "We'll see about that. I've got some surprises for you too, Ms. Butterfield."
She turned to leave and then stopped, turning her head only slightly to glance back at the infuriating realtor. "Oh, that's right. About that strange man wandering about town lately. I thought I saw him coming from this block on my way down here..."
Once back in her car, Autumn let out a sigh of relief. Well, that was over. Now she could get out of the cold and windy night, curl up on the sofa with some hot cocoa, and veg out with some classic monster movies. Maybe Betelgeuse would want in on that...
"How'd it go, babes?"
"Fuck!" she shrieked, whirling around to face the backseat where said poltergeist was lounging carelessly. He raised his eyebrows at her. "Don't freaking scare me like that, you shit."
"Scare you?" he scoffed. "At least tell me you made her shit bricks."
Autumn huffed. "No such luck, but she showed her true colors. What a hag."
He sat up, all ears. "So I get to mess with 'er, right?"
"I'm seriously considering it."
That was the end of the conversation. For the rest of the evening, Betelgeuse and Autumn camped out on the sofa with popcorn, drinks, and Bela Lugosi's Dracula. It was calm and it was fun. For the first time in a long time, Autumn let all her stress melt away. Even if it was just for a night.
And if she did snuggle up to B after he dozed off next to her, well...who could blame her?
Hey all, sorry for the long absence and short chapter. This might drag on a bit longer than I imagined - good for all of you readers though. What do you want to have happen with the nasty realtor? Any ideas are totally welcome. Oh and...this little treasure for all you tonight:
According to Reader's Digest, every night you go to sleep without "praying" there's a 60% chance that unusual creatures stare at you during the night.
Sweet dreams.