The Deadliest Haunted Castle (10 page)

Mitchell resumed his pacing across
their path, leaving a faint trail over the late nineteenth century
carpet there, which the whole castle had as well as main other
modifications that allowed people to live there, which had been
added later on
–
including electrical lighting, kitchens, toilets, proper beds
...

They had found a generator that powered
everything, when they had tried to connect the generator that the
helicopter had brought in. Yet even with all the later technology
the castle remained the same, lost in time and trapped in a warp in
time.

Mitchell
’
s expressions barely ever altered
but now showed there was trouble ahead, and some of the time he was
in deep thought not quite mentally there.

Bryson wondered if any of them had been
confronted with such crimes before, and why they had?

In fact, after a careful examination of all
the people there he realized that he and the two psychic
researchers must have the most experience, especially from the
murders at the last castle! And he realized why they had wanted him
there and Merton had taken Mitchell up to get him, and he realized
that he could have a lot of problems ahead of him!

They were not experienced enough to conduct
an investigation, and the last time it was the police that had been
doing things and he had helped.

He was sure that Mitchell had some facts
about the killing that he was not revealing, and he tried to think
of what he would not say and what he would do! Yet there was little
to go at the moment and he left it for later.

There were many hidden facts to it and he
would wait until they surfaced, and stopped troubling himself.

The others were mainly discussing the
death but knew little, going by what they said. They were waiting
for something to occur and come to some conclusion
–
perhaps even
waiting for an argument to occur. Then perhaps they might get some
information to enlighten them about it.

Bryson gave occasional shudders from the
cold that came through the opened door. His lungs felt as if they
had sandpaper grated over them from breathing in the cold in his
room.

Merton and Mortimer sat at his sides,
silenced by the whole event, glimpsing the window as if they were
waiting for something and did not want to say anything.

Mitchell turned and coughed into a
handkerchief.

“
I don
’t
understand,
”
Merton argued,
“
why someone would
want to kill the guy? What did he not want us to find out by being
caught in the kitchen ...?
”

“
You could be right!
”
Mitchell replied.
“
Why did he not
want to be caught so much?
”

“
How did a stranger know about this
place? Who do you think he was?
”

“
I don
’
t know, but we
’
ll have to make sure it
doesn
’
t
happen again! Now knowing this place ... I could imagine him easily
as a lunatic ...
”

“
Are the cops coming
then?
”
Bryson asked, seeing the meeting there was to get everyone
informed on what was happening.

“
They
’
ll be arriving later today by
helicopter!
”
Mitchell answered, showing the situation was nothing to do
with him.

“
It
’
s going to be really tricky explaining the
place and the situation to them ...?
”

The police obviously might not accept the
full account and of what had happened to them in the wood, and it
clearly involved a horrendous crime ...

Mitchell turned his face away from the
fireplace and its yellow radiance flickered over his back, and
Bryson watched gray wisps of smoke rising up the chimney.

“
Anyway,
I wanted to ask you all ...
Did anyone see anyone near
this place?
”
Mitchell spoke, standing, and watching nobody move in the
room, and they all nodded that they never one by one.

If it had been one of them and not a
stranger then the person must have been missing when it took place
and he wondered about the people that he had not seen, and from
what Mortimer told them they had checked up on them and that there
was at least ten people there that never came in contact with
anyone when it took place, and had been sleeping, and Bryson
realized that they had made a mistake by not checking them at their
rooms to see if anyone had been missing, and he also realized that
they never thought it was them and that they would not have gone to
such lengths to carry anything out.

Bryson realized the infernal place now had a
killer, who had a motive to kill for, and they and all the evidence
had shown that the person could not be in the wood and was hidden
away somewhere in the colossal castle, and that they would have to
sleep there with him lurking in shadows.

Chapter 17

The Treasure
Quest

The entire castle was colossal and dangerous
beyond belief, even during the day, and they had checked all the
stuff that they had accumulated and found there had been many
occurrences and deaths during the day, and nobody seemed to want to
go into the unexplored regions, where they also thought the killer
lurked.

So when they started their investigations of
the castle it was in search of the treasure there and was organized
by Mitchell and he brought all his men, with Bryson and the two
psychic investigators, and some scientists and archaeologists, who
were curious what was in the unexplored regions.

They had been no further than the
central region, and region that they slept in on the second floor,
so Mitchell
’
s idea of going to the central region of the
top floor was really interesting.

Bryson climbed the stairs studying
everything, while curiously watching Mitchell as he followed him up
and occasionally listened to everyone else behind him, and Bryson
noticed that his surroundings seemed to get dirtier the further up
they went and by the time they reached the top they were sweeping
giant webs away, which seemed to increase in size, and he started
to consider there being dangerous spiders there.

“
Well,
”
Mitchell finally announced,
breaking his silence.
“
We now know that killer has not been here!
Though there must be other staircases up here, so we still have him
being about as a problem.
”

They entered the top floor and it looked
incredible to Bryson. It was like another world and like seeing a
real haunted place, place where supernatural existed, and he
considered it as being either one of the only places like it on the
planet or one of the most powerful places on the planet.

The corridor had to be the most ghostly
darkest places he had seen, and with freezing cold and snow it was
even more still, silent, and empty of life as was possible. Even
with the lights on there were strange haunting dark shadows and
glows that held secrets and dangers!

Some of Mitchell
’
s men insisted in announcing
their being there clearly to the killer, if he was up there, and
they insisted in leaving him until the police arrived. And even
though it was one of his men and he had directly attacked them, he
had escaped and it was a police matter! Though he was sure most of
them actually still intended to do something when they
could!

They grouped closely together and wander
down the corridor in the one direction with startled and amused
faces as they searched its interior, with faint thoughts of what it
would be like there at night. The place to everyone there seemed to
be the source of all the occurrences in the wood, and it at times
was like being in a central area where something existed that was
more powerful than anything else there, and perhaps on the planet,
and the stuff in the wood avoided going there because of its power
and that they were being checked and it had hidden intentions to do
things with them.

The treasure being hidden away there was
like something were using it to lure people there to their deaths,
and he wondered again if he would survive this adventure!

Merton wandered about offering anyone next
to him a cigarette, and spoke to them confidently, and they gave
startled expressions at their surroundings and what he actually
worked as and a famous leading investigator of psychic
occurrences.

Mitchell, Bryson noticed, was giving them
confidence and his wisdom in carrying out the task ahead, while
gently persuading them to do what he wished, and use their powers
of deduction to find clues or anything there. There main motivation
seemed to be money, and they were all positive that was what
motivated the killer there.

As they passed different rooms it became
clear that nobody had been there in many decades. Cobwebs and dirt
just about shrouded everything they met with!

Nothing showed any clues to what Bryson
wanted, and it made little sense.

The killer had to be ruthless and
carefree to have done it in the way that it had been done,
especially to one of Mitchell
’
s men. The person had done it under their
noses! Yet it could indicate that he never knew them or what they
were like?

From the looks that that he caught he knew
that the incident had affected them all. Some of them were
argumentative when they mentioned the dead guy, and he was sure
that they had not found any major clues.

Bryson touched his sore forehead with his
fingers feeling if the coldness had sunk into his brain.

He saw that it had still stopped snowing and
that there was a good chance, according to a forecast, that the
weather would stay that way until the night.

He wondered if the place had actually turned
people insane! He wondered if the killer had an interest in
anything else and if they were thinking of him as being only after
one thing.

A loud helicopter thud gradually emerged
away in the distance, and they all grew silent and considered the
arrival of the police, and at a window Bryson and some of the
others watched it and another three helicopters arrive, making them
even change their interest there to below the castle, where they
landed, and Bryson watched the faces of all the police and people
connected with them get out and looking about slightly amused but
mainly very curious, and some actually knowing some things about
the place, and he heard some of their communications blaring out as
they told of their arrival and what the place looked like.

The police had a hard time realizing what
they were dealing with, and Bryson listened to the person he was
sure was in charge of everything. He had clearly been communicating
with the police elsewhere in his helicopter.

“
We can separately look about
more,
”
Merton declared, clearly losing interest with looking out the
window.
“
We
can cover more ground ...
”

They all split up more and into groups,
going into rooms more, and searching more.

Bryson marched away himself straight to
where he thought one of the main rooms was, which was larger and
unusual, and he was sure it belonged to the owner that had
reconstructed the castle, if he had even lived there or had it
built for him before his death.

It was incredible how fast Mitchell rushed
after him, and he watched Merton follow him, seeing it was the most
interesting place to go.

The others mainly agreed to search the
corridor and to check paintings and antiques, which were really
ancient and valuable looking, especially being there and covered in
such dust and dirt.

The door to the room at first seemed locked
when Bryson reached it, before the other two had made it to him,
and he quickly confirmed it was locked before trying to shove it
in.

“
Curious!
”
Mitchell muttered.
“
Very curious!
It
’
s got a
lock and it
’
s locked!
”

Merton ducked and stuck his eye to the
keyhole and moved back, and asked,
“
We could wait and try to find a key,
which may not exist, or we could just break in?
”

“
Let
’
s break in!
”
Mitchell quickly replied
first.
“
What
’
s in there could be of great value! And if we
leave it someone else could get here first! This place is getting
more and more people ...
”

“
Alright!
”
Bryson replied.
“
The door can be replaced
anyway, if it
’
s of any value ...
”

Mitchell immediately left to nearby rooms
until he found what he wanted, and arrived with a large log of
wood, which had been in a fireplace, and used it to smash in the
lock and viciously shove it in, until the door screeched right open
and Bryson saw only darkness and then windows that were covered by
thick curtains, and dust flew down over them as they moved in and
they entered like they were entering a tomb.