The Haunting of Annabelle (3 page)

John watched the fleeting expressions that
crossed her face and felt compelled to question her further as they
started down the front steps.

“
Do you have any questions
concerning the supposed haunting?”

“
No,” she replied. “No
conclusive evidence has ever proven that ghosts actually exist. I
have to think that if they do, they can’t really do us any harm. If
troubled spirits are present in this house because they never
passed over, it’s not something I can control. This house is going
to have a change in ownership, painting and decorating. Perhaps
this will be the catalyst, which will move it on. I must admit that
if something is present, helping it to move on does appeal to
me.”

Edward understood her reasoning but didn’t
want this line of conversation to continue. He wanted her in his
office the next day to sign the preliminary papers. So shaking
hands and saying goodbye to John, he placed her in his car. By the
time they arrived back at the hotel, the details of the property
transfer had been ironed out and a meeting was set for the next
day.

***

A month later, she sat in her condominium
recovering from the whirlwind that had taken place after her first
walk-through of the estate. The building inspection passed with
excellence. The deposit was accepted and papers had been signed.
Not long after settlement took place, more papers were signed,
money was exchanged and she found herself the proud owner of a
bed-and-breakfast.

Her portfolio of notes on room sizes, marble
colors of the various fireplaces, and a million other details sat
atop the desk. Multiple contractors were scheduled to paint her
color selections for the walls, carpeting for guest rooms, and
other details before the actual furnishings would follow. She had
the keys in one hand and a picture of the estate in the other, when
she felt a slight shiver go through her. Her imagination continued
to touch on the supposed haunting, and she wondered if it would be
a draw or a deterrent of her budding business venture. Only time
would tell, as she once again started to make a new list of what
she would need for the next several months. She would be staying on
site to monitor the painting and landscaping she wanted to put in
place. She was going to need more than an overnight case and she
didn’t want to leave anything behind.

***

The key turned slowly and she entered the
estate’s front doors. Looking around, she smiled with pleasure — it
felt good to be back. The drive from the city was tiring, but she’d
wanted to bring her car so she would have access to the town and
surrounding area. Taking her bags up to the master suite, she kept
one ear open for the delivery truck that would be bringing her
bedroom furniture. There was no way she’d be sleeping here without
her own creature comforts. She’d be working hard and needed her
rest.

Chapter 9

The shower felt wonderful. Warm water
cascaded over her head and shoulders and behind her closed eyelids;
she went over the day’s work. She had accomplished quite a lot as
the first week ended. Mentally ticking off the finished rooms, she
knew that the first floor painting and improvements were done. The
contractors would be moving on to this floor to work on the
bedrooms. Her suite would be the last finished. She wanted to get
the rest of the house done first. As she reached for the shampoo,
her fingers passed through coldness and she suddenly opened her
eyes. Looking around, she had the strangest feeling that someone
was watching her. Shaking her head, she put it down to imagination.
She’d been here for a week now and nothing had occurred. Stepping
out of the shower, she wrapped a short towel around her hair and
grabbed another to dry the rest of her. The skin moisturizer was
waiting on the vanity and as it was absently applied, her thoughts
started to wander again to her plans. Yawning, she entered the
bedroom and grabbed a pair of white cotton panties. She was just
too tired to put on a pair of pajamas. Climbing under the sheets,
she fluffed her pillows and turned off the light. Sleep claimed her
in mere minutes.

Time passed and everything was quiet. Deeply
asleep, she didn’t see the door opening or the impression of
footfalls on the carpet that crossed the room to the bed. For a
moment, nothing else happened and then the sheet that covered
Annabelle began to move down until it finally pooled onto the floor
at the end of the bed.

Annabelle mumbled in her sleep, and went
from lying flat out on her stomach to flipping over onto her back,
as she stretched across the bed. She settled back into a deep sleep
with a sigh as her fingers flexed slightly. Suddenly, her nipples
started to move on their own, and the impression of invisible
fingers could be seen massaging and tugging at the hardening
tips.

“
Mmm…” she muttered in her
sleep, as the tip of her tongue ran over her dry bottom
lip.

Minutes passed, and silently Annabelle’s
panties began to move down her hips. They continued sliding past
her legs until they finally joined the sheet on the floor. It was
then that her legs were slowly pulled apart, and her womanhood was
slightly moved around by an unseen force.

Annabelle’s eyes began rolling under the
eyelids, undoubtedly a hint of a wonderful dream as the erotic
assault continued.

Annabelle’s erect clitoris was peeking out
of the hood of her delicate folds of skin and could be seen moving
back and forth, as it glistened in the moonlight. She was
definitely aroused as the moisture began pooling between her
thighs.

“
Mmm…mmm…oh yes,” she
whispered in her sleep.

Unconsciously, she opened her legs wider as
if responding to the supposed dream she was experiencing. It was
then that her womanhood parted wider as if something big was
entering her. Her moans of pleasure were now becoming more
pronounced, but as something began to lift her legs off the bed,
she suddenly woke up.

She felt the sensation of falling as her
legs dropped to the bed. Meanwhile, the apparition left the
room.

Annabelle sprang up in bed believing that
she’d just experienced a vivid dream and discovered that the bed
beneath her hips was damp. For a moment, she didn’t even realize
that her panties had been removed or that the sheet was on the
floor. Then she felt the moistness trickling between her legs, and
stood up to recover the sheet from the floor. It was then that she
found her panties and looked around the room.

Did something supernatural
just happen to me
? She thought.

Shaking her head, she put it down to an
overactive imagination. She must have pulled her panties down
because of the intenseness of her dream. It was the only
explanation which made any sense. After settling back in the bed,
she soon returned to sleep, definitely unfulfilled but with no
further incidence of anything reoccurring that night.

Chapter 10

The next morning Annabelle
was kept busy giving directions to the contractors and making final
adjustments for the next floor. She had all but forgotten her crazy
dream. She decided to throw her energy into the work ahead. At
midday, she took a break and decided to have her lunch down at the
lake. With that in mind, she made a few sandwiches, packed a small
flask of sweetened iced tea and left the building. As she walked
down the driveway, she turned back to admire her new investment,
and could swear she saw a man standing in front of the fourth floor
window watching her.
The contractors
shouldn’t be up there yet,
she thought,
but continued on, thinking that perhaps the supervisor was checking
out the work ahead.

She heard a car coming around the turn, at
the end of her driveway. She turned to see a neighbor coming up the
road and forgot about the figure standing in the window.

“
Where are you off to,
Annabelle?” said her neighbor after the car window slid
down.

“
I’m just taking a walk
down to the lake, I thought I’d have a bite to eat down there for
my lunch break,” replied Annabelle.

“
Well hop in, I’m driving
past there.”

Annabelle never looked a gift horse in the
mouth. She climbed in and they chatted, soon she was being dropped
off near the lakeshore. Saying her thanks, she continued across the
grass and on to the water, pleased to see benches strategically
positioned all around the lake. She made a beeline to an empty
bench shaded by oak trees. Sitting down and taking a sandwich out
of her cold bag, she started to munch around the corners of the
bread and admired the picturesque view. The peace wasn’t to last
long though, for minutes later she heard a greeting called from
behind, and found a couple of elderly strangers slowly approaching
her spot.

“
Hello there, do you mind
if we join you? My husband and I always come here a few days each
week to feed the ducks and to enjoy the scenery,” said the
woman.

Annabelle estimated their age to be
somewhere in the ninety range and was moved to see that they still
held hands when walking.

“
I don’t mind at all, in
fact if you’d like to have the seat, I could move on,” replied
Annabelle.

“
Oh no my dear, that won’t
be necessary, we’d enjoy your company.”

Annabelle moved to the end of the bench
giving them more than enough room to join her. The ducks on the
lake apparently recognized the couple as a small group began
swimming in their direction. Annabelle watched as they arrived,
quaking their arrival. The elderly lady proceeded to baby-talk back
as her husband gave her slices of bread to break into pieces and
toss in their direction. Her husband kept the food coming until the
last slice was gone. He folded the empty bag and as the ducks
appeared to quack a final approval as they headed back to the
water.

“
So my dear…what brings
you here, are you on vacation?” said the woman, as she brushed a
bit of bread from her fingers.

“
No, I’ve purchased and am
renovating the large house on top of the hill with a prospect of
turning it into a bed-and-breakfast,” replied Annabelle.

“
Oh…do you mean the
haunted manor?”

“
What makes you call it
that?” said Annabelle, interested in what the old lady
knew.

“
There was a murder there
some seventy years ago. Apparently the wife poisoned her husband,
the reason why was never discovered. Anyway, since then, the
property has changed hands several times. The previous owners never
stayed for more than a year before putting it up for sale again. It
was vacant for about five years until the last owner, Mr. John
Andrews, purchased it. It’s my understanding that he’s one of the
remaining descendants of the original owners. I’d say he’s been
here for about the last twenty years and word was that he was going
to make improvements before putting it on the market.”

Annabelle said, “He and his real estate
agent, Edward Davis, gave me a tour of the estate. At the end of
the tour, Mr. Andrews advised me that it may be haunted, but I
never paid much heed. If there is something haunting the building,
I’ve had little evidence of it. Now that you tell me the story, I
can’t help wondering if it’s the original owner and he’s in need of
help. Perhaps he can’t cross over or he has some unfinished
business,” finished Annabelle.

“
Maybe, but whatever the
answer, it’s quite refreshing to see someone who’s actually
concerned about the ghost as opposed to being frightened by it,”
replied the Lady.

“
I’ve never believed that
ghosts can actually harm anyone. In fact, I’ve always thought that
if they were present, their only wish would be to interact with the
living. As of yet no one has tried to contact me, but I do keep
hearing things. There are some cold spots in the house and I
thought I saw someone in the upper bedroom window, but I’m certain
it was one of the men working on the house.”

“
By the way, I’m Nancy and
this is my husband, Geoffrey,” said Nancy.

“
I’m Annabelle, pleased to
meet you both.”

“
Oh that is so weird…,”
said Nancy, surprised.

“
What…my name?” replied
Annabelle?

“
Oh no my dear, I mean the
fact that your name is the same as the woman who poisoned her
husband in that very house you’re renovating. I believe that his
name was Richard.”

“
Wow…that is weird. What a
coincidence; but still, when you think about it, it was a popular
name years ago,” replied Annabelle, shrugging it off. “Well, I need
to get back. I have a few more hours of work to get in before
stopping for the day. It was a pleasure to meet you both…you have a
nice day.”

With that, Annabelle was up, gave a smile
and started to walk back up to the road. On the way, back she
couldn’t help but notice all the old buildings lining the main
road. Even from a distance she could tell that they’d all been well
looked after. With lawns that were perfect and trees that lined the
road on either side, it was quite an idyllic place to live.

Fifteen minutes later Annabelle was walking
up her own drive, and taking note of all the things that needed
attention. The weeds around some of the bushes needed seeing to,
and there were a few cracks in the driveway itself. Overall though,
the property was well kept, and these were just odd jobs that she’d
get to eventually.