The Calling: A Paranormal Mystery Vol. I
Read The Calling: A Paranormal Mystery Vol. I Online
Authors: Daria Kacie
The Calling
A Paranormal Mystery
Daria Kacie
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Copyright © 2014 Daria Kacie
Quantum Life Publishing
Meridian, ID 83642
Quantumlifepublishing.com
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13:978-0692236970 (Quantum Life Publishing)
ISBN-10:069223697X
This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
To my family and friends who have supported me in all my endeavors, big and small.
Karen, happy to have a day off after working a long night shift at the hospital, caught up on some housework. Her brown wavy hair loosely pulled back, she avoided make up for the day. Karen walked briskly to the door having heard four knocks. Swinging the door open, ready to greet the visitor, she found only empty space.
Kids
, she thought. Stepping outside into the warm sun, the street was empty and silent. She needed to get the laundry folded before Brandi and Billy, her children, arrived home from school. Karen loved her little house. She bought it two years prior after her divorce. It had not been easy to end her 15 year marriage but she knew she had to for her sanity. Being single had it’s challenges but she was proud of her accomplishments and had a positive view about her future. A diehard romantic, Karen knew the right man was out there for her. She folded the cloths separating them into three baskets.
Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! The aggressive pounding on her front door pierced the silence once again. Looking out the windows this time as she rushed to the door, she saw no one outside. She whipped open the door and was once again met with empty space. “Knock it off you kids or I’ll be talking to your parents!” she yelled into the empty street. Back in the laundry room, she began folding the final basket of clothes. Slamming the shirt on the counter she folded it very precisely and pressed it into Billy’s basket. Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! This time, the knocking came aggressively, form behind her. The sound did not come from outside, it came from inside. Her muscles tensed from the shock of the sound to the point of pain. She had no time to think. She bolted through the house and right out the front door into the middle of her lawn. Standing in the middle of the yard, trying to catch her breath, she wondered what had just happened. Billy and Brandi stopped on the sidewalk when they saw their mother burst through the front door, run to the middle of the yard, and stop.
“Mom? What are you doing?” Brandi asked. Karen wasn’t sure what she was doing. She didn’t want to alarm the children and she was annoyed at the same time.
“That wasn’t funny!” she snapped at Brandi.
“What wasn’t funny, Mom?”
“Were you kids around the side of the house just now?”
“No,” they both said simultaneously. “Why?”
“It’s nothing,” Karen said as she headed back into the house. “Get inside and get changed, we have to be at your dad’s by 5:00.”
Billy, a wiry twelve year old, described as a ‘mellow kid’ by the adults who loved him looked quickly at his sister. Brandi, a quiet redhead in her senior year of high school made it her business to watch out for her little brother. They both rolled their eyes at each other as they went to their rooms to change clothes and get ready to leave for the weekend. Karen pushed herself to the back of the couch attempting to slow down her pounding heart by breathing through her nose.
Maybe it was a pipe
, she thought.
Houses settle, right? Yes, they settle and make noise, that’s all it is. On the other hand, maybe it was one of the neighbor kids messing around.
Feeling some relief and concluding that she was overreacting to noises made by a settling house, she grabbed her purse and put on some lipstick.
Karen’s thoughts raced through her mind as she drove the children to their father’s house. Her eyes darted around, landing on passing cars and their drivers but all she could think about was the knocking. She was wondered why she had felt so scared and ended up in the middle of the yard.
Fight or flight
, she thought,
apparently, I’m a “flighter”.
“Mom? Mom!” Brandi raised her voice to get Karen’s attention.
“What?” Karen snapped back.
“God! What’s wrong Mom?”
“Nothing Brandi, I just have a lot on my mind and want to make sure I have you to your dad’s on time.” Brandi, seeing her mother’s obvious agitation decided she didn’t need to poke Mama Bear. She wanted to ask more questions about why they found her in the middle of the yard when they got home from school but decided not to pursue it any further.
Karen waved as her children entered their father’s house. She drove home having been gone less than an hour. Approaching the front door, a strange feeling of uneasiness crept into her belly. She opened the door slowly and could hear water running.
What is going on?
She said to herself as she approached the kitchen. The water was running full blast into the kitchen sink.
There is no way I left this on, or did I?
She turned the water off in the kitchen and then could hear the water running in the bathroom. Feeling her stomach begin to tie into a tight knot, Karen cautiously walked toward the bathroom. The water in the sink and bathtub were running full blast. She quickly shut the water down and rushed for the door. Like wringing a cloth out, she felt her insides begin to twist and tighten. She tried to ignore it but she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone or something was watching her. She grabbed her purse and keys and locked the door. It seemed like her feet barely touched the ground as she quickly slid into her car. She headed to Lizzy’s house.
“Hellooooo!” sang Lizzy as she opened the door to find Karen waiting outside. “What’s up?”
“I just dropped the kids off at their dad’s and didn’t feel like spending Friday night alone with nothing to do.”
“Well come on in,” Lizzy motioned Karen through the door. “I don’t know that it will be all that exciting here but we can figure out something to do!”
Karen and Lizzy, friends since high school, knew pretty much everything about each other. Lizzy had been a year ahead in school but only three months older. With the big "Four O” coming they joked they would hover at 39 for a few years before officially ‘crossing over’. It was a long-standing relationship with over 25 years of history. Lizzy and Karen were more than friends; they were family. Karen generally felt she could tell Lizzy anything and everything. Over the years, she had done just that. As she sorted out how to tell Lizzy what had happened and why she had come over but was petering out. She was beginning to feel a little silly about her earlier experience at home.
The kids must have left the water on in the bathroom when they were changing,
she thought trying to convince herself there was a logical explanation.
One of things Lizzy always admired about Karen is that she wasn’t uptight. She was steady, positive and dependable. When she arrived, Lizzy noticed her face looked strained. Her energy was off and Lizzy knew it.
“What’s up? You seem weird,” Lizzy’s feelings were usually right on.
“Nothing, I’m tired is all,” Karen said as convincingly as she could. She decided that she had no desire to get into the story. She wanted to forget it and believe her house was settling, or kids were playing tricks in the neighborhood. It was just like Karen to hold back. Lizzy broke open a bottle of red wine. Karen began to relax after the first glass.
Surely, I let my imagination run away with me,
Karen thought
.
She decided to leave it alone and enjoy the evening. After the second glass of wine, Lizzy convinced Karen to stay over and Karen was happy to do so. Even though she had decided she had been overreacting earlier, she had no desire to to go home, by herself, and confront her house in the dark.
Lizzy was starting to feel the onset of a good wine buzz. She cranked up some George Thorogood and started belting out Bad to the Bone while playing air guitar in the middle of the living room. Both now laughing they chatted about their week. In typical Karen fashion, she left the day’s incident out of the conversation. Karen held things inside just a little too long as far as Lizzy was concerned. When she would finally reveal a difficult situation, it had usually been going on for quite some time. This trait was a little maddening for Lizzy but after 25 years, she was used to it. The evening wore on with the women singing and dancing through the house. They finally turned in about 2:00 a.m.
Turned out to be a pretty good Friday night after all, thought Karen as she drifted off to sleep. The next thing Karen noticed was the smell of coffee hitting her nostrils.
“And I’m up!” she said jumping from the bed with her arms in the air like a gymnast on her final dismount. Lizzy was at the kitchen table holding her head.
“Seriously,” Karen said, “you’re hung over?”
“I know, I know,” Lizzy whispered loudly. “I’m a light weight! It saves me from alcoholism…”
The statement wasn’t too far from the truth. Addiction ran rampant through her family tree. The price she paid for even the slightest bit of overindulgence kept her from drinking much or often.
“Well, your ‘George’ was in a party mood last night!” Karen said chuckling at her friend.
Lizzy smiled and sipped her coffee as she pointed to the cup on the counter.
“Get yourself a cup of coffee but if you’re going to insist on talking, do it quietly.”
Karen shook her head as she poured her coffee. “Thanks for the slumber party. It was a fun night.”
“No problem. You know I live to entertain you!” Lizzy winced and went back to sipping her coffee. There was little talking for the next half hour as Lizzy nursed her hang over.
Lizzy’s head was throbbing as she stood at the door and waved goodbye to Karen. She took one look in the mirror and figured she should comb her hair and wash the makeup off her eyes. She made a piece of toast and decided staying up wasn’t an option. She had just crawled back into bed hoping to fall back to sleep when the phone rang. It was Karen.
“Lizzy, ” she began to cry, "Lizzy, you have to come over here right now!”
“What’s wrong?” Lizzy could hear panic in Karen’s voice.
“Please just get here right now! I’m in my car in the driveway.”
Lizzy downed some aspirin and quickly threw on jeans and a T-shirt. She was in such a rush she didn’t realize her shirt was inside out.
What could be wrong this early in the morning?
Her friend was in some kind of trouble, that’s all she needed to know.
Lizzy’s car slid a little in the gravel driveway as she parked behind Karen’s car. Karen immediately jumped out of her car. When Lizzy saw her, she panicked, thinking one of the kids had been hurt or someone had died. Karen’s eyes were red from crying and her face was ashen.
“What in the world?” Lizzy gasped as she pulled her friend into a bear hug. Karen began to cry again and was having a hard time catching her breath.
“Breathe! Breathe! It will be ok. Tell me what’s happening!”
Karen leaned against her car and took a couple of deep breaths. She pointed toward the house. Lizzy could see the front door was open. “Were you robbed?” Karen shook her head no. “Is someone in there?” Lizzy asked in alarm. Karen shrugged her shoulders.
Karen finally croaked, “I don’t know what is going on and I’m not sure I can go in the house.” Lizzy raised her left eyebrow, clearly confused.
“When I got home,” Karen said softly, “and opened the door...” she trailed off. Karen gathered herself together, grabbed Lizzy’s hand and began walking slowly toward the door.
At the entrance Karen stopped. The two women peered inside. Lizzy could see right away there was something wrong. She could see the dining room chairs laying in the living room forming the shape of a cross. In front of the door, all of Karen’s pictures that had hung on the living room walls were stacked neatly in a pile. “Do you hear that?” Karen whispered, “The water is running again.”
“Again?” Lizzy whispered back. Karen nodded. Lizzy began playing scenarios in her mind.
Had some kids had broken into the house the night before to play a prank?
Lizzy slowly pulled the screen door, squeaking as it opened. Karen reached out and stopped her.
“Lizzy, I don’t think I can go in there.”
Lizzy’s mind began to race.
What if they were still in there?
“You’re right. I’m going to call the police.”
Karen nodded and they both ran for Karen’s car. Lizzy climbed into the passenger seat and quickly locked her door as Karen locked the others and called 911. Fifteen minutes later two large police officers in crisp dark blue uniforms arrived and cautiously entered the house. It was empty. All the water faucets were on full tilt. The officers searched each room, turning the faucets off as they went. They couldn’t help but notice the pile of pictures on the living room floor along with dining room chairs that seemed staged to look like a cross. The chairs were in the middle of the living room on their backs with their feet touching.
Walking through the kitchen they found all the cupboards and drawers in the house opened or pulled out onto the floor. Clearly, something had gone on in the house but neither officer knew what exactly. With a little coaxing, they were able to get Karen into the house to confirm whether anything was missing. Karen verified that everything was still there. It didn’t appear that one thing was missing and the Officers found that strange. They made their report of a break in, a break in with no forced entry.
“Are you sure you didn’t leave the door unlocked when you left last night?” The taller of the two officers asked Karen.
“No! I know I locked up!”
“Some kids probably noticed you weren’t home and decide to play a trick on you. There does not appear to be any evidence of forced entry. Usually in cases like this a door or window has been left open. They look for an easy mark essentially, and then have a party at the owner’s expense.”
“I’m not sure that makes sense to me,” said Lizzy. “What kids come into a house, take nothing, leave the booze untouched, take pictures off the walls and turn on all the water? Doesn’t sound like any kind of party we ever had!”
Karen began doubting herself. She had left hastily and was shook up from the knocking she heard the day before.
No, I am sure I locked up. Plus, why was the water running again? I know I did not do that.
“No. I am sure I locked up before I left,” Karen said very pointedly.
The Officers were nice enough to turn the water off in the kitchen and bathrooms. They helped move the chairs back to the dining room table. They made it clear they believed the whole thing was neighborhood kids messing around.
As the shorter, and more attractive of the two officers headed out the door, he remarked to Lizzy, “Nice shirt.” She saw a big white smile pull across his face and a little mischief in his eyes.
Lizzy looked down, and for the first time realized her shirt was inside out. She felt her face getting hot and rolled her eyes as she remarked back sarcastically, “Same to ya.”
“I’m Dan,” he said as he pulled a card from his dark blue pocket and handed it to Lizzy. Lizzy knew her face was bright red by now as the embarrassment of her clothing mishap sunk in.
What a dork!
She chastised herself.
Here I am with this attractive officer and I'm standing here like a dolt, hung over, no makeup and my shirt inside out! Oh God! And my hair!
It was almost too much for her to stand. She tried to act cool but was sure she was not pulling it off.
“If you hear of anything or about anyone who might have done this, give me call,” Dan said now with a more serious demeanor.
“Sure,” said Lizzy avoiding his gaze.
“Uh, regardless, if you’d like, just call me,” he said a little nervously.
“Uh, OK but isn’t it your job to ‘hear’ and find out ‘who’ did this?” Lizzy shot back, not realizing he was flirting with her.
“We’ll do our best but as you can see, there isn’t a lot here to go on. Try to have a nice day,” said Dan feeling like he blundered moved quickly past her getting to his cruiser as quickly as possible.
She wanted to run screaming into a closet as she watched Officer Dan leave the premises.
Karen sat silently on the couch. Lizzy slumped down next to her and started pulling off her T-shirt to turn it right side out.
“Karen, what do you think is going on here?”
Karen didn’t respond.
“Karen, talk to me!” urged Lizzy.
“I think it’s a spirit,” Karen said flatly.
Now Lizzy was silent.
“Well Lizzy? What do you think of that?”
“I don’t know what to think. Are you trying to tell me you think your house is haunted?”
“I don’t think some person did this to my house,” Karen sighed. “You think I’m crazy don’t you?”
“Of course I do!” laughed Lizzy as she took the opportunity to lighten the mood. “I’m kidding Karen. You know, I know, you’re not crazy! The thing is, you’ve never said anything about this. Have you been holding out on me?”
“I never had an issue until yesterday,” Karen answered.
“Yesterday? What happened yesterday and why didn’t you say something last night?”
“It was a long story I didn’t want to go into last night. I thought I was imagining things.”
“So, you’ve been living here for a couple of years, and then all of a sudden you’re having paranormal activity in your house?”
“Yes,” said Karen. She got up from the couch and moved toward the kitchen as Lizzy followed.
“Has something recently changed? Do you feel threatened?” pushed Lizzy. She felt a little frightened and intrigued.
Karen shrugged her shoulders again as she closed cupboards and pushed drawers back into place. Softly she said, “I don’t know what to think. Yesterday, I was alone in the house and I heard knocking. I thought someone was at the door. When I got to the door there was no one there. I was back in the laundry room folding clothes and then four loud knocks sounded like they were right behind me. They sounded like they were coming from inside the room. Then after I dropped the kids off and came home, all the faucets were running full blast. I tried to blow it off like the kids left the water on, but my gut told me that wasn’t the case. It all scared the shit out of me! That was one of the reasons I came over to your house.”
Lizzy had always been sensitive and had never once felt any weird energy at Karen’s house. Lizzy’s sensitivity to energy and people had heightened as a teenager. She would often get scared because the anxiety would build insider her to a fevered pitch until she wanted to scream. She could feel something was wrong but never knew exactly what.
How is that helpful
? she had asked God a hundred times. Karen knew that Lizzy had some kind psychic and precognitive abilities. She had known her long enough to see outcomes of many of Lizzy’s predictions come true. It never bothered her, but she knew there were times that it did bother Lizzy.