WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.359 --> 00:00:04.679 It took three calls to the Sheriff's office for them 2 00:00:04.679 --> 00:00:08.160 to finally take me seriously, sir. They would say, we 3 00:00:08.199 --> 00:00:11.400 can't send an officer out there for that. It's Friday night. 4 00:00:11.640 --> 00:00:14.359 Her last officer is on a call. We'll follow up 5 00:00:14.359 --> 00:00:18.199 on Monday, all right, But it wasn't all right. Those 6 00:00:18.199 --> 00:00:20.440 sounds in the attic. I knew it wasn't all right, 7 00:00:21.359 --> 00:00:26.440 But eventually the police also figured it out. My name 8 00:00:26.519 --> 00:00:33.159 is Edwin, and here's a scary story. 9 00:00:34.560 --> 00:00:35.679 I sleep like a rock. 10 00:00:36.280 --> 00:00:38.759 People joke about me being able to sleep under a 11 00:00:38.799 --> 00:00:41.600 train track, but there are certain noises that wake me up. 12 00:00:42.399 --> 00:00:46.159 A rattling door, knob keys, jingling, or the dreadful squeak 13 00:00:46.200 --> 00:00:49.399 of the third floor board by the front door. It 14 00:00:49.479 --> 00:00:53.159 was a Monday, actually, now that I remember, two little 15 00:00:53.200 --> 00:00:55.399 taps came from the attic while I was dozing off 16 00:00:55.399 --> 00:00:58.920 in the living room. Miles days were like that. I 17 00:00:58.920 --> 00:01:01.520 would come home, doze off with the TV on a 18 00:01:01.640 --> 00:01:04.920 super low volume, and once my eye somehow caught that 19 00:01:04.959 --> 00:01:08.120 it was getting dark out, boom, I would be awake 20 00:01:08.200 --> 00:01:11.799 and alert as if nothing had happened, but it was 21 00:01:11.799 --> 00:01:15.159 still full daylight out. The television was still playing on 22 00:01:15.200 --> 00:01:18.239 a weird game show with an uncomfortable model or co 23 00:01:18.359 --> 00:01:22.159 host on it smiling at the camera, the producers would 24 00:01:22.200 --> 00:01:25.519 hold the shot a little too long on her, so 25 00:01:25.560 --> 00:01:28.120 I'd looked at the TV for a little bit, unaware 26 00:01:28.120 --> 00:01:31.359 of what was going on. Immediately after these two taps, 27 00:01:31.920 --> 00:01:34.719 I noticed that I had even stopped breathing when it happened, 28 00:01:35.120 --> 00:01:36.799 so I wouldn't miss it if it happened again. 29 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:39.079 Right away, I thought about how. 30 00:01:39.040 --> 00:01:41.159 It could have been from the door or a window, 31 00:01:41.439 --> 00:01:45.000 but no, this thing had come from upstairs and just stopped. 32 00:01:46.079 --> 00:01:49.280 So I waited and waited. That's just how certain I 33 00:01:49.439 --> 00:01:51.280 was that the noise was coming from up there. 34 00:01:51.879 --> 00:01:52.280 Yaddic. 35 00:01:53.799 --> 00:01:58.120 Then I heard something again, the soft sound of a latch. 36 00:01:59.120 --> 00:02:01.680 I couldn't explain it. B knew for a fact that 37 00:02:01.719 --> 00:02:04.640 I had come for my attic A bird. I thought 38 00:02:05.599 --> 00:02:07.439 wouldn't be the first time that a bird would pet 39 00:02:07.480 --> 00:02:10.759 at the wooden frame out for the entrance. The house 40 00:02:10.800 --> 00:02:13.199 had a strange store up there on the outside instead 41 00:02:13.199 --> 00:02:15.439 of the inside. I asked about it when I got 42 00:02:15.439 --> 00:02:18.719 the house, and I remember the realtor taking my question 43 00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:21.560 as a joke. I assumed every other house in this 44 00:02:21.599 --> 00:02:24.879 wooded neighborhood had the maide this way, I knew, had 45 00:02:24.879 --> 00:02:28.039 some other quirky additions too, things that I had never 46 00:02:28.080 --> 00:02:31.639 heard about, like a bare watch community group, two types 47 00:02:31.639 --> 00:02:35.879 of sheds, one for weapons and a normal one. Sure 48 00:02:35.919 --> 00:02:38.159 direct question what the heck I was doing out there, 49 00:02:38.240 --> 00:02:40.759 But like many people who were either past their homes 50 00:02:40.759 --> 00:02:46.360 down or were there by choice, the reasons existed. I 51 00:02:46.400 --> 00:02:48.400 wanted to get away from things, and a life a 52 00:02:48.400 --> 00:02:51.400 little ways out of the city seemed to fit. It's 53 00:02:51.439 --> 00:02:53.520 not like I changed my mind now, But amongst all 54 00:02:53.560 --> 00:02:57.680 the silence, I understood more of the paranoia, the stereotypes 55 00:02:57.719 --> 00:03:00.599 of people that liked to live out there. But those 56 00:03:00.639 --> 00:03:04.719 two taps, clear as day, I swear, sounded unlike anything 57 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:07.520 else I had heard in that house. I've heard the 58 00:03:07.520 --> 00:03:09.560 wood pop when the sun begins to beat on it 59 00:03:09.599 --> 00:03:12.240 in the middle of the day. I've heard the raccoons 60 00:03:12.280 --> 00:03:15.639 out on the roof, the woodpeckers, the branches that somehow 61 00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:19.159 managed to make it to my roof every autumn. And 62 00:03:19.199 --> 00:03:20.840 I didn't want to let my mind roam a little 63 00:03:20.879 --> 00:03:23.800 too much. That night, I'd been a tough weekend and 64 00:03:23.919 --> 00:03:27.759 started the week already. I let my eyes wander up 65 00:03:27.759 --> 00:03:30.439 towards the ceiling as if I'd be able to magically 66 00:03:30.560 --> 00:03:33.719 use X ray vision, but instead I rolled them up 67 00:03:33.759 --> 00:03:36.319 by myself. I grabbed the remote and turn up the 68 00:03:36.360 --> 00:03:39.479 volume two more levels, looking once again at the woman 69 00:03:39.520 --> 00:03:42.360 in the red dress on TV. For I got up 70 00:03:42.360 --> 00:03:48.000 to cook up some dinner. It was Tuesday morning now, 71 00:03:48.439 --> 00:03:51.960 and my house felt full. It was a strange feeling, 72 00:03:52.280 --> 00:03:54.520 considering no one else had lived in this place but me. 73 00:03:55.639 --> 00:03:58.360 All my life had been this way, knowing exactly where 74 00:03:58.360 --> 00:04:03.199 my things are, Who comes, who goes? Hint, it's just me, 75 00:04:04.520 --> 00:04:07.479 But not that day, like someone else was breathing my 76 00:04:07.599 --> 00:04:11.240 air or the body heat, that uncomfortable feeling you get 77 00:04:11.280 --> 00:04:13.639 when you sit on the warmth of someone else on 78 00:04:13.719 --> 00:04:17.480 the bus or a waiting room. That's how all of 79 00:04:17.519 --> 00:04:21.720 this started. Yes, of course, that's how it started, completely logical, 80 00:04:22.079 --> 00:04:28.240 at least in my mind, until everything became strange. It 81 00:04:28.279 --> 00:04:31.079 was a Wednesday afternoon, the same TV show was on. 82 00:04:31.360 --> 00:04:34.680 A roulette was spinning between two colors, yellow and purple. 83 00:04:35.439 --> 00:04:38.120 Everyone was cheering, and yet the camera was still zooming 84 00:04:38.160 --> 00:04:40.800 in on the woman, and I hadn't bothered to change 85 00:04:40.800 --> 00:04:43.439 the volume back down, so it was higher than normal, 86 00:04:43.959 --> 00:04:48.319 and yet without a doubt. A series of thumping steps 87 00:04:48.399 --> 00:04:50.439 rushed from one side of the ceiling to the other. 88 00:04:50.839 --> 00:04:53.199 I stood up and reached for the fireplace poker, that 89 00:04:53.319 --> 00:04:56.720 metal stick, and I held on to it firmly. My 90 00:04:56.800 --> 00:04:58.720 heart was on my throat by this point, and a 91 00:04:58.800 --> 00:05:01.199 rush of cold blood was begu to dissipate away from 92 00:05:01.199 --> 00:05:05.680 my chest. It flicked off the television automatically. You went 93 00:05:05.720 --> 00:05:08.680 outside to look at the roof. The window, the same 94 00:05:08.720 --> 00:05:11.199 one that served as the entrance to the attic, was shut, 95 00:05:11.480 --> 00:05:14.879 though from all the scratches or sun damage, all I 96 00:05:14.920 --> 00:05:19.319 could see was a foggy white glass. I ran inside 97 00:05:19.399 --> 00:05:21.639 the house again and looked around the living room and 98 00:05:21.680 --> 00:05:24.800 the pantry. I searched the closets, every last corner of 99 00:05:24.800 --> 00:05:26.920 the place, and searched for a door or an entry 100 00:05:26.959 --> 00:05:30.680 to the attic. There were animals up there. Could they 101 00:05:30.680 --> 00:05:34.959 make their way into the house itself? It was nothing, 102 00:05:35.680 --> 00:05:39.800 no place for it to do so, But animals, I 103 00:05:39.839 --> 00:05:41.759 don't know. That was the last thing on my mind. 104 00:05:42.120 --> 00:05:45.759 I knew this wasn't some rodent. I knew what they 105 00:05:45.800 --> 00:05:49.839 sounded like. It was starting to get dark, and I 106 00:05:49.879 --> 00:05:53.319 knew where my mind was going. Someone was in the house. 107 00:05:53.879 --> 00:05:57.439 Someone had to be in the attic. So I watched 108 00:05:57.480 --> 00:05:59.720 my hand grab the remote and turned the volume all 109 00:05:59.759 --> 00:06:03.560 the way down, and I sat there for about an hour. 110 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:06.240 I sat there, waiting around as a room got dark. 111 00:06:07.720 --> 00:06:09.560 Just as I was about to get up to turn 112 00:06:09.600 --> 00:06:14.839 on the light, it happened again, the softest click and 113 00:06:14.839 --> 00:06:16.319 then the deepest. 114 00:06:15.839 --> 00:06:19.800 Groan from the floorboard. Slow avoidance. 115 00:06:22.680 --> 00:06:25.319 On my way into town that Thursday, one of the neighbors, 116 00:06:25.360 --> 00:06:28.079 a man named Mill, was always out there looking for 117 00:06:28.120 --> 00:06:31.120 someone to talk. Flagged me down. It was out in 118 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:33.439 the lawn chair, pretending to look busy with the watering 119 00:06:33.480 --> 00:06:37.240 pot next to him. They parked the truck shut it down. 120 00:06:38.480 --> 00:06:40.199 I think we all looked for that at one point, 121 00:06:40.680 --> 00:06:43.319 just someone to talk to for some of us, just 122 00:06:43.360 --> 00:06:47.759 to make sure that our voice still works. You hear 123 00:06:47.800 --> 00:06:51.839 about the Preston's house, He said, terrible news. You know 124 00:06:51.879 --> 00:06:54.720 that old blonde lady, the one with the white Corolla. 125 00:06:55.680 --> 00:06:59.839 I nodded, asking him what the matter was dead he said, 126 00:07:00.439 --> 00:07:03.680 He pointed down to the ground and took a step back. Yep, 127 00:07:04.439 --> 00:07:07.040 she was found in the room. Her children just got 128 00:07:07.079 --> 00:07:10.399 down here too late. If you ask me, huh, he said, 129 00:07:10.879 --> 00:07:14.199 his smile quickly fading into a twitch of his left cheek. 130 00:07:15.839 --> 00:07:19.560 Mill was new to the whole living alone thing. His 131 00:07:19.639 --> 00:07:23.360 wife had passed away several years back, and his kids, well, 132 00:07:24.000 --> 00:07:25.120 they're all stity people. 133 00:07:25.160 --> 00:07:25.360 Now. 134 00:07:27.040 --> 00:07:29.079 He had not much more to say about the situation, 135 00:07:29.439 --> 00:07:31.560 but he wanted to talk about it. So I said 136 00:07:31.560 --> 00:07:34.160 a few things about that old lady talked about a 137 00:07:34.199 --> 00:07:37.079 paint for a fence around his property, And just when 138 00:07:37.120 --> 00:07:38.639 things had gotten quiet enough. 139 00:07:39.040 --> 00:07:39.800 I brought it up. 140 00:07:41.560 --> 00:07:45.560 Anyone ever gotten into your attic? I was looking away 141 00:07:45.560 --> 00:07:48.160 toward my truck when I said it. I could feel 142 00:07:48.199 --> 00:07:50.399 his white eyes on the side of my face, and 143 00:07:50.519 --> 00:07:55.000 it turned around your house, haunted, he asked quietly. 144 00:07:56.279 --> 00:07:56.720 Haunted. 145 00:07:57.160 --> 00:08:00.160 No, I mean, like, did someone ever sneak into your 146 00:08:00.600 --> 00:08:01.399 camped out in there? 147 00:08:01.480 --> 00:08:02.399 I don't know, I. 148 00:08:02.399 --> 00:08:06.959 Continued, You know about your place before you moved in, right, 149 00:08:08.160 --> 00:08:10.560 I knew that story. There was some other neighbor who 150 00:08:10.600 --> 00:08:12.759 had told me about it, and still I knew that 151 00:08:12.759 --> 00:08:14.519 I wouldn't be able to stop him from telling it 152 00:08:14.560 --> 00:08:17.959 all over again. You see, the family who lived there 153 00:08:17.959 --> 00:08:20.800 before me didn't build it, but instead had bought it 154 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:24.000 from the original owner. It was strange because many of 155 00:08:24.040 --> 00:08:26.519 the houses that are around the area now were built 156 00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:28.959 around the time that this family moved into what is 157 00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:32.679 now my house, So if my house already existed, then 158 00:08:33.480 --> 00:08:35.960 it was one of the only ones there and therefore 159 00:08:36.120 --> 00:08:40.080 the oldest house in the area. That, of course brought 160 00:08:40.080 --> 00:08:43.360 along a lot of stories. But what made everything even 161 00:08:43.399 --> 00:08:45.799 worse was that the family had bought the house from 162 00:08:46.200 --> 00:08:48.519 had suddenly got up and left. 163 00:08:49.799 --> 00:08:50.240 One day. 164 00:08:50.240 --> 00:08:54.240 They were there and gone the next, and the realtor 165 00:08:54.440 --> 00:08:57.080 had found it a little odd, but kept insisting on 166 00:08:57.200 --> 00:08:59.919 the well done construction and how it was a steel 167 00:09:00.080 --> 00:09:02.039 and all that stuff that realtors say when they want 168 00:09:02.039 --> 00:09:04.279 to sell a house quickly so they don't have to 169 00:09:04.279 --> 00:09:08.200 make the drive back out there. I guess everything checked 170 00:09:08.200 --> 00:09:11.279 out when I moved in. Still does There were never 171 00:09:11.320 --> 00:09:15.000 any hauntings or whatever nonsense Mill was talking about, But 172 00:09:15.159 --> 00:09:18.080 still he went on about how when the house was vacant, 173 00:09:18.519 --> 00:09:20.720 they would see the light fixtures come on and off 174 00:09:20.759 --> 00:09:23.840 at all hours of the night. It could be seen 175 00:09:23.840 --> 00:09:26.480 for miles, even though everyone knew that the house was empty. 176 00:09:27.519 --> 00:09:30.159 Once a group of guys, after a night of drinking, 177 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:32.519 decided to drive up there, and they said that they 178 00:09:32.559 --> 00:09:37.360 were greeted by a couple, a young woman, man strange smiles. 179 00:09:37.360 --> 00:09:41.120 I urged them to come inside. They said no, got 180 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:43.279 back in the car and drove off without a clue 181 00:09:43.279 --> 00:09:46.840 as to how they made it back. But you know 182 00:09:46.879 --> 00:09:50.399 what creeps me out the most, Mil asked, leaning in 183 00:09:50.440 --> 00:09:55.320 a little more, the screams. He opened his eyes wide again, 184 00:09:55.519 --> 00:09:58.960 pointed to the ground, and took a step back. Now 185 00:09:59.039 --> 00:10:01.799 that's where he got me. I had a nerd about this. 186 00:10:02.039 --> 00:10:04.240 I mean that other people knew about it, because I 187 00:10:04.279 --> 00:10:07.519 certainly had heard them before. That was sure, because I 188 00:10:07.519 --> 00:10:09.919 had woken up a few times thinking that they had 189 00:10:09.919 --> 00:10:13.679 been part of a dream, These ridiculously loud screams coming 190 00:10:13.679 --> 00:10:16.360 from the corner of my property. And I don't wake 191 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:19.759 up easily. I've told you, almost nothing can stop me 192 00:10:20.039 --> 00:10:24.519 but those screams or something else. I always thought it 193 00:10:24.559 --> 00:10:27.240 was a squeaking pipe. Sometimes it can make a noise, 194 00:10:27.279 --> 00:10:30.000 you know, if you pay close attention, it might sound 195 00:10:30.039 --> 00:10:33.080 like a scream, or like a squeak, maybe something in between. 196 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:38.200 This thing, the scream was something I couldn't shake off 197 00:10:38.200 --> 00:10:41.120 for the first couple of years I was there. Okay, 198 00:10:41.159 --> 00:10:43.000 I might have thought it was a haunting of some sort, 199 00:10:43.039 --> 00:10:46.000 maybe for a minute, but I don't know if I 200 00:10:46.039 --> 00:10:49.159 got used to it or watch suddenly the scream stopped. 201 00:10:50.399 --> 00:10:52.639 Either that or I was able to sleep through them again. 202 00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:58.039 What about these screams, mil I asked, just to humor 203 00:10:58.120 --> 00:11:01.519 him a little bit, still happen. Don't tell me you 204 00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:04.159 don't hear them. It's either from your property or that 205 00:11:04.200 --> 00:11:06.600 section of trees you have just behind your house. But 206 00:11:06.720 --> 00:11:09.480 the old well, I don't. 207 00:11:09.240 --> 00:11:10.039 Hear them, I said. 208 00:11:11.120 --> 00:11:14.279 Mill looked toward me and started laughing. Maybe he got 209 00:11:14.320 --> 00:11:17.360 to clean out your ears. I chuckled a little at 210 00:11:17.440 --> 00:11:20.639 that poor guy. He was a good man. And with that, 211 00:11:20.759 --> 00:11:22.600 I said that I had to get going and got 212 00:11:22.639 --> 00:11:25.360 back in the truck. You followed me and leaned on 213 00:11:25.360 --> 00:11:28.399 my open passenger side window, his elbows drooping all the 214 00:11:28.399 --> 00:11:31.759 way down to the door handle. But hey, you got 215 00:11:31.759 --> 00:11:34.879 my number in case you keep hearing them. Noises, ghosts 216 00:11:34.919 --> 00:11:37.679 don't scare me. The only ones I got are inside 217 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:42.960 my head. I nodded and started up the car. Something 218 00:11:43.039 --> 00:11:45.720 was off about the way he said it. I heard 219 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:47.960 him tap on the side of the truck before stepping back, 220 00:11:48.000 --> 00:11:49.799 with that look he always gave me when you said 221 00:11:49.799 --> 00:11:52.559 bye to him, almost felt sorry to leave. 222 00:11:56.279 --> 00:11:58.320 I know what you're thinking the well. 223 00:11:59.360 --> 00:12:01.399 Before you get any thoughts in your head, know that 224 00:12:01.440 --> 00:12:05.200 most properties out there had wells, communal or private, and 225 00:12:05.279 --> 00:12:07.279 it was written in the paperwork of the property of 226 00:12:07.320 --> 00:12:09.279 what we had access to, and the terms would be 227 00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:12.919 updated every few years. But the well I had was 228 00:12:12.960 --> 00:12:15.919 one of the firsts. And sure I remember being told 229 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:18.200 about how to manage it and all that in the beginning, 230 00:12:18.799 --> 00:12:21.559 but I never used it. The thing had a huge 231 00:12:21.559 --> 00:12:25.039 stone covering it up. You know, I hadn't thought about 232 00:12:25.039 --> 00:12:28.360 it all that much until that conversation with Mill. I 233 00:12:28.399 --> 00:12:31.200 had no intention of using it. Water from the main 234 00:12:31.240 --> 00:12:34.360 pipeline had arrived many years ago, even from when the 235 00:12:34.360 --> 00:12:37.600 previous family lived there, so all it was out there 236 00:12:37.840 --> 00:12:42.080 just stayed a dark, lonely hole in the ground, covered 237 00:12:42.159 --> 00:12:49.480 up for decades. When I got back later that night, 238 00:12:50.559 --> 00:12:52.879 I saw something up in the window slash door in 239 00:12:52.919 --> 00:12:56.039 the attic up on the roof. There was an orange 240 00:12:56.120 --> 00:12:58.879 light coming through the dirty frosted glass that covered it. 241 00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:03.200 As soon as my head lights hit it, it turned off. 242 00:13:05.200 --> 00:13:08.080 I was sure then that someone was up there. I 243 00:13:08.080 --> 00:13:09.600 don't know what I thought of it at the moment 244 00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:11.600 or why I went into the house as if it 245 00:13:11.639 --> 00:13:14.559 were just another regular evening, but I did. 246 00:13:15.799 --> 00:13:17.960 I kept the volume low, I kept. 247 00:13:17.759 --> 00:13:21.039 Looking around for any dust falling from the ceiling, as 248 00:13:21.080 --> 00:13:24.279 it would whenever something brocked the house, a branch or 249 00:13:24.279 --> 00:13:27.480 some animal. But that would be it for that evening. 250 00:13:28.320 --> 00:13:30.279 Before I knew it, that had made my way to 251 00:13:30.360 --> 00:13:32.399 the bed and was ready for another day at that 252 00:13:32.440 --> 00:13:38.000 old house. Though something had changed even when retelling this Now. 253 00:13:38.120 --> 00:13:41.000 I don't know what it is. Maybe it was paranoia 254 00:13:41.159 --> 00:13:43.840 that was making this whole thing. Maybe it was the 255 00:13:43.879 --> 00:13:46.480 town of lonely people that made us long for and 256 00:13:46.559 --> 00:13:49.879 be afraid of everyone else at the same time. But 257 00:13:49.919 --> 00:13:54.159 the ghost. There were scarier things out there than ghosts. 258 00:13:54.559 --> 00:13:59.240 Everyone knew that, especially around here, And so we got 259 00:13:59.240 --> 00:14:02.360 to this Friday. I was taking out the trash to 260 00:14:02.360 --> 00:14:05.080 the main road, something I normally wouldn't do, since the 261 00:14:05.080 --> 00:14:07.919 trash would come on Mondays. Even some of the sites 262 00:14:07.960 --> 00:14:11.159 were new cars I hadn't seen before. The light from 263 00:14:11.200 --> 00:14:13.279 one of the street lamps beginning to shine a certain 264 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:17.200 way against the approaching darkness of those hills. It didn't 265 00:14:17.240 --> 00:14:20.720 look too different than the early mornings, but everyone knew 266 00:14:20.720 --> 00:14:23.679 each other's routines around there. It was how we knew 267 00:14:23.679 --> 00:14:26.960 that danger was approaching and those calls who are landlines 268 00:14:26.960 --> 00:14:30.799 would come in. The last thing I remember was a 269 00:14:30.840 --> 00:14:33.360 red truck that was set to be circling around the properties. 270 00:14:34.120 --> 00:14:34.879 The call had. 271 00:14:34.720 --> 00:14:37.639 Come from Mill. I even heard them prepping a shotgun 272 00:14:37.679 --> 00:14:40.159 through the phone. It turned out to be a couple 273 00:14:40.159 --> 00:14:42.840 of teenagers looking for a place to hang out, but 274 00:14:42.879 --> 00:14:44.879 they were driven away by some of the other people, 275 00:14:45.240 --> 00:14:48.360 the porters, from what I heard. How they managed to 276 00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:50.840 do that, I don't know, but I remember seeing those 277 00:14:50.840 --> 00:14:53.440 tail lights rushing away from the last hill toward town. 278 00:14:55.039 --> 00:14:56.960 That was making my way back to the house again 279 00:14:57.080 --> 00:15:00.799 from the trash cans, I clearly saw a light through 280 00:15:00.799 --> 00:15:04.360 the frosted glass of the entrance to the attic, soft 281 00:15:05.159 --> 00:15:08.919 like that of a cigarette lighter. I wasn't making much 282 00:15:08.960 --> 00:15:11.519 noise as I walked up closer to the sound of 283 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:16.080 my television, so it stayed on, but I stopped and 284 00:15:16.159 --> 00:15:18.120 watched it from as close as I could get without 285 00:15:18.120 --> 00:15:22.320 the roof blocking my view. And it was there, clear 286 00:15:22.600 --> 00:15:26.720 as clear can be, the flickering light moving back and 287 00:15:26.759 --> 00:15:30.759 forth against the glass. I ran out to the shed 288 00:15:30.840 --> 00:15:33.159 and grabbed the first thing. I found a shovel that 289 00:15:33.240 --> 00:15:35.799 had slid down to the ground, clanking against the side 290 00:15:35.879 --> 00:15:39.919 door frame, and I watched as that light turned completely off. 291 00:15:42.080 --> 00:15:44.519 I rushed into the house, debating whether to stab the 292 00:15:44.559 --> 00:15:47.440 ceiling with the shovel while yelling, or maybe staying out 293 00:15:47.480 --> 00:15:51.000 and waiting out whatever this was. No animal, of course, 294 00:15:51.039 --> 00:15:57.320 not someone a human was up there. I went straight 295 00:15:57.399 --> 00:15:59.559 for the phone and called the sheriff's office, the one 296 00:15:59.559 --> 00:16:02.720 from town. I told the person who picked up that 297 00:16:02.720 --> 00:16:05.000 there were strange sounds in my house and that had 298 00:16:05.000 --> 00:16:08.200 been that way for about a week, with absolutely no 299 00:16:08.279 --> 00:16:11.559 sense of urgency. She asked some generic questions about animals 300 00:16:11.600 --> 00:16:15.720 or rodents, trees above the house, and if I lived alone. 301 00:16:15.879 --> 00:16:18.720 I told her my name, the address, everything all in 302 00:16:18.759 --> 00:16:20.960 one go, and she said that she would be making 303 00:16:20.960 --> 00:16:24.360 a report and follow up. I found it pointless and 304 00:16:24.440 --> 00:16:27.320 hung up before she said goodbye, but changed my mind 305 00:16:27.360 --> 00:16:30.799 immediately after hearing those same thuds going across the ceiling 306 00:16:30.960 --> 00:16:33.919 and toward the entrance of the attic. I ran to 307 00:16:33.960 --> 00:16:36.720 the living room, nearly tripping on the edge of the carpet, 308 00:16:36.919 --> 00:16:38.759 but managed to flick off the lights. 309 00:16:38.440 --> 00:16:38.960 To the house. 310 00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:42.039 Ironic how easy it is to see in the dark 311 00:16:42.080 --> 00:16:45.440 when you do that. I made my way back to 312 00:16:45.480 --> 00:16:48.879 the phone and call the police again. Lady, there's someone 313 00:16:48.879 --> 00:16:51.120 in the house. I heard steps up in the attic. 314 00:16:52.320 --> 00:16:55.320 She started her same script all over again, asking for 315 00:16:55.360 --> 00:16:57.600 my name and all that, as if we hadn't just 316 00:16:57.600 --> 00:17:02.039 gotten off the phone. The steps continued and finally ended 317 00:17:02.080 --> 00:17:05.160 with a groan and a thud. Was something hard against 318 00:17:05.160 --> 00:17:08.839 my ceiling. Dust was falling. I could feel it against 319 00:17:08.839 --> 00:17:11.440 my hair and nose as it landed like dry snow 320 00:17:11.759 --> 00:17:15.200 and got into my eyes. My heart was pounding again 321 00:17:15.200 --> 00:17:17.440 as I grabbed the shovel with both hands and rushed 322 00:17:17.480 --> 00:17:21.000 out out among the trees. I could see the shadows 323 00:17:21.039 --> 00:17:24.319 blended in the moonlight. I'm sure there was some one 324 00:17:24.359 --> 00:17:26.480 out there towards the well. I heard it for the 325 00:17:26.480 --> 00:17:29.359 first time in a long time, a scream from the woods, 326 00:17:29.920 --> 00:17:33.480 a deep, guttural scream of pain, disappearing into the night. 327 00:17:34.960 --> 00:17:37.079 The woman on the other line sighed when she picked 328 00:17:37.160 --> 00:17:41.799 up my phone. Call Officer Monduino, will be arriving. You 329 00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:46.240 said it was a third path in the left correct. Finally, yes, 330 00:17:46.440 --> 00:17:48.880 by the fifteenth mile marker. I'll be waiting out there, 331 00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:52.240 I said, hanging up. After a few seconds of silence, 332 00:17:53.839 --> 00:17:56.799 I grabbed my jacket and walked out there, completely forgetting 333 00:17:56.799 --> 00:17:58.559 the shovel in the living room. As I went out 334 00:17:58.559 --> 00:18:01.759 there to the main road, the wind was whistling now 335 00:18:02.240 --> 00:18:05.440 it did that sometimes nights got windy from the hills, 336 00:18:05.440 --> 00:18:07.400 and the trees would like to hum along with it. 337 00:18:08.720 --> 00:18:11.480 I could feel it against my forehead, that cold sweat. 338 00:18:11.680 --> 00:18:15.000 Whenever the wind picked up. I looked back at the howls, 339 00:18:15.079 --> 00:18:18.039 watching out for anything that stood out, anything out of place. 340 00:18:18.799 --> 00:18:21.200 But the light in the attic was gone, and along 341 00:18:21.240 --> 00:18:24.720 with it any sense of dignity. After calling for help 342 00:18:24.759 --> 00:18:28.200 for something as simple to handle, such as a trespasser, 343 00:18:30.079 --> 00:18:32.000 My eyes were looking out in front of my boots 344 00:18:32.000 --> 00:18:33.799 the whole time until I made it to the road. 345 00:18:34.559 --> 00:18:36.599 After about ten minutes out on the road, I was 346 00:18:36.640 --> 00:18:40.000 finally able to see headlights approaching. I wondered what it 347 00:18:40.039 --> 00:18:42.359 would be like and if I would end up knowing 348 00:18:42.400 --> 00:18:46.000 the officer by name. Wondered if anyone would spot the 349 00:18:46.039 --> 00:18:47.960 police car and alert the others. 350 00:18:47.960 --> 00:18:48.559 Including me. 351 00:18:50.759 --> 00:18:53.480 The officer arrived, had me hop in and drove up 352 00:18:53.519 --> 00:18:56.599 to the house while asking what the matter was. I 353 00:18:56.680 --> 00:18:59.920 told him as embarrassed as I was. Told him exactly 354 00:19:00.240 --> 00:19:02.920 what had happened about the strange sounds I had been 355 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:07.759 hearing up in the attic, the light the footsteps for 356 00:19:07.880 --> 00:19:10.680 doll came back when he asked about damage to the property, 357 00:19:11.200 --> 00:19:15.240 danger or what I thought it was. I'm sure he 358 00:19:15.359 --> 00:19:19.279 was just doing his job, but still it stung. He 359 00:19:19.359 --> 00:19:22.000 pulled up in the front porch. I got out and 360 00:19:22.079 --> 00:19:25.079 turned on all the lights of the property. He still 361 00:19:25.079 --> 00:19:27.839 had his flashlight out and roamed around, checking out the 362 00:19:27.839 --> 00:19:32.160 ceiling before turning to me. Oh, yeah, this house is 363 00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:33.319 the entrance at the top right. 364 00:19:34.240 --> 00:19:38.599 He got the key. The key, I asked out loud, had. 365 00:19:38.400 --> 00:19:40.640 Ever been up there and knew even less about a 366 00:19:40.720 --> 00:19:45.039 key existing. It's probably opened. It was the only thing 367 00:19:45.079 --> 00:19:48.000 I could think of saying, making myself look even more 368 00:19:48.039 --> 00:19:48.559 like a fool. 369 00:19:50.559 --> 00:19:51.319 I knew what to do. 370 00:19:51.920 --> 00:19:53.880 I walked over to the shed and grabbed the ladder, 371 00:19:54.359 --> 00:19:56.480 setting it up against the porch by the front door, 372 00:19:56.519 --> 00:19:59.559 and was about to climb up, but the officer stopped 373 00:19:59.559 --> 00:20:01.240 me without saying anything else. 374 00:20:01.599 --> 00:20:02.519 Climbed up instead. 375 00:20:03.960 --> 00:20:06.359 I watched him grab the window, the whole thing and 376 00:20:06.440 --> 00:20:10.960 lifted it up like a latch it's open, he said, 377 00:20:11.519 --> 00:20:14.079 his voice fading out completely once it closed again, in 378 00:20:14.119 --> 00:20:18.200 that strangely familiar sound I had been hearing for days. 379 00:20:19.519 --> 00:20:21.519 I watched the light bounce around the inside of the 380 00:20:21.519 --> 00:20:24.400 attic from where I was standing for several minutes until 381 00:20:24.440 --> 00:20:27.519 he came back out, hmming his flashlight at the roof 382 00:20:27.559 --> 00:20:29.359 and then at the ground by where I was standing. 383 00:20:30.519 --> 00:20:33.039 He climbed down and kept following the beam out over 384 00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:38.599 the well before stopping and giving me a cold stare blood, 385 00:20:38.720 --> 00:20:43.119 he said, pointing down next to me. I looked, and yes, 386 00:20:43.559 --> 00:20:48.319 I could see it, fresh blood on the steps. I 387 00:20:48.319 --> 00:20:52.440 didn't know what to think, and instead just waited. The 388 00:20:52.519 --> 00:20:55.000 officer walked up to me and explained, finally giving me 389 00:20:55.119 --> 00:20:59.799 answers to what was happening. Rappers, he said, were found 390 00:20:59.839 --> 00:21:04.039 up there, two candles and a blanket. He asked me 391 00:21:04.079 --> 00:21:05.920 if I had been up there, if I had guests 392 00:21:05.960 --> 00:21:09.079 in there, because someone had definitely spent the night up there. 393 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:13.640 I shook my head when he asked, still in disbelief. 394 00:21:14.839 --> 00:21:18.200 But then he told me about the blood. A nail 395 00:21:18.279 --> 00:21:21.359 he started about this high. He continued, looking at the 396 00:21:21.400 --> 00:21:25.519 space between his thumb and his index finger. Someone stepped 397 00:21:25.559 --> 00:21:28.960 on it. On his way out. I felt my mouth 398 00:21:29.079 --> 00:21:33.319 dry up, barely realizing that I had it open. He 399 00:21:33.359 --> 00:21:35.480 explained that he would be making a report about it, 400 00:21:35.680 --> 00:21:37.519 but that I should also call in with any news 401 00:21:37.559 --> 00:21:40.119