The Ghost Family of Pennsylvania Chapter Two Sample

Chapter Two: Cody Makes a Friend

    The half-double that the Dotson's rented was far from ideal. It was small, it was filthy and it was falling apart. Even though it was in sad shape, the Dotson's were very grateful to have it. At least they could flush the toilet and bathe without incident. The floors weren't caving in and there was no mold or rancid odors to contend with. The truth was that after the problems they had with the old house, the dirty little apartment seemed like heaven. Besides, most of the problems with the new place were cosmetic. The biggest issue with the half double was filth. It looked as if no one had cleaned the walls, floors or cabinets for a very long time. The other big problem was a large amount of mouse droppings that were literally everywhere. Kate was very much aware that she would have to scrub it thoroughly to make it right for her family. So the first day Kate was determined to clean the entire place from top to bottom before they started moving in.

     Cleaning the entire apartment would be a challenge since Kate had recently given birth to the Dotson's youngest son, Blaine. However, having a new baby in the house was all the more reason to make sure to get everything clean and sanitized. Kate decided to start cleaning while Tony and their oldest son, Damian set to packing up their things and going through stuff that was salvaged from the old house. Kate knew that she would need to purchase some cleaning supplies and household items before getting started. So she packed up three year old Cody and the new baby, and headed to the local store. The car ride over was amusing as Cody sat in the backseat clearly having a conversation with himself and the newborn just stared at him with wide eyed wonder. Once they were at the store, Kate noticed that Cody was still talking to himself but she did not think too much of it at the time. Cody was after all only three and he was an imaginative and playful child. At the store Kate stopped to look at a clearance rack of clothing. The family had lost most of their clothes and so she was on the lookout for good deals. It seems that most of the town was also on the hunt for a good bargain as there were a lot of people gathered around the same clothing racks. The whole time Cody continued to babble on just as happy as could be. After awhile, it occurred to Kate that little Cody seemed to be having a one sided conversation, rather than just random babbling.

     "Who are you talking to, Honey?" Kate asked her young son. Sometimes it was difficult to understand what Cody had to say, but his response was as loud and as clear as a three year old could possibly be. He announced, quite matter-of-factly that he was talking to the ghost of a child that had followed them from the new house. All of the nearby customers stopped looking through the clothes and turned to stare at young Cody, who had returned to his conversation with his unseen friend. Kate nervously chuckled and mused that he must have an imaginary friend. A few of the patrons were clearly uncomfortable despite this explanation, and they quickly left the clearance sale. Cody continued to talk to this "ghost child" throughout the store and in the car ride. Kate dropped Cody and baby Blaine off at their grandparent's home so she could clean without having them underfoot. She would later question her in-laws to see if Cody had been talking to himself at their house. They said that they had not noticed anything of the sort.

    Kate returned to the apartment to begin cleaning. She unloaded all of her supplies from her car and placed them on the living room floor. Then she looked around trying to decide where to start. Ultimately she decided to clean the kitchen first so that her family would have a clean place to eat. At this point there was no stove or refrigerator in the new apartment. These were appliances that the Dotson's would have to provide on their own. Tony had bought a used refrigerator from the newspaper and his brother had a good stove that he was willing to part with. Kate knew these things would be on the first truck load, so she decided to scrub the walls and floor where she wanted her appliances. The wall where the stove was supposed to go was completely covered in grease and dirt. There was a stove hood and some cabinets that were equally greasy. Kate figured she should begin with them and work her way down. She sprayed them heavily with industrial strength degreaser and then she scrubbed at them with wire pads.

    Kate was busy cleaning when she noticed footsteps coming from upstairs. This frightened her because she was the only one in the house. She stayed very still and quiet and listened. A few minutes later the footsteps returned. Kate bravely made her way upstairs to investigate. The house was empty at this time, not even furniture was present yet, so there was no real place for anyone to hide. She quietly walked into each room; opened each closet and she even looked in the attic. There was no one there but her. Satisfied that there were no intruders, Kate returned to her task. She scrubbed all of the cabinets, shelves and counters. She placed new lining paper on the shelves and in the drawers and she polished the wood. She marveled at how the cabinets were now a golden brown as opposed to the darker, duller color that came from years of dirt and grease buildup. She had spent hours scrubbing the walls and the floors by hand and now she was admiring her work. The kitchen looked beautiful, at least in terms of cleanliness. Kate was feeling quite pleased with herself, when once again the distinct sound of footsteps came from upstairs and seemed to emanate down the steps which were right next to the kitchen. Kate's stomach tightened as she peeked around the corner at the staircase. Again there was no one there, but the footsteps continued. The steps creaked and indented as if someone was walking on them. Then it dawned on Kate that she had rented a half double, which is essentially one large house that has been divided up into two smaller apartments. This is the same kind of structure that is called a duplex in some regions. Since it is all the same structure, sound travels between the two halves. Kate realized that she must be hearing her neighbors on the other side. After all the halves were only divided by a thin wall and the floors and stair cases were connected. Kate laughed at herself for not realizing this sooner. She supposed that it would take her awhile to get used to living in a shared residence, after having her own home for so long.

    Once the kitchen was clean and ready to go, Kate ventured upstairs to get the bedrooms ready. It was already getting late and she wanted to have them clean so that they could set up the beds for the evening. Kate started with Cody and Damian's room. The walls and ceiling in here were just as filthy as the ones in the kitchen. They were painted white, but were covered with a brown substance that seemed to be a resin based coating. Kate wondered if someone had been a heavy smoker, or if the previous residents had been using drugs in this room. The very thought disgusted her and she was determined to get it all off. Kate climbed up on a step ladder to wash the ceiling when she got a glimpse of someone peeking in the doorway. The image had come and gone in a split second, but it was enough to startle Kate so fiercely that she nearly fell from the ladder. Once she recovered her balance, she called out to see if anyone was there. No one responded to her calls, so Kate walked in the hallway to see for herself. Her heart was pounding and tears filled her eyes as she looked around. She knew she had seen someone. Finally she collapsed on the floor in the hallway. Kate's training in psychology made her aware that this could all be in her head. She closed her eyes, drew in a few deep breaths and tried to think through what had happened. She rationalized that she was in a new house that was kind of creepy due to the fact that it was old and empty. Earlier that day she had been frightened by hearing footsteps before she had realized that it must be the people next door. Then there was Cody who claimed he was talking to the ghost of a child. Add these to the fact that Kate was stressed out about moving, losing her old home, declaring bankruptcy and facing financial hardships with three young children to care for. Plus she was sleep deprived from having a newborn baby. When she considered all these factors, it became apparent that her mind was playing tricks on her.

    Later that evening, Kate and Tony set up the kid's beds and then they inflated an air mattress that would be their bed for the time being. Kate was debating whether or not to tell her husband what all had happened that day. She didn't want to tell him about the footsteps or about thinking that she saw someone behind her. She figured he would just laugh at her and she felt foolish about it already. However, she was considering telling Tony about the "ghost" that Cody was talking to. At this point Kate did not believe that her son was really talking to ghosts, but she was worried that he was having trouble handling the move. When Kate and Tony went to bed that night, she thought it would be a good time to bring it up.

     "That's weird," Tony said in response to Kate's story. "Cody has never had an imaginary friend or said anything about ghosts before." Tony wondered if his son had seen a movie or something that would have given the child that idea.

    Kate sat on the edge of their new inflatable bed and looked sorrowfully at her husband. She reached out and lovingly touched his hand and offered him a reassuring smile. Kate's degrees were in child psychology and development, something that gave her insight into a child's mind. As such, she had spent a good portion of her evening thinking about all of the possible explanations for Cody's behavior. She offered Tony her thoughts on the matter.

    "I think he has invented an imaginary friend to help him cope with the move," she said. "Sometimes young children do that as a source of comfort. There have been a lot of changes and heartache over the last few months. He lost his dogs and his cat, he had to leave his friends and most of his toys and clothes were ruined in the flood. It has been a very hard time for all of us. I guess I thought he was handling it better because he seems so happy, but it seems that he has taken to this new coping mechanism. We will have to watch him closely to see how he is over the next few weeks. I know we don't have much money or time but we should try to get the kids out for fun as much as possible during the adjustment period."

     "I guess you are right," Tony said. He looked away from his wife, put his head down and sighed."I just wish I could comfort him enough that he didn't have to make up friends."

    "Well there is nothing wrong with a child his age having an imaginary friend. It's quite normal actually. I'm just worried about the timing and we just need to make sure that he is okay." Kate smiled at her husband after this last thought. Then she kissed him tenderly. He laid back and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Kate found great comfort in Tony's arms and she rested her head on his chest. All of the worries and stress of the day seemed to melt away as he held her. They cuddled closely for a long time and eventually they fell asleep, still wrapped in their embrace.

    "Mommy!" The child's scream shot through the night and Kate sat up in her bed with a start. Sleepily she glanced over at baby Blaine whose crib was next to Tony and Kate's bed. Of course it wasn't the baby she thought. After all he was only three months old. Still she was half awake and disoriented. It was the middle of the night and Kate had been in a deep sleep. Tony was still asleep, completely oblivious to sound of a child screaming. As a precaution Kate reached out and touched Blaine. She felt the slow, rhythmic breathing of the baby's chest. Apparently he had not been disturbed by the sound either.

    "Mommy! Mommy!" The cries rang out again.

    "Cody?" Kate called as she made her way down the hall to the children's room. She opened the door expecting to see the tearful eyes of her son, but both Cody and Damian were fast asleep in their beds. Now Kate was even more confused that she was when she was first awoken. Maybe he's having a nightmare and he called out in his sleep, she thought. Kate sat for about twenty minutes at the edge of Cody's bed. The children continued to sleep peacefully. She stayed there until the distinct sound of crying emanated from Kate's bedroom. Blaine was awake and ready for his midnight feeding. With a final glance at Cody, Kate returned to her room to nurse the baby. Tony looked up at her from beneath the bedclothes.

    "Is Cody alright?" He asked.

    "Yeah, I thought I heard him call for me, but he was asleep again when I went in there."

    "I heard him too. He must have had a bad dream," Tony replied and then he fell back asleep.

    The next day Damian took his mother aside to tell her that Cody was playing with the "ghost child" again. Kate looked into Cody's room to see him having a conversation with no one again and politely offering the unseen child his toys as they played. She watched him for a while and then decided it was time to talk with Cody and get some more information about his new playmate.

    "Cody, why do you think that your new friend is a ghost?" She asked him at dinner that evening.

   "Because he's dead so he's a ghost," Cody responded in a matter-of-fact sort of way. Cody's response caused the entire family to stop eating. They all stared at the child, who seemed oblivious to the fact that his words were disturbing. Tony and Kate exchanged worried glances.

    "How do you know he's dead? Do you know what that means?" She asked trying to hide the fact that she was disturbed by his grim response.

    "He told me he was dead," Cody said. "When you're dead you get to be a ghost and you can fly around." Cody then demonstrated this by running around with his arms extended and pretending to fly around like a ghost.

    "He told you he was dead?" Kate repeated. Her skin went ashen white at the idea of her child fantasizing about being with someone who was dead. She didn't even think he knew what death was at his young age. It was not something that their family had ever really discussed. Even when the family lost their cat and their dogs, they had told the children that the pets ran away because they were afraid of the water. The couple wanted to spare their children the awful truth of what had really happened to the animals they loved so dearly. Tony was clearly upset too because he had put his fork down, clasped his hands around his face, and was just staring at the child in horror.

    "Did this ghost tell you how he died? Does he talk about being dead?" Kate promoted although she was fearful of his response.

    "I dunno. He doesn't talk much and I can't really hear him too good," Cody said thoughtfully and then he went back to eating. Kate looked at Tony who was staring at her intently. After a few moments she returned to questioning Cody.

    "If he doesn't talk and he hasn't told you what happened, how can you be sure he is dead?" She asked nervously.

    "I don't know. He's just there, but not there. Sometimes you can only see part of him or you can only see his shadow. Sometimes he looks like fog. I really only see him for a little while, but he plays with my toys and he likes to run a lot. I guess cause he looks like the ghosts in Damian's video game that he must be one, right?"

    Tony threw his fork down on his plate, tossed his napkin on the table and stood up in a huff.

    "It's those damned video games again!" He yelled and then he stormed out of the kitchen.

    Video games were Damian's obsession. It was such a problem that Tony and Kate had to limit how long and under what circumstances, that they would let their son play. On several occasions they caught him up in the middle of the night playing Xbox or hiding his IPod under his blankets. Video games were Damian's life and the biggest fight that he had with his parents. Now Tony was upset because he felt that Damian's games were having a negative effect on Cody.

    Tony and Kate discussed the matter after dinner. Tony expressed his concerns about the subject material of the games and the effect that it may have on Cody, who was at an impressionable age. Kate agreed and they took Damian aside to talk to him about it. Damian was instructed to only play games that were appropriate for young children when his little brother was in the room. He was told that they would occasionally send Cody to his grandparent's house, so that Damian could have a chance to play his other games alone. Damian was less than thrilled at this idea but he agreed because the idea of Cody playing with a ghost was very disturbing to him. He told his father that Cody was "creeping him out."

    After her talk with Damian, Kate went into the kitchen to wash the dishes and clean up after dinner. She was surprised to find that every single cabinet door was wide open. What in the world? She thought and she closed the cabinets and began to run water in the sink for the dishes. One by one the cabinet doors reopened. Kate was dumbfounded. She just watched as the cabinets opened all by themselves. Not knowing what to do, she went into the living room to tell Tony what was happening.

    "Yeah, the hinges are old. That happened to me a few times now. This place is old and run down. They need to be replaced," He responded to her with a dismissive tone.

   "Yeah, but why would they all open at the same time?" Kate asked.

    "I don't know, it's a weird coincidence but it's nothing to worry about. Like I said, it's happened several times since we moved in and it's nothing."

    Kate was less than satisfied by this response, but she was a rational woman, and so she accepted this explanation as being more plausible than the wild thoughts that invaded her head. After listening to what Cody had to say, hearing the strange footsteps and thinking that she saw someone; Kate had to force herself not to wonder if their new place was actually haunted. Admittedly, the idea had crossed her mind more than once, even though she didn't really believe in ghosts. So she accepted this conclusion and reluctantly returned to the kitchen. However, she left the cabinets wide open while she did the dishes and cleaned up after dinner. Kate's cleaning was interrupted by the sound of crying through the baby monitor. Kate put down her dish towel and walked into the living room where she found Damian and Cody playing with army men and Tony was holding Blaine.

    "Was the baby crying?" She asked Tony.

    "No, why?" He responded as he tickled baby Blaine.

    "I heard crying on the monitor."

    "Oh yeah that fooled me too. Somebody nearby must have a baby monitor on the same frequency as ours and we are picking it up occasionally. Just shut it off. I'll watch the kids while you are cleaning."

    Kate shrugged and went back in the kitchen. She was cleaning the inside of the oven when she heard a giggle and the sound of little feet running on the kitchen tiles behind her. She turned around just in time to see the shadow of a small child reflected on the window by the entry way to the kitchen.

    "Cody, don't run in the house, please!" Kate called. When Kate turned around the cabinets were closed once more and Kate could still hear the giggling. She assumed that this was either Cody or Damian and she returned once more to the living room. Here the children were still playing with their toys and Tony insisted that they had not left the room. Kate did not want to share her experiences with her family for fear that she would sound crazy. She did however, help herself to a beer from the fridge and then she went to take a warm bath. She brought the baby monitor up to the bathroom so that she could still hear Tony and the kids.

    As Kate bent down to run the bathwater she noticed a shadow that passed behind her. She turned around but nothing was there. The bathroom was very small, hardly enough room for someone to walk behind her. There was a window though, that faced the backyard and a highway. She figured the shadow must be from cars turning the bend. She had noticed before that the headlights reflected strange lights and shadows from the angle of the road and the trees in the backyard, so she figured this was the source.

    Laughing at her own paranoia, Kate sank deep into the hot bathwater for some much needed relaxation. She was only in the tub a few minutes before strange noises started to emanate from the baby monitor. It sounded like whispers and voices that were trying to come through bad reception. She could not hear Tony or the kids anymore and she figured that she must be getting interference from another monitor that was close by. After fiddling with it a few minutes she reached to turn it off when she heard a child's voice call out for his mother and then giggle. The monitor then turned to static for a few seconds before falling silent. Kate reached over and turned it over and then she laid back in the hot water.

    She soaked in the water and enjoyed the jasmine and vanilla scent of her bath beads and basked in the silky feel of the soap. She placed a washcloth over her eyes and relaxed in the water. Suddenly it felt as if someone reached up out of the tub and touched her on her waist. She gasped and sat up to see a loofa floating in the water. Oh my God, I really need to relax, she thought. Despite her best efforts to regain control over her emotions, Kate sat in the tub and cried softly for several minutes. She was worried about the apparent effect of intense stress on both her and her children. She was more than half afraid that she would soon be seeing a psychologist, rather than working for one.

    Then she heard a whisper that sounded like someone saying "Who are you?" Kate once again figured that she must be hearing the people next door. She pulled the drain plug and exited the bathtub. She wrapped her towel around her body and made her way to the sink to brush her teeth and apply her face creams. The mirror was fogged over but starting to clear when she looked up. For a split second her reflection looked like another woman's face but with hair like her own. Kate was really afraid for her own sanity at this point and she made a vow to herself to return to her yoga class, take some time each day for herself and to meditate in order to relieve stress. She did not mention any of this to her family.