The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion: A Haunted House Mystery- Book 0 Read online

  She reached for her cell phone, frightened as the man slowly crawled toward her, moaning in agony. Her legs had locked into place, paralyzed with fear. Her cell phone fell from her hand and smacked onto the floor, landing in a puddle of blood.

  She crouched down to grab her blood-soaked phone, but it slipped out of her hand and slid across the tile, just out of reach. Then, as if an earthquake had shaken the ground and everything on it, the kitchen came alive with one explosive and sweeping gust of wind that forced every cabinet open a loud, deafening burst. Mary reeled to the slippery ground in terror.

  Plates crashed and shattered into pieces. Pots flew into the wall. The refrigerator flew open, sending its contents smashing onto the ground. A dizzying white flash followed, as Mary tried to stand, trying to resist an unseen force pushing her down. Her forehead smacked against the tile, and she felt blood trickling down her face.

  She screamed and struggled again to get up as the disorienting cacophony of pots, pans, plates, and glasses crashed all around her. After one final heave, she made it to her feet and vaulted out of the kitchen, slipping on blood and staggering down the hall, not looking back.

  Her screams echoed through the house as she stormed down the hall past rooms where doors slammed shut like sideways guillotines hoping to snare her in. By the time she made it to the staircase, she was greeted with the sight of the grandfather clock across the room, chiming louder than ever with blood bubbling, top to bottom. Both chairs suddenly flew toward her like guided missiles.

  She jumped out of the way and slid across the hardwood floor as as furniture crashed into the wall in a splintering bang. She looked up to see the chandelier swaying wildly, with bulbs wildly flashing. Doors slammed shut in unison all around her. Moaning continued. A barrage of cockroaches infested the walls around her. Hanging pictures crashed to the ground. In the distance, the kitchen table flew across the dining room and pummeled into the wall.

  Mary slipped and fell to her knees, feeling trapped and pinned to the ground. Thick blood spewed from the grandfather clock like a geyser, soaking the ceiling in its red flow and dripping back onto the floor.

  “What do you want?” she screamed.

  A loud bang suddenly came against the front door, startling her further. Her head whipped around, and she stared at the exit and tried to build up the nerve to run. Was this it for her? Had the house finally come alive to take her away?

  As she crouched down with her palms flat against the floor, sweat ran down her forehead, creating a puddle below. She looked up to see a blinding white light at the end of the staircase. Within that light, she saw the shape of a young girl. Her face was hollow and pale, with her cheeks sunken in and black pupils within her mist-like form, barefoot and dressed in a nightgown. Mary recognized her from the pictures in the paper. It was Julie.

  “Don’t be afraid,” she said, her voice a distant echo. “I’ve made them stop. You have to help us.”

  Mary pushed herself up from the ground with her heart racing. “Julie? Julie, is it really you?”

  Julie’s form flickered like the dying flame on a candle. “There is a darkness in this town. You have to stop it for us to be at rest.”

  “Tell me what I have to do,” Mary said as moans persisted throughout the house, sending a shiver down her spine.

  “Our killers,” Julie said. “They must be brought to justice.”

  Mary looked around the grand foyer in shock at the tumbled-over furniture and broken glass covering the floor. “Why are you destroying our home?”

  “The others are angry and vengeful, but don’t worry about them,” she said in a distant, haunting voice. “You’re our only hope.”

  “Who killed your family?” Mary asked.

  “They wore masks,” Julie said. “That is all I know. One man had a scar on the left cheek. That was my last memory before crossing over.”

  Mary approached Julie’s fading image with tears in her eyes. “I don’t know what to do. I’m trying, but I can’t do it on my own.”

  “You won’t have to,” Julie said.

  “Julie, I’m so sorry,” Mary said as Julie wavered above the staircase, a transparent shape of light of eternal unrest.

  “You can help, Mary. I believe in you. Your daughter’s fate is also tied to this house.”

  “Daughter?” Mary asked. “What are you talking about?”

  Julie quickly turned to look behind her and then nervously whipped her head around to face Mary. “That is all I can say…” She then vanished in a blink of an eye as Mary called to her again.

  “Julie?” Mary cried out. “Julie!” But she was gone. With Julie’s disappearance, an unseen force threw Mary flat on her stomach as her own body weight tripled and pushed her to the ground. Another flash of white, and she felt a sharp pain in her jaw from smacking against the floor. The other spirits returned with a vengeance, and they weren’t going to let her go anywhere. She had to muster enough energy to escape before they drained her of all essence, leaving her a hollow vessel and doomed to join them on the other side.

  Dear Reader,

  Hi! I hope you enjoyed my latest series. Quality story telling is very important to me. It’s my living, and I can’t thank you enough for your support and for taking the time to read this boxset. But the learning never stops, and your feedback is vital to improving each new series I explore.

  I would love if you could take a second to leave a review on Amazon here: Leave a Review Here!

  If you would be so kind, please leave a review showering the book with endless praise. Of course, I’m joking, but it would be great to hear from you. If there are any issues you had with the story or any pesky errors or concerns, feel free to email me and let me know. I’d love to hear your feedback, regardless. Your support allows me to do what I do, and I’m in your debt. In a way, I work for you, the reader. So let me know if I’m doing the job. Thanks again and, please, feel free to contact me or leave a review for the book at your earliest convenience.

  With Gratitude,

  Roger Hayden

  The thrilling mystery continues in The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion: Book 1 Click Here

  The mystery has only just begun for Mary as she begins to unearth the secrets surrounding the murder of two prominent families with hopes of helping Julie’s spirit find peace. But finding answers won’t be easy in a town where everyone is a suspect. Mary must also convince Curtis that their dream house is indeed haunted and that the murderers are closer than they think. Time is running out, the spirits of the Bechdel house only gaining in power with Mary’s presence. Could she be the one to finally solve the mystery? Find out in the exciting new supernatural thriller from Roger Hayden, The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion: Book 1.

  The thrilling mystery continues in The Haunting of Bechdel Mansion: Book 1 Click Here