GoT Poems and Stories

Prompt 5 ♥ Week 4 ♥ A Scary Encounter ♥ Story

Ellen Parker drove by the park where an old plantation house stood, representing days gone by. Chills crawled up her back, remembering what her Grandmother told her— The torment and agony the slave went through back then. Some owners treated them like dirt, making them work for hours in the baking sun with only a few minutes’ rest to get a drink of water. Many slaves died from heat stroke, whippings, or from hangings when they were disobedient. Her grandmother’s stories were chilling, but why are my eyes always drawn to that window? Sometimes I feel there’s an invisible hand opening that ripped curtain to peek out at me. There— It opened again!

Ellen stopped the car and studied the house, its windows had mullions with small, leaded panes of glass, and the shutters hung at odd angles. Paint was peeling off the wood siding, and the brick front of the house looked weathered. The moss-covered shingles, the missing tiles, even the cracked stone walk seemed defiant as it meandered its way towards the front door. The old weeping willow tree on the side of the house looked old, it’s raggedy branches hanging down. Could it be crying for all the lost souls that died there.

Ellen shook her head. This horrible house should have been burned to the ground years ago, but Grandma Gertie informed her people feared the place, because of rumors going around it’s haunted. Many of them were superstitious and didn’t want any angry ghost coming after them.

Ellen needed to find out for herself if the house was haunted. Yuck, I bet it’s filled with rats, spiders, bugs, maybe even snakes crawled through those open windows. If it's filled with angry ghostly slaves who were mistreated, that would be even sadder, but am I brave enough to find out? Well, I’ll find out tonight.

Ellen’s eyes were drawn again to the window. It was almost like someone was watching, waiting— Shivering, she started her car and continued on her way, happy to be out of sight of that creepy place. She stopped at her Grandma Gertie’s house, wanting to check in on her.

“Hello, Grandma, are you at home.” Ellen called, rapping on the door as she entered.

Gertie was seated in her favorite chair listening to “The Price is Right.” “Oh, hi sweetheart, I didn’t hear you knock.”

“I just came to see if you’re okay, Grandma. Do you need anything.”

“Ellen, I keep telling you I’m fine, and if I needed anything, I would call you!”

“Actually I stopped to talk to you about that old plantation house. You told me so many stories about the hauntings people have claimed to see. Is all this really true?”

“Of course it’s true, I don’t lie!” Grandma Gertie pressed her palm against her heart, and shook a finger at Ellen.”

“Oh, okay, I didn’t mean to upset you. I’ll let you get back to the Price is Right” Ellen hugged her grandmother tight and escaped out the door. Sliding behind the wheel of her Toyota, she sat and thought about her strategy for tonight. I think I’ll ask Gina to come along. She scuffs at all the ghost claims— ‘I don’t believe in no ghost!’ She doesn’t know it yet, but tonight, she and I are going ghost hunting. Smiling, Ellen started the car, driving the seven blocks to her house. She grabbed a TV Dinner out of the freezer, popped it into the microwave, made coffee, and called Gina.

“Hello, Gina here.” She fluffed up some pillows on the couch, making herself comfortable, knowing who was calling.

“Hey Gina, are you doing anything tonight?”

“Not much, why? What’s on your mind this time.”

“I was wondering if you wanted to go ghost hunting with me tonight?” Ellen paced back and forth, listening to Gina’s laughter.

Wiping her tears on her sleeve, Gina picked her phone back up. “Ellen, you can’t be serious!”

“Oh, I’m very serious, I really want to know for sure if there are ghost in that plantation house on the other side of St. Louis. Grandma Gertie thinks so and she don’t lie. I need somebody brave to hold the flashlight and come with me.”

“Fine, I’ll come, but I’ll have the last laugh as always.” Gina hung up.

Ellen took a quick shower, dressed in black, and sat down to calm her nerves. When the doorbell rang, she sprang up to let Gina in. When Gina began to laugh again, Ellen eyes shot daggers at her.

“No, no, this time I’m laughing at how you dressed in black, too.” Gina twirled in front of Ellen. “See, we look like we’re ready to go out and steal an expensive art piece.”

“We do think alike,” Ellen smiled. She grabbed two flashlights, and the women walked out of the house. “Your car or mine?”

“Your car is blocking mine, so…”

“Okay, mine it is.” Gina slid behind the wheel and drove to the plantation house which looked eerie in the moonlight. She parked the car and was ready to get out when Ellen’s shaken voice stopped her.

“That weeping willow tree looks like it has many arms that’ll grab us when we walk by.” Hands shaking, as she aimed her flashlight at the tree. “You know; I don’t t-think I can do t-this.”

“You’re not chickening out on me now, just when it’s getting interesting.” Gina swung her legs onto the seat and kicked Ellen out of the car, and closed the car door. She came around to stand next to Ellen. They both stared at the house and began walking towards the front door.

“Don’t you feel that sadness?” Ellen asked.

“No.” They climbed the steps and entered. Gina found the light switch and wasn’t surprised it didn’t work. Shining her flashlight around the hallway, it looked empty. No furnishings at all, just an old broken grandfather clock in the corner.

Ellen shone her flashlight to the left and saw large sliding door, and to the right was a sliding door. Straight ahead was a circular stairway. “Behind one sliding door is the living quarters; the other sliding door was for entertaining guest. This is what Grandma Gertie told me. Which way, Gina?”

“Let’s go right, or upstairs.”

“Right it is.” They walked over to the sliding door, and opened it. It creaked as it slid open. Shining their flashlight around the room, Ellen highlighted the window with here and saw that a large black widow spider resided there. Looking through all the cobwebs, she saw a few broken pieces of furniture, and an old piano which began playing on its own. Ellen gasped, chills crawled up her spine, her hands shook as she shone her flashlight toward the piano. “D-do you see h-her, Gina?”

“I don’t believe it, but y-yes I do.”

“You aren’t supposed to come in here!” Shining their flashlight down into the petulant face of a little girl who was just playing the piano. Red eyes glared up at them as she touched Gina’s arm which burned at contact. “Hey… Ow! Before Gina could react, the little girl disappeared.

Ellen's voice wavered as she backed up towards the door. “W-we got our answer, this place is h-haunted. Let’s go!”

“This is getting way too real, even for me! I’m ready.” When the piano began playing again, Gina and Ellen reacted by scooting out of there and closing the sliding door behind them. As they hurried towards the front door, they saw the body of a women hanging from the hall’s chandelier. Her head was hanging down, but it reacted when the flashlight shone up at her. She was a naked black woman; her back full of welts from a severe whipping she suffered. The whites of her eyes looked ghostly, as she stared down at them. “Have you seen enough?” Her strangled voice sounded eerie, but clear enough for Ellen and Gina to bolt towards the door. It closed behind them as they ran along the broken walkway, to Gina’s car.

Gina slid behind the wheel, her shaking hands tried to put the key in the slot. Ellen helped her and off she drove, foot pedal down to the floorboards.

The next morning, Ellen walked outside to pick up her morning paper, and the headlines blaring up at her. ‘The Old Reed’s Plantation House burned to the ground.’ Ellen plopped down on her front step, wondering— Why now? I hope Gina didn’t have anything to do with this. She was shaken to the core last night. I hope she’s alright!

Driving over to Gina’s, she prayed all the way. When knocking on her door, Gina opened it. “I gather you’ve read the morning paper.”

“Yes, and I'm hoping you didn’t start the fire. You didn’t, did you?”

“Of course not! I wouldn’t go back there if somebody paid me a million dollars.”

“Whew! I was worried about you did it. Last night, you were so silent on the trip back to my house. You’re okay?”

“Yes, Mother, I’m fine. I admit, though, it did affect me, and after all this time thinking ghost weren’t real. Well, I found out they are very real. I even have a souvenir from the little girl.” Gina brow wrinkled as she looked down at her hand.

Gasping, Ellen stared down at an ugly burn of the little girl’s hand on Gina’s arm.


1,573 words