The Haunted Farmhouse - Bratty Brothers

Bratty Brothers - Chapter 3

As the sun slowly crept up into the clear, blue sky, the girls began to rustle around in their beds. In the big oak tree outside their window, the Robin's began chirping harmoniously as they lifted their heads to the sky. If you listened closely, you could hear the faint sounds of morning in the kitchen below as the rustling of slippered feet and running water floated up the stairs.

As Marcie slowly sat up in bed, she stretched her arms up towards the ceiling. She shook her head quickly from side to side, trying to clear the vision in her head from the previous night. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. It was filled with smells of succulent blueberry pancakes, smoked bacon, and freshly brewed coffee.

Marcie sluggishly climbed out of bed and made her way over to the dresser. She leaned over to view herself in the mirror. As she turned her head from side to side she noticed the dark circles under her eyes and thought to herself that she looked like, Mortisha, from the Adams Family. Giggling to herself, she turned her attention down toward the dresser drawers and opened the middle one to look for a top. As she rummaged through the drawer she started hearing soft, rustling noises from behind her. Marcie quickly snatched up a green and yellow, tie dye t-shirt and a pair of dark blue cut-off shorts and shut the dresser drawer. Upon turning around, she noticed that Kiki was sitting up on the hideaway bed attempting to rub the sleep out of her eyes.

"Hey, good morning. How are you feeling after last night?" Marcie asked as she made her way back over to the bed.

Kiki turned her head from side to side trying to stretch her neck out. It must have been the way she slept the night before because she had a really bad kink in her neck that ran all the way down her shoulder.

"Eh, I feel alright. Kinda stiff and my ankle still hurts when I move it. How 'bout you, Marcie? I can't believe that all that really happened last night!" Kiki replied as she attempted to stand up.

"I know, right!! OMG I have never been so scared in all my life. Something was definitely in that house with us last night." Marcie agreed as she got up and went over to join her friend on the hideaway.

Marcie suddenly got very quiet. Her eyes were focused downward towards the floor. She stayed like this for several minutes. Kiki just sat quietly next to her friend. She put her arm around Marcie for support and to let her know that she was there for her.

In almost a whisper, Marcie said, " Kiki, something bad happened in that house, real bad! I think that the reason I"m having these dreams is because they want me to find out what really happened."

"Who wants you to find out?" Kiki questioned with a puzzled expression on her face.

Marcie turned to face her friend. "The Millers." She told Kiki.

"But they're both dead, Marcie!"

"Yes, I know."

Just then, they heard the sound of footsteps coming down the hallway. They suddenly stopped right in front of Marcie's bedroom door. There was a loud knock and then the door knob slowly turned. As Marcie and Kiki watched, the door opened to reveal Marcie's brother, Brad.

"Hey losers, mom sent me up to let you know breakfast is ready. You better get down there before all the food is gone."

"Tell her we'll be right down. Oh, and leave my blueberry pancakes alone or I'll eat YOU for breakfast!" She said as she slowly arose from the bed.

"Sorry, was that meant to scare me? If so, I'm not feeling it!" Brad started to shut the door and then stopped.

"What is it now?" Marcie asked as she raised her eyebrows. She hopped off of her bed and joined Kiki on hers.

Stepping into the room, Brad closed the door behind him. Casually walking over to the girls, his eyes focused first on Kiki, and then over towards Marcie. He stood there quickly for a few moments with his arms folded around his chubby stomach. Brad seemed to be trying to decide how to start the conversation because he would open his mouth as if to say something, and then close it again.

Slowly he began to head towards the sliding doors, shuffling his feet on the wooden floor as he walked. As he stopped, Brad quickly turned around to face the girls. “I know you both went out last night after mom went to bed.” He watched Marcie as her mouth shot open and her eyes grew as large as softballs.

“That's just the reaction that I expected.” Without giving his sister a chance to respond, Brad continued with his interrogation. “So where did you two go that couldn't wait until morning?” He slowly made his way back over to join the girls, he began to make an awful clicking noise with his tongue that annoyed Marcie to death.

“You realize if mom and dad find out you will be grounded until you're twenty.” He said plopping down on the bed.

“Brad, mom and dad can't find out, okay! It will ruin everything.” Marcie pleaded which is something she hardly ever does.

“I don't know, sis. You know I don't keep secrets very well.”

Brad was looking for a way to con his sister into telling him her little secret, and why it was so important that their parents didn't find out. He had something to hold over Marcie's head now and they both knew it. The past few years she had managed to avoid letting him in on her secrets because she kept finding ways to explain them that he couldn't prove differently. Marcie couldn't hide it from him this time, and she knew that she only had two choices. Either she tells him to buzz off and chance him telling their parents, or she trusts him with the truth and that he keeps it to himself. If that's the case then maybe he would actually be helpful in finding out what was going on at the old farmhouse.

Marcie promised Brad that if he kept quiet until that night she would let him in on their little secret. He was a little apprehensive at first, but considering the consequences of their parents finding out, Brad agreed. Marcie also promised that the next time she and Kiki went out that he could go with them. He seemed satisfied and with that hopped up off the bed and headed towards the door. He turned and gave one last look at the girls, and then disappeared down the hallway.

After they were sure that Brad was gone, Kiki turned to Marcie and asked if she was really going to tell him everything. Marcie told her friend that he might actually be useful in their search for what was really going on. Marcie explained that from when Brad was very young he was extremely smart. He always received excellent grades in school, and loved in invent things in his spare time. When he wasn't studying that is.

She told Kiki about the fact that her mom loved to dry their clothes on the line she had set up outside in the backyard. She said they smelled better than putting them into the dryer. The only thing her mom really complained about was that it took so long to dry. Especially when there was no wind to help dry the clothes. So one day Brad quickly went into the basement and locked the door behind him. He emerged an hour or so later with a windmill-type gizmo that was flung over his shoulder. Standing in the kitchen, my mother and I watched curiously as he walked out the back door and towards the clothes line. We decided to follow him outside and watched as he attached the windmill to one of the polls. There was some type of battery-operated mechanism that he secured to the base of the poll, and flipped a small switch. It began to turn and slowly picked up speed.

By this time, Brad had joined us and together we watched as this ingenious device began to create a constant wind to dry the clothes. Brad turned to his mom and told her that as long as she uses this every time she wants to dry clothes they will get done in half the time they used to.

“So, maybe he can invent something that can help us with our “farmhouse mystery.” Marcie added as she stood up and headed for the door.

Kiki too got up and hobbled over to her friend. Her ankle still hurt and was slightly swollen. “I hope you know what you're doin', M.”

“Trust me, I'm sure. Now let's go get some breakfast, I'm starved.”


Marcie's mom was cleaning the counter top as the girls entered the kitchen. The smell of blueberry pancakes, bacon, and eggs made their stomachs start to growl.

“Morning, mom.”

“Good morning, girls.” She turned around and flashed a huge smile showing off her pearly whites as they headed towards the table in the middle of the room. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, just like babies.” Marcie responded as she sat down and began to pile the huge, round pancakes onto her plate. Kiki was still hobbling over to her seat when Mrs. Chapman asked why she was limping. Kiki explained, with a shaky voice, that she twisted her ankle in on of the potholes on the way home from school the day before.

“Does it hurt, hon? Maybe we should take you to get it looked at over at Dr. Scott's office.”

Kiki glanced over at Marcie, a look of desperation on her face, and then back at Mrs. Chapman. She simply shook her head and told her that she just need to put some ice on it and maybe stay off of it for awhile.

“I think we still have an ice pack in the freezer. Let me check.” Marcie's mom quickly headed over and opened the freezer door. Meanwhile, the girls whispered to each other, Kiki asking what to do, and Marcie responding by telling her to stay calm. “Here you go, hon.” Marcie's mom had returned with a small, blue pouch. It was definitely cold. Kiki balanced it awkwardly on her ankle.

“Keep it on now, and then when you get back upstairs lay down for awhile with it on. It should help with the swelling.”

“Thank you, I will.” Kiki said as she finished up her bacon, and was on her last pancake. "These are some awesome pancakes, Mrs. Sloan." Kiki complimented as she swiped her plate with the last piece of her blueberry pancake trying to soak up the last of the syrup.

"Why thank you, Kiki. Would you like some more? We have plenty left!" She pointed towards the plate on the oven.

"Oh no thank you. I'm stuffed. I don't think I could eat another bite." Kiki confessed as she wiped her mouth with her napkin. She started to stand up from the table, and picked up her dishes. As she walked over to the sink, Marcie began to gather up her dishes as well.

As the girls headed upstairs, they suddenly heard heavy footsteps running towards them from the upstairs hallway.

"Ah, comin' through!!" Brad yelled as he barreled down the stairs forcing the girls up against the wall.

"Brad, you are such a moron." Marcie said as he rushed passed them.

"Thanks, sis. I learned from the best." He said throwing her a quick smirk as he reached the bottom of the steps. “Oh, and I'll see you tonight.” Reminding her of the promise she made, and then disappeared from their sight.

Marcie just looked over at Kiki, and shook her head.

"Face it, Marc, boys are idiots!" Kiki said as they continued up the stairs and down the hallway towards the bedroom.

"Yeah, especially that one." Marcie added. They both laughed hysterically as they entered the room and shut the door behind them.