The Bell Tower

The Bell Tower



The bell tower was built in 1806, it was quite a site to be seen from all over the village. The massive construction had taken four lives during its process of being born it stood five hundred feet, and another 50 feet for the lighthouse that topped it. It was made out of stone, to protect it from the mighty storms that generally came in the winter months, but also in the end of the summer season. The lighthouse atop was a savior to lost seamen, and to boats that land was near, and the bell would be used to alert villagers of any dangers, notice of town hall meeting or time for church, of course there would be different number of times the bell would ring for each function. In deciding at a town meeting that someone was needed to occupy the building to manage its functions, they built a house alongside it, a beauty to be seen, looking over the cliffs to the ocean.
On this day, a year ago, was a young sailor who had washed ashore, the only survivor to a ship that went down a few miles off the coast, they had hit a reef, the boat had caught on fire, and he was the only one that managed to jump ship but not without burning his whole left side of his body. Some local fishing boys found him on the shores, hanging over some rocks, they had gone for help and after some time recovering, he then intergrated into the community. It was here at the town meeting in which a grand celebration was to follow, that the man volunteered to keep the bell tower, he was a lonely man with no wife or children and was beginning a new life. He would do this task in exchange for a small monthly fee and to compensate for his medical debts. People from all over town donated items for the house, pots and pans, furniture, wood, food. He had enough clothes and tools to build things if he needed to.
He was settled into the house no more than a week when he began to notice, strange happenings. One in the middle of the night he could of sworn he heard voices and got up to see if anyone was outside there was no one there. Another time he had made coffee and then went to the lighthouse to check on and polish the oil lamps when he returned his coffee was gone and there was an empty cup sitting there with coffee residue. He was missing tools here and there. Now he was a man that believed everything has a place, and he always put things back where they belonged. Days went on with these strange events, and he seemed a bit weary for he hadn’t a real night’s sleep in a long wile. He decided he would go into town to see the local outcast woman that was said to be a witch, he knew if he talked to anyone else about these strange things he would be branded a crazy person and oust him from his job. So he went to see this woman who lived on the outskirts of town, in a little shack on Wilden Creek. She didn’t go into town often so no one really bothered her much, she grew most of her medicines and food on her own and on occasion town folk would come to her in secret for strange ailments and this is how she made her living.
The man knocked on her door, and the door creaked open, he walked in with her sitting at her table, gutting a chicken. She was a stout woman with long beautiful black hair, horrific looking white eyes. She was blind! He swallowed deeply and was about to ask for something, when she said “ I have been waiting for you to come see me” she said. She continues “The only way to get rid of your ghosts is to marry me”. And so the beginning of a myth that would be told for centuries to come started herewith these two lost souls embracing. The moral tone of the village was about to change from a GOD fearing town to a place to be well known to this day of devil worshipping and strange occurrences.

Present Day:

Jackie and Melinda had decided for their honeymoon vacation they were going to a little old village in Northern Maine, called Couture. This village was on the border of Maine and Canada, deep in French history. It was a small village, and the scenery they saw from pictures were breath taking and gave them a sense of quiet and calm, perfect for a private secluded honeymoon. The place was not well known for tourist attraction, but they did have a couple of Inns, the inn they decided on was a house that was part of an old lighthouse that was built in 1806.
Melinda being the Virgo analytical woman she was took two weeks off and told her secretary to move any meetings or court appointments she had. She had already asked the courts if she could reschedule hearings for the next two weeks and that was approved, she had only three hearing cases anyhow. She wondered what she would need for clothes, it was the middle of July and they were going to be on the coast, so she packed a bit of everything. While packing she started to get all fuzzy thinking about how her and Jackie met. It was a DUI case, and Jackie was the arresting officer, and herself being the defendant’s lawyer. She had won the case, because Jackie forgot to read the defendants Miranda rights. Jackie had become furious and went to the club that Melinda usually hung out at, and gave her a piece of her mind, but then it became so heated, they ended up in bed together that night, and Jackie never left Melinda’s house. She snapped out of it when the phone rang it was Jackie, “honey I’m starting to feel a little uneasy about where we are going for our honeymoon, I had a dream last night and it wasn’t a very nice dream” she said. Melinda responded, “Baby, I understand you are nervous about getting married but it will be ok, what could possibly happen this day and age”? “Well I did a Google search”, Jackie said, and this town we are going in the old century had a lot of missing people, as a matter of fact, it is the only town besides that Queen who murdered all those girls, that has had a scary amount of people go missing never to be found”. “Honey, that was Queen Mary from England and she killed young girls to bathe in their blood because she thought the blood would keep her young, nothing like that would happen this day and age , besides we are still in America”. “Well I just worry you know, Jackie said, besides I’m going to pack my .44, then I will feel safe”. Melinda snapped at her, “you are not going to take your guns, we are on vacation and we are getting married for heaven’s sake, I will not let you take anything like that!” “Ok, ok, sweetie, I will not take my guns, it would just make me feel safer because we are going someplace so umm remote”, Jackie said.”Exactly my point” Melinda said. “Ok honey, I will be done in just a couple of hours, and then we will take off for the road, have everything ready and maybe a few snacks for the road”, Jackie said. “I am done packing everything and I will make some sandwiches for the road sweetie, love you see you see you when you come home” Melinda said.
It was about four in the afternoon when they finally got on the road, it was about a 10 hour drive, so their estimated time of arrival would be about 2or 3 in the morning, and Jackie was hoping it would be easy to find in the dark. Melinda drove first so that Jackie could drive closer to their destination because Melinda had no tolerance for finding someplace she didn’t have a clue about. Melinda was feeling quite feisty after her remembering how the two of them got together, so she wore her black lace cardigan, with just enough cleavage that would tease the hell out of Jackie.