THE APPOINTMENT: A chilling ghost story of malevolence and death Page 10

  But something was taking place in her mind, something which she couldn’t fathom. Her fear was being overtaken by a strong emotional pull towards the horrible creature, and she knew she was entering the shadows of darkness as she felt her spirit weaken. She was filled with an uncontrollable urge to give herself to him. He seemed to have somehow intoxicated her mind with disgusting erotic imagery, imagery so strong that she felt a compelling desire to let him have his will. She was powerless to resist, and moved erotically at his invisible command as he silently lured her towards him. She was burning with desire and would do anything he wanted – and she wanted more of what he could give. He was drawing her into his lair - and soon the deed would be done.

  But the girl’s frantic screams of: “Go back! Go back!” cut through the silence and broke the spell. Without wasting a second, Kelly bolted from the room and grabbing her keys from the hall she ran out of the door - still in her bare feet. She continued running without looking back, until she reached the safety of her car in the underground parking space. Her mind was in turmoil and she could not reason with what she had seen. This time she could not find an answer, it was beyond her mental capacity and there was simply no rational explanation.

  She jumped into her car and turned on the engine.

  She instinctively knew she wasn’t being followed, but scanned the car park just in case whilst reaching behind her for her driving shoes. She fumbled with the seat-belt until she felt it click and drove off frantically, screeching her brakes as she cornered each level.

  Her body was shaking and her hands trembled as she gripped the steering wheel. She drove out of the car park without slowing down, and almost collided with an oncoming vehicle; the sound of its horn blasting behind her until it faded into the distance.

  Driving aimlessly through unlit roads and country lanes, she took deep breaths in an attempt to calm her nerves. Now perfectly sober and unable to rationalise the events of the evening, she was convinced she was going mad. What else could cause those horrific images, if not insanity brought about from those past, dark days of bad dreams and terrible nightmares which had haunted her after the death of her beloved parents? But as she drove blindly along, not really aware of which direction she was taking, her rapid breathing gradually slowed down and became calmer and a clearer view of the situation gradually began to stare her in the face. It was now obvious to her, that the images must have already been in her subconscious when she visited The Grange on that dreadful day, and were not connected to the property at all. The atmosphere, or anything else relating to that building, could not have caused her to have the hallucinations, as she had previously thought when she was there, or that is where they would have remained – permanently at The Grange. And why else would the images suddenly appear in her home, if not already in her mind? The answer was simple: if she ignored the situation, they would simply continue to follow her wherever she went, and would reappear without warning. She knew exactly what she must do.

  First of all she must go back home and face her demons, because that is what they were and they were fixed firmly in her mind; an aftermath from her previous mental breakdown. And on Monday she would contact her Psychiatrist and make an appointment to see him, as a matter of urgency. She needed her medication again, and rapidly.

  She turned on the radio knowing that a voice - any voice in the night, would bring peace to her mind, and put an end to the grim silence which was feeding her imagination. She continued a few miles further, before doing a detour and making her way back to Skipton. She drove past the club where Francine and the others would still be enjoying their celebrations, but she was not tempted to go in and pour out the whole story to her friend, on the contrary, it was the last thing on her mind. She had managed to regain enough confidence to return home, and that determined her not to allow fear to cloud her judgement, no matter how frightening the terrors of the evening had been. She would fight the demons off, no matter what it took, and she would not allow them to get the better of her. She knew that the hallucinations presented no threat of reality, apart from the few moments in which they were present in her mind, and from her previous experiences she knew they would be short-lived. As before, they would come and go, generally lasting only a few seconds but always feeling like hours.

  As she resigned herself to the truth she felt an air of lightness pass over her, as if the dark cloud which had haunted her after that very first encounter had floated away. The long drive in the car had cleared her head of the effects of the wine, and she now felt more resilient and back to her old self as she made her way back to the apartment.

  When she arrived back home the door to her apartment was closed, and even more bizarre, it was locked. She hesitated, knowing clearly in her mind that she had left it wide open when she had bolted, and she certainly hadn’t locked it. She took a deep breath before turning the key and slowly opening the door. She gripped the key tightly to stop her hand from trembling, as she hesitated and listened intently. The humming of the fridge could be clearly heard in the background, and the warmth of the hall greeted her as she walked inside. She switched on the lights and everything felt normal. Her bag was still on the floor where she had left it.

  The nightmare was finally over, of that she was certain – at least for now.

  She checked all the rooms, switching on lamps at the same time, and happy that there were no intruders, either real or imaginary. It was now very late and she had an early start in the morning. She quickly got washed and ready for bed, and changed into her nightdress. After donning a comfy old dressing gown and slippers, she made herself a drink of cocoa - by which time she was well past her sleep and was now wide awake. She sat up in bed reading a few pages of a book whilst sipping her hot drink, hoping it would make her sleepy. She had a busy day ahead of her, and she had never intended having such a late night. After a while she put the book away and settled down for a good night’s sleep. She didn’t turn any of the lamps off - she left them all on, just in case.

  When she finally nodded off she entered a troubled sleep, where monsters and demons with hooked claws reached out at her bare flesh. Everything was controlled by the master demon with the luminous eyes that stood by and watched. And always in the background was the terrified girl, writhing in pain and torment as she cowered behind him.

  9

  IKelly’s week-end had passed swiftly and she hadn’t seen Francine at all since Friday night. Not that she was expecting to, after the heavy drinking which had taken place at the Bistro - not to mention the amount of alcohol that was likely to have been consumed at the club afterwards. Fran would probably have needed the entire week-end to recover.

  On the Saturday, Kelly had managed to make an appointment to see her psychiatrist early Monday morning before going to work. He had no problem fitting her in, she was a private patient and that counted a lot. She had also let her office know that she may be a little late in arriving, due to an early appointment, but she was careful not to even hint at where she was going. There had been enough rumours since her visit to The Grange without her giving them even more to speculate on.

  Her appointment at the surgery was for eight-thirty, and as always Tim was punctual.

  He made sure Kelly was relaxed, before asking her the usual questions to ascertain what may have prompted the hallucinations. Had she been feeling depressed, anxious, or had she experienced a relationship breakdown, had her sleep pattern become irregular … and a whole array of questioning along those lines, before finally asking her if she had taken any holidays or breaks from work lately.

  Tim was uneasy at putting her back on her old medication, after all she had recovered quite well from her mental breakdown all those years ago, and he didn’t feel that prescribed drugs were the answer this time. He suggested that she had been working too hard, and had been pushing herself beyond the natural limits. He suggested a long cruise - or maybe a sabbatical even. But Kelly was having none of it. She insisted he prescribe someth
ing – anything, which would rid her of her demons. He finally prescribed a drug to reduce anxiety which would help her to calm down, it would also help her to sleep, but the treatment had to be accompanied by regular counselling sessions. He gave her the prescription and said he would be in touch regarding the appointments for the sessions. She left with a lighter heart than when she had arrived.

  Kelly arrived at work that morning for ten o’clock, after picking up her prescription from a pharmacy in town. Most members of staff were in a meeting, all but Fee who had stayed behind to man the fort.

  Kelly only managed a curt greeting when she saw Fee. She wasn’t feeling too sociable and wasn’t in the mood for making idle conversation, so she didn’t encourage her. But it wasn’t long before Kelly’s fears were realised.

  “Your life is in danger!” Fee warned furtively at close range.

  Kelly felt a sudden rush of anger well up inside her, and her look could have cut Fee in half. But instead of responding and falling foul to her maniacal ravings, she chose to ignore her. But that was no deterrent as far as Fee was concerned, she took it as encouragement and moved closer to Kelly.

  “Last night - I had a premonition.” Her eyes widened and her voice heightened to a shrill squeal. “But I can’t say any more, except …” She hesitated, but before nervously scuttling back to her own desk she whimpered, “Be warned!”

  There was a time when Kelly would have been amused by Fee’s strange behaviour, but not anymore. What she was saying was too pointed, too personal - and irregular to say the least. She couldn’t possibly have known about her recent hallucinations, or her visit to the psychiatrist, because she hadn’t told anyone. She simply couldn’t tolerate her goings-on at the moment, and whilst she made every effort to ignore her, she still braced herself for a further onslaught. It wasn’t long.

  “Leave the souls of the damned to rot in hell,” she muttered from her work station. Her voice was scarcely audible, almost fearful, and her face had taken on a crimson glow.

  Kelly could hardly hold her temper in. But she ignored her and carried on with her work, checking her diary, changing the date on her desk calendar, and going through files. She looked at the clock wondering when the others would be back from the meeting, but never once did she glance at Fee - her resolve was so strong.

  But Fee couldn’t keep quiet.

  “You must heed my warning. I can’t say any more or I may incur the wrath of the devil.” And with that Fee scurried from the room like a frightened mouse.

  Kelly flopped down on her seat and ran her hands through her hair in exasperation. Ever since that first experience at The Grange, Kelly had found Fee’s behaviour completely intolerable. Rather than find her demeanour amusing, as she once did, it had now become irritating and ridiculous. She wished she had never set eyes on The Grange - it had been a sad disappointment and a disastrous experience. And somehow it had affected Fee in a way that didn’t make sense.

  However, with Fee out of the way, Kelly gradually managed to forget her ramblings, and began to concentrate on her planned schedule for the day, which thankfully included several outside calls. She pulled open a drawer in search of the batteries for her camera, and found herself staring at a cross made from a piece of palm. It had come from a church, she knew that much, and beside it was a bible and a prayer book. There was also a small bottle labelled holy water. She knew that Fee attended the Catholic Church, so there was no doubt in her mind where they had all come from. Staring at the offensive objects, she saw red. This time Fee had just gone too far. What was wrong with her? Had she lost her mind entirely? Because it was clear to Kelly that Fee was the culprit and if this was her idea of a joke - she wasn’t laughing. She grabbed the items and tossed them into a bin. She wasn’t sure how to tackle Fee, but common sense warned her that the best solution was to ignore her and remain silent. Surely if she saw that she wasn’t gaining anything by continually ranting and raving, she would simply give up and go away. So that, finally, was Kelly’s objective – to do nothing, and say nothing, and hope for the best.

  Kelly was organised in readiness for her outside calls, which she was grateful would take up most of the remaining day. She prepared her camera and after double checking everything she left for her day’s appointments, relieved to get out of the office and away from Fee’s wild speculations.

  Ever since her visit to The Grange that day, Kelly had experienced an increased feeling of irritability and agitation. She could find no explanation, apart from tiredness brought about through too much work and too much pressure. She also knew that she was missing Matthew who had become an important part of her life, and although they were keeping in touch through Skype, it wasn’t quite the same as being together – albeit infrequently due to their corresponding work patterns. He had a big shoulder to lean on, and right now she wished he were here.

  Whilst out on the road Kelly listened to the radio in her car, but gradually her thoughts reverted back to the various incidents and experiences which had haunted her of late. She hadn’t told Francine about the hallucinations which had taken place on Friday evening. Of course she hadn’t seen her since that night anyway, but any other time she probably would have gone out of her way to catch up on events. But this time was different. She simply didn’t want to broadcast the fact - that she may be going mad! So no-one knew about it, except her psychiatrist. She didn’t need to second guess Fran’s reaction either, if she told her about the drugs which she had insisted that Tim prescribe for her. She definitely wouldn’t approve of that. And she had no patience for listening to Fran’s speculations about apparitions, time slips, and all that nonsense. Okay, she respected her friend’s beliefs, everyone has a right to their own views, but from where she was standing it was all hocus-pocus. At least she had her medication now, and starting on it to-day would soon put her back to normal, and if not she would continue with it until it did. No-one need know, not even Matthew, after all, she wouldn’t want him thinking that she was some kind of nutcase who was too weak to stand on her own two feet. And whilst she did feel somewhat guilty at relying on drugs in that way, there was simply no alternative; her past experiences had proven that. She wanted to get back to her old self and treat everyone in the same way as before. She didn’t like this new crotchety person who had invaded her personality, and she knew it hadn’t gone unnoticed at work - but they were all too kind to say.

  Kelly’s patience at work had really been tested since the thirteenth of January. Even now when all this time had gone by, her work colleagues still believed The Grange was haunted. Her tolerance levels had been lowered dramatically by the continual chitchat in that direction. It seemed that she was the only one who firmly disbelieved in all that nonsense, and so the whispered conversations continued undercover, in an attempt to avoid Kelly’s wrath. It had all become so bizarre and was spoiling the normal happy atmosphere at work. What a pity!

  And so she didn’t feel she could share her experiences, and therefore she had no choice but to bear it alone and get through it the best she could. She would win she knew that, she was determined. And the sooner she could put it all behind her, the better. She wanted to be on top form for when Matthew came back from the States, and she had just taken the first steps towards it, by facing the truth and going back on the medication.

  Later that evening Kelly settled down for an early night after a long heart-warming chat with Matthew on the phone. His project in America was far from completed and he’d asked her if there was any chance of her flying out to see him, suggesting that she take a long awaited break. He was concerned that she was working too hard and not taking time off for herself, and he missed her. The experience relaxed Kelly and she was feeling better than she had done for a long time. It was good to be in a relationship with Matthew, albeit a distant one at the moment, but the long absence had obviously made his heart grow fonder. There was no doubt that a trip to the States to be with Matthew could be the answer to all of her troubles, and she
was owed quite a few holidays by her employers. So maybe it would all work out for the best. Having ended the telephone call with a promise to see what she could do, Kelly decided to go to bed with a drink of cocoa and her half-read book. But concentrating on the book was not that easy, as her thoughts were constantly being interrupted by images of Matthew and the possibility of being with him soon.

  She’d hardly turned two pages when her bedside lamp flickered before fading out altogether. Uttering a few expletives she put down her book, got out of bed and went in search of a replacement bulb. Frustratingly, before she reached the cupboard where she kept them, the lamp came back on again - and so did all of her main lights. As the main lights were on a different circuit to her lamps, there was no logical explanation. She reckoned that it could only be a light switch which had not been turned off properly, and therefore had gradually moved itself into the on position. The fact it did it at the same time that the lamp flickered and faded, was mere coincidence. She switched the main lights off, got back into bed, and resumed her reading.

  Ten minutes later she had to put the book down. None of it was sinking in, because she was busy mulling over her conversation with Matthew. He had made very strong suggestions about their relationship becoming more permanent. And whilst Kelly was a little confused as to what his plans were, she found the tone of the conversation and his proposals exciting. Although she didn’t want to overestimate his intentions, her imagination started to get the better of her and she began to visualise what life would be like if she were living with him. She wondered how it would affect her career, but then there was no reason why things should change in that direction. After all, things could remain the same, except they wouldn’t have separate homes. She was feeling more excited as she allowed her imagination to move fast-forward, and she felt a strong urge to ring Fran and share it with her. But her thoughts were rudely interrupted by a sudden series of knocking sounds coming from above her head. She gazed up at the ceiling and remained perfectly motionless whilst she listened. Three very deliberate knocks sounded intermittently from the area of the loft space. She was completely bewildered by the noises and couldn’t understand what on earth they were. But before she could gather her wits, her main lights came on and then went off again and at that precise moment her lamp went out too, leaving her in total darkness. All was quiet. She remained motionless and continued to listen and concentrate. Suddenly the silence was disturbed by a loud dragging sound coming from the loft space, followed by the sound of shifting feet. It sounded like someone dragging something heavy across the floor.