The Spirit of Ravenshom House

Chapter 10: A Modern Day Mummy Fashioned In Translucent Silk

Ephra Andrade lay in a fetal position on the cold ground of Ravenshom house like a helpless potato rolled out of a jute sack. His face accused Daphne of nothing short of murder and his mouth squeezed out painful moans as he fretted and heaved into a standing position.

"What are you doing here?" Daphne had no intention of letting go of her broom stick.

Ephra rubbed the sore right side of his body and yapped, "I thought we could talk," he managed through gritted teeth. "But you seem more interested in assaulting me." Ephra was twisting and bending his body at various angles checking for any damages Daphne's handiwork might have caused. His face was a study of contorted agony.

"Maybe next time, use conventional ways to enter," Daphne wagged the broomstick in front of him, still tempted to use it. "A door, one with a handle, where you can knock to alert people that you are coming in."

"The windows were open," he sing-songed as if that would suffice. Daphne rolled her eyes at him, perplexed.

"What are you gawking at?" Ephra's question was directed to someone behind Daphne. Her nerves quieting down at the thought of Jerry having arrived and not being left alone with the buffoon Daphne spun and was violently taken aback.

Standing like a vision from another world (because indeed she was from another world) was the spirit emblazoned in her snow-white assortment of shuffled vestments. Her face was a scarved grey-white of clouds, her smoke enclosed feet barely touching the dark wood floor, her sight equivalently pacific and petrifying. She was standing close enough for her ever-shifting hand to breeze over. Daphne wasn't surprised at all when she screamed and Ephra followed suit.

"I thought you would be used to her by now," he yelled to be heard over Daphne's shocked cries.

Daphne turned to face Ephra almost forgetting the spirit that shadowed her.

"You can see her?" she sounded incredulous and decidedly so.

"Yes, I can see her."

Daphne froze an instant, her eyes scrutinizing his face for any signs of cruel mockery, "You can really see her," it was a question folded down to a whisper.

"She is floating about five inches above ground behind you by your left shoulder and looks like a modern day mummy fashioned in translucent silk."

Daphne's whole body felt like it was breaking and shaking awake, relieved of a long hauled burden, free of a grievous sickness. "Oh thank heavens", she jumped into him hugging him close. Ephra was taken aback and had the audacity to look bewildered. And before he knew it, he was thrown across the door and he fell back once again finding himself on the hazel wood flooring of Daphne's study.

"You knew," Daphne's voice was dangerously low, like the grumbling roar of a tiger about to ravage its enemy.

"I did, yes." Ephra babbled unaware of Daphne's murderous intentions towards him.

"You knew all this time and you didn't tell." Daphne was seething, the broom stick trembling in her angry hands. "Instead, you told everyone that there was no ghost in this house."

"My apologies", Ephra stated rising from a fall for the second time in the past fifteen minutes.

"Come again."

"My apologies," he said placing his right hand over where one would expect his heart to be.

"My foot," she bellowed.

"No, I said MY APOLOGIES," he barked his mouth sounding out the O's vehemently.

It took all the might inside her to not tackle him with the broomstick then and there.