Relatively Related

Copyright© 2016 by Pars001

I wrote this short for a competition years ago

In their room the two girls froze when they heard the loose board in the hallway squeak.

"What was that?" Hailey quietly whispered to her sister.

Straining to hear more, Jamie replied, "I think it's the Nanny trying to catch us playing in mother and father's room. Oh dear! I am afraid that the ghosts aren't going to be happy!"

Giggling softly Hailey asked, "You think they will scare her away?"

"I'm not sure this one is the toughest we have ever had; we'll have to wait and see," Jamie said looking at her sister. "Get to sleep before she comes in here and catches us. I for one do not desire the punishment she can mete out."

Down the hallway in the bedroom Elenor froze at the sudden sound, looking at Roy she could see that he had tensed up. Floating toward the door Roy was about to reach for the doorknob when the Nanny flung the door open.

Growling Roy admonished the now opened mouthed woman, "Have you no shame, woman! Interrupting a moment of passion as you have! Be gone with you or suffer the consequences!"

The Nanny could only shake her head at the barrel-chested, over six foot tall, red-haired man. For a moment she thought she recognized the man but that was silly he died over 50 years ago. Therefore that would make him... , Placing a hand to her her mouth she turned and ran screaming from the room.

Looking at Eleanor Roy growled, "The serving wench has spoiled it!"

With that he vanished leaving a crying and completely unfulfilled Elenor weeping beside the bed.

Suddenly Eleanor's face twisted into rage. So, this woman wished to interfere! We would soon see about that! Floating toward the door a new look of determination filled her eyes. This would never happen again! Her time with Roy was for her and no one else!

The next morning the Nanny was waiting for the girls parents to arrive home. Sitting them both down she explained what had happened the past night, and what she had found. She quickly apologized for accusing the girls for the mess that the parents had found in their bedroom. She was also trying to tender her resignation; she had put up with a great many things in her many years as a Nanny, but this? Shaking her head and heading for the door the parents stopped her, begging her to reconsider.

"I have, as I have said, put up with a great many things as a Nanny, but the rage I saw on their faces? I am not about to remain here and face that, no sir, no ma'am, this is beyond my experience." The dour-faced woman bowed to them both and beat a hasty exit.

They stared at each other, still unsure as to what to do. Calling a runner the father sent the messenger into town to fetch a man who had opened an office recently. They would see if the man was as good as so many claimed he to be.

Arriving two hours later, the strange short, red-headed man introduced himself and began to look around the house. Stopping short before the parents room, the man slowly backed away, he could most definitely feel the anger coming from the room. From the other end of the hallway he could feel an even fiercer anger, this one almost knocked him off his feet.

Reaching out, he tried to contact the anger but everything seemed to be blocked. There was nothing but wave after wave of red hot anger hitting him in the face. He'd never felt the anguish that he was before now. Sitting in a nearby chair he reached out again, trying to determine just who it was he was dealing with.

Strange, he thought, this all feels so familiar almost like... ! The man's mouth dropped open, it couldn't be! Walking back downstairs the man told the couple that yes, they had ghosts. He wasn't completely sure as to the exact identity of them, but he could tell that they were there. He also went on to explain that they were extremely angry possibly because their routine had been interrupted.

They told the man that they were going to take the girls away on holiday for a few weeks. He would have the run of the house the whole time. The father moved to shake the man's hand, but the man backed up saying that he preferred no physical contact with the living. It confused his senses, making it harder for him to do his job. Nodding, though thinking it was strange, the father let it drop, he'd heard the man was extremely odd.

The next day the man was there when the family was starting to leave. He watched the two demure girls quietly walk up to him. Though they didn't touch him he felt that the girls were far from normal little children.

"Please sir," started Jamie, "please don't make them leave!" Jamie's voice was almost a whisper. She and her sister told him, "They are our friends please sir, do not make them leave." This was not only news to him but also a shock, he'd never had anyone, child or adult, ever ask him to not rid a building of a ghost.

Looking at the two girls he could see that they both were deadly serious. Huge tears were starting to fall from their soft eyes.

"We know that you can talk to them as we can, please ask them to stay, just be a bit more careful, sir."

Again shocked, the man leaned down and smiled the first true smile he'd had in a very long time. So they were sensitives like him.

"I will do all I can but you realize that your parents want me to rid the house of them. They have paid me to do this and I can easily rid the house of their negative energy."

Hailey stepped forward still not touching the man, "I know who you are sir, they will be glad to see you; I just know it!"

Once more, the man was taken aback. That was all he needed, for them to open their mouths about everything, "I also know who and what you both are, let's just leave it at that okay?"

Hailey's eyes opened wide she might be young the man noticed be she was as sharp as they came. Sighing, he couldn't resist the pleading look in either of the girls eyes. "Alright, I promise to do all I can to make them stay and be more careful."

He looked over at a shocked Jamie, the older of the two, who said, "We will not say anything. That sir, is a promise."

Nodding to both a true smile on his face, the man sent a runner to his office with several documents and then headed to the house to await the guests that would be there soon.

That night he was sitting in the hallway when Eleanor started to float down toward the bedroom. Stopping short in front of the man her mouth dropped open.

"Roy!" She started to scream.

A moment later the tall red-headed man appeared next to Elenor, looking at the man his own mouth dropped open. "Collin?" Roy shakily asked.

"Boy, is that you?" Eleanor gasped, as the man stood up.

"Yes father, I have searched a long time for you and mother," he turned toward Elenor. "I have missed you both. I knew that neither of you had passed on when I started looking. I was going to take you both out of here but found that I can't. I made a promise to the children."

He looked at Roy. "As we both know father, we never break a promise."

The barrel chest man nodded and smiled wide, "You were always a good boy, Collin! Finally our family is complete!"

"Thing is father, we will have to be careful from now on, as the girls can see and feel us," Collin told them.

"That's a problem; they are sweet girls," Elenor said.

"No, it's not really a problem, mother. I believe them when they said they won't talk. Another thing, father..." Collin started.

"Eh, boy don't push it!" Roy said as he smiled again, with that they all floated down the hallway.