Out of the Darkness

36

"The house is at the end of this block," I said, after taking my next left. "None of this looks familiar. I don't know if that's because this isn't from my past, or if I just don't remember," she replied sadly, scrunching her face up like she was concentrating very hard. I turned into the driveway of the home, then leaned back and sighed. Now I had to go knock on the door and ask if these people were the same ones that had lost a daughter all those years ago. This one was from a girl that had disappeared in the 60's so, if the family still lived here, they would be well into their 70's or 80's. "Here goes nothing," I said, then climbed out of the car. There was already someone standing at the door, looking out. I didn't bother to see if Anna was coming because I didn't want to seem more like a weirdo than I already was, coming to a random stranger's home to ask about someone who they may have lost years ago. "Hi, I know this might seem weird so I'll apologize ahead of time," I said as I reached the man standing on his front porch. "My name's Colby. Are you, by chance, any relation to the Mr. Barry Andrews and Mrs. Elizabeth Andrews who lived here in the 70's?" The man furrowed his eyebrows and nodded. They were my parents. They've passed away now. What is this concerning?" I didn't really know how to tell him what is was concerning. I may have found your ghost sister and she doesn't remember who she is, so can you help me? I didn't think that would go very well. The men with the white coats would be coming for me so fast. "Uh...well, I hope this doesn't seem insensitive, but I'm doing research on the old witch house down in Lawndale. I found some information that said their daughter...well, I guess your sister, went missing back in the 70's. I think her name was Rachel?" He nodded, but still looked confused. "It was and she did. What do you want to know? The cops already got all the information that they needed and there was still nothing else found about her. It was like she just disappeared into thin air. Of course, we didn't have the technological advancements back then like we do now so who knows? God," he said, running his hand through his thinning hair. "I haven't even thought about Rachel in so long. Other times, it just smacks me in the face." "Yeah, I'm sorry to bother you. I really am...but could you maybe tell me what she looked like? There was no description or any photos that I could find online." He looked at me suspiciously for a moment. "Why do you need to know that?" Then he shook his head. "It doesn't matter. She's gone. She's been gone for a long, long time. I have a picture. Hold on a second." He went back inside his home while I stood nervously on his front porch. "I don't think I know him," Anna whispered, giving my heart another jump start. "Shit," I whispered, taking a deep breath. She didn't seem to notice and instead went ahead with what she had been saying. "I mean, wouldn't I know if he were my brother? Wouldn't I feel something? Or recognize something? Anything?" I shrugged but didn't answer because I heard Mr. Andrews coming back. Sure enough, he opened the door a moment later, with an old photograph in his hand. "Here ya go. She was a beautiful girl, but too brave for her own good. You know," he said, smiling as he passed me the picture. "We would fight, like really fight, right here in this yard. I wasn't supposed to hit girls so I always got into trouble, even though she would always be the one who started it. What I'd give to get a purple nurple from her today..." he sighed, and let his voice drift off while I looked at the picture. The girl in the picture was very beautiful. It was an old picture so the image wasn't that clear but even I could see it. Her red hair shone underneath her big, floppy beach hat, her pale skin bright in the sunlight, and her red lips full as she threw her head back in a permanent laugh. I was disappointed that it wasn't Anna, but I guess I couldn't really expect it to be that easy. I passed him back the photo and thanked him. "I appreciate it. Thank you so much. I hope you have a great day," I said, then turned to walk back to my car. "Hey son!" he called out to me. I turned back to see what he wanted. "Stay away from that house okay? There's something not right about that place." "You've been there?" I asked in surprise. He nodded. "Just once and I never got out of the car. I went with Rachel and her boyfriend. I was younger than her, only 12 to her 16, but I wanted to hang out with her. Thought her and her friends were so cool. You know how younger kids are." I nodded, thinking about my older brother. "I felt...wrong there. Darkness. Evil. Whatever you want to call it, the place isn't right. It isn't safe. I screamed my head off until they were forced to take me home. They left again after they dropped me off. I never saw her again." I felt chills go up my spine, and I shivered. "I'm sorry," I said, unable to think of anything else to say. He nodded again. "Just stay safe kid. That place...it's not safe for anyone." He tossed his hand up in a wave, then walked back inside his home. I took the few extra steps to my car, my legs feeling shaky beneath me. After I got in and shut my door, I just sat there for a moment. "Are you okay?" I heard Anna ask. I nodded. "It was the last time he saw his sister. If she would've just listened to him, then she might still be here. But he was a kid. They both were. What is in that house, Anna?" I asked, turning towards her. When her emerald eyes met mine, they reflected the same sadness that I felt for the grieving man inside the home. For all of the families that had lost their loved one. "I don't know Colby. But he's right. It's not safe. You don't have to do this. Don't put yourself in danger. Not for me. You've done enough. Nothing is going to bring me back so it doesn't really matter if I remember or not." She shook her head, then closed her eyes. "Let's just go home," she said softly. I stared at her transparent form for a moment and knew that I couldn't. I couldn't not help her. It may have been my own morbid curiosity but I had to know what happened to her. What happened to all of them. It couldn't happen to anymore people, anymore kids. I pulled out of the driveway and headed to the next destination.