Halloween Stories

“The first anniversary of when you started working here is coming up in a few days,” Crystal Simek said as we were signing in.  We’d been working together for the past year on the night shift, and I’m glad she’s my colleague.  She’s a caring person and a wonderful friend.

“Yep, it will be my first anniversary here at Valley View Nursing Home.  I like to say that I started this job on Halloween, which will be in three days, but I actually started at 11:00 p.m. on October 30^th. 

“Did you forget that Pam explained that everyone considers it the Halloween shift, because seven of the eight hours we work are on Halloween?”

“Ok, then technically I haven’t been misleading anyone and I did start on Halloween.  And what a night it was.”

The rest of you might remember that my first day at work wasn’t your typical run of the mill experience.  Pam, who works the shift before ours, had warned me that I might see shadow figures moving about in the critical care unit, as well as the ghost of a little girl.  This made me very curious and I wondered if they were merely mirages on the monitors at the nurses’ station or if the cameras had actually picked up the images of ghosts? 

Of course, I felt that I had to investigate her claim, and as it turned out, it wasn’t the smartest thing I’d ever done.  To summarize my experience during that shift, I found my way down to the basement and was attacked by the spirit of a man dressed entirely in black and he nearly stole my soul.  However, the spirits of the souls he had collected previously rose up and saved me. 

I guess that seeing the man in black trying to collect the soul of a healthy young man upset the other spirits so badly that they attacked the man in black and saved me in the process.  They then carried him back to a lead coffin and had me help them entomb the man in black inside.

As soon as that had been completed, the other spirits began to disappear.  Apparently, they were finally able to cross over to the other side, because no more shadow figures have been seen in the nursing home since that time.  You might think that took care of the whole problem, but you’d be wrong.  The ghost of the little girl still remained.  It seems that she wasn’t part of the group that the man in black had trapped there, and I wanted to find a way to help move her on as well.   

Since we were able to see her as she would have appeared in life, rather than as a shadow figure, there must be another story behind why she still remained, but my research had turned up nothing.  I’d gone through many years’ worth of old newspapers and hadn’t discovered any reference about her death, so I started contacting local historians.  I reached out to the county historian where I lived and asked if she would assist me, and she agreed.  When she was also unable to discover anything, I reached out to the historians from the surrounding counties.  Eventually, one of them was able to help. 

“Since you’d first contacted me,” the woman historian stated, “I did some research and I think I’ve found the information you’re seeking.  I believe the little girl whose spirit haunts the nursing home is that of Molly Houlihan.”

“And what led you to this conclusion?”  

“I located a couple of old newspaper clippings from this area that mention the death of a family that included a little girl that fits the description you gave me.  I also found a similar reference about this same family’s demise in a book about the history of Jefferson County.”

“Wait a second.  I’m confused.  If you researched information that happened in Jefferson County, where you reside, then why do you believe it’s the identity of the little girl whose spirit haunts a nursing home in Madison County?”

“It’s because the article states the family that died were all residents of Madison County.  It was a major story here at the time and I’m certain it relates to the ghost that you are seeing.”

“Then why wasn’t the story in the newspapers I searched through in Madison County?”

“It was a very confusing situation, so I’ll attempt to explain it.  The item that had been used to murder the family had been prepared by a resident of this county and the entire process, except for the final step, had been completed in this county.  The person charged with the murder was Molly’s father’s sister, or Molly’s aunt if you prefer, and she poisoned the family.”

“Wait a second.  Are you saying Molly’s aunt is responsible for the deaths of her brother, sister-in-law, and niece?”

“Yes, sir.  Sarah O’Brien had invited her brother’s family to her house in order to celebrate his birthday.  She’d prepared a lovely dinner for the situation, and she also made two cakes, one that they ate there and another that she sent home with the family.  The only difference between the two cakes was that she used one additional ingredient when making the cake that she was planning on sending home with them – she added rat poison.  So, the act of preparing the poisonous cake was carried out in Jefferson County, but the deaths actually occurred in Madison County.”

“It’s beyond my comprehension to understand how a woman could poison her own family members.”

“She did it because her brother, Patrick James Houlihan, was a very prominent and wealthy businessman and she was jealous of his success and his wealth.  Her husband had provided her with a comfortable life before he died, but she wanted more.”  

“Ok, but why didn’t she just kill him?”

“If she’d only killed him, then everything he owned would have gone to his wife, not to her, so she felt she had to kill all of them at the same time.  That way, she’d be Patrick James Houlihan’s only living relative and would be named his heir.  She’d inherit everything he owned – she’d be given control of his business, be able to move into his big, beautiful home, and she’d inherit all of his money.  She’d have everything she desired.”

“I take it that since they were apparently calling this a murder that they must have suspected what she’d done, but did they ever find any evidence so they could charge her?  And if they did charge her, was she ever convicted and punished?  I think I might need to know this information if I’m going to help Molly’s spirit cross over.”

“I’ll be happy to share that tragic story with you.  Sarah wasn’t a suspect at first and the police involved in the case believed the family had died from food poisoning or some illness.  However, eventually they were able to tie their deaths to the cake.”

“And how did they do that?  They didn’t have the same scientific resources and equipment that we have today, so how did they figure out that she did it?”

“No, they didn’t have the same resources or equipment that we have today, but there was other evidence that pointed in her direction.  As it turned out, the family dog had stolen some of the cake from the table after the family took ill, and later some mice had snacked on the cake crumbs that were left behind.  When Mr. Houlihan didn’t show up at his business, someone was sent to the house to check on him.” 

“And that’s how they found out they were all dead?”

“Yes, and that person notified the police.  When they arrived, they not only discovered that Mr. Houlihan, his wife and his daughter were dead, but they discovered the dog and a couple of mice were dead as well.  And since none of them had any visible or obvious signs about what had caused their deaths, poison was quickly suspected, but now they had to discover who’d done it and how it was done.”

“So, how did they tie it back to Molly’s aunt?”

“They didn’t at first, but after the coroner performed autopsies on everyone involved, including the animals, he realized they all had one common link.  Each one had varying amounts of undigested cake that remained in their stomachs.”

“But that didn’t indicate who had baked the cake.  Maybe the mother had made it.”

“That’s true, the coroner had only concluded that the manner of death was murder, possibly a suicide and murder, and the cause of death was poisoning.  Now, the police were charged with discovering WHO had poisoned the family.”

“And how did they figure that out?”    

“Initially, they suspected the mother had done it, since she did all of the cooking, but they soon grew skeptical that Mrs. Houlihan had   baked the cake.  Many of them had known the family, and they just couldn’t believe that Clara Houlihan would have added the rat poison to the cake intending to kill her entire family, including herself.  She’d always been so affectionate with her husband, always holding his hand and being by his side, and she was so doting and caring with Molly.  There was just no way she would have murdered them, but then the police had to determine who else could have done it.”

“So, how did they find out it was Molly’s aunt and not her mother?”

“During the investigation, one of the department heads that worked at the factory owned by Molly’s dad remembered that his boss had told him about going to his sister’s house for dinner the night before.  His boss had also told the man that his sister had made two birthday cakes, one they ate there and another that she gave him to take home.  He said his boss was looking forward to enjoying the second cake that evening after dinner, and this information was what focused their attention on Sarah.  However, since she lived in a town in another county, they had to turn the investigation over to the local authorities there.”

“So, did she get arrested and convicted?”

“The local sheriff questioned her, and since he felt she was being evasive and had contradicted herself on a couple of points, they searched her house for evidence.  During the investigation, they found a half-used container of rat poison, but this wasn’t unusual that she might have it.  Most homes had mice; it was a common problem, so many people might also have an adequate supply of rat poison in order to get rid of them.  However, the investigators later discovered that Sarah had purchased the rat poison from the general store just two days before the family’s death.” 

“That would have been suspicious, although not damning evidence.”

“You’re right; at least until the owner of the general store stated that it was the only time that Sarah had ever purchased rat poison.”

“Ok, so the timing of the purchase and the fact that she’d never bought rat poison before would seem to be incriminating.”

“It was enough to convince the jury to convict her and she was sentenced to die in the gas chamber.  She was executed a couple of months later.”

“Ok, but this still doesn’t explain why Molly is still here, if her aunt had been punished for the crime?  Why didn’t she merely move on with her family?”

“It was reported by people who were familiar with her that Molly was a queer child, and during that time period the word queer wasn’t used to describe a person’s sexual orientation.  Back then it was used to describe something or someone who was ‘strange’ or ‘odd’, which could have been due to various reasons.  Another reference I found described Molly as being feebleminded, and back then that term would have meant that she had an IQ that was below normal.  In other words, she was mentally retarded.” 

“But that doesn’t explain why she didn’t move on with her family.  I’m certain her mother and father would have attempted to take her with them.”

 

“It’s possible that they thought it would happen automatically or that she was following them.  It may have also been due to the fact that Molly wanted to stay behind with the places and things she was familiar with, since many mentally retarded people are upset by any sort of change.  It is also possible that she wasn’t getting along with her parents.”

“I suppose it’s possible, but it still doesn’t explain how she ended up at the nursing home.”

“Maybe I can explain that for you as well.  I did some additional research and discovered that the Houlihan family’s home would have been on part of the land where the nursing home is now located.”   

“Ok, this is all starting to make sense now.  I’d also appreciate it if you’d tell me her father’s first name now, so I can investigate this situation further.”

“Certainly, her father’s name was Patrick James Houlihan.”

After she had given me all of the information I needed, I thanked her for her kind assistance and ended the call.  I immediately went online and began to research the location of the family crypt and determine where they were buried.  As soon as I located this information, I researched the name Patrick James Houlihan on Ancestry.com to see what other information I might discover. 

After eliminating the information about other men with the same name, and there were quite a few of them and some had even lived in the same state, but I finally located the record I was seeking.   It seems that Patrick James Houlihan from Dayton in Madison County had earned a great deal of money manufacturing women’s undergarments.  It also stated that he was married and had one child named Molly, and later the article cited the school records for Molly.  As the county historian had mentioned to me previously, Molly’s teachers described her as being feebleminded, a dim-wit, and academically underperforming. 

This confirmed my previous notion that she had an intellectual disability, and that could explain why she appeared to be lost and confused.   It might also indicate how her ghost ended up at the nursing home, because she probably returned to the house where she’d lived before she died, and when the house was torn down later, she wound up here. 

After disclosing this information to Pam and Crystal, we discussed the best way to deal with Molly.  We eventually agreed that I should speak to her as if she was a child that was half her chronological age, so I decided to do it the next time she showed up in the critical care unit. 

This didn’t happen for a couple of days, and then that night I saw her appear on the monitor, I told Crystal that I was going to go speak with Molly, but before I left, I grabbed a radio, just in case Crystal needed me.  I then took off at a jog, but when I reached the critical care unit, I slowed down to a walk so I didn’t scare Molly, and slowly approached her. 

“Hi, honey.  Are you lost?”  She looked up at me blankly, but I knew she’d heard me, so I continued.  “Are you looking for your mommy and daddy?”  

She looked up at me again, but she still didn’t respond.  She didn’t nod or shake her head, and she made no effort to reply to me verbally.  She merely looked up at me with the same blank stare as always, so I decided to try a different approach. 

“Molly, look around.  I want to know if you can see a bright light.”

I was pleased that she turned her head to look around and do as I asked, and just as she started to lift her arm and point in a direction, I saw something out of the corner of me eye.  A dark blur was heading in my direction. 

“Leave her… alone,” the hoarse voice of a female demanded after she materialized and glared at me from my right side. 

At the same time, I saw her lift an axe that she must have kept hidden from me until she raised it above her head.  I had no idea why she was carrying an axe with her or where she got it from.  She might have carried it up from the basement after finding it stored in an area of the basement that I hadn’t investigated yet, but I knew she planned to use it on me.  I dove away from her just before she brought the axe down on my head or shoulders, and then I quickly scrambled back to my feet as she was starting to lift the axe so she could attack me again.  This time, however, I charged her and grabbed ahold of the axe, and when I was certain she couldn’t use it on me, I spoke.    

“I wasn’t trying to hurt Molly, if that’s what you thought.  I was merely attempting to help her cross over to the other side so she could join her family.” 

At first, I thought the figure that was attacking me was Molly’s mother and she thought I was trying to harm her daughter, but I quickly changed my mind.   

“No!  She stays… here… with me.” 

Needless to say, this baffled me.  I didn’t think Molly’s mother would want Molly to remain here if they could both cross over to the other side.  However, I now had another thought.  Had her mother stayed behind to protect Molly, or had they been separated and she’d been unable to locate Molly until now?  But if that was the case, why did she say Molly was to stay HERE with her?  Why not cross over so they could both be with her father?

I was still struggling to figure this out when she unexpectedly let go of the axe.  I wasn’t expecting this to happen while I was trying to convince her that I wasn’t a threat, but fortunately I had maintained my grip on the axe while I was struggling with the woman.  

“I can help both of you cross over,” I offered, but as I was speaking, she reached out with both of her hands and wrapped them around my neck.  I couldn’t believe it.  She was now trying to strangle me.

‘She was unbelievably strong for her age and size,’ I thought.  And as I was struggling to break free from her grasp, I also wondered why she was doing this.  ‘Why did she still see me as a threat?’

I quickly dropped the axe and was busy trying to pry the fingers of one of her hands from around my neck.  As soon as that had been accomplished, I kept ahold of her wrist so she couldn’t grasp my neck again, while at the same time I was using my other hand to pry the fingers of her other hand from my neck as well.  When I finally succeeded, I realized that both she and Molly had suddenly vanished, but I had no idea if it had happened at the same time. 

I quickly grabbed the radio I’d hooked onto my belt and called out to my co-worker.  “Crystal, did you see what just happened to me?” I gasped.  “Were you watching the monitor for the critical care unit?”

“No, Royce, I was busy doing paperwork.  And since the warning light never came on, I wasn’t paying attention to anything else, including the monitors.  Why?  What happened?”

“I was trying to help Molly when another spirit attacked me.  She tried to kill me with an axe first, and when she failed at doing that, she attempted to strangle me instead.” 

“Yikes!  Are you ok?”

“I’m still a little shaken, but physically I’m fine.  I’m heading back to the where you are right now.”

When I reached the nurse’s station, Crystal asked me a few more questions about the attack.  “What did your attacker look like?” she gasped. 

“She was a fairly plain looking elderly woman, but she was very strong and had an evil expression on her face.” 

“Who do you think it was?”

“I’m not sure.  At first, I thought it might be Molly’s mother, but I couldn’t understand why she would be attacking me or why she appeared to look so evil.  Then, I thought it might be the ghost of Lizzie Borden, since she’d used an axe when she killed her parents, but that didn’t make sense, because she lived hundreds of miles from here, so I doubt it was her.  It might have been Molly’s aunt, but I have no idea why she would attack me or want to keep Molly from leaving.  I believe I might have to seek the help of a professional to determine who that spirit was, especially if she shows up again.”

“Do you think she will?”

“If Molly returns here, then I’m pretty sure the other woman will be close by.  For some reason, she didn’t want me to help Molly cross over.”

“What type of professional do you think will be able to help you?”

“Possibly I’ll need a paranormal investigator, or more likely a medium.  In fact, I believe I’ll require the assistance of a physical medium to sort this out.”

“Why do you think that type of person will be able to help you?”  

“I’ve learned from my previous research that physical mediums are able to see and hear the dead, just as we see and hear the living.  I’ve also read that some physical mediums can sense the spirits and get information from them, even if they can’t see them at the time.  I’m hoping that the person I find will be able to tell me who the spirit of the woman was and why she didn’t want me to help Molly cross over.  I also want to know why she attacked me.”

“Good luck with that, but if it was me, I would leave well enough alone.  The ghost of the little girl wasn’t causing any problems, even if it took a little time for us to get used to seeing her around.  The shadow figures weren’t causing any problems either, but I believe everyone was relieved when they were no longer around.  I’m just worried about the woman that you said attacked you, because she might be successful the next time she tries something like that.”

“That’s why I’m going to look for a physical medium.  I’m hoping such a person can help me sort these things out.”

It took a couple of weeks before I found a physical medium who was willing to help out, but only after I explained to her what I needed, without going into detail about the situation.  I merely told her that different staff members had seen things that troubled them and that I’d concluded the nursing home was haunted.  I didn’t tell her about Molly or explain that I’d been attacked by another spirit, because I didn’t want to taint her findings. 

After she understood what I hoped she could do for me, she agreed to meet up the following night in the employee parking lot before my shift started.  That way, I could explain to the guard that she was there to help with a delicate situation and then he’d allow her to come inside with me.  Otherwise, no one other than someone with an employee badge was allowed inside after visiting hours had ended. 

As soon as the guard had permitted her to enter the building, we made our way to the nurse’s station and I introduced her to Crystal.  I then grabbed a radio to take with me before I led her to the critical care unit.  Molly wasn’t there when we arrived, so I wondered if this was all going to be a waste of her time, but the medium convinced me that wasn’t going to be the case. 

“There’s a little girl here and she appears to be confused.  I can’t quite understand what’s she’s saying, but her name is Mary or Molly or another similar sounding M name.  I also get the feeling that she’s remained at this location for quite a few years, even well before the nursing home was constructed on this spot.  I also get the impression that she’s been looking for her house for most of this time and she knows this isn’t it.  She’s also very lonely and prefers to be around other people, even if it’s the old people and staff members that are here.”

“That would explain why she appears at the nursing home every so often.” 

“Actually, she’s here all of the time, whether you can see her or not.”

“I was wondering if that might be the case, because I wasn’t sure.”

“There’s another spirit here as well, but it’s attempting to keep me from sensing it.  It seems that it wants to prevent me from learning anything about it.  And although I can’t currently read any information about that spirit, I’m getting residual readings that there were other spirits here a short time ago, but they’re no longer around.  It is possible that I’m just sensing the spirits of the patients that have died here and have moved on, but I’m just not certain.  There may have been other spirits here as well,”

“I need to inform you about something.  It’s very possible that you’re sensing the spirits of those who have died here, but there might be another explanation that I didn’t tell you about.  In the past, different staff members had seen shadow figures roaming around this area, although no one has seen them for the past few months.”

“It seems that they must have moved on, and that may explain why the other spirit I’m sensing is trying to hide from me.  Possibly it’s worried that whatever made the shadow figures leave could also be the trigger for it to go.” 

“The spirit doesn’t have to worry about that, because it was a special situation, but I won’t tell you more than that right now.”

“That’s fine, but the spirit knows I can sense spirits even if they’ve chosen not to be visible, and that I can hear what they’re saying when they speak with each other.  Even though I sense these two spirits are here, neither of them is talking right now, but I can still tell some things about them.”

“There’s probably something else I should tell you then.  I worked with the county historian from Jefferson County and I also did some of my own research about the little girl.  I believe that one of the spirits you’re sensing is a 10-year-old girl named Molly Houlihan, and from the information I gathered, I believe she has an intellectual disability.”

“That would coincide with the information I’m getting from her.  As I said earlier, I was under the impression that her name was Mary or Molly and her confusion that I was sensing could be caused by a low IQ.”

“What about the other spirit you mentioned?”

“That’s more difficult because it’s doing everything it can to prevent me from learning about it.  However, I can still feel that the spirit is a female and her name is Sarah, Susannah, or something similar.  I’m also getting the feeling that she is somehow related to Molly, but I don’t believe its Molly’s mother.  The spirit might possibly be a cousin, an aunt, or possibly even her grandmother.  I’m just not sure, but I’m also getting the feeling that the second spirit is considerably older than Molly.  That’s why I thought it might also be her grandmother.”

“That’s very interesting.  Do you think Molly knows the other spirit is here?”

“Yes, I do, and I think Molly is a little afraid of her, although I don’t understand why.  As I said, I’m getting a lot of confusing and conflicting feelings from Molly.”

“Do you think you can possibly coax the other spirit out here                                                                            so she can tell you more about who she is?”

“I’ve been trying to, but she’s very guarded.  I believe she’s afraid that I have the power to banish her from the nursing home and possibly even have the ability to send her to hell.  She seems to be hiding something, something she feels responsible for, and she believes I was brought here so I could make her pay for her crime, although I can’t read what that crime was.”

“That makes sense to me, although I won’t say anything more about why I feel that way.”

“Whatever she’s hiding, it may be connected to the littler girl in some way.  In fact, the second spirit might even be the reason why Molly is still here.  The other spirit may have convinced or coerced Molly into staying here for some reason.  I believe this other spirit feels that if Molly crosses over that it might be the final nail in the coffin for her, so to speak.  It feels that if that happened, then it would either condemn her to remain here totally alone or it would send her to hell.”

“That actually makes sense to me, because I now believe the other spirit is that of Molly’s aunt, Sarah O’Reiley.  She was Molly’s father’s sister and she was responsible for intentionally poisoning Molly’s entire family and causing their deaths.”

“That explains and confirms what I was sensing about her.” 

“It didn’t happen that long ago, but one day when Molly appeared, I attempted to talk with her as if she was a much younger child.  I asked if she could see a bright light, because I was going to suggest that she walk toward it and cross over, but before I could do that the other spirit attacked me.  She attempted to use an axe to kill me, and when that didn’t work, she tried to strangle me instead.  She’s quite strong you know.”

“It’s very interesting that she attacked you, because it’s completely the opposite of what she’s been doing with me.  However, I might be able to use the information you just gave me against her, if it becomes necessary.”

“Are you going to attempt to get Molly to cross over?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Then I’ll watch for Sarah so I can protect you from her.”

“I appreciate your offer, but it may not be necessary.  I believe I can deal with her on my own.”   

“Ok, just be very careful, because she’s extremely sneaky and very strong.”

She then bent down and began whispering, and I suspected she was talking to Molly.  While she was doing that, I was looking around and keeping an eye out for Sarah, because I was afraid that she’d attack the medium the same way that she had attacked me. 

Since I wasn’t seeing any sign of Sarah, I decided to glance over to see what the medium was currently up to.  She was still whispering to Molly, but now she was also reaching out her left arm with her hand held open, and she appeared to be giving Molly a gentle nudge to start moving in a particular direction.  I assumed she was attempting to get Molly to move into the light and I began to worry.

When I’d done something similar, Sarah attacked me, so I stopped focusing on the medium and started looking around for Sarah again.  She obviously had to materialize in order to stop me, so it only made sense that she’d have to materialize this time as well, in order to stop the medium.  As I was scanning the area around us, I thought I noticed a slight movement, so I concentrated in that direction.  It didn’t take long before I saw Sarah materialize completely and rush toward the medium. 

“Look to your left, at 7 o’clock,” I screamed, and the medium jumped up and turned in that direction. 

As I started moving closer so I could help her fight off Sarah, the medium did something I wasn’t expecting.  She thrust her right hand out in front of her body, with her palm facing forward, and screamed. 

“Stop or I’ll send you directly to hell!”  I was amazed that Sarah came to an abrupt halt and now stood transfixed as the medium continued speaking.  “I have the ability to send you to hell if I want or I can allow you to remain here, but I will not allow you to stop Molly.” 

She apparently must have figured out that Sarah wasn’t coming to harm either of us; but was trying to stop Molly from leaving instead.  “If you want, I’ll even allow you to follow Molly into the light, but I won’t allow you to continue trapping her here just so you won’t be alone.”

Even though I could see what was happening, I still had questions, but I thought it would be best if I didn’t ask the medium just yet.  I was afraid it might break her concentration and she wouldn’t be able to protect Molly as she crossed over.  Therefore, I waited for a few more minutes until she finally turned toward me and spoke. 

“Molly will no longer haunt the nursing home.”

“So, she entered the light and went to join her family?”

“She entered the light, although I can only assume that she joined her family.  With her mental ability, I’m not sure if she’d be able to find her family on her own, so I hope there’s someone on the other side that will help her.  Either that or maybe she’ll received an immediate mental upgrade as soon as she crosses over so she won’t have any trouble finding them.”

“I hope that’s the case then, but I have a couple of questions for you.  When you stopped Sarah as she was charging at us, you said you had the power to send her to hell.  Could you really have done that?  And whether of not you could do it, how did you know your threat would be effective?”  

“First of all, Sarah wasn’t charging us.  She was rushing to stop Molly before she was able to enter the light.  I had merely pointed Molly in that direction and given her a little shove to get her started.  I knew she’d do as I suggested, because I told her she’d be able to be with her mommy and daddy again. 

“As to your second question, about how I knew that I’d be able to stop Sarah by threatening to send her to hell, it was because of something we talked about earlier.  If you remember, I told you that I’d gotten the impression that she had done something bad and it was one of the reasons she’d remained here.  She also gave me the impression that she was afraid that if she entered the light that she’d go directly to hell, so I felt the threat would stop her, and no, I couldn’t have sent her to hell.  I only needed her to believe that I could.  By the way, I have a question for you as well.  Do you know how old Sarah was?  When she charged us all I could tell was that she appeared to be extremely old.” 

“That’s very odd, because she was only in her late forties or early fifties when she was executed.  The only thing I can think of is that the stress of the trial, the verdict, and the time she’d spent in prison thinking about her execution may have aged her.  It may have also had something to do with realizing that everything she had done in order to gain her brother’s business, home, and wealth was done in vain.  She never got to enjoy any of those things – she never ran his business, owned his house, or was in charge of any of his bank accounts.  The closest she came to any of those things was that her brother’s estate paid for her coffin and funeral, and she was interred in the family crypt with the others.”

“Why would anyone do that for her, seeing she had killed them?”

“It had been arranged well in advance.  She was a widow, and when her husband died, he was granted the opportunity of being interred in the family crypt in a double vault so his wife could join him later.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize that, but she still killed her brother, sister-in-law and Molly for nothing.”

“Yes, as Robert Burns said in his poem, To a Mouse,

‘The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men,
Gang aft agley.
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!”

“So did Sarah follow Molly into the light?”

“No, as I stated earlier, she’s afraid that if she goes into the light that she’d go directly to hell for murdering her brother’s family, so she stayed here.  She’s totally alone now, with no family members or friends to keep her company.  That’s the reason why she had trapped Molly here with her, so she wouldn’t be alone.” 

“Does that mean she’ll be haunting the nursing home from now on?”

“No, Sarah left the building and I have no idea where she went, but she may be haunting the cemetery or she could have chosen to go back to haunt the prison where she was executed.”

“Why would she do that?”

“At least there she’d be surrounded by people that were more like her and she wouldn’t be completely alone.  I only know that she was afraid that if she stayed around here that I’d eventually send her to hell.” 

“Then I guess your job is done and I thank you for your help.  Here’s the fee we agreed upon.”

“Thank you, and feel free to call me again if you have any other problems in the future.” 

“I have nothing against you, but I hope that I never have any other problems like this and won’t need to contact you.”

“Yes, I suppose you do, and I understand completely.”

I led her back to the employee entrance, because that was the only exit she could use at this time of night.  It was also the closest way to get back to her car.  Since it was dark out, I walked her to her vehicle, and as soon as I returned, the guard locked the door and I went back to the nurse’s station to join Crystal. 

“You were gone a long time, so I’m glad the warning light didn’t go on and there weren’t any problems.  Did everything go ok?”

“I had a radio with me in case you needed help, and yes, Molly crossed over and her aunt, Sarah, is no longer in the building.” 

“So, there won’t be any more ghosts?”

“Not unless a patient decides to remain here after they die.”

“Then maybe we can make sure something is included in a sermon on Sunday to tell the patients that after they die, they will have to look for the light and enter it, so they can cross over.”

“Yes, I suppose you could make that suggestion, but I have a feeling it’s going to be much more boring around here from now on.”

“That’s fine with me,” Crystal said with a smile, and then we went back to focusing on our jobs.

 

THE END