Hi Everyone!
I am so pleased that you all liked my 1st AE, 'The Carousel Storm'! So, here it is.... my second AE 'The Ghost in the Dark'. Spoooooky! LOL! Ok, this is just the beggining, so that you have a little something to read while I work on writing the rest of the story. Once I'm finished with another little half, I'll post it on here, and little by little we'll get through the whole AE, ok? Plus, it will be easier for you all to digest instead of trying to read the whole LOOONG story in one seating! So here we begin.......
The Ghost in the Dark
Nancy took the ruby eye and held it in her shaking hands. 'It's so beautiful!' she thought. Nancy ran down the creaking stairs, and into the lobby. Nancy carefully placed the ruby in the eye of the gold phoenix bird. Nancy watched amazed as the wood circled panel on the floor, moved away. She peered in. "It's just a black hole!" shouted Nancy disappointedly. She ran her hands around the bottom and sides of the hole. Certainly there’s got to be something hiding in there! She decided to recover the hole, and think for a while. Nancy walked into the parlor, and made her way towards the couch. It was raining, and so she stopped to listen to the lovely pitter patter, of the rain. Suddenly, the lights flickered and went out. Lightning crashed, and the sound of creaking trees rubbing against the window, gave Nancy a strange thrill. "Maybe I should go sit down till the lights come back on." said Nancy to herself. It was pitch black, and she hoped she'd make it to the couch without crashing into anything. Nancy took a step, and then another. She lifted her arms in front of her, and let out a sigh of relief when she touch the arm of the couch. She turned around and sat down. Nancy shrieked! 'I'm sitting on someone!' thought Nancy with panic, 'Or something...' She bolted upright and looked at the couch just as a flash of lightning lit up the parlor, and Nancy saw a strange figure...
Between flickers of light, Nancy saw the figure stand up and walk slowly towards her. With each footstep, she thought of what to do. The parlor lights started to make zapping sounds and the lights came on. The figure was no where to be seen. “Who was that?!” said Nancy in horror. She stood there and listened. ‘I’m sure I saw somebody!” She said. “Maybe I should go get dressed for bed, and then talk to Rose.” Said Nancy to herself. When she reached her bedroom, she quickly changed into her pale blue satin pajama pants and shirt. Nancy slowly patted across the hall. When she reached the side staircase, she heard something peculiar. It was the sound of someone crying. ‘It’s probably just Abby using her crazy sound machine.’ Though Nancy. So, she kept her way to the dinning room. When she reached it, she knocked on the door and opened it. Rose wasn’t there. Already in bed, perhaps? Nancy went back to her room and cuddled up in bed. She peacefully fell asleep. Nancy sat up in bed. She had heard a noise. But what? Nancy blinked a few times trying to see around her dark room. She looked at her bedside clock. 2 AM. A phone rang. “So that must be what I heard!” said Nancy. She pushed back the fluffy red silk covers, and jumped out of bed. The ringing continued. ‘Who is calling this late?!’ thought Nancy. She opened her bedroom door and walked into the hallway. No one was there. No stirring in the house was made. ‘Well, I guess if no ones going to answer the phone, I might as well do it!’ she thought. Nancy quickly ran down the stairs. She went down the opposite one so the creaking wouldn’t wake anyone up. When she reached the parlor, she flung the heavy oak doors open. Nancy raced for the telephone. She picked it up off the hook, “Hello?” “Meet me in the attic.” Said a warbled voice. “Who is this? Why?” asked Nancy. A click was heard on the other line. ‘The person hung up. If I go up there, I better be prepared for the worst…’
Nancy ran quietly back up to her bedroom. Opening the dresser old drawers, she hastily began preparing for what ever might happen next. Nancy changed from her pajamas, into jeans and a white blouse. Next, she began packing her backpack. Nancy shoved a flashlight, scissors, and a few other key things. Nancy took a deep breath. "Well, here I go!" she thought. Nancy walked down the hall and down to the ladder that led to the secret attic. The trap door was closed. Nancy slowly climbed the rickety ladder. With each step she wondered who was waiting for her. Friend or foe? When she reached the top, Nancy pushed open the trap door. Nancy poked her head in, and looked around. It was dark and she could hardly see. "Hello, Miss Drew. I've been waiting for you." Nancy was startled. "Abby, where are you?!" Nancy yanked off her backpack and grabbed her flashlight, shining it around the room. "I'm over here, Nancy." replied Abby. Nancy crawled up and into the attic and walked towards Abby. "Abby, what are you doing here? Why have you called me?" Abby stood up. "I wanted to show you something, but it seems I left the item in my room. Wait here, it will only be a moment." With that, Abby started to climb down the ladder. Nancy had a weird feeling, that all was not well. Suddenly, Abby reached up, and slammed the trap door shut! 'Oh no! Now I'm locked in here! The crow bars in the basement!' Nancy thought. She heard a muffled laughing from down below. "I see you fell for my trick Nancy, oh, by the way... Watch out for Valdez, I heard he's cranky tonight!" Nancy pressed her mouth against the floor, "You'll never get away with this!!!" she screamed. The sound of Abby's footsteps slowly diminished. "Great. Now what am I going to do..."
Nancy shined her flashlight around. Everything seemed to be in order... Nancy tried pushing the door out, but it didn't work. 'There's got to be a second way out!' thought Nancy. She remembered, that she had never really looked at the walls. She started at one wall, and ran her fingers over each inch. Nancy came across a strange crack. Curling her knuckles, she lightly tapped on the wood panels. A hollow sound echoed back. "Maybe its a passageway!" she said. Nancy flattened her hands against the panel, and gave a good strong push. The panel slowly slid back, revealing a secret room! 'I hope this isn't just another dead end.' thought Nancy. Nancy took a step into the room. It was dark, but there was a lamp by the door. Nancy took a match out of her backpack and lit it. Light burst around the room. Revealing an old looking desk set and bookcases. Could it be another clue?
Nancy approached the old wood desk. She opened a few musty drawers. Old papers, nothing too significant. Nancy got up, and looked around. There was a window! She ran over to it, and cranked it open. Nancy climbed out and sat on the window sill. 'Maybe if I propel down the window, I could get to solid ground!' Nancy thought. She opened her backpack, and took out her bungee cord and clip. Nancy clipped one end of the rope to the window, and slowly used her feet and the rope, to climb down. “Perhaps tomorrow I’ll search the room better.” Nancy walked to the front door, and rang the bell. After a few moments, Rose answered it. "Why Nancy! What on earth are you doing out here this late?!" asked Rose. Rose was in her mahogany robe and fuzzy pink slippers. Her hair was all tangled and practically sticking up on her head! The sight of all this made Nancy want to laugh. Stifling a smile, Nancy replied, "Well, its a long story. I'm sorry if I disturbed you." Rose ushered her inside. Rose bid Nancy goodnight, and lazily wandered off to her room. Nancy walked into her own room and gasped!
She stared at the sight. A long snake lay on the floor. It's body slithered towards her. "Rose!" screamed Nancy, "There's a snake in my room! Help!" Instead of Rose, it was Abby that came to Nancy's rescue. But Rose followed behind only a few seconds later. Abby shot Nancy a grumpy stare. "Come here Jeebay..." Abby coaxed to the snake, "It's okay my poor baby." Abby approached the snake, and lifted it up into her arms. She walked out of the room silently. Rose turned to Nancy, "I'm so sorry Nancy, I should have told you earlier. But when most people find out that Abby has a pet snake, they leave. This is the first time Jeebay's ever escaped before!" "It's ok." Nancy said. Then everyone parted and went to bed.
In the morning, Nancy decided that she'd go ask Rose if there were any chores she needed her to do. She walked into the dinning room. Rose sat there reviewing paperwork. "Hi Rose!" greeted Nancy. Rose looked up startled, "Oh! Uh.. Good Morning Nancy! Can I help you?" Nancy came nearer. "Actually, I was wondering if you had any chores you'd like me to do?" Rose thought for a minute, "No, I.... actually I do! Could you please go to the street market, and buy me a 3 pack of light bulbs. I noticed some of the bulbs were flickering." Nancy agreed and got directions to the market. Nancy took Rose's wicker shopping basket, and rode her old fashioned bike to the nearby market.
Nancy opened the big doors of the little grocery market. She was shocked by all the smells and sounds. People from all over were selling goods, even services! Nancy sniffed the air. "Mmmm..." she sighed, "Chicken..." Vendors all over the place, called out things like, "Buy my roses!" "Buy my home churned butter!" "Apply for my house cleaning services!" all sorts of things! Nancy eyed the fresh roses. Beautiful rich red, the dewdrops gleaming in the morning sun, gave away that they must had been picked just that dawn! Nancy continued her search for light bulbs. Finally, she found a vendor who sold them. Nancy paid him the money and continued on. 'Maybe I'll just look around for a moment.' thought Nancy, 'After all, I did promise Bess and George a souvenir!' Her surroundings were so intriguing, that she couldn't possibly leave so soon! Suddenly, she spotted something that looked just perfect for Bess, an old looking piece of vintage jewelry. Nancy walked up to the stand and picked up the exquisite looking purple amethyst necklace. "How much is this?" Nancy said looking up at the vendor. She was shocked when she saw the face. "Abby?!" Abby startled jumped. "Wha...what are you doing here!?" Abby demanded. Nancy looked back at the table. The jewelry was so pretty! Almost each piece had a fair amount of pure gold in it. Some pieces, were made of nothing but gold themselves! "Wait a minute!" shouted Nancy, "Where did you get all this fancy gold?" Abby quickly pushed over the table, sending the jewelry flying everywhere. She ran out of the market and down the road. "I've got to catch her!" said Nancy. So she took off after her.
Nancy ran with all her might. Beads of sweat dripped down her forehead. The sun was getting brighter as it rose higher in the sky. Abby turned the corner behind the art gallery, and Nancy turned the corner quickly too. Nancy got up behind her, she reached out her arm ready to pull on Abby’s jacket, when, "Ahhhh!" Nancy scream. She tumbled to the concrete sidewalk and laid down her arms to break the fall. 'What happened?!' thought Nancy. She looked down at her feet. One of her cream pumps had the heel broken off. "It must have broke when I was running..." sighed Nancy. She jumped up, and kicked off both shoes. There was no time to waste! Nancy kept on running, she could just barley see Abby in sight. After a long hard chase, Abby turned another corner, and when Nancy came around, she was gone. "Well, this is just a fine predicament you've gotten yourself in Nancy!" she told herself angrily. There was nothing else to do but go back to the mansion. But first, Nancy stopped off at the market, and gathered up the jewelry laying around from Abby's stand. Stuffing the delicate pieces of jewelry in her purse, she went on her way.
When Nancy reached the mansion, she opened the big doors. "Rose! I'm home!!!" she shouted. No answer came. 'She must be in the dining room and can't hear me.' She thought. Nancy opened the double doors and walked in. Rose wasn't there. "Rose?!? Are you here? It's Nancy!" Still no answer. 'Well, that’s funny, I thought she'd probably be here.' Nancy thought. She walked around the entire mansion calling Rose's name. Nancy began to grow panic. She looked in every room, even Abby's, and no one was in the mansion but her. An eerie feeling aroused around Nancy. It was as if she could feel someone watching her. But who?
Nancy stood in the middle of the main foyer. She was oddly scared. "Knock it off, Nancy!" she shouted at herself, "What is your problem?! You've never been scared before...." The strange feeling build up into her stomach. Her heart was racing. 'I need to take it calm....' Nancy went to the phone and picked up the handle. 'Maybe if I call Hannah, I'll feel better.' she thought. Nancy put the phone to her ear. "That’s strange...there’s no dial tone!" shouted Nancy. Nancy ran her hands down the phone cord, and when she reached the bottom gasped. The cords been cut in half! 'This is crazy!' thought Nancy. Someone was there and she knew it. "Maybe Rose has an extra phone somewhere." she said to herself. Nancy climbed up the staircase and went into the attic. The place creeped her out, but she urged herself to keep going. After a few minutes of digging and coughing through the dusty attic, she found an old spare phone. Nancy ran to the parlor, and plugged it in. The sun was starting to set. 'Wow, its getting late, I wonder how long I've been here alone...' she thought. Just then, Nancy decided that she could use some fresh air. She walked over to the parlor window, and pushed back the curtains. Nancy's eyes widened. The window was open! "Someone has broken in!" said Nancy with alarm. "Perhaps, maybe when I was gone at the market..." Nancy was quiet. A strange beeping sound, beeped steadily throughout the house. 'What’s that?!' thought Nancy. Nancy followed the sound, it got louder and louder. Nancy followed the noise, until its loudest was under the grandfather clock. Nancy bent down and peeked under it. "A bomb!" shouted Nancy. A thin almost unseen wire came from it, Nancy's eyes followed the wire. It lead all around the house, in front of the doors, the windows. One bump could make it go off. "This is bad, very bad! There’s no way out!" screamed Nancy. Her head felt heavy, what was she to do?
Nancy knew she needed to get help right away. She carefully stepped over any wire, and tried to get to the parlor. "Lucky for me I left the parlor door open..." said Nancy, "If I didn't I wouldn't be able to get in, for fear I'd set of the bomb!" When she got into the parlor, she turned towards the desk. The phone was gone! Nancy screamed in horror! Someone had come in, and taken away the phone while she was sleuthing out the beep. "Oh my goodness..." Nancy didn't know what to do. Basically, she was helpless! She couldn't get out of the house, she couldn't call for help, she was trapped with whomever, or whatever was in the mansion with her.
Well, that's all for now! Left you with a cliffhanger, didn't I? Mwahahahaha!!!!! LOL!
I promise I'll write again as soon as I have another little tidbit. Feedback are soooo welcome! If you have any idea's that you think I should encorperate into my AE, please, PLEASE let me know. And I find a way to fit them in. I love a good challenge! P.S, Did I say how much I LOVE this website? I totally do!!!
~ :lovvey: ~Lola~ :lovvey: ~
Here's another part to the story!!!! Enjoy!
Nancy walked back out of the parlor to look at the clock, it was 6:00. Where was everybody? What was going on?! As Nancy turned back to the parlor, she noticed something. A piece of paper laying on the floor. She cautiously picked it up and read it. Gasping, Nancy let it fall to the floor. ‘I see you Ms. Drew.’ It said. She tried to steady herself, but finally her body gave into the nerves and Nancy collapsed on the floor in a heap.
Her vision was blurred, and a horrible headache blared in her head. Nancy blinked a few times. Nancy sat there for a moment, waiting for her eyes to adjust. She dared to breathe, even move until she knew where she was. “Wherever I am, Its pretty dark and damp!” thought Nancy. She heard a sigh. The hairs on Nancy’s neck tingles. Someone was next to her. She held in her scream. Slowly, she felt her hands on the ground. It was a wood floor. Quite dusty. Nancy moved her feet. Surprisingly they weren’t tied either. Nancy carefully stretched out her legs, but almost immediately they hit a wall. She threw her hands up in the air to see how low the ceiling was. She could feel the ceiling. “This is not good!” thought Nancy with panic. Suddenly the breathing stopped next to her. Nancy’s heart pounded as she slowly turned her head to her left. Her nose hit something. 2 eye’s flashed open and a woman screamed! Nancy screamed as well too. “AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” Nancy was now scooting back, edging herself as far away as possible as she could get from this person. The woman continued to scream. “Who are you?” asked Nancy panicky. No answer, so she repeated it only louder, “WHO ARE YOU?!?!?!?” “Nancy!” It was Rose!!! Nancy heaved a huge sigh of relief. “Rose! What are you doing in here!” Nancy crawled back to Rose so she could see her a little better. Just then, Rose started to cry. “Oh Nancy!” she said between tears. Nancy hugged Rose and tried to calm her down. Finally, Rose was calm enough to repeat her story to Nancy. “After you left, I had gone upstairs to get one of my briefcases that held a special document, when I past by Abby’s room. The door was hanging open, I peered in and saw a note on her bed.” Rose stopped for a minute, shivering at the memory. “Go on…” said Nancy, “What did the note say?” Rose continued, “ It said, ‘Turn around’, so I did. But nothing was there. But then behind me I heard a creaking noise, and just as I was about to whirl around, someone grabbed me and pushed me down into a small hole. Next thing I knew, a rag was place on my face, and I was out cold! I never did get to see who it was…” Nancy felt her fingers over ceiling. She felt a crack. Pushing hard on it, Nancy tried to open it. “Rose,” she yelled, “I almost positive this is the way out!” Rose crawled over and the two tried to push it open. But no luck. Then Nancy had an idea! They both laid on the ground on their backs, and pushed with their feet on the exit. “Our feet our stronger than our arms. Because you have more muscle in your thighs!” Nancy said repeating what she had learned in science class long ago. On the count of three, both Rose and Nancy pushed. The trap door flung open!
:lovvey: Lola :lovvey:
Ok, here's another post! Sorry its been a while, I had writers block!
~Poking their heads out of the hidden room, they looked around. Sure enough, they were in Abby's room. Carefully Nancy stepped out and then helped Rose get out. They quietly shut the door, and replaced the rug on top. "Rose, be very quiet. We might not be safe yet." Nancy whispered to Rose. She shook her head understanding. As they slowly walked through the house, Nancy looked for any sign of the thin wire that held the time bomb. "That's strange.. its not here!" thought Nancy to herself. Then it hit her, it was a fake! A trap that she fell for! All this time she could have run out of the house and been safe, but then she wouldn't had found Rose. Both anger and relief filled her. Just as she and Rose were coming down the stairs, the door bell rang. They rushed to answer it. Rose started to open the door, but Nancy quickly stopped her. Nancy slowly took Roses place, and peeked through a crack in the door, relieved, it was just the postal man. The man cleared his throat, "A young woman gave me a letter and told me to give it to a Rose Green?" Rose nodded and took the letter. They thanked the mailman and shut the door. In scrawly letters on the front of the envelope read, 'ROSE'. They both quickly took a seat on the old couch in the parlor room, and Rose began to open the letter. Rose began to read it out loud, 'Rose,' she read, 'I will be away for some time, please don't worry about me. Abby.' "Oh, Nancy. Where could she have gone?! This isn't like Abby at all to go away without telling me!!!" said Rose is worry. "Rose," spoke Nancy, "There's something you need to know..." Nancy walked over to the rickety coat rack where she had first hung her purse when she came in. Grabbing her purse she sat back down next to Rose. She opened the flap and reached into the purse, feeling around for the gold jewelry. Nothing. Nancy quickly turned side ways and dumped out the contents of her purse. No jewelry! "Nancy, what’s going on? What are you doing?!?!" Rose asked. Nancy then began to explain how that morning she had saw Abby at the market, she went to explain all the morning events. Rose just stared in shock. "Rose, I hate to say this, but I think the jewelry might be stolen, my guess, is that its Elizabeth Applegate’s, and that Abby is trying to sell it for money." Explained Nancy sorrowfully. "NO!" shouted Rose, "She wouldn't! She's my friend, and I know Abby wouldn't do a horrible thing like that! Your wrong Nancy, your wrong." And with that, she stomped up stairs shaking her head.~
~Nancy sat there in dismay. How could Rose not believe her. Nancy had every reason to believe Abby was behind it all. The haunting, the attic situation, the market and the stolen jewels, right? This case was just getting more and more complicated. Pushing the contents back into her purse, Nancy arose and walked out the front door. Maybe a short walk would help clear her thoughts. Stepping outside, Nancy turned the corner, and kept going. After a few paces, she heard a crunch under her feet. She gasped!~
:lovvey: Lola :lovvey: