I had planned to post a story i jotted down yesterday at work (slow day) so here it goes-better late than never:
The house was perfect-maybe bungalow was a better word-just enough room for Abigail and her dog Jack. The surrounding woods were awash in autumnal color-reds, yellows, oranges and a touch of brown. The air was crisp and October was here. Abby knew she had moved in just in time-cooler weather but no snow yet. She had arranged to have the inside of the house painted prior to her move to freshen it up-and cover a scratched area in the living room. It looked like an animal had gotten in while the house was vacant and tried to get at something in the wall. She
still had boxes to unpack, but Jack needed to go out for his walk and she wanted to explore the woods. She said the word "walk" and he was at the door waiting for his leash. He was sniffing everything he could while she enjoyed the atmosphere. The crunching of leaves, the colors, the smell of autumn. She could hear geese honking in the distance-it was then she fell over something. She got up, dusted the leaves off and that is when she saw it. The lone tombstone.It simply read "Laura." What in the world was that doing here-in the woods-not a cemetery. Who was Laura? Maybe she could do some research in town. It was then she noticed it was starting to get dark and she really didn't want to be lost out here after dark. She and Jack headed back. She felt relief once they reached the porch. She fed Jack and started her own dinner. Once that was cleaned up she took a long bath, got out her book and sat by the fire she had started and read. She couldn't keep her eyes open very long-it had been a tiring day, so she went on to bed.
2a.m. Something woke Abby up. She heard a noise. She couldn't quite make it out, but it seemed to come from the direction of the living room. She was so tired, she soon fell back asleep and forgot about it.
After several weeks, she and Jack fell into a comfortable routine. Jack would go out for a romp in the woods in the mornings while Abby got ready for her day. They would both head for her studio in town. When they got home, daylight permitting, they would go for a walk, then have dinner.
By this time, Abby had touched up the paint in the living room a few times. She knew she was going to have to call the painter and have him put some type of sealer on it. She would do that on monday-it was friday-and Halloween; no need to bother him tonight. All day long she had seen kids in town in their costumes-pirates, ghosts, witches and a few she couldn't identify. All the businesses had handed out candy to them to jump start their Trick-or-Treating. She and Jack had their dinner, then sat by the fire she had started. She treated herself to the cookies she had bought at the local bakery. She fell asleep by the fire, perfectly content in this new life.
2 a.m. A noise woke her from her sleep. The fire had died out to embers. The noise seemed to come from behind her. She turned to look-it seemed there was someone there in the shadows! Scratching. at the wall in a frenzied manner. Abby screamed, then passed out from fright.
The next morning she checked the wall. She knocked on the paneling-it seemed hollow around that area. She ran and got her tool kit-tried to pry the boards loose. A section came loose-the back of the paneling had scratches too. It seemed to cover a little closet. She got her flashlight-saw something on the ground right at the entry-it was a locket. It read "Laura."
