Hush Little Baby - Chapters 1- 4 (Re-write)

PROLOGUE1

Beth stood like a schoolchild at the gates of the Victorian mansion, her face pushed against the black wrought iron.  The early summer sunshine shone on to the sycamore tree, which stood in the front garden; sending dappled shade across the front of the house.  Beth breathed deeply with pleasure clapping her hands together in excitement.2

“Oh Jim! I love it!  I really do!”  3

Jim, more cautious in his thoughts on the house, walked around the parked car and grinned at her in amusement.4

“Must you fall in love with every house Beth?  We can only live in one place at a time you know!” 5

Beth punched him playfully in the arm.6

“No Jim, I mean it.  This is the one!  I can see myself sitting on the grass under the tree, sipping a long cool drink and wrinkling my toes in the earth.”  Jim enfolded his wife in his arms and kissed her on the cheek.  This was one of the reasons that he married her, the romantic streak that she had. Despite his teasing, he had to admit from the outside that the house did have potential.7

“Don’t you think we had better look inside first, before you move us in.  It could be infested with rat’s or mould?”  8

Beth turned and scowled at him, but said nothing. She knew he was only teasing, but he had been right about the last 4 houses they had been shown.  Each one had looked lovely on the outside, yet when they had gotten inside the house’s had been a shambles.   The plaster falling off the walls, dry rot throughout and generally in a terrible state of repair.  Beth felt her good mood evaporating; Her shoulders sagging in disappointment.9

Just then a pale blue Volkswagen beetle pulled up to the kerb in a haze of smoke from the exhaust.  A tall pretty blond got out and smoothed the skirt of her uniform.  Claire Smith was 24 years old and new to Green Estates Agents.  This was the first house she had been given to sell.  The Corry House had been on the books of Green Estates Agents for 2 years and no one had managed to sell it.  Kevin Green the owner of the Estate Agents had given it to Claire as a lesson in rejection.  He didn’t for one moment think she could sell the old place.10

“Hi Mr and Mrs Harper, sorry I am late.  I got stuck in traffic.”  Claire held a clipboard in her arms and a big bunch of keys.  She walked ahead of them as they made their way up the front path, her long hair swinging from its high ponytail.  She turned to them beaming a huge smile as they stood at the threshold of the house.  She tried to look professional whilst she fiddled with the bunch of keys in her hand.  After what felt like an age she held up a dirty, rusty key with a long handle ending in a rose design.  The key was beautiful and Beth made a mental note that when she owned the house she would take care to clean it up.11

The door opened with a low groan, swinging forward so quickly that Claire almost fell into the foyer of the huge entrance hall.  12

“This is the first time I will have seen this place, so if you like we can go for a bit of an explore.  Kevin assures me that the place is structialy sound so feel free to wander about upstairs. I don’t know about you, but I always hated the Estate Agent breathing down my neck while I was viewing a house.  I’ll be tucked away in the kitchen.”  Claire started off toward the far end of the hallway and through a huge mahogany door with beautiful stained glass recesses.  Beth and Jim looked at each other in bemusement.  Claire was clearly not your typical estate agent.  13

Beth looked at the huge sweeping staircase and spotted a huge gilt framed picture on the wall at the top of them.  A large white sheet covered most of it.  Beth took the stairs at a run, her breathing heavy as she stood on the small landing her hand on the edge of the sheet.14

“Shall I Jim?”  Beth asked giving the sheet a little tug so it moved slightly. Jim shook his head, running up the stairs behind her.15

“Don’t do it Beth, it might fall and be damaged.  It could be a priceless work of art of something?” Beth gave him a smile of pure merriment and yanked hard on the sheet.  It came down on her in a cloud of dust and cobwebs.16

They both looked at the picture in a mixture of amazement and unease.  It was of a beautiful woman, with long red hair and huge green eyes that seemed to look out from the canvas.  Her mouth was twisted in a smirk as if she was enjoying Jim’s discomfort.17

“God!  Isn’t she beautiful Jim?”  Beth said reaching out and touching the canvas.  Jim turned his face away.  He couldn’t look at her any longer. The green eyes of the woman in painting seemed to be watching his every movement. He shook his head violently, trying to shake the thought from his mind.18

“Beth come on, leave it.  We are supposed to be looking around.”  Beth dropped the dustsheet on to the landing, grabbing Jim by the hand.19

“Lets go and check out the bedrooms!”  Beth said suggestively, winking.  Jim laughed and started up the remaining stairs with her.  As they passed the portrait he turned his face away from it, feeling an aversion so acute, that he needed to be away from the gaze. He ran towards Beth and kissed her on the cheek.  Beth giggled with delight, running away from his along the landing to the first door.20

“I wonder if there are any beds?”  Jim joined her as she swung the first door open.  Beth’s face was full of surprise, which slowly turned to disappointment.21

“Oh!  It’s only a storage room.”  Beth slammed the door before Jim could get a look inside.  Beth ran to the next door and swung the door so forcefully that it rattled in its ancient hinges.  22

Inside was a huge bedroom with a bay window over looking the back garden.  Beth ignored the dustsheet-covered furniture and ran to it.  For a house which had been closed up for 2 years the gardens where looking beautiful.  The lawn was well kept and there was a huge formal pool that lay in the centre.  The water glistened in the sunlight.  Beth put her hand and nose on to the cold window and peered out.  Her breath made little clouds of condensation on the windowpane.23

“Jim, I have to have this house!”  She said with purpose as she pulled away from the window and went into his arms.  There was a haunted look in her eyes as she led him from the room.  Jim felt very uncomfortable, he had been with Beth for 4 years, married for 2 and he had never seen her like this.  24

They toured the rest of the house in silence.  Beth looked around, but her mind didn’t seem to be on it any longer.  Jim hoped they would not be putting in a bid for the house.  There would be other places.  Places that didn’t feel claustrophobic and unsettling like this one.  No wonder it had been on the market for 2 years.25

When they reached the kitchen, Claire was sitting at the huge oak table filling out forms for the property.26

“So, what do you think?  If you are interested I can speak to the owner Mrs Corry and draught up the sale.”  Jim frowned at her. Beth beamed a happy smile.27

“I want this house so much! How much would Mrs Corry be willing to accept for it?”  Jim opened his mouth to speak, and shut it again.  The money that would be buying the house belonged to Beth.  Her elderly Aunt had died eight months before and as her only niece had left Beth a considerable inheritance.  Before the money had come through they had rented a 2 bed-roomed terrace house by a canal.  The house had been old and damp and had problems with rats in the flagged back yard.  Jim had been happy to move out of there.28

When he thought about that old house, he sighed in resignation.  He didn’t want this strange house, but he loved Beth, Beth loved the place.  It was cut and dried.  They were buying Corry House.  He watched as Beth scanned the papers Claire handed to her.  Luckily when they did move in, all of the furniture would be gone; along with the portrait from the landing.  Jim was at least thankful of that.29

Chapter 130

Jim lifted the heavy cardboard box down from the moving van.  The sun was hot, and seemed to burn his skin through the t-shirt he was wearing.  He was already stained beneath both arms and across his back with well earned sweat.  Beth, a baseball cap reigning in her dark curls, stood on the path a smaller lighter box in her arms.31

“Come on Jim!  Don’t stand around dawdling!”  Jim scowled at her and started up the path after her.32

He smiled to himself and looked up at the beautiful stained glass windows.  He had to agree, in the 2 months it had taken until now to move into the place, it had grown on him.  The inside was clean and had been repainted and the main living room papered with Victorian design wallpaper.  Beth had spared no expense. This was her dream house.  Jim had enjoyed going around the reclamation yard finding period features and a beautiful fireplace, which had put in the master bedroom overlooking the garden.33

The huge portrait of the lady had been removed from the house, along with a large majority of the woodworm infested furniture.  Beth’s mostly reproduction, but quality furniture had already been moved in.  The house was beginning to feel like it belonged to them and the musty, dusty atmosphere was gone and replaced with a fresh and airy feel.  All of the huge windows had been opened to the gentle summer breezes, making it welcoming and cool inside.34

Jim’s brother Tom and sister-in-law Maggie had helped with the move.  Maggie stood at the top of the staircase, a bundle of clean sheets in her arms.35

“Hey, Beth!  Do you want me to start making the beds?”  Beth dropped her box on the hall floor.36

“Yes!  I’ll come and help you, hang on a minute.”  Beth raced up the stairs two at a time.  Jim watched her amusement flashing in his eyes.  Tom turned to him, passing a cold can of soft drink.  Jim put his box on the floor and popped the tab, swallowing the icy cold drink in 3 swallows.  He crushed the can in his hand and threw it across the room in to the waiting bin liner.37

“I don’t think I have ever seen Beth looking so happy.”  Tom said popping the tap on his own drink.  Jim Smiled and pulled his arm across his mouth.38

“I know, I wasn’t sure about this place.  When we came to view it the first time it had a weird atmosphere.”  Tom looked at him intently.39

“What do you mean?  It had a great atmosphere when I first came to see it!”  Jim looked up the stairs to the blank space on the wall were the portrait had hung.40

“It was just well, there was a bloody huge picture of this woman hanging at the top of the stairs there and I could have sworn when I walked past her eyes were following me and she was smirking at me!!” Tom burst out laughing.41

“You’re bloody cracked you!”  Jim Scowled at him.42

“I’m being serious you Moron!  You would have seen it too if you had of been here!”  Tom stopped laughing and frowned.43

“Well, maybe the old place is haunted?  I mean a place this big, this old, has to have a few ghosts.”  His eyes crinkled and he started to laugh again.  Jim turned his back on him and picked up the box off the floor.44

“What’s the use, are you going to help me or not?”  Tom put his can on the floor as it still had drink in, and picked up his box.  45

“Where do you want this?”  Tom asked.  Jim rolled his eyes.46

“Well the sticker says kitchen!”  Tom grinned and walked off towards the kitchen.  Jim turned to look again at the empty space at the top of the stairs.  He was being paranoid, he knew, but he just couldn’t shake the feeling that something was really wrong in this house.47

* * * * * * 48

Beth and Maggie tucked the sheet under the mattress and stood up, Maggie rubbing the small of her back.49

“I’m about ready for a nice long glass of beer!” Beth nodded in agreement.50

“We could go out to the garden and sit in the sun?”  Maggie grabbed Beth by the arm.51

“What are we waiting for then?”  52

“Let’s take the short cut!” Beth said leading Maggie down a little hall and down a set of old servant’s stairs.  Maggie had never been in this part of the house before.53

“Beth, where do the stairs lead up to?”   Beth shrugged.54

“I don’t know, I’ve been meaning to have a look for ages, but I always got sidetracked.” Maggie smiled.55

“Can we have a look?”  She asked.  Beth grinned.56

“Race you!” They broke into a run up the stairs.  When they reached the top there were 2 doors.  The first door was open.   They peered inside and it was a small attic bedroom, probably were the servants would have lived years ago.  Very non descript, there was not even any furniture. The second was locked.  Beth pulled on the handle and shook it, but it wouldn’t budge.57

“I don’t think I got a key on the bunch for this door.”  Maggie pouted. “We can’t stop now! Maybe the boys can use something to open it?” Beth felt her own excitement growing; she fumbled in her pocket for her mobile phone, punching out Jim’s number.58

“Jim, can you meet us upstairs we have found an interesting door and we need some tools to open it.”  Beth and Maggie looked at each other the excitement shining in their eyes.59

It took the men 10 minutes to find them, even though they had been given directions.  Soon the four of them were crowded on the tiny landing.  Jim held a hammer in his hand and Tom a long chisel shaped screwdriver.  60

After less than a minutes work, the door swung open.  Inside the room was very dark.  Beth fumbled in the doorway for a light switch and didn’t find one.  They moved one by one in to the room.  Tom felt in his pocket for a lighter.  The tiny flame did little to dispel the darkness.   He made his way towards the windows, his legs knocking into things. Ahead of him, he could see a tiny bead of light down the middle of the shutters.  When he reached the window he unclipped the shutters and swung them open in a cloud of dust and cobwebs.61

It took the four a moment for their eyes to grow accustomed to the light.  Beth was the first to look around the room.  She gasped with excitement.62

“Oh Jim, it’s a nursery!”  Beth touched a rocking horse close to her, the horse swinging back and forth on its metal fixings. Dust and decaying hair from the mane sprinkled on to the floor.  Tom stood under the window, close to a small cradle with rotting linen curtains and lace.  A porcelain doll wearing a tattered white christening robe lay within.  Maggie went over to a bed in the corner of the room.  It was still made, although covered in a thick coating of dust and cobwebs.  In between the rusting metal bars on the headboard lay dead flies and spiders covered in dust.  The floor was littered with building blocks, wooden trains, and skittles, still lying on their sides as if still in play.  There was a child’s cot in the opposite corner from the bed.  That too was still made.  A small tatty rag doll lay on the pillow.63

Jim picked up a wooden soldier. The old lead paint flaking off at his touch.64

“I wonder why it was just shut up?”  He said, his voice betraying his disquiet.  Beth shivered.65

“I don’t know.  It’s really sad.”  She hugged herself to fight off the chill turning to leave the room. Jim followed behind her, putting his arms around her.66

“How about a takeaway and bottle of beer in the garden?”  Beth nodded silently. Maggie and Tom pushed past them on to the landing and started down the stairs.  Jim closed the door to the Nursery, the feeling of uneasiness at the house returning.  He shook his head. No this was their house.  He didn’t care what had happened in the past, they were here now, and they would be staying.67

CHAPTER 268

August moved into September.  The long hot days of summer, moving in to the cooler days of autumn.  The house was finished.  Jim returned to work at the computer firm he co owned with Tom.  Life was sweet.  The attic Nursery had been forgotten in the flurry of decorating and landscaping.  69

Beth was bored.  Jim had left for work already.  The house was silent. After being left the money by her Aunt she had given up her job as a librarian.  Now she wished she could go back, and read the books to the children at story time.70

Beth touched her flat belly.  There wouldn’t be children of her own, well at least not for a while anyway.  Jim had made her promise that they would wait for another child. They had suffered a miscarriage in January, and she had taken it very hard. Beth wished he wouldn’t keep her to the promise to wait. Sometimes the ache deep within her was so acute that she would find herself bursting into tears. Beth shook her head sadly, trying to think about something else.71

Her mind wandered to the ruined and forgotten nursery.  Fixing that up would give her something to do.  She jumped up from the overstuffed sofa and into the kitchen.  Armed with a roll of bin liners, a mop and numerous cleaning solutions. When she got to the Nursery, it was as they had left it.  The first thing she did was open the windows wide.  Then she stripped the beds and put all of the old bedding in a bin liner.  Dust clogged the air, causing Beth to cough violently waving it away with her hand.   She got the vacuum cleaner and started sucking up the dust and dirt from the floor.  The floor underneath was painted floorboards and in the centre a beautiful Persian rug in jewel colours.  She hoovered most of the dirt and grime from the rug until she could see the true beauty of it.  There was a bird in the centre, which looked like a phoenix.  It was surrounded on all sides by flowers and patterns.  It was breathtaking.  Beth rolled it up and put it out on to the landing.  It needed a proper clean by a professional.72

Next to go were the toys.  She collected them into a pile on the now clean floor and began to wash them in hot soapy water in a bowl.  Then she laid them to dry on an old towel.  There was a full set of 12 soldiers, 8 skittles and a heavy white ball. A wooden tennis racquet, building blocks, a little cart with wheels and a long string to pull it with.  73

Finally the floor was entirely clear.  The beds had been washed and the mattresses, which had been under the bed linen, were clean.  The now cleaned toys were laid on the bed.  The horse had been washed down and the mane brushed and cleaned.  The room was clean and tidy.  Beth was exhausted.  The only place she hadn’t done was the large cupboard next to the fireplace.  It was quite large for such a small room.  Wooden boards had been nailed across the front of the opening.  Beth looked at it and shook her head, No she was too tired, besides she had to leave herself something to do tomorrow.74

Exhausted, dirty, and aching all over, Beth made her way down the stairs carrying the rug under her arm.  She was really tired, but the whole day had been wonderful.  Beth just had time for a shower before Jim came home.75

For some reason she felt protective and very jealous of the place.  She didn’t want to share any of it with anyone else, including Jim.  Besides he wouldn’t understand anyway, he already thought the Nursery was morbid and he changed the subject every time she brought it up.  No this would be her secret place, and maybe one day it would be her babies sleeping in there.  Just thinking about it brought a secret smile to Beth’s lips.76

* * * * * * 77

Over the next few weeks, Beth began to decorate the nursery.  Repainting the walls in the white wash and replacing the linen on the beds with copies of the originals.  Finally after a month of secret work, it was finished.  Beth knew it looked just the same as it had over a hundred years ago.  The toys were laid in the same places they had been left and the rocking horse had even had new hair mixed in with his old.  It was beautiful.  Beth had added a huge overstuffed rocking chair.  78

It was in this that she was now sat, rocking away.  Outside the wind was howling, rain lashing at the warped windowpane.  Beth didn’t care. On her lap was a book she was reading, the latest horror story by her favourite author.  Beth was happy and very contented.  The only thing she was missing was her own child.  79

Slowly her eyelids began to droop and she found herself falling asleep.  In the dreamtime just before she dropped off to sleep completely she heard a sound, quiet at first and then it grew louder.  It was a baby crying.  Beth’s eyes flew open and her heart began to thump in her chest.  She heard it again, a babies incessant cry.  Beth slowly got up from the rocking chair and scanned the room.  Everything in the room was as it should be.  The sound was coming from the nursery, but Beth couldn’t find where about in the room it was coming from.  Beth fought the urge to run and turned in a quicker and quicker circle trying to pin point where the crying was coming from.  It was then she noticed that the cupboard in the corner (which had been too big to move on her own) was against something.  As the crying continued Beth squeezed herself in to the gap between the fireplace and the cupboard.  Feeling around the back of the cupboard with her arm, she felt a door.  There was no handle, only the hole where it should have been.  Using every ounce of strength that she had, she began to move the cupboard, using her entire body.  It groaned and moved a couple of inches.  Beth stopped, trying hard to catch her breath.  The thing weighed a ton; she was going to need help.80

Leaving the room, as it was she ran down the stairs, the crying grew quieter.  Picking up the telephone in the kitchen she tapped in the telephone number of the builder she had paid to do odd jobs around the place.  He was surprised at her phone call, but promised to come after she offered him double pay.81

The crying continued at Beth waited for him to come.  She chewed on the corners of her fingernails, trying to ignore it. Waiting patiently for the builder to arrive.  Finally when she didn’t think she could stand the crying any longer, she heard the familiar rumble of his van on the gravel driveway. Beth ran down the stairs to let him in.  The builder and his mate were stood there sheltering from the rain.82

“Hello Mrs Harper, I was surprised to get your call. I thought we’d done all that had to be done here?!”  Beth shook her head.83

“There’s a large cupboard in one of the bedrooms which I need to move, I can’t do it alone and I thought you wouldn’t mind coming over and doing it for me and earning yourself some extra cash.” The builder nodded.84

“That’s not a problem, Mrs Harper.  Just lead the way.”  The three tramped up the stairs and into the nursery.  85

Between them the builder and his mate managed to move the cupboard away from the wall.  Leaving it standing in the middle of the nursery.  86

“That’s fantastic. Thank you both very much for your help.” Beth said reaching into her bag for her purse.  She held out a wad of bills, which he took gratefully. Then they left and Beth was alone.  The crying had stopped as soon as the men had entered the house, and it started again as soon as they’d shut the door behind them.  The wall behind the cupboard had been wallpapered thickly, and it covered over what looked like a doorway, although it’s moulding had been removed so it was almost flat to the wall. Beth itched to peel it off and see what was behind it, and yet something stopped her.  She was frightened.  For the first time all day she realised that what was happening was either in her head, or more terrifying that the house that she loved was haunted.  Beth put her hands over her ears to block out the crying.87

“Stop it! Just stop it!!” Beth screamed running out of the door slamming it behind her.  Abruptly the crying ceased.  The silence was almost as deafening as the crying had been.  She ran down the stairs, along the main landing to the top of the staircase.  Beth collapsed in a heap at the top of the staircase tears running down her cheeks.  88

It took her a while to pull herself together, but slowly she rose up and gripped the banister as she walked down the stairs.   Turning as if in a daze she wandered in to the living room and slumped on to the large sofa.  Her eyes closed in exhaustion.89

Upstairs they cried.90

CHAPTER 391

Jim put down his briefcase and his laptop on the table in the foyer.  It was 7 o’clock and he was exhausted.92

“Beth, Beth where are you?”  He shouted, his voice echoing around the room.  He felt a sense of panic that rose and then dissipated.  He checked each room in turn until he found her curled up on the sofa in the living room asleep.   He looked down at her sleeping form and smiled.  She was beautiful.  Her dark curly hair tumbled over her shoulders and cheek.  Her mouth was pouting like a child’s and he couldn’t resist leaning over and kissing her lips.93

“Beth wake up.”  He whispered.  Beth stirred and opened her eyes.  The horrors of the afternoon had been forgotten in cotton wool of sleep and she smiled dopily at him.94

“Hi Darling, God what time is it?”  Jim smiled at her indulgently.95

“It ten past seven.  Do you feel like going out for a meal?”  Beth sat up and stretched.96

“That sounds great, I’ll just get a quick shower and get changed.”  Beth got to her feet and ran up the stairs to their bedroom.  As she passed the space on the wall that had held the picture of the lady, she felt a shiver down her spine and the memories of the afternoon came flooding back to her.  She rushed into the bedroom, grabbing clothes from the wardrobe and took them through to the bathroom. 97

She stood in front of the mirror rationalising what had happened.  The crying had all been in her head; she was sure of it.  She pasted a smile on her face, but it didn’t reach her eyes.  She climbed into the shower letting the hot water hit her tired skin.  The sensations felt wonderful and she sighed. Hands snaked around until they were resting on her stomach.  Beth smiled as Jim climbed into the shower behind her.  98

“Have I told you lately how much I love you?” He said with feeling, his lips claiming Beth’s in a deep kiss.99

“I love you too.” She said breathlessly as the water rained down upon them both.100

Thirty minutes later they were driving down the street on the way into town.  As they had left the house, Beth had felt the familiar cold feeling once more and it had set her nerves on edge.  Sat in the passenger seat she played absently with the fringing on her clutch bag.  Jim frowned; this wasn’t like his Beth.  He had sensed something was wrong when they had made love. For the first time ever, he had felt like her mind was somewhere else; something was going on and he wanted to know what.101

“Beth, is something wrong?”  Beth felt tears welling in her eyes.  Jim pulled the car over to the side of the road and switched off the engine.102

“What’s wrong Beth I can’t help you if you don’t tell me!”  The tears spilled over and down her cheeks.103

“Jim I think I am going mad!  I keep hearing things in the house.”  Jim took a deep breath and picked up Beth’s hand104

“What sort of things?”  Jim said gently.105

“Well I decided to clear out the Nursery to give me something to do and I finished it, Jim it looks so great, but while I was sat in there today I heard a baby crying.  Then when I pulled a cupboard away from the wall I found a door all wallpapered up.  I’m scared Jim what does it mean?”  Jim wrapped her in his arms and held her.  He didn’t know what it meant either, but the first thing he wanted to do was to go back home and open that door.106

“How about we go back home and I will go with you and we can open the door together.”  Beth nodded and Jim started the car and turned it around.107

“You don’t think I’m going mad do you?”  Beth asked dabbing her eyes with a paper hankie.108

“No, you have been working non stop for the past four months on the house and it is likely to take its toll on anyone!”  Beth nodded she knew he was right if the truth was known she was exhausted in both body and mind.109

He stopped the car on the drive and they made their way inside. Jim took her hand and they walked up the staircase together.110

“Thanks for this Jim, I don’t know what I would do without you!”  Beth placed a kiss on his cheek and then taking a deep breath she pushed the door to the Nursery open.111

Everything was as she had left it.  The heavy cupboard was still in the centre of the floor.  Jim walked into the alcove and picked at the corner of the wallpaper, he pulled it and tore a huge strip from the wall.  The panelling of the door came into view.  He continued to pull at the wallpaper until he had cleared the door.  112

“Beth do you want to pass me that screwdriver?”  Jim used the screwdriver as a wedge and forced the door.  It was stuck fast.113

“Do you mind if I cut the door?”  Jim asked and Beth shook her head, her face had turned chalky white.114

Jim left the room for what seemed an eternity.  Beth sat down in the rocking chair, her eyes closed tightly.  She was terrified, although she didn’t know what was setting her so much on edge.  Jim clunked up the stairs, carrying a circular saw.  He plugged it in to the extension cable and turned it on.  It cut through the pine of the door like a hot knife through butter.  The door fell into four pieces that clattered to the floorboards.  A cloud of dank and musty air erupted from the room and Jim coughed loudly.  Jim held out his hand for Beth and she took it.  The room inside was dark. A mouldy, bitter smell permeated the room.  Beth put her hand to her nose to block out the smell.115

“God Jim, what do you think it is? It’s revolting!!”  Jim turned on his torch and shone it around the room.  There were piles of old and rotting clothing all over the floor.  Shutters covered over the windows.  Jim walked across the floor kicking the rags out of the way.  He un-hooked the shutters and swung them open.  The light outside spilled into the room lighting it up.  Beth kicked the nearest pile of clothes with her foot.  A long white stick fell on to the floor with a tap.  Jim turned and knelt next to the pile of clothes, and using the torch pushed the clothes out of the way.  Suddenly he drew back in horror.  Staring back at him through dead eyes was the skull of a child. 116

Jim caught his breath and pulled away.  He got to his feet, pushing Beth out through the door.117

“Beth go downstairs and call the police!”  Jim said his voice catching in his throat.118

“Why Jim, what have you found!”  Beth asked trying to see past him.119

“Just go now do it Beth don’t argue with me!”  Beth searched his eyes. She had never seen him like this.120

“Alright, I’ll go.”  Beth turned and ran down the stairs to the kitchen and the nearest telephone. 121

The Police arrived in 10 minutes.  It was a single squad car, which held two police officers.  They walked up the path to the waiting Beth who was stood on the front porch shivering in the chill of the night air.122

“Hello, Mrs Harper I believe you called about something nasty in your attic.”  The older policeman spoke condescendingly.  The younger policeman looked at her whitewashed face and felt pity.  This woman wasn’t one of the normal cranks that they had to deal with.123

“Hello Mrs Harper, I’m PC Cunliffe.  Do you want to show us where the problem is.”  Beth nodded unable to find any words.  She led them up the stairs to the nursery.  Jim was waiting, unable to stand being in the room with the skeleton of the child.124

“So Mr Harper, what exactly is in there that we should be aware of?”  The older policeman Sgt Wilder asked.  Jim looked towards Beth and frowned.  He didn’t want to say it in front of her.  Jim sighed he didn’t really have a choice.125

“I have found a skeleton, it looks like a child.  I am not sure, but there may be more in there!”  Sgt Wilder took a deep breath and looked towards the dark doorway.126

“Would you like to show me where the remains are please.”  Jim hesitated; he didn’t want to go back in there at all.  Resignedly he led the policeman in to the room.  Sgt Wilder sniffed the air and could smell the distinctive smell of rotting bodies.  He had smelt it only three previous times in his long career.  The last time had been over five years before when he had been called to the death of a reclusive old lady.   She had been undiscovered for over eight months, but Lord knows how long these bones had lain here.  127

He used his truncheon to push aside the foul smelling rags.  Wrapped in a bundle of rags close to the skeleton, was a smaller skeleton probably belonging to a baby?  He stood up and pulled on the radio tucked in his pocket.128

“Hello, Oscar, Charlie, Zulu. Come in, this is 332.  We are going to need the coroner here and forensics. Over!”  The radio scratched into life.129

“Roger 332, what is the situation, over.”?  Sgt Wilder wiped his hand across the sweat, which had broken out on his lip.130

“There are dead kids here, Sheila, at least two maybe more.  I don’t want to disturb it too much. Over.”  He felt bile rising in his throat.  He turned to leave the dark and dingy tomb.131

“Mr Harper, I think it would be best if we went downstairs and I asked you a few questions.”  The four made their way down the narrow stairs and into the kitchen.  Beth, not thinking, reached instantly for the kettle. She filled it at the sink.132

“Would you like a cup of tea?”  She asked the Policemen, her composure slipping. Her lip trembled and huge tears rolled down her cheeks.  Jim got up from the kitchen table and enfolded her in his arms.133

“God, Jim how could someone murder a baby?”  Jim stroked her head and shushed her like a crying child.  The Policemen looked at each other.  Sgt Wilder shook his head in resignation.134

“How long have you lived here, Mr Harper?”  Jim turned his head towards them still clutching Beth close to him.135

“We moved in here, June 2nd.  Before that it had been closed up for 2 years maybe more.  The previous owner a Mrs Corry is in a nursing home over Blackpool way.  Officer I don’t see how this could be a recent murder, the door had been wallpapered over, the cupboard pushed against it.  That room had been locked up for years.  When we first found it, it was covered under decades of dust and grime.  The toys and decoration were Victorian or early Edwardian.”  Sgt Wilder nodded and scribbled down the answers on his notepad. 136

In the distance a siren could be heard and the sound of many car doors slamming.  PC Cunliffe, the younger of the Policemen walked through the hallway and opened the door.  A gaggle of uniformed and plain-clothes policemen stood on the porch.137

“Hi Constable Cunliffe, what can you tell us?”  He looked up at DCI Harold, his face lit up. The excitement of a real crime was shining through the horror of the events.138

“Well in a room in the attic there appears to be the skeletal remains of two children, one of them a baby. They appear to have been there for sometime, the door to the room was found earlier today and was wallpapered over a big cupboard covering that.  The remains don’t appear to have been disturbed for a long time.”  DCI Harold nodded and PC Cunliffe pointed him up the stairs.139

“The room is up those stairs and to the right and up another flight of stairs.  I’ll show you!”  PC Cunliffe was like a playful puppy wanting to please the senior officers.  Sgt Wilder watched from the hallway, he didn’t want to go back up those stairs.  This place had an unsettling atmosphere to it, an underlying evil that permeated every fibre.  Although he didn’t want to admit it to himself he was scared.140

He turned towards the kitchen.  Beth and Jim were sat at the table.  Beth’s face was red and she was staring into space.141

“This place is ruined now Jim, we will have to leave.”  The tears started again and she buried her face in her hands.  Jim looked up at the Policeman and an unspoken understanding went between them.  Jim took a deep breath and let it out haltingly.142

“Do you think they will be here long?”  Jim asked, thinking to himself that he wished he had a cigarette, but he had given up in January when Beth had fallen pregnant and never started again.143

“I think depending upon what they find they could be here a fair while yes.”  Jim sighed and pulled his hand through his hair.  He shook his head sadly.  How could something so wonderful turn into a complete Nightmare?144

CHAPTER 4145

For days the men dressed in white all in one suits carried black shrouded boxes down the stairs and out of the house.  News van carried stories of the Macabre happening at The Corry Mansion.  Reporters besieged Beth and Jim, and they had the curtains and blinds permanently drawn on the windows on the ground floor.  It was as if they were in mourning. Jim thought it reminiscent of the old custom of closing the curtains in a house where a person has died.146

Beth moved around in a drug-induced haze.  A well-meaning Doctor had been called to administer a sedative when the intrusions had become too much for her to bear.  Her hair was unwashed and she sat around crying with a big old chenille housecoat on.  Jim was beside himself with worry.  He had offered to move them in with Tom until the Police had left the house, but Beth had point blankly refused the idea.  Beth had a far away look in her eyes that Jim didn’t think was entirely caused by the tablets.  It was if she was listening to something far away and that she was straining to hear.  Jim feared he was losing her completely.147

* * * * * * * * * * * 148

Beth sat on the window seat of the master bedroom, watching the Policemen scanning the ground with ground penetrating radar, trying to see if there were any body sized cavities under the flower beds and lawn.  They had already begun to dig under the fountain, destroying her beautiful garden. Beth turned away with tears in her eyes just as a policeman in an all in one suit walked past the bedroom door. He turned towards her and nodded his head, moving on again.  Beth ran up to the door and slammed it hard.149

For the hundredth time she wished she had never found the nursery, everything had been fine until that had happened.  She scolded herself. She was being selfish! She wasn’t thinking about who those tiny bodies belonged to, she was just thinking about herself.  She bit her lip, suddenly overcome with the urge to find out who the babies belonged to.  Her head felt groggy and she staggered into the bathroom and ran the cold tap.  The cold water she splashed on her face sent a chill down her back and she shivered.  The detective in her sprung in to action and she wanted her computer.  Looking in the glass wall cabinet she looked back at her pale and drawn face.  She decided there and then not to take any more pills that the Doctor had prescribed.  What she needed was a shower, she opened the large built in wardrobe and pulled out a cotton tracksuit.  After a long hot shower she dressed in the warm tracksuit and tied her long hair back with a scrunchie.  150

Her computer was in the study, which was downstairs. Beth put her fleece- lined slippers on, opening her bedroom door.  She walked along the landing.  At the top of the staircase a policeman was sat on one of the stairs eating fish and chips out of white greasy paper.151

“Hello Mrs Harper, nice to see you up and about again.”  Beth looked down at him and smiled.152

“I am feeling much better, do you have any news?” Beth asked, leaving the question hanging in the air between them.  The Policeman nodded.153

“Well, we have found 5 skeleton’s, all of them infants, and all under 5years of age.  The pathologist has been working on them for about 2 days now.  We won’t know anything more now until more work has been done.”  Beth smiled at him again and started down the stairs.  A wave of dizziness hit her and she gripped on to the banister for support. The Policeman got up and reached for her, but Beth forced herself down the flight of sweeping stairs to the hallway below.  Ignoring his concerned voice.154

An office had been set up in the living room and every inch of floor was covered with coats and equipment along with medical boxes full of rubber gloves and files and files of paper.  A policewoman was sat at the desk in the corner working on a Laptop, inputting all of the information about the case into the files.  She lifted her head and smiled at Beth, Beth smiled back and backed out of the room. The study was across the hall and the door was closed.  Beth pushed it open and Jim was lying on the overstuffed sofa in the corner sleeping.155

Beth walked over to the desk and turned the computer on.  It took a few moments to warm up and then she began to surf the Internet, putting in the name of the house and the address and looking for previous owners.  Josiah Corry had built the house in 1892.  He had moved into the house with his wife Charlotte Corry and their niece Isabel Corry.  During their 30-year marriage all of the Corry children had died in infancy and after 1900 the 15-year-old Isabel Corry had disappeared from the records.  No death or marriage certificate was listed on public record. The house had then passed to a second cousin of whom the present Mrs Corry was a distant relative.156

Beth printed all of the information off the computer and gathered the sheets of paper together.  Jim was still sleeping soundly.  Beth looked down at him fondly; this was just as hard on him as it was on her.  He must have been suffering too.  Beth tiptoed out of the room not wanting to disturb him.  157

Beth made her way into the library.  This was a large room off the main hall; they had been lucky enough to buy the books that were inside along with the house.  Mrs Corry had not particularly wanted the old dusty books.  The money she had made from the sale of the house was paying for round the clock nursing care.158

A man had come in and cleaned each book in turn returning them to the shelves. He had found a small cupboard with a tiny lock, Beth had been fascinated and longed to open it, but had been distracted by the upholsterer, who had brought the new curtains for the living room. The book restorer had found a beautiful Corry family bible and he had left this saying it needed specialist work and that he would have to find someone else to deal with it.  It was still lying on a wooden stand in the corner of the room.  The cover was leather and decorated with tarnished gold leaf.  The pages were old and brown with age.  159

Beth walked over to it and opened its worn cover.  Inside she noticed a dark patch in the inside cover.  She had opened it many times before, but had never noticed it before.  She touched it with her fingertips and underneath the leather there was something stuck inside the cover.  160

Beth picked at it with her fingernail until the leather gave way and revealed a small black key.  Beth pulled the key free and held it in her hand.  It had the same rose pattern as the front door key.  Beth smiled to herself, the key would open that little cupboard, Beth just knew it would.161

Beth moved all the books off the shelf and put the key in the tiny lock it turned with a squeak.  The door swung open and for a moment Beth held her breath.  At the bottom of the cupboard was a piece of tattered muslin wrapped around something.  Beth lifted it out and unwrapped the little parcel.  Inside was a small handmade book, bound with string and covered in decoupage pictures of cherubs and roses.162

Beth moved to the round table in the centre of the room and sat down in one of the chairs.  She turned on the small table lamp and examined the handmade cover.  She carefully opened the first page.  163

This book belongs to Isabel Corry164

Aged 15 years.165

Beth smiled and turned to the next page.166

January 2nd 1900167

I am starting this journal so that people will know what despicable people my Aunt and Uncle are.  Ever since we moved to this place I have been kept indoors, mostly locked in my room.  My meals are sent up to my room, brought by Megan the scullery maid.  Megan is kind, but I couldn’t possibly let her know what horror awaits me once the sun has gone down and the house is in darkness.168

Beth felt her heart go out to this long dead girl, no more than a child.  What terror and despair she must have felt, all alone locked in her room.  Beth wondered which room was Isabel’s room, The room, which was her prison.169

Beth’s mind thought of the room, the room now full of policemen, and the room off the nursery, the room full of dead children.  Was this Isabel’s room?    The room they kept her locked within, month after month? Beth turned over more and more pages and they were filled with hard to read pencil lettering.  Her writing turning more frenzied and childish as to make it unreadable.  Beth closed the book, she was tired and still suffering the effects of the tranquilliser that the Doctor had given her that morning.  She had a headache.  Yet something spurred her on.  Isabel needed her story to be told.170

Beth opened the book and continued to read.171

April 19th 1900172

My stomach grows fatter.  I cannot hide it now under my skirts.  Megan has been sent away, and a cruel, sour faced old woman now brings me my meals.  When she enters the room she clutches her wooden cross and calls me evil and a harlot. I don’t know what lies she has been told, but it hurts me.  I am so alone, with no one to talk to anymore.  I know what grows within me; it is a babe. He put it there; him with the stinking breath and slobbering lips that make me shudder in revulsion.  173

My Aunt comes and visits me once a day in my attic prison and asks how I am and feels the wriggling devil within me by placing her hand on my stomach.  She coos over it, ignoring me completely apart from asking me if I am eating properly.  For someone so beautiful, with her long red hair, she is cruel and ruthless, and I am lost.174

Beth felt tears welling in her eyes.  She put the book down on the table and gripped the edge.  She was no more than a child and she was abused and treated like a baby making factory.  All before she was sixteen years old.  Beth turned her eyes towards the door.  She was sure this would have something to do with the dead babies in the attic. 175

She rose from the chair and moved towards the door.  Something caught her eye, propped up against one of the walls was the picture from the landing, the picture of Charlotte Corry.  She looked out from the canvas at Beth, smirking, her eyes twinkling, mocking her.         176

Beth strode towards it, wanting to knock the smile off her face, for a moment forgetting that it was a painting.  Beth reached for one of the pokers lying close to the fireplace and wielded it high above the painting.  The face didn’t change; it wouldn’t change.  It had been painted over a hundred years before; it was just canvas and paint, used to create a very striking picture.177

Beth looked down at her arm holding the heavy poker and felt a smile creasing her mouth.  If Jim didn’t already think she was mad, he would do after he saw her wanting to kill a painting. She put the poker back in its holder and walked out of the room, she had to tell Jim about it, Isabel’s story needed to be told.178