The family jewels

It had been baking hot for days. Today the forecast was calling for late afternoon thundershowers. It was also mom’s birthday, and her gift was a new flower garden. This weather would be perfect. I will get the weed material and the plants in the ground and mulched by the time the storm comes along to water them.

When I got there, no one was home. I assumed my sister had taken mom out to get her hair done and then lunch. I had left my key at home, but I had everything I needed in the barn. I hate that ratty old barn; it always smells of rot, and it’s always cold. Everyone tells me I’m crazy, but I feel deeply saddened when I walk into the barn. Sometimes I even cry. I had no intentions of partaking in either one of those reactions today.

As I reached for the door handle, I braced myself for the overwhelming feeling of despair. I ran in and out again, not taking time to breathe. I was bringing everything out at once so I wouldn’t have to continue entering the barn. I put my earbuds in and got busy. It didn’t take long before sweat was pouring off me. I’ll just deal with it before I go back in that barn, I thought. Four hours had passed before I noticed the time. I was so thirsty my lips stuck together, and my mouth and throat were so dry I couldn’t sing along to the music any longer. I had to go all the way into the barn, all the way back to the left corner. And be careful to maneuver the holes in the floor. To reach the small workshop part of the barn where there was a small refrigerator filled with water. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Nothing ever happens to me when I’m in the barn. This stupid fear is ridiculous. I’m going to get some water!

I opened the door and felt the heartbreak wash over me and settle in. I walked across the floor, keeping my eyes on the small workshop door, not stopping till I held the doorknob in my hand. I rushed in, opened the frig, and grabbed an armful of water. I turned, ready to make a run for the barn door. But I froze in the doorway. Along the back wall were men, women, and even children. Someone had hung them by the neck, and they were staring their dead stares at me. I dropped all the waters, but one, and I downed the whole thing. I could still see them, so I reached for another water bottle. Thinking, I had never been this dehydrated before. I had never hallucinated before. As I turned my head, I could see stalls all throughout the barn. Some had corpses, and some were empty.

Somehow, I thought a ghost would be hazy, but they were so real I felt like I had been transported to another time. I saw every popped-out eye oozing down the face: every swollen purple tongue and every child’s face a mask of terror. I ran as hard as I could for the door. I ran so fast that I ran right through the door into my sister. Knocking her and myself both down, we rolled a few feet a mass of tangled limbs. When we righted ourselves, I looked over my shoulder into the barn. Of course, there was no ghost. Neither one of them believed me. But at least my sister Beryl put my tools away.

Beryl went home, mom admitted she was having bad heartburn and was scared it might be a heart attack. So, I was sleeping over tonight. She has been increasingly scared since dad died.

Mom’s heartburn quieted down, and I was watching her sleep now. Her life had been hard, but she was a strong woman. She didn’t let it make her bitter. She has a bigger heart than anyone knew, or so she thought. But I believe all her children would tell you what a big heart she has. I couldn’t sleep. The moon was full and brighter than I’d ever seen it. I decided to go outside and revel in its beauty.

I had only been outside a few minutes when I saw a small child. She was standing at the bottom of the barn. I can’t imagine what she would be doing there. The bottom level was dangerous; the top floor had fallen in, in several places. There were broken boards and nails everywhere down there. She was motioning for me to follow. I followed the little girl I didn’t have a flashlight, but it shouldn’t be an issue with the moon this bright. I followed her around the barn and down the small hill. I didn’t see her anywhere, but I heard a noise in the barn.

“Please, walk in. I have cleared the way for you,” the child said. She swore she was alone and needed help. She said I was the only one that could help her. She was in a hurry and nearly in tears. So, I walked into the bottom of the barn. Someone other than this small child moved all the boards and farming equipment. She continued to deny anyone was with her and promised I would understand soon.

I stopped a few feet in front of her. “I’m a ghost,” she said. I had no words. I could see her here; I mean as in present of body. I stared at her, as she faded a slight bit at a time until she was no more. Then she slowly became solid again. I was so shocked I couldn’t move; this must be how a deer in the headlights feel. I finally snapped out of it and opened my mouth to speak, but she held up her finger, so I stayed quiet. “Can I just have a minute to clear a few things up? It’ll go faster,” She squinted her eyes and cocked her head sideways. I nodded my head.

“Ok, the mechanics of the thing first. Ghosts are everywhere all the time. We can be solid only on the full moon. I’m from 1979. My mom died in 1966 when I was born. My stepmom didn’t like me; she was mean to me because my dad loved me, and he showed it. She thought he should be showering her with attention, and she was jealous of me. So, she made it look like an accident. She told me what she was going to do before she threw me off the roof. She thought he would put her in control over all his assets while he grieved. She was planning to leave him penniless and in the street. Then she threw me over. Don’t get me wrong, I fought like a wild cat” she stopped here, overwhelmed by tears, “But she was stronger in the end. I knew I would die. There was excruciating pain. I screamed and screamed. I couldn’t move; all I could do was lay there. It was less than a minute, but it felt like an eternity in that fire of pain. I need to find her, PLEASE,” she begged.

I was still speechless; that was quite a speech for a thirteen-year-old. I guess the child in front of me has been a thirteen-year-old for ten years now. My heart was breaking for her. I agreed to help; what else was I going to do? I promised to see what I could find out, and we would meet on the next full moon. She knew what her last address used to be. So, I had a year but no last name.

“Being a Ghost has benefits, but also cons. Things begin to fade, you have to know what’s important to you and why. You can lose it all if you don't hold on to it, ” the girl said.

Her story sounded so familiar; I was sure I heard it somewhere before. I called about her last address. No one was in the penthouse at this time, and they couldn’t tell me where the previous tenet went. They wouldn’t even confirm the last tenet’s name.

I was sitting in history when it hit me. I knew who she was! There was a considerable debate about this in class. My goodness, she would have been twenty-three if she had lived. Just two years older than me. She was the daughter of James Watchman, President of the United States! It was clear what the ex-wife had done. But it was all circumstantial. He was two and a half presidents ago. He only served half of his term when this happened. The country was shocked. The President was assassinated two weeks later by two men in black ski masks. They never caught the men who did it. He left all his money to his first wife’s family and not one cent for his current wife.

The next full moon, I told her who she was. She cried as my words brought back memories. I told her tracking her stepmom wasn’t hard once I had the name. I ask her what she was going to do. She smiled and shook her head; she wouldn’t tell me.

She asked me for a shovel. I would have to go into the top of the barn to get it, But I wasn’t scared anymore. I still felt the heartbreak and still saw the people hanging. But they didn’t try to harm me. I brought her the shovel. She took it to a spot and smiled at me before she began digging. She dug about two feet down when she stopped and pulled out a box wrapped in plastic. These were her mothers and her mothers, mothers, etc...

When her stepmom had tried to take possession of them, causing the argument that led to her callus acts of murder. This young girl had brought them here to her great grandpa’s farm and buried them. She was crying and holding the box out to me. She wanted me to take them. There was a letter with the correct documentation that named me the sole owner. I was overwhelmed by her generous offer.

The last I heard of her stepmom, she had lost her mind and was admitted to a psych ward. I decided to keep the jewels to pass down to my daughter and start a tradition of my own. I realized I did have some power over the images I saw. I took the saw and a ladder and spent the whole night cutting down the people in the barn. They were all incredibly grateful, but now several of them wanted help finding their relatives. I agreed to help. My heart was breaking for them; what else could I do?

The End!