Haunting Memories

Haunting memories

A short Story by Emma Kate

‘You’re going mad…Grace…’ a figure was standing in front of Grace, stretching out a long hand for her throat…

‘No, don’t! NO!’ Grace screamed, her grey eyes wide open.

No, this wasn’t a dream, it couldn’t be, she had seen that woman standing in front of her, speaking in her croaked voice and reaching for her throat.

‘James!’ she called her cousin.

‘Grace, what happened?’

‘She-she was tr-trying to k-kill me.’

‘Grace, calm down, she wouldn’t come again.’

Grace went back to sleep again.

II

‘Julia, it happened again, is she going mad?’ James asked, lighting up his cigarette.

‘Don’t be daft, James. She is haunted by her memories.’ His elder sister answered.

‘Why doesn’t she want to tell me about it?’

‘You two barely know each other, because you hardly visited. She was with Aunt Rosie all this time, I learned this from Aunt Rosie, Grace has only told aunt Rosie about all of it…she doesn’t want to remember her past.’

James sighed.

‘So, should we send her to an asylum?’

‘James, should I send you to an asylum!?’ Julia asked imperiously.

James bit his lip.

Julia went into Grace’s room and opened the door.

‘Grace, should I leave you with Aunt Rosie?’ Julia asked kindly.

‘Yes please.’ The seventeen year old said.

‘Good, get ready.’

Grace obeyed.

IV

‘Aunt Rosie, it happened again.’ James told her.

‘James, what can we do, she has a haunting past, she’s scared to death by all of that, I swore to her I wouldn’t tell anyone. She told me specifically that I can oly tell it to your sister.’ Rosie explained.

Julia sighed.

‘Poor girl.’ She muttered under her breath.

James frowned.

It was the next day when James went to the local library for newspaper scraps.

The library had a special section for the old newspapers.

At last he found what he was looking for. Those were scraps of old newspaper glued together on a piece of paper.

-The Michaels’ murder case closed-

Margaret Michael-Geller, husband, Herald Michael, fifteen year old son, Ernest Michael murder case has been closed.

With the victim charged as innocent.

The car was found in a ditch, one of the children, thirteen year old survived, daughter of the Michaels.

Grace Michael.

Debt.

The girl was recording from her camera, which was still in her hand.

Footage of man found with a covered face.

Billionaire, Jonathon Drake.

James’s expression changed. He had heard of it once. It was said that the family had money problems and took debt from the billionaire Jonathon Drake, and when they didn’t return the money back, Jonathon followed them, then the family decided to run, but Jonathon’s men killed the family.

James was dumbstruck.

He showed everything that he found to Julia.

‘This isn’t-‘

‘Of course you’ll say it isn’t true.’

‘But that doesn’t justify the murdering of her family.’

James gazed at her, he was about to speak, but didn’t.

‘Well, you are right.’

Julia sighed and went away.

Poor Grace still had those horrible dreams, and the woman trying to choke the life out of her.

When James could bear it no more, he went to Rosie and said:

‘She is mad.’

‘Heaven’s sake, give it a rest James!’

‘Aunt Rosie!’

They packed Grace’s stuff and sent her away to Rosie’s.

It was a weekend when Grace was crying in her bedroom.

‘What happened, Grace?’ Aunt Rosie asked.

‘Aunt Rosie, I was just thinking what people believe in is not true…they don’t believe me just because they think I am mad!’ she cried.

Aunt Rosie sighed and comforted her niece.

‘Don’t think like that, so many people know it’s not true, now it’s dinner time.’

Grace stopped crying, and half-heartedly ate dinner.

Only some people knew what the truth was and what was false…

V

Two weeks later James and Julia came to Aunt Rosie’s house. They were worried about Grace. Grace was walking down the orchards alone, when she saw the same woman again, she screamed.

The three people ran to the Orchards, Grace had fainted.

Two hours later, when Grace woke up, she was crying.

‘Come on Grace, speak up.’ James said.

‘I’m not mad…please don’t send me to the asylum…’

‘You have to tell someone.’ Aunt Rosie requested.

‘No! I don’t want to. I don’t even want to remember.’

Grace drew a long sigh.

She gathered up all her courage and started:

‘We were in desperate need of money, so my parents took a debt from that creature, we returned the money later, but the next day Mommy and daddy was talking about something, it was that they had heard the man’s second assistant that he was talking about to steal the money from the first man that we gave it to, the man told us to give it to the first assistant, but then the second one stole it because the first one said that we didn’t return the money and the second assistant went on a leave, we tried to solve the matter, when it got out of control, we decided to leave, but he sent his men and-and…’ she started crying

James started cursing under his breath and Aunt Rosie had to stop him before he was about to say those out aloud.

Grace’s expression changed.

‘I will take revenge…soon…’ Grace said in a low, hoarse whisper.

Everybody exchanged looks and comforted her.

Please note: the woman were her hallucinations and she was the wife of the billionaire.

To be continued…

I may post part 2 soon. Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed it! If you like reading, you can go check out my blog, link will be on my profile/bio. I have many stories there. Short stories, Horror, Mystery and more!

darawriter394.blogspot.com (link for the blog)

Comment down below and give me a follow, if you liked this, I hope you check out my blog and read my future submissions as well!

Written by: Emma Kate

@emmak394 on Reedsy

And happy new Year!