You Can't Take It With You

           Xavier and his new bride, Jessica traveled down a dark, inauspicious road toward a home that they had never been to before. It belonged to an uncle that Xavier never knew he had.

           Xavier’s uncle, Bartholomew, had recently passed and this house was the location for the reading of his will. He was his father’s stepbrother, but Xavier could not recall any memories of the man.

           They arrived at the address that was provided, drove through large, wrought-iron gates that were overrun with climbing vines, and finally to the front door of an immense stone mansion. Large oak trees surrounded the home and blocked out much of the light from above.

           Xavier and Jessica climbed three steps to the entrance and rang the doorbell. Moments later, an elderly gentleman dressed in a formal jacket with tails answered the door.

           “Good evening,” he began, “I am Winston, your uncle’s manservant. You must be Xavier, am I correct?”

           “Yes, that’s correct,” Xavier replied. “Are we too early? I didn’t notice any other vehicles outside.”

           “You are precisely on time, sir. Please follow me to the master’s study where his lawyer is waiting for you.”

           Xavier and Jessica followed, staring enviously at the many artifacts that filled the hallways. As they entered the study, the only person in the room, was a portly gentleman in a paisley leisure suit sitting at a desk.

           “Welcome!” he exclaimed as he stood to his feet and rounded the desk. “I’m Harold Pendergast, your father’s attorney. He asked me to oversee the reading of his will. Please, have a seat.”

           The newlyweds took a seat on a loveseat near the desk. Xavier wasn’t sure if it was the enthusiasm of his new bride brushing up against him, or if it was the anticipation of his share of his uncle’s fortune that excited him at the moment.

           “Let’s get started, shall we?” the lawyer asked almost melodramatically.

           “Shouldn’t we wait for the others?” Xavier enquired.

           “There are no other people, son. You are the sole beneficiary stated in the will. Let me break it down for you; your uncle, Bartholomew James Addington, has left you the entire contents of his estate, including the home and the land on which it stands. His finances had been put into trust under your name as well.”

           The couple looked at one another with looks of shock and eagerness. They could not believe that this was happening. The attorney continued.

           “There is one more detail that I need to state. Before you receive anything, you must first spend three nights and two days in this house. You are not permitted to leave the grounds under any circumstance. Do you agree to these terms?”

           Their excitement turned to confusion at the request, but they agreed to the terms and they gathered their luggage from the car. Winston showed them to their room at the top of the winding staircase.

           “You will be staying in the master’s chambers. I took the liberty of preparing the bed with fresh linens. The ensuite is on the other side of the bed, though the pipes are old, and it could take a little time before the hot water reaches your bath. If you need anything at all, you may buzz me by pressing the intercom button on the nightstand. If you will excuse me, I must finish preparing dinner. It will be ready in precisely thirty minutes.”

           With that, Winston exited the bedroom and shut the door, leaving Jessica and Xavier alone at last.

           “Can you believe this, Jessica? This can all be ours in a few more days! I do not know how my uncle got all of this money, but my dad sure didn’t have any to spare. He could barely make ends meet each month. Do you think we have time to play a little before dinner, babe?”

           “I think that can be arranged,” Jessica responded coyly.

           Thirty minutes later, they arrived downstairs and were shown to the dining room. The large, oval-shaped mahogany dining table was set for two with white tapered candles dividing the two ends. Winston held the chair for Jessica as she sat and then assisted Xavier as well.

           “I have prepared Duck a l’orange for the main course, and an Apple-Pecan salad to start you off. Would you care for a glass of Gewurztraminer wine with your meal? It complements the Duck a l’orange beautifully.”

           “Yes, thank you. That would be wonderful.”

           The couple sat twelve feet apart at the massive table and needed to raise their voices so they could hear one another. The food was delicious, and they thanked Winston before retiring to their bed chamber for the night.

           After making love once more before settling in, the newlyweds laid in the bed while embracing one another passionately. They were nearly asleep when a noise startled them. A clanking noise like a hammer rapping against a metal pipe echoed loudly inside the wall behind their bed. Xavier insisted that it must be the water pipes.

           “Winston told us that these pipes are old, so there is probably just air in the lines and the pipes are rattling. Let’s get back to sleep, okay?”

           Jessica laid her head back down apprehensively. She was frightened, but once Xavier wrapped his strong arm around her, the fear dissipated, and she soon fell asleep. Xavier dozed off soon after that.

           At approximately 2:00 AM, they were awakened once more. Jessica had heard a scratching noise coming from the wall next to the ensuite and shook Xavier until he awoke as well.

           After hearing the noise, Xavier told Jessica that it was most likely mice scurrying around inside the walls. Again, Jessica reluctantly went back to sleep, but this time, Xavier was sleeping before her.

           For a third time that night Jessica and Xavier woke up. This time was different, however. The lights in the bedroom had turned on by themselves. The sudden brightness temporarily blinded the couple. As they shielded their eyes and their pupils began to adjust, Xavier could have sworn that he saw the figure of a man walk past the bed and into the bathroom, so he quickly jumped out of bed to follow.

           “Stay here,” he commanded. “I thought I saw something. I’m sure it’s nothing, but I want to make sure.”

           Jessica kept her hand near the intercom in case she needed to call Winston for help, and her eyes were focused on the bathroom door as Xavier crept slowly through it.

           He flicked on the light in the bathroom. A toilet was to the left of the door with a vanity and sink next to it, and on the far wall sat a freestanding cast iron clawfoot tub. Strangely, the tub was filled with steaming water. Xavier turned back toward Jessica and asked her if she had run the water in the tub, but she had not.

           Xavier approached the tub, kneeled, and reached his arm into the water to pull the plug. As he did so, he felt as if something grabbed his arm. He quickly pulled it out and ran back into the bedroom where he sat next to Jessica.

           “Xavier! Your arm! What happened?”

           He looked down to see what seemed to be three claw marks about four inches long dragged across his skin. No blood ran from them, however. They looked as if they had been cauterized.

           “I don’t know! I just went to unplug the bathtub, and this happened. Maybe there was some jagged metal that I didn’t see.”

           He dressed the wound with some bandages that Jessica found in the vanity and although they tried to get more sleep, they were unable to. At 7:00 AM, there came a knock on the door. Winston’s voice soon followed.

           “Sir and madam, will you be having your breakfast in the dining room, or would you rather I deliver it here to your bedside?”

           “We will be down shortly, Winston. Thank you.”

           Winston outdid himself yet again with another delicious meal. After breakfast, Xavier and Jessica decided to explore the grounds. It did not look so ominous in the daylight. Although, the gardens were unkempt, and Jessica suggested that they begin their new life by beautifying the outside of their new home.

           Xavier reminded her that it was not yet their home, but he agreed that working outside would be enjoyable. Winston pointed them in the direction of the garden shed where they would find the tools that they required.

           Like the mansion, the garden shed was made of stone. Moss grew across the north face of the structure. The hatched roof looked as if it needed repair as well. Inside, a single incandescent bulb glowed dimly across the twelve-by-twelve room. They pulled out a rake, a hoe, a wheelbarrow, and a shovel. Xavier found a couple of pairs of work gloves as well for them to wear.

           As they loaded the tools into the wheelbarrow, Jessica pointed out a reddish tinge on the mouth of the shovel. After closer examination, Xavier considered it to be blood.

           “They probably used it to kill a snake or something. Come on, we should get started.”

           The garden stretched fifteen feet across the back of the house. They began by pulling out the weeds that claimed residence there. Then they tilled the soil and gathered stones to surround the garden. After six hours in the sun, the garden was usable once again.

           By that evening, Xavier and Jessica were exhausted and headed up to their room right after dinner. Jessica ran the bathwater while Xavier sat and read from a book that he had found in the study. It was a journal belonging to his uncle.

           “June 5^th. More strange occurrences since I made my move back into this house. I feel as if I am being watched all of the time. I think I might be going crazy.”

           “July 12^th. I heard from my stepbrother, Nathan today. It has been years since I saw him. He was telling me that his son, Xavier was getting married. I wish I had spent more time with him. It has been almost twenty years now. I will make it up to him one day.”

           “September 8^th. The voices are growing louder and more constant now. Winston insists that he had not heard anything out of the ordinary, but I feel he is just trying to calm me down.”

           “September 12^th. I think my life is in danger. I need to get out of this place. I can’t explain it, but I just have…”

           Blood splatter coated the remaining lines of the journal page. Xavier did not want to worry Jessica, so he hid the book under the mattress. Jessica told him that the water was ready, so they sat together in the seven-foot-long tub. It was not long before Xavier put the words of the journal out of his mind.

           Remembering the scratches on his arm, Xavier searched for anything that could have scratched him in that tub but found nothing.

           After falling asleep, the couple was awakened by a shriek. It sounded like a man screaming. They buzzed for Winston on the intercom. He answered with a groggy voice.

           “Y-yes, sir. How can I help you?”

           “Winston, did you hear that scream moments ago?”

           “I apologize, sir, but I was sleeping and did not hear a thing.”

           “Well, we definitely heard it. I think we should call the police.”

           “I don’t believe that will be necessary, sir. These old homes make a lot of strange noises. Nothing to be concerned with, I assure you. If you would like, sir, I will go search the house myself.”

           “No, I don’t think that will be necessary, Winston. Please, go back to sleep. I’m sorry for disturbing you.”

           “No apology necessary, sir. Thank you and goodnight.”

           The rest of the night was uneventful, and the following day, they explored further into the grounds. Hiding beneath an overgrown thistle bush, they discovered two gravestones. One of a man named Jebbadiah Ingstrom and the other, Mary Ingstrom. Both died on the same day. They must have been the previous owners and were buried on the property. Back behind these two headstones, sat an open grave. The inscription on the headstone read, “BARTHOLOMEW INGSTROM, born April 4, 1965, died September 12, 2020.”

           Recalling the last journal entry date, Xavier realized that he had died while writing it. Using his cellphone, Xavier searched online for any articles describing the cause of death for his uncle. It said that he died tragically from a beheading. Police did not have any suspects and were asking any witnesses to come forward.

           They returned to the house and Xavier filled Jessica in on what he had discovered. She was terrified and wanted to leave the house, but Xavier convinced her to stay one more night, and then the estate would be his to do with as he pleased. Reluctantly, she agreed.

           That night, Xavier made sure that the bedroom door was locked, and he even sat a chair in front of it as a precaution. He checked to make sure the light switch was off fully, and he made sure that the tub was empty. When they were satisfied that everything was secure, they fell asleep.

           At 2:00 AM, his phone rang so he answered it. It was his mother.

           “Xavier, dear, I have tragic news. Your father was in a car accident tonight and he may not make it through the night. You need to come home immediately.”

           Xavier paused for a moment while he pondered the fact that he was going to lose all of this money if they left, but then he looked into his wife’s eyes and knew what the answer was. Within fifteen minutes, they had their bags packed and were headed toward the door. Winston met them at the foot of the staircase.

           “I am disappointed that you are leaving, especially since you are mere hours away from inheriting a great fortune, sir. But if you must leave, then safe travels.”

           “Thank you for all that you did, Winston. I wish you the best. Please explain to Mr. Pendergast that we had a family emergency and had to leave unexpectedly. Goodbye, Winston.”

           “Goodbye sir, madam.”

           They wasted no time driving back to the city. Xavier pulled up into his parent’s driveway at 4:00 AM and rushed into the house, calling for his mom. She staggered down the stairs half-asleep.

           “What is going on here? What are you doing storming in here at this time of day yelling your head off?”

           “We came back as quickly as we could. How is dad?”

           “Your father is fine. He’s upstairs sleeping.”

           “He was upstairs sleeping,” came a voice from the stairwell. It was Xavier’s father.

           “Dad! You’re here!”

           “Where else would I be at four in the morning?”

           “At the hospital, of course! Mom said you were in a car wreck and might not live through the night!”

           “What are you talking about?” his mother piped in. “I didn’t call you! We have been asleep since 9:00 PM last night. I do not know who you talked to, but it was not me. And as you can see, your father is fine.”

           Xavier dropped to his knees and grabbed the back of his head. It came clear to him that his chance at his uncle’s fortune was now gone.

           His mother told them to head into the kitchen and she was going to cook breakfast for everyone. They told his parents of the events over the last few days and about the terms of the will. His parents looked at one another and smiled, then his dad spoke.

           “Son, you may not be a millionaire, but because of the choice you made between the money and your family, you made us the wealthiest parents in town. Nothing can be more priceless than your love.”