Towards the Light

The last rays of light peaked from behind the mountains, showering the sky with a vast array of colors. The sunsets here are amazing. I've always loved watching them, ever since I was a little kid. It's probably one of the main reasons I never left my home town. Oh, don't get me wrong, I did my share of traveling when I was younger, and I've seen some amazing places, but nothing has ever been great enough to pull me away for long.

My name is Detective Cody Bryant Jr. I became a detective because I love a good mystery, I guess. I have always loved trying to figure out 'the how' and 'the who' behind all that happens. Even small mysteries like that of a haunted house. What happened there? Who did it? Why is it left to decay? And why is it so fun to be scared witless by one?

Our town had a haunted house, you know the type, a lonely old decrepit building that all local children are terrified of, but somehow can't stay away from. I remember it from when I was a kid. I remember friends daring each other just to touch the door, or to go inside through the broken window in the back. I remember one Halloween, when my best friend James and I crawled through that window, determined to spend all night camped out in that house. We made it about an hour before we were both in tears, running for our mothers.

It's amazing how things that are so terrifying when you’re a child, become so common place as you get older. That magic that brings them to life seems to die a little with each birthday. As I grew up, I put all thoughts of that house that so intrigued me as a child, out of my mind. Until that day when the house appealed to my search for a mystery once more.

Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. I guess that too goes back to my love for mysteries. I enjoy figuring out who is who, when they hide behind the masks they wear. Really, everyday of an adult's life is like Halloween, only we seem to get more tricks than treats. Cool fall weather, costumed monsters, candy, and fun, what's not to love about such a day?

I had never got any children of my own. My ex-wife had not wanted any as it would have gotten in the way of her career. And eventually I got in the way of it as well, that’s why there now is an 'ex' before the 'wife'. I wish we would have had some though, I really think it would have been great to see everything through the eyes of a child once more. I still find ways to enjoy life though. It was a combination of those ways that led me to my adult adventure at the infamous haunted house.

After my wife left me, I took up jogging. I had never been much for working out before that, only enough to pas the PT exam for the force, but never much more. Then, after she was gone, I had all this pent up energy, and one day I just started running. I had been at it for 5 years now, and for some reason it soothed me. I usually jog about 5 miles a day, and I always go the same route through our little town. It takes me right past the house, but as an adult I never paid it any attention. There are no such things as ghosts, right? Well I'll get to that later.

Anyway, back to the beginning of my story, the last rays of light peaked from behind the mountains, showering the sky with a vast array of colors. It was Halloween, and I was out for my evening jog. I jogged past many a trick-or-treater on their way to collect candy from the locals. I waved at them all, and most of them waived back. This being a small town and all, I knew most of them and would occasionally stop to talk to one of the parents. I jogged my way on, towards the point where my adult beliefs would be challenged; never knowing this night would be any different. That is until I reached the Mason Manor. That would be our resident haunted house. It's called a manor, but it really qualified as a mansion, that place was huge. Three stories tall, and so many rooms you could comfortably camp an army in there. Why it had been left to rot, I didn't know. Sure we had all heard stories about terrible things happening in there, an entire family massacred, but those were just the stories that surrounded the place, surely something so gruesome could never have happened in our safe little piece of paradise. No matter what had happened there, the place should have fetched a good bit of money on the market, but it never sold. It just sat there and deteriorated until it came to look scary and foreboding. The high iron gates at the front of the property never kept the kids out. There were holes in the fence many places, and the kids could always get in. There were times we were called at the station, because some kids had gotten in and done some damage, but it wasn't often, mostly they just put their nerves to the test and challenged one another to see who was chicken. Halloween was probably the biggest time for the house, and as I was passing the manor, I saw evidence that this Halloween would be no different.

I could have kept on jogging, but as I passed the house I noticed the light. Not much, just a small light on the third floor of the manor. It was flickering, like a candle, and had it stayed that way, I probably would never have noticed it. But a sudden flash, much brighter than the candle, made me stop and look. The window was near the middle of the large house, and that candle flicker was steady. What had the flash been? Surely there were kids in there, braving the house on the creepiest night of the year, but what were they doing to cause such a light? I should have kept on jogging, the kids in this town were usually not trouble, and I wasn't worried that they would damage anything. But something had appealed to my sense of curiosity and mystery. The house I had ignored for many years, was now in the forefront of my mind. I would brave the house once more.

I went to the gate first and tried it. It was locked up as tight as ever. So I made my way around the side of the fence. As I went on, I could remember playing here and quickly found one of our secret entrances from my youth. I tried to get through, but it was merely a child sized entrance. I couldn't get in. I kept on, determined now to get in and see what was going on in the house. As I rounded the back of the property, I found an old gate, smaller than the front gate, and rusted off of its hinges. I went to open it, and it simply collapsed, throwing up a load of dust that made me cough. I looked up at the house, afraid I had scared off whoever was inside. The candlelight had come to the back of the house, and now lit a window of one of the rooms on this side. It stayed there, despite the noise I had made. I quietly made my way through the gate and across the backyard. My memories from childhood were reminding me to be wary of monsters lurking in the dark backyard. I simply grinned to myself and made my way to the back door of the house.

The broken window was boarded up. Somebody had at least done that much for the old place. Probably a parent afraid their child would get cut on the glass one day. I checked the boarding, and it was strong. Whoever was in there had not gone in through the window. I tried the door and it was locked. They had to have gotten in there somehow. I continued on around the house, checking each window and door as I went. I finally came upon the basement door, and decided to give it a try. It had once been held closed by a large wooden beam, strapped across the inside of the door, but as I gave a tug, I heard it creak and then fall apart. The door sprung open in my hands. It wasn't the way they had gotten in, but it would work perfectly fine for me. I walked down the few steps that led to the basement. My inner child began to demand that we leave at once. Who could know what monsters might be lurking in such a place? The adult in me wanted his allergy medicine. There was a ton of dust down here. I began to sneeze, but fought it off. If I hadn't given away to whoever was here that they were not alone yet, I wanted to keep it that way. It was dark, so I pulled out my cell phone and flipped it open. The light was enough to get me to the stairs that led up into the house, so I climbed them and quietly opened the door into the kitchen.

It was a bit lighter up here; the moon was shining bright, giving me some light through the windows. It was only then, after I had entered the place I had both been fascinated with and feared as a child, that I realized it was a full moon. I felt a chill go down my spine, but reminded myself that I was grown up now, and there are no such things as ghosts, monsters, werewolves, or boogiemen. I was safe, a bit dusty, but safe. I looked around the downstairs for a bit, checking to see if it was the same as I remembered it from my childhood. I think I was also trying to stall my inevitable confrontation with whatever lurked upstairs. It appeared a bit more rundown, but mostly it seemed the same. A thick coating of dust encased everything. I looked around, trying to find the footprints of whoever was here. The dust was undisturbed. That seemed odd. Perhaps they had come in from somewhere on a higher floor. I made my way to the stairs and began to climb them. No footprints on the stairs either. I was almost to the second floor when I heard the crying. It was coming from higher up, I was sure of it. Maybe some kid had come in here and was now scared out of his wits, or perhaps someone else was with them and had hurt them. Out of reflex, I reached to the small of my back for my gun. It wasn't there. I never carried it when I went jogging. I made my way, quietly, on up the stairs, trying to find the source of the crying.

As I reached the third floor, the crying stopped. I saw the candlelight, flickering down the hall. I walked, slowly and quietly down towards the light. A sudden chill ran down my spine, for a brief second I thought I heard my name whispered from somewhere ahead, a phantasmal voice from the candlelight. I swallowed hard and kept creeping on down the hallway. I was just outside the room where the candle must have been, when I jumped as the crying started again. Now it was much louder, and it came from the room right in front of me. I threw myself into the room, ready to rescue whoever was in danger. As I entered the room, the crying stopped abruptly and the light went out instantly.

I had reached a whole new level of freaked out. I looked around the room, I had known the crying was coming from here, it had to have been. But as I looked around the room, not only was there not a crier, there was also no candle. Where had the light come from? Where had it gone? I was about to turn around and leave, continuing my jog and put it all out of my mind, but I couldn't leave a good mystery. I had to know what was going on. And it was then I heard the voice for sure. It said only one word.

"Cody?"

I jumped and bolted from the room. I had made it back to the stairs when I stopped to think about what was going on. I turned around and there was no one there, but someone had said my name. It had sounded like a young boy, not someone who could hurt me, and they knew my name. That meant it was probably one of the neighborhood kids. I walked slowly back to the room and went back in again. Still no light, still no crying boy. "Hello?" I tried to shout it but my throat was closed down so it came out as a hoarse whisper. I cleared my throat and tried again, it came out a little better this time, "Hello?"

"Cody?"

Again the spectral voice asked from somewhere. I looked around and saw the light once more, coming from a room at the end of the hall. I turned and made my way down to the room, slowly. "Hello?" I tried again, this time the words coming out clearer. "Is someone here? This is Cody Bryant, who is here?"

"Cody?"

I was still feeling spooked, but I knew now it had to be someone who knew me. I went to the room, and the light didn't fade this time. In the room was a table, with a candle on it, but no one was there.

"Cody?"

From right beside me, I turned quickly, but there was no one there.

"Cody?"

From my other side, I spun to face them, but again was met by nothing but air.

"Cody?"

From the direction of the table, and louder this time. I spun once more and this time I saw more than air. At the table, in a chair that had not been there moments before, sat a young boy. He couldn't have been more than seven or eight years old. His costume, it had to have been a costume because no kid today would be caught dead in it, looked like something people would wear many years ago, the kind of thing someone would have worn maybe when my dad was a kid. The most distinguishing features though, were the eyes of the boy. He had light, misty grey, haunting eyes. The eyes alone were enough to almost make me turn tail and run again.

"Cody?" the boy asked. This time I saw his lips move as he asked the question and this time he continued, "Is it really you?"

"Yes, I'm Cody, what's your name? If you're in some kind of trouble maybe I can help you, I'm a detective."

"You can't help me, and you aren’t my Cody. I thought he had finally come. You seemed familiar somehow." The boy stood up and came towards me. His speech was hypnotizing, and I stood there, unable to move as this haunting lad moved closer to me. He walked right up to me and took my hand, then he pulled downward on it, pulling me down to kneel. He reached up and took my face in his hands. Then he looked into my eyes. I had never been looked at like that. His gaze was searching me, as if reading my very soul. Then he let me go and he smiled at me.

"You are Cody - but you're not - I don't know what it is - but you're different. I have waited a long time for you to come."

"What are you talking about?" I shook my head to clear out some of the fog, and looked at him. "Who are you? Where are your parents? They must be worried about you, we should call them." I reached for my cell phone, but it wasn't there, damn I must have dropped it downstairs.

"I remember you now," the boy looked at me and smiled, "You were here once before, I thought you were Cody then too, but you couldn't hear me back then. I tried to talk to you then, but you and your friend ran away."

Suddenly memories flooded back to me of the last Halloween I had braved this house. My friend James and I had been fine, we were scared but we would have made it through the night if it hadn't been for the boy. I hadn't remembered him until now, but suddenly I could see him, a pale boy, floating there in the hallway, coming for us, chasing us. I remember seeing the painting behind him. I could see it right through him. The boy had been a ghost! If this was the same boy, I was standing face to face with a ghost.

I turned to run, but a small hand reached out to grab mine. I slowly spun back around, face to face with a phantasm, and he just smiled at me, a sweet smile. I felt the fear leave me, and I began to relax.

"Sorry I scared you back then, and now too for that matter, I didn't mean to, but you reminded me of my Cody. I've been waiting for him for so long."

"Who are you?" my mind still wasn't grasping what was going on.

"My name was Mathew, I'm a ghost, boo!" he said it with a giggle, but I still jumped up and almost ran, but his giggling was infectious and I laughed right along with him.

"Where are your parents?" Stupid question to ask a ghost boy, I know, but it was all I could think of.

"Well, Mom is in heaven, and hopefully dad is in hell." He looked bitter as he said it, but I also saw the sadness in his eyes.

"What happened to you?" Another stupid question, I was full of them tonight.

"I died." He looked at me with a grin, which was odd considering his statement. "Haven't you heard the tales? I know I've heard the kids who come here tell the stories. The stories about a whole family killed in one night by some sadistic killer, years ago. Well that’s basically the story. I was eight when I died, many years ago.

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Mathew's story:

My dad had always been a drunk, he was rich though, and well respected in the community, so no one thought anything of it, no one except my mom. The town always saw the good side of him, but when he came home drunk, he became who he really was. He was mean and he used to hurt my mommy. He would hit her, and he would hit me. I would always try to leave when he came home like that, and it was one of those nights I found Cody. I went out, dad never knew where I went, but I had a place out in the woods I would go when I needed to get away from him. And I was there one night, crying a bit loudly, when a friendly voice from behind asked if I was okay. I turned around and there was Cody. He looked a lot like you did the last time you were here, and you still have his eyes. I smiled at him when he asked me that, and we became instant friends. He took me to his house that night, and we stayed there until late, playing and having fun. I knew that if I went home that late, my dad would really beat me. I had told Cody about my dad. So we asked his mom if I could stay the night, and she said if it was ok with my folks, so she got on the line with them and luckily mom answered the phone. She said it was fine and I had my first ever sleep over with my new best friend. It certainly was the first of many. For the next few months I practically lived at Cody's house. My mom was glad I was safe, and my dad was glad I was out of his way. Life was somewhat good for a while, until the night I died.

Cody was out of town for the weekend so I had to stay home. He had tried to get me invited along on their trip, but it was to a funeral for someone in his mom's family, so his mom said no. I was home all weekend and definitely in my father's way. The more he drank, the angrier he got, and he began to hit people at random. First my mom, then me. Then he would sit for a while and drink. I went to my room and tried to stay out of his way, but it wasn't long till I heard my mom yell. I had gotten a baseball bat from Cody for my birthday a couple weeks before. I don't know what I figured to do with it, but I grabbed it and ran out to see if mom was okay. I ran right into dad.

"What are you doing you little shit?" his words slurred together and he looked glassy eyed, but he noticed the bat. "Oh, you think you're big enough to take me now with your little bat? Come on and try."

I just stood there, I didn't move a muscle. Dad shoved me hard and I hit the wall. I dropped my bat, and he picked it up. I heard mom come up behind him. I looked up and saw she had a bloody nose and a busted lip. She saw the bat in dads hand and screamed at him to leave me alone. He turned and hit her with the bat. She fell down and cried out. He raised the bat to hit her again, but I got up and jumped on his back. He knocked me down and spun on me, catching me in the ribs with the bat. I went down hard as the air rushed out of my lungs, and never felt the bat come down on my head. Everything went black.

I woke up a little bit later, there was a flash that blinded me for a minute and I looked around for my mother and father. I couldn't find them so I went downstairs. At the bottom of the stairs I found my mom. Her body was crumpled up and it looked as if she had fallen down the stairs all the way from the third floor. I went over to her, and started to cry, and then I felt a hand on my shoulder, I turned around, afraid it was my father, but it was my mom standing there, dressed in all white and looking perfect. I looked down at her body, then back up at her and realized I was seeing her spirit, a bright pillar of light appeared behind her, and she looked down at me.

"Come on Mathew, come with me." She stepped back into the light, and looked forward, expecting me to follow her. Instead I turned and ran upstairs. I ran all the way up to where I had fallen down before and as I got there I saw my own body laying there, my father standing over it, still going on hitting it. He was yelling and it was clear he had lost his mind.

"Get up you little bastard," whack," I mean it," whack, "please get up." With that he fell to the ground and started sobbing. He cried for a while, but I certainly didn't feel sorry for him. He got up and crawled to his room, and though I heard the gunshot, I never looked back. I had to go find Cody and tell him goodbye. I had to tell him I was alright and that he shouldn't worry about me. I ran to the door, and went out to the front gate. But the second I tried to cross it, I got knocked back as if I had run straight into a brick wall. I tried every place I knew to get through the fence, but all of them had the same results. I would have to wait for Cody to come to me. Surely he would come to ask me to play as soon as he got back, and then I could tell him. The next day, one of dad's friends came by to see why he hadn't shown up for work. He walked in the house, and then came running out and threw up everywhere. The next few days were a lot of chaos, but Cody never came. He must have heard about it and his mom kept him away. I saw him pass once, years later, but he never got close enough for me to tell him goodbye.

I sat back and looked at the little ghost boy. I could see the tears on his face. I felt them running down my own too. I had to help him find Cody, if he was still alive.

"What was Cody's last name?" I looked up at the boy and he smiled at me.

"His last name was Bryant."

"That’s impossible, that’s my last …" Suddenly it dawned on me "When did you die?"

"It was October 30 1957, the day before Halloween. I was going to go as a cowboy and Cody was going to be an Indian, but we never got to go." 1957! That was the year my father and his family moved to this town. I knew he had a friend who died as a kid, and I knew he always refused to talk about this house, now it all made sense! My father was this poor little ghost boys long lost best friend.

"Mathew! I think I know who your Cody is. I think it was my father!" I jumped up and looked at him, and then I realized something and sat back down. "My father died a few years ago, he's already gone, there isn't anyway for you to say goodbye." I looked at the boy, expecting him to be sad, but he looked happy, almost silly, a big grin spread out on his face. "What? What are you happy about?"

"If he's passed on, then I can see him again! All I have to do is go to heaven! I put it off all this time so I could see him first, and now he's beat me there! I haven't seen one of the bright lights in a long time, but with you here there should be one soon, we can go see him together!" I looked at the little ghost boy for a second, as what he said sank in.

"Well you can go see him, but I will have to wait till I'm dead. If you see him tell him I said I love him."

"Tell him yourself."

"I will when I die."

"But you are dead."

I looked at him questioningly suddenly everything came back to me. I was jogging, just outside this house and for some reason stopped to look at the house. A little boy dressed as a cowboy was crossing the road, his mother was talking to one of the other moms and wasn't paying attention, neither was the driver of the car on the road. I yelled, but the mom didn't have time to react. I jumped in front of the car, knocking the kid out of the way, and then there was a sudden flash of light.

"Now you remember, that’s why you can see me so clear, and talk to me," I suddenly remembered downstairs in the dust, when I looked for footprints and there were none, I had even looked behind me and there were no prints there either. "You got hit down there," he pointed through the window and I looked down, we saw the lights of the ambulance, and the police cars. I suddenly floated right out of the house, and down beside the cops who were standing around looking at my crumpled body on the ground.

"He was a good cop, and a good friend, I can't believe he went out like this, but at least he died a hero."

"Yup, it would have been how he would've wanted it, giving his life to save someone else's."

I turned back and looked at the gate. Mathew stood there, waiting for me. I walked back and this time I walked right through the gate. He looked up at me and gave me a small, sad smile.

"It's not so bad, being dead, once you get used to it I mean. It is awfully lonely if you stay behind though." Suddenly a brilliant tower of light lit up in front of the two of us. Mathew turned to me and stuck out his hand. "Let's go, your dad is waiting for us."

I thought about it for a second, and then took his little hand in mine and we both walked towards the light.

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The End