The Writers Voice
The World's
Favourite Literary Website
To Find A Memory
by
Melissa DeMedio
It was another evening returning from school. My friends Gina, Sarah and I were walking home from school and as usual we passed 22 Locklin Ave. which was told to be owned by a hermit. Although no one really knows this because no one's actually been inside the house.
"Lisa, I dare you to go inside that house this afternoon." Gina said with a smirk on her face.
"No way, why would I want to go inside that house." I said. But, really inside I always have wanted to go inside that house, it's like someone's been pulling me and telling me to go inside the house and everyday it gets stronger. With this in mind I really was planning to go inside the house tonight.
"See you guys!" Sarah said while turning around the corner to the next street where her house resides.
"Bye!" Gina and I said at the same time.
"Lisa, I'm going to go a different direction today because I have to go to a house that I'm going to be babysitting at, so I'll see you too. OK." Gina said with much enthusiasm. Today was Gina's first day of babysitting and she wanted to do it right.
"OK, I'll see you later then." I said. I started to walk slowly making sure that Gina was out of view and then I decided to run back to Locklin Ave. As 22 became in view I started to slow down. My dark brown hair was covering my face as I ran I knew I should have put my hair up today, I thought. When I finally was standing in front of it, I just stared at the old house. The house had to have been from colonial times, it was made of smoke colored gray stone, the door was a forest green as was the shutters, and the fence was a dirty colored ivory.
I opened the gate which blocked the entrance in and walked up to the door of the house. I knocked twice to find that the door was already open because it opened automatically when I was about to knock the third time. It was almost as though someone or something was waiting for me. I slowly walked inside not knowing what I would find and I said in a quiet and fearful voice "Hello, is anyone here?" . There was no answer for about a minute which in this time I was scared to death until...
"Hello dear, I was waiting for you please come into the Study." Said an anonymous, but cheerful voice. I walked right into the study, although I didn't know how I got there it was as though I already knew where to go, and saw a very cheerful middle aged woman sitting down with a cup of tea.
"Lisa, please sit down, here have some tea if you want." The woman said.
"How, how do you know my name?" I asked, scared out of my wits.
"Well, you and your friends make so much racket on the way home from school every week day that I practically know everything about you." She said. "My name is Eleanor by the way or you could call me Ms. Eleanor if you please."
"Umm, OK Ms. Eleanor." I said a little relieved. I took some tea from Eleanor and sat down in front of her. She was an average looking woman who had her chocolate brown graying hair up in a bun with a long black skirt and white blouse on.
"Sorry if my friends and I are loud we will try to be quieter next time."
"Oh no dear that's ok, but I would like you to do something for me." Said Ms. Eleanor.
"Sure, OK." I said a little hesitant. "What do you want me to do?"
"I need your help going home." She said.
"Ms. Eleanor, you are home." I said a little confused.
"No, you see dear, I'm a ghost, I've been dead for almost a century and I've been waiting for the perfect person to help me go to heaven." She said.
"Wh-What. Sorry lady, but I think your crazy. See-you." I said getting up walking very fast to the front door. But then something weird happened Ms. Eleanor appeared at the door.
"Lisa, dear, you've got to believe me, I need you to help me. I will not hurt you, trust me." Ms. Eleanor said.
"OK. fine then what do I have to do?" I said unwillingly.
"I need you to figure out who killed me." She said seriously.
"You see someone who I loved in my past killed me and no one found out who had killed me so I have been stuck here since 1914."
I agreed to this and started my hunt of finding out who had killed Ms. Eleanor. Everyday after school I went to the library and reviewed the old newspapers or I went to Ms. Eleanor's and asked about her family and life to get an idea of who could of done it. Until one day I was looking around a few books on Ms. Eleanor's shelves I came about to a very old looking book from the early 1800's, I opened it and found a letter inside. This is what it read:
Eleanor,
I am sorry for what I will be doing today and hopefully you will get this letter
before I do what I dread to do. But you must understand that I am going to kill
you for your own good. You see I have loved someone else for the longest time
and I can't have you stand in the way. I know your father had to force us to be
married but, remember I will always love you inside somewhere. I will take our
child with me, but don't worry I will tell them who there real mother is. I will
just say that you died from illness.
With love,
Anthony Sanderson
"Oh my goodness, Ms. Eleanor, do you know an Anthony Sanderson?" I asked.
"Yes, dear, he was my husband who left me. Why?" She asked.
"Well, I believe he was the one who murdered you, read this." I said a little apprehensive. Ms. Eleanor read the letter and stared at it. At that moment she was yelling in pain everything changed as though everything was new. Ms. Eleanor was sitting in her chair apparently asleep I called her and went over to her but my hand went through her. You see when she was in ghost form she was solid, but now it was as though she was a memory. I heard the front door open and I saw a man and a woman come into the room.
"Terry, make sure the door is closed." The man said.
"Yes, Anthony." The woman said.
At this point I knew it was a memory because I saw with my own eye's Ms.
Eleanor's murder. Anthony went right up to Eleanor. Eleanor woke up and screamed
because Anthony pulled out a knife and he stabbed her twice in the heart. At
this point, I was being sucked backwards it seemed and everything started to go
black. Until, finally everything came to view except I was outside standing in
front of Ms. Eleanor's gate with my hand upon it as though I was about to go
inside. I looked around and everything seemed to be the way it was before I went
into Ms. Eleanor's house. I ran up to the door and swung it open I ran in the
Study I found everything as I seen it before except everything looked dusty and
abandoned. I walked around the room until I noticed something on a table, it was
a letter I opened it and read it.
Lisa,
You helped me, you set me free. When I left Anthony I never wanted to take his
last name ever again, I never wanted anyone to know about him too, so with this
when Anthony died I erased all memory of him in my families past by cursing it.
Thank you very much if I didn't know who killed me then I would never have been
in a better place. Thank you again.
With love,
Eleanor Tibits
I reread the letter until I realized. My great-grandmother's name was Eleanor Tibits. I walked out of the house with a sense of shock and relief and walked home thinking about what just happened.
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