In Honor of Her Brother, Part I

Miriam Colrick and her husband Brad, tired of dank cities, crumbling and bad, moved to New Hampshire, bought themselves a farm, a place they could raise children without harm. Fifty-six acres, half-forest, half-field, space to stretch out, live a life that was real, the only downside of their new homestead? Some of the locals said it was haunted. Miriam was not sure she believed their claims, her first three months were quiet and plain, neighbors said from there a boy had been kidnapped, and later two murdered when a farmer snapped. All sorts of stories, so many dark deeds, but Miriam and Brad paid them little heed, in fact those three months brought them much joy, Miriam fell pregnant, expecting a boy! It was shortly after that things went off-track, first she felt many chills run down her back, then sounds late at night, doors opened and closed, in Brad’s kitchen garden nothing would grow. And strangely a picture fell from its frame the moment they decided to name him James, fear started creeping to Miriam’s face when she found the living room all out of place. But Brad was not the superstitious type, dismissed all the sounds they heard at night, “It is an old house, they’re all bound to creak, and there’s plenty of strange sounds in the country.” And so it kept on until one midnight dim, the baby was kicking, Miriam felt him, but she heard a squeaking in the bathroom, figured it was dripping, got up in the gloom. She drew near to see handles move back and fourth, then glanced in the mirror, cried out in horror, a half-butchered face was what she them saw, gurgling horrible, and missing his jaw. Then a force shoved her, smashed her to the sink, blackness enveloped her, could not even think, later Brad told her the one thing he heard was a distorted and evil laughter. She came too resting in a hospital bead, her husband said sadly,”The baby…is dead.” It was many hours that she wept and sobbed, nearly broken by the life that was robbed. People all said it was an accident, with no money to move, back home they went, though they paid a priest to bless their farmhouse, hoping that his words would cast evil out... CONCLUDES IN PART II.