Ghost Town
by Rob Warr
Chapter 2
At the Pizza Palace, the boys settled into a booth after ordering their pies and sipped their soft drinks as they waited. A few tables down a noisy group of older teens seemed to be locked into a heated discussion about something, and Doug focused his attention that way hoping to discover exactly what they were so excited about.
"I tell you it's real. I know, I know, it sounds impossible, but me and Mike saw it with our own eyes," a tall red-haired boy said excitedly.
"Right, like we're supposed to believe that this place exists, here, right outside of town, and no one has noticed before?" a black teen with braided hair scoffed.
"Maybe it's a mirage," a cute blond girl giggled.
"Mirage or not, we saw it, and we'd have gone exploring if we hadn't been about to run out of gas. We had to head back to town and we barely made it to the Sinclair station before the engine started sputtering. I begged Mike to go back, but it was getting late and he had to get home. Then I remembered I was meeting you guys and, well, here I am," he said grinning.
"Where exactly is this (air quotes) ghost town?" the last teen, a burly boy with a football-build asked, his voice as deep as any adult Doug had ever heard.
"Out on route 6, then about two miles west on that gravel road that cuts down between two pastures. It's past that big round barn that everyone makes a big deal of."
"I know where that is," the redhead said, and Doug thought, 'so do I'. Then their pizza was delivered and he forgot about the conversation at the other table as he turned his attention to the delicious treat before them.
The group of teens left midway through their pizza and Doug barely looked up when they passed, but that was enough to bring their conversation back into his head.
"Ever heard of a ghost town anywhere around here?" he asked Will.
"Nah, but I wouldn't be surprised," the other teen said taking a bite of pizza, then chewing and swallowing before finishing, "this part of the state was full of little towns that popped up as the railroad moved across the country, then they were left abandoned as the people moved on. I studied that in history class and it was pretty interesting. Why?"
Doug went on to explain what he'd overheard, and Will seemed especially interested, "We should check it out sometime."
"What about now?" Doug said, causing the other three boys to pause in mid bite and stare his way.
"Tonight, I dunno, it's kinda late, and I mean...it's pretty dark out. How could we see anything in the dark?"
"Well, there's this new thing on my Jeep, called headlights," Doug said seriously, and...there are my spot lights that I just installed, plus...I have flashlights, ever hear of them?"
"Smart ass," Will laughed, "what if we can't find the place, or if it's not even there?"
"Then we take a nice little drive in the country for nothing, I guess."
"What about you guys, you up for an adventure?" he asked, directing his attention to the younger boys.
"Heck yeah," Jamie said.
"Yeah, me too," Dickie said enthusiastically.
"So...majority rules. Or if you want we can drop you off at your house and you can hide there till Halloween is over," Doug teased.
"No way! I'm in," Will protested, "but if we get lost or killed, it's your fault."
"I take full blame for anything bad that happens in advance. But I have a feeling all we'll find are a few abandoned buildings."
They finished their pizza and left a nice tip then loaded up once again, the two younger boys bubbling over with excitement as they climbed in back. Without being reminded they buckled up, as did the two older boys, and they were off.
Route 6 ran right through town, then as the buildings thinned out there was only pasture land lining both sides of the road. Being careful not to miss the turnoff, Doug told Will to tell him when he saw the round barn, which indicated the turn off spot.
"There, up ahead, looks like the mother ship or something," Will teased, only one way to turn, right...there's no road on the left."
"Gotcha," Doug said slowing down and making the turn easily. The Jeep slid a little as they left asphalt and turned into the gravel lane, but Doug had expected that and was in complete control now.
"How far did they say it was?"
"Not sure, I guess we just drive till we see something," Doug said, wondering if this was such a good idea after all.
Will sighed, "You guys okay back there?" then before they could answer he said, "keep a sharp lookout for anything that looks like a ghost town."
"What does a ghost town look like?" Jamie asked .
"Geesh," Will said, just look for anything that looks like a town, you know, buildings and stuff."
"Oh, okay. Will there be ghosts?" he giggled.
"If we're lucky," Doug answered before Will could speak.
"Shut up, I don't want to deal with any spooks tonight, even if it is Halloween."
"I think it would be kinda cool to see some ghosts," Dickie said, "if they weren't mean ghosts."
Doug laughed, "You mean like Casper the Friendly Ghost."
"Yeah, yeah, that kind. That would be cool."
"There is no such thing as ghosts," Will muttered under his breath, even if he wasn't 100% sure he really believed that.
They drove for what seemed like hours, and still no sign of anything unusual, but just when Doug was about to give up and turn around, suddenly, there it was. On their right, maybe a half mile from the gravel road, and easily seen under the full moon since there was nothing but open pasture between them and the town.
"Bingo," Doug said, "there it is. Till tonight I'd never been down this road...so, I guess it's not unusual that I've never seen it before."
"Yeah, me either, but you'd have thought we'd of heard about it."
"Yeah, that is kinda weird, but maybe once we get there we'll find out it's just a bunch of rotting boards and nothing worth mentioning."
"Hey! I thought I saw a light over there," Jamie said, "but it's gone now."
"Probably a reflection of the moonlight or something," Will offered.
"Or the ghost has a flashlight," Dickie giggled.
"Or a glow stick," Doug laughed, "maybe they're going trick-or-treating in the ghost town like they did when they were alive."
Will moaned, "Boy, you guys...you sure have active imaginations."
They'd turned off onto the side road that headed toward the town, or whatever it was, and this road made the gravel road seem like a super highway. Doug was glad he had his Jeep, but even with it's four wheel drive, high center, and huge all-terrain tires, he still had to do some dodging and swerving to keep them headed in the right direction.
Slowly the dark structures they spotted earlier came closer and closer, but suddenly the moon went behind a cloud causing the buildings to take on an ominous look.
"I don't know if this is such a good idea," Will protested weakly, "what if we get stuck out here or something?"
Centerville: Population 0
As they got closer, the gravel road turned to dirt and grass, then pure dirt as they finally reached what one might consider the outskirts of the town.
"Hey, look," Will said pointing to a weathered fading sign that hung half way off it's supports.
"Centerville," Doug said, I guess that was the name of the place. What does that little sign below it say?"
"I can't read it, it's too faded, maybe it was the population or something," Doug said.
"Well, we know what the population is now," Jamie offered with a laugh, "Zero."
"Nope, it's four," Dickie smirked, "us four."
Jamie gave him a gentle shove then, but his attention was turned back to the scene before him as they entered the town proper, or what there was still left of it.
One long row of buildings lined both sides of a wide dusty street, dark except for the occasional glint of moonlight in the broken windows as the clouds flitted by in the night sky.
"Spooky," Will said, it looks like something out of an episode of an old wild west TV show.
Doug didn't answer as he braked the Jeep and came to a stop in the middle of the street about half way up the long block.
"Are we gonna look around?" Jamie asked, not sure if he really wanted to test his theory about ghosts.
"Sure, why do you think we came here?" Doug chuckled as he hit the spotlights and illuminated the street beyond and the buildings on either side.
Despite being weathered and run down, many of the buildings still looked structurally sound, and a few even still had most of their window glass in one piece.
Doug reached over Will then and opened the glove box and produced two Maglites then, handing one to his friend and switching the other one n and pointing it at the two boys in the back.
"Ready to go ghost hunting?" he chuckled.
"Hey, don't we get flashlights too?" Dickie protested as he shielded his eyes from the powerful beam of Doug's flashlight.
"Nah, only have two, just keep close and we'll protect you," Doug assured them as he opened his door.
Will wasn't quite as anxious to get out, but at Jamie and Dickie's insistence he finally made the move, then helped the two boys out of the back.
Doug had already moved closer to the nearest row of buildings and was pointing his flashlight at a faded, but ornate sign that was still legible.
"Emerald Hotel," he said aloud as the other three joined him, "It's no Motel 6, is it boys, and no one left the light on for us," he added with a chuckle.
"It's not much of a hotel, that's for sure. But I bet if that place could talk it would tell some interesting stories."
"Yeah, let's check it out?" Doug said starting to move that way without waiting for his approval.
"Be careful," Will warned as Doug stepped onto the wooden sidewalk that ran most of the length of the street. The walk was covered here as well, the support posts ornately carved and looking fairly solid despite their age.
The sidewalk creaked a bit as Doug set foot on it, but it felt solid enough and the others followed quickly, not wanting to be left behind.
The double doors of the hotel hung halfway off the hinges, however, the stained glass panes adorning both doors were still intact.
"Wow, that stained glass is probably worth a mint," Doug said, "I'm surprised someone hasn't taken it. It would be great in a museum too."
The night air was cool, but not cold, and though a slight breeze stirred the air, the place was as silent as a tomb. A tomb, Doug thought, in a way it was a tomb, a dead town's tomb, and who knew how many of its residents died here or were buried nearby.
As they pushed past the doors they found themselves standing in what must've been the lobby of the hotel, a long high counter at one end and a few odds and ends of broken furniture scattered here and there. Despite the clutter there was room to navigate and Doug headed toward the counter where a hand bell still sat atop the counter.
Will was tempted to ring the bell and make a joke, but there was something about the eerie quiet of the place that gave him pause. However, being a rather impish 12-year-old, Dickie felt no restraint.
"Bell Boy, Bell Boy!" he laughed as he banged the bell once, twice, three times.
"Why'd you do that?" Will scolded, "don't you know ghost hate loud noises?'
"I ain't afraid a no ghosts," Dickie giggled, and the others had to laugh as well.
"Look there are still keys in those compartments behind the counter," Doug observed.
"Hmm, shall we check in for the night?" Will joked.
"Yeah, four rooms please," Doug teased,
"Huh uh, I ain't sleepin' here and for sure not alone," Jamie said.
Doug was about to say he was just kidding when suddenly from somewhere behind them a loud thud drew there attention to something they hadn't noticed at first, a long curving flight of stairs, their dusty red carpet looking almost like blood in the darkness.
"Guys...did you hear that?" Jamie said as he clutched his older brother's arm so tight it was almost painful.
"Probably a raccoon or maybe the wind," Doug said, though he too was a bit spooked.
"Raccoon? What if it's a wolf or a mountain lion?" Doug interjected.
"There are no wolves around here, and I think mountain lions like mountains," Doug chuckled.
"A bear?" Dickie snickered.
"Yeah, Smoky the Bear, only you can prevent ghost town fires,'' Jamie laughed, finally letting go of his brother's arm.
"Let's get out of here," Will suggested, "it smells in here," he said wrinkling his nose.
"Not yet, let's look around some more. We might never get a chance like this again."
"Yeah, cause if we die we won't be doing anything again," Will smirked.
Doug chuckled, "Quit being a drama queen. Let's check out the upstairs."
"But...that's where the noise came from..." Jamie said clutching Dickie's arm this time.
"Yeah, so...? Let's go see what it was." Doug said simply.
"Oh man, when did you become so brave?" Doug sighed.
"Or stupid?" his little brother muttered, but he was grinning.
Doug cuffed him on the head anyway, then snaked an arm around his shoulders and bumped heads with him.
"Do you think I'd risk you getting hurt, little bro? Who stands up for you when those idiots come at you?"
"I know, I know," Jamie conceded, "I was kidding. Let's go, I ain't afraid of no raccoon monster," he added with a giggle.
"Giant, man-eating raccoon," Dickie giggled, "or rats, big fat rats...or, bats, Vampire bats..."
"Well, it is Halloween night, and the moon is full, so who knows what sort of spooks are hanging out here," Doug teased as he led the way to the stairs, his flashlight pointing the way.
Doug tested the first step and found it still felt solid, but he was careful to step carefully on every step as he led the way upward, the others spaced out so that only one person was on each stair step at a time.
At the top of the stairs there was a large landing that overlooked the lobby, with a dark hall at each end. Doug thought the hotel looked much larger inside than outside, but he supposed it might have grown over the years it was in service, taking up adjacent buildings, such not being obvious from the street.
Doug tested the floor of the landing and found it as solid as the lower floor had been, but he stayed away from the railings for fear they might be less sturdy than they once were. Warning the others to stay away from the edge, he led the other boys to the far end of the landing and into darkness that his flashlight could barely penetrate.
"Will, get up here and shine your light down here with mine, "It's dark as the inside of a coffin down here."
"Don't say that word," Will gulped, but he did as Doug asked, adding his beam to his as they preceded down the hall.
"Hmm...surprisingly clean for a ghost town, no broken furniture, no trash.." Doug noted, "I wonder if the doors are unlocked."
"We're not going in them are we?" Will asked nervously.
"Not all of them, but a few...if they're unlocked. I'd kinda like to see what a hotel from the 1800s looks like."
"1800s? How do you know it's not 1900s?"
"Well, either way, that's old," Doug chuckled, "besides, like I said, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity."
"Wish we had a camera," Jamie mused.
"Ghosts don't show up on film," Dickie noted, "or maybe that's vampires," he added with a grin.
"I vaunt to suck your bluddd," Jamie said grabbing Dickie and pretending to bite his neck, while in fact he actually licked it.
"Ewwww...gross, slobbers, he licked my neck," Dickie laughed as he wiped at his throat.
"Licked your what?" Will laughed.
"Neck, neck, not dick," Jamie said quickly as he turned bright red.
"Well, keep your tongue to yourself, for now," Doug laughed, then turning serious he said, "let's try this one, Room number 13."
"13?" Will gulped loudly, "I thought hotels didn't use that number, not even for elevators."
"Well, apparently this one did, come on," Doug said twisting the knob, then hearing a satisfied click as the mechanism engaged and the bolt slowly advanced, allowing the door to be opened.
Darkness greeted them again as Doug pushed the door open, but the flashlights seemed more effective here, and what they saw caused all four boys to freeze in the doorway.
"It looks lived in," Will said as chills ran up and down his back.
"Nah, just perfectly preserved," Doug offered, though he wasn't entirely sure he believed that.
"Maybe some homeless person lives here," Jamie offered as he looked around, poking into this and that, Dickie close by his side.
"Maybe, but what do they eat, and what about water? I haven't seen any signs of water, have you?" Doug said.
Another noise caused them to pause in their conversation, this time coming from further down the hall, starting out as banging then morphing into a low rattling sound.
"What was that?" Will whispered in Doug's ear as he clutched his arm and pulled him close.
Doug shook his head, "I don't know. Only one way to find out I guess."
"We're going out there?" Will whispered.
"Well, we can't stay in here all night, can we?" Doug grunted, "there's four of us, so unless it's a monster or a gang of banditos, I think we can handle the situation."
The noise had stopped now, but the four boys' nerves were still on edge and it took a moment to get going. Again Doug led the way, picking his way carefully across the floor to the open door, then peering out before disappearing into the hallway.
Quickly the others followed him, not wanting to become separated, but fortunately he was just outside the door, his flashlight pointed in the apparent direction of the sound they'd heard earlier. However, as far as anyone could see there was nothing there.
Suddenly the door to Room 13 clanged shut as if of it's own volition, causing all four boys to jump and emit a mouse-like squeak.
"Damn, what the...? Will gasped.
"Must be a draft or something," Doug said, trying to keep a level head.
"What draft? There was no draft. The air is like totally still in here, and it stinks like ass," Will noted, causing the younger boys to laugh nervously.
"How would you know?" Doug chuckled, "been sniffing asses?'
"Just yours," Will countered with a smirk.
"Ooooo...really?" Jamie chuckled, "I wondered what you guys were doing all those years when you had your sleepovers..."
"Shut up, twerp," Doug said, but he was grinning, then he turned serious again, "come on, let's check out the sound, then we can go. I want to explore some of the other buildings before we head home."
At the end of the hall was a door, but unfortunately this one was locked, in fact, it was locked with a hasp and padlock, both so rusty they must have been there a very long time.
"Wonder who they locked in here?" Jamie teased, "probably some monster they couldn't kill."
"Yeah, someone so evil they had to lock them away forever," Dickie added dramatically.
"Or, supplies," Doug said shaking his head, "probably where they kept the booze, or the towels."
"Booze, you think so?" Will asked looking thoughtful, "imagine what a bottle of 100-year-old whisky would be worth."
"I'm sure they didn't leave anything of value here, probably just locked it back out of habit."
"I wonder if the key is at the desk downstairs," Will said, not willing to let it go.
Doug shook his head in dismay, "Suddenly you're gung ho to do more exploring..."
"What, oh...well. I guess I'm not that anxious to find out. Can we go now?"
"One more room, I think the noise came from down here. Let's see what room 19 has to offer..."
Authors deserve your feedback. It's the only payment they get. If you go to the top of the page you will find the author's name. Click that and you can email the author easily.* Please take a few moments, if you liked the story, to say so.
[For those who use webmail, or whose regular email client opens when they want to use webmail instead: Please right click the author's name. A menu will open in which you can copy the email address (it goes directly to your clipboard without having the courtesy of mentioning that to you) to paste into your webmail system (Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo etc). Each browser is subtly different, each Webmail system is different, or we'd give fuller instructions here. We trust you to know how to use your own system. Note: If the email address pastes or arrives with %40 in the middle, replace that weird set of characters with an @ sign.]
* Some browsers may require a right click instead
