Writing for Fun
February 2015
The Curious Incident - Bob Wendelkin
Friends sat at the table in the Bridge Pub telling stories about curious things they had experienced. Then it was Daniel's turn.
'The story I'm going to tell you happened to me when I was about sixteen and I had a few weeks from school to do some work experience in an Estate Agents.
'I was lucky and got a job locally, a month later I reported to the Agency on the Monday morning.
'After being introduced to the Agency staff, the Manager gave me a package of houses that hadn't sold and he asked me to make some comments on why I thought they hadn't sold.
'Alison a girl in the office asked if I would like to look through the Office files.
'Most of them were over priced for what they were. However, there was one house that stood out. From its pictures it was a beautiful place and worth at least a million, but it hadn't sold and its price had reduced to £750K.
'I asked the manager why it hadn't sold he just said it's one of those things that happen. He said he had given me the papers to see if I would pick this one out.
'He told me the office also had the task of looking after property if the owner was away. In this case the owner had gone to his daughter in Australia, and he wasn't short of money so the sale wasn't urgent.
'I had been in the office for two weeks doing the post, filing or making the tea when the manager asked if I would like to go with Alison to the house. I jumped at the chance.
'When we got to the house Alison asked if I would go round the house and check its outside. Doing this I saw an old man working in the garden. When I got back to the front door, much to my surprise Alison was still there.
'I asked her why she was still there on the door step but she only said she didn't like going into the house on her own. We both went in together. I don't know, the house felt cold, not the temperature, but just cold. Together Alison and I went round the house checking that everything was in order. As we went around the house I had an unsettled feeling, I had the feeling I was being watched, with fleeting shadows moving just outside one's vision, when you look; Nothing.
'Once we left the house Alison returned to her normal cheerful self. 'I hate checking this place it seems so cold. I must see Mr Carter, the gardener and see that he's okay.'
'We went round to the back of the house and found the gardener.
''Hello Mr Carter, is everything Okay?' asked Alison.
''The sale of the house is going very slowly, I suppose the viewers find the place a bit sad, I recon that's because of Miss Isabel' said Mr Carter.
''What on earth do you mean?' asked Alison.
'Well to cut a long story short it seemed that Mr Carter's mother had worked for the owner's father during the war. He told how the family used to have fighter pilots stay with them for short rest periods.
'The Germans on their way to and from London sometimes dumped their bombs in this area. Miss Isabel was the daughter of the house and the present owner's sister. That night a bomb fell near the house and the blast killed Miss Isabel. Those who have since worked in the house often said they felt she was still there. So I don't think you are going to make a sale until she has been put to rest.
'On the way home we discussed what Mr Carter had told us, but of course being rational people we didn't believe in ghosts, at least then but now I'm not so sure.
'Two weeks later Alison and I went again to the house. It still felt cold but there was urgency in the air. We checked the rooms until we came to the drawing room.
'I opened the door and the room began to change before my eyes. When I went in, it was dark, suddenly the fire started to burn, several RAF Officers were sitting round the fire, some reading some sleeping others just with their feet up.
'Then a young girl came into the room, she was about twenty and carrying a small tray of drinks. She went from one pilot to another giving them a glass. Then to one Officer I could see that there was some affection between them.
'Then just as quickly as the vision appeared it was gone.
'We finished our inspection and we left the house. On the way back to the office I told Alison what I had seen, she said she thought something had happened as I had lost my colour. I asked her what we should do about it.
'Alison said we should have a word with Natalie's mother as she is up in the spiritualist world. When we got to the office we called Natalie over and told her our story. We didn't tell any of the men in the office as they would probably take the 'P'.
'A few days later I received a call from Natalie's mother asking what I had seen, she invited me and Alison to her house to discuss what we should do. It was decided to borrow the keys to the house and we should all go there.
* * *
'The next evening we all met up at the house. Natalie's mother said she felt something but it wasn't evil, only sadness. We all went into the drawing room where I had seen Isabel and her pilot. We pulled up chairs and sat round a table in the best theatrical tradition like Madam Arcartie in the Blithe Spirit.
'Natalie's mother said that I was an undeveloped psychic. She sat at the head of the table and started to take deep breaths and then slipped into a trance.
'For what seemed a long time, but was only a few minutes, nothing, then the room changed to the one that I had seen before.
'Isabel entered the room but this time I think that she could see something strange as she just stopped. What I didn't realise was that she could see me – I was a ghostly apparition in her world.
'Were you afraid of being involved with ghosts?' asked one of Daniel's friends .
'No, that's the thing, I felt quite calm, at peace and not afraid. I felt that I had a mission to create some happiness and end the sadness for this girl and the house by helping to put this lovely girl to rest.
'One of the pilots came to her and asked her what was the matter. She explained that she could see a ghost; he told her she was the ghost.
'The pilot said that he had been waiting for her and told her that it was time for her to rest from her earthly life.
'She then asked the pilot 'Am I dead then?'
'The pilot replied that she was not dead but had departed her earthly life many years before and that he had been waiting for her to come to him.
''I'm so young, I was so young. How did I go?' she asked.
''That my darling Isabel is not important, you must leave those earthly questions behind they are no longer of any importance,' answered her pilot.
''I'm so, so afraid to leave this house and all that I know.'
'I then spoke and it was clear from their reaction that they could hear me. I told her to depart from the house and go with her pilot, her time on earth was over and that she should go in peace, knowing that all those left behind still love her.
''I'm so afraid to go from all I know and love,' she said.
'I told her don't be afraid nothing will harm you. You are fortunate because you know that there is a place for you in the next world. So go gently into that world with your pilot.
'The pilot took her hand, he gently kissed her on the cheek, with her looking into his eyes and he holding her round the waist, together they began to fade and finally they disappeared along with the wartime room.
'Natalie's mother began to stir and recover her wits. 'Something happened didn't it? When I was under.' We all tried to talk at once and tell her what happened.
''Good I can feel that this house is no longer sad and there is a feeling of happiness,' said Natalie's mother. Then she said to me that I had done a great kindness in helping to put Isabel to rest.
'The next day we explained to the manager what had happened, although he didn't believe a word, he humoured us, but he did put the price of the house up just in case.
'On our next visit Alison and I found a totally different feeling in the house, as Natalie's mother said it was happy and at peace.
* * *
'The story even has a happy ending for the agency, they put the price up to £1.1M and the house sold within two weeks. The Manager had a nice bonus, Alison and Natalie had the manager's thanks, Natalie's mum received a nice box of chocolates and I was sent back to school.'