Haunted Hearts Read Free Page B

his.
    “I know exactly what I’d do,” she said.
    “Really?”
    “Yep. I’d take those lovely pieces of brown crockery off that crowded sideboard and put them in the center of the table. Then I’d find some colorful cloth napkins, maybe checked, and fan stack them next to the crockery. It’ll look like a table just waiting for the family to come to dinner.”
    “Wow. That’s a great idea. Simple and colorful. But I have no idea where to find those kind of napkins.”
    “There’s a little store just behind the supermarket called Country Creations. She’s bound to have something like that.”
    “Thanks. I’ll take a look.”
    “While you’re at it, look for a crème-colored vase. A fall flower arrangement, maybe mums, would look spectacular on the claw foot table in the entry.”
    “I will. Thanks. I remember my grandmother occasionally put flowers on that table.” He smiled at the memory. “It might actually start to look like a home again.”
    But even as the words left his mouth, he wondered how it could ever feel like home after the strange things that had occurred in the last month. With that thought, his smile faded.
    “Don’t, Scott. Don’t do that,” Suzy commanded, her soft voice surprisingly strong.
    “What?”
    “Don’t let that thing…whatever it was, take away your love of this house. Don’t let it destroy all the good that happened here.”
    “It’s kind of hard to remember the good when all these bizarre things keep happening. Strange sounds. Things falling off of tables and cupboards. That image appearing, looking like…” He couldn’t say her name out loud. It seemed wrong to call that ghostly image by Julie’s name.
    “You aren’t being haunted. It’s not a ghost.”
    “How can you be so certain?”
    “Because scripture is very clear about where a person goes when they die, and it’s not to return to frighten their loved ones. Most of what we hear about ghosts comes from peoples’ imaginations. Not the Bible.”
    “What about what we saw in the clearing. Did that come from our imaginations?”
    “Well…no. There’s not much in Scripture to make me believe in ghosts…but there’s quite a bit about demons or evil spirits.”
    “Demons? Whoa! Back up a minute.”
    “Demons like angels come in different varieties some are much more powerful and well, scarier. But if you prefer, I’ll just say there are dark spirits, oppressive spirits. They attach themselves to intense emotions like depression, anger, hatred, or guilt.”
    Scott gave a quick start as she said guilt.
    Suzy noticed his reaction. “What do you have to feel guilty about?” Her words sounded incredulous, as if he couldn’t possibly be guilty of any wrongdoing.
    Silly, of course. But her attitude made him feel comfortable, safe enough to talk about it.
    He rose from the floor and sat on the couch close to Suzy’s chair. His hands fell between his knees and clasped his fingers together. “A year ago I was on duty at the station. We answered a routine accident call. But there was nothing routine about it. A car full of teenagers swerved into the other lane, hit an oncoming vehicle. The teens were killed instantly. The other driver managed to turn her car slightly away, but she was pinned in. The officer on the radio said she was conscious, bleeding badly, and in terrible pain. We pulled up. I grabbed my gear, headed over, and then just froze. The woman in the car was my girlfriend, Julie.”
    He gripped his fingers tighter, his anguish as fresh as if it had happened moments ago. “I just stood there, staring while she bled to death. My partner had to push me out of the way to get to her.”
    He could still hear the sound of the machinery roaring to life as they tried to cut her free. His partner, shouting over the noise, telling him to protect Julie from the sparks while he tried to reach her legs, to stop the bleeding.
    Finally able to move, Scott stood over her. He could see her life draining out