An uninvited guest

Strange things were happening in Beth' s home, but who was to blame?

It was the end of a long and tiring week for Beth. The only thing that had kept her going was the thought of spending the weekend relaxing in her beautiful cottage.

The cottage was her sanctuary. Like an amulet, it protected her against everything that the 21st century could throw at her.

When she arrived on

Friday evening, she headed for the bathroom and started to run the hot water.

As the bath filled, she traipsed downstairs, opened a bottle of wine and poured herself a generous glass.

After taking a sip, she made her way back upstairs. But as she entered the bathroom, much to her surprise, Beth discovered that the tap was no longer running. Puzzled, she couldn' t work out what had happened.

Trying to dismiss the incident, she retreated to her bedroom, where she noticed that her window was slightly ajar.

Strange, she thought. Although she quite liked to air her rooms, she didn' t remember leaving the bedroom window open.

With tiredness threatening to overwhelm her, she closed the window and then got ready for bed.

Although she drifted off to sleep quite quickly, annoyingly the two incidents

plagued her dreams.

The following morning, as she sat at the kitchen table drinking a cup of tea, Beth continued to ponder both incidents. She probably wouldn' t have given them much thought if they had been isolated occurrences, but they weren' t.

Over the previous weeks there had been a number of similar incidents for which there was no logical explanation.

To ensure she wasn' t simply being paranoid, over the course of the following month, Beth decided to keep a diary of any odd goings-on that she couldn' t account for.

At the end of the month, Beth reviewed her diary.

There were at least a dozen incidents that she struggled to find a rational explanation for the most disconcerting of which was the shopping list that appeared.

Beth kept a small pad attached to the fridge by a magnet, upon which she noted items of shopping that she needed.

As she was about to add a packet of biscuits to the list one Saturday morning, it dawned on her that the previous two items on the list were not in her handwriting.

A chill ran down her spine¼ Suddenly the kitchen felt cold and clammy.

Looking back to when she had first moved into the cottage, Beth remembered that she' d been warned the place was haunted. But as she didn' t believe in ghosts, she had dismissed the warnings as superstitious nonsense.

What if it was true though? What if the cottage was haunted? After careful consideration, she decided to pay the village priest, Father Mockler, a visit. When she arrived at the vestry the following morning, Beth

disappointed that her knocking went unanswered.

As it was a beautiful summer morning, she decided to take a turn around the graveyard in the hope that the priest might return.

It was an inspired move on Beth' s part, because she found Father Mockler tending one of the old graves at the back of the church.

The priest seemed to be lost in his own little world, happily chatting to the headstone. He didn' t notice Beth until she coughed, at which point he glanced up.

Hello there. It' s Beth, isn' t it?' he asked, slightly surprised.

Yes, Father.'

I hardly recognised you, it' s been so long.'

I' m sorry I haven' t been to a service recently,' Beth said, only I' ve had a lot on my mind.'

No apology necessary.

You' re here now and you' re very welcome. So, what can I do for you?'

As he posed the question, Father Mockler invited Beth to join him on one of the nearby benches.

After they sat down, Beth recounted recent events.

When she concluded her tale, Father Mockler was silent for a while.

I' m sorry,' she laughed.

I' m being paranoid, aren' t I?'

I don' t think you' re being paranoid at all,' Father Mockler said in a gentle voice. In fact, a young man came to see me with a similar problem not long ago.'

Oh!' Beth exclaimed, somewhat surprised.

So, this spirit in your cottage, do you think they' re a malign presence?'

Beth shook her head. No I don' t, but I still find it

I dont think youre being paranoid at all A young man came to see me with a similar problem

unsettling though.'

I' m sure.'

What do you think I should do, Father?'

The priest scratched his chin thoughtfully. Have you tried talking to your visitor?' No.'

Maybe that would be a good place to start.'

Beth considered the advice for a moment, then asked: But if it' s a restless spirit, how should I summon them? Can I use a ouija board or draw a pentagram in chalk?'

I suppose you could do that,' Father Mockler said, but I was thinking of something a little less dramatic.'

Such as?'

Well, you could try asking them if they would like to join you for a cup of tea.'

When she returned to the cottage, Beth took the kindly old priest' s advice. Steeling her nerve, she brewed a pot of tea and then sat down at the kitchen table and waited to see if anyone would arrive.

For a while, she waited in vain. But after an hour had elapsed, she heard someone open the back gate.

Beth felt her pulse rate quicken as footsteps made their way along the garden path. Someone paused just outside the back door.

Her heart pounding in her chest, Beth rose from her chair as her visitor opened the door.

To her immense relief, the fellow standing in the doorway looked far too substantial to be a ghost.

For some reason he looked nervous, which went a long way to allaying Beth' s fears.

Deciding to take control of the situation, Beth invited him in and asked if he would like a cup of tea.

Her visitor coughed, nervously and said: I' m more of a coffee man myself.'

I' m not much of a coffee drinker, I' m afraid,' Beth confessed. But I think I might have some in the back of the cupboard.'

After switching the kettle on, she found the jar.

Here we are,' she said, setting it down on the kitchen table. My name' s Beth, by the way.'

Chris,' her visitor replied. Beth offered Chris her hand. He accepted it it didn' t feel particularly cold.

Then they lapsed into an awkward silence that lasted until the kettle boiled, at which point Beth made Chris a cup of coffee.

So,' Beth said.

So,' Chris said, almost simultaneously.

The joint comment proved exactly the ice-breaker they needed and the pair laughed.

You know, this is going to sound really silly, but for a while I thought you were haunting me,' Beth said.

What makes you say that?' he asked.

Because I' ve experienced some strange occurrences recently.'

Such as?'

Chris listened to Beth' s tale with interest. At its conclusion, he seemed at a loss for words.

Eventually he said: That' s quite uncanny, because I' ve experienced something very similar myself.'

Really?' Beth asked, intrigued. When?'

I bought an old place recently which was supposed to be haunted. Before moving in, I decided to do a bit of work on it and every time I turned up at the cottage, it felt as if someone was still living there.'

So it was a cottage too!' Beth exclaimed.

Yes,' Chris said, very softly. Whereabouts?'

Being a gentle soul, Chris struggled to reply.

Instead he gave his guest a sad little smile and waited until realisation dawned on her.

It took several minutes, but when it did, Beth turned pale. Oh!' she exclaimed. Shooting up from the table, she suddenly felt an urge to flee, but Chris was at her side in an instant.

Are you all right?' he asked, concerned.

It took a while for Beth to calm down she felt so embarrassed.

I' m so sorry,' she said.

It' s fine, honestly,' Chris assured her.

I' ll leave immediately.' Where will you go?' he asked.

I' m not sure,' she replied. Then stay.'

Beth considered his offer carefully before rejecting it.

I couldn' t possibly. It would be such an imposition.'

It would be no trouble.

I' ve just finished decorating the spare bedroom and¼' he trailed off, awkwardly, feeling silly for having made the offer.

Beth gave him a tentative smile. That' s really kind of you.'

You' re welcome,' he said, softly.

But,' she said with a sigh, you' ve made me realise that it' s time I let go.'

Beth then gave Chris a brave little smile.

Taking one last look around her beautiful old home she said: You will look after the place, won' t you?'

Of course I will,' he assured her.

Then Beth thanked Chris for being so understanding, and set off on a journey that she realised was long overdue.

How should I summon them? Can I use a ouija board or draw a pentagram in chalk?