The old boards creaked from the
heavy winds ready to give way as the
crying moans poured into the damp air,
sounding haunted.
A crumpled piece of paper flew in
the wind's current, as a tin trashcan
rolled across the empty alleyway followed
by it's filling.
The kaput doors of the saloon swung
helplessly as they hung on lone hinges,
when they were once sturdy and efficient-
many a man walked through those
swinging doors.
Sometimes if you listen closely you
can still hear people of old rushing about
their day, children laughing and horses
neighing. A perfect little town, now
nothing but a Ghost Town.
At night, when the winds are high-
you can hear the gunshots from many
a battle. Shots so loud and deafening,
leaving your heart hammering as if you
were in the middle of it all.
The screams hover in the air like ghosts
making their presence felt, giving your spine
a shrill pricking. The clanks of their footsteps
come louder as the spurs tap the floor with
each tread- making your body jump each time.
You pull the covers up around you, and
you wonder to yourself why you ever thought
it would be fun to visit and stay in a haunted
house. The clanking thumps get louder and
you reassure yourself that people do this all
the time and they make it out alive- so why
are you so scared- what are you so scared for?
A tree branch screeches across the
window and a crack of thunder bellows as
lightning illuminates the sky giving you a
glance of a monster outside your window, trying
to claw its way inside. But…it's only a tree, right?
You find it hard to pull your eyes away from
the delicate glass till those paced steps stop
in front of your bedroom door.
Your chest is heavy, you find it hard to
breathe while your whole body shakes with
fear, you smell of fear. The sound of your
heartbeat is loud in your ears as you strain to
listen for sounds. The silence starts to play
games with your mind and the shadows of the
furniture come to life and begin to creep
towards you. They're getting closer and their
fingers spread out wide to touch you.
The bedroom door swings open and
slams up against the wall bringing forth a
gust of air that makes you catch your breath.
The shadow monsters disappear back into
the walls from whence they came. Not a
sound is heard but your shaken breath.
Your eyes struggle to adjust in the
dark room, straining to see what's in front
of you. The void of darkness pulls you in
deeper and you open and close your eyes
tightly over and over trying to see- until
you get a glimpse of a soft white glow.
Slowly you begin to focus as the glow
becomes larger, gliding towards you
clanking its spurs with each drifted stride.
His features are strong, chin chiseled and
a neatly groomed mustache. He was once a
very brawny man…
You try convincing yourself that it is
only an apparition and he can't hurt you, and
while he just stands there hovering at the foot
of your bed you finally become quite confident
and un-frightened. You find your voice- point a
finger to the door and tell him to go away.
Crawling out from under your covers and up
on your knees you scream for him to get out,
with your hands on your hips- you show him
you mean business.
The ghost's hand reaches down to his
holster and pulls out his old trusty pistol and
gives it a click as he points it towards you.
Every ounce of bravery you had just washed
away as the color drained from your face
leaving you pale and cold. You're 'as a matter
of fact'-hands on the hips went to waving in front
of you as you beg and plead for him not to shoot.
A smile teased on the his lips and he
said one word that had you moving like no
body's business.
"RUN".
And you did. Without even thinking you run right
off the foot of your bed, and right through the ghost-
which leaves you even colder. You run down the
hall screaming with your arms flying everywhere
yelling "he's gonna shoot me- he's gonna shoot me".
Bedroom doors fly open as other guests
hear the commotion and come out to see what
was going on. They see you running back and forth
babbling, finally someone grabs a hold of you to
calm you down. A few guests go down to your
room to check it out- they find nothing. Your body
shakes like a jack hammer and you still babble
through chattered teeth, until someone suggests
that you go change your clothes. It's then that you
realize you've wet yourself.
Entering your room, it feels calm- not cold
and haunted like it did before. A nice hot shower
does the trick and you calm yourself with a glass
of whiskey. It's been a long night and time has
already passed into the morning and your once
wide- frightened eyes have finally given in to it's
heaviness, leaving you to a deep slumber.
Ole Roy glided his way down to the cellar
that used to be a card room back in the olden days.
A satisfied smile filled his face as he walked in
and joined the others. The Gun Slingers all sat
around their table playing poker until ole Clive
asked Roy what all the ruckus upstairs was all
about. Ole Beau butted in and told Roy that he
should be ashamed of himself for making a grown
man wet his pants like that. The whole gang of
them chuckled and decided that whoever won
the poker game got the privilege of haunting
amusement the following night. Roy sat back in
his chair and said "I bet now he believes in us
ghost folk".
Jamie Edson Opielski
Copyright ©2003 Jamie Edson Opielski