Patapsco River Horror Story

Chapter 3

Debbie was looking forward to the night out with Adam. She gave him a big huge as she met him at the door with Amanda and Jack. The Museum was already filled with teenagers. The four pushed their way through the crowd, toward a table in the corner of the Museum. Amanda, Debbie’s best friend, wanted to know if Debbie and Adam want something to drink.

Debbie and Amanda Halligan had been friend since they were very small but since Amanda’s father Don died two years ago they have been almost inseparable.

She asked, “Jack and I are going to get some sodas would you two like some?”

Debbie and Adam replied, “Sure” at the same time and they all gave out a laugh.

Amanda and Jack headed off hand in hand to track down some refreshments. Debbie and Adam sat at the table watching the crowd dance to the music. They talked about their day at school and Adam, who was a history buff, was telling Debbie about the B&O Railroad Station they were sitting in. That it was build about 1830, it was the first leg from Baltimore. Adam also told her about the race between the Tom Thumb and the horse that took place here in the spring of 1830.

Debbie already knew most of the history of Ellicott City and the B&O, but she loved hearing Adam tell the stories; as he spoke she stares into his big green eyes. Adam, a blonde, tall, lean and athletic teen, he was a lacrosse player at his high school. He was the team captain and very popular in school. Debbie was quiet and not as out going as Adam. Debbie does not hang with the “in” crowd except for Adam. She had a crush on Adam since they were in grade school together. What she did not know was that Adam had a crush on her for just as long. After about twenty minutes, Amanda and Jack returned to the table with the refreshments.

“Sorry it took so long,” Jack said as he put the drinks down on the table.

“Yeah,” Amanda said. “The line at the refreshment counter is really long and the girl behind the counter seemed really weird.”

Debbie stood up and looked across the room to the refreshment counter.

“That’s odd. She looks a little over dressed for this dance.” Debbie said.

At that moment they all heard a loud commotion to the left of where they were sitting.

Jack asked, “What’s going on over there?”

Their was a couple, dancing up on a table over by the DJ; a crowd had formed around them, cheering them on.

“Does anyone know who they are?” Amanda asked.

“I think the girl is in my Biology class,” Debbie replied.

“It looks like the guy is Frank Sooter; he is a defense man on our lacrosse team,” Adam said as he stood on his chair to see over the crowd.

As the couple danced a fight broke out between two guys near the table where the couple was dancing. Adam knew the two in the fight both lacrosse players. It was quickly broken up by a few on lookers.

Adam said to Debbie, “That fight was between John Garrett our best attack man and Bruce Stone one of our starting midfielders, I wonder what that was all about?”

Debbie replied, “Maybe we can find out.”Adam scanned the room looking for some of the other guys on the team to see if he could fine out what was going on.

“Wow, all kinds of stuff is going on tonight. It must be a full moon?” Jack said as he started to laugh.

Debbie looked at Jack with a straight face and replied, “It is a full moon tonight Jack.”

Jack was also standing on his chair while surveying the room for more action said to Debbie. “Well, all of the crazies will be coming out tonight.”

Debbie just looked at Adam in amusement and said. “My father said something to that effect earlier tonight.”

Adam, standing behind her on his chair put his arms over Debbie’s shoulders and replies “Your dad says a lot of crazy things.”

By this time a few adults came over to chase the teens off the table. Half the crowd that had formed around the couple, booed as they were chased off the table, the other half laugh and whistled. Debbie and Amanda alternatively decided to go to the restrooms. While they were gone, Adam and Jack were going to try and fine out what the fight was all about.

As Debbie and Amanda fought their way through the sea of teenagers on the dance floor to get to the north; end of the Museum, to where the restrooms were located, Adam and Jack found one of Adam’s friends who was also on the lacrosse team. Adam saw Rob Collins about four tables over and asked him if he knew what the fight between John and Bruce was about. Rob told Adam and Jack that he had heard from some of the other lacrosse players at the dance that the fight was over a girl. Adam asked Rob if he knew which girl the fight was over. Rob said he did not know but was curious himself and wanted to find out too. Adam asked Rob if he found out anything to get back with him and he would do the same if he found out anything. Now Adam figured it would be a lot easier if he just asked Bruce or John. He and Jack went looking for one or both of them. As they were looking, they ran into Frank Sooter.

Frank greeted them. “Hey Adam! Hi Jack! Are you guys having a good time tonight?”

Jack replied “Its sure looks like you are having a good time, Frank.”

“Who was the girl you were dancing with on the table?” Adam asked.

“Oh that’s Winne; we meet at a party last weekend up at the Patapsco Female Institute ruins.” Frank said.

Adam looked Winnie over; she was sitting at a table about 5 feet away. She looked pale, like a whitish gray color. The dress she was wearing looked out of date and not by five or ten years but by at least a hundred. She had brownish blondish hair almost down to her waist. Adam was standing to the side of her; she was looking forward so he could not see her eyes. She looked plan but that was not it, theirs something strange about her but Adam could not put his finger on what it was. While Adam was trying to figure out what was not right with Winnie, Jack told Frank that they had seen the fight between John and Bruce and wanted to know if he knew what it was about?

Jack said “We heard it was over a girl?”

Frank said “Yeah, it all started when Annie came over to our table.”

Adam asked.” Who is Annie?”

Frank replied. “Well I was getting to that; Annie was up at the party at the Patapsco Female Institute ruins last weekend. Winne and Annie are friends, anyway, when Annie came over to our table a strange electricity was in the air all of the sudden. It was like excitement and fear all at the same time.”

Frank had a look of satisfaction in his eyes when he was speaking of the events that had taken place. “I had a buzzing in my head and the events around me seemed to be happening at the speed of light. All of the sudden Winnie and I just got up on the table and started to dance. It was like I had no control over my body.” Frank said.

Jack interrupted Frank and said. “Wow! That’s bizarre but what about the fight between John and Bruce?”

Frank continued with his story. “I was dancing and I heard the fight brake out, it was right down below me but it sounded like it was off in the distance. I could hear one of them say ‘She is with me’ then the electricity in the air was gone in a snap, Annie had disappeared and some people were pushing John and Bruce out the front door. I guess Annie went back to the refreshment counter.”

Jack looked at Adam and said “It’s the weird girl from the refreshment counter?”

Adam tried to put it all together in his head but it did not make scents. The two strangely dressed girls who he had never seen before, the fight between John and Bruce and the odd electricity in the air that frank had experienced, that made him lose control of his body, was it all connected or was it all just in his head. Before Adam and Jack when on their way, Frank told them, he was going to try and get Winnie, Annie and some other friends to go down to the river bank and continue the party there after the party ends at midnight. Frank said they were welcome to come and bring Debbie and Amanda. Adam said they would try to make it.

Debbie and Amanda finally made their way across the dance floor to the hallway of the restrooms. They walked down the dimly lit hall to the ladies room on the left. The hall went about another 30 feet farther to a door at the end of the hall. About five minutes later Debbie opened the door to exit the restroom. Debbie stepped out into the hall. When she did it felt like someone brush by her arm.

There was no one around, Amanda was still in the restroom checking her makeup in the mirror Debbie thought. She looked down the hallway toward the door. In the gloom and darkness of the hall way Debbie saw a girl with long brown hair walking toward the door. The girl was about 15 feet away from Debbie. It was the girl from the refreshment counter. Amanda had finished in the ladies room and was standing in the doorway of the restroom holding the door open.

Debbie turned to Amanda and whispered “Hey it’s the weird girl from the refreshment counter.”

She looked back out into the hallway; the girl was still slowly walking down the hall.

Debbie calls out to the girl “HI.”

The girl stopped. At this point Amanda had emerged for the restroom and was standing behind Debbie. She wanted to get a good look at the girl.

Debbie said “I just wanted to know where you got that dress? I think it’s cute.”

To Debbie the dress looked like it was from the 19th Century. The girl put her head down and slowly turns to face Debbie and Amanda.

As she did Amanda whispered “I think that dress is ugly.”

Debbie, without turning around to face Amanda lifted her hand as to say “Shut up Amanda!”
The girl had turned around and was facing them; she still had her head down. Debbie and Amanda gazed through the gloom at the girl. There’s one small light bulb halfway between Debbie an Amanda and the girl. It was giving off very little light. She started to slowly lift her head at that point the light bulb above them flickered and went out and just as fast it came back on. Debbie and Amanda search the gloom to catch sight of the girl but she had vanished.

“She is gone!” Amanda said.

Debbie walked about ten steps down the hallway toward the door and stopped.

Debbie shook her head and said. “She could not have made it down the hallway and out the door that fast.”

After the light flickered off Amanda retreated back into the restroom with her head barely out of the restroom door replied. “We would have heard the door open and close don’t you think?”

Debbie walked the rest of the way down to the door and opened it.

Amanda whispered “What’s in there?”

Debbie looked inside the door and said “It’s another hallway that goes off to the right; it dark and I can’t see where it goes.”

Debbie put her foot inside the door and looked back at Amanda and said. “Come on let us see what’s down there, Amanda.”

Amanda pulls her head back into the restroom. “NO! Let’s go get Jack and Adam first.”

Debbie is standing inside the hallway now looking out at Amanda, who is still in the restroom doorway and says “What? Are you scared?”

Amanda replied “YES!”

After several minutes of cajoling, Debbie convicted Amanda to go with her to find out what was at the end of the hallway and where the girl went.

Amanda had said over and over again. “Can’t we get Jack and Adam to come with us?”

Debbie would reply. “No, we don’t have time, she will be gone if we wait for Jack and Adam, we have to find her now!”

Amanda followed Debbie out of the restroom. They slowly walked down to the door at the end of the hallway. Debbie put her hand on the door handle turned the knob and slowly pushed open the door. She took two steps into the small dark passageway and tried to see through the darkness, Debbie could feel Amanda standing right behind her breathing on her neck.

Amanda whispered. “It’s too dark!”

Debbie did not reply, she just grabbed Amanda’s hand and slowly started walking down the passageway through the pitch black darkness. Debbie noticed that Amanda’s hand was clammy and sweaty and her pulse was racing like a train. She looked over her shoulder and said. “Are you still scared, Amanda?”

Amanda replied with one word. “Very!”

Even though they were both wearing sneakers; the sound of their footsteps bounced off the stone floor and echoed offs the brick walls and ceiling. The passageway was narrow and the ceiling was low. As Debbie used her finger tips to guide herself and Amanda down the dark passageway, she could feel the cold and dampness of the stones that made up the walls of the old railroad station. Her fingers came to a point where the stones stopped. Now she could only feel cold steel, the cold steel of a very large door; Amanda, who was looking around Debbie’s arm, noticed the tiny shafts of light coming from under the door.

She whispered. “There’s light coming from under the door, whoever she is could be on the other side.”

Debbie let go of Amanda’s hand to search for the door handle with both hands. After fumbling around for a few seconds she finally caught hold of the door handle. The door handle was rusty, she could feel the rust come off in her hand, and it felt gritty and sandy on her palm. She slowly turned the handle and it gave out a high-pitched squeak as if begging to be oiled. She pulled on the handle but the door did not move, she looked over at Amanda and in the darkness she was no more then a shadow.

Amanda just shrugged so Debbie put both hands on the door handle put her left leg back behind her to brace her and pulled even harder. The door started to creek, dust and paint chips fell from the door hinges. The door handle started to squeak once more but then it let out a deep grown. The rusted door handle gave out and came loose from the door in Debbie’s hand; she felt the forces of gravity and momentum throwing her body back into the wall behind her. She closed her eyes and tried to brace for the impact with the wall.

The back of her head and her shoulders made hard contact with the wall first then her back impacted it just as hard. Then the violent impact with the wall knocked Debbie’s feet out from under her and she fell to the ground. A cloud of dirt billowed from the floor as her body hit the ground, stone dust rained down on her from the wall above. She stayed very still for a few seconds with her eyes still closed. Her head was pounding after its coalition with the stone wall.

Before she opened her eyes she heard Amanda say. “Debbie! Are you all right?”

Then she opened her to see purple and white spots against a black background.

“I’m all right, but my head hurts.” Debbie replied.

She put her left hand on the back of her head. The door handle is still in her right hand. Amanda reaches for Debbie in the darkness to help her up.

“Well, whoever it was she probably not behind that door.” Amanda said.

Now that she has gotten up off the ground, Debbie throws the door handle down the passageway in frustration. They both hear the clang of the handle bouncing of the stone floor. They are both surprised to hear a pinging of the handle hitting something steel.

“It sounded like it hit a door.” Debbie said.

Debbie brushes the dust and dirt off her pants and out of her hair. “Let go see what’s behind that door.” Debbie said.

“Oh shit! Debbie, don’t you think we have done enough searching for one night? Let’s go back to the party.” Amanda said.

Debbie with her hand still rubbing the back of her head said. “Oh come on Amanda! Aren’t you at least a bit curious to find out whom she is? Don’t quit now Amanda.”

As Debbie eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could see some tiny shafts of light coming from under the door at the far end of the passageway.
“It is a door, and I can see light coming from under it.” Debbie said.

Amanda reluctantly followed Debbie slowly down the passageway to the door. She was hoping that there was nothing on the other side.