The North - East Corridor

A Story by Carter

Twisted tale.

The window banged against the railing.
“My god!”, exclaimed Ann. ‘ Its just wind , no ghost’, smiled Grey ; closing the window. He peered out. It was a sheer 60 feet drop and by no means can anyone climb the climber that has grown. Satisfied, he turned, to bid her good night. Ann was as white as the sheet under which she had tucked herself into. Grey hid a grin. He went by her head and sat at the edge.

‘Will you sleep downstairs?’ he asked mildly.

‘NO!’

‘No?’
‘NO!NO!NO!’

‘Then get some sleep. And don’t worry , I am sleeping on the bed right opposite to you. Okay?’

Ann nodded. Grey went to the switch board and dimmed the chandelier and put off all of the others and then went in his bed. Glancing one last look at Ann , Grey closed his eyes. But Ann could not , she knew that Grey was a light sleeper and could easily manage anybody. She had once seen him beating two professionals thugs to pulp ; but this was not any man , or woman, atleast Ann did not think so. She cursed herself again and again for making Grey take this case. All those things , scary things she heard today has got under her skins well enough. She did not think it through then , a weekend in a high profile bungalow in the outskirts of Melbourne. The man was a baron and an old friend of Grey and the letter he wrote to Grey , is still etched in her memory.

“Dear Grey,

I will always be indebted to you if you come over to my bungalow by Melbourne and see me through this little matter which has taken the peace out of my life.

BB.

From- Myriad Grounds”

Ann had searched the Grounds on the internet , as per the request of Grey. There were only few returns ; the first return was “Myriad tongue- Mist of centuries’ ” , this particular return made Grey angry as he did not like these nuisances, and there were two or three more telling about the specifications of the Grounds and how to get there. Grey did not want to leave town ; but Ann persuaded him. And now here they were at that bungalow , but Ann wanted to be somewhere else. She looked around the room. The room was a large furnished one , stuffed with old antiquities. There were frescoes and on the wall opposite to the door was a painting of a beautiful lady standing by a lake. That face seemed some what familiar to Ann, she just could not place where she has seen it . Ann tried to close her eyes.

When she slept she did not know , but suddenly an eerie feeling woke her up. She could not manage what time it is , but judging by the darkness , she could tell that it was far from dawn. She peered over her sheets , looking for the familiar figure ; but the bed opposite to her was empty , her heart skipped a beat. She could not decide what to do. HE might have gone to the bathroom , but there was no light from that door. Instead , the door was ajar , and from the swaying of the curtains she could tell a little cold breeze was coming in. But Ann was sweating buckets . She cold not even close her eyes lest go back to sleep. Somehow , she mustered the courage and got out of the bed. She slipped on her slippers and tip-toed to the door . She managed to switch on the chandelier , and then opened the door. The North East corridor was darker than outside. There was a moist touch in the atmosphere , with the faint sound of scratching which must be of dry leaves. Ann could swear that she heard a faint a song being sung but She could not see anything , she thought of bringing the torch. Suddenly , somebody crashed into her. The figure hurried in , slammed the door and dimmed the light. Ann was too scared to shout , even to utter a syllable.

‘Thanks’ , let out Grey.

‘What were you doing out there ?’ Ann shouted , obviously feeling relieved.

‘You heard that song ?’

‘So I was not hallucinating ?’

‘I heard it and went out to check , I had made it to nearly half of the corridor , and I could clearly see the door of that room ; when I felt dizzy. My balance was off and I hardly could move , I kept on stumbling. I did not know which way I was going when suddenly I saw light , I dashed towards it and crashed with you. Anyways, you get some sleep.’

‘ Okay’ �" pausing �" ‘Grey , have you seen that painting ?’

‘On that wall ? Yes I have. Why ?’

‘Because I don’t know why she seems familiar to me.’

Grey’s face stoned up. He was obviously thinking of something. Ann drifted to sleep.

Brendon Beckett was the most amiable person in the whole countryside of Melbourne. So , the arrangement of lunch , next morning , did not really surprise Grey as much as it surprised Ann. They had a sumptuous feast , to say a little. After that Grey asked his host to accompany him on a walk in the grounds. Ann , Grey and BB went out. The did not walk as aimlessly as their conversation went on. Grey had a particular destination in mind. At last the finally reached below the North East corridor. There was an huge overgrowth of some kind of bush all along the walls , right up to the corridor. There were also small violet flowers all over.

‘ who was the girl , BB ?’ , asked Grey sternly.

‘What ?!’ . BB , startled.

‘The girl in the painting , in my room’

‘How the deuce would I know ? I bought that painting’

Grey turned , masterfully looking over the small figure of BB. ‘ Really ? then why was at the right bottom corner of the painting signed ‘A. Herticott �" 10/11/13 �" Myriad Grounds ?’

BB was silenced by it. Ann listened in amazement.

‘That girl was the secretary of a well renowned book shop who was reported missing after she took a weekend’s leave to refresh her mind but not returning even after a month. Ann it was the third return , and as you have also read it and seen her picture , she seemed familiar to you last night. The girl was traced as far as Merryton Bar , which is a fifteen minutes walk from your house. And as I have had the pleasure of having a little chat with the bar owner this morning , who , after a lot of persuasion , agreed that he had seen you and the girl leaving together. The girl was here, Brendon , so tell me what happened. TELL ME!’

BB broke down at once. What he told was that the girl came with him , a month back, to the Grounds to spend the weekend there on his request. She stayed in the same room that Grey was staying. The next day an artist seemed to pass by and he drew the portrait. Next day was the day she was leaving . It was nearly 10 in the morning , but still she did not come down , so BB had gone to check. The room was vacant , the bed was slept in. The door to the corridor was opened. He ran into the corridor , saw that the door of the room was open. He went in there only to find a blue tattered gown. Nothing else. This is all he knew. But after that he had heard screams of a woman from that room , again and again , at night , sometimes in day also , shouting for help ; but no one was ever found there. Most of his maids and servants left their jobs. Thus , he asked for Grey’s help. Grey said nothing. BB was sobbing slowly. Ann was looking at the forage when suddenly she tripped over something.

‘Grey , there is a ladder here.’ Ann shouted.

‘What ?’ BB was confounded about it’s existence there.

Grey said nothing. ‘Who is he ?’ �" he was pointing to a lad of twenty something working with scissor on the garden , just maybe 50 feets ahead of us. There was a beautiful parrot , seating on his shoulder , mumbling.

‘He is the caretaker , of some sorts. Good chap, does odd jobs.’ BB replied.

‘where does he live ?’

‘I don’t know exactly, got some lodgings perhaps. But he has his food here only.’

‘Hmmm.’

They walked towards him.

‘Hey , Jim.’ , squawked BB.

The lad turned. He had a very handsome face.

‘Hey , master.’ The parrot also retorted �" ‘heyy master’.

They all were amused at the mimicry.

‘Richard has the utmost capability of copying any sound he once hears.’ Offered Jim.

The conversation was a short one , he refused of having any knowledge of the lady or even having a conversation with her but he said those two days , he had seen her standing in the corridor , the North-East one .

As they walked back , ‘What is the problem with that corridor and why the deuce such a room is there , Grey? All these things are happening there only. Even the history of this grounds says that there is a bad spirit there who makes people mad. I think I may have to leave this place after buying it so cheap.Everything is upto you.’ BB ended looking at Grey.

Grey and Ann returned to their room.

‘ The parrot was amazing. If I heard him from a distance , I won’t even doubt that it was a bird who did that.’ Ann beamed.

‘I need to think , so if you don’t mind , shut up’

Ann was not exactly offended. She sat on the arm chair and dozed off.

‘Wake up’ , tugging on her arms , Grey said excitedly.

Ann drowsily woke up.. Grey went over to his laptop and shut it down. ‘ come on there is atleast a little over an hour left before dusk.’

‘Why what happens at dawwwwwwn ?’ Ann said , yawning as she spoke the word dawn.

‘The mystery is nearly solved , but I need you to come with me.’

‘What ?!’-pause-‘Why ?’ Ann squirmed.

Grey’s face squared down. Ann never knew how to refuse that face. They both went out into the corridor. Grey told her to keep quiet and look around. He bent down and crawled , sniffing and looking closely at the walls. Suddenly , he motioned Ann to come over. Ann went to saw that the wall on the right side of the passage by the third and the last pillar , had scratches and a broken nail laid there. When she looked up , she saw that Grey had gone in the room. It was a circular room with no windows , even not a ventilator. Grey looked around , and suddenly Ann heard him chuckling. She went over to see that Grey was pointing to something on the floor. She bent down and immediately whispered ‘Bird droppings.’ ‘Yes’ Ann waited for an answer but she noticed by the sun rays in the corridor that in a few minutes , it will be dusk. She notified Grey and both of them hurried back. Entering the room , Grey fastened the door. ‘ No matter what don’t go out , till I come back.’ Ann nodded.

Grey returned 15 mins later with a big bag , from which came out a dress and few bottles. Grey told Ann a few things. Ann went down. Soon Jim and BB came in.

‘ We will wait in that room , till something happens. We are going to get to the bottom of this. I have checked with some renowned people who are specialists in these matters and they said that today is the perfect day for paranormal activities. You being the only able bodied person except us , Jim ; we have called you. Hope you don’t have any problem’ Jim said no.

It was nearly eight when they went in that room , crossing the corridor.

The corridor again had a sweet mist , Jim complained about feeling dizzy but BB and Grey played it down. They huddled themselves in a corner and waited. There was no moon in the sky that day , the clouds had enveloped the whole sky. By some faint light coming from somewhere , they could clearly see the corridor. The shadows were playing tricks to their mind , moving here and there. The room had an eternal darkness within itself. The breeze felt like whispers , whispers of those untold tales , centuries’ old. Jim proposed to lit a cigar , but Grey played him down. The wait continued. Slowly , the hour hand on Grey’s watch kept moving. From somewhere there was a sound of dripping water , steady drops.

BB was quiet, patiently waiting. He had faith on Grey’s decision that nothing bad would happen , at least that’s what Grey had told him earlier , the only thing Grey had told him. He was slowly feeling dizzy too. His vision was blurring.

Jim was feeling irritated. Firstly he was feeling nauseated , the atmosphere was taking a toll on his mind ; he had no wish to be part of these activities but only to be in the good book of his master’s. He was feeling suffocated too.

From somewhere came a very beautiful song, some lullaby it seemed . It went on for a moment until it suddenly , there was a loud scream , clearly of a girl or a women. It followed with ‘Help me,’ and ‘ Please have mercy on me’. The screams went on , coming from the corridor. BB’s face was as white as snow. Jim kept a stoned face. Grey was unmoved. They all peered at the corridor , but , though the light was less , it could surely be told that no one was there. The screams stopped after five minutes. BB kept on tugging at Grey’s hand. Grey’s stern look stopped him.

Amidst this came the clattering of a shoe , high-heeled shoe. The noise was coming towards the room , through that corridor. The walking was slow , and the darkness prevented the bearer from being seen. The sound stopped for a moment. There was a fluttering sound followed by a hooting of an owl. Then , the person started walking again. Grey felt the grip on his hand loosen and on turning he saw that BB had fainted. Jim was having trouble being composed , the hair on his hands were obviously standing. The figure stood in front of the door.

Jim could clearly see that someone stood at the door. He was frantic , he looked at the other two men ; both of whom looked in a deep slumber. Jim somehow stood up. The figure was moving towards him , step by step. The room was small and he had nowhere to run.

‘Who’ Jim gulped.

The face was not still visible due to lack of light , but as it neared him , he could clearly see the blue gown. And now the face was clear to him , because he had seen her only a few weeks ago.

‘How ?’ ‘How?’ Jim’s voice was trembling.

The figure held her hand out , towards Jim but he had sank to the ground. The whole room was swaying around. His head felt as if it was going to explode.

‘Stop this! Stop this!’ he shouted. He started waivering his hand like a madman.

‘You are dead , I killed you, goddamn it I killed you.’

The room was suddenly filled with light. The ghost looked ghost no more , she rubbed her face with napkin and again became the Ann she was. There was horror in Jim’s eyes , he looked like a trapped beast from Grey to the new stranger who came in the room , who was of course the local sergeant. Grey was smiling at Jim.

‘Youuuu , you tricked me into saying these.’ Jim rushed towards Grey. Grey punched him down. Jim was unconscious. ‘ Sergeant do take him away. I hope you heard his confession a minute before. The girl , Sarah , was here and he killed him ; any more evidence , I am going to furnish later.’ The sergeant took Jim away. Ann had helped BB up , who was still seething from the shock.

‘I should have told you about the plan but then Jim might have suspected’ , Grey offered.

‘Now we both want to know.’ Ann said.

‘Yes , but not here. This sinister mist is not good to be in for any length of time.’

They all were seated in BB’s room. Ann sat on the bed and BB and the sergeant sat on the sofa. Grey was walking timidly.

‘This case due to co-incidences has supernatural touches , paranormal activities or reasoning that normal brains used for making inferences ; whatever actions I took , suspicions and guesses I made , was on the basis of what a mortal could have done because my faith in anything out of this world is very timid and even if there are paranormal things , they don’t come under my jurisdiction. The case presented some utmost beautiful matter in itself. There was couple of nature’s unparallel mystery and beauty present in it. One was the voice and memory capacity of Richard , the parrot , and the other was that vine and flowers which envelop the corridor. The first one had the ability to hear and duplicate up to the same pitch , what it has heard. The other was the sinister one. I read it upon the internet after posting a photo of the flower I took last day , its name is Hnypotic Niev . During night ,that is after sunset, they give out a sweet mist type fragrance , for what biological purposes I don’t know. Now , this mist has an acute effect on the mind of a human being , it starts with dizziness , soon becoming hallucination and then can result in permanent insanity. These two are the most important facts around which this story pivots.

What I am going to say next is a part factual and part what I think happened.

Sarah came here and stayed two days. On the night of the second day , she heard , most probably , a song ; the one which I and Ann heard yester night . Out of curiosity , she went out. I don’t for how long she stood there , it had to be for some time. Now after a close inspection , you can clearly make out that there was a scuffle in that corridor and that the woman did not have control over herself and she did not know where to go due to the effect of the mist. I saw the marks of her nail on the wall and that she was being pulled towards the room. There , I sniffed the room , crawled around but as whatever happened , had happened couple of weeks back , there was no physical evidence except of’ Grey looked at Ann.

‘The bird droppings.’ Ann said.

‘Yes , a closed room with no windows and still somehow a bird is there. The room was closed always , the only time it was opened was that night for the bird to come. Now , it was not a concrete fact but I had something to go on. So when I found the ladder , I thought that BB had all maids who ofcourse won’t meander around the Grounds at night , due to the sinister rumors regarding the Grounds no locals will come in ; the only person who roams with a bird of impeccable mimicry capability was Jim and his dear parrot. There was no known fact where he stayed , so it was possible that he roamed here only , maybe even stay in one of the vacant rooms here. So my whole attention rested on him. The parrot was a true wonder , He had sung those songs which attracted me and Sarah out to the corridor.. He had also heard Sarah’s shouts , which he learned and spoke out whenever he felt like. Maybe Jim’s all senses were overcome by the mist and the animal in him made him do whatever he had done to Sarah and the mist also had the effect of dizziness on Sarah which did not let her make some real noise other than faint sound of help which only the parrot could pick up. All I had to do was to lay a trap and lure him in and see if he takes the bait and confesses.’

‘Fantastic’ BB broke out clapping.

The sergeant also congratulated Grey. Ann was happy too. It was nearly mid night. BB was talking to the sergeant and Ann had gone out of the room to change her dress. Grey went out , even if the case was solved he did not want to leave Ann alone on that floor , on that corridor. He ascended the stairs , passing the constable who was sitting fixed on a stool . The carriage which carried the prisoner stood by. Suddenly , Grey look up to see Ann coming down. There was little light , and the myriad play of shadow and light kept her face half covered in darkness which multiplied the beauty of her lips and chin. Her beautiful black hair enveloped her , falling like a cascade to her waist. She still wore the blue dress , not knowing that Grey brought it for her , guessing her size to perfection. Her image was so ethereal , that out came a sigh and a ‘ You look beautiful’. The words amazed the detective even , it’s been decades since he had been enthralled by someone’s beauty. They both by then were standing side by side , on the stairs. He waited for a reply , or was he ? Something much more powerful was overcoming his mind.

‘Thank you.’ , came the much waited and wanted reply , in the sweetest voice that Grey had heard in a long time.

‘Why did you not change ?’

‘I missed something , dear. And then I wanted to slap that Jim , for all that he had done.’

Grey seemed to be amused by that slapping part. ‘Shall I accompany you ? Though he is in chains , still if you want….’

‘No , you have had tiring two days , go have some rest.’-pausing-‘Thank you , Grey , Thank you .. For bringing justice.’

‘My job ,dear’ Grey closed in and whispered. Her sweet fragrance filled his lungs.

Grey ascended a few steps and then turned , ‘ You coming up soon , Ann ?’

The figure turned and smiled. Grey could see her eyes sparkle. Grey went up , he heard a call coming back. ‘ Have some rest , Davien Grey.’

Grey entered the room. He took off his coat , placed it on the hanger. Ann came out of the bathroom , a bit confused but not as much as the startled detective.

‘How did you �" Didn’t you just go down ?’ Grey questioned , breaking each syllable.

‘No , .. Grey , I kept my gown on the bed and I can’t find it now. I just kept it and went to the bathroom to get the towels and when I came back it was not there.’

Grey could not speak. He remembered the last line he heard. Something had struck in his mind then but due to his over active heart at that moment . he could not clear it out. How the deuce could Ann know his middle name ? Nobody except his parents knew. He could not wait to satisfy Ann’s questions. He went for the door but crashed with the sergeant. BB followed in.

‘Grey , the carriage is not there. The carriage is gone and so is Jim.’ BB exulted.

‘The constable was lying unconscious on the ground. Can you give us any leads ?’ the sergeant added.

Grey took a little time to answer. ‘Justice takes its own course.’ He was himself amused with his reply whereas the reply perplexed all the other three. Suddenly then there was huge wails , screams of pain and agony asking for mercy coming from somewhere in the woods, it was , without any doubt , the “escaped” prisoner. Ann was trembling , BB and sergeant looked out the window. Except

Grey was non-challant , he tucked himself under the sheets and closed his eyes. He needed rest , a deep slumber … from somewhere in his mind he heard a lullaby , he deserved it , the sleep, , moreover he had earned it ….