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evil spirits.”

  “What happened?” Tim demanded to know.

  “She decided to drown the boys in order to cleanse their souls,” Benjamin said. “One survived, the other perished. The surviving child was taken into care whilst Mrs Hargreaves was placed in a psychiatric unit for a period of time before finally being allowed home, where she lived until you bought the house.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me this before,” Tim asked Michael as he got up to leave.

  “Because I didn’t want to worry you,” Michael replied.

  “Didn’t want to worry me,” Tim exploded, “How the hell do you think I feel now!”

  xxxx

  Back at “The Birches”, Helen stood in the front room shaking from head to toe, her faced drained of all colour. All her possessions were gone, replaced by furniture and ornaments she failed to recognise. Worse was the fact that the old woman was present in the room. She’s moved in, Helen thought with total disbelief, and knew instinctively that the house was lost to them forever.

  “Helen, I have to talk to you!” a voice suddenly declared from behind.

  She spun round to see Tim standing in the doorway.

  “Oh my God, no,” he said when he saw who else occupied the room.

  “Adam must’ve let her in,” Helen said, her voice shaking uncontrollably.

  “Where is he,” Tim yelled at the intruder, “Where is my son, what have you done to him!?”

  The answer he sought poured from the mouth of the old woman like poison.

  “He’s in the bath, my dear, having his sins washed away.”

  xxxx

  Headline taken from “The Stallington Chronicle” later that year...

  “Husband and wife convicted of the manslaughter of their seven year old son on the grounds of diminished responsibility.”

  xxxx

  Extract from the transcript of police statement, ref 621, made by Benjamin Brown, vicar of Stallington Parish in the presence of D. I. Simon Davis and D. S. Scott Yates.

  BB: The couple thought they were haunted by the spirit of “The Birches” previous owner. The husband visited me seeking advice on behalf of himself and his family.

  SD: What advice did you give?

  BB: I offered options and tried to reassure.”

  SY: Can you be more specific?

  BB: The possibilities of holding a séance and performing an exorcism were discussed.

  SD: Nothing more?

  BB: No.

  SD: And this conversation took place on the day Adam Christopher died.

  BB: Correct.

  xxxx

  The young couple loved “The Birches” but expressed initial concerns about its violent history.

  “I can live with its past if you can,” the husband declared to his wife during a revisit.

  “I must admit, it’s an incredible amount of house for the money,” she said, finally warming to the idea. “What do you think, Alice,” she asked their six year old daughter, “shall we buy it?”

  “Can we,” asked the child, “It’d be fun living in a haunted house.”

  THE END

  A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR.

  Dear Reader,

  Thanks once again,

  W. R. Armstrong.