Page 12 - 201210 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper - October 2012

Top 10 Scary Halloween Stories # 6 - No Trespassing from the pecan tree just above the car, and leapt back into the car before whoever – or A Texas Scary Story nailed to the center of his chest was a No whatever – decided to grab me, and gasped: Trespassing sign. “Get me out of here now!” Continued from Page 11 My boyfriend took one look at my white # 5 - Sachs Bridge face filled with eye-popping terror and got me Peggy drifted in a kind of daze. out of there now. I didn’t stop shaking until we Something at the back of her mind was making A True Pennsylvania Ghost Story were safely back in our hotel room for the night. her uneasy. She slid down on to the floor and When I loaded up the digital pictures on put her head on the seat, completely covering I don’t know what exactly draws me back to my laptop computer the next morning, I went herself with the blankets, head and all. Feeling Sachs Bridge each time I visit Gettysburg. I just immediately to the pictures of the Sachs Bridge, safer, she allowed the weariness caused by the know that I feel compelled to drive there and unsure of what I would see. In the first photo, a wounds to take over and fell asleep. take pictures. Of course, it is a beautiful spot - little boy in period costume stood an arm's Peggy wasn’t sure what woke her. Had a covered bridge that was used by the length away from the camera. He was glaring at a beam of light shown briefly through the Confederate Army to cross the creek when they me with a twisted little face and an evil grin. He blanket? Did she hear someone curse outside? withdrew from Gettysburg . But after all, how certainly hadn’t been there when I took the She strained eyes and ears, but heard nothing many pictures can you take of the same place? picture, yet he looked solid enough to be real. save the soft thudding of the rain, and no light Well, okay, if you’re a photographer, that’s a The second photo was filled with misty figures shown through the blanket now. If Tommy had silly question! Hundreds in all weather, season, that looked like phantoms. Creepy! I arrived with the rescue squad, there surely lighting… But really, I’m only an amateur, so shuddered as I looked at them and quickly went would be noise and light and many voices. But why I personally felt compelled to record the to the next photo – the one I took over my she heard nothing save the swish of the rain and bridge over and over was a mystery my shoulder without turning around. I gave a an occasional thumping noise which she put boyfriend was obsessing about as he drove shriek of fear which brought my boyfriend down to the rubbing of the branches of the through the darkening countryside one evening crashing into the room. “What is it?” he pecan tree in the wind. The sound should have in the late fall. shouted, and I pointed a shaking finger at the been comforting, but it was not. Goosebumps Of course, the bridge was supposed to screen of the laptop. Pictured on it was a filmy crawled across her arms – even the broken one be haunted, so that was definitely part of the dark figure – half-human, half-beast – with -- and she almost ceased breathing for some draw it had for me. According to the legend, blazing orange eyes filled with such menace and time as some deep part of her inner mind three Confederate soldiers convicted of being hatred that it made my stomach roil. He instructed her to freeze and not make a sound. spies were hanged from beams in the covered appeared so close to the camera that he must She did not know how long fear kept her bridge, and their bodies were discovered by have been directly behind me. He looked like immobile. But suddenly the raw terror ceased, Union soldiers patrolling the area. Their spirits the Devil. replaced by cold shivers of apprehension and a were said to haunt the bridge, though other folks My boyfriend’s eyes popped and he sick coil in her stomach that had nothing to do claimed they sometimes smelled General Lee gasped: “Delete it. Delete it now!” with her injuries. Something terrible had smoking his pipe when they were standing on Yet how could I delete it? I had captured happened, she thought wearily, fear adding yet the bridge. I’d actually smelled pipe smoke pictures of ghosts on my camera. Was it worth more fatigue to her already wounded body. there once myself, and that was one of the the fright I’d had? I wasn’t sure about that. Then she scolded herself for a ninny. It was just reasons I kept coming back to the haunted Still, I couldn’t delete them. her sore head making her imagine things. bridge. My boyfriend refused blankly to look at Somewhat comforted by this thought, she dozed As we came to the bridge, a chill blasted the photos more than once, and he swore never again, only vaguely aware of a new sound that over my skin in spite of the warmth flowing into to take me to Sachs Bridge again. But I may go had not been there before; a soft thud-thud the car from the heater. The bridge, usually a back there someday. sound as of something gently tapping the roof. friendly-spot, seemed sinister and dark. I felt Thud-thud. Pattering of the rain. Thud-thud. uneasy, as if a foul presence was on the bridge (Continued on Page 13) Silence. Sometimes she would almost waken that did not want us to intrude there. and listen to it in a puzzled manner. Thud-thud. “I changed my mind,” I said quickly as Patter of rain. Thud-thud. Had a branch my boyfriend stopped the car. “I don’t want to dislodged from the tree? take pictures here after all.” Peggy wasn’t sure how long she’d been “What?!” my boyfriend practically unconscious when she was awakened by a screeched, staring at me in amazement. “After bright light blazing through the window of the you made such a big fuss about it? After you car and the sound of male voices exclaiming in forced me to look at every single solitary picture horror. A door was wrenched open, and you ever took of this bridge before we came to someone crawled inside. She lifted her head and Gettysburg? No way, honey! I could be back at looked up at a young state policeman. the hotel drinking beer right now, but no! We “Miss, are you all right?” he asked and had to come to the bridge! Out you get and take then turned over his shoulder to call for help. your photos!” Peggy told the officers her story and begged He was right, I guess. Silly to come all them to look for Tommy. They deftly avoided this way and not take the pictures. But I was answering her and instead called the utterly terrified to step out onto the bridge! My paramedics. hand shook as I reached for the door handle, and As the paramedics carried her carefully shook again as I secured my camera. Praying up the slope of the incline, Peggy looked back at with all my might that whatever dark power was the car—and saw a grotesque figure hanging out there would leave me alone, I leapt out the from a branch of the pecan tree. For a moment, door and aimed my camera practically at her brain couldn’t decipher what she was seeing random down the length of the bridge. It was in the bright lights of the police car parked at the completely empty of everything but me and the side of the road. Then she heard a thud-thud car as I took several snapshots. But I could feel sound as the foot of the figure scraped the top of someone – a very nasty someone – standing the totaled car, and she started screaming over right behind me, willing me to leave or die. and over in horror. One of the police officers Their presence throbbed at me in an almost hastened to block her view and a paramedic physical way, and my skin crawled desperately. fumbled for some valium to give her as her I didn’t dare turn around. I couldn’t. I just mind finally registered what she had seen. whirled my camera around, aimed it over my Tommy’s mangled, dead body was hanging shoulder and snapped a picture – fast! Then I