The Old Mill Recap

Brenda looks around at the seven friends.

“Well, that is quite a list of reasons for getting into ghost hunting. You’ve experienced a lot, both individually and as a group. Why don’t we talk about what happened when you went to the old Anderson house—or should I say the Johnson house?”

Jessica looks at her in surprise. “You know the Johnsons built that house? How? We only learned about that the other day.”

Brenda takes a sip of her coffee. “It’s really quite simple. I grew up around here. I moved away to go to college and didn’t come back for a few years, but when I was a teenager, my friends and I used to hunt for ghosts around town all the time. We even investigated the old mill.

“No one ever admitted to seeing an apparition back then, but we did hear some strange noises and voices. We didn’t have digital cameras or digital recorders. We used cameras with thirty-five-millimetre film and cassette recorders to capture sound. We didn’t have computers with sophisticated software to clean up anything we recorded either. Digital equipment was new and far too expensive for us.

“Now you students carry digital cameras and recorders around on your phones. You can capture something at any time, even if you leave your ghost-hunting equipment at home.”

Sarah shakes her head. “How on earth did you get in touch with your friends without being able to text them?”

Brenda smiles. “Easy. We picked up the phone or walked over to their house and knocked on the door.”

Matthew raises his eyebrows. “Sounds like a lot of work.”

William suddenly remembers something. “I almost forgot about another experience I had a few months ago. This one was just weird.”

Everyone looks towards him, and Brenda encourages him to continue.

“It happened when I was coming home from a fishing trip with my dad. We left the house before sunrise so we could get to the lake and start fishing early. My dad always says the fish bite better at dawn than at noon.

“We fished all day and started heading home around four o’clock. As we drove along the highway, I was looking at the trees beside the road. I turned my head towards my dad, and suddenly I saw myself sitting beside him with my eyes closed.

“It freaked me out. All I could think was that I needed to get back into my body immediately, because if I somehow ended up outside the truck, I’d be stranded.

“The next thing I knew, I was looking at the sides of the road again. My dad looked at me and said, ‘I wondered if you were going to sleep the whole way home.’

“I hadn’t felt tired, so I don’t know how I fell asleep. What I do know is that seeing my body from the outside was really strange.

“Afterwards, I read more about out-of-body experiences. I learned that some people believe all you need to do to return to your body is tell yourself it’s time to return. The experience on the highway frightened me so much that every time I’ve tried astral projection using courses or lessons I’ve read, I haven’t been able to leave my body.”

Brenda considers his story. “If you weren’t prepared for the experience and it frightened you, that fear may have created a mental barrier. Breaking through something like that could take time. I haven’t been able to successfully astral project myself, although I’ve been involved in controlled studies where some people seemed able to do it at will.”

“I hope I can do it again someday,” William says. “Now that I understand more about it, I think it would be amazing to visit places and see things you normally couldn’t.”

Matthew grins. “Yeah, like the girls’ locker room.”

Everyone stares at him. They are not particularly surprised that Matthew would think of something like that. They are more surprised that he would say it aloud in front of an adult.

Brenda remains calm. “Slow down, Matthew. It doesn’t work that way. From what I understand, people who believe in astral projection also believe there are limitations to what can be done.”

Matthew’s grin fades slightly. “Well, that makes it sound less intriguing.”

“I’m not surprised you’d say that.” Brenda smiles. “There have been experiments and claims involving what people sometimes call remote viewing or out-of-body perception. How much of it is genuine is another question. But if you want to explore any unusual experience seriously, you need to remain open to possibilities without automatically accepting every claim as fact. A closed mind learns nothing—but neither does an unquestioning one.”

The group is surprised by how calmly Brenda handles Matthew’s wisecracks. Most people either ignore him or become annoyed. Somehow, she seems capable of challenging him without turning the conversation into an argument.

William looks apologetic. “Sorry I interrupted you, Brenda. Please continue with what you were saying about hunting for ghosts when you were a teenager.”

“I was basically finished anyway. What I’d really like to hear about now is your investigation.”

Jessica begins. “We’d talked about going to the old mill for quite a while. We finally decided to go last weekend because everyone was available and the weather was supposed to be nice. We met at the big tree at school, like we normally do, checked that everyone had their cameras and voice recorders, and headed out to the mill.”

William picks up the story. “When we reached the Anderson—I mean Johnson—property, we split into three groups and looked around for any sign that someone else might be there. Everything seemed deserted, so we went into the old mill. We didn’t have any apparent luck there, so eventually we moved on to the main house.”

“Once we got inside, some of us were a little freaked out,” Sarah admits. “I don’t mind saying I was jumpy, and I wasn’t the only one.”

Alexis nods. “Some of us had never actually been somewhere that looked haunted before. The place reminded me of something from a horror movie.”

“It sure did,” Samantha agrees. “It was my first real investigation in a strange location. I kept expecting ghosts to start flying from room to room or furniture to begin moving. I was basically waiting for something to happen.”

“We tried to explain that real ghost hunting isn’t like the movies or some big television production,” William says. “But sometimes you have to experience something yourself before your expectations change.”

Jessica continues. “When we entered the house, the first strange thing was that the door was unlocked. We called out, ‘Is anybody in this house?’ Nobody answered, so we assumed we were alone.

“We split into three groups. It was only our third real investigation, and the first two had been a little disorganized, so William, Matthew and I each took some of the younger members. We wanted to show them how we conduct an investigation based on what we’ve learned from books, shows and our own experiences.

“I took Sarah and Alexis. William went with Samantha, and Matthew went with Jacob. Each group took a floor, and we planned to meet at the main entrance in about forty-five minutes to an hour before changing locations.

“William and Samantha went towards the attic, Sarah, Alexis and I took the second floor, and Matthew and Jacob searched the main floor. We left the cellar alone because it was full of water. William had checked it as soon as we entered.”

William nods. “Samantha and I headed upstairs. While we were going up to the second floor, we heard what sounded like footsteps moving from the landing, down the hallway towards the attic. I ran up the stairs to see what it was, and Samantha was right behind me.”

“I don’t know why I followed him,” Samantha says. “When William took off, I guess the adrenaline kicked in. I wanted to see what it was. I didn’t even stop to think that it might be a ghost.”

William laughs. “I wonder what you would’ve done if it had been one.

“Anyway, we reached the ladder leading to the attic, but there was nobody anywhere. Whoever made those footsteps would have needed to be incredibly fast to get down the hall and up the ladder before I reached the top of the stairs.

“While we checked the rooms, we heard what sounded like voices coming from the attic. We went up as quietly as possible. As soon as I could get my hand high enough, I raised the camcorder above the attic floor and slowly panned it around.

“Unfortunately, nothing showed up when we reviewed the video later. Samantha and I searched behind boxes and old furniture but found nothing. The windows were intact, so the sound didn’t seem to be coming from outside.

“We conducted an EVP session, asking whether anyone was there, whether they wanted to tell us anything and whether they could tap on the floor—the usual questions. After about ten minutes without an obvious response, we headed downstairs to meet the others.”

Jessica takes over. “I saw William and Samantha run upstairs while we were getting ready to search the second floor. I wanted to follow them, but I knew we should stick to the investigation plan.

“Sarah, Alexis and I started down the hallway. Then a door slammed somewhere near the far end. Sarah and Alexis both screamed a little because it startled them.

“We went to investigate, but all the doors were open. We tried EVP sessions in a couple of the rooms using the same basic questions William and Samantha were asking. Nothing responded, and we didn’t see anything else unusual, so eventually we went downstairs to meet the others.”

Brenda leans forward. “I’m curious. What exactly do you consider your basic questions? And how does everyone know what to ask?”

“That’s easy.” William reaches into his pocket, removes a folded sheet of paper and hands it to her. “We made a list and gave a copy to every group member. We put it together from ghost-hunting books and different shows we’ve watched.”

Brenda unfolds the sheet.

BASIC EVP QUESTIONS

Wait a few minutes for a possible response after each question.

1. Is there anybody here with us? 2. I am [state your name], and this is [introduce who is with you]. We would like to talk to you, if you don’t mind. 3. Can you please tell us your name? 4. If anyone is here, would you like to give us a message? 5. If anyone is here, can you knock on the wall, floor or another hard object? 6. Can you tell us how many spirits are in the room with us? 7. What year is it? 8. Is this your room, home or space? 9. Can you move an object? [Select a light object or place something down.] 10. Can you turn on the LED flashlight for us? [Set the flashlight so it is nearly switched on and place it away from the investigators.] 11. Can I take a picture of you by this object? [Choose an object and take the photograph about ten seconds after asking.] 12. Do you want us to leave? If so, tell us, make a knocking sound or move an object. 13. We are going now. This is your last chance to talk to us before we leave. 14. Goodbye.

Optional: Ask questions directly related to the location or its history if there is no response to the general questions.

Brenda finishes reading and looks up. “This is quite a thorough list. I’m beginning to realize how seriously you take paranormal investigation. This isn’t a game to you, is it?”

“Not at all,” William says. “We’re genuinely interested in the unexplained. Ghosts are our main interest, but we’d love to investigate other unexplained things too. If somebody reported a Bigfoot or a UFO near town, we’d want to investigate that as well.”

“I’m starting to understand that.” Brenda looks towards Matthew and Jacob. “So I suppose you two are next. What did you encounter?”

“Not much,” Matthew says. “While everyone else searched upstairs, Jacob and I went room to room on the main floor. We tried different EVP sessions, but we didn’t see or hear anything.”

Jacob sounds disappointed. “Yeah. We never find anything.”

Brenda studies him thoughtfully. “Considering what you’ve experienced in your bedroom, perhaps part of you doesn’t want to encounter anything else. Fear can make people avoid things without consciously realizing it. And Matthew has been approaching these investigations as a skeptic. Between the two of you, you may simply be less likely to interpret something as paranormal unless it’s unmistakable.”

“Is there any way to change that?” Jacob asks. “I want to experience things like my friends do.”

“Start with the fear you already have,” Brenda tells him. “If the old man appears again, remember what we talked about earlier. Remind yourself that you’re in your own room, tell him to leave, and use prayer if that helps you feel safe. Whether the experience is paranormal or has another explanation, taking back some control may help you become less frightened.”

Jacob nods hesitantly. “Guess I’ll give it a try.”

“Good. Shall we continue?”

Jessica nods. “Then it was our turn to check the attic. As Sarah, Alexis and I went upstairs, we also heard footsteps ahead of us. I got excited and started moving faster to see what it was.”

“Excited is one way to describe it,” Alexis interrupts. “Sarah and I were more scared than excited. We ran after Jessica because we didn’t want to stay behind where we’d first heard the sound. My heart was beating so hard I could feel it in my throat.”

Sarah nods firmly in agreement.

Jessica smiles. “Whatever our reasons, we stayed together. We checked the rooms quickly on our way to the attic but didn’t see anything. We searched upstairs and conducted EVP sessions, but nothing happened. After about twenty minutes, we went back downstairs.”

Matthew continues. “While Jacob and I were on the second floor, we didn’t see or hear anything unusual. We tried EVP sessions in every room and got no obvious replies.

“Then, when we were heading downstairs, Jacob stopped and looked strange, so I asked what was wrong.”

“I thought I heard someone say something behind me,” Jacob explains. “I turned around expecting to see the girls, but nobody was there.”

“So we tried an EVP session right at the top of the stairs,” Matthew says. “A couple of times, after our first and third questions, we both heard what sounded like whispering.

“At first I figured it was the wind. But later, when we reviewed the recording, I started thinking it really might have been whispering. The wind doesn’t usually blow on cue right after you ask a question.

“The problem was that we couldn’t amplify the whispers enough to understand what they were saying.”

William continues the recap. “Then it was Samantha’s and my turn on the main floor. We waited until the other groups were upstairs before beginning our sweep.

“We were going from room to room trying EVP sessions when we suddenly saw the cellar door open. I started walking towards it. I was staring at the door so intently that I didn’t even notice Samantha had stopped following me.”

Samantha’s expression becomes serious. “That was when I saw the image of a man who seemed to be yelling. It was almost like watching a movie in my mind. He would say something while looking beside himself, turn away, then turn back and repeat the same sequence.

“I tried taking a couple of pictures, but nothing showed up. When I looked up from the camera, the image was gone.

“At the time, I thought I might have imagined it. That corner was a little dark, and my eyes weren’t completely focused when I saw him.”

“When I reached the cellar, the door was still open,” William says. “I shone my flashlight down the stairs, but all I could see was water.

“I closed the door again and pulled on it. It was latched solid. I figured that when Matthew checked the cellar earlier, maybe he hadn’t closed it all the way.”

Matthew shrugs. “I thought I did, but I couldn’t be sure.”

Brenda has been taking notes while they talk, looking for possible explanations for each event. What impresses her most is what the group does not label paranormal. Nobody is claiming every creaking floorboard is a ghost. They are not turning every shadow into a figure or describing the kind of white-sheet apparitions found in cartoons.

For such a young group, they are making a genuine effort to separate what they can explain from what they cannot.

Brenda looks up from her notes. “Is that everything that happened?”

“No!” Alexis blurts out.

Everyone jumps.

Brenda looks at her. “You seem enthusiastic. What else happened?”

Alexis lowers her head, embarrassed by her outburst. “Sorry. We still haven’t told you about the traveller.”

Brenda looks puzzled. “Who’s the traveller?”

William takes over. “Everyone was finishing the last part of the investigation and repeating the same basic steps on each floor. Nothing else seemed to be happening.

“Jessica, Alexis and Sarah were standing in the sitting room talking about the investigation when Samantha and I came in. We joined them while we waited for Matthew and Jacob.

“Then, all of a sudden, the girls’ faces went white.

“I turned around and saw the figure of a man moving from one side of the room to the other. Jessica and I both raised our camcorders to record it, but all I captured was a flash of light. Just after the figure disappeared, Matthew and Jacob came into the room.”

Brenda turns to Jessica. “What was on your video?”

Jessica looks embarrassed. “I didn’t realize my camera was already recording. When I tried to record what we were seeing, I actually turned it off.”

Brenda nods slowly, absorbing everything they have told her.

“So why did Alexis call him the traveller?”