A Holiday Haunting: Part 3

Jack, Erin and Lucy deal with the final complication;

Based on a post by zeon 67.
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Jack visits the Franklin Home.

Jack opened his eyes. He was instantly wide awake. It didn't
take him long to realize that Jack was somewhere else, definitely not his
bedroom. He was in his living room; yeah, it had to be. The room had the same
shape, but there were no lights, electronics or anything modern. Ornate wood
and gold-framed paintings filled the walls. The room felt smaller, but Jack
noticed a massive fireplace that must have been removed before his parents
bought the house.

He had to be in 1898. It was the only thing that made sense.

An older man walked into the room, but he didn't notice Jack
sitting on the chair. Again, Jack was quick to understand; he was the ghost
this time around. He couldn't touch anything, but could sit and stand, like
Erin after the s ance. Looking down, he found himself wearing the same clothes
before the ritual.

The older man looked like he was in his sixties, overweight
and balding salt and pepper hair. He reminded Jack of a railroad baron in old
westerns. He had these large sideburns that went down to his chin. Jack
couldn't help but stare at him. He guessed that the man was Jedediah Franklin.
He poured himself a glass of whiskey and stood next to the fire. Jack could
hear him speaking to himself but couldn't make out what he was saying.

They were soon joined by another. A woman, in her sixties,
walked into the room. Stone-faced and with grey eyes, she looked miserable. She
was wearing this dark blue, nearly black ruffled dress that had this deep,
sweeping skirt. If the man was Jedediah Franklin, she had to be Alice Franklin.

She joined her husband at the fire and said, "Where is
Robert?"

"In the library," he answered.

"And that jezebel?"

"Fixing herself supper."

"She cannot stay. She talks about marriage."

"We cannot just force her out," Jedediah Franklin
said, staring at the fire.

"What? Let her marry your only son?"

He turned and glared at his wife, "You think I would
allow that Irish fucking whore to be part of this family? No, she must be
silenced. She cannot speak to anyone about this."

Alice Franklin slowly smiled and said, "Then we are at
agreement. But it must be tonight."

They both nodded and turned to watch the fire. Jedediah
Franklin snaked an arm around his wife's waist while she rested her head on his
shoulder. It would have looked like a heartwarming moment, but they were
planning a murder, and it just pissed off Jack even more. The way they talked
about death, so casual and just to avoid a minor scandal, disgusted Jack.

Needed to get away, Jack caught Erin walking past in the
hallway. He ran after her, following her into the kitchen.

"Erin? Erin?" He said, standing in front of her.

She didn't respond. It wasn't the Erin he knew. She had her
hair tied in a bun, her face disinterested and a little tired. She slowly
washed the dishes, staring dead-eyed at the water.

Jack then followed her as she went about with her chores. He
had called out for Erin, his Erin, but only got silence. Going back to the
alive-Erin, Jack got it. He needed to see her die, to understand what happened
to her. It made sense to him.

A younger man, looking like a mix of Jedediah Franklin and
weirdly enough for Jack, himself. Robert. Dressed in a black three-piece suit,
he didn't have his father's impressive muttonchops but a simple beard. Jack
watched him stare at Erin, taking in her every movement as she did her chores.

Erin was putting away a jar, leaning up to place it in a
cabinet when Robert approached her. He quickly trapped her in the corner of the
room. He smiled and said, "Erin."

She jolted, nearly dropping the jar. Erin then turned and
clutched her chest. "Oh Robert, you frightened me."

"I have to see you tonight." Robert stroked her
cheek and grinned. "In the attic?"

"Your mother and father?"

"Please," he replied.

Erin nodded.

Lucy's Post Coital.

Lucy shook awake. She was on Jack's bed, naked and warm. Her
hand slithered down her nude body, liking how it felt, stopping at her crotch.
A big dirty smile appeared on her face as Lucy slid her hand between her legs.
Jack's cum dripped out, coating her fingers and her thighs. The guy knew how to
fuck; she'd give him that. It was a hot show.

But Lucy turned her head and realized that she was alone. No
Jack. No Erin. She jumped off the bed and yelled their names. It was getting
close to two in the morning. Lucy ran to Jack's bathroom and cleaned herself
up, she usually would take her time with post-sex cleanup, but she rushed
through it. Lucy then emptied out her overnight bag and quickly got dressed.

Opening the grimoire, she tried to find clues on what had
happened. Sex magic and resurrecting the dead don't make people disappear.
Frantically flipping through the pages, this was not supposed to happen. Lucy
could feel her heart thumping, and her hands were trembling, where did she send
Erin and Jack.

She then heard a thud from downstairs, and Lucy stopped.
This was getting weird. Jack's parents, she realized. Fuck, if they were awake,
she will be in a lot of trouble.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Lucy yelled to herself and ran
out of the room.

An Attic Nightmere.

Jack had followed Robert upstairs to the attic. He struggled
to see how the space would be turned into his bedroom. A massive trunk, a
decrepit dollhouse and an ancient full-length mirror covered in rust were the
only things that filled the space. It looked more like a scene from a clich d
horror movie.

While Robert waited on Erin, Jack circled around him. He had
this vibe that Jack really hated. Like he was some entitled frat boy. Jack had
read about him, failed business ventures, multiple marriages, some for money.
Robert finally lost it all in 1929 and disappeared from public record.

They both turned, hearing someone coming up. Erin was
carrying a lantern as she walked to Robert, a big smile on her face. This
wasn't going to be pretty, Jack said to himself.

"Robert," she said, resting the lantern on the
trunk. Erin then gave him a long hug, wrapping her arms around him.

Robert just kept his arms by his sides and looked away. Jack
sighed, knowing that there was no point in getting angry.

She then kissed him and said, "I'm so sorry. I was a
fool and the drink got on me."

"It is fine, my darling." Robert then rested his
hand on her stomach. "Are you?"

"No. I am not with child." Erin glanced at this
hand and then back up, hopeful. "I want to be; with you."

"I wish that as well. But soon. I; we have dealings
that need to be cleared. But I wish it too. And when these deals;"

Jack couldn't watch Robert struggle to pacify Erin with
vague words anymore. He saw something move behind Erin. There was someone else.
The figure then struck Erin in the back of the head. It took a step closer,
Jedediah Franklin with a fireplace poker in his hands. Erin was on the floor,
bleeding but still alive. Her eyes focused on Robert, and she called out his
name. The elder Franklin aimed the poker and swung for the final blow.

He had to look away. Jack couldn't watch her die; it was too
much.

But there Erin stood, alongside Jack; her hair undone and
flowing and looking at him. Her apron was gone, and she had undone the first
two buttons of her shirt like before. Her face dropping and she raised a hand,
blocking her view of her own dead body.

"I always hated this moment. Watching my body handled
like meat," Erin said. Her tone was more of annoyance and disgust than
sadness.

"I'm so sorry."

Erin took his hand and held it close to her. "There's
nothing you could've done. This is where I was, whenever I wasn't with you.
Seeing my death over and over."

"Was that why you didn't want to believe in the
ritual?"

"Somewhat. While I couldn't touch anything, and
possibly be treated as some curiosity. I would have taken being a specter than
watch this again."

Alice Franklin had joined them in the attic. She held on to
the lantern as Jedediah and Robert lifted Erin's dead body, directing them down
the stairs. Jack visibly winced as he heard the Franklins mock Erin and ask if
someone should have done the last rites.

"There is something that I must tell you," Erin
said, taking a step closer. Their faces inches apart. "When Patrick died,
he lost all our money in a card game. I was told that I've become too old to
marry and I should just work. The Franklins gave me a job and I felt that was
it. Then I met Robert. I felt my life had begun again."

Erin gave a faint smile and carried on, "We courted for
a few months, until he took me while his mother and father were in New York.
Weeks passed and I thought that I was with child. I told him and he choked
me."

"I knew that I picked the wrong man. But still believed
that I could be something more than a maid through him. That he could take me
away from a bucket. Now I have you. You make me hopeful. What I want to say is
that I love you. I know I am this spirit