WEBVTT - Chapter 7 - 1993 0:00:00.880 --> 0:00:05.000 Lighthouse is a production of I Heart Radio and Bamford Productions. 0:00:07.920 --> 0:00:11.240 Lighthouse revealed a secret to us that warm summer's day 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:14.040 in nineteen eighty six, one that began to make the 0:00:14.080 --> 0:00:17.279 pieces clicked together. When that recording ran out and the 0:00:17.320 --> 0:00:20.000 real to real player was left spinning an empty spool, 0:00:20.239 --> 0:00:23.760 my mind reeled from the revelation. My father had a sister, 0:00:24.239 --> 0:00:26.840 a sister that had died in the very same room 0:00:26.880 --> 0:00:30.960 he was. In a way, it was almost poetic, if 0:00:30.960 --> 0:00:35.320 not horrifying. But this sister, Madeline, also was a race 0:00:35.400 --> 0:00:38.440 from the family's history. Thinking back, my father had never 0:00:38.440 --> 0:00:41.400 spoken about her. Even the painting in his former study 0:00:41.400 --> 0:00:44.600 excluded her from the family portrait. She was the secret 0:00:44.640 --> 0:00:48.560 shame whitewashed away in an effort to forget. But she 0:00:48.600 --> 0:00:52.440 wouldn't be forgotten. Consumed by the darkness both in life 0:00:52.479 --> 0:00:55.160 and in death, she had returned with the other entities 0:00:55.200 --> 0:00:59.280 of the house. Lini's imaginary friend, Abigail was one and 0:00:59.320 --> 0:01:03.200 the same as Madeleine. The darkness that lived in Lighthouse 0:01:03.240 --> 0:01:06.240 had corrupted her, and now she had latched onto Leani 0:01:06.480 --> 0:01:09.640 for who knows what purpose. Hearing all this, it was 0:01:09.920 --> 0:01:13.640 too much to bear. While I stood there captivated, fingers 0:01:13.680 --> 0:01:16.480 digging into my palms when it was playing. Once the 0:01:16.520 --> 0:01:19.680 recording had run its course, I ran from the dark room. 0:01:20.040 --> 0:01:22.520 I bounded up the stairs, through the pantry and the 0:01:22.560 --> 0:01:26.120 rest of the house, straight outside, leaning against the ancient 0:01:26.160 --> 0:01:29.000 red oak tree. I was sick to my stomach. I 0:01:29.000 --> 0:01:31.600 hadn't eaten all day, so nothing came up with bile, 0:01:31.640 --> 0:01:34.000 and it burned my throat, as if my body was 0:01:34.040 --> 0:01:37.200 trying to expel what I had just learned. I looked 0:01:37.240 --> 0:01:39.800 back to the house. I saw the man in the 0:01:39.800 --> 0:01:42.800 hat standing in the window on the third floor, in 0:01:42.800 --> 0:01:44.920 the same place I had first seen him all those 0:01:45.000 --> 0:01:49.680 years ago. He smiled, knowing that he had helped expose 0:01:49.760 --> 0:01:52.520 me to a secret that the family had tried to forget. 0:01:53.440 --> 0:01:56.720 I couldn't stand it anymore. Lighthouse was a stain on 0:01:56.760 --> 0:01:59.120 the soul of the world, and I had to get away. 0:01:59.480 --> 0:02:02.640 I had to keep my family away, to keep them safe. 0:02:02.720 --> 0:02:04.680 I would move to the ends of the earth if 0:02:04.680 --> 0:02:06.840 I had to, and keep moving to stay ahead of 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:09.040 the man in the hat and whoever else the house 0:02:09.040 --> 0:02:12.720 sent for me. I ran. I ran back to my car, 0:02:12.800 --> 0:02:15.160 and when it didn't start because it was still overheated, 0:02:15.360 --> 0:02:18.560 I kept running. I ran until I eventually found my 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:21.480 way back home days later, and hucked my son until 0:02:21.560 --> 0:02:24.320 Chris had to pry me off. I was never going 0:02:24.360 --> 0:02:28.079 back to Lighthouse again. But that's not how it works, 0:02:28.520 --> 0:02:33.360 does it. On that day in it was thirteen years 0:02:33.360 --> 0:02:37.079 since my father died, thirteen years since Lighthouse had claimed 0:02:37.080 --> 0:02:41.200 another soul, and it was hungry again. But the house 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:44.679 was patient. It bided its time until the moment was right. 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:49.080 It reached its tendrils into its next victim, continuing to 0:02:49.120 --> 0:02:54.560 claw its way inside until finally I snapped. On a 0:02:54.600 --> 0:03:00.840 cold winter's day in, I came back to Lighthouse. Seven 0:03:00.919 --> 0:03:04.240 years had passed, and though I swore never to return, 0:03:05.200 --> 0:03:09.320 something tragic happened that caused me to break myself imposed exile. 0:03:10.880 --> 0:03:51.320 Leaney was dead. Lighthouse, Chapter seven. Lighthouse never left my mind. 0:03:51.400 --> 0:03:54.520 During those years away. I stayed in contact with my sister, 0:03:54.680 --> 0:03:57.320 more so than I had previously. I had gone dark 0:03:57.360 --> 0:03:59.640 for a few months, but called the house late one 0:03:59.720 --> 0:04:02.560 night check on her. Thankfully it was her that picked 0:04:02.600 --> 0:04:05.320 up the phone and not my mother. I wasn't sure 0:04:05.360 --> 0:04:07.520 I would be able to face her after I left 0:04:07.560 --> 0:04:10.840 without saying goodbye, but Leni was always thrilled to hear 0:04:10.880 --> 0:04:14.000 from me. Since my mother was somehow intercepting her mail, 0:04:14.360 --> 0:04:17.400 we decided on an alternate route. I would establish a 0:04:17.440 --> 0:04:20.039 PO box in Leni's name in town, away from my 0:04:20.080 --> 0:04:23.240 mother's overbearing eyes, where I would be able to send 0:04:23.240 --> 0:04:27.440 her letters. Lenie had already established a habit of long walks, 0:04:27.560 --> 0:04:30.320 disappearing from the house for hours at a time, so 0:04:31.000 --> 0:04:33.600 mother was never suspicious of the days she visited the 0:04:33.640 --> 0:04:37.520 post office to receive our secret communications. Most times her 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:40.080 letters were a childlike the way I had come to 0:04:40.120 --> 0:04:43.240 know her. But other times it was as if my 0:04:43.360 --> 0:04:45.760 sister had an air of clarity about her, like the 0:04:45.760 --> 0:04:48.599 fog in her mind cleared and she was herself. She 0:04:48.680 --> 0:04:52.760 seemed normal, normal for her age. I mean, those letters 0:04:52.760 --> 0:04:58.320 were more coherent focused. It was incredible. But unfortunately, these 0:04:58.360 --> 0:05:01.560 moments came and went quickly, and she always reverted back 0:05:01.600 --> 0:05:04.280 to the way I remember her being. So it went 0:05:04.320 --> 0:05:08.200 for years. We traded letters secretly back and forth. I 0:05:08.240 --> 0:05:10.520 spoke of my family in the outside world, while she 0:05:10.520 --> 0:05:13.560 wrote innocently of her long days spent within the house. 0:05:13.960 --> 0:05:16.760 Of color she had painted her bedroom, how the flowers 0:05:16.760 --> 0:05:19.200 were growing in the garden, how the ocean was rough 0:05:19.279 --> 0:05:22.479 that day. She never complained, but there was always a 0:05:22.560 --> 0:05:26.479 hint of sadness in her letters, maybe even regret, regret 0:05:26.520 --> 0:05:29.760 for not leaving Lighthouse and regret for me not being 0:05:29.760 --> 0:05:32.640 in her life. More from her letters, I could tell 0:05:32.720 --> 0:05:35.799 my mother was demanding much of her and often treated 0:05:35.800 --> 0:05:38.400 her as a child. It was as if they were 0:05:38.400 --> 0:05:41.279 both stuck in a perpetual state of when Leni was 0:05:41.320 --> 0:05:44.520 still a young girl. This point was driven home, even 0:05:44.560 --> 0:05:48.080 more so by the drawings she sometimes included, similar to 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:50.280 that birthday card she gave me all those years ago. 0:05:51.040 --> 0:05:53.679 I often begged her in my letters to come visit, 0:05:53.920 --> 0:05:57.160 to get away from Lighthouse and from our mother, but 0:05:57.320 --> 0:06:01.680 she always ignored these requests. Those last few months, her 0:06:01.760 --> 0:06:05.599 letters grew shorter. There was less about her comings and goings, 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:07.800 and more about how happy she was that I was 0:06:07.839 --> 0:06:11.640 having a good life. These were worrying, of course, as 0:06:11.680 --> 0:06:14.680 she seemed to be drawing inward. I tried to follow 0:06:14.760 --> 0:06:17.159 up each of these with a phone call, but most 0:06:17.200 --> 0:06:20.200 of the time they went unanswered. All this was concerning, 0:06:20.279 --> 0:06:22.960 to say the least, and I doubled my efforts to 0:06:23.000 --> 0:06:25.760 invite Leny to visit us, or at the very least, 0:06:26.080 --> 0:06:30.080 start seeing someone. I sent a letter detailing my concern, 0:06:30.320 --> 0:06:33.360 asking her to spend Christmas with us, a letter which 0:06:33.400 --> 0:06:37.839 went unreturned. This was sometimes common, as getting to town 0:06:37.920 --> 0:06:40.120 and away from mother did not happen as much as 0:06:40.160 --> 0:06:43.240 she would have liked. But when the next letter, and 0:06:43.279 --> 0:06:46.039 then when after that went with no response, I grew 0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:49.440 more worried. I spent many sleepless nights thinking of her, 0:06:49.839 --> 0:06:52.120 often waking from a nightmare that would not let me 0:06:52.160 --> 0:06:55.200 fall back to sleep. In it, I saw the lighthouse, 0:06:55.680 --> 0:06:59.239 the dim glow atop it, steadily growing brighter and brighter again, 0:06:59.560 --> 0:07:02.440 until I could see nothing but the blinding brilliance emanating 0:07:02.480 --> 0:07:06.120 from it. I received the call a few days before Christmas. 0:07:06.839 --> 0:07:09.760 It was from an old friend from high school, when 0:07:09.760 --> 0:07:12.480 I kept in contact with sporadically over the years, who 0:07:12.560 --> 0:07:16.680 was offering her condolences. I was confused at first, thinking 0:07:16.720 --> 0:07:19.920 that she perhaps had dialed the wrong person, but she 0:07:20.040 --> 0:07:23.200 soon realized that I was not yet informed and broke 0:07:23.280 --> 0:07:26.720 down telling me the news. Lenny had gone missing a 0:07:26.760 --> 0:07:30.480 few days before. She had left lighthouse to go grocery 0:07:30.480 --> 0:07:34.679 shopping alone. Since the weather was inclement, it wasn't until 0:07:34.720 --> 0:07:37.080 two days later that my mother, coming out of a 0:07:37.160 --> 0:07:41.120 drunken stupor, realized that she had never returned home. The 0:07:41.160 --> 0:07:43.720 police searched the town and surrounding areas for her, but 0:07:43.800 --> 0:07:48.320 to no avail. There was no trace of her, no, no, nothing, 0:07:49.520 --> 0:07:51.760 until her body had washed up on shore a few 0:07:51.840 --> 0:07:56.240 days later. Eventually, the police found her jacket in the lighthouse. 0:07:56.880 --> 0:07:59.560 The prevailing theory was that she climbed to the top 0:07:59.720 --> 0:08:02.360 and jumped over the edge of the bluff to her death, 0:08:02.640 --> 0:08:06.080 down to the ocean below. As I listened to my 0:08:06.160 --> 0:08:08.400 friend tell me the story, I was in a state 0:08:08.440 --> 0:08:11.160 of shock. I gripped the phone in my hand until 0:08:11.200 --> 0:08:14.080 my knuckles turned white and my teeth ground against each other. 0:08:14.960 --> 0:08:17.520 When she ended the connection, I stood there, my mind 0:08:17.600 --> 0:08:20.200 trying to process all that she said, until it all 0:08:20.240 --> 0:08:22.240 weighed down on me and I could not hold it 0:08:22.280 --> 0:08:27.200 together any longer. I collapsed. I lost all track of time. 0:08:28.040 --> 0:08:31.200 Chris found me there much later, furious at me from 0:08:31.200 --> 0:08:33.839 missing several phone calls and for not picking up Kevin 0:08:33.880 --> 0:08:37.720 from school. And when the initial shock of her death 0:08:37.760 --> 0:08:41.640 finally wore off, the anchor set in. I was furious 0:08:41.679 --> 0:08:44.120 with my mother for not letting me know Leni was dead, 0:08:44.520 --> 0:08:47.720 let alone missing. I was furious at Leni for not 0:08:47.800 --> 0:08:50.800 reaching out for help during the time that she so 0:08:50.920 --> 0:08:54.920 desperately needed it, But most of all, I was furious 0:08:54.960 --> 0:08:58.160 at myself for not being there for her, for not 0:08:58.320 --> 0:09:01.040 making a better effort, and for letting this happen to 0:09:01.120 --> 0:09:04.520 begin with. I tried calling my mother for further details 0:09:04.520 --> 0:09:07.440 on arrangements, but like usual, the phone just rang and rang. 0:09:07.880 --> 0:09:10.240 I eventually mustered up the guts to call the funeral 0:09:10.280 --> 0:09:13.080 home in town and got the details from them. The 0:09:13.120 --> 0:09:15.880 service was happening the next day, so I quickly packed 0:09:15.880 --> 0:09:18.320 the bag and once again I found myself back on 0:09:18.360 --> 0:09:22.080 the road to Lighthouse. Chris wanted to join me to 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:25.000 provide the emotional support that I so desperately needed, but 0:09:25.200 --> 0:09:28.560 I refused. I wanted to keep both him and Kevin 0:09:28.600 --> 0:09:32.360 as far away from there as possible. The snow was 0:09:32.400 --> 0:09:35.959 coming down heavily by the time I made it to town. Thankfully, 0:09:36.320 --> 0:09:39.160 I did not miss the viewing, as there wasn't one. 0:09:39.679 --> 0:09:42.560 Apparently the result of her jump was too grisly for one. 0:09:43.440 --> 0:09:45.800 But I drove as quickly as I could to make 0:09:45.840 --> 0:09:49.120 it in time for the service. The roads were slippery, 0:09:49.160 --> 0:09:52.280 making my progress slow, but I pulled into the cemetery 0:09:52.360 --> 0:09:54.560 just as Leney was being loaded out of the hearse 0:09:54.760 --> 0:09:58.360 and toward her grave site. Bracing myself against the cold, 0:09:58.400 --> 0:10:00.800 I pulled my coat tight or on me and climbed 0:10:00.840 --> 0:10:04.200 out of the car. The wind was bitter, assaulting my 0:10:04.280 --> 0:10:07.880 face and making my eyes tear immediately. My shoes were 0:10:07.920 --> 0:10:10.640 not made for these conditions, but I trecked a few 0:10:10.679 --> 0:10:13.720 inches of snow on the ground as the minister's voice 0:10:13.760 --> 0:10:18.400 drifted towards me. He began his eulogy to an empty audience. 0:10:19.400 --> 0:10:22.959 My mother sat solemnly in her wheelchair, the only soul 0:10:23.000 --> 0:10:26.360 in attendance. I walked up beside her, placing my hand 0:10:26.400 --> 0:10:29.720 on her shoulder, but she didn't react. Instead, her eyes 0:10:29.720 --> 0:10:33.160 were focused on her daughter's final resting place. The minister 0:10:33.280 --> 0:10:35.480 spoke of Leni as if he hadn't really known her 0:10:35.520 --> 0:10:38.480 at all. He said she was a happy woman, living 0:10:38.480 --> 0:10:41.920 of fulfilling and rewarding life that went through a rough patch, 0:10:42.559 --> 0:10:45.240 but now it was in a better place. I could 0:10:45.240 --> 0:10:48.839 have laughed, if not for how sad I was. My 0:10:48.840 --> 0:10:52.160 own thoughts drowned him out. As I continued to blame 0:10:52.200 --> 0:10:55.240 myself for what had happened. I couldn't help but feel 0:10:55.240 --> 0:10:57.720 like it was my fault that Leanie was dead because 0:10:57.720 --> 0:11:00.920 I didn't do enough to help her. The tears began 0:11:00.960 --> 0:11:03.360 to flow as I considered how I could have taken 0:11:03.360 --> 0:11:06.040 her away from this place ages ago, given her a 0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:08.840 better life, one that was not marred by lighthouse and 0:11:08.880 --> 0:11:12.720 are past. Would that even have been possible? Was she 0:11:12.840 --> 0:11:16.200 so far gone by then that it wouldn't have mattered anyway. 0:11:17.840 --> 0:11:20.480 It wasn't until my mother began to wheel away that 0:11:20.559 --> 0:11:23.640 I realized they were lowering the coffin. She grabbed a 0:11:23.679 --> 0:11:26.560 handful of dirt and tossed it on the casket. She 0:11:26.720 --> 0:11:29.480 rolled away toward a limousine waiting for her, and I 0:11:29.520 --> 0:11:32.280 watched her go without saying a word to me. I 0:11:32.320 --> 0:11:36.240 thanked the priest for his kind, if untrue words, and 0:11:36.320 --> 0:11:39.800 dropped my own handful of dirt into Lini's grave. With 0:11:39.840 --> 0:11:42.160 my mother gone and me on my way back to 0:11:42.240 --> 0:11:44.840 my car, they didn't waste any time in starting to 0:11:44.920 --> 0:11:48.760 fill in her plot. Each shovelful of dirt striking the 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:51.959 casket was like a knife through my heart. A period 0:11:52.000 --> 0:11:55.240 accentuating the end of her chapter. I got in my 0:11:55.280 --> 0:11:58.160 car and watched them as they worked. It was grueling, 0:11:58.840 --> 0:12:00.920 especially in this weather, but they looked like a well 0:12:00.960 --> 0:12:04.000 oiled machine working together to get it done, with the 0:12:04.040 --> 0:12:07.320 snow swirling around, giving everything in the area a natural 0:12:07.360 --> 0:12:10.439 white coat. I didn't notice the little girl standing beyond 0:12:10.480 --> 0:12:13.960 them at first. She was wearing a short white dress 0:12:14.000 --> 0:12:17.120 that made her blend into the scene. Her pigtails were 0:12:17.120 --> 0:12:19.880 the only splash of color aside from her eyes, which 0:12:19.880 --> 0:12:22.920 were focused on Leni's grave site. I was concerned at 0:12:22.960 --> 0:12:25.520 first because she wasn't wearing a coat, which in this 0:12:25.600 --> 0:12:28.280 weather it could be the death of anyone. But then 0:12:28.720 --> 0:12:31.560 I saw she was holding onto a teddy bear, one 0:12:31.600 --> 0:12:36.160 that looked very familiar. There was no question about who 0:12:36.200 --> 0:12:40.600 it was. It was Abigail paying her last respects to Lenie. 0:12:41.520 --> 0:12:57.720 I drove away before she finished Lighthouse will return after 0:12:57.800 --> 0:13:13.440 these messages and now back to Lighthouse. Since my mother 0:13:13.559 --> 0:13:16.160 did not acknowledge me at the funeral, I was ready 0:13:16.200 --> 0:13:19.200 to drive back home to Chris and to Kevin, to 0:13:19.280 --> 0:13:21.640 the life I had made away from this wretched place. 0:13:22.320 --> 0:13:25.520 But despite her cold shoulder, I knew my mother was hurting, 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:29.280 especially now that she was alone I made my way 0:13:29.320 --> 0:13:33.400 back to Lighthouse. The falling snow made it seem less menacing, 0:13:33.800 --> 0:13:36.760 but the familiar feeling of dread reared its ugly head 0:13:36.800 --> 0:13:39.520 as soon as it came into view. My plan was 0:13:39.559 --> 0:13:42.320 to pay my respects to my mother, see if I 0:13:42.360 --> 0:13:44.760 could set her up with any help, and get out 0:13:44.760 --> 0:13:47.719 of there as soon as possible. The limousine that had 0:13:47.720 --> 0:13:50.240 taken her from the cemetery was leaving the gates as 0:13:50.280 --> 0:13:53.120 I pulled up to them. I envied the person behind 0:13:53.120 --> 0:13:56.280 the wheel as they were leaving Lighthouse behind a speck 0:13:56.360 --> 0:13:59.880 in their rear view mirror. I parked avoiding a gla 0:14:00.080 --> 0:14:02.680 said the third story window, afraid that the apparition of 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:05.720 the man in the hat would be there to greet me. Instead, 0:14:05.800 --> 0:14:08.160 I focus solely on the front door, and I went 0:14:08.160 --> 0:14:11.120 inside to get out of the unpleasant weather. At least 0:14:11.160 --> 0:14:14.040 it was warmer here, the only thing going for it. 0:14:14.760 --> 0:14:17.320 With the door shut behind me, the silence of the 0:14:17.320 --> 0:14:20.960 house was striking. If it wasn't for the limousine I 0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:23.800 saw dropping my mother off, I could have sworn no 0:14:23.840 --> 0:14:26.720 one was home. I didn't bother to call out for 0:14:26.840 --> 0:14:29.280 my mother as she rolled into the main hall, bottle 0:14:29.320 --> 0:14:32.840 of scotch in hand. She continued on past me, content 0:14:32.920 --> 0:14:36.120 to ignore my presence until I called out to her. 0:14:36.640 --> 0:14:39.360 When I did, she stopped, but didn't bother to turn 0:14:39.400 --> 0:14:42.800 around to face me. Instead, she merely tilted her head 0:14:42.880 --> 0:14:46.960 back in my direction. What do you want? She said. 0:14:47.960 --> 0:14:50.480 I didn't know what to say. I came here to 0:14:50.600 --> 0:14:54.040 comfort her, to help her through a difficult time, and 0:14:54.120 --> 0:14:57.080 she was treating me this way. I came to say 0:14:57.120 --> 0:15:00.000 goodbye to Leni, I started before she cut me off, 0:15:00.520 --> 0:15:03.400 and you did. Now what do you want? She still 0:15:03.440 --> 0:15:05.760 wouldn't look at me, and it was clear that I 0:15:05.840 --> 0:15:08.240 was keeping her from her busy schedule of getting so 0:15:08.360 --> 0:15:11.880 drunk she forgot how sad she was. I don't want anything, 0:15:12.240 --> 0:15:15.080 I told her, I just want to be there for you. 0:15:15.920 --> 0:15:18.720 She turned her wheelchair around so she could finally look 0:15:18.840 --> 0:15:22.440 me in the eyes. Why now, you weren't there for me, 0:15:22.480 --> 0:15:25.000 and you weren't there for her, so why bother? Now? 0:15:25.400 --> 0:15:28.120 Go home? Tara. You made it clear you didn't want 0:15:28.120 --> 0:15:30.760 anything to do with us, and now I don't want 0:15:30.760 --> 0:15:34.720 anything to do with you. She turned again, wheeling herself 0:15:34.720 --> 0:15:37.800 out of the room before stopping once more. I left 0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:40.440 some things for you upstairs in your room, she called 0:15:40.480 --> 0:15:43.360 over her shoulder. Take them, leave them. I don't care, 0:15:43.880 --> 0:15:47.000 but after that, I want you gone. I was speechless, 0:15:47.360 --> 0:15:49.800 standing there, all alone in a house I hated, with 0:15:49.880 --> 0:15:52.920 a mother who hated me. The tears began to form, 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:55.680 but I held them back. I didn't want to give 0:15:55.680 --> 0:16:00.400 her the satisfaction. Instead, I made my way upstairs, anxious 0:16:00.440 --> 0:16:02.360 to see what she left so I could get out 0:16:02.360 --> 0:16:04.840 of there as soon as possible. I stood in the 0:16:04.880 --> 0:16:07.880 doorway of my old room, my eyes searching every corner 0:16:07.920 --> 0:16:10.400 before entering, just to make sure there was nothing lurking 0:16:10.440 --> 0:16:13.680 in there. My eyes fell upon the bed, where a 0:16:13.680 --> 0:16:17.200 cardboard box was waiting for me. My name was scrawled 0:16:17.240 --> 0:16:20.080 across the side hastily with a black marker, and when 0:16:20.080 --> 0:16:23.120 I opened it, I could tell she haphazardly threw things 0:16:23.120 --> 0:16:25.960 inside to rid herself of them. There were a few 0:16:26.000 --> 0:16:29.000 things from my childhood and there, including my old camera, 0:16:29.320 --> 0:16:30.920 the one I had found in the dark room all 0:16:30.960 --> 0:16:33.920 those years ago. Sitting on top of it was the 0:16:34.040 --> 0:16:36.880 very first photograph I ever took with it, the one 0:16:36.920 --> 0:16:39.880 from my twelfth birthday, where my parents and Leany sat 0:16:39.920 --> 0:16:43.680 around the table eating cake. I took it out studying it, 0:16:44.040 --> 0:16:46.720 and while I remembered my father wandering off to the 0:16:46.760 --> 0:16:50.040 study shortly after it was taken, I also remembered being 0:16:50.080 --> 0:16:54.000 happy in those few moments. It was the last true 0:16:54.040 --> 0:16:56.400 memory I had of all of us together as a 0:16:56.400 --> 0:17:00.200 family that I enjoyed. That moment was marred, though, by 0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:03.120 the appearance of a dark shadow crossing my father's face 0:17:03.120 --> 0:17:06.080 in the photo. Whether a flaw of the camera or 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:08.880 a harbinger of things yet to come, it cast him 0:17:08.880 --> 0:17:11.920 in a darkness that reflected what was invading his soul. 0:17:12.840 --> 0:17:15.879 Placing the photo aside, I reached deeper inside the box 0:17:15.920 --> 0:17:19.359 and felt something soft, pulling it out, I saw it 0:17:19.440 --> 0:17:22.920 was a teddy bear Abigails, the one Leonie had grown 0:17:22.920 --> 0:17:26.639 so attached to, despite my aversion to it all those years. 0:17:27.119 --> 0:17:29.480 It was the only real piece of Leanie. I had. 0:17:29.680 --> 0:17:32.679 The bear, and Abigail had meant the world to her, 0:17:33.160 --> 0:17:36.440 and now here it was discarded. I pulled the bear 0:17:36.480 --> 0:17:38.840 close to my chest and sat on the bed. I 0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:41.919 could fight the tears no longer, so they flowed freely. 0:17:42.400 --> 0:17:45.840 I cried and cried until I tired myself out so 0:17:45.960 --> 0:17:49.840 much that I fell asleep. I awoke hours later, my 0:17:50.000 --> 0:17:52.960 room as dark as the night outside. I jolted out 0:17:52.960 --> 0:17:55.280 of bed, unsure of how long I had slept and 0:17:55.320 --> 0:17:58.080 wanting to get out of there immediately. I grabbed the 0:17:58.080 --> 0:18:00.800 box of things and ran down the stairs. The house 0:18:00.880 --> 0:18:03.840 was dark and quiet still. The only sound drifting through 0:18:03.880 --> 0:18:07.159 the air was my mother's gentle snoring. I opened the 0:18:07.160 --> 0:18:09.879 front door and was immediately battered by the cold winter 0:18:10.000 --> 0:18:12.679 night air. It had gotten worse than the time I 0:18:12.760 --> 0:18:15.639 was out. My car was covered, and I did my 0:18:15.680 --> 0:18:18.320 best to clear its windshield so I could see. It. 0:18:18.359 --> 0:18:20.760 Took a few minutes to actually open the driver's side door, 0:18:20.880 --> 0:18:22.920 but once I was able to, I threw the box 0:18:22.920 --> 0:18:26.800 inside and followed suit, wasting no time. I turned it on, 0:18:27.280 --> 0:18:29.240 thankful for the blast of hot air that was to 0:18:29.280 --> 0:18:32.840 follow shortly, and shifted into drive, pressing lightly on the 0:18:32.880 --> 0:18:37.119 gas pedal. The car didn't move fine, I thought, it 0:18:37.240 --> 0:18:40.199 just needs a little more gas. I applied more pressure 0:18:40.240 --> 0:18:44.800 to it, but still nothing. The car tried to lunch forward, 0:18:44.800 --> 0:18:47.280 but the snow was piled too high, not giving way. 0:18:47.880 --> 0:18:50.720 I cursed loudly, hitting my hands against my steering wheel 0:18:50.720 --> 0:18:55.359 and anger before trying again. Still the car did not move. 0:18:56.080 --> 0:18:58.919 My eyes looked ahead traveling down the driveway, and I 0:18:58.960 --> 0:19:02.080 realized it was rootless. The storm had blocked me in 0:19:02.119 --> 0:19:05.800 for the night. I was stuck. I cursed again, hating 0:19:05.800 --> 0:19:07.600 that I was going to be forced to stay the night, 0:19:07.680 --> 0:19:10.280 and placed my head in my hands. I leaned against 0:19:10.320 --> 0:19:13.240 the steering wheel, frustrated and wondering what I was going 0:19:13.280 --> 0:19:17.520 to do despite the night, my car was suddenly filled 0:19:17.520 --> 0:19:20.080 with light. I looked up, hopeful that it was a 0:19:20.119 --> 0:19:22.399 snow plow making a path for me to leave this 0:19:22.480 --> 0:19:28.080 dreadful place. Instead, the light was coming not from the driveway, 0:19:28.119 --> 0:19:30.919 but from off to the side, closer to the ocean, 0:19:32.080 --> 0:19:35.480 from the lighthouse. The glow from the top, the one 0:19:35.520 --> 0:19:39.639 that haunted my dreams. It was there, beckoning me. It 0:19:39.760 --> 0:19:42.360 was brighter than I had ever seen before, so much 0:19:42.400 --> 0:19:44.399 so that I had to use my hand to shield 0:19:44.440 --> 0:19:47.520 myself from it. And as it grew so bright reflecting 0:19:47.560 --> 0:19:49.280 up the snow that I felt it was going to 0:19:49.359 --> 0:19:52.760 blind me, started to fade away until it was nothing 0:19:52.800 --> 0:19:56.320 at all. The dark of the night returned, leaving me terrified. 0:19:56.880 --> 0:19:58.840 It was getting cold and I needed to get back 0:19:58.840 --> 0:20:01.639 inside before I froze of death. Out there, I opened 0:20:01.640 --> 0:20:03.200 the car door, ready to make a run for the 0:20:03.240 --> 0:20:06.240 front door. When the light returned, it grew brighter and 0:20:06.359 --> 0:20:09.560 brighter again, illuminating everything it touched, making me want to 0:20:09.640 --> 0:20:12.600 scream and terror. But as I watched it go bright, 0:20:12.680 --> 0:20:16.320 I understood what was happening. There wasn't a mysterious light 0:20:16.359 --> 0:20:20.800 atop the lighthouse. It was a lighthouse itself, despite sitting 0:20:20.880 --> 0:20:25.919 in neglect for over seventy five years, it was somehow operational. Confused, 0:20:25.960 --> 0:20:29.600 I stood transfixed, watching the light go round and round again, 0:20:29.760 --> 0:20:32.560 calling out to the night. I wanted to run back 0:20:32.560 --> 0:20:35.040 to the house, wanted to hide somewhere under the covers 0:20:35.080 --> 0:20:36.920 and wait for the first light so I could call 0:20:37.000 --> 0:20:39.000 for a plow so I could get back home. But 0:20:39.080 --> 0:20:42.879 I knew deep inside that wouldn't happen. I knew that 0:20:42.960 --> 0:20:45.159 the things in the house would not let me be 0:20:45.400 --> 0:20:48.080 and would come after me, assaulting my senses all night 0:20:48.119 --> 0:20:51.520 long until I did something. I bundled my jacket up 0:20:51.520 --> 0:20:55.320 tighter and made for the lighthouse, It's light illuminating my path, 0:20:55.480 --> 0:20:57.879 my only hindrance being the mounds of snow that I 0:20:57.920 --> 0:21:00.439 trudged through. Though it was not too far from the 0:21:00.480 --> 0:21:03.760 house itself. The weather made my journey long and arduous, 0:21:03.880 --> 0:21:06.159 and by the time I reached the clearing where it stood, 0:21:06.400 --> 0:21:10.439 sweat dripped off me. Despite the cold. Long ago we 0:21:10.480 --> 0:21:13.399 would play here in the shadow of the lighthouse and 0:21:13.480 --> 0:21:16.520 never once paid at any mind. We were forbidden to 0:21:16.520 --> 0:21:18.960 go inside, and with the door padlock shut, we didn't 0:21:18.960 --> 0:21:22.679 bother to try. But now the door was wide open. 0:21:23.119 --> 0:21:26.480 A flickering light invited me to step inside. I was 0:21:26.520 --> 0:21:30.200 eventually going to have to anyway. It was also freezing outside, 0:21:30.200 --> 0:21:33.080 and I wouldn't last much longer in the cold. I 0:21:33.160 --> 0:21:36.680 stepped in and instantly felt a wave of heat, despite 0:21:36.680 --> 0:21:39.640 the weather outside. I shrugged my coat off a bit 0:21:39.760 --> 0:21:42.800 and looked around. This bottom floor of the lighthouse was 0:21:42.880 --> 0:21:46.000 mostly barren. On the hard concretes at a few old 0:21:46.040 --> 0:21:49.560 wooden boxes rotting from the inside out. A melting candle 0:21:49.800 --> 0:21:53.879 sat on one. A large, frayed length of heavy duty rope, 0:21:54.200 --> 0:21:56.520 the kind of big ship might use to tie itself 0:21:56.520 --> 0:21:59.600 to a dock, sat on the floor. The end looked 0:21:59.600 --> 0:22:02.760 like it was hacked off to whatever it was originally 0:22:02.800 --> 0:22:07.399 attached to. A spiral metal staircase was attached to the wall, 0:22:07.880 --> 0:22:11.119 winding its way up to the very top of the lighthouse. 0:22:11.800 --> 0:22:15.400 There was a vague hint of a heavy, intoxicating smell 0:22:15.440 --> 0:22:20.240 as well, gasoline. Perhaps. I looked up, hoping to catch 0:22:20.240 --> 0:22:22.920 a glimpse of what awaited me up there, but there 0:22:22.960 --> 0:22:26.600 was not much to see. The stairs continued upward into 0:22:26.600 --> 0:22:29.760 the darkness, but ended a few stories up when they 0:22:29.800 --> 0:22:35.000 disappeared into another concrete level. The wind howled outside, battering 0:22:35.040 --> 0:22:38.440 against the walls, but beneath that sound was something else, 0:22:39.320 --> 0:22:45.920 something unearthly, something whispering. Much like the voice I once 0:22:46.000 --> 0:22:48.800 heard coming from the vents, I could hear someone calling 0:22:48.840 --> 0:22:51.200 out to me from the upper level of the lighthouse, 0:22:55.800 --> 0:23:03.560