WEBVTT - Season 03 Episode 07: Shadowplay (Rerun)

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<v Speaker 1>Hello, it's Richard mcclin smith Here. Season seven of Unexplained

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<v Speaker 1>will begin on Friday, July twenty eighth, as we replay

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<v Speaker 1>some of our favorite episodes in the meantime. This week,

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<v Speaker 1>we're going back to July twenty eighteen for me. The

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<v Speaker 1>Spanish film Veronica, directed by Paco Plaza and released in

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<v Speaker 1>twenty seventeen, is without doubt one of the best horror

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<v Speaker 1>films depicting demonic possession of recent times. Incredibly, the true

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<v Speaker 1>story it's based on is even more terrifying. Incidentally, if

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<v Speaker 1>you want my absolute favorite film about possession, which also

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<v Speaker 1>happens to be just one of the greatest films of

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<v Speaker 1>all time, that would be Andre Zelewski's nineteen eighty one

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<v Speaker 1>masterpiece Possession. But for now, Here's Unexplained, Season three, Episode

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<v Speaker 1>seven shadow play. To paraphrase author Terry Pratchett, though light

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<v Speaker 1>might think it travels fastest, darkness appears always to find

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<v Speaker 1>a way of arriving first. Wherever light goes, it seems

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<v Speaker 1>the darkness is already there, ready in waiting. In the

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<v Speaker 1>United States, Detroit Institute of Arts hangs a strange and

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<v Speaker 1>captivating painting of an unconscious woman dressed in white, her

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<v Speaker 1>body stretched out across a bed, with her arms and

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<v Speaker 1>head dangling toward the floor. Squatting on her chest, staring

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<v Speaker 1>out at the picture with dark red eyes is a

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<v Speaker 1>peculiar and somewhat grotesque cherubic imp. Though the woman is

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<v Speaker 1>bathed in light, the imp, clearly a creature of the night,

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<v Speaker 1>resolutely remains steadfastly, refusing to be cast back into the shadows,

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<v Speaker 1>and in the darkness beyond, another creature is emerging, a

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<v Speaker 1>black horse with flared nostrils and bright white eyes. The Nightmare,

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<v Speaker 1>painted by Henry Fuselli in seventeen eighty one, serves as

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<v Speaker 1>an ironic repost to the Enlightenment, Europe's pervading cultural movement

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<v Speaker 1>of the day, or, as art historian doctor Noel Paulson

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<v Speaker 1>puts it, the painting demonstrates the ultimate futility of light

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<v Speaker 1>to penetrate or explore the darker realms of the unconscious.

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<v Speaker 1>For many, myself included, the picture brings to mind the

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<v Speaker 1>terrifying and vivid effects of sleep paralysis, an uncanny phenomenon

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<v Speaker 1>that can result in the seemingly very real experience of

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<v Speaker 1>believing you have woken from sleep, only to find yourself

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<v Speaker 1>completely paralyzed. Though I am now familiar with the experience

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<v Speaker 1>enough to know it when it happens, what I have

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<v Speaker 1>never grown used to are the occasions when I believe

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<v Speaker 1>I have woken up to find not only am I

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<v Speaker 1>unable to move, but that there is a shadowy humanoid

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<v Speaker 1>creature standing over me. Much worse, when that figure scurries

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<v Speaker 1>out from the corner of the room and launches itself

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<v Speaker 1>at me as I fight to regain consciousness. It was

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<v Speaker 1>some time before I discovered others had also had similar

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<v Speaker 1>experiences to myself, and that these illusory creatures had a name,

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<v Speaker 1>shadow people. The terms modern iteration was popularized by Art Bell,

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<v Speaker 1>the much missed late night talk show host who sadly

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<v Speaker 1>died in April of this year. It was back in

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<v Speaker 1>April two thousand one that Art dedicated an entire episode

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<v Speaker 1>of his pioneering Coast to Coast AM show to the

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<v Speaker 1>discussion of the phenomena. Listening to it again recently, I

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<v Speaker 1>was struck by how similar my own experiences had been

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<v Speaker 1>to those described by his listeners, but also how different

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<v Speaker 1>some of them were, too, like the ones where listeners

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<v Speaker 1>claimed to have seen shadow people when they were wide awake,

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<v Speaker 1>for example, or those who had come across their children

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<v Speaker 1>talking to themselves late at night, only for their children

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<v Speaker 1>to tell them that they weren't talking to themselves. The

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<v Speaker 1>episode reminded me also of a deeply unsettling story I

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<v Speaker 1>came across recently, regarding the twenty seventeen film Veronica. The

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<v Speaker 1>film tells the story of a teenage girl from a

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<v Speaker 1>suburb in Madrid who dies in terrifying circumstances after fooling

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<v Speaker 1>around with a Ouiji board. Many may, no doubt have

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<v Speaker 1>seen the film, but did you know that it was

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<v Speaker 1>based on a true story. You're listening to unexplained and

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Richard mc lean smith. Please, said the operator. You

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<v Speaker 1>need to calm down. You say there's someone in your house. No,

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<v Speaker 1>not some one, came back, the desperate voice on the

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<v Speaker 1>other end of the line. Something please hurry. Maximo Gutierrez

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<v Speaker 1>had placed the call to his local police station in

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<v Speaker 1>the early hours of November twenty seventh, nineteen ninety two,

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<v Speaker 1>going on to explain that his family were being terrorized

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<v Speaker 1>by something in their apartment and that they didn't know

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<v Speaker 1>what to do. The operator listened with amusement as Maximo

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<v Speaker 1>frantically recounted the events of that night. He had been

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<v Speaker 1>woken by the screams of his terrified wife, Concepcion, shouting

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<v Speaker 1>about some one she couldn't see, pressing down on her

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<v Speaker 1>chest and grabbing at her arms and legs. Within seconds,

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<v Speaker 1>an incessant banging could be heard reverberating around the flat.

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<v Speaker 1>Concepcion screams, along with the terrible thumps, had brought four

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<v Speaker 1>of the couple's five children racing in fear into the bedroom.

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<v Speaker 1>Their fifth child, being a young baby, was now crying

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<v Speaker 1>in its cot, panicked by all the commotion. Moments later,

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<v Speaker 1>the petrified family gathered in the living room, only to

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<v Speaker 1>watch with horror as the crucifix nailed to the wall

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<v Speaker 1>seemingly turned upside down on its own accord. Maximo concluded

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<v Speaker 1>that they had decided to stay together in the family

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<v Speaker 1>room since they were too afraid to leave the apartment. Why,

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<v Speaker 1>asked the operator, Because there was something standing at the

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<v Speaker 1>end of the hallway blocking their way out, he replied.

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<v Speaker 1>Wary of how all this might sound, Maximo passed the

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<v Speaker 1>phone around his wife and children, who all repeated the

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<v Speaker 1>same to the operator with equal desperation. If their story

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<v Speaker 1>seemed confusing to the officer. The distress in their voices

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<v Speaker 1>at least was real enough. The officer duly advised Maximo

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<v Speaker 1>to keep the family together and try to stay calm,

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<v Speaker 1>and offered to send a squad car to investigate at

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<v Speaker 1>the first available opportunity. It would be another forty minutes, however,

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<v Speaker 1>before Chief Inspector Jose Pedro Negri, along with four other

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<v Speaker 1>armed officers, pulled up alongside the vast thirteen story housing

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<v Speaker 1>block on Calier Louis Marin. The street was located in

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<v Speaker 1>the Veyeka district of Madrid in Spain, a proud and

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<v Speaker 1>tight working class neighborhood on the southeastern fringes of the city.

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<v Speaker 1>On exiting the car into the freezing night air, the

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<v Speaker 1>offices were surprised to find the family, including the baby,

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<v Speaker 1>whose conception clasped firmly to her chest, now standing in

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<v Speaker 1>a huddle in the entrance way to the apartment block.

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<v Speaker 1>Approaching them from across the road, it was clear to

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<v Speaker 1>the bespectacled Inspector Negri that they were in a state

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<v Speaker 1>of deep distress. Maximo explained that they had been unable

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<v Speaker 1>to withstand the strange activity any longer and finally plucked

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<v Speaker 1>up the courage to abandon the apartment. Moments later, having

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<v Speaker 1>been reassured by the presence of the police, Maximo, followed

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<v Speaker 1>by the rest of the family, led the offices into

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<v Speaker 1>the building and towards the apartment. Anxious faces peered out

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<v Speaker 1>from behind half closed doors as the family and police

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<v Speaker 1>officers made their way along the narrow hallway, with Inspector

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<v Speaker 1>Negri assuring each one as they passed that all was

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<v Speaker 1>fine and to go back inside. Finally, Maximo stopped through here,

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<v Speaker 1>he said, pointing the way into the flat. Negree could

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<v Speaker 1>clearly see the reticence on the family's faces as they

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<v Speaker 1>lingered outside the entrance. Taking the lead, he made his

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<v Speaker 1>way inside, followed closely behind by the other officers. Clean

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<v Speaker 1>and well kept, if a little cramped for a family

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<v Speaker 1>of seven, the flat seemed much like any other family

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<v Speaker 1>home that Negrie had visited, with the exception of one thing.

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<v Speaker 1>On stepping into the living room, Negrew's attention had been

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<v Speaker 1>caught immediately by what looked like some kind of shrine.

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<v Speaker 1>Lined up along the mantel piece of a back wall,

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<v Speaker 1>a row of vases filled with bright plastic flowers, small

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<v Speaker 1>angel figurines made from porcelain, and just above it, in

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<v Speaker 1>the middle of the wall, hung a large painting of

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<v Speaker 1>a girl, and underneath it was the original photo of

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<v Speaker 1>the same, all watched over by the beatific face of Jesus.

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<v Speaker 1>Come and sit, said Maximo, inviting the police to join

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<v Speaker 1>him around the dining table. The officers looked to each

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<v Speaker 1>other with concern, having expected to be chasing out an

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<v Speaker 1>intruder by now. It will only happen when we are calm,

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<v Speaker 1>he continued. The officers sat down at the table while

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<v Speaker 1>the rest of the family gathered round, a look of

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<v Speaker 1>apprehension on their faces. Negree watched intrigued as Conception collected herself,

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<v Speaker 1>before nodding to one of her children to switch off

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<v Speaker 1>the light. Though it was dark, Negree was still able

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<v Speaker 1>to see all the family gathered close to the table

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<v Speaker 1>when the sound of a cupboard door creaking open broke

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<v Speaker 1>the silence. Moments later, another door was opened suddenly, before

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<v Speaker 1>violently slamming back shut with an almighty bank. An officer

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<v Speaker 1>jumped from the table and swiftly turned on the light,

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<v Speaker 1>revealing at the far side of the room a cupboard

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<v Speaker 1>door which had been closed when they sat down was

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<v Speaker 1>now wide open. Inspector Negrey walked over to the door

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<v Speaker 1>and pushed it shut, expecting it to loosely swing back open,

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<v Speaker 1>but it remained firmly shut. He turned back to the

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<v Speaker 1>family and looked again to the shrine along the back wall.

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<v Speaker 1>Her name was Estefania, the couple's third child. She had

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<v Speaker 1>died just over a year ago, explained Conception, before proceeding

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<v Speaker 1>to tell the offices about everything that had happened ever since.

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<v Speaker 1>It had all started after the death of Conception's father

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<v Speaker 1>in nineteen ninety, when he had fallen gravely ill that year.

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<v Speaker 1>Although they had rarely got on, Conception requested that the

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<v Speaker 1>family gather round his hospital bedside to comfort him in

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<v Speaker 1>his final moments. However, it was reported that the elderly man,

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<v Speaker 1>still bitter and cantankerous from many years of family feuds,

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<v Speaker 1>was unmoved by the gesture, vowing that not even death

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<v Speaker 1>would prevent him from continuing to be a nuisance to

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<v Speaker 1>the family. A short time after the old man died, Estefania,

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<v Speaker 1>who was sixteen at the time, arrived at school one morning,

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<v Speaker 1>shocked to discover that her friend's boyfriend had been tragically

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<v Speaker 1>killed in a motorcycle accident. At some point, perhaps in

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<v Speaker 1>an effort to alleviate her friend's suffering, Estefania made a

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<v Speaker 1>peculiar suggestion, what if she thought they tried to contact him.

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<v Speaker 1>Her friend, who had been understandably devastated by the death,

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<v Speaker 1>leapt at the opportunity, desperate for any comfort she might find.

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<v Speaker 1>A few days later, Estefania set off on the short

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<v Speaker 1>journey to the Colegio Aragon, located barely five minutes walk

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<v Speaker 1>from her family's apartment, with something extra peeking out of

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<v Speaker 1>her rucksack, her Wigi board. That afternoon, she and her friend,

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<v Speaker 1>along with another classmate, made their way to the back

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<v Speaker 1>of the playing field, finding a quiet, secluded spot in

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<v Speaker 1>the shadow of the nearby Callia Louis Marin apartment blocks.

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<v Speaker 1>With the three of them sat cross legged in a semicircle.

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<v Speaker 1>Estefania laid the board out in front of them as

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<v Speaker 1>another of the girls removed a glass tumbler from her bag,

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<v Speaker 1>turned it upside down, and placed it in the middle

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<v Speaker 1>of the board. It wasn't clear how long they had

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<v Speaker 1>been sat there when the teacher found them, asking questions

0:14:43.840 --> 0:14:47.800
<v Speaker 1>into the air with their fingers lightly touching the glass.

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<v Speaker 1>As it moved around the board. When the teacher demanded

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<v Speaker 1>to know what was going on, it was said that

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<v Speaker 1>the glass shot off the board and smashed into pieces

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<v Speaker 1>soon after. One of the girls would later claim that

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<v Speaker 1>in that moment, a strange, dark vapor was released from

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<v Speaker 1>the glass, rising like the smoke of a recently blown

0:15:10.840 --> 0:15:18.200
<v Speaker 1>out candle, straight up and into Estefania's knows. The teacher,

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<v Speaker 1>scolding the children, demanded their return to class immediately, before

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<v Speaker 1>picking up the board and breaking it in two. It

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<v Speaker 1>was only a few weeks later when the voices started.

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<v Speaker 1>The first time Estefania heard them, they were little more

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<v Speaker 1>than whispers in the night, hurriedly spoken words she couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>quite discern, But soon she found she could understand them.

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<v Speaker 1>They were calling out her name, and it wasn't long

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<v Speaker 1>before she could see them too, wispy, shadowy shapes that

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<v Speaker 1>seemed to flicker in the edges of rooms. It was

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<v Speaker 1>clear to her that they were stalking her. Conception had

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<v Speaker 1>noticed the quiet change in Estefania, how she had become

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<v Speaker 1>irritable and withdrawn. At first, she merely put it down

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<v Speaker 1>to the shock of her friend's boyfriend's death, but after

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<v Speaker 1>hearing about the incident at the school, she began to

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<v Speaker 1>wonder if it might not in some way be related.

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<v Speaker 1>One morning, after hearing a commotion coming from her daughter's bedroom,

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<v Speaker 1>Conception found her lying rigid on her bed and foaming

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<v Speaker 1>at the mouth, with her eyes rolled in to the

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<v Speaker 1>back of her head. Moments later, Estefania came to with

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<v Speaker 1>no recollection of the event. For the next six months,

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<v Speaker 1>she would be plagued by similar incidences. Conception, who had

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<v Speaker 1>suffered for years from epilepsy, began to wonder if her

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<v Speaker 1>daughter was suffering from a similar infliction. However, after countless

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<v Speaker 1>trips to various doctors and hospitals, nobody was able to

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<v Speaker 1>give a satisfactory diagnosis. One evening, Conception found Estefania sat

0:17:21.760 --> 0:17:26.800
<v Speaker 1>upright in her bed, her eyes wide with terror. They

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<v Speaker 1>were beckoning me to go with them, she said. Her

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<v Speaker 1>mother could only look on aghast, trying her best to

0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:36.639
<v Speaker 1>comfort her daughter, who would later request that, if the

0:17:36.720 --> 0:17:40.000
<v Speaker 1>time came, that she be buried with a photo of

0:17:40.040 --> 0:17:48.280
<v Speaker 1>her mother and father. On Tuesday, August thirteenth, Mariannella, Estefania's sister,

0:17:49.280 --> 0:17:53.159
<v Speaker 1>entered the bedroom they shared together, only to find Estefania

0:17:53.440 --> 0:17:57.879
<v Speaker 1>in a peculiar state. Having at first not registered the

0:17:57.880 --> 0:18:03.000
<v Speaker 1>sister's presence, Estefania turned toward her suddenly, before leaping from

0:18:03.040 --> 0:18:06.760
<v Speaker 1>the bed and trying to grab her, managing to jump

0:18:06.800 --> 0:18:10.520
<v Speaker 1>away just in time. Marionella could only watch on in

0:18:10.560 --> 0:18:15.560
<v Speaker 1>horror as her sister then collapsed to the floor, convulsing violently.

0:18:17.960 --> 0:18:22.000
<v Speaker 1>The fit lasted only a few minutes before Estefania regained

0:18:22.040 --> 0:18:27.439
<v Speaker 1>full consciousness, but again having no recollection of the event.

0:18:30.080 --> 0:18:33.440
<v Speaker 1>That evening, Estefania went for a walk with her boyfriend

0:18:34.000 --> 0:18:38.120
<v Speaker 1>in the warm summer air, returning home later that night.

0:18:40.800 --> 0:18:43.000
<v Speaker 1>It was some time in the early hours of August

0:18:43.160 --> 0:18:46.679
<v Speaker 1>fourteenth when the family were woken by the strange and

0:18:46.760 --> 0:18:51.360
<v Speaker 1>hideous sound of gurgling and grunting coming from Estefania's room.

0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:56.040
<v Speaker 1>Maximo switched on the light to find her in the

0:18:56.040 --> 0:19:00.480
<v Speaker 1>grip of yet another terrible seizure, writhing about in her bed.

0:19:02.320 --> 0:19:06.120
<v Speaker 1>Terrified and screaming at each other to do something. They

0:19:06.160 --> 0:19:09.600
<v Speaker 1>did their best to restrain her, while Conception rushed to

0:19:09.640 --> 0:19:15.359
<v Speaker 1>call an ambulance. Estefania, having slipped into a coma, was

0:19:15.400 --> 0:19:19.240
<v Speaker 1>already unresponsive when the ambulance arrived and rushed the now

0:19:19.320 --> 0:19:25.280
<v Speaker 1>seventeen year old to nearby Gregorio Morannan Hospital. Despite attempts

0:19:25.320 --> 0:19:29.280
<v Speaker 1>to resuscitate her, she was declared dead at two a m.

0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:35.240
<v Speaker 1>Though there was no obvious explanation for the cause of death,

0:19:35.920 --> 0:19:39.480
<v Speaker 1>a subsequent autopsy would conclude that she had died as

0:19:39.520 --> 0:19:44.760
<v Speaker 1>the result of asphyxiation. Tissue samples sent off for further

0:19:44.800 --> 0:19:56.359
<v Speaker 1>tests yielded nothing. In the months following Estefania's death, her

0:19:56.359 --> 0:19:59.240
<v Speaker 1>grieving family did what they could to support each other,

0:20:00.320 --> 0:20:04.040
<v Speaker 1>praying each day for her salvation at the makeshift shrine

0:20:04.040 --> 0:20:10.160
<v Speaker 1>that conception had constructed for Estefaniel's siblings. Especially, the strange

0:20:10.240 --> 0:20:13.800
<v Speaker 1>nature of her death and her disturbing behavior prior to it,

0:20:14.320 --> 0:20:20.959
<v Speaker 1>had left an indelible mark. Though her sister's decision to

0:20:21.000 --> 0:20:24.040
<v Speaker 1>move out of the bedroom they shared together had primarily

0:20:24.080 --> 0:20:26.880
<v Speaker 1>been made on account of how unbearably sad it was

0:20:27.040 --> 0:20:30.160
<v Speaker 1>to sleep there. She couldn't help but feel a little

0:20:30.200 --> 0:20:34.480
<v Speaker 1>scared when in there too, But if she had hoped

0:20:34.520 --> 0:20:37.879
<v Speaker 1>a change of rooms would bring her peace, she was

0:20:37.960 --> 0:20:43.359
<v Speaker 1>going to be very much mistaken. It began in the

0:20:43.400 --> 0:20:49.000
<v Speaker 1>early hours one morning, as winter settled into the city.

0:20:50.440 --> 0:20:54.440
<v Speaker 1>The sisters heard it first, a quiet voice coming from

0:20:54.440 --> 0:21:01.639
<v Speaker 1>somewhere in the apartment always after the lights had gone out, Mamma, Mamma,

0:21:02.000 --> 0:21:06.040
<v Speaker 1>it seemed to be saying, with no sign of it abating.

0:21:06.760 --> 0:21:10.040
<v Speaker 1>One of the girls decided to investigate and made her

0:21:10.080 --> 0:21:15.000
<v Speaker 1>way to the bedroom door. Opening it, she found only

0:21:15.080 --> 0:21:22.080
<v Speaker 1>the emptiness of the apartment. Beyond Mamma came the voice again,

0:21:23.359 --> 0:21:26.320
<v Speaker 1>but this time from the direction of the bath room.

0:21:28.119 --> 0:21:30.919
<v Speaker 1>Quietly making her way over to it so as not

0:21:31.040 --> 0:21:35.480
<v Speaker 1>to disturb her parents, Slowly she pulled open the door,

0:21:36.440 --> 0:21:44.080
<v Speaker 1>but there was nobody there. A few days later, when

0:21:44.080 --> 0:21:48.000
<v Speaker 1>the flat was empty, Conception was cleaning the apartment when

0:21:48.000 --> 0:21:51.920
<v Speaker 1>she heard a tremendous racket coming from Estefania's old room.

0:21:53.840 --> 0:21:58.400
<v Speaker 1>The room was kept clean and virtually untouched, but when

0:21:58.400 --> 0:22:01.880
<v Speaker 1>she opened it that morning, he found it completely rearranged,

0:22:02.400 --> 0:22:06.119
<v Speaker 1>with bed sheets, books, and toys strewn across the floor.

0:22:07.960 --> 0:22:11.520
<v Speaker 1>Soon after, the children began to complain of a bizarre

0:22:11.560 --> 0:22:16.520
<v Speaker 1>scraping sound coming from inside the walls. Appliances would turn

0:22:16.560 --> 0:22:20.359
<v Speaker 1>off and on randomly, whilst doors slammed open and shut

0:22:20.600 --> 0:22:25.960
<v Speaker 1>without anyone standing near them. Thinking it nothing more than

0:22:25.960 --> 0:22:28.800
<v Speaker 1>the effects of a draft coming from the communal hallway,

0:22:29.800 --> 0:22:33.240
<v Speaker 1>Maximo took to placing the sofa across one of the doors,

0:22:34.000 --> 0:22:37.000
<v Speaker 1>as well as a heavy marble table in an effort

0:22:37.160 --> 0:22:41.159
<v Speaker 1>to stop it from opening. One night, whither all the

0:22:41.200 --> 0:22:44.959
<v Speaker 1>family gathered in their living room, a heavy pounding noise

0:22:45.520 --> 0:22:49.160
<v Speaker 1>was followed by what seemed like an inordinately strong gust

0:22:49.200 --> 0:22:53.119
<v Speaker 1>of wind, unlatching the door and sending the table and

0:22:53.240 --> 0:22:57.399
<v Speaker 1>sofa sliding back across the room, knocking a photo of

0:22:57.560 --> 0:23:02.720
<v Speaker 1>Estefania to the floor in the process. Conception picked up

0:23:02.760 --> 0:23:06.159
<v Speaker 1>the frame, only to drop it again when it burnt

0:23:06.240 --> 0:23:11.600
<v Speaker 1>her fingers. When Maximo picked it up moments later, he

0:23:11.680 --> 0:23:15.159
<v Speaker 1>turned it over, only to find, to his horror that

0:23:15.240 --> 0:23:20.399
<v Speaker 1>the photograph was now burning from inside the frame. He watched,

0:23:20.480 --> 0:23:24.720
<v Speaker 1>completely stunned as the smiling face of his daughter melted

0:23:25.000 --> 0:23:34.760
<v Speaker 1>and turned to ash right in front of him. Late

0:23:34.800 --> 0:23:38.119
<v Speaker 1>one night, with the family fast asleep, two of the

0:23:38.160 --> 0:23:41.720
<v Speaker 1>sisters who shared a room together, were awoken by the

0:23:41.800 --> 0:23:47.240
<v Speaker 1>sound of whistling outside the apartment. The noise soon dissipated,

0:23:47.800 --> 0:23:52.040
<v Speaker 1>only to be replaced by a strange groaning. But this

0:23:52.160 --> 0:23:56.119
<v Speaker 1>didn't come from outside the apartment. It came from outside

0:23:56.560 --> 0:24:03.080
<v Speaker 1>the bedroom door. One of the girls screamed, look she said,

0:24:03.680 --> 0:24:09.080
<v Speaker 1>on the floor. Now Huddled together on one bed, the

0:24:09.160 --> 0:24:14.560
<v Speaker 1>sisters stared in disbelief at the ground. There. Caught in

0:24:14.600 --> 0:24:18.679
<v Speaker 1>the soft orange glow of the street light outside, was

0:24:18.720 --> 0:24:24.560
<v Speaker 1>the silhouetted shape of a man crawling towards them. The

0:24:24.640 --> 0:24:28.080
<v Speaker 1>pair screamed together as the shape brought one arm over

0:24:28.119 --> 0:24:34.399
<v Speaker 1>the other and dragged itself closer and closer. They cried

0:24:34.400 --> 0:24:37.760
<v Speaker 1>out again as the toys on their shelf were sent

0:24:37.880 --> 0:24:42.119
<v Speaker 1>flying across the room, followed by loud, banging noises that

0:24:42.280 --> 0:24:47.520
<v Speaker 1>echoed throughout the house. By the time their parents arrived,

0:24:48.040 --> 0:24:51.960
<v Speaker 1>the activity had stopped and the shadow man was nowhere

0:24:52.000 --> 0:24:58.040
<v Speaker 1>to be seen. From that moment on, however, the family

0:24:58.119 --> 0:25:01.840
<v Speaker 1>continued to witness what they took to strange humanoid shapes

0:25:02.400 --> 0:25:07.760
<v Speaker 1>drifting about inside their apartment. Neighbors and friends also reported

0:25:07.800 --> 0:25:11.919
<v Speaker 1>seeing them, and it wasn't long before local paranoral investigators

0:25:12.440 --> 0:25:17.679
<v Speaker 1>were queuing up to see them too. By autumn nineteen

0:25:17.760 --> 0:25:20.960
<v Speaker 1>ninety two, the family had been suffering for the best

0:25:20.960 --> 0:25:24.560
<v Speaker 1>part of a year before finally deciding to seek help.

0:25:25.960 --> 0:25:30.159
<v Speaker 1>In October, they were visited by two self described psychics

0:25:30.720 --> 0:25:33.280
<v Speaker 1>who promised to help them get to the bottom of

0:25:33.320 --> 0:25:38.000
<v Speaker 1>their troubles. Their subsequent efforts were filmed by a local

0:25:38.040 --> 0:25:44.520
<v Speaker 1>news channel and broadcast later that month. The report documented

0:25:44.640 --> 0:25:48.560
<v Speaker 1>a number of bizarre occurrences, including what seemed like the

0:25:48.640 --> 0:25:51.920
<v Speaker 1>voice of a young girl speaking through a radio device

0:25:52.320 --> 0:25:56.879
<v Speaker 1>that had been placed in the bathroom. The voice said simply,

0:25:57.680 --> 0:26:03.359
<v Speaker 1>beware of Grandpa. It was only a few weeks later

0:26:03.560 --> 0:26:07.159
<v Speaker 1>when Conception awoke with the sensation of some one pressing

0:26:07.160 --> 0:26:12.239
<v Speaker 1>down on her chest and grabbing at her hands and feet.

0:26:14.320 --> 0:26:21.080
<v Speaker 1>Investigator Negri, having listened patiently to the family's story, was speechless.

0:26:22.720 --> 0:26:24.960
<v Speaker 1>As they stood up from the table to examine the

0:26:24.960 --> 0:26:28.720
<v Speaker 1>rest of the flat. One of the officers noticed a rusty,

0:26:28.760 --> 0:26:32.560
<v Speaker 1>brown colored stain that seemed to be materializing on the

0:26:32.600 --> 0:26:36.680
<v Speaker 1>tablecloth right in front of them. Pulling a pen from

0:26:36.680 --> 0:26:39.639
<v Speaker 1>his pocket, he prodded at it, finding it to be

0:26:39.760 --> 0:26:43.440
<v Speaker 1>damp and made from something like the drool of a dog.

0:26:45.359 --> 0:26:49.320
<v Speaker 1>Three of the officers, deciding they had seen enough, requested

0:26:49.320 --> 0:26:52.920
<v Speaker 1>permission to leave the flat, before hurriedly making their way

0:26:53.119 --> 0:26:58.600
<v Speaker 1>downstairs and out at the building, Negrie asked to see

0:26:58.600 --> 0:27:02.199
<v Speaker 1>the bathroom first, where the family believed many of the

0:27:02.240 --> 0:27:08.720
<v Speaker 1>bizarre noises had first originated. By this point, so terrified

0:27:08.760 --> 0:27:11.199
<v Speaker 1>were they of it. They used it only as a

0:27:11.200 --> 0:27:16.360
<v Speaker 1>store room and kept it locked at all times. As

0:27:16.400 --> 0:27:20.000
<v Speaker 1>soon as Negre stepped inside, he felt the temperature plummet,

0:27:20.880 --> 0:27:25.520
<v Speaker 1>but otherwise there was little of note, and then they

0:27:25.560 --> 0:27:36.600
<v Speaker 1>showed him into Estefania's old bedroom. The room had not

0:27:36.720 --> 0:27:40.480
<v Speaker 1>been much changed since the day Maximo and Concepcion's daughter

0:27:40.880 --> 0:27:46.360
<v Speaker 1>had died. Posters and pictures of Estefania and her friends

0:27:46.760 --> 0:27:49.960
<v Speaker 1>lined the walls, as well as a large crucifix with

0:27:50.080 --> 0:27:54.680
<v Speaker 1>a smaller pearly crucifix hanging off it. The two twin

0:27:54.760 --> 0:27:57.720
<v Speaker 1>beds that she and her sister had slept in remained

0:27:57.760 --> 0:28:03.480
<v Speaker 1>side by side, unused for The inspector took a seat

0:28:03.560 --> 0:28:08.720
<v Speaker 1>on Estefania's old bed and looked about, noticing another large

0:28:08.760 --> 0:28:13.080
<v Speaker 1>poster stuck to the back of the door. He had

0:28:13.080 --> 0:28:15.560
<v Speaker 1>been sitting for less than a minute when an odd

0:28:15.640 --> 0:28:20.680
<v Speaker 1>sound was heard coming from the balcony right outside the room.

0:28:21.040 --> 0:28:23.480
<v Speaker 1>It was as if a heavy stone was being rolled

0:28:23.480 --> 0:28:27.320
<v Speaker 1>about on the concrete. It was drowned out moments later

0:28:27.880 --> 0:28:31.040
<v Speaker 1>by a terrible scream that came from the same direction.

0:28:32.720 --> 0:28:36.320
<v Speaker 1>Negrie and his partner rushed to the balcony, flinging open

0:28:36.359 --> 0:28:42.080
<v Speaker 1>the door unleashing a cold wind into the room. Outside, However,

0:28:42.640 --> 0:28:48.800
<v Speaker 1>they found the balcony completely deserted. Turning back into the room,

0:28:49.560 --> 0:28:55.240
<v Speaker 1>Negree could see that something was wrong. The family stood frozen,

0:28:55.840 --> 0:29:02.000
<v Speaker 1>staring at the wall, their faces completely pale. Negree followed

0:29:02.040 --> 0:29:06.000
<v Speaker 1>their gaze to the crucifix that was now turned completely

0:29:06.320 --> 0:29:11.760
<v Speaker 1>upside down. The smaller crucifix seemingly thrown into the middle

0:29:11.920 --> 0:29:18.320
<v Speaker 1>of the room. Look, said one of the children, pointing

0:29:18.320 --> 0:29:22.400
<v Speaker 1>to the back of the door. Negre moved in for

0:29:22.440 --> 0:29:27.400
<v Speaker 1>a closer inspection, completely stunned to find three slash marks

0:29:27.440 --> 0:29:31.040
<v Speaker 1>in the poster, as if something had clawed at it,

0:29:33.400 --> 0:29:36.360
<v Speaker 1>pulling it away from the door. He could see also

0:29:36.600 --> 0:29:39.480
<v Speaker 1>that the scratches had gone right through into the wood.

0:29:42.920 --> 0:29:47.840
<v Speaker 1>Utterly dumbfounded and cautious of the family's obvious distress, Negri

0:29:48.040 --> 0:29:50.960
<v Speaker 1>agreed to stay with them for a while longer until

0:29:51.000 --> 0:29:54.280
<v Speaker 1>he was satisfied that whatever had been occurring had come

0:29:54.320 --> 0:30:00.440
<v Speaker 1>to an end. Later that morning, the inspectors kept back

0:30:00.480 --> 0:30:03.440
<v Speaker 1>into the cold and joined his colleagues in the car

0:30:03.720 --> 0:30:07.520
<v Speaker 1>before driving back to the station. Not one of those

0:30:07.560 --> 0:30:14.200
<v Speaker 1>officers being entirely sure what on earth they had just experienced.

0:30:14.400 --> 0:30:18.360
<v Speaker 1>Inspector Negri's official report of the event, attesting to what

0:30:18.480 --> 0:30:21.960
<v Speaker 1>he heard and saw, remains the only report in the

0:30:22.040 --> 0:30:25.680
<v Speaker 1>history of Spain's police force to allude to the possibility

0:30:26.000 --> 0:30:30.120
<v Speaker 1>that what had been witnessed had been of a paranormal nature.

0:30:39.800 --> 0:30:43.640
<v Speaker 1>This episode was written by Richard McClain smith Unexplained as

0:30:43.640 --> 0:30:48.000
<v Speaker 1>an Avy Club Productions podcast created by Richard McClain Smith.

0:30:48.680 --> 0:30:51.960
<v Speaker 1>All other elements of the podcast, including the music, were

0:30:51.960 --> 0:30:56.600
<v Speaker 1>also produced by me Richard McClain smith. Unexplained. The book

0:30:56.600 --> 0:30:59.960
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0:31:15.320 --> 0:31:19.080
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0:31:19.160 --> 0:31:21.640
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