The 'Lady' That Crawls on the Wall

by Kody Long
(Warren, Pa)

Although, I hate to talk about 'her', I will tonight. In the spring of 2006 my husband, our 2 young children and I moved into a duplex almost on the corner of East 4th and German St in Erie. We got a great deal on monthly rent, and the landlord, being honest, told us that some strange things have happened to previous tenants. When asked to explain, he frankly stated that the mother tried to murder her husband--using their baby as a weapon! He said that many couples that had lived there had all violently fought--often, attempted murder by the female. I laughed it off and made a lame Shining joke that my husband didn't understand because he never watches that stuff. About a month later I was no longer laughing.

The place was nice, but there was always a smell of decay. I dismissed it as a dead animal under the house, but the smell never left. Even as we moved out, the place still smelled. My 2 young children (whom have never even complained about the boogeyman!) started sleeping in my son's room. My daughters room was always chilly--even into the summer--and I hated being in there. A feeling I can't describe is how I felt when I went into that sweet little girl's room. But, I insisted that my daughter sleep in her own room. She complained that she was afraid but she didn't tell me why. I let my son stay in her bed with her to help convince her it was safe. At 3am, my son came to me, in hysterics. He insisted there was something in there, and he would never go back in. I began to ask where his sister was, when she walked in my room also hysterical. I jumped to my feet when I realized there were bright red scratches down her cheeks. My daughter started pouring her experiences out in tears, "The black lady that crawls on the wall SAW me, and she didn't want me to look away, so she scratched my face so I couldn't!! Once she sees that you see her, she never wants you to look away, Mommy!" I immediately called their grandparents in Ohio and asked if they could stay there a couple weeks. So the kids went on 'vacation' and thankfully, they weren't around when the following occurred.

During the first few weeks of living in our new home, I grew more and more....depressed (?)and introverted. I began having terrible nightmares of what I remember to be total carnage. I was either trying to catch and kill the person that had killed my family, or it was ME that had killed others and I was being chased by revenge. I felt I was on a fast decent into madness. My husband started having dreams of a woman in white with a hidden face that stood in the corners of his dreams and watched him. He spoke of her casually...at first. His dreams soon became nightmares in which the lady in white was slowly, night by night, getting closer and closer to him-always just watching earnestly, almost hopefully. She seemed more and more angry every night. Then, about 3 days after our kids went to Ohio, he woke me up screaming wildly, "She's here! She's here and I'm awake--we need to leave!! She's right there, oh God, I'm awake!" He was moaning and pointing at the corner by the ceiling- what I saw was what looked like a haze from smoking in front of a light. Very wispy, but very much there. He explains that he saw 'her' glaring at him from 'her' crouched position of hands and feet on the wall, head cocked around so that 'she' was looking at him with the corner of one eye. He called 'her' the lady in black from then on. He pulled me out into the night and I called a good friend of mine who's training to be a minister and he came over that night. We actually waited outside until he got there! When he arrived, we went into the room where my husband had seen 'her'. Our friend wrapped his arms around my husband and began to pray quietly a passage from his Bible. I'm not religious at all and stood watching not sure if he could help. My husband mumbled, "Get off of me...." more prayers from our friend, "Dude, get off of me, your burning my back." And that just made the prayers louder, finally my husband throws my friend off and yells, 'YOUR BURNING ME!" They both fell back and my husband had two, very bright red patches on his back where my friend's hands had been. My friend's hands are just as red. Like frostbite! He assured us that 'she' was gone, to get some rest and call him the next day. For a little while things returned to normal. Then the banging began. The neighbors upstairs were moved out, yet we still heard loud banging--sometimes loud enough to shake the walls. I began feeling sleep deprived and angry. Very very angry. At my husband, of all people. I felt such a different kind of feeling dwelling inside of me. It was, as best as I can tell, the feeling opposite of a mother's love. Such a blind hatred, so frightening to me because I'm usually a kind, gentle person. I began to feel 'her' hate. Now, my husband has a whole different look on this. He was officially on defense. He was beginning to lose his mind over the lady in his dreams who is now in black. 'She' had gotten so close to him in his dreams that she began attacking him, causing him to also be sleep deprived. My two cats would sit by my daughter's old bedroom door and growl with their fur all fluffed up-especially at 2 or 3am when the thuds were the worst. Then one night, we began by bickering. That night ended with the police, and with us leaving the house, never to return. I don't remember much (and we do not drink by the way), except that I attacked my husband and was trying to kill him with my bare hands. I was told by the attending officer that I should be arrested for this, but because it was at that particular house, he said that he would not press charges-under one condition : "You two pack and move out of this *deleted expletive* house TONIGHT!" So, we did. But 'she', or maybe the thought of 'her', lingered for a few months.... I'm not sure WHEN 'she' stopped watching my husband in his dreams, or if 'she' really is gone today. Once in a great while I still have those familiar nightmares of being covered in a loved ones blood-and not knowing if I did it-and I hope to never have to feel 'her' hate ever again. It was pure and cold hate. For the person I love the most. Maybe I should talk to someone about 'her'. I lost everything that night we left. We left almost everything there, too afraid to go back in. I don't know what happened there, but I'd be willing to bet that it involved a woman, her husband, and possibly their child(ren): and without a doubt, it manifests itself in that house. More importantly: in my sweet daughter's old bedroom.