The Inheritance

I always wished some rich relative would leave me lots of money or some great big house, but I never actually thought it would happen. As I sat in the lawyer's office and received the deed and the keys to my new home, thanks to a great-great-aunt I barely remembered, I thanked her silently.

The lawyer also said she had left some money for repairs to the house only. I thought to myself, Well, that can't be good.

When I asked if she had said why she left these things to me, he said, “In her will, she wrote, ‘I leave these things to Amber so she can get away and live.’”

“Odd woman, your aunt, but she liked you. And with her not having any kids, I guess she thought you were the next best thing.”

“Why do you think she was odd?” I asked, slightly offended.

“I apologize. I just meant different, but in a good way.”

As I left his office, I was a little sad that I didn't know my Aunt Ginny better, but that was my father's fault. I was also excited because this opportunity couldn't have come at a better time. After a nasty breakup and losing my job, I needed a change, and the house was in another state.

I went home and immediately started packing. Two days later, I was on the road and felt like I could breathe for the first time in a long time.

My excitement didn't last long. After thirteen hours of driving, I was hungry and exhausted. I pulled up to the house and...

What is that?

It was huge!

I parked my car, grabbed my overnight bag, and decided I'd get the rest in the morning. I went into the house and turned on the lights in the foyer. On one of the fancy entryway tables lay an envelope with my name on it.

Opening the letter, I read:

Hello, dear girl. If you are reading this, I am no longer here, and I hope this opportunity gets you away from your father. I never liked the man. Very controlling and manipulative.

Enjoy the house. Go slowly through it. Use it as you wish. Maybe open a bed and breakfast. Just don't worry about William. He's harmless.

“Who in the world is William?”

Too exhausted to wonder about it tonight, I decided to find somewhere to sleep. Exploring the big, dark house at night didn't seem ideal, anyway.

In the shadows of the next room, I saw the outline of a couch. When I reached it, I lay down and instantly started to fall asleep. But as I did, I heard ever-so-faint footsteps.

The next morning, the sun streamed through the windows that had no curtains, its warm rays waking me up. Sitting up and stretching, I looked around. The place wasn't in the best condition, but it could be worse. At least, this room could.

I got up and found a bathroom. I had turned on the water yesterday. I relieved myself and went to the kitchen. I drank water from my hand.

“I need to unpack some things.”

I slowly walked through the first floor: the living room, kitchen, dining room, library, and a study.

The second floor had five bedrooms, each with its own bathroom. One bedroom in particular caught my eye. It was very spacious and bright. The only thing in the room was a beautifully made standing mirror.

I stared at myself in the mirror.

“What a mess.”

I turned toward the door when I heard a clinking sound. Turning back around, I saw a beautiful gold bracelet lying on the floor in front of the mirror.

How did I not see it before?

I didn't know, but I picked it up and wiped the dust off. With nowhere to put it, I carried it with me.

Stopping at the door, I turned quickly. I felt as if someone were behind me.

I made my way to the third floor. The house was beautiful, with intricate details in every corner. This floor had four rooms, each with its own bathroom.

The door at the end of the hall, leading to the attic, was locked.

“I guess I should start making a to-do list. One: call a locksmith.”

Finding a back stairwell, I checked it out. The steps were old and rickety, and the hallway was dark. But I could see the light from the room they led to, so I entered the library and grinned.

This old house was beautiful. With a good cleaning, maybe some new paint, some furniture, and love and care, it could be restored to its former self.

I went outside to assess the grounds. The outside of the house needed a good cleaning, and vines climbed its walls.

“I like those.”

Staring up at the house, I saw curtains sway in the attic window. I froze, squinting to see better, but saw nothing.

I walked to the backyard and stopped. The view was stunning. And the porch at the back of the house? I thought it would become one of my favorite spots.

I went into the house through the back entrance, entering the kitchen. From the corner of my eye, I thought I saw someone standing in the servants' stairway. I turned quickly to look, but there was no one.

Feeling uneasy, I decided to go to town and find some things I'd need.

But when I got to the door, it was locked.

“I didn't lock this. I just used it.”

I unlocked the door and left.

I returned a few hours later, satisfied that I'd found someone to help me with everything I needed. As I entered the house, the air was freezing. Getting a sudden chill, I went to the thermostat to turn up the heat. I got a shock when I touched it.

Before I could try again, the house warmed up.

At that moment, the moving van arrived, so I couldn't linger over the temperature change for long. The movers quickly brought my things inside. I had them put my bed in the room with the mirror. I liked that room the best.

A few sweaty hours later, I was unpacked and mostly organized.

I went to my new room and tried to take off the bracelet now that I had somewhere to put it, but it was stuck. I couldn't get it off.

I took a closer look at it and saw an engraving:

To my love, now and always.

I tried to remove the bracelet again, but it wouldn't budge, so I left it alone for now. It was too late to call anyone for help anyway.

After showering, I fell into bed, exhausted, and immediately fell asleep.

I dreamed of another time, when I was a soldier. I was in this very house, but it was new and grand, and I was looking for someone important to me.

The next morning, I was cleaning the house when I heard footsteps on the second floor. I ran up the stairs, a frying pan in hand, and listened. But I didn't hear footsteps. Instead, there was a slight tapping sound coming from my room.

When I entered, there was nothing to be seen.

However, the mirror caught my eye again. I walked up to it, and the reflection of the room looked just as it had in my dream.

Shaking my head and blinking, I watched as the reflection changed back to normal.

A fast, loud knock at the door downstairs pulled me from my daze. I left the room, turning back for one last look. There was nothing.

The locksmith was at the door.

I had him check all the locks since the door had locked on its own, but he said everything was working just fine. He also unlocked the attic for me.

After he left, I went to investigate the attic. There were a few pieces of covered furniture and some trunks in the corner.

I went over to the chests, and the temperature dropped in that corner.

“Oh, come on!”

They were locked.

I moved some of my decorations up here, and with nothing more to do for now, I went back downstairs to continue cleaning the living room.

I was dusting the fireplace when I accidentally lost my balance and leaned against a spot on the fireplace that opened a small hatch in the wall.

I peeked inside and saw something. I used the duster to sweep out whatever was in there. Among a bunch of dust and dead bugs, there was an old key.

“I wonder what you go to? Maybe the trunks in the attic.”

I tucked the key into my pocket, shut the hidden compartment, and went back upstairs.

I knelt in front of one of the trunks and tried the key. Nope. I tried another, and the lock gave way.

Inside was an old military uniform from the 1800s. It had been folded neatly and tucked away safely. Sewn neatly in gold thread was the name William.

I gently brushed my finger over the name.

“So, you're William.”

I closed the trunk and put it back.

I went back to cleaning, now wondering if William had lived here and whether he was a distant relative. What was his life like?

With the kitchen and living room clean, I went to get ready for bed. Once I was clean, I came back downstairs, built a fire in the fireplace, and curled up on the couch with a cup of tea.

At some point, I must have fallen asleep because I dreamed of a voice.

“Stay. Stay with me.”

I woke with a start and looked around.

There was no one there.

The sun was coming through the window, and a key lay on the coffee table. Confused, I picked it up. It was different from yesterday's key.

I got a funny feeling in my gut about the key, but I needed to know what it opened.

I went up to the attic and tried it on one of the trunks. It didn't work on the biggest trunk, but it opened the middle one.

I set William's uniform to the side and opened the trunk. Inside were letters upon letters between William and a woman named Amberlee.

“Okay, that's a little too close for comfort.”

Without meaning to, I spent hours reading their letters. They were so in love that it made my heart hurt. They talked about how they couldn't wait to get married and move into their home together.

This home.

I sat there, taking in what that could mean.

“Are either of you here?”

As I read one letter, I learned about a bracelet William was sending to Amberlee while he was away. The bracelet on my arm grew warm. It didn't hurt, but the metal was warm to the touch.

Gasping, I tried again to remove it, but it wouldn't budge.

“It's yours, isn't it, Amberlee? I'll find a way to get it off. I promise.”

I tucked the letters away as I had found them and slowly started my morning. I couldn't stop thinking about those letters. Did they get their happy ending? Why did Aunt Ginny keep their things?

Days went by as I got things done. I had dreams at night about William and Amberlee, but I saw things from her point of view. I never saw his face.

The outside of the house was finally clean, and the lawn was fixed. I was planting flowers along the house when I found a rusty old key.

“No way.”

I brushed my hands off on my pants and went to the attic.

I tried the last trunk, and it clicked open. Inside were pictures, dresses, and small trinkets. Not wanting to ruin anything, I went to wash my hands.

When I returned, I looked at the beautiful dresses that had belonged to Amberlee and folded them back up neatly. Then I looked at the pictures. Three pictures in, I stopped cold and just stared.

Taking a deep breath, I looked at Amberlee's face, and my face stared back.

She was in a beautiful wedding dress, standing beside a very handsome man in his military uniform.

William.

I sat stunned, not sure how I felt.

“Is this why Aunt Ginny kept this?”

I opened the trunk with the letters and compared the dates to the photographs. They had written to each other before their marriage, and the dates lined up with the wedding photo. They may have had two months together before the war.

A letter fell from the pile that I hadn't seen yesterday. It was addressed to William from someone named Edward. The date showed that William had been gone for eight months.

The letter said that Amberlee was gravely sick and most likely wouldn't make it.

I felt the tears fall down my cheeks and drop onto the letters.

“Oops.”

I looked in the trunk with the letters again and found two death notices. Amberlee's was dated three months after the letter about her being sick, and William's was thirty years later.

I guess they didn't get their happy ending after all.

I slowly packed everything away, keeping their wedding photo. I couldn't bring myself to pack it away. Maybe I'd get a frame for it.

As I went down the attic steps, the door slammed shut. When I tried to open it, it wouldn't budge.

“Stay with me. Stay. Please.”

I heard the male voice behind me and turned to see a figure of a man at the top of the steps.

William.

I turned to try the door again, but it wouldn't open. The temperature dropped. I turned back around, and he was right in front of me.

“Stay with me.”

He reached out and touched my cheek, staring into my eyes.

“I... I'm not her,” I said shakily.

At the same time, he disappeared, and the door fell open.

I stumbled through the doorway. Panting, I locked the attic and went to my room.

Pacing the room, I wondered, “Why did Aunt Ginny leave me this place? She had to know it was haunted. She mentioned William in her letter.”

Creeeek.

I spun around. Nothing.

I looked down. There was a floorboard out of place. I went to fix it, but something caught my eye. It was an old diary.

Aunt Ginny's diary.

The pages were filled with entries from when she was young, talking about William and the things in the attic. Near the last few pages, she wrote about... me. She thought that maybe I could help William move on.

I sat and stared at the pages, unable to fully process what was happening.

“Maybe that lawyer was right. Aunt Ginny was odd.”

I finally stood and turned to leave. William was standing in the mirror, watching me.

I screamed, and he jumped.

I've scared him.

I looked closer. In the mirror, the room behind him was different, looking as it might have when the house was new. When I refocused, he was still there, but I was standing in front of him, and my reflection was wearing Amberlee's wedding dress.

I gasped and stepped back.

“I'm not her. I'm sorry.”

He reached through the mirror, but I didn't take his hand. I slowly shook my head.

He tilted his head to the side.

He stepped through the mirror and stood in front of me. He lifted my wrist, the one with the bracelet.

“Did you leave this for me to find?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“It's beautiful. Do you want it back? For her?”

He disappeared.

“I'm talking to a ghost now.”

I'm not sure what to do now. Do I go on as if I don't know any of this, or do I try to help? Not sure how to proceed, I went to clean the study.

When I entered the room, William was there.

I jumped and screamed. He jumped, too.

“Are you going to keep doing that?”

He smiled at me and shrugged.

“William,” I softly said, saying his name.

“You know she's gone. She's probably waiting for you.”

He closed his eyes and nodded.

“What would help you move on to her?”

He slowly came toward me, touched my cheek, and studies my face then whispers, “I love you.”

Then he kissed me.

My eyes went wide, and I was afraid to move. He pulled away and slowly disappeared.

“Did... did I just get Caspered?”

“Hello, William.”

Nothing.

Days passed, and he didn't return. I could only assume he'd moved on.

It was midafternoon when there was a knock at the door. I answered it and stumbled back.

“William?”

“No. ma'am. I'm Henry. I work for the electric company you called three day ago.” “Oh right come in.”

He checks the first floor and we move to the second.”Well everything looks good for this old house.Here is my card if you need anything. “ “Thank you.”

We went past my room and the the mirror I saw William smiling at Henry. He nodded before turning to Amberlee, who took his hand.The bracelet cooled against my wrist.

“Goodbye, William,” I whispered.

The mirror reflected only me.

I smiled, slipping Henry’s card into my pocket. Maybe Aunt Ginny had given me more than a house. Maybe she’d given me a new beginning.