Tales from the Haunted Mansion, Volume 4 by Amicus Arcane

Author:Amicus Arcane
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Disney Book Group
Published: 2019-08-01T16:00:00+00:00

Prudence Pock looked up from the book to find Dr. Ackerman staring, his mouth agape, not at her, necessarily, but at the final page of the tale he’d just heard. “May I see that?”

“Of course, Doctor.” She passed him the book, and his jaw dropped even farther. The words were all there. The entire story had somehow materialized.

“That’s quite a trick.”

“I’m here all week,” she said, adding some levity. She glanced at the rectangular slot. The eyes of the orderly were there, always watching. This time, she thought she heard him muffle a small laugh. The doctor was not amused. He returned the book, his wonderment becoming resentment. The doctor didn’t like being made a fool of, especially by “one of them.”

“Your thoughts, Doctor?”

“My thoughts, dear Prudence, are inconsequential. But if you’re asking for my literary evaluation…”

Prudence leaned forward, close enough for him to feel her breath. It was cold—as cold as the dungeon. “Don’t be so stuffy. I’m asking if you liked it. Was it…believable? The story you just heard. Do you think it really happened?”

Dr. Ackerman said nothing at first. He had to weigh his words. He didn’t believe in an afterlife; therefore, as a by-product, he did not believe in ghost stories. But that didn’t mean he didn’t enjoy them. He enjoyed them immensely, actually—a fact he hoped to keep hidden from Prudence Pock for as long as he could. You see, Dr. Ackerman loved a good scare as much as anyone. You might even say he was an expert. Go ahead, say it.

“Interesting. I’d say it’s more sorrowful than scary. But not terribly convincing. I mean, who’d believe such a tale? It’s outlandish.”

“It’s Adam,” she replied.

Prudence began incessantly tapping the book cover with her nails. Tap, tap, tap. Dr. Ackerman found it grating. This is why we put them in straitjackets, he thought. Prudence Pock was waiting for his real answer. Tap, tap, tap. Like the mansion itself, she demanded one. Tap, tap, tap.

Dr. Ackerman cleared his throat. “As a story, I suppose it had its share of unsettling moments. But if we’re being honest, all that gore…it isn’t my thing.”

“That’s not what I asked, as you well know. I asked if you believed. A simple yes or no, Doctor. You either do or you don’t.”

The doctor had to tread lightly. The wrong answer could send a seemingly docile patient into a rage. It was best just to pacify her. “I believe that you believe. Is that enough of an affirmation?”

“No, it is not!” Prudence sprang from her stool, and Dr. Ackerman reflexively sprang from his, backing into the padded wall. Pointing her finger, Prudence raged: “That tale was not born of my brain! It came from a resident! It was her tale.”

“A resident of the mansion?”

Prudence quickly settled down. “Yes, Dr. Ackerman.”

“And this resident…does she have a name?”

All at once, an inhuman wail perforated the walls. “Cherreeeeeeeee!” It sounded like an animal in mourning.

“He’s been calling her name this entire time, good doctor.”

“You—you think he’s been calling Shelley?” Prudence nodded, and the hairs on the back of Dr.

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