In the case of Beverley's family that follows next they were at first scared of their ghost but now treat her as a family friend:
"All our family have seen the little Victorian girl who wears a long night dress- we have called her Emily. I asked the previous owners of the house if they'd seen anything and they exclaimed 'Oh she's back again is she?" says Beverley from Hampshire.
Jane was the first to investigate Beverley's story. "My first impression was that Beverley had found Emily's blue patterned jug in the garden and I pointed out where Emily's dog's grave had been" says Jane.
Beverley confirmed that bones and blue china had been found where Jane said. Jane said that the girl had died in the well that they had recently covered over. They later checked the records and found this to be true- beneath the new kitchen was the remains of an old well.When I investigated the cottage Emily told me about a St Christopher medal the owners had found under a tile in the kitchen. I pointed to the stone tile and they confirmed that this was the exact place it was found. Beverley rummaged through a draw and handed me the St Christopher to help me build my link with the spirit by holding it.
Emily took me on a tour round her old home. She was aware that she knew that she was dead but preferred to stay put so long as nobody minded. It was her that had been trying to draw attention to herself by moving the children's toy clowns and, as described and witnessed by Beverley their mother, making them come alive. Beverley decided to burn the offending clowns in the garden. "There was a piercing scream as I threw them on the bonfire" said Beverley, "It nearly scared the life of me."
Emily was sorry that she had scared them all.
Jane had got it right when she visited earlier. She'd told the owners that Emily had fallen down the well when the authorities arrived to take her to a children's home after her parents died. Children's homes in Victorian times were fearsome places.
The spirit of Emily began telling me how the house had changed and the owner was able to confirm this. Strangely one of the bedrooms had once been a larder and Beverley said that they'd had to completely strip this large room of wooden shelving and cupboards. The children's room, I said, had once been Emily's and this is where I was told she had most often been seen dressed in her long white night dressThere was one manifestation of Emily that had not been so pleasant. Beverley told me that on one of the walls on the house a marking had appeared and disappeared.
Emily led me into the living room and told me to place my hand on a particular place on the plain, clean wall. "It wasn't a simple mark" I exclaimed "It was a red hand of blood"
Beverley looked shocked and I began to wonder if I'd spoken out of turn. I didn't want to be alarmist but, although she'd said nothing about this to anyone before, this is exactly what the whole family had seen at the place where I put my hand. Again I could feel Emily from the spirit side apologising.
"Although some people would be worried by a ghost we feel that Emily is a nice spirit to have around" says Beverley "She's never given us any more trouble and the last thing we would want is for Craig & Jane to get rid of her."
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