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The Paranormal Investigator!

If first impressions held truth, pegging me as a Professional Paranormal Investigator is the last occupation that someone would guess. But at the age of 40, I found myself graduating at the top of my class with a Bachelors Degree of Science in Criminal Justice from California Coast University, located in San Jose, California. This merged and complimented my background job experience in Psychology as a mental health counselor for six years.

Now at the age of 44, in my fourth year as an investigator, I have established myself statewide as professional, thorough and successful. I know what your first question is upon reading me using the word ‘successful’ in the above paragraph. You want to see the photographs of ‘ghosts, apparitions, objects floating across the room or eerie recordings of persons who have died but still linger in this earthly world.’

Well, I’m proud to tell you that I don’t have any such fake photos. I have performed nearly 80 paranormal investigations in the past four years and while that is not an astounding, thriving business, I have been well paid in every single case. Why? Because I don’t accept every case. I weed out the frauds, the quacks, the con artists who would like me to facilitate their fraud of a haunted location, either to profit from the publicity, prevent a sale of property or frighten another party away.

I‘ve learned that the combination of psychology, criminal investigation, a comprehensive knowledge of paranormal activity, communication skills and extensive experience in video/audio and forensic science have made me a confident and capable investigator. My goal in truth is not to mislead someone into believing a certain room, location or object is indeed haunted by some supernatural manifestation, but rather to prove just the opposite.

Contrary to the wild imagination that many of us of all ages can have under stress, even in the presence of multiple people, there are in most cases “Intelligent, rational and reasonable explanations for something that is happening.” Because I hold myself to a high standard of professionalism, not a person who is greedy for that next check, my reputation speaks more loudly then testimonials from those who perpetuate fraud.

I always smile when I first meet a potential client when they see me for the first time, because they always tell me that ‘they weren’t expecting someone looking like me.’ I always smile and reply, asking, ”And just what does a professional paranormal investigator look like?” It’s a good ice breaker to take away any hesitation or reservations. The greatest strength of any ‘investigator’ is to not look like an investigator.

Once they look at the inside of my Chevy van though, any doubts once felt, quickly fade away because what they see inside, appears more like that of the FBI agent on assignment. Now I know what you might be thinking. If I have such investigative skills, why aren’t I working for a police department or some big wig corporation, protecting people and assets? The answer isn’t all that complicated.

I was at my father’s bedside, holding his hand when he passed away. In his final moments he was at peace and he said, “Bridget, you’ve made me proud and brought me happiness far more then these last words can express to you.” As I fought back tears and squeezed his hand between both of mine, he struggled for another breath before continuing.

He gripped my hand firmly, before relaxing as a wave of pain subsided. “You’re all I’ve got left my child.” and then he laughed. A sound I hadn’t heard in his voice since he was admitted to this hospital over a month ago. “Yet, you’re not my little girl anymore are you Bridget?” As tears flowed down both of my cheeks, I smiled an embarrassed smile and replied, “I’ll always be you’re little girl daddy.”

But then his kind eyes took on a serious side as he fought to clear his throat. “All I own, all I have I’m leaving to you my daughter and I want you to promise me one thing, just one thing before God calls me home.” I looked down into his tired but loving deep blue eyes and whispered, “What is it poppa, what do you want me to promise you?” He looked away from me for a few seconds and when our eyes met again I saw joy in them.

“When I have passed away, after Father Anderson has given his last sermon and I’m resting in the cemetery, next to your mother, my wife, you’ll be given the inheritance I leave to you. I know that you’re a smart lady and could spend what money I have on anything. Maybe you will invest it, maybe you’ll travel or maybe you’ll give it to a charity to help other’s more than yourself.

I’m not asking you to tell me what your plans are. But what I will ask of you at this moment is your promise, that whatever you decide to do with my money, to do something with it that really brings you happiness. Happiness is so important.” he told me. Just as I whispered that I’d try to “Make him proud” ,he replied, ”That’s all I can hope for because I will always love you Bridget.”

That was when he lay his head back on his pillow and took a breath and closed his eyes. I thought perhaps he just wanted to rest for a bit, but as his grip on my hands lessened, I knew that he was passing away. I selfishly cried, ”Please daddy, don’t leave now. Please stay a little longer.” but he knew it was his time. Though I didn’t think about it at that moment, I do now, from time to time and I smile because I did do something with what he left me on that sad day.

He knew I had an interest in the supernatural. He knew I loved to sit on the couch with the TV volume low on Friday night’s as a child at 11 P.M. when Nightmare Theatre came on Channel 11. Either momma or poppa would call out to me… “Bridget, are you watching monster movies again?” I can’t help but smile, from that thought, because as young as I was, I always replied, “No momma!”

It’s funny, how decades later, how career paths can change directions. I decided to pursue being a professional paranormal investigator because of all the frauds who prey on people’s sadness over a loss of a loved one, or the naive and gullible. I decided to help other’s find closure, while at the same time holding onto hope that perhaps, ‘spirits actually do exist.’

Of the 80 investigations, I have handled, all but five were explainable. But those five, those five cases which I couldn’t solve, I couldn’t explain, well, I guess I will always wonder about. I miss daddy so much and many times I have found myself sitting upon the cool green grass beside his grave, just talking about life, about what I have been up too, telling him about some of my cases and how much I miss he and momma.

I cry sad tears, but they are happy tears too. It was on just such a day when I was leaving the cemetery, when I drove to the post office to check on my mail, when I discovered the yellow slip in my mail box regarding an ‘over-sized’ envelope at the front desk. I signed the receipt and took it back to my van and sat down. The name of the sender was a Mary Baker, with the return address of 2214 Larch Lane, Sacramento, California.

The envelope contained a letter on fine quality ivory stationary, as well as several photographs, five articles about a ‘missing Child’, as well as a police report, a Sacramento police detective’s business card and case # plus church pamphlet. I sat everything on the seat next to me and held the set of photographs in my hand. There were six photographs in all.

The first photograph was of an expensive residence. There were also newspaper clippings from the Sacramento Bee. On the back of the photo was the same address that was on the envelope. It was obvious that she was well to do and I had the distinct first impression that this would not be a ‘hoax type inquiry.’ Those kinds of cases I eagerly pass by are those who send me photos of a spooky looking house.

The second photo was of mother and daughter. The child looked about seven. A mother’s instincts were right because on the back of the photo was the date January 7, 2008 and age 7. The next photo was of her daughter’s room. The next photo was of momma, daughter and her church pastor. The next was of the momma and a police detective. The last photo was of something I couldn’t make out.

The photo was dark and blurry as if taken in a hurry. There was no way I could determine what or who it was of. I sat the photographs aside and picked up the handwritten letter. I quickly recognized the marks on the letter were dried tears, because many times I have cried while writing a letter. The letter was written by Mary Baker and her letter detailed a mystery disappearance of her daughter Emily.

According to her letter, Emily had been playing in her upstairs bedroom when Mary heard her cry out loudly, “Momma”, before there was silence. Mary had dropped the plate she was going to place in the dishwasher, shattering it, as she raced frantically to Emily’s room, only to find Emily missing. Mary searched the entire upstairs, then the entire house before calling the police. No trace was found of Emily and no signs of foul play were determined.

None of the upstairs windows were found open or unlocked. Mary stated that she believed that her daughter’s spirit was somehow is in the house and that she has run out of options and would like my help to try to find out what happened to her daughter. I read the letter three times, each time slower, until I sat the letter aside and picked up the certified copy of the Sacramento police missing person’s report.

I found nothing really useful from the police report. It basically detailed who, what, where, why and how, but didn’t determine if a crime occurred, if someone had been injured or if there was a suspect. I sat it aside and reviewed a certified copy of a polygraph that was given to Mary, by the Sacramento Police department. The findings concluded that her description of the events that occurred at her home regarding her daughter were truthful and accurate.

I saw a pattern forming by Mary. She had gone to the trouble to have key documents ‘certified’ and that impressed me. Next was a letter from a Pastor Nathan Brooks, of the Seventh-day Adventist church Mary was a member of. This letter wasn’t as enlightening as to the events surrounding Emily’s whereabouts as it was to expressing his faith that Mary had nothing to do with her daughter’s disappearance.

Finally, I picked up a sealed envelope, addressed to me. This letter also was written by Mary. In it she detailed bizarre events which had occurred in her house since Emily’s disappearance, yet not witnessed by anyone but her. Suspicious things such as doors banging, footsteps running down the hall, areas of the house extremely cold to walk in, someone touching her and most tormenting, the sounds of Emily crying out for her momma.

Individually, each thing Mary had sent to me, by itself didn’t hold a lot of weight. But together, they weighed heavy upon my mind and heart. I decided to call Mary’s phone number and see if she was home. If not, perhaps she had an answering machine. On the third ring, I heard the pleasant but tired voice of Mary Baker and told her my name.

I told her I had read everything she had sent me and that I would like to meet her to discuss her situation with her. She seemed relieved that I wanted to meet with her and I knew without asking that she was wiping tears from her eyes. She asked where I would like to meet her and I asked her if a park was near her residence? I think she was taken by surprise, that I didn’t suggest a Denny’s or maybe her home.

She told me the name of a park and asked if I wanted directions. I told her “No, that I had ‘OnStar’ and that it would guide me to the park.” I told her I could make it to the park around 3 p.m. and she told me that she would be parked in a tan four door Mercedes by three tall oak trees. Right on time, I pulled into Sylvester Park and the three oak trees stood out prominently. I pulled in alongside Mary’s Mercedes and parked.

When I got out and walked up to her door, she was getting out too, with a puzzled look on her face. I introduced myself to her and she replied, ”Please don’t be offended, but you don’t look like an investigator, you have such kind eyes.” I just smiled and told her “Everyone seems to say that to me.” and we both laughed. I looked around and saw a park bench in the shade under an oak tree and suggested we sit and talk.

It wasn’t an easy talk we shared, because between the words were many tears shed. When I had finished listening to all Mary wanted or could share with me, she asked me what I could do? I told her that I offered no promise that I could do anything. I told her that I would be happy to walk thru her house and to do some tests to see if I could pick up anything unusual, but that I could come up with absolutely nothing.

I urged her not to build up her hopes and especially to not fall prey to other’s that could target her grief and take advantage of her financially. Before we went any further, I held up my hand at Mary and I saw hesitation in her eyes before I began to speak. “Please don’t misunderstand me Mary, but after I read all the material you had sent me, my gut instinct tells me that this is a missing persons police case, rather than something for a paranormal investigator.”

There, I finally said what was in the back of my mind. While the circumstances were clearly suspicious, nothing she had shared with me to this point led me to believe it involved the supernatural. Perhaps it was my maternal instincts that compelled me to at least meet Mary, rather than to decline my services over the phone or in an impersonal letter.

“Perhaps there’s something else that you haven’t told me that might make your case fit more in my line of work, Mary?” I asked. In less time than it took to blink an eye, Mary fell to her knees and put her hands on her face and began crying. It was as if Mary had been carrying a heavy burden inside and suddenly couldn’t carry it any longer. I rushed to her side and knelt down to comfort her.

It took some time for Mary to compose herself enough to speak to me. When she finally looked up into my eyes, I knew there was more to the disappearance of Emily than she had told the police or me. Yet how could that be? She had passed the polygraph test 100%. Mary would soon answer that perplexing question for me. At first, Mary began explaining the supernatural events she had witnessed at her home so fast that all her sentences ran together.

Finally, I placed two fingers on Mary’s lips and whispered ”Shhhh. Slowly Mary, tell me what happened slowly, please.” I could feel Mary’s heart racing as fast as the wind, but as she took deep breaths, she began to calm down. “No one knows what I’m about to tell you and after I have finished, you may think I’m on drugs, but I swear it’s all true my house, well, it’s haunted.

Three days after Emily’s disappearance things started to happen. At first I thought it was my imagination, because of hardly having slept or eaten for days. But it wasn’t my imagination Bridget.” she said. Mary had my complete attention now as I helped her to her feet and we both sat down at a near-by picnic table. I placed my hand on top of Mary’s hand and asked her to start from the beginning.

“Well, those first few days I felt I was going insane. I didn’t know where Emily was and the pain inside was killing me. I had turned to everyone I could and to make matters worse, the police I felt didn’t believe me, even after I passed their lie detector test. I even volunteered to take it over. I couldn’t sleep and when I tried, I would lay down on Emily’s bed. I spent hours crying, hours wandering the house calling out Emily’s name, searching every possible and impossible hiding place Emily could be hiding.

Even the police dog they brought into my home couldn’t find her.” she said, but then Mary hesitated. Mary wanted to tell me something but couldn’t. I saw it in her eyes. A frantic pleading to help say that which she couldn’t say. “What is it Mary, what is it you want to tell me?” I pleaded. I wanted so much to help Mary, but only she could break through whatever was stopping her.

Then, suddenly, as if a dam had suddenly burst, what she had been holding back for so long broke free. “He has my baby, that sick animal took my baby and I want her back!” she cried out loudly. Her voice was filled with anger, desperation and strength. Mary had a piece of the puzzle to what had happened to her daughter. “Who took your little girl Mary, who took Emily, you must tell me.” I anxiously said.

Mary‘s eyes pierced my soul as she told me her deepest secret. “I’ve been scared to death that if I told anyone what I have seen and heard that I would be locked up. I didn’t have anyone I could turn too.” she said and Mary sobbed with her head upon her hands. It was a difficult time for me trying to help and comfort Mary, but slowly I was helping her. I was freeing her from the secret that was draining all her strength and hope.

“Mary, I came all the way up here to help you. But in order for me to help you, you have to trust and confide in me. I can’t help you if you don’t tell me all that you know. Start from the beginning and don’t leave anything out, I’m begging you.” I said. Whether I wanted to drop taking Mary’s case before that moment, would have been futile now. I was caught up in this terrible whirl wind mystery.

I was too involved to walk away. I had to know what had happened to Emily. I had to know who had taken her daughter and why? But most of all I needed to know how to help rescue Emily. I wanted whoever took Emily to be punished. A mother’s most tormenting nightmare is to have her child abducted. “Do you know the man who took Emily, Mary; can you describe him to me?” I pleaded.

With her eyes red and mascara streaked down her cheeks she barely replied in a trembling whisper, “He isn’t a man, he’s a demon, a shadowy voice that wanders my home tormenting me Bridget.” Once she revealed that to me, everything else came much easier for Mary to talk about. “I don’t know where he came from and I don’t know why he took Emily, but he’s holding her, God knows what he is doing to her. But she’s alive! I’ve heard her voice, her crying many times.

At first I thought it was all in my mind. I thought I was just tormenting myself, wanting to believe Mary was still here, but then I began seeing things, hearing things, hearing voices and seeing shadows move across the room. Bridget, I swear if I would have called that detective and told him all of this, he would have had me committed to a psychiatric hospital. That’s why I searched and searched the web until I found your website.

I believed in your abilities and felt you wouldn’t play on my emotions to take my money, like con artists do. Emily is in my house and I need you to help bring her back to me, Bridget, please help me. I will pay you anything, I’ll sign over to you everything that I own, to have Emily back in my arms, just name your price.” Mary pleaded. By now, I was crying tears that no bucket could hold.

I was shaking my head as I told Mary that I would help her. I told her that I’d do everything I could to find out what happened to Emily and bring her back. “Please, help me to help you Mary. Start from the beginning and don’t leave anything out this time. I don’t want your money. I want what you want, to bring Emily back home to you.” I said as I took a deep breath. My voice had the sound of determination, the same determination that was heard in Mary’s voice.

Mary was no longer alone. She had a friend, someone who believed her, someone who would become her strength. For the next 30 minutes, Mary re-told to me everything she believed that she had heard, seen or felt since Emily’s disappearance. She described every detail crisp and clear, without hesitation. In her mind she believed that the supernatural events she shared with me had really happened.

Only two things lingered in my mind. First, “How much of what Mary told me was a mother’s desperation in her mind that her daughter was still in her house? Second, how many of the things told to me could be supernatural and had actually occurred? Yet, for me, it really didn’t matter if everything could be explained, if in the end Emily could be found and found alive.

What most people, both educated and every day people don’t understand is that there are other worlds and other dimensions. There are portals, doorways, places where realms collide with our reality and when they do, if an entity chooses to enter or breaks thru, they can harm us. Finding that doorway and confronting that entity and finding a way to make it return to its own world, well, that is the challenge few of us can overcome.

Mary began her story with her sitting on her daughter’s bed, crying herself to sleep. “I thought several times of taking my life with an overdose of sleeping pills, Bridget, but I just couldn’t go through with it. I even went so far as to have a handful of pills in my hand as I filled the glass of water. But at the last moment, I looked up into the mirror and looked into my eyes.

I wanted to know more about where my daughter was then to end it all and never know. I flushed all the pills down the toilet.
That first night alone I think was the hardest night of my life. I could feel my heart being torn out in desperation. I had done everything possible to find Emily. I had searched every possible place in my home. The police had searched. The detective had searched and the police dog had searched.

Yet something told me Emily was here within this house, waiting for me to find her. I admit that in the midst of all my heartache that my mind could play games on me. Maybe exhaustion and collapse could have made me think I heard or saw things that couldn’t possibly be real. But I swear I was awake. There is something evil in my house Bridget, something without form or shape.

It’s a cold cloud of darkness that moves freely, confidently through my house and the hate I feel is powerful. Yet it’s never harmed me. It was as if in a bizarre distorted way, it appreciates I had given birth to a child, a child it took as its own. I‘ve seen objects move by themselves, felt door knobs too hot to turn, water filling sinks by themselves and heard the desperate cries of Emily calling out for me.

I’ve seen shadows move across the living room or up or down the stairs, looking, for what, I don’t know. I’ve smelled the scent of peaches so strong, so ripe, the smell was almost intoxicating. I‘ve seen a cloud of darkness that instilled such fear that I left a room, the upstairs or the house. But I always came back, because I know my daughter is still there, I know she is still alive.

I’ve pleaded with whatever it is to that took my daughter to take me instead, to take my soul in return for letting my child go, but the only response I heard was a mocking laughter. If I went to the police and told them all I’ve told you, would they have believed me Bridge?” I shook my head and told her no. That was when Mary offered me everything she owned in return for helping her get her daughter back.

Her Mercedes, her home, her bank accounts, stocks, credit cards, her jewelry, everything. With tears in my eyes I told Mary I didn’t want her money. I told her that I would do everything I could to help for free her until I felt all hope was gone. I reached across the picnic table and took Mary’s hands in mine. “If what you’ve told me is 100% true Mary, Emily needs our strength, not our tears.

The light of strength and hope is stronger than the pain of hopelessness and aloneness. It’s also a time of great danger because when an entity takes a child, he never gives up that child easily. Someone, often times a priest, will battle the evilness and sometimes he succeeds and sometimes he dies. Helping others has been my destiny and I realize that one day I may die.

But when that moment comes, I would rather die helping to save someone, then to die in a car wreck for nothing.” I said. Between Mary and me, a bond was formed. A bond of friendship, hope and goodness that opposed evil. But would it be enough to find her daughter, fight against what took Emily from this world and bring her back alive? I didn’t have that answer.

I told Mary we had a lot of work ahead of us and asked her to walk over to my van. When I slid open the door, she gasped. “Your van looks just like those I see in those CSI shows.” She said with a laugh. Well, Mary, “This is my ‘brain center’ for my work. Very little work is done by me wandering around locations at midnight. What I do is set up all of my equipment in the daytime and I sit here monitoring my equipment.” I explained to Mary.

“Equipment like what?” Mary asked. That was my opportunity to show Mary what I would do for her. As I climbed inside and sat down in the swivel chair, I picked up my scanner. “This is a thermal Imaging camera which can pick up both fluctuations in cold or warm areas of a room. Then I have this little gadget here.” I told her with a smile. “Paranormal activity can be measured in terms of changes in electromagnetic fields.

This is called an ‘EMF’ meter for short, sort of like a Geiger counter Mary. I can hold one of these in my hand or on a belt and an alarm will sound if the electromagnetic field is disturbed. Or I can place them around locations and monitor them from my wireless computer here in this van.” I said with a smile. I also showed Mary small low light wireless mini-infrared cameras that fed data back to my computer screen. “I have 10 of these cameras Mary.”

I also rely on wireless recorders which will pick up even the quietest of sounds. Each recorder’s sounds are then recorded onto CD.” I told her with pride. “Boy you are a hi-tech gal.” Mary told me between laughter. “Well Mary, in my profession, much can be explained as natural instead of supernatural. It helps me to separate the two, you know, fact from fiction.” I said. That was when Mary floored me by asking the toughest three questions I knew at some point she would ask of me.

“Since you accepted my case, will you be able to find Emily? “Will you be able to tell me what happened to her? Will you be able to bring her back to me?” Mary asked. I saw the desperation of a mother in her face as tears rolled down her cheeks. I climbed out of my van and put my arms around her and tried to comfort her. “Mary, I can only imagine the pain you feel for Emily, but I can’t guarantee that I will discover the answer to any of your questions.” I said with hesitation.

This time it was Mary’s turn to hug me and she never let go as she cried on my shoulder. When she did release me, she wiped her eyes. “When will you be able to start?” she asked. I told her that I could follow her back to her house if she wanted. She asked me where I would be staying while I was in Sacramento, and I told her right in my van. “I have my own bed right there Mary.” and she leaned inside and smiled.

“It doesn’t look very comfortable.” she said. “It will do fine for me Mary, but I do have one request of you.” She looked curiously at me for a moment before nodding. “Once I‘ve set up all of my equipment I need you to shut off all the power breakers in your home and promise me you will not go inside your home again for 48 hours. I will need you to come to my van at the end of 48 hours so we can go inside together.

When we come back out to my van, I can print out my findings if any. Is that agreeable to you?” I asked. Mary agreed and we got into our vehicles and I followed the Mercedes back to Mary’s home. As I followed the Mercedes ahead of me, I wondered how much of what Mary had told me was true. I wondered how much was just her imagination and grief over her missing daughter. I wondered what she also knew, but had held back from me?

Regardless of how the cards would be played out, I was prepared to do my best to find out the answers to this bizarre mystery. Within 10 minutes I was pulling in beside Mary in front of her beautiful two story estate. The day was hot and the sun was hotter as I stepped out of my van and into the stinging heat of the sun. As I walked up at Mary, I saw her face looking up at one of the upper windows and I saw the curtain clearly move.

Mary cried out that it must be Emily and she raced to the front door, anxiously unlocking the front door with me right behind her. As we both stood just inside the doorway, we stared at the stairs leading to the second floor. As Mary glanced back at me there were tears in her eyes as she whispered in a trembling voice, “It must be Emily, it must.” Before I could caution her to wait, that it could be an intruder, she began racing up the stairs, calling out Emily’s name desperately.

When we reached the top of the stairs, I pulled on her arm, and she pulled away from me, but stopped. “Mary, there could be a burglar in your home. He could be armed. Let’s go back outside and call the police?” I said. But Mary was too frantic to listen to common sense and she hurriedly went down the hall to the room where we saw the curtain moving. It was Emily’s room.

Before I could stop her, she turned the knob and entered the room. Not seeing her daughter, she ran to the closet and then looked under the bed. No one was in the room. As I stood in the hallway, I asked her if there was any other way to get off the second floor and she said no. Together we searched each room with me standing guard watching the hallway. To my shock, we found every window locked.

No one had gone down the stairs and no one went out a window, yet we both saw someone or rather something at the window, watching us.” At that moment, any doubts I had felt about Mary making up her story or perception that something supernatural wasn’t in her home faded. Now I was more determined than ever to solve this case and find out the truth.

After we had searched the rest of the house including the garage and found nothing out of the ordinary, I took Mary outside to my van. Mary’s eyes told me everything that she was feeling at that moment and it was hard for me to keep her focused on me. I took out my Contract for services and went over each section including the provision that I wasn’t guaranteeing any results from my investigation.

I had her read and sign that document as well as my medical release that she was not liable for any injuries I might incur. I made sure she initialed all the important parts as well as the part where it showed I was not charging her any fees for my services. I had never performed my services for free before, but this case to me was important enough to me, that I would work for free for five days.

Mary understood that and I emphasized that I would close the case if nothing turned up after five days. I expected Mary to beg for more time, to plead for more time, but she didn’t. She seemed relieved that I was giving her five days for me to find her daughter. After I folded and handed her copies of the papers, she asked me what the next step was. I told her three things had to be done.

First, I had to place my different wireless sensors and cameras all over the house in the hopes of recording any disturbances which would be relayed to the hard drive of the computer in my van. Second, I needed a copy of her front door key if anything unusual was going on inside. Third, after the breakers were shut off, she had to give her word to me that under no circumstances, would she re-enter her home during those five days without me.

She agreed. I told her that before I would start my surveillance I would go to the nearest store and get enough food and bottled water for five days. Mary was still waiting in her car when I returned from a small grocery store. She met me at my van and helped me carry two large bags of equipment inside her home. One bag was for the main floor and garage and the other bag was for the upstairs.

When we had finished, EMF sensors, motion detectors, heat sensors, a compact low light video Camera and two sound activated CD recorders were set up. When we were finished and the front door locked, Mary took her front door key off her key ring and handed it to me. “Do you mind if I drive by each day and ask you if you’ve learned anything?” Mary asked in a worried voice.

I smiled and put my hand on her arm and told her, it would be alright. “What if you’re sleeping?” she asked. I laughed and told her it was okay to wake me, just by knocking on the side of the van wall. She seemed relieved that she would still be able to keep in touch with me. I asked her to give me her cell phone number if I needed to get in touch with her and she did. I also gave her my cell phone number.

Before Mary left, I double checked to make sure the power was completely turn off to the house except for power to her garage and she said yes. I had her open the garage and I plugged the 75 foot extension cord into a wall socket so my computer equipment could run for the next five days. For bathroom needs I had a portable bathroom in my van. Once she realized everything was set up, reluctantly, we both said goodbye to each other.

That was important to me because I wanted all my sensors to function properly and wanted to make sure anything setting them off wasn’t set off by electricity. Neither of us realized at the time, that without power, the food in her refrigerator would spoil. But just by looking at the value of her home after Mary had driven away, I don’t think spoiled food mattered to her.

It would be five hours until the sun would set and I was grateful that the garage and house shielded me from the direct sun. It was going to be a long night as I opened up my log book to page 1 and began my first entry. I leaned back in my captain’s chair and opened Danielle Steele’s 528 page book titled, “The Wedding” and turned to page 1. If any of my sensors became activated, a sensor would turn my computer screen on and take it out of hibernation.

If the audio sensors were tripped, the speaker volume was on maximum and would alert me even if I were sound asleep. So I settled in for a long night. I would stay awake for as long as I could before lying down on my bed. I really can’t say that I was apprehensive or nervous about what might happen within the house as I sat there in my van that evening.

No matter how I tried to push it out of my mind though, I recalled someone at Emily’s bedroom window. I clearly saw the curtain move, we both did. There wasn’t enough time for someone to make it down the stairs without us seeing them. There wasn’t any way for someone to jump out any of the second story windows because all the windows were locked from the inside.

We had searched the entire house and found no one. Was there actually a supernatural entity in the house? Was it responsible for Emily’s frightened cries for help before she vanished? All I could do was let the night pass and wait. Little did I know that my quiet night was about to turn into a moment to where I would feel scared to death. I found myself too engrossed in Danielle Steele’s book to hear the two police cars pull up and quietly park.

The next thing I knew I felt a firm hand grab my shoulder as the officer ordered me to step out of my van. I nearly wet my pants as I jumped and looked to my left and then to my right as both officer’s cautiously stared at me. Evidently, Mary had watchful neighbors and had called the police about my van, parked in front of Mary’s garage. It took some time showing them my agreement and a cell phone call to Mary, before they thanked me for cooperating and left.

I made sure to ask one of the officers to let the graveyard and day watch commanders know I was here and that I had permission. That was about all of the excitement my heart could take. I had been so startled that I dropped my book and lost my place. Fortunately, my first night of surveillance went by without anything unusual happening.

When I couldn’t keep my eye lids on the sentences I was reading any longer, I folded a corner of the page, sat it in the next seat and crawled back to my bed. I can’t say that I was expecting to be awakened by strange things from inside the house and I was grateful that I wasn’t. It was a peaceful night. I was thankful that I was parked in a quiet, dead-end cul-de-sac neighborhood.

The next morning, once I was fully awake, I went to my laptop and pressed enter to bring up my computer screen and see how all my sensors were functioning. That was when I got the shock of my life. All of my sensors, every one of them were off-line, which meant they weren’t working. I knew their batteries were freshly charged. There was no way that anyone could have turned them off.

They had been remotely turned on by me. Only I had the ability to shut them down. I slipped my shoes on and took the key Mary had given me and walked up to the front door. I slipped the key in, turned the knob and opened the door to encounter still another bizarre mystery. There in front of me, at the bottom of the stairs were all the sensors I had placed on the main floor and upstairs.

They were perfectly lined up in a now like a row of baby geese, with my video camera acting as a mother goose. I just stood there stunned, unable to move and unable to speak. The motion sensors would have sounded an alarm had anything moved near them, let alone moved the sensors. What in the hell was happening? For just a moment, I thought perhaps Mary had come back into the house and moved them, as a practical joke.

She knew exactly where each one was located. But I realized she would have triggered the sensors. I left everything but the video camera and closed the door and took the camera back to my van. No one could have approached the camera without being seen on film. I made sure of that. Surely, even in low light, I could see something on the film. But why, hadn’t any of the sensors fed information to my laptop?

It was a question I could not answer. I plugged the USB cord into the camera to transfer the images onto my computer screen. When the download was complete, I clicked play. I stared intently at the computer screen, not taking my eyes off of it for a second, and never saw so much as a shadowy figure. I checked the battery pack and it still had a full charge.

I played the hard drive a second time to be sure I hadn’t missed something. Then I went back into the house and my heart began pumping as if I had seen a ghost. Every single sensor that had been lined up on the floor in a row, were now perfectly balanced one on top of the other. Someone was in this house and I was being played for a fool. No one had left through the front door, so I searched the entire main floor and every window and door was still locked.

Nervously, I took my Glock 40 caliber semi-automatic pistol from my shoulder holster and tip toed up the stairs. Room by room I searched, but no one was found. Nothing was unlocked either. Just when I felt my heart could take no more stress, as I stood at the top of the stairway, ready to walk down, I saw all my surveillance equipment below, but they were no longer stacked on top of each other. They were all arranged in the shape of a smiley face looking at me.

Obviously, someone or something was toying with me as if I were a child. I walked cautiously down the steps, listening for the quietest of sounds, but heard nothing. I made two trips from the house to my van, putting my equipment away, before staring back at the house. Whatever I was up against was smarter then I was. I was being mocked. It was not going to let me capture any movement within the house and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.

I weighed whether I should call Mary and tell her what had happened. I weighed whether she was in fact behind these strange events, but knew she wasn’t. The way I saw it, I was faced with two choices. First, I could tell Mary what had happened and tell her there was no way I could conduct surveillance when whatever was inside the house just toyed with my equipment.

What if it chose to smash them all? The second choice was to tell her I was going to conduct my surveillance personally inside her house. I could never have chosen choice #1. I believe strongly in other worlds, dimensions, portals, gateways from which entity’s much different than us, can if they want to, or do enter our world. This assignment was the very reason I chose to become a paranormal investigator.

Besides, I couldn’t simply tell Mary, “Look, I’m scared. Something is messing with my equipment, and it might even harm me, so I can’t help you find out what happened to your daughter, goodbye!” No, I would call Mary and have her come over and I’d tell her everything. Then I would let her decide if she wanted me to do my surveillance inside her home. When I had finished recording notes in my log book of all that had happened, I called Mary’s cell phone and she arrived a short time later.

I hadn’t told her anything over the phone, but when I did explain, she turned white as a ghost and her jaw dropped before she began crying. “You’re not giving up are you Bridget?” she asked me in a frightened, panicked voice. I did my best to comfort and reassure her that I wasn’t going to give up or leave. I told her what I wanted to do, but that she had to agree that it was what she wanted me to do.

At first, she was against me staying alone in the house. She wanted to be there with me but I told her no. Then she told me if I did wait inside, that I’d be putting myself in danger and that if I died, she could never forgive herself for contacting me. In the end though, she did agree that the only way to find out what happened to Emily was for me to conduct my surveillance inside her home not from my van.

Once that decision was made, there was no reason to leave the power off in the house any longer and Mary turned the breakers back on. I agreed that if she wanted to, that she could stay with me during the day time but that I wanted her to leave at dusk. That way no matter what might happen, I only had me to worry about. When the sun began to set, I told Mary it was time for her to say good night to me.

I saw tears in her eyes as she came to me and hugged me tightly, whispering, “Please be careful, get out of my house if you feel you’re in danger, promise me you will.” and I promised her I would. I stood by the front door and waved goodbye to her before closing the door and locking it. I was completely alone now. As my back rest against the fine grained oak door, I wondered if Mary had believed the lie I had told her, when I agreed I would get out of her house at the first sign of danger?

I was going to get the bottom of who was toying with me, taunting me, making me feel I was helpless. I wasn’t helpless whether it was some serial Killer or something paranormal. I wanted Emily back with her mother and I wanted to punish whoever was responsible. Suddenly, before I could take in my first breath, I cringed, as I heard the most deafening screams my ears had ever endured.

I clasped my hands tightly over my ears, but it didn’t help as the words echoed again and again clear to my soul. “Momma, please come back, take me with you momma!” The screams came from upstairs. There was only that one scream and it seemed to have made me frozen to that door. I didn’t move. I just stood there, stunned beyond disbelief.

No human being, let alone a small child could ever scream out so deafening. I wondered if I too had gone deaf. My ears were ringing; hurting as I anxiously rubbed them. I could feel my heart wanting to jump right out of my chest. I struggled to calm myself. This was my cross roads, my chance to run or stay. I chose to stay. My mind was telling me in no way was I prepared for what I was about to face.

The fear in me told me that I was about to die. The only one who seemed on my side was my heart. Everything good in me told me that saving a child’s life was more important than my own life. That the love between mother and daughter was more important than my own life. I had strength, compassion, kindness and determination as my ally’s.

As I stared at the stairway, I knew it was time to meet my fate. Emily had made her desperate plea to be saved. I couldn’t turn my back now and abandon her. Slowly I made my way up the velvet carpeted stairway, one step at a time. My ears were still ringing even though I strained to hear any sound that would alert me to danger. My senses were heightened but I never head a sound.

When I reached the top of the stairs and looked down the hallway, the biggest question I faced was answered. I wondered as I walked up the stairs, what room Emily’s screams came from? As I looked down the hallway I knew that answer. Instead of four doors, I now saw five doors. I saw a door where I knew before there was nothing but a wall. I felt an anger building up inside of me.

Whatever entity had taken Emily, it was inviting me to confront it. Why else would it choose to reveal the fifth door to me? In a moment I was standing in front of the door. As I cautiously reached down to turn the knob, suddenly it slowly began to open by itself. As I pushed the door all the way open with my left hand, drawing my gun with my right hand I peered into a dark room.

I reached inside for the light switch and my fingers fumbled clumsily until I found it and turned it on. The room was identical to Emily’s room in every detail except one. Instead of sunlight shining into the room, there was only darkness. That was when I saw Emily sitting on her bed, staring at me with tear filled eyes as she held her small white stuffed bear.

I saw hesitation in her eyes as she spoke. “I want my mommy. You’re not going to hurt me are you?” she said in tears. I had never heard a child’s frightened voice like hers in all my life. I looked quickly around the room before waving my hand to her, whispering, “Come with me Emily, let’s get out of this house.” That was when her eyes grew wide and she shook her head, as if she knew it was hopeless.

“I can’t leave. He won’t let me. He said I’m his forever.” I began to walk towards Emily with fire in my eyes as I whispered, “We’ll see about that Emily.” and then I stopped, frozen in my tracks. Something was very wrong. Why hadn’t I realized it before? Why would something supernatural, allow me to see the door, to see Emily and then to help her escape? The answer was simple.

The child I saw before me wasn’t Emily at all. The child looked at me with curiosity. It was puzzled as if it knew what I was going to do up until now. My first instinct was to empty my clip into whatever had taken the shape of Emily for my amusement. But a part of me, a small part of me said it really could be Emily. So instead, I played a hunch

“I see you like to play games. You’re not Emily. You’re from another place and time. I don’t know why you entered our world, but I’ll send you back to where you came from after you give me back Emily. She’s not yours, give her to me!” I shouted in anger. Suddenly the child’s eyes turned a glowing angry red as both her fists hit the mattress she sat on. “Only a coward assumes the shape of a child.” I shouted.

The child pushed herself off the bed and as she stood there, I watched her begin to change shape. Black smoke with an acrid odor began to swirl around the child until I faced the creature that had abducted Emily. He towered well over 6 feet tall and wore a dark velvet cloak. Only his face could I see. He was a hideous creature with blue skin, long bluish grey hair protruding from under the hood and his eyes were menacingly evil.

His nose was huge, almost deformed and four fangs protruded out of his mouth as he stared at me with hatred. “I trust my appearance is more appealing to you than that of a child. Who are you to come and mock me? I can as easily strike you down as I can let you live. Leave now while you still can. Do not return to this house. The child is mine. I will never give her up!” the demon shouted.

He had made his challenge to me. He had issued his ultimatum. To stay was to die and to leave was to live. The demon stared at the gun in my hand and laughed as if it had seen a toy. Is your weapon supposed to put me in fear woman?” he shouted so loud the walls shook. Before I could speak, invisible hands took the gun from my hand and in seconds he was holding it.

He looked down at it, almost admiring it before he raised his eyes, lifted the barrel to his temple and pulled the trigger. Gun smoke filled the air around him and I was sure my ear drums had ruptured as I saw him smile back at me. He tossed the gun across the room and it landed against the far wall with a thud. The outside of his hooded cloak had a large flash burn, but I saw no injury and saw no blood.

“You’re stronger then her mother and like the child, you have a powerful light surrounding you. But even you cannot take the child from me!” he gloated with a hellish grin. I didn’t need him to tell me I was strong, that the light around me was strong, I had always known that. What he had done though was what he had least expected to do. He had told me that I was powerful. “Turn around now and leave now, I will not toy with you for my amusement any longer!” he commanded.

“Where is Emily? I shouted. I know she is here, show her to me, I demand it!” Those were not the words to use to what stood less than 8 feet away from me and his eyes began to become enraged. I expected him to tell me no, to perhaps kill me instantly, but he did neither. Instead, with the wave of his right hand Emily appeared, frightened but unharmed, surrounded by five bands of light.

The demon motioned for me to go to her, with a snide smile, and I was all the more nervous. Keeping eye contact the entire time on him, I made my way to Emily and knelt down. There were tears rolling down Emily’s face as she stared into my eyes. I tried to touch her, but two of my fingers touched one of the bands of light and burned them.

I quickly pulled my hand away and held my two fingers as I cringed in pain. The demon’s laughter filled my ears as he reminded me that I could talk to Emily but not touch her. Suddenly, the demon moved both of his arms and I too was surrounded by the same five bands of light. I could feel intense heat around me. “I haven’t decided if you shall die now or if I should perhaps keep you as well as the child. I’m impressed that the energy around you is so bright.

Perhaps I would be wise to keep you and return you both to my world.” he said as he looked down at me. I had no intention of being trapped in his world for eternity. I had no intention of letting Emily slip away into his world either. I could feel the anger in me growing stronger and stronger, but I was also keeping my cool. I had a plan and if it failed, I was as good as dead. Death would be better though then accompanying him to another world or dimension.

Emily was less than a foot away from me as I whispered softly to her. Emily momma loves you. I saw her eyes brighten instantly. “Is momma coming to save us?” she asked. Quietly, I said, “No Emily, I’m here to take you back to momma.” She looked at me perplexed. I asked her if she could put her hand between the light and not be burned and she nodded with hesitation.

That was when I told her to reach through and touch me if the demon took hold of me. I saw hesitation in her eyes and said firmly,” Just do it as fast as you can if you see him touch me.” Again, she nodded and I stood up and faced the demon. It was all or nothing now. My plan would work or I was as good as dead. That to me was a better fate then going to another place where I would be tortured for the rest of my life.

To be his wife or worse bear his demon children. As our eyes stared at each other he knew I was up to something, I knew it. “I see you are a powerful demon when it comes to kidnapping little children and holding a woman prisoner. But you and I know the truth, don’t we?” I said as I began to laugh. I knew just what to say to push his button and I had him pissed off now. “The truth? What truth do you know of me?” he bellowed.

“Well, I finally realized that without the power of your magic that you couldn’t win in a fight against me.” He was almost over the edge and needed just one more push. “In fact, without your supernatural powers you are no more than a mortal man, a coward, if you were to fight me.” I shouted, as I laughed even louder. Sure enough, that was all it took. Enraged, he rushed over to me, looked at the barriers of heat between us and with a wave of his hands they disappeared and his clawed hands clamped like vice grips around my throat.

My hands desperately tried to free his hands, but they were incredibly powerful and I couldn’t breathe. Suddenly, Emily reached between the barriers that held her prisoner and she grabbed a hold of my leg. It was a calculated risk I had taken to believe that because Emily’s light and mine were powerful, that together, our life forces might be powerful enough to destroy the demon.

At the moment I felt her fingers gripping my leg, the demon let out a painful scream and instantly burst into a million sparks of light, exploding in every direction. As I dropped to my knees gasping for breath, I saw the room beginning to turn completely black. Seconds counted for us to both escape that room into our own world. I grabbed Emily’s hand and forced myself to run for the doorway.

Reaching that hallway was like two horses in a dead heat for the finish line. In this case there could only be one winner. We both fell onto the hallway carpet just as the darkness closed the door behind us and all that remained was a wall. I don’t know whose heart was beating faster, Emily’s heart or mine. Once outside, I called Mary and handed the phone to Emily and both momma and daughter cried.

I could tell Mary was almost in the driveway by the sound of the car racing to the end of the cul-de-sac. When they were re-united, I too cried. I told Mary all that had happened and the three of us went to the police department and we all gave statements. It wasn’t important to any of us if the police detective believed us or not. What was important was that this case had a happy ending.

I had survived the most dangerous confrontation of my career and I knew if poppa were still alive, he would be proud of me. A desperate and frightened mother had her child back in her arms unharmed. Before I drove home, Mary said she would never return to her home again. She was selling her estate and moving to San Diego, to start their life over.

© 2008 Raymond Cook (All rights reserved)