The Wall Below
I Kept hearing the sound, like a faint tapping from below. Tap tap tap…
I was still on the ground floor facing North into the sun. At this point I was no longer concerned with the possibility of someone or something else being in the house, I pretty much was convinced of it.
Slowly I made my way down the stony old set of stairs, they must have been a hundred years old, keeping my feet to the outside of the steps to any crunching of the loose gravel. No such luck, crunch, crunch, crunch.
Such stealth, might have been arrested as a burglar myself.
Slowly I descended the stairs one at a time, there was a tell tale smell that began to rise up from the far corner of the basement. It all looked the same to me just four old brick walls and an ancient dirt floor. This building was easily over a hundred years old, maybe a hundred and fifty. When is the last time you saw a coal chute sticking through an old brick wall? 
What the heck, the smell was getting stronger now, more pungent, more acidic… more smelly.
Of course I knew what that smell was as it was a part of many homicide investigations, but this was different, at least it was supposed to be different. There was no 911 call, no reports of a domestic violence, no physical assault or officer down, none of that. In fact, it was never intended for me or anyone else for that matter, to even be out there.
I Had been walking along by myself, in the pleasant and mostly peaceful woodlands of Estes Park, 
Colorado. Heck I certainly love my daughter, yes and even my good for nothing son-in-law, but after a full week of food, fun and festivities well, I just needed a small break you know, in all the Thanksgiving that comes with that holiday. So I decided that a walk in the park would be a good idea, and it was. Until I came upon that old house in the woods.
Oh now I certainly digress. Anyway taking the small flashlight attached to my keychain I began to point it at the two walls in the far corner, as that was where the noise was, and still coming at me. Tap tap, tap tap. Oh boy, the hair on the nape of my neck was standing up now. I don’t know Morse Code and I didn’t think that this was Morse Code, but what I did think was that the tapping wasn’t just random sounds coming from an old house, no sir this had a rhythm to it that had purpose, that was made with a conscious choice, something alive!
Whoa!
At this point I don’t mind telling you I was just about ready to call it quits but I couldn’t, for now there were some muffled cries, the 
sounds seemingly seeping out from that old brick wall facing South. I must have gotten turned around some as I had been looking North when coming down the stairs but now was facing South, same direction as the wall. More muffled sounds, solid old wall. How could anything dead or alive get behind that wall.
It hit me then, so I went tearing back up the stairs made a left turn and was facing South, same direction of the wall and there it was, the old graveyard. This was the one mentioned in the visitors guide. It was really small, only a six inch little railing still pretty much in place surrounding it. Couldn’t have been more than half a dozen or so headstones there yet there they were.
Now the tapping was more pronounced, the muffled cries louder as though they were no longer emanating from behind that wall but coming at me from inside my own head.
Thump, thump, thump!
There was a headstone butting up against the the old brick wall that was facing South.The grave was either a recent burial or it had been an “un-burial”, you know someone had recently dug a body up and out!
Well folks, it was just about that time that my daughter God bless her, and my good for nothing son-in-law who was finally good for something, came along side me and she said, “why daddy, you look a little spooked. You aren’t letting that old haunted graveyard story turn you around are you?”
What was I to say to this? There were no further noises, cries or smells coming from that old house any longer so, I just let that handsome young couple put their arms around my shoulders and escort me right out of there.
I Looked back at that old wall just a beat mind you, and kept on walking.
On the way out with no deceit intended mind you, I deposited that brochure-guide in the appropriate trash receptacle, turned North and said to my daughter, honey, let’s the three of us go home and have some more of your delicious turkey dinner, I’m starved.”Yeah”, my son in law said, “so am I DAD!
When Synapses Go Bad 