Trail of Blood
Even as a small child, I feared ghosts and spirits. My whole life, I've had strange feelings about the supernatural beings around me. When I was just nine years old and getting ready for bed, the lights suddenly went out. I peered outside; it seemed the entire district was experiencing a blackout. There should have been a good explanation for such a catastrophic event, but there wasn't.
I had goosebumps.
They were coming at me from the window; I could always tell the direction on my goosebumps. I crawled over to the window and peered out to see an old lady standing outside. She rotated slowly and stared straight at me, and her eyes sent a chill through me. I dove into bed and burrowed into my blanket and pillows.
One of the blankets had holes in it. I peered through, at the window, to see the lady still staring at me. Just then my mom burst into the room.
"I felt your fear -- what's wrong?" she asked, sitting on the bed next to me. I exploded out of my pillow nest and clung to her, closing my eyes and wishing I could never let go.
On my 14th birthday, I felt the goosebumps again, this time from the kitchen. I stayed close to everyone who had come to my party, hoping to ward off any spirits via their presence. I didn't see anything throughout the day, but that night when I went to get another slice of my cake, I ran into two of my cousins.
"Leigh...is Nanny in the kitchen?" the younger one asked.
"Mikey, Nanny is in heaven, remember?" I said absently, walking around them.
"But...someone is in the kitchen," the older one said.
I sighed and led them to the double doors, only to stop frozen. A trail of blood led through the doors to the kitchen, where Nanny had died from a heart attack a few years ago. We rushed to the master bedroom, screaming, and shook everyone awake -- my mom and uncle and aunt.
"A trail of blood," we managed to pant between screams.
My uncle sighed and took us to the kitchen. He kicked the carpet, frowned, and shook his head. "There's nothing here. Leigh, you're the oldest. You should know better than to make up ghost stories to scare your cousins."
I could only stare in fear. Where his foot had kicked, blood had smeared across the carpet.
