tripthicket
New Member
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2009
- Messages
- 1
Please forgive this first-time poster if I'm posting inappropriately; I'm trying to find a story I read a long time ago (as a child, actually). I am frustrated in my efforts because I don't know the name of the short horror/ghost/haunting story, or the name of the author, although I have a very vague recollection of this story being included in a book of such stories written by various authors. I can't even say for certain if it actually was a Victorian or Edwardian ghost story, although I think the time period of the events of the story may have been the late Middles Ages in Europe.
Here's what I remember: two or more friends were traveling. They came to an inn (?), where they were told of a haunted room. Everyone who tried sleeping in that room overnight died. One of the travelers was a strong and brave heroic figure, and naturally he scoffed at the tale. This man carried a (walking?) staff with perhaps a (metal?) ball/sphere atop it. He stated his intention to sleep in this "haunted" room. He may also have intended to fight the ghost, if it dared to appear?
There was an arrangement made whereby he would inform the persons outside of the room of what was going on by a set of taps on the wall with his staff. One tap would mean "I hear something." Two taps would mean "I see something." Lastly, three taps would mean "Something else is happening." He retired to the room, and the others waited outside. After some time, they heard one tap. Soon after, they heard two taps. Quickly after that, they heard three taps.
Memory fails me as to whether the waiting party rushed in then or waited until morning to enter. Either way, they found the hero dead in the bed, a look of great terror on his face. His staff, which they'd all heard used, was on the other side of the room, and clearly out of reach of a person lying in the bed.
You may say, "If you remember what seems to be the gist of the story, why try to find it?" Have you ever had an itch you couldn't quite reach to scratch? Every once in a great while, I get a mental itch to find that story, and I've been unable to scratch that itch for decades, despite occasional library, bookstore, and internet searches.
Once again, I apologize if I'm derailing this particular thread. Thanks in advance for any help anyone may be able to offer.
Here's what I remember: two or more friends were traveling. They came to an inn (?), where they were told of a haunted room. Everyone who tried sleeping in that room overnight died. One of the travelers was a strong and brave heroic figure, and naturally he scoffed at the tale. This man carried a (walking?) staff with perhaps a (metal?) ball/sphere atop it. He stated his intention to sleep in this "haunted" room. He may also have intended to fight the ghost, if it dared to appear?
There was an arrangement made whereby he would inform the persons outside of the room of what was going on by a set of taps on the wall with his staff. One tap would mean "I hear something." Two taps would mean "I see something." Lastly, three taps would mean "Something else is happening." He retired to the room, and the others waited outside. After some time, they heard one tap. Soon after, they heard two taps. Quickly after that, they heard three taps.
Memory fails me as to whether the waiting party rushed in then or waited until morning to enter. Either way, they found the hero dead in the bed, a look of great terror on his face. His staff, which they'd all heard used, was on the other side of the room, and clearly out of reach of a person lying in the bed.
You may say, "If you remember what seems to be the gist of the story, why try to find it?" Have you ever had an itch you couldn't quite reach to scratch? Every once in a great while, I get a mental itch to find that story, and I've been unable to scratch that itch for decades, despite occasional library, bookstore, and internet searches.
Once again, I apologize if I'm derailing this particular thread. Thanks in advance for any help anyone may be able to offer.
