I wouldn't dare to visit there again!

I had not seen my friend ,Ramesh ,for a couple of years . He had invited me to his house in a remote village several times but for one reason or the other I couldn’t make it. About a month back I decided all of a sudden to go there and so I did. Ramesh was happy.

I reached there on a Sunday morning after breakfast. We had a little chat and then after lunch as we were about to leave the dinner table Ramesh received a call from his boss on his cellphone asking him to meet him immediately.

‘ You see it’s Sunday I am supposed to take rest but can’t!’

‘ But what is the urgency?’ I asked.

‘ Well I don’t know. He is nuts! There are some people, as you know, who don’t want to take rest and wouldn’t allow others. He is living on his own and finds it useful to spend as much time as possible in the office. It’s a private concern , I have just no other choice but to please him.’

I felt sorry for Ramesh but then what could I do?

His wife shrugged her shoulders and said ‘ Lately this is happening rather too often !’

‘ Anyway I am off my friend, you take rest, I shall be back by evening.’ Saying this Ramesh left on his motorcycle.

I lay on bed for a while and then got up. Through the window I could see the woods and a pathway. It was tempting, I wanted to go there and when I spoke to his wife she asked me not to go too deep in the woods.

I smiled and told her not to worry and left. Soon there was I in the woods walking on the pathway slowly and enjoying the beautiful sight with huge trees on either side. It was all quiet . Not a single soul could be seen anywhere. The only thing I could hear was the sound of the crispy dry leaves of the autumn as I walked on them. I went straight, took right turn and then left and I don’t know what happened to me I just wanted to walk . Later as I was tired, I sat under a tree and wondered which way I came but couldn’t figure it out. I found myself totally lost in the woods.

The Sun was about to set, the birds were in a hurry to return to their nests and to make the situation worse there was built up of thick clouds indicating that it would start to rain any minute. But then to my utter delight I found an old gentleman who was coming from the opposite direction. He was very tall and thin and looked untidy.I asked him to direct me as to how I could return to the place I came from. He looked at me, smiled and said ‘ Sorry, I am new here.’ Then pointing at a small hut which almost got hidden behind the trees a little far away he said ‘You better meet the old lady ithere, I am sure she would be able to guide you properly.’

From far away I could see the hut, one window was open and I could see someone inside but soon disappeared. That must be the old lady who saw me through the window I thought. I walked fast and reached there. The door was half broken but closed. To look inside through the window would be impolite, so I waited outside for a minute or two and knocked on the door.

The old woman opened the door and smiled. She was also very thin and tall and was wearing a gown. I was sad to see that she had one leg , she hopped inside and said to me in a husky voice ‘ Come in. You must have lost your way or else who will come to visit this old lady? You are tired, take some rest while I make a cup of tea for you.’

I said ‘ Thank you Mam, I would rather have tea some other day, right now I am in a hurry to return.’

She laughed and then said ‘ You won’t come here again for sure. I can’t let you go just like that, you have to have a cup of tea my dear.’ As she laughed I noticed that she had only one one tooth left and she looked at me in a way as if she could see me inside out. I began to wonder what she was really up to!

I sat on a stool , it was very old and dusty and I kept looking at my watch. The rain started and there was lightning from now and then. I could hear the old lady talking to someone ‘ Now he can’t go, can he?’ Thereafter she started to laugh. I wondered what was going on, I kept my ears open and heard a man was talking to him in a low voice. I got up and peeped through the window to see inside the other room. But where was the old lady and what about the man whose voice I heard clearly? The room was totally empty and there was no back door or any other room. I could hear the old lady’s voice again ‘ We have to make him stay the night here.’ I was terrified , all of a sudden that old man whom I had met on the way a little while ago appeared right in front of me from nowhere and the old lady came hopping in a way as if she was in a dancing mood and both started to laugh loudly. I made no delay but ran out of the house and ran as fast as I could and looking back after a few minutes I could see that they both were on the pathway watching me and saying something raising their hands.

I ran faster and faster in whichever way I could and very luckily found myself out of the woods. There was a small tea stall a few meters away, I went in there, took a seat and I was panting. The shop keeper made me a hot cup of tea and said ‘ You don’t need to tell me what happened to you. You had been to that little hut, didn’t you? Well never dare to go there again, that place is haunted!.

Ramesh and his wife were wondering what happened to me. When I told the entire incident Ramesh told me ‘Very true what the man at the tea stall told you. That’s a haunted house and you actually have met the ghosts my dear! Thank God you have managed to escape!’ I was never a believer of ghosts in the past but now I am and in no way I am prepared to visit there again !