The Grey Gull Sanitarium - Part Two

   Bryce and I had to walk the long way around town. If either of us took one of our cars and left it near the Grey Gull Sanitarium, that would be an easy find for the locals reporting suspicious characters or the Bobbies patrolling the neighborhood.
   We are not kids anymore. So, besides the usual community service handed down by the courts for petty crimes, they like to heavily fine blokes like us. It helps with the city budget so they don't have to raise taxes on our overtaxed townsfolk.
   It's all about the money these days.
   Like I was sayin', to start with, we had to venture along the outskirts of town. When we got to Glenburn Road, we stayed in the trees alongside til we came across the old Barkley house. Then it was just a hop, skip, and a jump to the back of the sanitarium.
   Bryce was right. There was a huge Birnam Oak tree splitting the fence in the backyard of the place. With its knotty trunk and low hanging branches, it was an easy workaround for the barbed wire.

   On the grounds, we did a walkabout to find the least conspicuous entryway of the building. What I was surprised about was the fact that there wasn't an alarm system, security bars on the windows, and just a regular household door lock on the service entryway. "Easy pickings," I said to Bryce.
   Once inside, we lit our torches and were surprised how much the place brightened up. Bryce said it was because every wall, floor, and ceiling was painted white and the employees probably whitewashed the place everyday when it was in business.
   So I asked, "Shouldn't it have faded by now?" His response was, "You're overthinking it."
   Just in case, I turned my torch off when we were in the same room together. Even though there was the slimmest of margins of us being seen through the windows, I didn't want to take any chances. Bryce was smiling ear to ear at me and thought I was being paranoid.
   "Let's split up," I said, trying to sound brave. "I'll check this level and you head upstairs to see what you can find. Afterwards, we'll both go down to the cellar and explore there. Yell if you see or find anything interesting. And remember, no vandalism or stealing, unless it's valuable."
   A still grinning Bryce says to me, "Aintcha afraid some ghosts might hear you yelling for me if you see one? Oh wait? Your screams will probably scare them away!"
   "Shut up you buggered," I said unconvincingly. "Are you trying to stall so I'll hold your hand and lead you up stairs?"
   All he did was laugh and make a run for the staircase. Hoping up two at a time as he went.
   That's when I started talking to myself, while walking from room to room. "What is he on about? I have been doing this sort of thing just as long as he has. Afraid of ghosts? What does he take me for?"
   "Boo!"
   I must have jumped 2 meters into the air. I turned around shacking and found Bryce on the floor laughing his ass off. So I kicked him in the leg and went into an adjoining room.

End Of Part Two

This is,

Why Didn't I Do This Sort Of Thing With My Friends When We Were Young

Jim Hauenstein,

And,

“When you go out hunting wicked spirits, it's the simple things that matter most. The silvered point of your rapier flashing in the dark; the iron filings scattered on the floor; the sealed canisters of best Greek Fire, ready as a last resort.”
- Jonathan Stroud -

That is my story and I am sticking to it!

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