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Authors: Stefan Petrucha, Ryan Buell
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to examine further. A scout team went out, consisting of: Alan; our “test” cameraman, David Miller, now a coexecutive producer; our new adviser, Joyce; and me.
At one point we thought we had our first case. It involved a woman and her dilapidated home near Harrisburg. When she called us, she was crying, really frightened. There was an empty apartment in her house, where she heard footsteps and voices. I think it was a blessing that she eventually got cold feet and dropped out. It was a pretty dull case. Looking back, we easily explained most of the phenomena. At the time, though, we were under the gun and really upset.
Next we scouted a case in Pittsburgh. The woman, who’d attended UNIV-CON, was very cool, but while the activity had been intense about ten years ago, the most recent was minor, and months old. During our last conversation, though, she said she felt her house was haunted because her entire family was cursed.
“Even my sister is haunted,” she said.
I asked what she meant and she went on in incredible detail about what was taking place at her sister Helen’s home. Helen Isenberg lived in Blairsville, near Pittsburgh, which was on the way back to State College. With nothing really to lose, we decided to pay her a visit.
Once I saw the location, I didn’t need any further convincing. I know I’m blowing my own horn, but there’s a certain gut instinct all good investigators have. Helen’s house was down a lonely road in the middle of farmland. Across from it were several acres of corn stalks withering before the coming winter. The house itself stood on a large plot of land. The only other structure in sight was a neighboring house Helen also owned. I just knew we had a great investigation on our hands.
I also immediately recognized Helen. Like her sister, she’d attended UNIV-CON. Due to her experiences in the house, she had an avid interest in the paranormal. She and her son, Justin, had come to the conference to learn more.
Helen had a motherly quality. She seemed kindhearted, sincere, and loving, but her face was etched with pain. Her youngest son, Chris, had passed way six months earlier from a drug overdose, in May, on Mother’s Day. The property also had a history: A man had once drowned in the pond there.
She claimed the second house was the epicenter of the activity, so we toured that first. The family had originally lived there, until she opened up an assisted-living business for the handicapped. When the business needed more space, they’d moved to the other house.
But here she said they’d seen shadow people, objects had levitated, and doors had slammed. The house was used for foster care. She’d taken on foster children from the state, providing a sort of halfway shelter until the kids found a home. Many refused to stay in the house alone because of their experiences. Some even claim to have been attacked.
Her late son Chris, in particular, had seen the shadow figure often and called him the Dark Man.
All this happened over the course of several years. Children came and went. The house would sit empty until a new group arrived. Helen felt that this proved it wasn’t just the children passing down stories to scare the newcomers. She was convinced something evil was present, and worried it might have kept Chris from moving on. I wondered what made her think that, but she was very hesitant to elaborate.
After spending a few hours with her, I could tell she was withholding things. Having a client hold information back wasn’t new. It’s actually common. People are afraid they won’t be believed about more extreme activity. There are also often big emotional issues involved that are tough to admit to, and family secrets as well. With Helen, I got the sense this went beyond a simple fear of being embarrassed. There was something more going on here, and the challenge of trying to find out what it was excited the hell out of me. Furthermore, I was convinced that Helen’s belief
At one point we thought we had our first case. It involved a woman and her dilapidated home near Harrisburg. When she called us, she was crying, really frightened. There was an empty apartment in her house, where she heard footsteps and voices. I think it was a blessing that she eventually got cold feet and dropped out. It was a pretty dull case. Looking back, we easily explained most of the phenomena. At the time, though, we were under the gun and really upset.
Next we scouted a case in Pittsburgh. The woman, who’d attended UNIV-CON, was very cool, but while the activity had been intense about ten years ago, the most recent was minor, and months old. During our last conversation, though, she said she felt her house was haunted because her entire family was cursed.
“Even my sister is haunted,” she said.
I asked what she meant and she went on in incredible detail about what was taking place at her sister Helen’s home. Helen Isenberg lived in Blairsville, near Pittsburgh, which was on the way back to State College. With nothing really to lose, we decided to pay her a visit.
Once I saw the location, I didn’t need any further convincing. I know I’m blowing my own horn, but there’s a certain gut instinct all good investigators have. Helen’s house was down a lonely road in the middle of farmland. Across from it were several acres of corn stalks withering before the coming winter. The house itself stood on a large plot of land. The only other structure in sight was a neighboring house Helen also owned. I just knew we had a great investigation on our hands.
I also immediately recognized Helen. Like her sister, she’d attended UNIV-CON. Due to her experiences in the house, she had an avid interest in the paranormal. She and her son, Justin, had come to the conference to learn more.
Helen had a motherly quality. She seemed kindhearted, sincere, and loving, but her face was etched with pain. Her youngest son, Chris, had passed way six months earlier from a drug overdose, in May, on Mother’s Day. The property also had a history: A man had once drowned in the pond there.
She claimed the second house was the epicenter of the activity, so we toured that first. The family had originally lived there, until she opened up an assisted-living business for the handicapped. When the business needed more space, they’d moved to the other house.
But here she said they’d seen shadow people, objects had levitated, and doors had slammed. The house was used for foster care. She’d taken on foster children from the state, providing a sort of halfway shelter until the kids found a home. Many refused to stay in the house alone because of their experiences. Some even claim to have been attacked.
Her late son Chris, in particular, had seen the shadow figure often and called him the Dark Man.
All this happened over the course of several years. Children came and went. The house would sit empty until a new group arrived. Helen felt that this proved it wasn’t just the children passing down stories to scare the newcomers. She was convinced something evil was present, and worried it might have kept Chris from moving on. I wondered what made her think that, but she was very hesitant to elaborate.
After spending a few hours with her, I could tell she was withholding things. Having a client hold information back wasn’t new. It’s actually common. People are afraid they won’t be believed about more extreme activity. There are also often big emotional issues involved that are tough to admit to, and family secrets as well. With Helen, I got the sense this went beyond a simple fear of being embarrassed. There was something more going on here, and the challenge of trying to find out what it was excited the hell out of me. Furthermore, I was convinced that Helen’s belief
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