Write Now Prompt: March 14th

Aaron sat there watching the flames flicker and listening to the wood crackle and allowed his mind to roam. It went to that day he bought the 80 acres of farm land. He woke in the morning feeling really good about what was to come. He knew he was taking a big risk and that it could put him in the poor house if anything went wrong. But Aaron Stimple was not a man who wanted to sit on the side lines.

He got up early that morning, showered and had breakfast before he headed out for the two hour drive to meet with Mr. Camden, the owner of the property, and his lawyer to go over the proposal he had drawn up for the purchase of the property. Aaron felt it was a good deal for all involved and besides it was all he could afford for such a risky venture.

The land it self was way out of the way with only one way in or out but it was perfect for developing into a neighborhood community. Hoping it would attract people tired of living in the city and wanting a quieter place to live in to invest in property. Yes Aaron looked at this as a turning point in his life. 

Aaron arrived for the meeting and put on the presentation that he put together and he felt very confident until Mr. Camden and his lawyer stepped aside to confer. It was at this point Aaron realized the worst, there could be no denying it, the proposal was a complete failure.  Or at least that was what he thought. The two men conferred for what seemed like an eternity. When they finally came back Mr. Camden reached out his hand to Aaron and said “ it seems like we have ourselves a deal Mr. Stimple.”

Feeling good about himself and what the future held for him, Aaron walked back to his rubbing the chill off the back of his neck,

Aaron threw another log on the fire, it was a cold winters night and the oil had run out days ago. He sat there in the light of the fire as the electricity has been off for weeks now. As the warmth from the fire started to warm him up he sat thinking about what had happened.  It has been months since he has gone out of his house. All the savings used up just to keep the necessities and now that was all gone.

Aaron Stimple was a fairly prosperous contractor. Building and selling houses. It started when he got the new property. A single sale from a retiring farmer just selling out his unused fields. Simple  enough, or so it seemed. Then it started, slowly at first, glimpses out of the corner of his eye. Then quick, hazy views. It was when the ghostly images started to hang around that Aaron started to think he was going crazy. When they started to talk to him he knew he was over the edge. Home was the only place he felt safe, so home he stayed.

He was startled as the phone rang, which was strange, since they had disconnected it weeks before. He looked at it with a kind of stunned blank look, Was he imagining it or was the phone really ringing. He slowly approached the phone, reached out and picked it up.

“Hello Mr. Stimple” said the voice on the other end. “My name is Rick Spangle. Your application to the Paranormal Investigation Agency has been accepted for review pending a face to face meeting. Our interviewer will be out to see you in two days time,”

With a shaky voice, Aaron said thank you and hung up the phone. Paranormal Investigation Agency, he thought. I have never heard of them let alone applied for a job to such a company. He sat in his chair staring at the flickering fire and wondered if maybe he really had gone crazy.