Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 Nyman House
   by Nysidra
   Summary: A group of sensitives investigate the haunted house once known
as the Umbra House.  For two of them, it is a life changing event.
   <->
   Too late for second thoughts, but that didn't stop me from having them.
I needed the money.  A month long contract was better than unemployment. 
An on-location study didn't seem like a bad idea, but now my stomach rolled
with unease.
   The other five did not share my trepidation.  They were either dozing or
staring out the windows of the limousine as if bored.
   The man beside me, Heath?  His head kept falling on my shoulder.  How
could he sleep?  Just knowing the history of the place had my at attention.
   Five thousand dollars.
   Do a job, get five thousand dollars.
   I repeated the refrain to keep the rising panic from taking over.  I had
a bad feeling, and as we got closer to our destination, it got worse.
   Dr.  Ackerman insisted my history made me a good fit for his research.
Who was I to disagree with five thousand dollars?
   A throat cleared, and I startled.  Heath stirred and frowned as if I had
failed in my duties as his personal pillow.
   Dr.  Ackerman leaned in through the opening in the divider between the
front seats and the rest of the vehicle.  He waited until he had everyone's
attention.
   He cleared his throat again.  "Thank you all again for your
participation.  I know some of you may be apprehensive about the nature of
the experiment."
   Heath snorted and rolled his eyes.
   I took a breath to chastise him, but kept my mouth shut.  The others
reacted in much of the same fashion.  The brunette giggled.
   Why was I the only one taking this seriously?
   "As I was saying.  I know some of you may be nervous." The doctor made
eye contact with me and smiled.
   My jaw clenched too tight to return the gesture.
   "We are, after all, headed to a fabled soft spot.  For the next four
weeks, we will investigate what is now known as a haunted house."
   He laughed, but it was dry, forced.  No one joined in.  "We arrive in
ten minutes.  I need to go over some details beforehand."
   He pulled back a moment and tapped the tablet in his hand.  "The Umbra
House, now the Nyman House, is over two hundred years old.  As the Umbra
House, it had a reputation for strange occupants and stranger visitors.  It
was not until Philip and Veronica Nyman acquired the property that it
gained its reputation as a disturbed location.  Each owner thereafter has
reported tragedies and general unease within the house.  No formal
investigation has been performed on the property until now.  As psychics--"
   The woman who giggled earlier exploded with laughter, but stifled it
with a hand over her mouth.
   Dr.  Ackerman ignored her.  "Due to your sensitivity, I anticipate you
will locate the source of the disturbance within the house.  Record
anything you see, hear, feel, or sense within the journals I provide.  This
includes dreams or any thoughts you have throughout the day.  Questions?"
   "Why journals?  Can't afford a few more fancy tablets?"
   "Electronic devices can be unreliable and need to be charged." He pulled
back and closed the window.  No more questions, then.
   I expected a house with such a storied history to sit high up on a hill,
far removed from civilization, towering above them like a behemoth.
   No, a normal house, in a normal looking neighborhood.  An empty lot to
the left, a manicured, but empty house on the right.
   The limo turned into the drive and spikes of low pain throbbed in my
temples.  I massaged the aching points.
   "What's up?" Heath asked.
   "Nothing." The pain eased as it usually did.  Without knowing any of the
history, that's how I would know to head in the opposite direction.
   "So, Mary, right?" The heavily made-up woman checked her black curls in
a handheld mirror.  "What kind of psychic are you pretending to be?"
   "It's Maiko, and what are you talking about?"
   She snapped her mirror shut.  "So, I can sense changes in energy.  You,
Keith?"
   Heath grinned.  "Damn, Renita.  It's Heath."
   She clicked her teeth.  "Whatever."
   "I'm an object reader.  Jake?"
   "Mind reader.  Classic."
   The brunette with uncontrollable giggles said, "I talk to spirits."
   The man with thick glasses and scruffy hair said, "I see in to the
past."
   "What's your name again?" Jake said.
   "Lyle." He lowered his voice to a stage whisper.  "Don't worry.  I've
been studying this place for years."
   Heath shouldered me.  "So what ability are you pretending to have?"
   "You're all just pretending?" My voice whined in disbelief.
   The whole car burst into laughter.
   Dr.  Ackerman was outside the limo speaking to the caretaker.  He looked
over his shoulder briefly.
   "What?" Heath arched his brow.  "You're not?  Don't be shy.  Everyone is
here for the money."
   "I'll be a sea creature for five k." The brunette said.
   "Mmm hmm," Renita hummed in agreement.
   "None of you are psychic at all?  What about those tests?  The profile
and experiences?"
   "Luck," said Jake.
   "Me too."
   "Bribery," Renita winked at the round of shocked expression.  "His
secretary likes designer clothes and I work in a clothing inventory
warehouse.  Nothing to it."
   Questions rose in a flurry, everyone trying to do get the dirt on how
they got to be here.  I learned that the brunette was Rosa.  She had her
friends get their friends to support her claim in return for a pay out.
   I stared out the window.  The last bit of hope that I'd have at least
one thing in common with them faded.
   "Are you saying you didn't cheat?" Heath said.  "Are you a real
psychic?"
   "I wouldn't say that." I didn't need to think to deliver the practiced
lines.  "I've never claimed that.  I get feelings, ideas.  Most of the time
my notions turn out right.  Maybe I'm just lucky." Luck.  For a while, I
even believed my own bluff.
   "Shit," Jake winked at me.  "We're in the presence of the genuine
article guys!  Hey, you want to--"
   The limousine opened cutting him off.
   I took the advantage and slipped out and hurried to the house.  I was so
keen to get away from the others that I forgot where I was headed.  The
world tilted, my vision swam.  My legs turned rubbery and loose.  I went to
my hands and knees on the ground.
   No pain, no nausea.  I'd never felt this way before.  The world tilted,
and just as suddenly, it stopped.
   "Miss Harper?"
   I pushed to my feet.  How did I interpret something I never experienced?
"I'm fine." I brushed the dust off my skirts.  "Think I tripped."
   "Careful where you step," Dr.  Ackerman said.
   Heath took hold of my arm and pulled me away from the gawkers toward the
house.  "You got one of your sensations, didn't you?"
   I rolled my eyes.  "I don't know, maybe."
   "Awesome.  Hey, Doc!"
   "Yes, Mr.  Miller?"
   "Maiko and I are buddies."
   "Buddies?"
   "Very well, now..."
   I turned to Heath.  "What are you talking about?"
   "Buddy system.  Dr.  Ackerman recommended we have a buddy for the first
week to have someone experience phenomena at the same time in a different
way." Heath smirked.  "I may not have super spirit powers, but I do read
everything I sign."
   I huffed.  "I get that, but not permanent."
   "It should be permanent.  You don't want to be with one of them when you
have a moment, do you?"
   I barely knew them and yet Heath was the only one I felt comfortable
beside.  The way he slept on me, helped me.  He found comfort in someone
who would make his money easier to earn.  That's all.  He was not hitting
on me.
   "You have a point.  Better the scoundrel I know."
   Heath chuckled, displaying the dimple on his left check.
   "What?"
   "You said yes.  I knew I liked you."
   He could not be hitting on me.  No, just wanted a front seat at the
freak show.  I had to keep things in perspective and pay attention to the
house.
   Dr.  Ackerman waved his hand in the air.  "All right.  Gather your
luggage and follow me."
   While we pulled or shouldered our luggage, Dr.  Ackerman unlocked the
door.
   It looked like a normal two story home on the inside as well as outside.
Normal save of the usual amount of smaller rooms, as if always built with
the idea of a housing six or seven people.
   I took a breath and crossed the threshold.  A small foyer, stairs led
down into a large living room.  Odd, but had the effect of creating an
underground feel.  My skin tingled, my clothes seemed tight.
   I woke lying on the couch, propped on uncovered pillows.  I felt like
I'd been lying in the sun too long, but not burned.  Hair covered my face,
but when I tried to clear it, my hand didn't move.
   I groaned and a circle of faces crowded my vision.
   "Are you all right, Miss Harper?" Dr.  Ackerman shined a light in my
eyes.
   I squeezed my eyes shut.  "Yes, I think so.  What happened?"
   "You collapsed in the hallway.  Did you have a vision?  Were there any
particular sensations?" The doctor's zeal increased with each question.
   "Just vertigo." I was in the house to have weird experiences, but I
thought I would be among kindred.  As the only weirdo in the room, I wanted
to keep hold of my illusion of normalcy for as long as possible.
   "You experience signs of distress when you get a bad feeling, yes?  It's
important you record this in your journal.  All of you, I want you to
record what you were thinking and sensing at the time of Miss Harper's
episode." Dr.  Ackerman looked at his watch.  "I'll show you to your rooms,
but you stay here, Miss Harper.  Mr.  Miller, stay with her."
   Everyone but Heath filed up the stairs.
   Heath sat beside me on the couch.  "What really happened?"
   "I haven't felt that way before." My arms had enough strength that I
could clear the hair from my face.  "It was like going numb and warm at the
same time."
   Heath reached forward to do something with my hair.  I must have made
things worse.  His lids lowered and he caressed my temple.  His finger tips
trailed toward my cheek.  I held my breath as his pupils widened.
   "Overwhelmed, positive, buzzing, chaotic.  Clashed anxiety." He said
while looking through me, inside me.
   I didn't know whether to laugh or run.  An ocean wave of comfort crashed
into me.  "Heath?"
   "This will help." He placed one hand on my stomach, just under my
sternum and the other behind my neck.  He massaged the nape of my neck
while the other rocked upwards on my diaphragm.
   I had no idea what the hell he was doing, but my skin cooled, my
strength returned, and I felt my mind coming back together.
   "Heath?  Heath?!"
   He jumped.  Hopped up as if I scared him.  "Hey, I'm right here.  No
need to yell."
   "Are you okay?"
   "Me?  Yeah, I'm not the one resting on the couch.  What about you?"
   What the hell?  I pushed to my feet, tested my balance.  I felt so much
better.  "I'm good."
   I followed Heath up the stairs.  He seemed normal, though it was hard to
tell with a person who I had only known for the duration of a quiet car
ride.  All I really knew what that he didn't drool or snore.
   "Good," said Dr.  Ackerman.  "I was just about to fetch the two of you.
As buddies, the two of you will share a room.  Are you comfortable with
that, Miss Harper?"
   Heath peeked through the open door beside them.
   Damn it.  Better the scoundrel I know.  "That's fine."
   "Very well.  This way."
   Now that the world wasn't tilting every which way, I had another
sensation, that of being watched.  The hairs rose on the back of my neck.
Was this normal?  Maybe I was just afraid.  It didn't mean anyone was
actually watching me.
   I didn't imagine the touch on my cheek.  I stiffened and stifled a
scream and bat the sensation away.
   "Spider web or something." I didn't bother looking for any spiders or
their webs.
   "You two will be in here.  As best I can tell, this was the room of the
original owner."
   "The Umbra family?"
   "No.  Nyman.  There's no evidence the Umbras lived as a family.  Records
indicate three to seven unrelated adults lived here.  For several years it
was registered as a business with upstairs apartments." He pointed to the
bedside tables.  "Your journals are in there.  Please record your
experiences since arriving.  Mr.  Miller, I've left you a list of things
I'd like to take telemetry readings from."
   Heath nodded and unzipped his suitcase.
   "Dinner at seven.  The dining room is on the ground floor.  Please do
not forget your buddy any time you leave this room." Dr.  Ackerman closed
the door behind him.
   Heath and I unpacked.  Thankfully, he was quiet while we did our job:
writing in our journals.  How honest was I going to be?  For my own
benefit, I decided on completely.  Several times, I glanced up expecting to
find Heath staring at me.  I never did, but the sensation of being watched
continued.
   I wrote it all down.  No conjectures, only experiences.  I didn't want
to sway Dr.  Ackerman's research.  The man appeared susceptible enough
without my help.
   What about Heath?  How honest had he been?
   "I'm starving.  I hope the food is good.  Ready?"
   I set my journal and pen aside.  As part of our study, our phones had
all been confiscated.  "Lost track of time." I muttered.
   ***
   We were the first to arrive.  A 'hot dish' was delivered by a catering
service.  A tray of lasagna on deck tonight.
   We served ourselves buffet style: lasagna, salad, bread, and a steamed
vegetable medley.
   It dawned on all of us over dinner that this month wasn't going to be
the easy $5,000 that was advertised.  No television, music, news, or
phones. We had a library filled with books, but that was it.
   Post dinner talk consisted of the typical 'getting to know you' banter:
friends, family, hobbies, and careers.  I felt myself sinking down into my
chair, wishing I could head back home.
   "Ready to head back up?" Heath asked.
   I jumped on the offer.
   He took my arm and we went upstairs.  Thanks to the weirdness earlier, I
didn't think I would faint again, but I appreciated his consideration.
   We reached the landing and I smiled.  "Thanks." He kept hold of me all
the way to the door.
   I used the privacy screen to dress down.  I thought Heath was in the
bathroom doing the same, but I came from behind the divider and got an
eyeful of the chestnut brown halo around his cods.
   "Sorry."
   Heath shrugged and pulled the covers back from his bed.  He didn't seem
to care, not that he had anything to hide.  He had a decent body, a little
bit of fat, nice tanned skin - no tan lines - covered by dark brown hair.
Interesting, given the light blond locks on his head.
   I got into bed in my sleep shift.  I lay awake for a long time. 
Moonlight cast just enough light to give the imagination plenty to do.  The
trees outside swayed, casting shadows on the wall.
   I woke some time in the night, a warm body along my back side.  Having
listened to Heath breathe for nearly an hour in my ear, I knew it was him.
   "Heath." I rolled over and jostled his shoulder.
   "You deserve to be here."
   I sat up and turned on the bedside lamp.  "Heath, what are you saying?"
   "The others are not welcome.  I will use them to gain strength.  Not
you, not the conduit.  All our kind know this place as sanctuary, as should
you." Heath's voice sounded as if it echoed in her head.
   "You are not alone, Maiko."
   "Heath, honey.  I need you to wake up and get back to your bed."
   No, he didn't move, but he didn't talk in his sleep anymore either.
   I woke the next morning feeling surprisingly well rested considering it
was my first night in a strange house in a strange bed with a naked man who
talked in his sleep.
   Floor boards creaked, pipes groaned.  Heath's heavy breaths carried on
at my back.
   I took a shower first and exited to Heath sitting on the foot of my bed.
He had a suspicious look on his face.
   "Better be some coffee," he grumbled as he stumbled to the bathroom.
   Were we going to pretend he didn't sleep in my bed?
   I dressed and wrote about my restless evening.  I didn't mention Heath
got into my bed, or that he spoke.  I recounted it all as a dream. 
Something was going on here, and I didn't want to share what I couldn't
understand.  Not yet.
   ***
   The days settled into a predictable pattern.  We had breakfast, wandered
the house looking for scares.  The others made a big production of taking
readings, looking for spirits, and pretending to investigate.
   Heath and I found great amusement in their antics as we did our own
thing.  Heath held the objects that Dr.  Ackerman requested, attempted to
make an effort at 'faking it.'
   No one noticed that he shied away from contact when it came to anyone
else.
   Yes, at night, he still found his way to my bed.  By the third night, he
pulled my covers back instead of his own - naked as the day he was born.
   "Saves me the trip," he said with a yawn.
   I got in bed with him, convinced at this point that he viewed me as
nothing more than a friend, a parent.
   "You can stay if you're honest with me?"
   He sighed heavily.  "About the psychic thing?"
   I nodded.
   "I can't read objects.  I fake that.  I know that I have black outs, and
that when I touch people, but only some people, I feel things."
   "Me?"
   "Safe."
   "What?"
   "You make me feel safe, comfortable."
   "Thanks, I think." I settled into bed and Heath put his arm around me.
   "Would you kick me out of the bed if I told you how else you make me
feel?"
   "Good night, Heath."
   "Good night, Maiko."
   ***
   By the end of the week, the others were more subdued, sluggish.  People
slept through breakfast.  Dr.  Ackerman was less talkative.  Middle of week
two, Heath and I let the caterers in and delivered meals to the others.
   In a strange way, Heath and I had the run of the house.  We made up
games to play, sang silly songs, shared books.
   It was the beginning of week three.  Heath and I were sitting on the
couch next to each other reading when he put his hand in my lap.  I didn't
think anything of it until he moved it higher up my leg.
   "What are you doing?"
   Heath moved his hand, but turned and planted a kiss on my lips.  He
pulled away for a second, long enough to shift and kiss me again.  He
wasn't rough about it, and I didn't mind.  I was just shocked.  I didn't
move, kiss him back, anything.
   Which must have killed it, because Heath pulled away, his face red and
eyes looking everywhere but at me.
   "Heath--"
   Dr.  Ackerman entered the living room.  "Meeting in the dining room."
   Everyone looked terrible, pale, tired.  Even Renita had abandoned her
extensive beauty routine.
   "I'm calling off the study.  A car will be leaving the house in a few
hours.  Many of us have taken ill, myself included.  Staying will not make
anyone better.  If you want to stay, I will pay the full amount at the
close of the fourth week.  Leave now, and I will pay $2,000 for your time
and effort.  Who will leave with me?"
   Jake, Renita, Lyle, and Rosa raised their hands.  Heath looked at me,
his hand rested on the table.  I reached under the table and squeezed his
thigh.  I needed the money, but I didn't want to be alone.  Given my
wordless rejection of him earlier, I understood why he would think of
leaving.
   "Mr.  Miller, Miss Harper, you're staying?"
   "Yes, sir," we said in concert.
   "Very well.  I will schedule a grocery service.  It should last you the
rest of the week.  You will also care for your own housekeeping."
   "We'll be fine," I said.
   "Yes, seems you will."
   Heath and I helped everyone with their bags.  Back and forth, each time
reminding myself that I wouldn't be alone and that I needed the money.  I
wouldn't be alone, but I'd be with someone who, despite my doubts, truly
seemed to like me.  Together, we had been fine.  I didn't want to gamble on
the results of being alone.
   ***
   I decided on a long, indulgent bath.  I filled the tub with hot water,
used shampoo to make bubbles.  While lifting my shirt overhead the lights
went out.  I tossed the shirt off and spun around.  Until that moment, I
had forgotten why I was there and what kind of house it was supposed to be.
   "Heath?"
   "Getting flashlights.  Don't move."
   "Okay." Except that I couldn't see where I had thrown my shirt.  I felt
my way to the bathroom.  Turned the water off.  I finished undressing and
lowered myself into the water.  If the powered stayed out long, the
opportunity for a hot bath would be gone.
   "Where are you?"
   "Bathroom."
   The beam of light turned the corner.  He turned on a second light and
set it on the counter, casting a beam of light on the ceiling.
   "Thanks."
   "No problem.  I'll check the fuses in the morning."
   Hot water lapped at my skin, my eyes closed and my mind drifted toward
the realm of fantasy.  In that fantasy I wasn't a self-conscious mess of
nerves.  I was able to see my time alone with Heath as a decadent vacation.
   If only.  In my mind I lay spread on the bed, propped up by a pillow. 
Heath walked toward me, crawled over me and kissed me.  This time I was
able to kiss him back.
   My body warmed both from the warm bath water and the heat of my
imagination.  I cupped my pussy, teased and fondled my wet labia.  Would it
be so bad to let go for a week?  Heath's imaginary kisses blazed a trail
along my thighs, belly, over my shoulder.  His hands played with my
nipples, twisting and tugging.  The throbbing between my legs intensified.
   Careful not to splash the water around, I rubbed my clitoris, thinking
of the flesh and blood man not be ten feet away.
   'Ask for him, Maiko.'
   I took my hand from between my legs.  I thought the words, but not in my
own voice, not an inner voice I recognized.
   ***
   I woke about an hour after we went to sleep.  I was on my back, legs
spread.
   Heath stroked my pussy.  Two fingers worked inside me.  His mouth
fastened on my clitoris, sucked hard.
   I cried out as he flicked his fingers inside.  My moans echoed off the
walls.  Both my hands clutched at my thighs.
   Sanity be damned, "Fuck me, Heath.  Please.  I want you to fuck me."
   He didn't waste a moment.  Heath pulled back, reared upwards, and sank
inside me.  His head buried beside mine, we were both moaning.
   My body turned stiff and rigid.  My pussy convulsed.  Spots danced in my
vision, but I couldn't take a breath to scream.  What little oxygen I got
came in ragged bursts.  Pleasure exploded in every part of me, even the
soles of my feet.  The orgasm seemed to go on and on.  The final spasm sent
me to oblivion.
   ***
   I woke with a gasp, the familiar heaviness and warmth of Heath's body
lay beside me.
   Disoriented and confused, I looked around and took several slow breaths.
Dawn, faint blue light came in through the window.
   I had no idea what happened to me or where I got the energy to fuck him
like I did.  After that?  I couldn't remember.  Did we say anything?
   I massaged my scalp.  No tender spots or lumps.
   "You all right?" Heath rubbed my thighs.
   "What happened last night?"
   "You know how the Umbra's were never a family, that they had different
adults living here."
   "Yes."
   "I think they were like us, had something we had.  An ability to harness
the power here rather than be consumed by it."
   "I'm not sure we haven't been consumed."
   <->
Written: May 2014
   Contact: nysidra at hot mail dot com
  
NymanHouse