3 - Ghosts and Family Legends by Catherine Crowe - Round the Fire. Second Evening.

Show Notes: Welcome to Spook Lit—an Audiobook Club by Dreary Dendrophile!Every Monday, paid subscribers receive the next chapter delivered to their inbox. For those who prefer to read along, photos of the text are included at the bottom of the show notes.Want to join the club? Upgrade your membership for just $2.50/month with an annual subscription. (You may need to exit the app and use a web browser to subscribe.)Can’t afford a paid subscription? No worries! You can still access the audiobooks by recommending Dreary Dendrophile on your Substack or by making a one-time donation.This week, we’re kicking things off with a story about a ghost cat.I swear, I’ve encountered a ghost cat at almost every haunted location I’ve investigated. My two favorites so far have been Max at the Lizzie Borden House and Reese at The Conjuring House. I’ll just tell you about Max today—I'll save Reese for another time.When I investigated the Lizzie Borden House, I stayed overnight in Bridget Sullivan’s room—she was the Borden’s live-in maid at the time of the murders. As soon as I arrived, I took a tour of the house, snapped photos of each room, and started unpacking my ghost hunting gear on Bridget’s bed.Before every investigation, I take baseline EMF readings using my Mel Meter. On my first sweep through Bridget’s room, the readings weren’t particularly high. I continued prepping my gear, making sure everything was charged and working properly.Then, out of nowhere, the bedroom door creaked open on its own. I’d been warned this could happen. It’s a known thing in the house—if you don’t latch the lock, the door might swing open while you’re sleeping. (I hadn’t bothered yet since a few of us were still wandering the halls, getting our bearings.)The bedroom is right next to a bathroom, so I figured maybe someone had slammed the bathroom door hard enough to jolt Bridget’s door open a crack. I checked—the bathroom was empty. Alarmed, I pulled out my Mel Meter again and did another sweep around the room.Oddly, the only spot where the EMF levels were spiking was on the bed. I climbed up and found one specific area that was unusually high compared to my baseline readings. I couldn’t make heads or tails of it (no pun intended). And then, at that exact moment, I looked up from the bedspread—and my eyes fixed on a statue of a black cat sitting directly across from me.There was no sign or identifying details on the statue—just a plain black cat. There were plenty of other objects and artifacts scattered around the room, but somehow, I just knew it was the cat. The cat had nudged the door open, come into the room, and now was comfortably snuggled on Bridget’s bed. I just knew it.Later that night, I introduced myself to one of the house guides and casually asked if they had a ghost cat.“Oh, you mean Max?” she replied, totally unphased. “Yeah, he likes to hang out in Bridget’s room. On her bed. He’s always pushing the door open.”I asked her if that’s why they had a statue of a black cat up there, and she said she didn’t know where it had come from but that was definitely why. People always report encountering Max in that room. Did her confirmation make me smile and give me comfort? Yes. Very much yes. I am always beyond happy to share my space with a ghost cat. Did I scan the bedspread for any more “hot spots” before going to sleep? You betcha. Do I think it was Max jiggling the locked door latch all night while I was trying to sleep, ultimately driving me to flee the premises at sunrise? No. No, I do not. But honestly—who can say? Previous Chapter - In Case You Missed It:What’s Lurking on Spook Lit: Next week, we’ll dive into the third night of “Round the Fire” chapters, featuring another crisis apparition along with a murder investigation! So stay tuned for that. In the meantime, thank you for listening to Spook Lit. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!* Audiobook: Ghosts and Family Legends by Catherine Crowe* Chapter: Round the Fire. Second Evening. * Music: Horror Spooky Piano by Nikita Kondrashev on Pixabay* Linktree: https://linktr.ee/drearydendrophileAll Spook Lit Audiobooks are public domain.Hauntingly yours,dreary dendrophile Get full access to dreary dendrophile at drearydendrophile.substack.com/subscribe