A Haunting - S04E06 - Hearing The Dead
In Arkansas, eerie noises and ghostly voices echo throughout the Shea family's home; then, the paranormal activity escalates from childlike pranks to the chilling terror of a darker threat
Transcript
00:00In this world, there is real evil, in the darkest shadows, and in the most ordinary
00:14places.
00:15These are the true stories of the innocent and the unimaginable.
00:22Although Rebecca Lennox enjoys a fairytale life, she harbors a dark secret that could
00:29rip it apart.
00:31She keeps it hidden, until a barrage of terrifying visions launches her on a collision course
00:37with her past, and an intense battle with her ultimate fear.
00:48Between the world we see, and the things we fear, there are doors, when they are opened,
00:57nightmares become reality.
01:10Some believe there are restless, earthbound spirits, who drift aimlessly, unaware that
01:18they are dead, all the while seeking comfort from the living.
01:24But when lost souls are ignored, they sometimes get angry, and must break through the physical
01:31realm, to make their presence known.
01:43Some of the participants of this program appear in shadow, to protect their privacy.
01:55In the fall of 1974, seven-year-old Rebecca Mallory lives in the New Jersey suburbs.
02:02Like all parents, her father, New Jersey police officer, Sergeant Bill Mallory, worries about
02:08keeping her safe and happy.
02:11Mr. Mallory, you can't forget this little guy.
02:18Hi, Papa.
02:20How was your day?
02:24We played checkers, and I won.
02:27Oh, good for you.
02:29As an only child, Rebecca is close with her family, including her Pop-Pop.
02:35My great-grandfather, who I knew as Pop-Pop, was very friendly, and I really liked having
02:39him around.
02:40Buckle up, honey.
03:12Rebecca, tell your father to wait.
03:17Dad, don't go!
03:27We saw the motorcycle was laid out on the ground.
03:34And the driver was a good few feet away from the bike.
03:39Stay in the car!
03:41Dispatch, I got a 901 at the intersection of Main and Mendham Road.
03:45Request assistance immediately.
03:48How did you know, Becky?
03:51Pop-Pop told me.
03:59Honey, Pop-Pop has been dead for five years.
04:03He died when I was six months old.
04:06My Pop-Pop being in the back seat was actually normal.
04:09The accident happening in front of me was what upset me.
04:17It was bizarre.
04:19Put your voice down.
04:21The strange incident troubles Rebecca's father.
04:24I'm telling you, Jerry, the kid sees things.
04:26My mother insisted to my father, her exact words were pretty much,
04:29I'm telling you the kid sees it, I'm telling you the kid sees things.
04:32Maybe she has a gift.
04:35Pop-Pop did, I mean, he knew when he was going to die.
04:39Before he died, Pop-Pop made arrangements for it.
04:42He died on a Saturday afternoon, just like he said he would.
04:45Don't start that. You know I don't believe in that stuff.
04:50It made me feel like a little liar.
05:03Over the next year, Rebecca grows into a well-adjusted young girl,
05:07but continues to see spirits that others cannot see.
05:18Hello.
05:21I'm Carl. What's your name?
05:23Becky.
05:26I'm seven, but I'll be eight soon.
05:31Rebecca, stop it.
05:33There's nobody there. The steps are empty.
05:36But Daddy, there was a man sitting on the steps.
05:39It's hard to explain to somebody else that you can see a reality that they can't.
05:44There was a man with a blue jacket and his name was...
05:46Rebecca's father cannot come to terms with his daughter's odd behavior.
05:51She is too old for imaginary friends.
05:55Pop-Pop and all these friends are in your head.
05:59But Daddy, I see them.
06:01Then just block it out. Just block it out.
06:06It was upsetting for a child to have your father
06:09yell at you for something that you can't help.
06:13There's no switch that I can turn off and on.
06:16I promise, Daddy. I promise I'll stop.
06:36My teenage years and early twenties, I just kept it completely to myself.
06:41If I saw something that nobody else saw, I would just look away
06:45and carry on as if I didn't see it.
06:50Rebecca gets married in 1995
06:53and years later suffers through a bitter divorce.
06:58Go away. I'm working.
07:07What's up?
07:09I'm scared. I want to sleep in Tim's bed.
07:12Oh, and what does Tim want?
07:14I want to sleep in his bed.
07:16I'm not going to sleep in your bed.
07:18I'm going to sleep in your bed.
07:20You're going to sleep in my bed?
07:22I'm not going to sleep in your bed.
07:24I'm going to sleep in your bed.
07:26Oh, and what does Tim want?
07:28I want to sleep with you.
07:31Okay, get in.
07:33In 2002, Rebecca moves to southeastern Virginia with her two children,
07:37seven-year-old Tim and five-year-old Hannah.
07:41You guys settle down, okay? We're going back to your beds.
07:45It was easy for me to ignore everything while I was a single mom
07:49following my divorce because I was working 50 hours a week
07:52and raising two babies.
07:54Good night.
07:56At this point in her life, she's become an expert at blocking out any unwanted visitors.
08:07Between a demanding work schedule and raising two children,
08:11Rebecca makes time for fundraising at a local children's hospital.
08:16Thank you for coming. Your name?
08:18Daniel Lennox.
08:20In early 2003, Rebecca meets Daniel Lennox, a successful dentist in the area.
08:28I can never get these things hooked.
08:31Here, let me.
08:34The two feel an immediate attraction.
08:38Rebecca.
08:40I was engaged to be married when I met Rebecca and we really hit it off
08:44and I ended up breaking off the engagement and we started dating.
08:50They marry right away, eager to start their lives together.
09:01After Daniel and I got married, we moved to a new house.
09:06We started talking about maybe having a baby. Everything was great. Life was good.
09:12Daniel is a devoted husband and a loving father to Tim and Hannah.
09:16We pretty much became your typical, ideal family.
09:47I love you.
09:49I love you.
10:16Weeks later.
10:19This is it.
10:37When I first saw him, the hair on the back of my neck stood up.
10:42You get that chill and it's almost like you're too afraid to move.
10:46I didn't want to acknowledge that it was there.
10:49Block it out.
10:51Just block out.
10:53Block it out.
11:04I couldn't choose not to see him. He was there regardless.
11:08Rebecca is terrified. For some reason, she cannot block out this spirit.
11:16Rebecca.
11:31Rebecca worries that the recent sighting will open up a chapter in her life
11:35that she closed long ago.
11:38His presence was almost like a threat
11:42to the peaceful, happy little life that I had established.
11:46Hey, Mom, can I watch TV?
11:50You know what? Dinner is almost ready, so go wash your hands, okay?
11:59Hi, honey.
12:03Hey, go wash your hands, okay? Dinner is almost ready.
12:09I must have seen about two dozen patients today.
12:13How was your day?
12:15As always, she keeps her secret to herself.
12:19Honey?
12:21I'm sorry, what?
12:24Is everything all right, Rebecca?
12:27Yeah, you know, I'm just, I'm really tired, that's all.
12:31Nothing, no big deal.
12:36I didn't tell Daniel that I was going to see him.
12:40I didn't tell Daniel that I was afraid that would open a whole can of worms.
12:45I didn't want him to know about.
12:53As the days go by, Rebecca hides her fears
12:56and tries to keep things as routine as possible for her family.
12:59Hannah!
13:00Yes, Mama?
13:01Come on, baby, let's go have, let's go have snacks inside today.
13:04Come on, sweetie.
13:21Just have a seat at the kitchen table, okay?
13:25Just have a seat at the kitchen table, okay?
13:49Mommy!
13:52I'm sorry, honey.
13:55The day I saw the little boy's fear in the hallway,
13:59I decided to accept it but not share it with anybody else.
14:14Daniel senses that something is bothering Rebecca.
14:18I knew that if I pushed too hard
14:21that she might just close up and not tell me anything.
14:24So I figured, you know, she'll tell me in her own time.
14:31I was afraid that my husband would either not believe me
14:35and think that I was just crazy or he would believe me
14:39but would react in the same manner that my dad had 20 years ago.
14:48Later that night...
14:54You going to bed?
14:56Yeah, I have an early morning tomorrow.
14:58Don't stay up too late, okay?
15:00I'm right behind you, I promise.
15:02Love you.
15:03Love you too.
15:24I felt somebody tugging at my blanket.
15:28Tim?
15:36I sat up thinking it had to be my son
15:39but there was nobody in the room.
15:54Rebecca feels a strange pressure on her lower leg.
15:59I heard the boy. He was giggling.
16:01Not a sinister giggle, nothing evil,
16:03just like a little kid would giggle.
16:09She discovers a tiny bite mark.
16:12The bite mark looked like a small mouth
16:15and you could even see where the tiny teeth were.
16:18The bite mark looked like a small mouth
16:21and you could even see where the top four teeth
16:24were all misaligned and crooked.
16:49For the first time in her life, Rebecca realizes
16:53that there has been an outrageous thing that happened to her.
16:59She plans to bury her son.
17:03She doesn't know that her son was shot...
17:06from a gun pointed towards her.
17:10Rebecca knows what to do.
17:14For the first time in her life, Rebecca is faced with an unimaginable revelation.
17:21Stop!
17:22Being actually physically hidden took it to a whole new level.
17:29My entire life, no matter what I saw, what I heard, no being had ever actually touched
17:34me.
17:35To know that they can touch you was terrifying.
17:42Couldn't sleep without me, huh?
17:43I was afraid of what my husband would think if I told him.
17:49Rebecca?
17:50What does this look like to you?
17:58And he was in total shock.
17:59Well, it didn't break the skin.
18:02From the looks of the bite, there was nothing that could have done it to her, except for
18:05a very small human mouth.
18:07Did one of the kids bite you?
18:10No, they're both asleep.
18:14I think it was something else.
18:16Honey, this is a child's bite.
18:19I can see where one of the front teeth are crooked.
18:24Rebecca, what's going on?
18:29And I told him I think a ghost bit me.
18:31I keep seeing the spirit of a little boy out by the tree line.
18:37Rebecca still can't bring herself to reveal everything to Daniel.
18:41I was too afraid and too confused and too scared to go into anything further than that
18:47at that time.
18:48Daniel, but I swear it's true.
18:49I see him as clearly as I see you.
18:50I didn't know what to think.
18:51I didn't know how to react.
18:52I had never been faced with anything like this before.
18:53Why didn't you tell me?
18:54I was afraid you'd think I was crazy.
18:55I didn't want to believe it was something paranormal, but faced with the evidence, I
19:17didn't know what else I was supposed to believe.
19:19No, no.
19:20Daniel, what are you doing?
19:22Daniel insists on getting professional help, but Rebecca is resistant because she doesn't
19:27want him to know any more than what she has already told him.
19:32I didn't want this to happen again.
19:33That was the main thing.
19:35I wanted answers, and to that end, to protect my family.
19:37The only thing that I knew to do was to contact somebody that knew more about these things
19:43than I do.
19:56Daniel searches the internet for hours, studying hauntings and looking for paranormal investigators
20:02in southeastern Virginia.
20:05He finds a group with solid credentials, the Center for Paranormal Research and Investigation,
20:11a non-profit organization based near Richmond.
20:17Daniel contacts the group and sends them the digital pictures.
20:32A week later, an investigator from the Center for Paranormal Research and Investigation
20:36comes to the house.
20:38Here are the photos I took of the bite mark.
20:42Can I see the actual bite mark?
20:45It's not there anymore.
20:47I see.
20:50Mrs. Lennox, is this the first time you've experienced paranormal phenomenon?
20:54Yes, but it was no big deal.
20:58Rebecca, he bit you.
20:59Daniel is surprised when Rebecca downplays the incident.
21:03He wasn't trying to hurt me.
21:05I didn't want anybody else in it.
21:07The sooner I could forget about it, the better.
21:09Entities like this are usually harmless.
21:11The investigator tells them that the spirit will likely go away on its own.
21:15I'm not sure that it will, but we appreciate you coming out.
21:20I took her word that we were probably going to be okay.
21:23I started to feel a little bit more at ease.
21:28Rebecca is relieved when the investigator leaves.
21:31As far as I was concerned, that was the ideal outcome.
21:35It would go away.
21:40My husband kind of let it go.
21:42It seemed to be like a small storm that I had ridden out, and I thought it was over.
21:47The house is quiet for two weeks.
21:51Nothing else happened.
21:52We were fine.
21:55We started to get back into our routine again, and it was almost kind of forgotten.
22:02Once again, Rebecca hopes to put the past behind her.
22:32I started hearing the male voice, and it was almost as if he were in the kitchen.
23:03And this male voice seemed to grow closer to me, almost right behind my head.
23:18She's visibly very shaken, and she kept asking me,
23:22Don't you hear him? Don't you hear him? Can't you hear that?
23:25And I said, No, I don't hear anything, and I didn't.
23:29Oh, my God, he's here!
23:32He won't stop! He won't stop screaming!
23:35Oh, my God, he's here!
23:37Oh, my God, he stopped!
23:40Oh, God, Danny, you must think I'm crazy.
23:43Oh, my God, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!
23:45I could tell by the look on her face that she wished that I hadn't witnessed it.
23:48I could tell by the look on her face that she wished that I hadn't witnessed it.
23:53Oh, my God, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!
23:55I could tell by the look on her face that she wished that I hadn't witnessed it.
23:58Maybe she thought I was going to leave her, and that never really crossed my mind.
24:03Are you sure he said P-51 and Mustang?
24:07Yeah, why?
24:09I said a P-51 is a military aircraft. It's an aircraft from World War II,
24:14and they also flew in Korea. I said, What's this all about?
24:18Daniel is confused. Rebecca knows nothing about World War II planes.
24:23Mommy! Mom, what's wrong?
24:26Nothing, honey. Mommy and Daddy were just talking about something a little too loud.
24:29Okay, but hey, who wants some ice cream?
24:32Relax, I'll get the ice cream.
24:33Yay! I want sprinkles!
24:35Okay.
24:42Vanilla with chocolate.
24:44Yummy!
24:49P-51
24:55Not sure what to do.
24:57Daniel searches for any information he can find on P-51 aircraft and possible crashes in the area.
25:05When Daniel was trying to come up with some kind of logical explanation as to what had happened,
25:10I was thinking, Oh, my God, he is going to completely demand that I go see a psychiatrist
25:16and they're going to medicate me and that's the end of that. This is over.
25:24Does this picture mean anything to you?
25:28No, nothing at all.
25:31Rebecca is relieved that Daniel believes her, but she refuses to dwell on the incident.
25:37She just wanted to kind of close the lid on it and not talk about it and not deal with it.
25:44I was upset and angry because I couldn't fix this problem and I couldn't help her.
25:55One day while the kids are in school, Daniel takes Rebecca on a day trip to nearby Williamsburg,
26:01hoping to take her mind off of things at home.
26:04So, have you guys decided or do you need a few more minutes?
26:08Honey?
26:10Oh, I'll just have what you're having.
26:13Rebecca is despondent and begins to wonder about her own sanity.
26:18There are times, many times, where I have to sit back and ask myself if I belong in a padded cell on Thorazine
26:26or if I belong in a padded cell on a plane.
26:29Or I have to sit back and ask myself if I belong in a padded cell on Thorazine or if it's all really real.
26:35Once you start doubting your own sanity, everybody around you will.
26:40Both have this special place.
26:43Rebecca, I don't know what to say except that I'm here for you.
26:48I'm fine, Daniel. Okay, I'm fine.
26:53People can only take so much, and if these unexplained things were happening to her constantly,
26:59it was going to take a toll on her.
27:04Later, on the way home.
27:15My name is Rebecca Jones.
27:19It's Elizabeth Pratt Jones.
27:22Rebecca hears the voice of an old woman.
27:26Daniel hears nothing.
27:28Where is my China? Where are my receipts?
27:31Where are my receipts? You can't do this to me!
27:35Rebecca?
27:37Are you hearing something? Here in the car?
27:40Just write it down, okay? Elizabeth Pratt Jones.
27:44Where are my receipts? You can't do this to me!
27:47Write this down, too.
27:49She said her property was taken from her, and it was unfair, and she was not to tolerate it.
27:55That the magistrate didn't listen, sold her slaves at auction, and she didn't see a penny of it.
28:00I was completely and utterly stunned, and I thought to myself, she hasn't told me everything.
28:06And it was at that point that I realized that she was really the focal point of all this.
28:12That night, Daniel doesn't push. He gives his wife some space.
28:26My name is Elizabeth Pratt Jones.
28:30Rebecca is stunned.
28:32The woman she heard in the car is now in her home.
28:37The woman she heard in the car is now in her home.
29:07Stop it! Stop it! I can't take it anymore! You're driving me crazy!
29:12What's wrong, babe?
29:14They won't stop, Daniel. Even when I'm asleep, they won't stop.
29:18Babe, listen to me.
29:20Either we move out of this house, or we call the investigators.
29:25It's your choice.
29:27I don't care.
29:30Babe, listen to me.
29:32Either we move out of this house, or we call the investigators.
29:36It's your choice.
29:40Call the investigators. Tomorrow.
29:44It was a huge turning point for me.
29:48I was tired of keeping it to myself.
29:53So why not just go the distance and finally get it out there?
30:00In the morning, Daniel calls back the Center for Paranormal Research and Investigation.
30:06Your group analyzed our house.
30:09He speaks with the new regional director, Tom Baranis.
30:13I just took over as director.
30:15Baranis is a scientist.
30:18He worked at NASA.
30:20He worked at NASA.
30:24Baranis is a scientist.
30:28He worked at NASA as an aeronautical researcher for 35 years.
30:33My work with NASA gave me a good, solid background in studying scientific research.
30:41What we are looking for is the possibility of proving paranormal activity does exist
30:49through instrumentation and through scientific research.
30:54Baranis agrees to meet with the couple and run a few tests on the property.
30:59Is Thursday convenient?
31:01The sooner the better.
31:03I'll be there around 7.
31:05Thanks.
31:08The next day.
31:18Baranis calls upon Melissa Kepley to help with the investigation.
31:24My degree is in psychology.
31:26I am brought in to observe during the interview process
31:30to see if I see any red flags
31:32that may indicate some type of mental instability.
31:38Tell me about the little boy, Rebecca.
31:41I don't like thinking about him.
31:43He makes me feel sad.
31:47He was a child. He wanted attention.
31:50I believe Rebecca and Daniel wanted some type of physical verification
31:55that what she was experiencing was in the environment,
31:59that it was not in her head.
32:01Did he frighten you?
32:03No. No, the only thing that really scared me was that I could see him,
32:07but nobody else could.
32:09I was shocked that Rebecca was revealing as much as she was to the investigators.
32:15I wasn't so much shocked at the things that she had seen and heard.
32:18I was more shocked that she was willing to tell all of these things
32:21that we had just kept between ourselves for so long.
32:23With your permission, we'd like to set up some equipment
32:25to take some EMF readings inside and out.
32:28Yeah, go ahead.
32:31Okay.
32:41Most of the EMF readings recorded around the property prove inconclusive,
32:46so Tom and Melissa try using a compass.
32:50EMF readings can be done with a compass.
32:53A compass will pick up a magnetic field and will cause it to move.
32:58Yeah, here's the stick.
33:02When we put the compass and an EMF meter near Rebecca,
33:06we saw the compass spin and the EMF meter lit up.
33:14That is something we associate with an entity and not with a human being,
33:18especially with these particular meters,
33:20and that was a big surprise to us.
33:28We didn't get any indication that the house is haunted, per se.
33:32However, we did get some high EMF readings in the hallway,
33:37especially near Rebecca.
33:41Rebecca, have you told us everything?
33:47The house isn't haunted.
33:50I am.
33:58I've seen entities, spirits, whatever you want to call them,
34:02ever since I was a little girl.
34:04I did tell them everything,
34:06from my great-grandfather as a young child in my room,
34:10to the accident, straight on up to the pilot.
34:14Ever since we moved in here,
34:16I haven't been able to ignore these things like I used to,
34:19and when I couldn't ignore the little boy,
34:21and then I couldn't ignore the pilot,
34:23and then Elizabeth, I just, I panicked.
34:27I was finally able to say,
34:29there it all is, there's everything,
34:32and now I don't have to hide anymore.
34:35It was a huge relief.
34:41Do you think I'm crazy?
34:44We were convinced that we weren't dealing with someone
34:48who was mentally unstable,
34:50and that we weren't dealing with a hoaxer.
34:52We were dealing with someone
34:54who legitimately had experienced something.
34:57Why haven't you told me any of this before?
35:00I'm sorry, Danny.
35:03I was just so afraid you'd think I was crazy.
35:16Because of the lack of physical evidence,
35:19the investigators follow up with additional research
35:21at the College of William and Mary.
35:24We had to take the information that they had shared with us,
35:27and then investigate that on a historical side.
35:30Did these people actually exist that she claims she has talked to?
35:35If we could prove that they existed,
35:37now we had something that was quite interesting to everyone.
35:51♪♪♪
36:01♪♪♪
36:11♪♪♪
36:21♪♪♪
36:32I had the worst feeling I've ever experienced in my life.
36:36It was fear and sadness all at the same time.
36:40I felt it before I saw it, this palpable danger.
37:03As it passed out the door, the feeling of dread went away.
37:11Daniel fears that the shadow is an ominous manifestation of the pilot,
37:15and his presence is an omen that something terrible is about to happen.
37:22The Lennox family soon moves to a new home on the other side of town.
37:28For the next couple of weeks, things are peaceful.
37:31Rebecca and Daniel put the past behind them.
37:35Hello?
37:37Oh, hi, Tom.
37:40Um, yeah, yeah, sure, tonight, tonight will be fine.
37:44Okay, great.
37:46Thanks.
37:48Bye.
37:50They found something.
37:52What?
37:54The thing I wanted the most from the paranormal investigators was validation.
37:58I didn't necessarily want to get rid of the evidence,
38:02I didn't necessarily want to get rid of the entities
38:04because I don't believe that they can be gotten rid of.
38:07In the same way that she didn't ask them to come around,
38:10I don't think she can ask them to leave either.
38:23That night, Rebecca and Daniel meet with the CPRI team.
38:27This article is from the Daily Press.
38:29It's dated March 16th, 1950.
38:35Two pilots, ferrying P-51 Mustangs,
38:38crashed 600 yards from the couple's former home.
38:43That's amazing.
38:46Before revealing the rest of their findings,
38:49Baranis has some questions for Rebecca.
38:52We wanted to make sure that we weren't being fooled.
38:57I think Rebecca was being very honest,
39:00but we have to make sure that the information she's giving us,
39:03there's some accuracy there.
39:05So we comprised a little test for her.
39:09Rebecca, look at these names on these photographs.
39:14He gives her a list of names without telling her which one is the pilot.
39:18This is him, Harold Schultz.
39:20Only his friends called him Hank.
39:23And the other pilot was William Wellerman.
39:25Rebecca easily picks out the names of the two pilots
39:28mentioned in the newspaper article.
39:30It was a moment of just shocking revelation that,
39:34my gosh, she just had a list of 20 names.
39:36She picked two out and she even gave more information
39:39than what they had given her.
39:42Then Tom asks her to identify the pilot,
39:44Harold Schultz, from a lineup of photos.
39:50Harold Schultz's photo isn't here.
39:52You're right.
39:54It was pretty exciting to actually see it firsthand and witness this.
39:58Was this a laboratory environment?
40:00You know, was sensors tied to somebody's brain?
40:02No, it was not.
40:04But we felt it was a good enough test
40:06for what we were trying to do at the time.
40:12Without a name, the little boy is untraceable.
40:18What about Elizabeth?
40:20According to records at William & Mary,
40:23Elizabeth Pratt-Jones lived on Henry Street during the 1700s.
40:28Her husband was a failed businessman
40:30and the state confiscated the family's property to cover their debts.
40:34It seems that Rebecca's supernatural gift
40:36attracted Elizabeth and Williamsburg
40:38over 30 miles from Rebecca's home.
40:42I'm not crazy.
40:45I'm not crazy.
40:46It's a huge relief.
40:48But it's still really hard to overcome
40:50the fear of coming out of the closet, so to speak, with this.
40:58Since the move, Rebecca has not seen or heard the little boy or the pilot.
41:05She believes that their spirits are somehow connected to the old house
41:10and they were drawn to her because of her sixth sense.
41:21Over time, Rebecca learns to accept her gift.
41:27Right now, I feel like I've got a pretty good handle on it.
41:30But I also know enough to know that I can't predict
41:35what tomorrow might bring as far as this
41:38signing and hearing the entities goes.
41:41I could see one tomorrow.
41:43I could see one as I'm walking out to my car to take the kids to school.
41:47You never know.
41:50You never know.