Mimic

[00:00:05] Good evening. I'm Ben, and welcome to the show where you and I gather around this campfire to hear some of our fellow campers scariest experiences. Whether you're a new or returning one, I'm glad you're here. [00:00:18] Tonight we'll hear a story submitted by a camper named Sarah, who shared with us her childhood experience at her grandmother's house. [00:00:27] Now, without further ado, do you want to hear a ghost story? [00:00:34] I haven't told this story to anyone. [00:00:36] Not in full anyway. [00:00:39] But I think about it all the time. [00:00:42] Especially when the winds pick up just right at night. [00:00:46] I hear voices in it. [00:00:49] I was 10 years old when this experience happened. [00:00:54] My parents were going through a separation, so I'd been sent to stay with my grandmother for a few weeks during the summer. She lived in a small town in Indiana called Rowan. [00:01:06] A quiet place, corn fields, a Baptist church, and a little mom and Pop diner that I don't think had changed since the 60s. [00:01:15] It was one of those towns where people left their doors unlocked and everyone knew who you were at the grocery store. [00:01:23] Her house was just outside of town, about a quarter mile from the nearest neighbor. [00:01:28] It was this old white farmhouse with a front porch and green shutters. The barn out back had been long since abandoned, becoming home for squirrels and raccoons. [00:01:42] That summer it was just the two of us. [00:01:44] My grandfather had died a few years earlier, and though she never mentioned it, I could tell my grandma was lonely. She'd hum when she cooked, always had two places set at the table, even when it was just her. [00:01:58] She was tough, though, one of those women who believed in hard work, believed in God, but nothing else. [00:02:07] I remember that night. It was hot as hell during the day, but later in the evening, a storm rolled in. [00:02:15] Thunder was low and slow, like God was dragging furniture across the sky. [00:02:22] The kind of night where you felt like something was coming. [00:02:26] We were watching 2 Kill a Mockingbird in the living room. [00:02:29] It was one of my grandma's favorites. [00:02:32] I was curled up beside her on the couch, trying to act grown up and not fall asleep. But I kept drifting off, no matter how hard I tried. [00:02:42] Then the storm knocked the power out about halfway through the movie. [00:02:47] Everything just went black for a moment, except for the flicker of lightning outside. [00:02:54] She lit a few candles and said, well, I guess that's our cue. [00:02:59] But I begged her to let it stay up for just a little bit longer. [00:03:03] I didn't want to go to bed, not with the house so quiet. [00:03:07] She agreed, just for a little while. [00:03:10] We sat on the couch Talked about school books, and she told me stories from her childhood. [00:03:17] It was up until this moment, one of the most peaceful, cozy memories I've ever had. [00:03:24] But then came the knocking. [00:03:27] Three hard raps at the front door. [00:03:30] My grandmother looked at me. I looked back at her. She stood up slowly. [00:03:35] Now, I want to remind you, at this point in the night, it was late, probably well past midnight. We weren't expecting anyone. There were no cars, no footsteps, no creaking of someone standing on the front porch. [00:03:50] And no power in the house. [00:03:53] Just knocks. [00:03:55] Now. This should have been the strangest part of our night. [00:03:59] But what made my blood run cold was the voice that followed. [00:04:04] It's me. Let me in. [00:04:06] It was her voice. It was my grandmother's voice, but she was standing right next to me. [00:04:13] I thought maybe it was a trick, some weird echo, or maybe that I was just hearing something. [00:04:21] But the knocks came again, harder this time. [00:04:24] Please, I'm cold. Let me in. [00:04:27] The candle lights flickered, and I could see my grandma's hand shaking. [00:04:33] She didn't move towards the door. [00:04:35] She didn't say a word. [00:04:37] She just stood there, eyes locked on the entryway, like if she blinked, whatever it was might get in. [00:04:46] Then came her voice again. [00:04:48] Don't you recognize me? It's me. I need your help. Let me in. [00:04:54] I remember whispering, what is that? [00:04:57] Who's out there? [00:04:59] And I'll never forget what my grandmother said to me. [00:05:02] She just whispered back, something that knows how to wear a voice. [00:05:07] I wanted to cry, but I think I was too scared. [00:05:11] Go get the salt. It's in the kitchen. Big container under the sink, my grandmother said to me. [00:05:17] She was too preoccupied with the door, unable to take her eyes off of it. [00:05:22] I ran, and I could still hear the voice calling as I grabbed the container of salt and returned. [00:05:30] Please open the door. Please don't leave me out here. Please. [00:05:35] My grandma didn't flinch. She took the salt, poured a thick line across the door, and made a cross over the handle. [00:05:42] She turned to me and said, don't listen to it. No matter what it says, no matter what it promises. [00:05:48] I asked her what it wanted. [00:05:50] A way in. [00:05:52] We stayed up the rest of the night listening to this voice pace from the front porch door to the back door to side windows. [00:06:01] At one point, it even started laughing, A low, rasping laugh that didn't match the voice it was mimicking at all. [00:06:09] Then, after a long, long time, it got quiet. [00:06:16] I almost thought it had gone. [00:06:19] Until I heard my voice. [00:06:21] Grandma, it's me. [00:06:23] Please. I went outside, looking for it. Please let me in. I don't know how I got out here. I'm scared. [00:06:30] I looked at her as I shook on the couch. She looked back at me like she wanted to cry, but instead she just whispered a prayer under her breath and held my hand. [00:06:40] We didn't end up sleeping. We didn't move. [00:06:43] We just sat there as our candles burned themselves out, listening. [00:06:48] The voice tried one last time. [00:06:50] Just before dawn. [00:06:52] It whispered through a crack on the door, soft but angry. [00:06:56] You'll have to invite me in eventually. [00:06:59] One day you'll slip. And when you do. [00:07:04] When you do, in my grandfather's voice and then with the slip of daybreak, nothing. [00:07:13] Just the sound of birds, the distant rumble of the storm moving away. [00:07:18] My grandmother finally opened the door and poured a bunch of salt all over the front porch. [00:07:23] There were no footprints, no signs of anyone or anything had been there. [00:07:29] I asked her what it was. [00:07:31] She said she didn't know, just that it's old and meaner than anything. [00:07:38] But luckily it always knocked first. [00:07:41] I never had the chance to go back to that house. [00:07:44] My grandmother passed away a few months later. [00:07:47] My mom quickly sold the place. [00:07:49] But every now and then, usually when I'm alone and usually when I'm tired, I swear I hear three knocks at my door in her voice saying please let me in. [00:08:03] Thank you Sarah for allowing me to share your story. [00:08:07] I don't know what I would do if I heard myself or someone in the room with me talking outside of my front door. [00:08:14] Honestly, I'm kinda dumb. I'd probably answer. [00:08:17] I would think it was a prank. [00:08:19] Perhaps I need to take some notes on how your grandmother handled it, so if I ever find myself in this situation, I know what to do. [00:08:27] I have no show announcements, but if you'd like a shout at the end of an episode or access to our monthly bonus episodes, head over to patreon.com do you want to hear a ghost story? [00:08:37] But as always, I'm just glad to have you all as campers on this journey. So please keep sharing the show with anyone you think might like these stories or someone you're just trying to scare. If you're enjoying the show, please leave a review. I would love to hear from you. [00:08:53] Until next time.