02x06 - Where Demons Dwell

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: in this world,
there is real evil,

In the darkest shadows
and in the most ordinary places.

These are the true stories

Of the innocent
and the unimaginable.

When the pickman family
moves into their dream house,

Their future seems bright,

Until the ghost
of a troubled child intrudes.

Unearthly visions
and violent attacks

Expose an evil force
and fury brewing for centuries.

Between the world we see
and the things we fear,

There are doors.

When they are opened,
nightmares become reality.

-- Captions by vitac --
www.vitac.com

Captions paid for by
discovery communications, inc.

Atchison, kansas --

Home to the famed atchison,
topeka, and santa fe railroad.

[ Train whistle blows ]

For more than a century,

It is a place
that travelers pass through.

But there
are some who never leave --

Restless souls whose lives
were tragically cut short,

Now desperate for a ticket out

Of what some call
the most haunted city in kansas.

[ Crickets chirping ]

In march 1993,
newlyweds tony and deb pickman

Rent a house in atchison.

After weeks of unpacking,

The house is finally starting
to feel like a home.

I'm getting tired.

Me, too.

I'm gonna go to bed,
I think.

Yeah,
I'm coming with.

Tony:
well, we moved in.

Things seemed to be
looking up for us.

My wife was expecting,

And we were just
wanting to start a family.

It was good time for us.

Honey, could you grab
my magazine, too?

Deb: when we found this house,
it seemed perfect for us.

It was spacious,
had several bedrooms,

And we just knew
that it was the perfect house.

Man: ...missed work
without checking in.

I thought
you turned the tv off.

Tony: for about a month,
things seemed pretty normal.

All of a sudden, we noticed the
television turning on and off.

She was worried because he --

We'd shut it off,
and it'd come right back on.

Hey. Probably just
faulty wiring.

It's an old house.

I'll call the landlord
about it tomorrow, okay?

Okay.

Narrator:
in the summer of 1993,

Deb gives birth to a son
they name taylor.

It's okay. Coffee?

Thank you.

Are you getting
any sleep?

Deb's sister, karen loder,
flies in from buffalo.

Loder: I figured I'd come in
for a week and just help

So that she can
get some well-needed rest.

Narrator: the week passes
quickly for the family.

[ Child giggles ]

Debbie, karen, come up here.

Come on.

Look at this.

Look.

What?

I didn't do this.

I came in here,
and they were like that.

Karen,
did you do this?

No,
I was with you all day.

Tony: there were several toys
on the floor,

Arranged in a circle.

Deb: we kind of
played it off as if

Somebody had gotten into the
house and played a little prank.

You know who did this?
Alan.

It probably was alan.

I don't even know
why I thought about it.

Alan is tony's brother.

He plays jokes on us
all the time.

The guy's a moron.

Deb: and so that's kind of
what we figured it was.

Narrator:
a few minutes later...

[ Child giggles ]

[ Door creaks ]

Tony?

Look at that.

Yeah,
that's very funny.

How long did it take you
to do that?

Loder: same thing.
Same positions. Facing outwards.

How did they get there?

We were shocked.

We could not believe
what we were seeing.

Deb:
are they magnets or...?

The window is locked.

If this is alan,

I don't know how he's getting in
and out of here.

That night really
put a chill down our spines.

To actually have something
physical moved

In a matter of minutes --
it scared us.

Narrator: they all sleep
in the same room that night,

Unsure what to make
of the strange event.

[ Birds chirping ]

Deb:
my sister left,

And tony's brother,
who lived next door, came over.

My question is, how did you get
in and out of the house

Without us seeing you
at all?

Tony: we've always been
pranksters with each other.

"Maybe he's playing
a trick on me."

Tony, I wasn't even home
last night.

You had nothing to do
with it at all?

I had nothing to do
with it.

He had no idea
what I was talking about,

And I could just tell
that he wasn't lying.

Come on,
what do you think you got --

A ghost or something?

Narrator: tony's brother finds
it hard to take them seriously.

I'll stay and watch.

He jokes, daring the toys
to fall into formation.

No movement.

Nothing weird.

You're an idiot.

[ Camera shutter clicks ]

Don't waste all my film.

You're gonna buy me some more
if you use it all up.

Come on,
whoever you are.

Let's just
get a picture.

Oh, jeez!

Tony: that was more or less,
for me,

A warning that
this is getting out of hand.

We need to get out of here.

[ Taylor crying ]

All I could think it could be
was a spirit or a ghost.

Deb: tony's got the baby
in the car seat,

And he's crying and fussing,

And it's just kind of
like a little frantic moment.

[ Door closes ]

I don't know.
Something stung me or something.

Tony: it felt like a bee sting
or a spider bite on my back.

A real sharp pinch.

I kind of blew it off

'Cause we were just in a hurry
to get out of there.

Narrator:
the pickmans drive across town

To the home of tony's parents.

[ Car engine shuts off ]

Everything's fine.

Debra, let me
see my little grandbaby.

The house is coming along well,
actually.

I know
you guys did a nice job.

Ohh, careful.
That's where I got bit.

That's where I got
that bugbite or something.

I don't know.
It's been hurting me.

Oh, my god!

Honey, you have three
big scratches on your back.

What are you
talking about?

Deb: I simply just
couldn't believe my eyes.

Look at that.

Whoa!

This is bad.

What caused that?

I don't know.

I had three what looked
like fingernail scratches

Down the center of my back,
and that just floored me.

All I could think was
something evil is causing this.

Oh, jeez!

I didn't do that.

Ow!

Look at that.

Oh, my god!

What caused that?

Deb: so many things
were going through my mind.

I don't know
what that's from.

Baby, there's something
in our house.

Is this a mean spirit
that we've got in our house?

Do we go back to the house?
Do we move out?

Do we just never go back again?

You're just totally clueless
of what to do next.

Hey, ma.

Narrator:
tony tries to calm down

And face the sobering facts.

And I want to know
how this new mommy is.

I'm doing good.

Tony: we were
just starting a family

And couldn't afford to move.

Our resources were all bled out.

We had a baby,
and we needed a place to stay.

So we decided to
go back home that night.

Yeah, there's got to be
a logical explanation for it.

Narrator: tony's brother has
an idea that he thinks may help.

Uh, look...i know
this is gonna sound crazy,

But...my boss
has got a sister

Who's, like,
a medium or something.

You mean
like a psychic?

Yeah.

Narrator: he suggests
they invite her to visit.

What could it hurt?

The psychic arrives
three days later.

Thank you.

Based in california,

Barbara lectures
on parapsychology

And communicates with spirits.

Can I get you
anything?

No, thank you.
Let's just get right to it.

First, I'll explain to you
what it is that I do.

I'm a medium,
and I communicate with spirits,

Or entities,
on the other side.

These are people
that have transitioned over,

And we no longer see them.

Deb: we kind of chatted
a little bit, got to know her.

We told her some of the things
that had been going on.

That kept happening.

It started up
in the nursery.

My brother was
taking pictures of it.

Circle of teddy bears.

The thing
flies across the room.

He said he didn't
have anything to do with that.

He swears up and down
that he didn't.

The best thing is if you
could just show me the nursery.

We could start in there.

Tony: I wasn't a big believer
in psychics.

There's a lot of energy
in this house.

So I kind of blew her off
a little bit.

Should I snap
a couple pictures?

Yes, that would be fine.
Go ahead.

[ Camera shutter clicking ]

[ Coughing ]

Tony: all of a sudden,
she started to lose her breath.

Do you want some water?

We have to leave.
We have to get out of this room.

She said, "what's here doesn't
want us here."

It's all right.
We're going downstairs now.

"It doesn't like this
many people in this room."

[ Camera shutter clicks ]

[ Coughing continues ]

Are you all right?

Yes, I'll be fine.
Thank you.

[ Child giggles ]

Tony, take a picture
at the top of the stairs.

Okay.

[ Camera shutter clicks ]

[ Child giggles ]

A very young spirit.

Tony: being my first experience
with a psychic,

I wasn't quite sure
what to think.

What's your name?

She happened to come up
with the name of sallie.

She said sallie was a
little girl about 7 years of age

And had died in the house.

Narrator:
the psychic asks the girl

What she's doing in the house.

Deb: sallie felt
she was the baby's protector

And that he was hers to protect.

The scratch that tony had gotten

Was sallie's way of protecting
the baby from harm.

She's 7 years old.

She was gonna do anything
to protect taylor,

Even from his own parents.

Narrator:
to deb, the ghost seems

Like a sweet guardian angel
that has lost her way.

Well, if we set aside
some toys for her, right,

Then you wouldn't hurt
baby jordan, would you?

That would actually make her
feel welcome and loved.

I don't know if
that's such a great idea,

Encouraging
whatever it is.

My husband wasn't really sure
that this was

A little spirit
that was in the house.

He was still thinking that there
was something evil about it

Or wrong about it.

He thought it was better
not to interact at all with it,

Not to egg it on.

Narrator: a couple of days after
their meeting with the psychic,

Deb goes shopping for
a few special gifts for sallie.

She also picks up
their developed pictures,

Eager to see if little sallie
has been captured on film.

Deb: the first photo
that I saw --

It took all the energy
out of me.

I felt my knees buckle.
I almost dropped to my knees.

Ma'am?

To me, it just looked horrid,
and I thought, "oh, my god."

And the next picture had
the same sort of image in there.

Just the feeling that you got
when you looked at it

Was just horror.

[ Camera shutter clicking ]

Sweetheart?

Tony, you are
not gonna believe this.

Look at these.

What is that?

Somebody must have
spilled something on these.

Deb:
that's in the print.

Narrator: tony pickman
is not sure what to make

Of the strange photos
he took inside his home.

Tony: the picture
that really got me was

As we were coming
back down the stairs,

I turned around
and took a picture.

And right in that spot,

Just floating in midair,
is this thing.

I couldn't explain it.
It made me scared.

Just see what she says.

I'm sure it'll be fine.

Barbara said sallie
is protecting the baby.

Okay.

Narrator:
deb continues to believe

That sallie is a harmless ghost.

Barbara said we should
make her feel comfortable here.

Yeah, well,
I'm not so sure

About this whole
barbara situation.

Besides, he's too young
to be staying

In the nursery
by himself.

He can just stay in here with us
for a little while.

You can watch over our baby
right now.

All right.

Tony's concerned that his wife

Isn't taking
the intrusion seriously.

He senses that
there's something more sinister

Haunting his house.

Each morning, tony returns home

After working the graveyard
shift at a grain elevator.

[ Sighs ]

Deb! Deb!

Deb, deb, I just saw her.
I just saw her.

Deb: he came bursting
in the bedroom,

And he was huffing,
and he's puffing.

Tony: I was so panicky.
I couldn't get words out.

I can't believe
that just happened.

Deb: and I'm thinking,
"who did you see?"

And he said, "sallie."
And I said, "you did?

What did she look like?"

And I bombarded him with, like,


Try to hurt you, right?
No, no, no.

Narrator: deb, however,
is anything but scared.

She is more curious about
the ghost than ever before.

Where did you see her?

It was in the kitchen.

Deb:
I was terribly jealous

That tony got to see this little
apparition, this little spirit.

It was a ghost, right?

She was dressed up
in this little white skirt.

She had a little bow
in her hair.

I don't even know
what to make of it.

Why did she show herself
to you?

Narrator: the house
remains quiet for months

As deb waits anxiously
for sallie to appear to her,

But she never does.

Hmm.

Sallie, these toys
are just for you.

If there's anything that
you want, I'll get it for you.

We want you
to feel comfortable here.

Tony:
a stubbornness kicks in.

I just didn't feel like I could
let it get the best of me.

Narrator: tony feels
the baby is safe in the house,

But a rift grows between him
and his wife.

[ Birds chirping ]

[ Sighs ]

[ Sighs ]

[ Voices whispering
indistinctly ]

Tony: I would constantly
hear a whispering.

To me, it didn't sound
like a little child.

It sounded like almost three
grown-up people talking at once.

Like they were right
in your ear, talking to you.

[ Breathing heavily ]

Are you okay?
I thought I heard you.

I thought
I heard you calling me.

What's going on?

I don't know
what just happened.

I was trying to sleep.
The voices started going again.

I was trying to
ignore them.

Deb: I'm, again,
thinking he's lacking sleep.

He's catching things
out of the corner of his eye.

His mind is making things up.

Narrator: tony fears
the presence in the house

Is manipulating his feelings.

He's having trouble

Keeping his growing resentment
toward deb to himself.

Tony: I would get
a real strong sense of hate,

Like I wanted to sometimes
reach out and just hurt her.

[ Indistinct shouting ]

And that's not like me.
I love her so much.

I'd never do anything
to hurt her.

But the longer we were there,

The stronger
that feeling was getting.

Narrator: the pickmans
call in the psychic

For a second consultation.

And I got yanked up
by something.

It was so bad, I had blisters
and marks on my wrists.

Well, I'll try
and contact sallie

And see if she can give us
some answers to what's going on.

[ Exhales sharply ]

[ Breathes deeply,
exhales ]

[ Child giggling ]

It's her.

[ Child giggling ]

Don't go down there.

There's another entity
in this room.

Sallie?

Sallie, what do you mean,
"it's her"?

[ Gasps ]

There's another entity
in this room.

Much older
and much stronger

Than our little sallie is,
okay?

[ Sighs ]

It seems to me
that this other, older entity

Is the one
that is doing these things,

And sallie's the one
taking the blame.

Deb: she's communicating with
sallie because this other female

Would not interact
with her at all.

This is really
beyond my expertise.

What I would like to do
is contact

A very qualified
paranormal investigative team

Who has extraordinary experience
with things like this.

I think
that's a good idea.

I think
it's a really good idea.

You really want a whole team
of people in here?

My first reaction was, "no way.
We live in a small town.

We'd be the laughingstock."

What other option
do we have right now?

We're not gonna be able
to get rid of it

Unless we have a team
come in

And tell us
exactly what it is.

In my mind, if it wasn't
a spirit in the house,

It could only have been one
thing, and that was the devil.

And it just scared me to death.

Maybe someone coming in
to intervene

Could help explain
what was there.

Either help explain it
or help get rid of it.

Narrator:
within days,

A team of paranormal
investigators arrives,

Led by world-renowned medium
and researcher peter james.

A ghost is the ethereal double
of its physical counterpart.

We become a ghost

Depending upon the circumstances
as to how we die.

If we die untimely,
tragically, or violently,

Then we're rendered a ghost.

I prefer not knowing any details
of any specific haunting.

It was my job to identify
the anomalous activity.

I need to find out
exactly what's been going on.

Tony: he asked
if we had a little daughter

About the age of 7.

Because as they pulled up,

There was a little girl
staring out the upstairs window.

James: she wasn't doing anything
in particular.

She was just looking at me
with a lot of curiosity,

As any other
normal-looking child would do.

...while I get a feel
for it.

Narrator: an electromagnetic
frequency monitor, or emf,

Indicates a change

In the electromagnetic energy
in the room.

[ Beeping ]

Peter senses the presence
of two spirits...

...a child and an adult female
who is very powerful.

Hello, there.

[ Monitor beeping ]

What's your name?

[ Monitor beeping ]

Sallie?

Deb: I just had this big,
broad smile on my face

Because that
was the second person

Who had basically
backed up the fact

That there was a little girl
named sallie in our house.

[ Monitor beeping ]

Narrator:
peter proceeds cautiously.

He knows that
people experiencing sudden

Or brutal deaths can be thrust
into the spirit world

Confused, fearful,
and even angry.

This is their space,
and I'm invading their space.

And if they dislike it,
they'll let you know.

I definitely feel the presence
of the female spirit here.

Deb: the whole focus had been
on the fact

That we had
this little girl spirit,

And now we're having an entity
that is more resembling

An adult female,
and we were wondering why.

Why do we have
an adult female in the house?

I feel that female spirit here,
definitely.

[ Monitor beeping ]

Definitely.

But she's...

But she's trying to repel me.

Trying to repel.

She's trying --
we are not afraid of you!

[ Grunts ]
something's happening to me?

I don't know.
Oh, it's my back.

Oh, my god, tony,

You have huge scratches
on your back.

Come look at this?

Oh, my god.

Look at that.

Oh, my god.

Something's happening.

I don't know.
Something's going on.

[ Beeping ]

All right, look.
Look, I know you're nervous.

Tony: I was so scared
the whole time.

He was telling me,
"don't be afraid.

We can't let it know
that we're afraid of it."

We're gonna go down
to the baby's room, okay?

Okay.

[ Breathing heavily ]

[ Monitor beeping ]

Narrator:
the nursery is a hotbed

Of electromagnetic energy.

Now, I see
there are two cribs here.

I thought you told me
you only had one child.

Deb: we do. We got this crib
and these toys for sallie.

We thought
she'd want her own space --

Make her feel comfortable.

[ Beeping continues ]

I'm getting something.

Sallie?

Sallie, if that's you,
you be nice.

Narrator: peter tries his best
to keep tony calm.

James:
he was really petrified.

He just couldn't move.

And, of course,
I tried to put him at ease,

Saying not to be nervous,

But he was very,
very shaken by all this.

Narrator:
peter james and his team

Continue to investigate the
entire house, inside and out.

[ Voices whispering
indistinctly ]

Peter tries one last time

To communicate with the
powerful spirit in the house.

[ Whispering continues ]

Go back to your room.
Don't go down there.

Don't go down there.
Go back to your room.

Finally,
the ghost reveals herself.

And a troubled past life
comes sharply into view.

Peter sees images
from a previous century.

The woman was a servant to
a physician who owned the house.

She was also his mistress.

I've done everything
I can think to.

They kept their affair hidden,

Fearing a scandal
in such racially divided times.

So, that's much better.

Don't go down there.

Don't go down there.

Sallie was
their 7-year-old daughter.

That is his daughter.

It's a tragic portrait
of a secret family.

James:
I became empathic,

And I was able to sense
how she died.

Narrator: young sallie
contracted pneumonia.

James:
a hundred years ago,

You didn't have the kind of
technology nor the medication

That could save a child
dying from pneumonia.

This is how she died.

Narrator: the forces
within the house are strong,

But peter believes the pickmans

Don't have to be victims
in their own home.

Tony: well,
what do we do, then?

I mean,
do we get an exorcism?

Not exorcism.

Cleansing, and that takes a lot
of data gathering,

It takes a lot of preparation.
That's not what you need.

You people are in control.

You, this is --
this is your house,

And you set the rules.

Now, you've got to
let these spirits know

That they need to
comply with those rules

Or they can't stay here.

Are you comfortable
with that?

Yeah, I mean,
I have to be, right?

Yes, you do. You have to.

[ Child giggling ]

[ Beeping ]

Narrator:
it's been several weeks

Since peter james and his team
visited the house.

Hey. How was work?

Great.

Do you want --
you want some tea?

Sure.

The pickmans
have saved some money,

But deb is still reluctant
to leave.

[ Sighs ]
peter james called today.

He wants to do another
investigation on our house.

I think
it's a good idea, tony.

He hasn't done
much good so far, has he?

You know...

Tony: everything in the house --
the longer we stayed there,

It just seemed
everything got heavier.

I don't know how much more
of this I can take.

Every time they come,

We learn something new
about sallie.

What are you always going on
about sallie for?!

I'm sick of worrying
about sallie!

You act like it's a sweet,
little ghost!

It's like a demon
or something!

Look what it's doing to me!
Look at my arms!

It's trying to k*ll me!
You don't even care!

Sweet, little girl, huh?!

[ Whistling ]

Narrator:
tony realizes the fight

With his wife
was all in his head.

Tony: being her husband
and the man of the house,

I wasn't all the time
admitting how scared I was.

I didn't want to scare her
too much,

So I kept a lot to myself.

I think we need to get
out of here.

"We have to get out
because if we don't get out,

Someone is gonna get hurt,

And I'm scared to death
it could be you."

Why --
why would I get hurt?

I keep having these
weird daydreams or something.

Narrator:
tony describes the dark,

Brooding thoughts
that have slowly consumed him.

I keep zoning out.

The inexplicable desire
to assert his power

And to hurt her.

He can't explain why,
but the feeling is there.

I'm about
to strangle you.

He cannot let the entities
control him any longer.

And I think we need to get out
right now.

Okay. I'll start
looking at ads tomorrow.

[ Birds chirping ]

[ Sighs ]

[ Shouting indistinctly ]

All I could think about
was evil thoughts.

This isn't me.
Why am I thinking this way?

[ Groaning ]

All I could think was,
"oh, I just want to hurt her."

What just happened?
Are you okay?

What happened?
Are you okay?

Get the baby.
We're getting out of here.

I'm all right.
Just go get the baby.

Let's go.

Tony: that was it for me.
I said, "we're moving.

"We got to get out of here.

"Somebody's gonna get hurt
if we don't,

And I'm scared
it's gonna be you."

That was the final straw.

Narrator: peter james theorizes
that sallie's mother

Caused the scratches
and welts on tony's body

And not young sallie,
as barbara originally thought.

James:
the activity escalated because

Tony wanted less and less
to do with the ghost,

And this is why
she sort of pounced on him

Literally, violently.

Tony: once we moved,
the heaviness, the bad thoughts,

Everything --
it was just instantly gone.

You know,
I've never felt that way since.

No matter how much
it wanted me to hurt my wife,

I wasn't gonna let it.

Are you okay?

Yeah, I'm fine.

I mean, how could --
how could a guy not be

Protective of his family
in that situation?

Deb: it's been
more than 10 years

Since we've lived in that house,

And people come up to us
and ask,

"What do you think
was going on there?

Why do you think
these things happened to you?"

And it's such
a very open-ended question

Because we really --
we don't know.

It just kind of leaves a hole
in that part of your life.

You experienced it,
but you can't explain why.

You have no reason.
You have no justification.

And it's...

That's kind of
a hard thing to deal with.

It's affected me.

I have, personally, I think,
become a little more spiritual.

Just I'm not a doubter anymore.

There's no way I could be,
not after what I went through.

I won't doubt anybody.

I've got to take their word
for it.

Narrator: an investigation
of cemetery records

From the late 19th century

Reveals that a young girl
named sallie did,

Indeed,
live in the pickmans' house.

She died at the age of 7.

Her gravestone still stands,

But any writing
has long been washed away

By wind and time.