The Lighthouse People Page 2

folks have... sort of comes on in the wee hours after a party.

  'Anyway, he began to think about those footprints and how they came to be… kind of confused about it all of a sudden. So he flicks on his torch to look at them again just to make sure that he'd really seen what he thought he saw. Then he gets the fright of his life. This time he sees more footprints coming from the sea... from more people. They weren't there a few seconds ago. Awww, kids, you can only imagine what goes through a man's mind when he sees a thing like that. It was as empty as could be on that beach - there was not a soul around for miles. And suddenly there are all these fresh tracks appearing out of the sea. Quick as blink.'

  Marinka screwed up her nose. 'Oh, come on Grandpa, ghosts can't leave footprints. They're made out of misty stuff.'

  Grandpa gave her a slightly annoyed look. 'And you know so much about ghosts, do you?'

  'I know some things. I know that you can't actually touch a ghost... they don't have... you know...'

  'A physical presence?' finished Grandpa, guessing what she was about to say.

  'Yeah.'

  Grandpa sighed. 'You must know a lot more about ghosts than me young lady. I heard that they could rattle windows and close doors and lift beds off the floor and knock books off bookshelves. But I guess that's impossible if they don't have a physical presence. I must be misinformed.'

  Marinka was quiet for a moment. Then she added in a less confident voice: 'But why do these ones leave prints?'

  Grandpa shrugged. 'Why do some ghosts knock a book off a bookshelf? I don't know. Do you know? Is it because they don't like the book and want it removed? Or is it because they really like it and are trying to present it as recommended reading? Maybe it’s because they saw a mouse shoot across the floor and wanted to see if they could hit it? Who can say?'

  Teun didn't care about the whys and wherefores about the footprints either. He just wanted to hear how the story ended.

  'What did the man do?' he asked.

  'Well,' said Grandpa. 'He went down toward the water to take a closer look.'

  'Mistake,' said Teun knowingly.

  Grandpa rocked his head from side to side to show that he didn't entirely disagree. 'Only what did he see? He saw that all those fresh footprints came out of the water, but didn't go back in. Just like the first prints. And that's when it dawned on him. The ones who made those prints must have disappeared when the light went on. His torch light that is. They didn't run away as such... they simply vanished into thin air. To test his theory this fella went back up to the top of the beach - up where the tussock grass grows - turned back to face the beach and switched his torch off. Just for a moment. Then he turned it back on. And you guessed it...'

  'More footprints?'

  'You got it. He turned the torch on and off and on and off a few more times... just to be sure. And every time there were more footprints. When he was sure about what was going on and had built up enough courage, he turned the torch off for a bit longer. Just a few seconds more. When he turned it on again he could see a whole hoard coming ashore. And this time they'd had come a long way across the sand. Oh, that was a sight that almost stilled his heart, let me tell you. For he could see without a doubt that they were all heading in his direction. And so fast. In those few seconds of darkness when the torch had been off they'd rushed in faster across the beach faster than a grown man could run. Well, that was an eye-opener. As you can well imagine he didn't want to hang around that cursed place too long after that. He backed away from the sea, never taking his eyes, or his torch, off that dark, foreboding water for one moment.

  'And, my dear children, that's why he lived to tell the tale. The light from his torch was the reason he got away you see. The village finally found out why all those people had gone missing over the years, which was a sad fact to accept, but at least we knew from that time forward what to do to stay safe. The new golden rule was never go down to the sea when it's too dark, and if you do then carry a good torch on you. That torch could save your life.'

  Marinka looked at her grandfather with wide eyes. 'Did he see any of them? The ghosts?'

  Grandpa shook his head. 'Not a one. All he saw was the prints they made in the wet sand. No spirits floating about in the mist.'

  'Did he hear them?'

  'Didn't hear a thing. Mind you, the water makes a lot of noise what with all those waves crashing one after the other... so not surprising that he didn't hear anything.'

  Grandpa shook his head and sighed. 'Oh, I tell you kids, I saw that man’s face the next day. I remember it like it was yesterday. Terrible... just terrible. His eyes were all bloodshot and his face had lost all its colour from the shock of it all. He was as sick as a dog too - couldn’t get out of bed for two days straight. Didn't touch a drop of liquor for a week and that's really saying something for a republican, let me tell you.'

  Marinka saw the old man settling back into his seat with a contemplative expression on his face. She sensed the story had reached its end.

  'Creepy! That's a good one Grandpa!'

  Grandpa leant forward. 'I wouldn't call it a good one. Some stories aren't told for entertainment.'

  He stretched out one of his bony, vein riddled hands with the palm facing up. 'Put your hand on mine,' he said to Marinka. 'You too Teun.'

  The youngsters looked at him for a moment, wondering what on earth he had on his mind. But they didn't dare argue because there was something about the command in the old man’s voice that told them arguing wouldn't be a good idea. They did as they were told. Marinka's young hand settled on the weather-beaten hand of her grandfather and Teun placed his on top.

  'Now,' said Grandpa. 'I'm being very serious here. I want you two to promise never to go down to that bay at night. You know which one I’m talking about, right? Tobban's Bay? You know where that is?'

  Both children nodded.

  'Good. Swear on it. Swear that you won't go down there.'

  'I swear it,' said Marinka quickly.

  'I swear it,' echoed Teun.

  Grandpa eyed the children suspiciously. 'I'm not kidding with you now. I'm only telling you this story because I think it’s my duty to warn you. If you value your life you'll stay well away from that place. Especially, especially, on a night like this.'

  Marinka pulled her hand back gently and rose to her feet. She felt just a little shaken by the whole thing, which was unusual because Grandpa's legendary tales didn't usually get to her.

  She decided that that was quite enough storytelling for one night. It was time to change the subject and lighten the atmosphere.

  'Would you like a cup of tea Grandpa?' she asked.

  Grandpa's face softened and the sparkle came back into his eyes.

  'Yes, yes, I like the sound of that,’ he said. He relaxed his small shoulders and sunk back into his chair. ‘Time for a nice cuppa tea. Make your friend here a cocoa or something too. Oh, and there's a packet of ginger nuts in the tin. You know where.'