The Ghost With the One Black Eye

One dark and stormy night, a man named Martin stopped at the Railroad Hotel and rang the bell. No one answered, so he opened the door and entered a large living room with an old couch and several chairs. Being tired and wet from the rain, Martin immediately laid down on the couch and fell fast asleep.

In the middle of the night, he was awakened by the rattling of pots and pans. Martin began to shake with fright. He rose from the couch and moved quietly into a kitchen where he saw a young woman whose skin was white as snow. She turned slowly towards Martin and smiled. Oh, that smile! White lips, white teeth, that almost seemed to glow in the dark! Before Martin could run, she whispered, “I am the ghost of the one black eye.” And Martin looked, and she had one black eye.

At once a boy appeared. His skin was so white it was almost translucent- even his hair was white. “I am the ghost of the one black eye,” he said in a loud voice. And Martin looked, and the boy had one black eye.

Then a young man entered. He held a candle in his hands and his white nails were long as knives. “I AM THE GHOST OF THE ONE BLACK EYE!” he shouted. And Martin looked, and the young man had one black eye.

By now Martin couldn’t move. These three strange apparitions stood before him and smiled their ghastly smiles. All he could do was stare. And as he stared, three children ran into the kitchen and screamed, “WE ARE THE GHOSTS OF THE ONE BLACK EYE!” and Martin looked, and each child had one black eye.

Then they all began to shout together: “WE ARE THE GHOSTS OF THE ONE BLACK EYE! WE ARE THE GHOSTS OF THE ONE BLACK EYE! WE ARE THE GHOSTS OF THE ONE BLACK EYE!”

Suddenly a door slammed and a very old man hobbled into the kitchen. He wore a long white nightshirt and had a nightcap on his head. And the old man shook his cane and yelled louder than all the rest: “IF YOU DON’T KEEP QUIT, YOU’LL ALL BE THE GHOSTS OF THE TWO BLACK EYES!”