Episode Recap: The House On The Lake

Subject Names: Michael Todd, Cynthia Warwick Seiler, Veronica Montes, Ashton Montes, Jodi Gagnon, Nicolle Harris, Cheryl
Subject Location:  Saranac Lake, NY
Paranormal Experience:

Mike Todd had decided to begin a property development business. He became enamored with an old home in Saranac Lake that sat up on a hill. It was "bigger than big", and it needed some work. He purchased the property, and immediately began to work on the place. He envisioned remodeling the property and quickly renting out the apartments. The first and second floors were very workable, but the third floor was completely gutted and full of junk. Mike decided to save that for last.

To keep expenses down, Mike decided to live in one of the apartments while he worked on the building. He worked every night, weekend, month, all of it, until whatever needed to be done was done. On the first night, he put his drill on the floor for a moment, and when he reached back for it, it was gone.  The bathroom light flickered, and he went to investigate. When he opened the door further, he found the drill sitting in the middle of the floor. He'd been tired, but could he have been that tired? He went back to work, and began hearing odd sounds from the hallway, coming toward his apartment.  They were like footsteps. He went to investigate, but nobody was there.  When he grabbed the saw to go back to work, he heard them again. Maybe he needed to take a break?

One day, Mike was downstairs doing laundry. A set of legs sprinted past, up the stairs.  Mike gave chase, ending up face-to-face with something in a closet on the third floor. The door slammed shut. When Mike opened the door, only to have a pile of antique items fall out. There was nobody there.

Weeks passed, and Mike had one apartment done. His first tenant was Cynthia Warwick Seiler, and she was in real estate. She loved the place.  One night she went downstairs to do laundry, and her dog Buddy went with her.  As she was putting the clothes into the machine, Buddy shot up the staircase. Cynthia followed Buddy to the third floor, and the hallway felt colder and angrier to her. Buddy was obviously attracted to something behind the door on the third floor.

Veronica Montes and her son Ashton moved into another apartment. One day, as they were sitting in the apartment, there was a massive chill. Ashton looked at his mother, frozen. He felt someone breathing down his neck.  Veronica dismissed it as a breeze.

Cynthia was putting in laundry when Buddy once again ran up the stairs.  It had become a routine for the little guy. This time, though, Cynthia couldn't shake the feeling that someone was standing behind her. Her hair was standing on end. She slowly turned, and came face-to-face with a ghost.  She ran, fast, up to the third floor to get Buddy. Dog in hand, she then ran outside. When she turned around, she saw two children in the third floor window. Something was unusual about them. She went to Mike and told him.  He was surprised, and headed to the third floor to investigate. The surprise he got up there was enough to convince him the place was haunted.

Mike began hanging a few crosses in the house, hoping for peace. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. As Mike was showing an apartment to Jodi Gagnon, however, it became clear that it wasn't enough. Jodi felt something on her leg, as though a child were grabbing her and holding on.  When she looked down, there was nothing there. She dismissed it, taking the apartment.

Veronica, meanwhile, was seeing strange behavior from Ashton. Her son was growing clingy, always beside her when they were home. One day, as he was washing his hands before eating, he screamed for his mother. He'd seen a boy in their bathroom. Veronica didn't find anyone else. She was about to dismiss it, until a rubber ball rolled through their apartment and out into the hallway, stopping at the top of the stairs.  It rolled downstairs on its own, one deliberate step at a time.

Mike heard footsteps walking up behind him while he lay in bed trying to sleep. When he finally worked up the courage to turn around, he saw the ghostly girl on the other side of his glass doors. He tried to forget about it, but it was too difficult. He was in denial. Jodi Gagnon's last straw was when she watched a six foot-tall ghost walk through her apartment and into her pantry. She had to move out. 

When Mike met Nicolle Harris, he was happy to have someone to share the experiences with of what was going on with the property. One night, Mike decided they needed to stop by the house to check on a recently vacated apartment.  The only problem was that he'd forgotten the keys. Mike got into the apartment through a cracked window. He thought it was cold. When Nicolle joined him in the apartment, they noted there were crosses over every single door, on the walls, everywhere. Suddenly, Nicolle had an excruciating pain like she'd never experienced. Something was attacking her. As Mike tried to help, she completely disappeared and ran outside. Mike ran after her, and they got out of there.  As they drove off, a figure appeared in the rode. It seemed to come faster at the car. When the car met the figure, it disappeared. Mike had had enough. It was time to take action.

Mike called his friend Cheryl, a very spiritual person who suggested doing a blessing of the house.  They lit candles and she began reading from her Bible, convinced that they were going to take care of this. She began to pray, but began to hear whispering sounds. She said it wasn't good, but kept her prayer. Finally, she was attacked. She began to feel ill, violently vomiting. Mike grabbed Holy water and made the sign of the cross on Cheryl's back.  That stopped the attack. The blessing also made the house feel more peaceful.

Mike wanted answers.  He headed into town to see what he could find out.  Back in the early 1900s, many people had come to that area to try to cure tuberculosis.  Mike's house had been a "cure cottage", where doctors cared for TB patients.  Hundreds had been cured, but thousands had died.  Mike reasoned that the dead had not wanted the purpose of the house to be lost. They wanted it, and them, to be remembered.  Mike decided to keep a small part of the third floor unchanged, that the spirits could always have.  It was a peace offering. After that offering, the house calmed down.