03x03 - Hidden Terror

[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.

Mike speranza
buys an old fixer-upper

For himself and his girlfriend,

Unaware it harbors
a dark secret.

Sinister forces
prey on his sanity,

Tearing their world apart.

Uncertain if he can stop
the haunting,

He must face his fears
and fight back

Or lose his home forever.

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.

Corning -- a small city
in western new york

Known for its glassmaking
and fine arts.

Hidden beneath its scenic beauty

Lies a brutal history
of death and despair --

Tribal massacres, massive fires,

And deadly floods.

Today, some believe
these tragic events

Have made this fertile ground
for the supernatural.

Speranza:
this one right here?

Murray:
this is it -- 213.

It's cute. What do you think?
You like it?

In the fall of 2005...

Mike speranza is searching
for a house

With his girlfriend,
lisa murray.

Mike works for
a telecommunications company,

And lisa is an artist.

I never knew this place
was for sale.

Well, it's been on the market
for such a long time,

I just about forgot
about it myself.

Narrator:
mike regards his experiences

As personal and private.

He's agreed to share his story

Under the condition
of anonymity.

My girlfriend and I were gonna
move in together

And just be "together forever"
type of thing.

This house will be great
for a small family.

[ Door creaks ]

There's plenty of space
to work from home.

Oh, what do you do?

Paintings mostly, sculptures,
stained glass, too.

It's the main reason
I'm buying a place.

Speranza:
she would have plenty of space

To do whatever she wanted.

She could have a business
in the basement,

If she wanted to set it up
as a studio

Where she could even teach.

So?
When do we move in?

Why don't we finish
the tour first?

All right. Fine.

Let's go upstairs,
shall we?

Wow.

Narrator: a month later,
mike and lisa move in.

They begin renovating
immediately.

[ Grunting ]

Hey, I didn't hear
you coming.

Here.

Want to help me, please?
Ready?

Go.

[ Clacking ]

Speranza: you would just hear
"clack, clack, clack."

Oh, my gosh.

It's pretty.
It's cool.

It's a housewarming
gift...

[ Laughing ]

From the house.

Maybe next time it could send
down some diamonds.

It was something that we
kind of looked at each other,

Nervously laughed,

And thought to ourselves,
"that's interesting."

Narrator: a few days later,
while mike is at work...

[ Scraping ]

[ Creaking ]

Yeah, I know.
Um, I see it on monitor 2.

[ Cellphone rings ]

Wait a minute.
Hold on.

Can I call you back?

I got to go.
Okay, bye.

Hey, lisa,
how's it going?

It's okay.

Something wrong?

I don't know.

I just needed
to hear your voice.

Are you all right?

I was just painting,
and...

Narrator: out of nowhere,
lisa experiences a mysterious,

Overwhelming sorrow
that she cannot describe.

Speranza:
she said, "I have no idea why.

I'm just so sad."

And it was completely
out of character for her.

I'll see you soon.

Okay. Bye.

[ Insects chirping ]

Narrator:
over the next few weeks,

Lisa's depression deepens.

Speranza: she would feel
such pain, such sorrow,

Such grief for no good reason.

Just being in the house
by herself,

She would be just so upset.

[ Door closes ]

[ Sniffles ]

[ Sighs ]

It was a little bit at first,

And then,
as the months progressed,

It just got worse and worse.

I know
what you're thinking.

I still haven't done them.

I haven't done
a damn thing all day.

I really don't care
about the dishes.

I care about you.

[ Sobbing ]

I'm worried about you.

I think maybe we should go see
a doctor or something.

I don't need help!

[ Door opens, creaks ]

I knew something was there.
Something was watching me.

Narrator:
in the weeks that follow,

Mike has a growing sense

That there is something
very wrong with the house.

[ Creaking ]

I felt something
at the foot of the bed.

[ Breathing heavily ]

That was the first time
I was truly scared.

[ Birds chirping ]

Didn't mean to scare you.

No, no, I just...

Didn't get a good night's sleep
last night.

I want to ask you something.

When you're here,
like, alone in the afternoon,

Do you ever get the feeling

Something or someone's
watching you?

You must think I'm going crazy.
Is that what you think?

No. That's not
what I'm trying to say.

What I'm saying is...

Do you ever get the feeling
that someone's here,

Someone you can't see?

Because last night, I --

During the day, I am the only
one in this miserable place.

Let me tell you something.

I bought this miserable place
as an investment in us!

Speranza: I think I just got
really angry and just snapped.

I had no idea
where it was coming from.

I don't even know why I'm angry.
I just am.

She figured
if she didn't talk about it

And she didn't think about it,
then it just didn't exist.

[ Water turns off ]

[ Gasps ]

Narrator:
as mike returns home each day,

He feels a sense of dread.

I would find that,
the closer I got to the house,

The more tense I was.

And I remember specifically
setting the mail in a neat pile.

Lisa?

Lisa?

Um...

Did you move the mail?

What?

Never mind.

Uh,
I was hoping that...

I, um...

I was hoping
that we can talk about us,

About what's going on
in the house.

Nothing's going on
in the house.

Lisa, look, you weren't
like this before we moved in.

We weren't like this.

Narrator:
mike suspects that the strange
presence he's felt in the house

Is manipulating
both of their moods.

[ Sighs ]

All right.
[ Sighs ]

Lisa...

I think,

For your own well-being,
you should get out of the house.

There was definitely
an angry, sad,

Very emotionally distraught
energy in the house.

I know I should
just go visit friends

And take a walk and go shopping
and put on a smile for you!

No, I think you sh--

[ Sighs ]

No.

No, I think you need to move
out of the house.

Is that what you want?

I think it's the best
for both of us.

Narrator: mike wants to do
what's best for lisa,

But he's torn
about his decision.

Speranza:
I was very distraught myself.

When she walked out,

A good part of me
walked out with her.

Narrator: mike spends his first
weekend alone in over a year.

He realizes
he can no longer deny

That his house is haunted.

Speranza:
I came to the understanding
that something was there.

I didn't want to fear it.

I wanted to understand
what it was.

I set up my webcam

And just left it on "record"

And recorded on my computer
the whole day.

Narrator: unsure who or what is
knocking the mail on the floor,

Mike tries an experiment.

Speranza:
I would leave money out

To see if it was
neighborhood kids,

Maybe, coming in.

They would certainly take a $20
bill sitting on the counter.

But that wasn't the case.

I couldn't find
any other explanation,

Other than there was something
in the house.

[ Keyboard clacking ]

Come on.

Show yourself.

Narrator: the recording
reveals nothing unusual.

[ Indistinct whispering ]

Speranza:
there were two voices.

They sounded like they were
arguing over me.

That terrified me.

What do you want?!

And everything stopped.

I heard silence...
Like nothing was even there.

[ Echoing ]
what do you want?!

Narrator:
mike spends the night at work.

Oh, hey.

I got you
some coffee, man.

Look like you need it
more than I do right now.

Thanks.

Speranza: I don't know
why I didn't leave.

I was torn between, I think,
really wanting to understand

What was there

And the fact
that it was my house.

I'm not gonna be chased
out of my own house.

[ Birds chirping ]

[ Cartoon plays on television ]

He had just turned around
and looked at me,

As if to say,
"hey, I was watching that."

[ Breathing heavily ]

It made me nervous, to be sure.

I started to think, "is this boy
around all the time?"

Narrator: mike tries to keep
his composure...

But he begins to wonder
if he should sell the house.

Days later,

Mike meets his friend
sarah stratton for coffee.

Hey.

Hey.

You look terrible.

Thanks.

We've been really close friends
for a good two years.

It's a good friendship.

So, how's the new house?

I'm thinking about putting in
a transfer, sell it.

You just bought it.

I don't know.

It's a lot more room
than I need on my own.

Actually, I'm gonna be losing
a lot of money on it.

It needs
to get fixed up --

Mostly paint, but in order
for me to sell it,

I got to fix it,
and I don't have the time.

What can I do?

Nothing.

Look, I'm off on monday.
I can help you start painting.

He never asks somebody
for help.

He's not a person
that will take assistance.

I volunteered to, you know --
"whatever you need, I'll do it."

You sure?

I'm sorry
I can't help you now.

I swear, though,
when I get back from work,

I'm totally on top of it.

[ Grunts, sighs ]

Sarah, I owe you one.

You know, with my schedule,
I'd never get this done.

Don't worry about it.

All right.

I hadn't told her about anything

That had gone on
in the house previously.

I wanted to make sure
it wasn't me who was crazy.

Stratton: and I had
this overwhelming urge to cry,

Or sadness,

Almost the kind of sadness
that you get

When someone has told you
somebody has passed away.

It was that kind of feeling.

[ Cellphone rings ]

Hello?

Hey, sarah, it's me.
How's everything going?

Oh, um...

Fine.

Are you okay?

Yeah, i...

I think I've got
a cold coming on.

Oh, all right.

Call me
if you need anything.

I really appreciate
your help.

I will.

Okay.
All right, bye.

All right, bye.

I'm not one who breaks down
and cries very often.

It was a good 20 minutes

Where I just felt
almost like I couldn't move.

[ Crackling ]

[ Exhales deeply ]

[ Crackling ]

It sounded
like walking on plastic,

But it was loud, like somebody
was rustling the plastic.

I felt like
I had to leave the house.

I felt that if I didn't get out,
something was gonna go wrong.

[ Breathing heavily ]

I think something's wrong
with your house.

Oh, really?

What's up?

When you called and asked me
if I was fine...

I wasn't.

I felt this sadness come over me
for no reason.

Speranza:
it was déjà vu.

I almost heard her saying
the exact same words

That my girlfriend used.

Then I heard footsteps
on the plastic in the bathroom,

And I couldn't see anything.

I know it sounds crazy.

I think my brain
is playing tricks on me.

No.

Your brain
isn't playing tricks on you.

My ex-girlfriend
saw those things, too.

I saw those things, too.

Why didn't you tell me?

I felt, as a friend,
he should have told me

Before I ever walked
in the house.

I should have.
I'm sorry, sarah.

Sarah, I'm sorry.

I just needed to know.

Look,
if you saw something,

Then I'd know
that it wasn't all in my head.

I'm sorry.

I totally understand
if you don't want to go back.

In a way,
I do want to go back.

I don't want
to go back alone.

I wanted answers.

I was not so much believing
in ghosts,

But believing
that something was there,

And I wanted to get
to the bottom of it.

Narrator: mike reluctantly
allows a team of ghost hunters

To investigate his home.

I was certainly skeptical.

I mean, who's really an expert
on ghosts?

Do you even know?
Yeah, of course.

Hi.

Narrator: stacey jones
is a paranormal investigator

And founder of central new york
ghost hunters.

You're not quite sure what to
make of all this, are you?

Tell you the truth, I'm not sure
I believe in all this.

I have a very healthy respect
for skeptics.

Skeptics keep us honest.

Narrator:
stacey and her team

Specialize in gathering physical
evidence of the supernatural.

Jones: I think a lot of the
evidence can be explained away,

As far as being
a natural phenomenon.

So what we try to do
is actually go in

And just try to find
the one piece of evidence

That we can actually prove out
and say,

"Yes, this is something
paranormal in nature."

Narrator:
kyle couchman

Documents every investigation
on video.

What I was told before going
into the house

Was that they had some strange
activities going on there.

They weren't real specific
about what was going on.

Narrator: regina matthews refers
to herself as "a sensitive."

I can sense things that have
gone on in some locations.

I guess you
would call them spirits.

Narrator: james acheson
rounds out the team.

My area of expertise
is mostly film and audio.

I do evps and take pictures.

Narrator:
in the master bedroom,

Regina prepares for recording
electronic voice phenomena,

Or evps.

It's when disembodied voices

Imprint themselves
on your recorders.

Testing -- 1, 2, 3.
Testing.

So I use the evps

To kind of validate
what I see or hear.

Me?

You've experienced things before
in the house, right?

Uh-huh.

Narrator:
stacey explains to sarah

That whatever is there
may respond to her again.

You'll be okay.

And I very unnervingly said,
"okay, I'll do it."

But I'm like,
"don't leave me by myself."

She'll take good care
of you.

We're gonna set up
in the other room.

Kyle, you ready?

Narrator: mike is unexpectedly
called to work.

Jones:
off to work?

Yeah,
I need the overtime.

I got to pay
for the dream house.

Speranza:
I figured a lot of things

Don't always happen
when I'm there, so I left.

I'm gonna go outside
and get some extra tapes.

Narrator:
regina explains to sarah

How to elicit evps
from the spirits.

I'm gonna ask a series
of questions.

Sometimes the audio equipment
will pick up a faint response.

Matthews:
I've asked specific questions

And received specific answers
for them.

It tells me that the spirits
can interact with the living.

Is there anyone in here
who wants to talk?

What is your name?

Are you sorry
for scaring me?

How long
have you lived here?

[ Clacking ]

Can I help you, sir?

Can I help you, sir?

Excuse me.
Excuse me, sir?

Hey!

Couchman:
I looked down the alley,

And there
was absolutely nobody there.

What do you want?

Why are you
in this house?

Are you angry?

Are you a child?

Matthews:
we felt what was a small --

Like a toddler climbing up
on the bed.

Are you a boy or a girl?

How old are you?

If you're scared,
you can go.

[ Rattling ]

Matthews: perhaps if somebody
else was in the room with me,

I would have opened the door,
but I was alone.

Who's there?

The whole time
I was going down the stairs,

I felt like somebody
was gonna push me.

Who's there?

Aah!

I had full contact.

Full contact.

Where?

Here.

What happened?

I saw something
or someone here.

What did it look like?

It was just a man
in jeans and a t-shirt.

Did he have dark hair?

Tall and thin.

Couchman: the description
she gave me seemed awful similar

To what I had seen...

I saw him, too.

...which made me feel like,

"Wow, then
I must have seen something,"

More than
what I had originally thought.

If it's a person, then why did
they disappear so quickly,

And now why is somebody else
seeing them?

Narrator: james acheson
is intrigued by the sightings.

I thought it was just a vagrant
at first, hanging outside.

Acheson:
a rare thing --

You don't get two people
that see the exact same thing

At different times
in an investigation.

Narrator: now the investigators
want conclusive proof.

Acheson: at that point,
I was starting to get,

Actually, a little excited
because I wanted to see it, too.

I wanted to capture it on film.

I wanted to prove to people that
this type of stuff did exist.

As he went by --

And it was just a blink
of an eye,

That's how fast he went by --

It definitely felt
like he was not happy

With me being in there at all.

Narrator: in the morning,
the team packs up their gear.

They must sort
through all the evidence

Before they can determine

Exactly what
is haunting the house.

So how'd it go?

Well, we got a lot of evidence
here to go through.

It'll probably take
a couple days to --

Well, you know
where to find me.

We'll get back with you.

Narrator:
a few days later...

Stacey and her team
analyze the photo

James took in mike's house.

When I looked at that picture
and saw him there,

There was no denying it,
right then at that point,

That that was an actual ghost
that we caught on film.

Narrator: stacey's team makes
another chilling discovery.

Stacey.

They answered us.

Play it.

Jones:
it's a very faint sound.

It's not something that sounds
like a human voice.

Raise it up another 200%.

We amplify it,
sometimes as much as 800%.

Stratton: are you sorry
for scaring me?

Man: no.

[ Telephone rings ]

Hello?

And I think
that was the first time

That I ever admitted to anybody

That this was an actually,
bona fide, haunted house.

Narrator: but stacey and her
team are unable to determine

Who is haunting
the house and why.

Yeah, okay.
I'm downloading it right now.

Bye.

Stacey e-mails the photograph

And evp recordings to mike.

Matthews: is there anyone
in here who wants to talk?

What is your name?

What do you want?

Man:
let me out.

Let me out.

What is your name?

What do you want?

Stratton:
...sorry for scaring me?

No.

Are you sorry
for scaring me?

No.

Speranza: this was kind of like
the last nail in the coffin.

It was one of those things
that I knew I just needed to...

Get away from this house,

Sever my ties with this house,

And just pretty much
get out of the area.

[ Indistinct whispering ]

[ Grunts ]

I was shoved,
and I was scared.

Narrator:
mike returns to the house,

But only to pack and move out.

He rents a small apartment
across town

While waiting to hear
about a job in another city.

The experience
changes him forever.

Speranza: I'm certain now
that there is stuff out there...

Stuff living on a different
plane that we can't see.

And I am torn
with wanting to know more

And just wanting to play
the "ignorance is bliss"

And just not know anything.

Narrator:
shortly after moving out,

Mike puts the house
on the market.

It sells within weeks,

But mike continues to be haunted
by what happened there.

He can find no explanation
for the young boy

Who seemed so eager
for attention

Or for the angry male ghost.

But what disturbs him most

Is not knowing
why his friends lisa and sarah

Were so overwhelmed with sorrow.

Speranza:
I figure it was because
whatever was in the house

Had a closer connection
to females than they did males.

Narrator:
to this day,

What happened in that house
remains a mystery.