07x05 - Ashes to Evil

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: a young family
moves into an old home

And soon discovers
they are not alone.

[ Door slams ]
whoa!

Amelia:
I felt a very strong presence.

Something was in the house.

Narrator: at first, they suspect
innocent ghost children...

Amelia: those kids,
they died in that house.

Narrator: ...but then
a much darker force attacks.

[ Gasping ]
calvin: couldn't breathe.

Somebody was really trying
to suffocate me.

I felt like I was fighting
for my life.

Narrator: can the family escape
before it's too late?

Calvin!

Narrator: in america,
there is real evil.

It lurks in the darkest shadows
and in our most ordinary towns.

Between the world we see
and the things we fear,

There are doors.

And when they are opened,

Nightmares become reality.

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

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

Nestled along the southern tip
of the appalachian trail,

Hampton, tennessee,
is the kind of place

Hikers tend to pass through.

Amelia: hampton's very small,
very country --

Mountains, lakes, woods,
and that's it.

Calvin: they have
a grocery store down the street.

It's really, like, a small town.

Narrator: in october 2011,

Amelia and calvin brahdy
move into an apartment

In a spacious, old home
in hampton

With their daughters, 5-year-old
sarah and 1-year-old chelsea.

Amelia: it was an older house,
built back in like the 1800s.

The place was huge.

What do you think?

It's so big.

It was very cheap,

So we kind of just jumped on it.

Calvin:
it was in a secluded area.

It was quiet.

The kids had yard space
to play in.

It was a perfect home
for the kids.

Narrator:
calvin works maintenance
at a nearby restaurant,

While amelia
is a stay-at-home mom.

I was really ready
to start a family,

Especially when I met her.

I don't know what it was.

It was just,
something drew me to her.

Amelia: he's very caring.

He kind of reminded me
of my prince charming.

We formed a family very quick.

Come on, sarah.

Narrator: inside, the apartment
matches the couple's idea

Of their perfect dream house.

Calvin: it was
a three-bedroom apartment,

And that's what we needed
at the time.

It had space for the kids

To run back and forth
in the house and everything.

Amelia:
I'd always loved vintage homes,

So I thought it was beautiful.

When we first walked in,
it was perfect.

Like, everything matched exactly
what we needed.

Narrator: the apartment
is located on the second floor

Of the old house
and includes a porch.

And while it's a nice feature
to have, it also poses a risk.

Honey, you are not to come out
here by yourself.

Do you understand?

Come on.

Sarah was just out there
by herself!

It's a nice apartment,
but is it safe for the children?

Look, the door has two locks --
here...

...and up here.

The only way out there is
if one of us unlocks it, okay?

And I was like, "okay.

"This can work
because I can keep that locked

And she cannot reach it,
not even with a chair."

Narrator: while they've solved
the problem at hand,

There's no way they could guess

What nightmares
await their family.

[ Door slams ]
whoa!

[ Gasps ]

Narrator: the century-old house
harbors many sad secrets

Of tragic deaths
and an unspeakable atrocity.

Here you go, mama.

Narrator: and it's not long
before amelia senses

There are spirits around them
who have yet to rest in peace.

Amelia: after a few days
of being in the house,

It started to have
a heavy feeling,

Like we had moved in
on top of somebody

That did not want us there,

Like we was in
somebody else's home.

I just kind of blew it off.

We wasn't used to the house at
all, so we just kind of thought,

You know, "we're gonna get used
to it. It'll go away."

It did not go away.

Both of my kids was laying down
for a nap,

So I thought my husband
was home.

[ Wood creaks ]

Calvin?

[ Thudding ]

Calvin?

[ Wood creaks ]

Calvin?

There's nobody there.

I figured, you know,
it's an old house.

It could be animals
that was in the chimney

Or the walls cracking.

I didn't know.

Narrator:
several more days pass,

And amelia
can't shake the feeling

That somehow,
they are not alone.

[ Baby cries ]

Girl: mommy, mommy.

I heard a little voice,
and I felt a tug on my shirt.

Yes, sarah?

Narrator: amelia hears
the same voice again,

This time more insistent.

Girl: mommy, mommy, mommy.

Sarah?
Did you call me?

No, mommy.

I know that I heard
a little child call me mommy.

What is it?

Narrator:
random creaks and knocks
in an old house is one thing,

But a child's voice
is harder to explain.

Nothing.

Dinner will be ready
in 15 minutes.

[ Creaking ]

[ Tinkling ]

[ Baby crying ]

The baby.

Narrator: could the little
girl's voice amelia heard

Be trying to warn her?

Oh, my god! Fire!

Narrator:
in 2011, the brahdy family

Moves into
the top-floor apartment

Of an early-19th-century house,

Located in the small town
of hampton, tennessee.

Say, "thank you, mom.
Thank you."

For the young couple, the huge
apartment at an affordable rent

Seems too good to be true.

Are you gonna help us
clean up?

You're helping us
clean up?

It was roomy, had room for each
and every one of the kids.

Amelia: the space was terrific.

The rooms
were just the right size.

Narrator:
but just days after moving in,

Amelia begins hearing sounds...

[ Wood creaking, thud ]

...and voices she can't explain.

Girl: mommy, mommy.

Yes, sarah?

Mommy, mommy, mommy.

There was just something
about that room

That did not feel right.

[ Tinkling ]

I didn't know what at the time.

[ Baby crying ]

Narrator:
and then, one afternoon,

Amelia gets the scare
of a lifetime.

Oh, my god! Fire!

I just turned the corner,

There she was,
and there was the heater.

Calvin!

[ Baby crying ]

Narrator:
the baseboard heater appears to
have been ripped off the wall.

Amelia: I know for a fact
sarah was not strong enough

To forcefully pull that heater
off the wall.

There was no way,
none whatsoever.

Narrator: by the time
the firefighters arrive,

Calvin has managed
to put out the sparks.

Luckily, the damage is minimal
and no one is hurt.

I mean, it seemed to be sparking
all around

Like here and here.

It's a good thing
you had that fire extinguisher.

I could have been bad,
real bad.

Calvin: I was concerned
about the safety of the kids.

That's what
I was concerned about,

'Cause if that would have
started a fire,

We would have been rushing
to get out of there.

Narrator:
amelia notices one firefighter

Appears strangely uncomfortable,

As if she knows something.

Is everything okay?

Let me ask you something.

How much history do you know
about this place?

I don't know.
We just moved in a week ago.

She said, "you don't know
what happened here?"

And I said, "no."

Narrator:
about 10 years earlier,

A young mother
lived in the apartment

With her three young children.

Amelia: one day,
she had a cigarette in her hand,

And she nodded out.

The cigarette
caught the couch on fire

And the rest of the house.

The mother, her three kids,
they died in that house.

Narrator: two of the children
were found in a back bedroom

And the third in a closet.

Amelia:
I probably felt every emotion.

I was sad.

I felt bad for the kids,

To hear what they went through.

Calvin:
yeah, it really is tragic.

You get to thinking like,

"That could have been --
it can happen to us."

Narrator: several days pass,
and the brahdy family

Tries to put the strange events
behind them.

They repair the girls' bedroom
so it's as good as new,

But amelia can't get the story
of the fire and the victims

Out of her head.

Amelia:
it was weird to just think,

"Something like that happened
in a place that,

You know,
we're trying to make a home."

We didn't feel right
about the place then

After we found that out.

Narrator: a few days later,

Amelia hears sarah talking
to someone in her bedroom.

Sarah: ...get the baby.
I'm not getting the baby.

She's, like, big for me.

These are my dolls, see?

You can play with them
if you like.

Narrator: at first,
amelia is not concerned.

She had just moved away
from some of her friends.

I figured she was, you
know, coming up with
an invisible friend.

Narrator: but suddenly,
sarah's playmate

Doesn't appear to be
so...friendly.

Leave me alone.

Quit it.

Her voice changed
like she was getting upset --

"Stop. Go away."

Sweetie,
is everything okay?

Mom, tell them
to leave me alone.

Tell who
to leave you alone?

The kids.

What kids?

The kids
that come out of the closet.

Narrator: just days
after the brahdy family

Moves into an apartment
in hampton, tennessee,

They discover the tragic history
of their new home.

Calvin:
there was a house fire there.

A mother and three kids

Had passed from the fire
in that apartment.

Narrator:
then, sarah, their 5-year-old,

Starts having conversations
with imaginary friends.

No. Leave me alone.

Is everything okay?

Mom, tell them
to leave me alone.

Tell who
to leave you alone?

The kids.

What kids?

The kids
that come out of the closet.

Amelia: that just sent chills
all over

'Cause I believe kids
sense things.

Narrator: amelia suspects
sarah's new friends

Might be the ghosts
of the children

Whose spirits are not at rest.

Amelia:
my first thought was,

It was those kids
that had died in the fire.

Narrator:
suddenly for amelia,

The strange occurrences

And mysterious voices
in her new home make sense.

Girl: mommy, mommy.

Yes, sarah?

Amelia: I was starting to come
to terms that we were not alone.

I felt a very strong presence.

Something was in the house.

[ Thud ]

I've always been a very
firm believer of paranormal.

I've always believed

That there was something
out there that we couldn't see.

Narrator: later that night,

Amelia tells calvin she believes
their apartment is haunted.

Honey,
I know this sounds crazy,

But [sighs] this house
has a pretty tragic history.

It just makes sense to me

That the spirits of this
poor family is still here.

Look...

I understand
that you're upset

About the children
who died here,

But...
There are no ghosts here,

Or anywhere else,
for that matter.

I was a skeptic on ghosts
and the paranormal.

I really didn't think
it existed.

I didn't believe in ghosts
at all.

Amelia:
he wasn't a believer.

He kept making excuses.

It's gonna be all right.

Narrator: the next day, calvin's
hard stance is put to the test.

Hey, amelia, I'm home.

Amelia?

[ Door creaks ]

Amelia?

Amelia?

[ Hissing ]

The figure was more of
like a male's figure,

And it was just real dark.

[ Screaming ]

And then it was gone.

Narrator:
for the first time in his life,

Calvin is faced
with the possibility

That the paranormal is real.

Calvin:
when I seen the shadow figure,

That's what let me know
that the apartment was haunted.

I was terrified.

I didn't tell amelia

'Cause I didn't want to get her
more startled or scared.

Narrator: but the spirits
may not be as considerate.

Several nights later...

[ Hissing ]

[ Gasping ]

Calvin?!

Narrator: for more "a haunting,"
visit...

Narrator:
for the past several weeks,

The brahdy family has been
experiencing paranormal activity

In their home
in hampton, tennessee.

After hearing stories
about a tragic fire

That took the lives of a mother
and her three children,

Amelia believes
her daughter sarah

Has made friends with the ghosts
of the deceased children.

These are my dolls.

You can play with them
if you like.

Amelia: I started to think that
the house was haunted with kids

Because my oldest

Started talking and playing
with stuff that wasn't there.

She's actually talking

Like somebody is actually
in there with her,

And there's not.

There's children,
ghosts in here.

It was those kids
that had died in the fire.

There was no covering it up
or denying it or anything.

The more that we kept pretending
like it wasn't,

The worse it got.

Narrator: the couple soon finds
that something far darker

Than ghost children
lurks in the house.

[ Hissing ]

[ Gasping ]

Calvin: when I had came out
of the nightmare,

I felt like I was fighting
for air.

I couldn't breathe.
It was something sitting on me.

It was like a massive pressure
on my chest,

To where somebody was
really trying to suffocate me.

I felt like I was fighting
for my life.

Calvin?! Calvin?!

Amelia: he couldn't talk,

And you could see

That he was just, like,
struggling to get air.

[ Coughing ]

It's okay.

It stopped.

What's going on?
What happened?

I believe you.

This house is haunted.

But I don't think it was a child
that did this.

There's
something else here.

I was terrified for me,
my husband, my kids.

I didn't know what that spirit
was capable of.

Narrator:
calvin is also afraid

Not for himself,
but for his family.

If I'm fighting for my life
and something happens to me,

That just leaves them abandoned

And nobody there
to help take care of them.

Narrator:
in the days that follow,

The stress of the haunting
wears the family down.

Amelia:
we both felt powerless.

We can't fight something
that we can't see.

I mean, it sees, hears,
watches us,

But we cannot see or hear it.

We didn't know what to do.

Narrator: amelia feels trapped
with no means of escape.

Calvin:
she was wanting to move,

And I was telling her that
we had the lease for a year.

Narrator:
they have few options.

Amelia:
we had no family or friends
for us to live with at the time.

We were tied to that house
financially.

I mean, there was no way

We could afford to move
right then and there.

We -- we just couldn't do it.

Narrator: soon after, amelia
thinks she has some alone time.

Amelia:
both of the girls were asleep,

And that was the only time that
I was able to take a shower.

[ Door creaks ]

[ Squeaking ]

Narrator: suddenly,
amelia gets a terrifying message

Clear as day from beyond.

It was written perfectly
in the steam.

My kids were asleep.
Nobody was in the house.

I knew exactly what it was.

It was whatever
was in that house.

Narrator:
amelia is horrified.

The house is haunted
by an entity

Far worse than the children
who died in the fire,

And now it's after her.

I knew that wasn't
the child ghosts.

I knew that there were more
than the children in that house.

There's something bad here,

And whatever it is, it wants us
either hurt or dead.

Narrator: the family decides
to go into protection mode

And makes sure
no one is ever alone

In any room of the apartment.

Amelia: we started sleeping in
the living room from then on.

And I kept an eye on them
through the night.

Narrator: later that night,
all is quiet...

Or so it seems.

[ Sighs ]

[ Gasps ]

Calvin!

Narrator: within a month

Of moving into their
hampton, tennessee, apartment,

Calvin and amelia brahdy
must fend off the attacks

Of a dark, malevolent force.

[ Screams ]

After I seen the shadow figure,

That's when things
started happening to me.

[ Gasping ]

I was fighting for air.

I was fighting for my life.

Narrator:
its motives are unknown,

But its message is clear.

I knew as soon as I seen that,
we were in complete danger.

I just felt the evil.

Narrator: then, one night,
amelia sees it, too.

It was very dark, very thick --
you couldn't see through it.

It was like a very strong mist.

Calvin.

Calvin!

What is it?

[ Sobbing ] calvin!
It was awful!

Narrator: amelia and calvin have
now both seen the face of evil.

With nowhere else to turn,

Amelia contacts paranormal
technology investigations

In nearby jonesborough,
tennessee.

When she started telling me
the claims of her activity,

They were pretty believable.

Yeah, in my mind, I was pretty
positive they had a haunting,

But I wasn't for sure what level
of haunting they had yet.

Amelia: it just finally
felt good to talk to somebody,

For somebody to say, "okay,
we're gonna come help."

I mean, just those few words
just relieved me.

Narrator:
a few days later...

Thank you so much
for coming.

Of course.

You have no idea
what this means to us.

Well, our team is gonna set
right up if you don't mind.

Narrator:
rob phillips and his business
partner, kathy shephard,

Arrive to conduct
an investigation.

Kathy: you could feel the
heaviness since we walked in.

You could just feel there wasn't
something right in the home.

We knew
there was something there.

We did some investigating
into this house,

And we found something
very interesting.

Narrator: kathy begins
by informing the brahdys

That the home's dark history

Started well before the fire
k*lled the young family.

Kathy: the house was built
in the 1800s.

It was someone's home.

Sometime in the 1920s,

It was turned into a halfway
house for male prisoners.

Around the 1920s, prohibition,

There was a lot of moonshine
in the area.

With the evidence we have now,

We believe that
when it was a halfway house,

There might have been
a lot of criminal activities

Going on there.

When it was a halfway house,
there was a man shot...

[ g*nsh*t ]

...and k*lled at the home.

Negative energy can definitely
stir up paranormal activity.

[ Beep ]

Narrator:
the investigators begin

By trying to make contact
with the spirits.

Rob:
we used digital voice recorders

For capturing electronic voice
phenomenon, also known as e.v.p.

If there's anyone here
that wants to communicate,

Can you please give us a sign?

Did you die in this house?

Was there a fire?

Can you tell me your name?

Kathy: we concluded that there
was three children in the home.

Their spirits were still there.

We got different voices
in a recorder --

A lady's voice,
which we believe was the mother.

We felt a tragedy like this

Would bring on
a lot of paranormal activity.

Can you tell us your name?

Do you live here?

[ Amelia gasps, groaning ]

Narrator: suddenly,
amelia comes under attack.

Amelia: I felt
a burning sensation on my back.

My back, it's burning!

Can we look?

[ Whimpering ]

Rob: oh, my god.

I had three scratch marks
going from my shoulder down.

I knew I had made something mad.

Narrator:
investigators now believe

They are dealing
with a demonic entity.

Rob: the demonic
will leave three scratches,

They'll knock in threes --
everything they do is in three,

And that's a way for them
to mimic the trinity,

Which is the father, son,
and the holy spirit.

Narrator:
and the demonic entity

Is holding
the other spirits hostage.

Those spirits
were still in the home.

They were trapped.
They couldn't get out.

Narrator:
the investigative team

Performs a cleansing
and a crossover ritual

To rid the house
of the evil entity

And help usher the lost souls
to the hereafter.

Everything was more bright.

It smelled cleaner.
It felt lighter.

Narrator: for a while, it
appears that the brahdy family

Can resume a normal life
in their home.

Go, chelsea.

Yeah, good job.

Very good!
You're such a big girl!

Yeah, keep going.
You're such a big girl!

Mom,
can I get something to eat?

Just a minute.
Mom.

Amelia: I just had a feeling,
and when I looked at the door,

I seen her out there
on the balcony.

Oh, my god.
Chelsea!

I panicked.
I immediately panicked.

Chelsea!

Chelsea!

Chelsea!

Chelsea!

Chelsea!

Chelsea! No!

Narrator: it is 2011.

Leave me alone.

Narrator: the brahdy family

Has been experiencing
paranormal activity

In their hampton, tennessee,
apartment.

Calvin!

Narrator: the haunting
has quickly escalated,

And a demonic entity
is threatening the family.

[ Gasping ]

Rob: I think something
was trying to hurt the families

That was living
in these apartments.

I believe it was a demonic

That was already there
when they moved in.

Amelia:
they can physically hurt you.

My back, it's burning!

They can do damage.

They can tear your family apart.

Narrator: after
a paranormal investigation...

Rob: if there's anyone here
that wants to communicate,

Can you please give us a sign?

Narrator: ...the brahdy family
hoped their apartment

Was clear of all entities.

But the evil has returned...

Chelsea!

Narrator: ...and a young life
is in its grasp.

Amelia: chelsea!

[ Grunting ]

Come on, open!

There was no way
she unlocked the door,

Opened it, and locked it back.

Chelsea! No!

I knew that whatever
was in that house did it.

I knew whatever
was in that house

Put her on that balcony
and locked her out.

Chelsea!

The door wouldn't open.

It was like somebody
had it on the other side.

Chelsea! No!

Chelsea!

And then it finally
just let loose.

Oh, my god. Chelsea?

Oh, my god.
Are you okay?

The bars on our balcony
she could have fit through,

And if she would have fit
through them,

She would have fell
to her death.

Come on. We're leaving now.

"Okay. That's it."

I was done.

Narrator: it appears the evil
entity inside the apartment

Was not expelled,
as investigators had hoped.

We felt, being that this was
an apartment complex,

That the demon went somewhere

And he got inside
of another unit.

Kathy:
when amelia called me, I advised
her they needed to just move.

We needed to get them out
as soon as possible.

Amelia:
I didn't care about my lease.

I didn't care about the money.
I didn't care about nothing.

I have to protect my children.

Narrator: one of
the paranormal investigators

Volunteers to let them
stay with her

While they search
for a new home.

With their children safe
with their grandmother,

Amelia and calvin quickly pack
and move out of the apartment.

Is that everything
we need right now?

I think so. [ Sighs ]

[ Door slams ]
whoa!

Oh, my god!
Calvin!

Doors shutting, slamming,
windows opening and closing.

It freaked me out real bad.

[ Doors slamming ]
oh! Whoa!

The house
is trying to trap us!

Come on, get out!
Go now! Run!

Run! Oh!
Come on! Run!

I felt like I was a prisoner
that had just broke free.

Like, I was chasing
and running for freedom,

And I was gonna grab it and go.

Come on, let's go.
Come on.

You get in the car.
Come on, amelia.

Calvin: if we wouldn't
have got out at that time,

Something else probably
would have happened

And it probably
would have been worse.

I was beyond done.

Drive! Go! Go!

Narrator: the brahdys later
discover that their landlord

Knew their apartment
had a tragic past.

Amelia: he laughed

And said that by law, he don't
have to tell me anything

Unless we are actually
buying the home.

Narrator:
a little over a month later,

The brahdys move into a new home
in another town.

To this day,
they have never returned

To the hampton apartment.

Amelia:
we don't go near that house.

We don't go near the property.

We don't go nowhere near
that area.

Calvin:
life's pretty good, actually.

We're not stressful.

We're not worrying
about anything.

I still look over my shoulder
every now and then

Just to make sure.

I just try and take it
day by day.

Amelia: in some weird way,

I think that house is what
kind of made us stronger.

It made our relationship
stronger.

It still lingers.

I don't think I'll ever put
that whole experience behind me.

I still don't sleep in the dark.

I don't walk in the dark.

I don't know
if I ever will again.