Devil in the Delta by Rich Newman Read Free Book Online Page A

investigators.
    Author Jerome Clark talks about such “phantom attackers” in his book, Unexplained! . He mentions several cases (including a well-documented affair in Chico, California, in 1922) that involved rocks being thrown by invisible hands. Interestingly, local law enforcement would often be involved with these cases as well—and much like the Martin case, they would find no assailants in the area.
    According to Clark, this type of activity is usually indicative of a poltergeist type of haunting, and is usually accompanied by other poltergeist symptoms, such as the presence of a young girl, objects moving on their own, and persistent rapping sounds. All of these conditions were present in the Martin home.
    The second thing that caught my attention in the case details was the idea of a ghost or spirit possessing the young man. The residents had stated that an entity named “John” was trying to possess Tim—not any demonic being. Though instances of this happening have been documented, they are usually benevolent affairs—incidents that are usually instigated on purpose by the living.
    During the great age of Spiritualism, mediums would often allow spirits to temporarily possess/inhabit them in order to converse with the dead (of course most of these so-called Spiritualists and psychics were complete frauds). It was, in fact, quite a popular pastime.
    Reports of an “evil” spirit trying to possess a living being, however, are extremely rare—though in cases where this has happened, it was always for a reason , which usually involves unfinished business on Earth, wanting to communicate with a family member, or a refusal to simply move on to the afterlife. Spirits of humans rarely possess a living being with the intent of killing the host (unlike possession by a nonhuman, or demon).
    The final type of paranormal activity that interested me in the Martin home—and also set off a few internal alarms—was the laundry list of activity in the trailer that is usually associated with demonic infestation (meaning the presence of a demon or nonhuman entity in a home). Things like the scent of feces, persistent scratching sounds, and rumbles in the walls usually make the short list of such activity—not to mention the possessions!
    Though I cannot personally vouch for the existence of demons, I do know that some spirits can be downright nasty and do their best to scare the inhabitants of a home (mostly because they are, presumably, defending their territory from encroachment). In many instances, these harmful spirits are often labeled as “demonic” or the equivalent, depending on the religious views of the afflicted. As for the actual existence of demons … well, let’s just say the jury is still out as far as I’m concerned, though I do not discount the possibility of such things.
    After my discussion with Terri, it was clear that I was about to set foot into a very strange case—a case with several distinct possibilities. Was the Martin family suffering from a particularly intense haunting, an ongoing poltergeist, or were they plagued with demonic infestation? I had no idea, but I intended to find out. Research was sorely needed …
    Initial Thoughts
    After listening to Terri’s story, I knew that three things would have to be investigated immediately. First, I asked Terri to attempt to call the local sheriff’s office to confirm the incident when the Martins witnessed rocks hitting the house/vehicles.
    Second, I wanted the trailer checked for possible gas leaks. Natural gas can often be mistaken for the smell of rotten eggs and I wanted to rule out the possibility of a mundane explanation for that scent.
    Lastly, I wanted a competent plumber to look at the water pipes. When pipes go bad, they can often rattle in the wall. I wanted to be sure that this was not responsible for the rumbles that the family was hearing.
    After wrapping up my