A fright for sore eyes

The Abita Springs Boo & Breakfast had carved out quite a niche, especially as the Louisiana heat abated and the calendar moved closer to Halloween. Oh, the antebellum-style home featured all the regular B&B amenities – comfortable accommodations, hot meals and friendly hosts – but a house this close to New Orleans required something extra to keep the crowds coming.

So, the owners – Martha and Mitch Guedry – had decided to present lodgers with a fun haunted house experience. The stay included a personalized tour of the grand old abode, and each room had its own horror story to tell.

You could pick the third floor bedroom where young newlyweds met a grisly end at the hands of a voodoo priest, or the second floor guest room, the scene of an unassuming door-to-door salesman who peddled shiny silverware and used those wares to kill his customers.

And diners were told to beware the breakfast menu; a long-suffering servant once decided to serve hot grits garnished with a heaping helping of rat poison to punish the owners for their cruelty.

It was all in good, creepy fun, of course; the tales of terror were simply made up and changed from year to year. Adding to the experience was the fact that the Guedrys had installed sound and visual effects that created the spooky atmosphere, and they made sure customers knew it was all for show. The booking confirmation clearly stated that “any ghosts or goblins are courtesy of the Phantom Inc. Halloween Company of Akron, Ohio, and strictly for the entertainment of our guests.”

For this season, an animatronic zombie had been placed in a closet in the foyer, reaching through the cracked door and begging for brains in a haunting, guttural voice.

Tammy and Lex Danner were quite familiar with the Abita Springs Boo & Breakfast, and had made it part of their anniversary celebration for the past several years. In fact, they had a rolling reservation each Oct. 1, and they’d spend their night and morning there trying to anticipate jump scares while socializing with the Guedrys.

“Hey, you!” squealed Martha, racing to give Tammy and Lex a hug as the couple entered the house with suitcases in tow. “Welcome back to your home away from home.”

Mitch bounded toward the front door to greet his old friends and customers.

“You guys look great!” he said, flashing a huge smile. “You two never seem to change.”

“Ah, but the Boo & Breakfast always does,” piped in Lex. “Which is why we keep coming back. The way you and Martha keep the experience fresh never ceases to amaze us. Speaking of which … can we have the third floor bedroom? Seems like last time we had to deal with a maniacal voodoo priest.”

“Oh, not this year – the Bloodthirsty Baron has moved on,” said Martha, with a wink. “Follow us upstairs and Mitch will tell you what fresh new hell awaits.”

As the foursome moved toward the stairs the door to the closet popped open, revealing a rotted arm from a hungry zombie. Both Tammy and Lex sprang backward and then let out a hearty laugh.

“Very good, guys, very good,” Tammy said. “That’s a nice way to get the party started.”

As Tammy and Lex reached their bedroom, they were told to watch for floating demons. Seems a malevolent entity had recently occupied the third floor, and was itching to devour the souls of any and all who entered.

“OK, we’ll let you two get settled in,” Mitch said. “Dinner is 6 p.m. with cocktails to follow. If you have any new campfire stories we’d love to hear ‘em, although I think Martha has lined up some pretty tall and terrifying tales for the evening already. Anyway, great to have you back and we’ll see you in a bit!”

Tammy and Lex sat down on the edge of the bed, gave each other a knowing glance and smiled.

“I gotta say,” Tammy said, “even though the Guedrys were killed here 10 years ago, this place still has such positive energy. They’re such good caretakers … and good friends.”

Lex nodded in agreement.

“Do you think they even realize that they’re ghosts?” he asked.

“Nah,” Tammy said. “Not yet, anyway. And it’s certainly not our place to tell them. I mean, they haven’t even figured out that we’re ghosts, too.”