Time rolled on and so did the rumors. The tales became more outrageous with each passing century. Viking raiding parties were said to run through nearby Tullie Gorge, along the banks of the Tullie Burn, and then disappear through the house’s front wall. Witnesses claimed these spectral Norsemen reappeared as they burst out of the rear wall, only to vanish in the garden. Arbuckle’s dog, an old hound he called Jericho, was said to guard the door, the ghostly beast’s eyes glowing red and his snarls scary enough to turn aside any would-betrespasser.
But not all Gannet House ghosts were frightening. The light melody of a harp was heard now and again, the music accompanied by the sweet voice of an invisiblewoman.
There were also sightings of the artist himself. Most often, he was glimpsed at his workroom windows as he stared out at the cold, iron-gray waves of the North Sea. Other claims had him storming up and down the house’s many stairs,although…
As no one neared the house, how could anyoneknow?
Arbuckle Priddy might have beenamused.
Shunned and ruined in life, he gained notoriety as aghost.
But then came an unexpected revelation a hundred years after his passing and the artist wasredeemed…
It happened during the renovations to his malefactor’s Aberdeen home. Restoration workers spotted a tiny painted buckle hidden in the design of one of the thistles that graced a painted ceiling beam in the home’s greathall.
The distinctive design was, of course, Arbuckle Priddy’ssignature.
And so, in the blink of an eye, the world loved himagain.
What a shame, he was thengone.
More tragic still, folk continued to fear his beloved, oh-so-hauntedhome.
Leastways that was so until the grand year of 1811 when a bold adventurer who feared nothing took it upon himself to purchase Gannet House for the impossible-to-turn-down asking price of a mere tenpounds.
This man was Greyson Merrick and he wanted the house not just for its picturesque location and spacious, if in need of repair rooms, but for the irony of itshistory.
You see, the adventurer had seen some rough times himself. And as no stranger to ill luck, he believed the house deserved a second chance. His late father was also an artist, and – like Arbuckle – had left this world penniless andunhappy.
Now some might say Fate led Merrick to Gannet House. But the truth is, his own sound mind, good heart, and two feet took him there. As a former sea captain, Greyson Merrick has seen much, and he doesn’t fear ghosts. Above all, he’s learned that hard work and looking ahead can right almost any wrong. He also has a heart for lost causes and enjoys taking the path lesstrodden.
In other words, he is determined to make his owndestiny.
And he does, at GannetHouse.
How fitting that, once settled there, a lady of similar temperament will join him, the two of them giving the house – and themselves – the happiest everafter.
