Devil of a Ghost Tour 2

Present

Lynn and Lee Hoyt parked their car as the sun shot its last fading rays across Cleveland Square in front of the El Paso Downtown Library. Lynn pulled Lee along at a brisk pace even though she was the one who almost always made them late.

Two men, dressed in black, approached them as they drew near and introduced themselves as the tour guides, Hector and Marcos. Both wore t-shirts with the El Paso Ghost Tours logo. Hector motioned for them to join the other couples of various ages and persuasions standing around a park bench.

“Tell me again why we're here?” Lee asked.

“I went on one of these ghost tours in Charleston. They tell you the history of the city and point out the famous buildings, plus elaborate on any local, popular ghost stories,” Lynn answered.

“Great. You, me and a history lesson. You know how much I hate this stuff. Wait? When were you in Charleston?”

“Believe it or not, I did a lot of things before we were married.”

“That's not my fault.”

Lynn playfully slapped his arm, “It was a lot of fun and we can always start season four of Pawn Stars tomorrow night.”

“So, that means there are no real ghosts on this tour? What a rip-off.”

Lynn nudged him with her elbow as they approached their first stop – the library itself. She listened as Hector told numerous ghost stories about the library, which opened in 1904 and was built on top of an old military cemetery. Hector and his investigators even experienced a book falling off a shelf for no apparent reason while trying to do an EVP session.

“For those of you that don't know,” Hector informed the tour group, “EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomena. Basically, you catch something on this digital recorder.” He held up a thin electrical device. “You may not hear something during the investigation, but when you go back and review the recording, you hear voices or unexplained sounds.” Lynn caught Lee’s skeptical glance as she wrapped her arm around his waist.

Hector continued, holding up a gray device with a rainbow of colors at the top, “Another device we use is called a K2 Meter. We've passed a couple out to the group. Ghost hunters believe these devices can measure the magnetic field given off by ghosts. Sometimes you can use the lights to ask 'yes' or 'no' questions.”

Lee's warm breath close to her ear tickled as he whispered, “You so owe me for this.” She snuggled into his side as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head.

She smiled and whispered back, “I know, I know.”

They passed by the Plaza Hotel, which towered over downtown El Paso like a dark, silent sentinel. Lynn and Lee learned the new owner promised to restore the building, but was currently behind bars for tax evasion. The restored Plaza Theater, a bright spot downtown, hosted the world’s largest Classic Film Festival and also claimed that long-since deceased patrons still wandered the aisles.

As they approached the seven story Caples Building where Pancho Villa plotted against the U.S., Lynn imagined, in the prevailing darkness, that the building had been drawn from negative space. She turned to Lee. Her jaw dropped in disbelief. He was snapping pictures. “Honey, what are you doing?”

“I'm taking pictures.”

“Of an empty building?”

“I got a feeling.”

She chuckled as they continued on holding hands. “See, this stuff is interesting.”

“I didn't say that.”

Lynn regarded the O.T. Bassett Towers as the most fascinating building on the tour. The art deco style architecture on all four sides was quite rare for its time. Small terra-cotta plaques decorated the outside, along with blocks covered in swirls and flowers. The center piece above the front door resembled the builder Henry C. Trost himself. The dull reflection in the windows signified yet another vacant historic building.

Lynn turned to Lee, “It’s so gorgeous! I would rent an apartment here in a heartbeat.”

“Oh, no, we wouldn’t.” Lee said, squeezing her hand.

Hector overheard her and agreed, “We’re trying to bring awareness to the downtown area through these tours and get people interested in preserving the rich history and, of course, hunt ghosts. We’ve tried to bring the ghost tour inside, but some of the owners want to charge us $5000 to go in.” The group laughed in sympathy as he added, “Ghosts don’t pay that well.” He went on to talk about the gunfights, prostitutes, gamblers, and violence of Old El Paso, the original Sin City.

“Does it feel cold to you?” Lee asked.

“No. The wind isn't even that bad. You're not getting sick are you?” Lynn ran her hand up his back to the nape of his neck. “You don't feel warm.”

“I'm fine. What's that saying? Someone must have just walked over my grave.”

“Don't say things like that,” Lynn said as he bent down to kiss her forehead.

“I'm just joking.” They slowed to a stop in front of a plain white building.

“We end our tour at the Franciscan Hotel,” Hector said. “One of the most haunted places downtown. Inside the basement we'll investigate an evil spirit or entity. I want to warn you now, it could get scary.” He nodded at a husky fellow, “It’s usually the big, tough-looking guys that get scared and need to be escorted out.” Nervous laughter broke out among the group. “OK, let’s head in.”