Episode 1411

Aired: Monday November 22, 1971

At the Blue Whale, Gladstone is sitting and drinking when Carl comes in. Carl tells him that he "heard you found a body. Is it the killer we're after?" Gladstone says no, and that the "circumstances around this death are getting stranger and stranger." Carl asks why, and Gladstone says "We found the body of an old man, I'd say at least in his late seventies, who appeared to die of natural causes. But after I investigated, it turns out the man we found ought to be in his mid twenties.... and certainly alive." Carl wonders what he means.

After the titles, Judith comes to the front door of the old house. She opens it with a smile and gives a big hug to Stanford Miller (David Hurst), her husband who has returned from his trip to Boston with Roderick Stokes (Thayer David) who stops in to say hello. Judith asks Stanford how the trip went, and he answers "Fairly well. I had a nice chat with my publisher, and Roderick collected more books on the occult from some bookstores in Salem." Judith asks Roderick why he's interested in "such nonsense," and Roderick answers that "It's not all nonsense, dear Judith. I've seen some odd things in my time, and it was studying the history of your family my dear wife told me about that sparked my interest." Judith answers that "only your wife believed her mother Catherine's stories of ghosts and cursed rooms." Stanford answers "They've been enough to inspire my work, Judith, we shouldn't complain." Stokes says he wants to get back to his "own room" at Collinwood, and Judith takes him aside for a moment. "I think I should tell you before you get there, Roderick, you should talk to your daughter." Stokes asks why, and Judith answers "Because I think she's planning on getting married. And I also think it might be a grave mistake on her part." Stokes wonders about this. Back at the Blue Whale, Carl asks Gladstone to explain further, and Gladstone goes over the evidence he found that proved the old man's corpse was actually the missing young sailor Eddie Daniels. Carl asks Gladstone if he thinks it has anything to do with "that maniac" and Gladstone says "How can someone who has been slashing people make them age prematurely? It makes no sense... yet I know that man was Eddie Daniels, and yet...." Carl thinks a moment and says "Maybe you should come with me back to Collinwood." Gladstone asks why, and Carl tells him that his cousin Roderick Stokes has returned from Boston, and "he's somewhat the family expert on strange things like this. He's got lots of weird books about the occult. Maybe he can help." Gladstone says he's willing to listen to anyone.

At Collinwood, Valery greets her father with a hug, but he takes her into the drawing room and tells her of Judith's words of warning. Valery insists that Trask really cares for her, and Stokes answers that "you must be very very careful with people when you hold the responsibility of the wealth of this estate in your hands. Some people cannot be trusted." Valery answers that she doesn't "hold any of the money" and "may not even want it" if it means cutting herself off from people and "becoming a prisoner of the Collins family name." Stokes tells her that he understands how she feels, since he too felt the pressure when marrying into the family "those many years ago." Valery says that "Since momma's death, things weren't always the same around here. Did you go to New York as well as Boston?" Stokes shakes his head, and says that he's not even sure that Timothy is still in New York. "If I do get control over this estate father," Valery says, "I will mend our part of the family and make my brother Timothy welcome here again." Stokes tells her that her brother vowed to "never return" to Collinwood. Valery says that "perhaps he'll come back when he finds out I'm married." Stokes asks again if she's sure about Trasks intentions, and Valery insists that Trask has a "thriving practice" and that he's no fortune hunter. Stokes kisses her hand and says that no matter what she does, she'll have his blessing. She leaves the room happy, but he pours himself a drink and looks worried.

Carl and Gladstone arrive and find Stokes drinking in the drawing room. Carl asks him how his trip went, and Stokes answers it was fine, though he's come home to "some worrisome developments." Gladstone asks if its anything that should concern him, and Stokes answers that its only family problems. Gladstone asks Stokes about his interest in the occult. Stokes asks him why he wants to know, and Carl says that Gladstone has a very strange case he's working on. Gladstone starts to tell Stokes the details as we dissolve to Judith and Stanford as Stanford is unpacking his bags. Judith asks him if he could convince Stokes to pressure Valery out of her betrothal to Trask. Stanford answers that he's not sure its his place to do that, even though he and Stokes "are the best of friends." Judith says that Trask's intentions cannot be honorable, and Stanford asks her how she knows that for sure. Judith answers that she suspects Alice would have a better answer. Stanford asks why, and Judith says she's not sure, but she suspects that Alice and Trask are plotting something, only she can't figure out why Alice would allow Trask to marry Valery as part of a plot. Stanford takes Judith into his arms and says "You sound like one of my novels. And you've written yourself into a corner. Alice is far too jealous to let Trask have Valery." Judith says "Perhaps, though money makes people do things they ordinarily wouldn't do."

Back at Collinwood, Stokes is intrigued by Gladstone's story of the prematurely aged corpse. "There may be a host of supernatural causes here, but you have no other evidence to work with. Nothing was found near the body, no charms, no evidence of spells of any sort...." Stokes sighs and adds "We have very little to go on." Carl says there must be some way, and maybe Stokes should examine the body. Stokes answers "No, not the body. We shall try to examine the soul. We should conduct a seance and attempt to contact the spirit of Eddie Daniels. Perhaps he can tell us what happened to him in his last moments upon this Earth." Gladstone asks how you hold a seance (because he's obviously never seen an episode of Dark Shadows), and Stokes tells he and Carl to sit around a table he pulls over. Stokes gets some candles and darkens the room. Carl tells Gladstone not to break the circle by letting go of his or Stokes' hands, and Stokes tells him "That's right. Now we all have to concentrate on the spirit of Eddie Daniels....Eddie Daniels....we are calling you, we need to contact you. We must know what happened to you in your final moments.... Eddie Daniels....come to us now! I command you to appear!" The thunder crashes outside, and the windows blow open. The candles blow out. Over the sound of the howling wind, Stokes yells "Eddie Daniels! Eddie Daniels! Are you here? Show yourself to us! Show yourself to us!" Gladstone is scared and yells "What's happening?" Stokes shouts at him not to break the circle as the corner of the room lights up and we see the sight of a pale scraggly old man who looks just like the corpse Gladstone discovered....