GHOST STORY: The Black-Veil (Concordia Cemetery, El Paso Texas)

"This one really gives me the chills (one of my favorites though!) This happened in Concordia Cemetery some years ago. It was told to me by one of the security guards who previously worked there...

At the time, he worked at the cemetery during the day, where generally they take turns either walking, or driving, the grounds, offering assistance to visitors, and just basically keeping an eye on things.

So that particular afternoon, the guard was cruising in his car, and off in the distance he notices what appears to be someone in the middle of the cemetery, slowly walking down the road away from him.

He described the person as having the appearance of an elderly woman, small and frail in stature, and wearing a black dress, and a black lace veil covering her face ("Like she had been to church...", he said). She was walking in a hunched-over stance, with a very stiff and awkward gait.

So he's slowly driving, and keeping an eye on her. It's not unusual for people to come into the cemetery during the day, sometimes to visit their loved ones, or leave mementos on the graves.

But she was walking in a way that concerned him a little bit, with very ragged and jerky motions that didn't look quite right.

So he decided to head over and make sure that she's doing ok.

He approached along the road behind her. She didn't seem to notice. He slowly pulled up beside her, and she still does not react. She just keeps walking straight ahead in that lurching gait.

So he pulls to a stop slightly ahead of her, and calls out, "Ma'am? Are you alright?"

She comes to a stop right beside his car window, and just stands there, looking ahead, totally still.

He calls out to her again. This time, she slowly swivels her head and looks directly at him. He still can't see her face due to the veil.

At this point, she staggers right up to his car, and then leans right into his window. Before he can say anything, she jerks her veil up, and reveals her face.

It only lasted for an instant, but he described it as a vision from a nightmare- a leathery-bound skull with sunken, pitch-black eyes and rotted gray skin. The face of a corpse.

He recoiled in shock at the sight, and at that moment she straightened and continued walking ahead. He watched her walk past a tree, passing behind it.... and then she never reappeared on the other side.

By this time he was regained his senses and he jumps out of the car to follow her. But once he reaches the tree, and gets around to the other side... there is nothing.

He spent the next hour searching for any sign of the 'woman' but never found a trace of her. Mind you this happened in broad daylight.

He never did figure out who- or what- this figure was, but admitted that it scared the heck out of him. He told me that he had to think long and hard about coming back to work after this encounter!

This story really creeped me out because it made me realize that strange & unknown things can happen at any time in this cemetery, whether it be in the dark of night, or the bright light of day..." By: Heather Shade