The Final Tour of Annabelle

Audiences filled darkened halls across the country to see one of the world’s most infamous haunted objects, the Annabelle doll. The artifact, locked behind glass and secured by prayer and ritual, was part of a traveling exhibit featuring haunted relics from the archives of the late Ed and Lorraine Warren. But in late August, the journey turned tragic when a longtime paranormal investigator on the tour died unexpectedly in his sleep.

Organizers said the investigator, a veteran of more than twenty years in the field, had reported strange sensations during the previous night’s event. He spoke of hearing faint knocking from the doll’s case long after the crowd had gone, and he felt what he called “a weight on his chest” as he locked up the exhibit room. When colleagues found him the next morning, the hotel room was undisturbed. His death was ruled natural, but those close to him believe the energy surrounding Annabelle had grown restless during the tour’s constant movement.

Fans of the Warren legacy point out that Annabelle has never traveled well. Curators in the past warned that removal from the museum’s protection could provoke the entity bound to the doll. Whether coincidence or consequence, the sudden stillness that followed the investigator’s passing silenced the tour. The case was sealed, and Annabelle was returned to her original containment, her glass surface reflecting nothing but the dim light of a single candle kept burning through the night.