Charlotte's relatives were embarrassed at her mental condition and preferred not to have her among them. They insisted that David take her back to Low Moor. After a time, they set out of the long journey back to their Virginia home.

David carefully planned their arrival back to Low Morr to be late in the night so that none of the neighbors would see them return. Immediately on entering their house, David took Charlotte to the attic room and locked her in for her own safety. After a time, David felt this manner in treating his wife was unkind, so he unlocked the attic door so she would be free to go about the house as she pleased. Although Charlotte had been frantic during the first few days of her imprisonment and cried out for help, she, for some time, refused to accept her new freedom and remained in the attic room. In a few days, however, she came out and stealthily ventured into some other rooms but soon returned to the attic where she remained most of the time. Meanwhile, David stayed close to the house and did the best he could in taking care of Charlotte. His appearances outside the house soon became so infrequent the neighbors rarely saw him and they had begun to think he had moved away.

One day while David was in Covington to purchase supplies, the children came to pick blackberries on the hillside back of his house. From her attic window, Charlotte watched the children down below. When Becky Watson wandered away from the others in search of flowers, Charlotte saw an opportunity to fill the aching void which she had felt since losing her baby. Forgetting her fear of leaving the attic room, she quietly went down the stairs and out the back door. Thence she slowly crept down the hillside toward Becky, hiding behind the briers and bushes as she went. At that time, Becky was happily picking flowers and had no idea of imminent danger. When Charlotte reached a place only a few feet from Becky, she rushed out and grabbed hold of her; then placing her hand over the child's mouth so that her screams could not be heard by the other children, she carried her up the hill to the house and took her inside.

Shortly after Becky was found and taken away from the mentally deranged woman, David arrived back home. His return from Covington had been delayed because of high waters from the heavy rain. On learning what his wife had done, he was so shocked and embarrassed, he immediately took her away with him and neither of them, in person, ever came back to Low Moor.

Over the years that followed, some people reported from time to time, that strange and, sometimes, frightening noises were heard at the Anderson place. Since no one lived there, it was surmised that a wild animal, probably a catamount, had taken up abode there. Others who heard the noise thought it sounded more like that of a woman crying. One young couple while passing the Anderson house late one afternoon reported they saw Charlotte standing on the front porch and looking directly at them. When they stopped to see if she might speak to them, she turned and walked through the front door without opening it and disappeared from view. Thenceforth, the house was claimed to be haunted by a phantom in the image of Charlotte.