It's been a couple of days, maybe two to three weeks since the last disturbance. Everything seems back to normal, or abnormal, considering that since we moved in our lives hadn't been normal. The house was quiet and peaceful, no sightings, no feelings of being watched, no attacks, not even nightmares. The atmosphere around the house was unusually calm, nobody anticipated that is was the calm before the storm.
One day, it was a Saturday. Mom had gotten a job at the local law firm the week before, she and dad were invited to have dinner with her bosses in town. Leaving me and Bella at home with the new babysitter our neighbors recommended.
"Alright children behave yourselves okay! Agartha will be here to keep you company until we get back." Mom exclaimed as she and dad were about to leave for the restaurant.
"We'll be back by 10pm" Dad said.
"Okay, have a nice night" I replied.
"Bye" Bella waved.
They got into dad's car and started to pull out from the driveway before it stopped again.
"Oh, before I forget again, I have ordered dinner for you guys, there is cash in the key bowl Agartha." She said, and then they drove off.
We set camp in the living room watching cartoons. Agartha asked for the bathroom and I directed her to the now turned guest bathroom in the servant's quarter. Moments later, she came back asking if anyone of us came after her when she was in the bathroom, and we said NO, just then the doorbell rang and Agartha opened it and reveal a pizza delivery boy with our order in hand. She paid him from the cash mom left in the key bowl.
After dinner we cleared our plates from the living room to the kitchen, then came back to the living room and resumed watching cartoons.
I didn't know for how long I slept, or when I even fell asleep, I must have been sleeping for a while, but I was awoken by a loud scream. I jolted upright looking around. Bella had been asleep too but was awoken by the scream as well. In our state of drowsiness, Agartha came running into the living room like a bat from hell. She was more disorientated than us, saying that 'she's not spending another second in this house'.
She packed her things in a hurry and walked quickly to the door.
"Are you leaving us alone?" Bella asked seeing that she's going to bolt on us.
"I can't stay any second in this house" she repeated still going to the door.
"But you can't leave us all alone" I said, my voice trembling knowing exactly what scared her.
Just as she was opening the front door dad's car came to a halt.
"Thank goodness you are all back" she said walking away. "I can't stay another second in this house" she added.
Dad walked towards us on the porch, while mom went after Agartha.
"What did you do now Junior" He asked pissed off.
"Me?" I asked putting my palm on my chest.
"I did nothing" I added.
"What do you mean you did nothing? She just decided to leave mid babysitting even before we came back?"
"I don't know what happened, I was sleeping when she screamed and I woke up." I yelled back equally angry. Mom came back to the house letting the terrified sitter to go, she was clearly disturbed by something.
"You know what?! Go to your room now!" He said.
"This isn't fair! I hate you, I hate this family, I hate this house" I said, running to my room leaving them all standing on the porch, as mom tried calling me but I ignored her.
I went upstairs and started crying, hating how my life ended up being so bitter. I have never really had the best relationship with my dad, never, but that was the first time I had ever told him I hated him.
Sometime after, I heard murmurs from mom and dad's bedroom so I stood up from bed and went to the door. I pulled the door open a little and the door creaked, but not loud enough to alert anybody.
The door to their room was slightly ajar, making it possible to hear them clearly. The light from their room illuminated part of the hall way but the door casted a shadow in my room's direction.
"We agreed to be open minded!" I heard mom's voice said.
"I can't do this Dorothy! This is insane." Came dad's reply
"Do you know why Agartha left? Do you know what happened?" Mom asked.
"She told me since we left them home she's been seeing shadows stalking her. When she went to use the guest toilet she saw a shadow of a person pass by the door, when she and the kids were in the living room, and the kids fell asleep she saw a shadow pass by the dining table side to the kitchen. When she asked who was there, nobody answered, and she went to the kitchen to check it out, which is where she saw the apples I picked from the orchard this morning, she picked one and bite into it only to see blood oozing out from where she bit the apple" Mom narrated.
"Oh c'mon! that can't be possible. She must have imagined all of it" Dad argued.
'Ever so cynical.' I thought
"You are seriously saying she made all of that up?" mom asked, although I couldn't see her, from her tone one would conclude she was in a state of disbelieve.
"Maybe she did make it all up or maybe she just lied to us, I don't know but what I do know is that nothing like that is possible! Not in the real world that is" He replied.
"You know what?! I can't argue with you any longer, believe what you want to believe, but if anything happens to our children know that it's on you" I heard her say before it was followed by footsteps and I quickly but quietly closed my door just as theirs was shut close.
I imagined dad saying 'Nothing's going to happen to them' and I really want to believe that but the feeling in the pit of my stomach was telling me otherwise.
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The next day, we were having breakfast when a call came through the landline phone in the living room. Dad was the one who answered the call, we heard him calling 'hello' repeatedly. After a few minutes he rejoined us at the table and mom looked at him questioningly.
"The call was kind of off, it was all static." He said.
"That's weird?" mom said.
"I suppose it was." He replied resuming his breakfast.
Minutes later, not too long after breakfast, another call came in and dad was still present to answer it.
"Hello?" he greeted.
"Hello?? Who is this?" he called out to whoever was calling but still no answer.
He hanged up the call, before he left the telephone table another call came through and he picked the phone one more time.
"Hello???", still silence and only static.
"who's on the line please?" he asked and this time the static subdued for a while.
At first it was only the sound of breathing that could be heard then, "ITS TIME, HE'S COMING". A rough guttural voice echoed through the receiver.
"Time for what? Who is coming? Who is this?" he asked, in rapid succession but the call was cut off.
He removed the phone from his ear and stared at it as if he could see who called it.
" Is this some sort of joke?" he asked no one in particular.
He walked to the couch and sat then relayed the conversation to mom. I could see how her demeanor changed slightly, mom is a master of masking her feelings and reactions, but at that split second I saw her reaction.
"What does that mean?" She asked.
"I don't know! Maybe whoever it is got a wrong number and it could also be a sick joke" I said shrugging casually.
"What if it isn't" she counter argued.
"NO! don't start with that" He replied sensing where the conversation was heading.
Mom was about to argue back when a phone rang, but this time it was dad's mobile phone and not the landline. He checked the caller id but there was no name, only the phone number, he picked the call nevertheless.
"Hello?"
"Oh Matt hey!" he said, when he recognized the voice on the other end. He stood up and walked outside to the porch.
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