"You look beaten up." Anthony says as he opens the door to the Masons' residence, a beautiful luxurious lot with numerous plants neatly coiling themselves around the outdoor fences. The interior was just as grand with a blindingly neat demeanor that seemed to be maintained every day. "What happened?"
Adam steps out of the kitchen, his brows furrowing as if something had pissed him off. "Damn phones aren't working, they're basically asking us to pay for----" He abruptly ends his complaint upon seeing me arrive, his eyebrows shooting upward. "What the hell happened to you?"
"Almost got crushed by a car but hey, nothing a few swigs won't solve." I take out my phone and show it to them, its battered exterior in need of a few repairs. I open the photographs I took of my findings on the site. "Same symbols. I found a few hex bags hidden underneath the car seats as well."
The door opens and we all snap our heads to see who it was. A slender, middle aged woman entered with groceries in her hands, her green emerald eyes pierce through Adam as he scurries to help her carry them to the kitchen. She speaks, her smile warm and welcoming showing perfect white teeth. "Well hello boys, you must be the ones who Adam was talking about. Rheya Mason." She runs an arm over her forehead, fixing herself up before extending her arm out. "I hope you find the place to your liking. Mi casa, es su casa."
We take her hand in turns, introducing ourselves and thanking her for her hospitality. I see her eyes run over my messed up clothes and I could swear I saw her wince.
"Whatever happened to you dear? You look like you've been rolling on the ground." She exclaims, dusting the dirt off of my coat. "Go get yourself fixed, leave the coat so I can clean it with the rest." Rheya sees me hesitate and points towards our room, her eyes the same ones that pierced Adam into doing what she tells him to do. "Go."
I look at Anthony before doing what she says, tossing my coat to her and going to the shower. The warm stream hits my skin, a faint fog filling up the entire bathroom. 'I see you.' The words flash into my mind as I struggle to find the answers we need. My trail of thought gets cut off when I hear a knock on the bathroom door.
"Mike, hurry up in there. Supper's ready." Anthony calls out, finally calling me by my name.
"Be right there." I shout in reply, turning the water off as I proceed to step out.
The dining area was located beside the kitchen, a long wooden table placed in the middle. Anthony was reading the case files again, trying to see what he could figure out. He turns to look at me, a blank look on his face. "We already ate. Rheya says to help yourself with the food she prepared, which is absolutely amazing by the way." He nods towards the steak she left out in the open, its smoky scent causes my mouth to water.
I take a seat as I happily dig in; the meat seemed to melt in my mouth as the perfect combination of spice and sweetness hits my tongue. I look at Anthony, still buried in studying. "Hey, I forgot to tell you something." He doesn't look at me but I take it as a sign that he was listening. "I got a text from our little witchy."
"You what?" Anthony speaks, now fully attentive with what I have to say. "Well?"
I shake my head, knowing he was expecting some sort of lead. "Nothing helpful. Just sent an 'I see you' and that was it." I pause, taking a gulp out of the water placed in front of the plate. "The number disappeared as well, along with the message. It appears that they are aware that we're on to them."
Anthony nods, running his hand over his blonde hair. "Mason and I were actually tailed on our way here as well." I stop, listening to what he has to tell. "It wasn't a person, or more like it wasn't anything to be honest. Just this presence that seemed to be with us wherever we went, like somebody was watching."
"Think it could be a spell?" I ask, now getting up to clean my plate.
He shrugs, now keeping the folders as well. "It could be, but there really is no way to tell for sure. For all I know, it could be paranoia." Anthony gets up and prepares to leave the room when the lights suddenly flicker, a constant back and forth between darkness and light. "Listen." He whispers, pointing towards the ceiling.
Thuds could be heard above us, heavy footsteps that lurked on the second floor. I listen closely, never batting an eye as the lights suddenly go out. It rendered us blind as I hold on to the table for footing. "You there?" I whisper, keeping my voice as low as possible.
"Here." I get a reply from Anthony to my left; a series of footsteps slowly approaches the kitchen, soft thuds that were barely audible. I turn towards its direction, trying to make out anything in the lack of light when a hand suddenly nabs me from behind. I turn to see Anthony, crouching behind the table. He shakes his head, to which I nod back. 'Who was that?' I thought as the hair on my skin start to rise, a cold air envelopes our surroundings.
"Mike, here. Where are you?" The voice of Anthony speaks again as we hear the sound of a vase shattering in the room next to ours. A scream ensues, a deafening shriek that sounded like a dying animal. "MY EYES! GIVE ME BACK MY EYES!" It shouts, its voice horribly distorted. Crashing can be heard as I prepare to sneak my way out of the kitchen, careful not to bump into anything.
I move my way silently into the other room as my eyes start to grow accustomed to the darkness. 'There was someone with us.' A loud bang breaks my line of thought, causing me to fall over with a small thud. Silence follows, causing me to pause as the air becomes still. "FOUND YOU!"