"You sound as if you're gonna find one for us," Gillian responded to Milla's question.
"Oh, but you also know priests and pastors. I was just wondering why you need one on a Saturday afternoon. That's why I'm asking if it's for a wedding?" Milla responded with her brows raised curiously.
"We want to record a short film in the basement and we might need a priest or just some sacred music to make it look and sound real," Gillian responded.
"Oh and we will also need a lot of privacy, of course. Nobody should disturb us for about an hour," she added.
"Yes, so some Christian music on the radio will do just as well," Mishka agreed quickly following Gillian's cue.
"Then I can go and fetch my radio from the kitchen and you can use it. I won't be using it now because I'm going for a walk," Milla suggested.
"That's a good idea," Mishka agreed with an eager smile on her lips.
Milla then walked off in the direction of the kitchen.
"Good, that was fast thinking. So, she will know that we shouldn't be disturbed by anyone either," Mishka remarked.
"Let's get the brandy," Gillian responded in a hasty tone.
"Okay then, Church music and brandy. Quite a combination," Mishka remarked, shaking her head.
"Yes well, we can't help it. I for one am really nervous about what we might see on that recording," Gillian remarked as she began to move on along the hallway.
"Uhm, why don't you wait for Milla and the radio and I will go get some brandy, then she doesn't have to search for us both?" Mishka suggested.
"Good idea," Gillian agreed.
Down in the basement, Mishka climbed onto a ladder to remove the small camera from a shelf near the ceiling.
"Now we have to take out the memory stick and watch the footage on my phone," Mishka remarked.
"Okay, she is humming and looking a bit strange isn't she?" Mishka remarked after watching Myrtle on the cell phone screen.
"What can the reason be for humming and chanting when one is brewing herbs?" Gillian asked. "There's no idol around that we could say that she's worshiping something?" she continued with a concerned frown on her brow.
"I don't know what that language is for one, unless she read it off something and has memorised it?" Mishka asked.
"Well, if it's part of an eastern healing ritual, then maybe she has a book about it for sure," Gillian remarked.
"Yes, that's true. Maybe I should start showing an interest in her healing activities?" Mishka suggested, scratching her head contemplatively.
"You very well could and it might be an interesting adventure for you. Maybe the two of you could even bond," Gillian responded with her brows raised objectively.
"But there can also be the possibility that she's busy with something sinister," she added.
"Okay, let's try this to test her. I can ask her to teach me some of her herbal cure recipes and suggest spending some time down here with her. Then, if she blatantly refuses, it could be a sign that she doesn't want me to know what she's really doing down here," Mishka responded.
"That's a good idea. Maybe it's all just her way of allowing herself to participate in all aspects of healing. It has a spiritual part to it as well at the end of the day," Gillian remarked.
"Yes, maybe it's all innocent. It can be a big problem if we suggested something seriously wrong when she's just doing something reasonable," Mishka agreed.
"Alright then. Do that and test her. It's just that we should be careful when someone acts this secretively. Usually people who experiment like to have a witness or a trainee there. She hasn't even asked Milla to assist her when she's here. That means that she's busy with something really confidential," Gillian remarked with a deeply thoughtful look in her eyes.
"She does look a bit scary in this video, or is it just the lack of good lighting and the slightly hoarse quality to her voice?" Mishka asked.
"It could be that, but I saw her in the flesh the other night and it was just as sinister to watch and listen to," Gillian commented.
"And that show of hers on TV is unnerving," Mishka commented with her eyes narrowed.
"Wait a minute. Is that a cat in the video?" Gillian asked suddenly.
"Yes, I believe it is," Mishka agreed when she watched the footage herself.
"Whose cat is it? Your grandma doesn't seem to be disturbed by it," Gillian remarked with her eyebrows raised high.
"I know that we don't have a cat in our home and grandma doesn't keep pets. So, why would she be calm about a stray cat in the basement?" Mishka asked, looking at Gillian with a concerned frown between her brows. She shook her head in disbelief.
"Don't people involve cats in their witch spells? Is it even real?" Gillian asked with a nervous look in her eyes. She seemed to be ready to stop watching the rest of the video.
"Let me check out this cat properly and I can begin to keep an eye out for it around the house," Mishka murmured in a serious tone of voice.
"We can also ask Milla if she knows about a stray cat. Maybe you're the only one who hasn't noticed it yet because you're not home very often," Gillian remarked with her own eyes now narrowed in focus.
"That can be true, yes. But for Grandma to suddenly be tolerant about cats? That's strange," Mishka responded as she continued to watch the recording.
"Maybe people change in old age," Gillian commented as she looked up at the ceiling pensively.
"Then I should find out a little bit more about old people," Mishka responded.
"I bet Milla can tell us a lot about your grandma because she does spend almost the entire day here at your home," Gillian remarked.
"Then I should ask her a few questions if I want to know more about this house," Mishka responded.
"Where's the cat now?" Gillian asked as she tried to focus on the video recording again.
"I don't see it anywhere now," Mishka responded.
"They tend to appear and disappear as if they're made up of thin air," Gillian commented.
"Are we perhaps being superstitious about cats now? Do you think it's a spirit?" Mishka asked with a frown.
"I don't know. Anyway, we can't blame cats for evil, but we can blame the people who use them for bad purposes," Gillian responded.
"Well, I think I've watched enough of that now. I don't want to have nightmares tonight because of too much doubt and speculation," she remarked as she began to pace around in the nursery.
"Gillian, what if that's not even a real cat?" Mishka asked, looking away from the phone screen.
"What do you mean? It looks like a real cat to me," Gillian replied, frowning.
"I mean, what if it's a human in cat form, since we're busy investigating something which could be as sinister as witchcraft?" Mishka asked.
"Oh, now you're scaring me for real," Gillian responded with her eyes stretched wide. She remained rooted to the spot, unwilling to look at the footage on the phone any further.