Jason started punching the door.....banging it...twisting the knob. 'What made the woman do this?,' he shouted. 'I don't wanna spend the night here,' I said. Jason started to pace the room furiously. I grabbed the door knob. I twisted it..but it was no use. No! The door didn't budge. 'That's no use,' said Jason. It was chilly and dark. My whole body trembled. Panic tightened my throat. I stumbled back from the door. 'Let me get hold of that woman,' he said gritting his teeth. 'I'm gonna kill her.' I had never seen him so angry. His face revealed anger or disgust-I couldn't tell. A thought came to my mind. The window! I examined it. It was open a chink. I pointed the window to Jason. Snow streaked the window panes and clumped on the narrow sill. I stared at the tiny opening at the bottom. I sensed Jason standing beside me. I sucked in a deep breath-- and hurtled to the window. I grabbed the snowy wooden frame. Uttering a loud groan, I pushed. Pushed up..with all my strength. To my surprise, the window slid up easily. I pushed it all the way up.Then i grabbed the sill with both hands and hoisted myself up and tumbled headfirst outside. I landed hard on my hands and knees on the white snow. With a gasp, I scrambled to my feet and helped Jason get out. 'Are you okay?,' he asked. 'Yeah,' I replied. I grabbed the window and pulled it shut. After few miles, I gave Jason a quick kiss and we parted ways. The moonlight made the snow sparkle, almost as bright as during the days. I broke into a run as i was already late. My mobile still had no network. I tossed back my hair and brushed a snowflake from my forehead. I kept on sliding and slipping. Somehow, I reached home. The curtains were drawn. 10:00 p.m. Nick opened the door and i saw mother standing beside him with a scowl. 'Mom, I'm sorry,' i said taking off my boots. 'Come and have dinner,' she said meekly. I was famished. I picked up the roasted bird, bite into it and my mouth flooded with orange sauce. Delicious. I finished it off and went to bed. I turned on the heater and lay on my bed....under the covers. My mind was occupied with questions---questions that had no answers. Dr.oh! What was his name? Dr.D-DARSON. No! Dr. Dickson. No, Too big. Dr.Dick! Yes, Dr.Dick. He can be a great help. Did the Curtis kill the Brinton family or they really committed suicide? No, that seems strange. The Curtis must have killed them as well as the couple. But why? Why the hell are they haunting this house? I've only two days...forty eight hours. My life was going so smooth unless the Curtis ruined it. They are the villain of my story. I have to save my family before we are extinct like the Brinton's. My throat felt dry. I was thirsty. It was almost midnight. I put on my slippers and headed to the kitchen. BOO-HOO! BOO! I jumped. BOO-HOO-BOO-HOO! Someone was crying. I heard the cries so close to me. 'Who's that?' BOO-Boo-HOO! I put on the lights. I looked to my left. Sitting in the corner--with his head bent-was Nick! 'Nick,' i called out. He didn't look up. I got closer to him. BOO-HOO 'Nick, what's the matter?' No response. 'Nick, you are scaring me,' I said touching his hand. He looked up. I gasped and stumbled back. I saw his face reflect ghostly white color...no eye sockets! My eyes bulged in horror. 'Kat,Kat,' he called me. 'Nick, don't scare me. Enough of nonsense,' i said, moving back. 'Kat, the Curtis did this to me. They turned me into a ghost.' 'Aaagh!,' i uttered a cry. 'Kat, don't be scared. I won't harm you,' he said getting closer to me. 'Stay away from me,' i said.' This ain't true.' My eyes were filled with tears. Nick started moving towards me faster...and faster. 'Nick, go away!' He touched my face and i let out a scream. His hands touched my rosary and he uttered a cry and all that was left of him turned into ash! 'No,' i cried.'I killed my brother.' Noooo! Mother came running downstairs. 'Nooo!No!,' i cried. 'Kat, what happened?,' she asked placing a hand on my shoulder. 'Mom...Nick...Nick---,' I started. I gasped when i saw Nick standing behind grandma. 'NICK!,' I called out. The ash was gone. 'Nick, you are alive!,' i exclaimed. 'Sis, what are you saying?,'he asked . I rubbed my eyes to check if this was the reality and embraced Nick. He was taken by surprise. 'He is alright. He is not a ghost!.' I noticed the worried look on my mother's face. 'Mom, it was just a prank!,' I lied. The alarm went off at 8:00 a.m. The sky was almost as dark as night with storm clouds hanging low over the pine trees. I was thinking about last night. The Curtis had played with my mind again! Mother was serving breakfast for grandpa. I saw Nick licking the spoon. Yeah! He was alright. The bacon and the cheese omelette looked delicious. Nobody spoke about yesterday's scene. 'We are going to attend my friend Georgina's wedding tomorrow in Niwahara,' said mother. My eyes gleamed. ,My family will be far away from South hampton....far away from the ghosts! Then a horrifying thought came to my mind. 'Am i coming too?,' I asked. 'No Kat. Your exams are coming next week,' said mother. I heaved a sigh of relief. 'Grandma will stay with you. You really scared us last night,' said mother. 'Mom, i can stay alone. I will be perfectly fine.' 'I'm not going to listen to you,' said mother sternly. 'Mom----,' I began. 'She can stay with Jason,' said grandpa. 'Yeah! That's a brilliant idea,' I said. 'Grandma will not like to be left alone.' 'Is Jason's mom back from Albia?,' asked mother. 'She will reach South hampton today-afternoon,' I said. 'Okay, I will talk with Jason's mom,' said mother. I headed to my room. I had missed Jason's call. I didn't find it necessary to tell him about yesterday's incident. 'Hey, what's up?' 'Hey love, I have a good news and a bad news. Which one would you like to hear first?; 'The bad one.' 'Okay. Mom had called me this morning to check me out. I asked her about some priest living in South hampton. But she gave me a negative reply.' 'Ohh.' 'And the good news is that i found Dr.Dick.' 'You are awesome!,' I squealed. 'Dr.Dick is the brother of Dr.Wilson who consults my brother for fits.' 'How did you know?,' I asked. 'Mom told me. She was suspicious about my sudden interest in the priest and Dr.Dick.' 'So,when are we going to meet him?' 'Now. He lives just five houses away from mine.' 'Cool. I will meet you within ten minutes.' 'Wait. Did the ghosts return?' 'No. They will not return for three days.' The weather was clear and sunny. As i had said, I met Jason within ten minutes. 'C'mon,' he said slipping his hand into mine. 'So, you are going to spend the nights at my house for a week,' he said. I blushed for no reason. 'Yeah' 'That's cool.' 'Really?' 'Yeah.' We both laughed. Dr.Dick's house was an exact copy of Jason's house except that he had a garage. Jason rang the door bell. A man in early thirties opened the door. He was dressed in pyjamas and a sweatshirt. He had big eyes and a stubble.His hair was tied into a ponytail. He was holding a cup in his left hand. 'Dr.Wilson?,' asked Jason. 'He's out. You can come later,' he said taking a sip from the cup. 'Umm.. Are you Dr.Dick?,' I asked. 'Yes, I'm Dr.Dick. What do you want?' 'We actually came here to meet you,sir,' said Jason. Dr.Dick studied his face.'Come in.' The living room was cozy and richly decorated. The walls were painted blue that matched Jason's eyes and the showcase held numerous trophies. 'I expected to see skeletons and dead bodies....,' whispered Jason. I punched him in the stomach. 'Ouch!,' he cried. 'Coffee?,' asked Dr.Dick. 'No thanks,' we said in unison. 'Have a seat,' he said. I came direct to the point. 'We are here to know...to know about the Curtis,' I said taking a deep breath. Dr.Dick spilled his coffee in surprise. 'Curtis? I don't know them,' he said cleaning the mess. 'Dr.Dick i saw your name in the newspapers,' I said. 'Er-What do you want to know about them?,' he asked annoyingly. 'How did they die?,' i asked straightforwardly. 'How will i know?,' he said not meeting my eyes. I got frustrated. I got up.'Listen Dr.Dick. This might not mean anything to you but my whole family is in danger. You are the only hope and you are going to help me. It's simple! Just answer my questions.' Dr.Dick stared at me blankly. 'The Curtis were my close friends. I and Zouel used to go to high school together. Then he got married. Suzanne and Williams were like my own kids. Life was beautiful. Suddenly, Mrs.Curtis fell ill. She suffered from a psychological disorder.' I nodded. He continued.'Since, i used to do her treatment. But there was no cure. Zouel loved his wife very much. She couldn't have killed her own family,' he wailed. 'Were you and Mrs.Curtis related in some way?,' asked Jason. He hesitated for a moment. 'She was my ex-girlfriend. Then she married Zouel.' There was silence. I looked at Jason. 'What do you think? How did they die? Was the explosion really an accident?,' asked Jason. 'How will i know?' 'You were their family doc......,' started Jason. 'So?,' he asked. 'Ummm...when was this 'Lovely villa' built?,' i asked. 'i guess in 1995. Zouel built his for his wife. As i had mentioned, he loved her very much,' said Dr.Dick. 'So the Curtis had lived in that house for nearly three and a half years as they died in 1999,' I said. 'No,' said Dr.Dick alarmingly. 'They lived there for only two years.' 'WHAT?,' I and Jason shouted in unison.
