See No Evil (Anthony Lockwood)

chapter 41

Violet tapped her foot impatiently on the pavement as she watched the front door to the house. Lockwood wasn't any better as he continued to check his watch every five seconds.

It was time for them to leave to go to Lenora's house in Alfriston, but Lucy and George were taking forever. They should've left over 10 minutes ago.

Lockwood finally just flung open the cab door, "They can meet us there. I don't care. Get in."

Violet agreed and slipped into the cab, "God, I expect this from George, but Lucy? What is she doing in there?"

Lockwood shut the door after climbing in, "Who knows. Either way, them missing out is their own fault."

Neither of them noticed their two friends peeking out of the front curtains as the cab drove away. They had clearly done this on purpose.

Violet stared out the back window, blankly watching the scenery go by in the dim light of the ending day. Her mind completely faded away, every noise becoming nothing but a slight buzz in her ears.

Lockwood looked over at her, carefully observing her to make sure she was ok. He easily recognized that she was getting better these days, but that didn't mean he wasn't still worried or vigilant. He would always watch over her.

He had to fight the urge to reach over and grab her hand. For her comfort and his. But he continuously reminded himself that this was something he had to take slow. He couldn't jump in like he did with everything else. And he was more than willing to wait for Violet Summers.

~

The two trudged up the small hill that was coated in water and mud, nearly making them slip a handful of times. Once they got to the top, they saw the house in question. It was a small and quaint house. One story. Painted a soft yellow with a handful of flowers and shrubs growing around the vicinity. Beautiful vines scaled up the sides of the house with small flowers blooming sparsely on them. The front door was painted a navy blue and was a big contrast to the trail of carefully placed stones that led all the way down before being cut off by the overgrowing grass of the hill.

A young man was waiting just out front, bundled up in a coat as he puffed out smoke from a cigarette. There was already a small pile of the nasty sticks stomped out at his feet. As soon as he spotted them, he put out his last cigarette and walked over.

"You guys must be Lockwood & Co. I'm Ed. Lenora's grandson. I apologize for her absence. She's not really able to make the trip up the hill anymore so she had me come instead," he held his hand out for Lockwood to shake.

Lockwood politely shook his hand with a smile, "Of course. It's not a problem."

Ed fished a folded paper and a set of keys from his pocket, "Here's that form and the keys to the house. I would go in but gran has a fit when any of us steps up to the door. Don't want her to have a heart attack. It's a pretty standard house though. Only the one story and a small basement. Basement is accessed through the door in the kitchen. This key right here opens it up."

As Ed talked to Lockwood and gave him the rundown, Violet's eyes were transfixed on the house as she slowly moved closer. She could feel the ghostly presence inside. She hadn't even stepped foot onto the pathway or through the door. It was barely nearing nightfall. And yet she felt the tingles spreading through her fingertips and the chills running up her spine. She felt her head beginning to pound lightly but she never showed any pain.

Ed walked away and Lockwood approached Violet, "Hey, you good?"

Violet snapped out of her thoughts and turned to him, "Yeah, I'm good. Ready?"