Cursed

9. Amanda

"What a lively character!" Louis said once she sat in Arthur's car. Her car was still not repaired. Neither did she mind it. She felt rather comfortable while Arthur was around than to do the journey all by herself.

"What a weird character!" Arthur corrected. "How could you possibly like her?" He asked.

"When did I say I do?" Louis said.

"Anyway, should we first call Jason?" He asked. Louis shook her head.

"I think he'll be there. Poor guy never leaves Amanda's side." She said and started fiddling in her purse.

Arthur paid no attention to her frantic moments. He was used to them. Either she was trying to find some ladies' item, like say a lipstick, or, more possibly, a notepad or some book, anything that would help the case.

"Oh God!" She exclaimed.

"What happened?" Arthur asked. It was quite unlikely for her to forget something.

"I forgot my camera." She said. Disappointment was clear in the way she threw her purse in the back seat.

Arthur, still managing the driving wheel, bent until his hands reached the glove box. Having a tall stature, he had no problem doing it.

"Arthur, look at all that mess." Louis remarked as soon as he opened the glove box. A zillion papers, documents were kept anyhow. 

"You must keep these docs properly. What if some paper gets lost when needed?" Louis said. Then, amidst the myriad of letters and documents, her vision finally fell on a camera and all her disappointment vanished suddenly. And was replaced by surprise.

"Is that a .... ? Wow, that looks very expensive! " She said.. She never took Arthur for a photographer passionate enough to spend quite some money on such an exuberant camera.

"It is. I thought we were going on a vacation. And, as you can see, the towns here are veiled in such big forest covers...I thought I'd better bring a camera." Arthur said and for once Louis felt a slight tinge of guilt.

She always thought of herself. So many long years of tedious working she had gone through, and there was not a single break. She had come here thinking of a vacation. Arthur must've had thought this to be his vacation too. And clearly he had been looking forward to it. Yet she was still unknowingly troubling him with all her tasks.

"You know what, once all this is over, we will really go on a vacation. But this time we'll make sure if the place we are visiting is not...", she stopped to think of a word,"strange."

"I'll look forward to it, Miss." Arthur said. A smile slithered on his tired face. Though he thought it was best not to attach too much enthusiasm on the offer.

"But why do you need a camera so urgently, Miss?"He asked.

"My family doctor, Dr Burke needs a few photographs of the patient. Otherwise he can't comment on her condition." She said.

She indeed talked about the profuse experience of her expert family doctor sometime before. Though, possibly, there was only one member in her family, including herself. All these years had passed with Arthur being her assistant and he never recalled informing her of her family messages. There were no calls, no letters, nothing. One day she had finally spoken. He was the only one closest to her who she could call as family. 'Others are dead.' She had said then.

"But doesn't Mr Burke specialize in surgical procedures?" Arthur asked. A glimpse of the memory when Louis had first spoken of her doctor flashed across his mind.