The House

Chapter Six

The morning sunrise put on a breathtaking show of radiant colors. Flares of red, pink, and orange scared away the dark blue and purple of the twilight sky. The new colors blended together like a prism.

The sun peeked over the mountains on the east horizon, its beautiful rays already shining brightly, warming the air from the cold, miserable air of the night before. The orchestra of early morning chirping echoed through the air, filling it with song and happiness.

Doug stood mesmerised at the beautiful display Mother Nature was putting on for him. The glistening reflections of the sun on the lake's surface made a feeling of awe sweep over him, warming his blood.

But last night's events still haunted his inner mind's eye. The horrifying sight of that woman's face the dead eyes and that mouth with the close stitching keeping it shut. Doug shuddered. He placed his hand on the window frame to support himself.

From behind, Joanne entered the room. She was dressed for work in a sexy black cotton pencil skirt and a professional-looking, pure-white, open-collared blouse. She was wearing her distinctive Jimmy Choo Flash perfume. The aroma of pink pepper, tangerine, and strawberries ensnared his senses.

Doug's primal senses rose from the deep crevices of his body and took over. "Looking good, sexy," he said with a charming smile. He slowly moved toward her, like a wild panther stalking its prey. Joanne, noticing her husband's presence, smiled at him.

"Baby, there is no way I am undressing," she said, placing her hand on Doug's chest. "It's taken me an hour to get ready for work."

"Aww," Doug whined in disappointment, sitting back on the bed.

"What are you going to do today?"

Doug shrugged and stood up. "Not sure. Might do the garden, water the plants."

Joanne nodded in agreement. She left the room, her light footsteps disappearing down the stairs. Doug walked back to the window, his mind now returning back to last night, reliving it in his mind's eye.

He heard Joanne downstairs running to the staircase, then the sound of her bounding up the stairs toward the bedroom. The sound of distress was in the air! She threw open the door, breathing heavily like an out-of-breath pug.

Doug looked at her, concerned. "Babe, what's wrong?"

Still panting, she said, "Come quick, downstairs, quick!" she stuttered breathlessly.

"What is it?"

"Just come," she huffed, running back down the stairs. Doug followed after, his mind racing, dreading what he was going to find.

Coming to the bottom of the stairs, Doug jumped the last couple of steps, landing on the floor of the study. Doug now knew the source of his wife's distress. The study had been turned upside down. The bookcases were now bare, with thousands of books strewn across the floor.

The leather chairs were thrown against the walls. One chair was hanging from its legs on the wall. The family pictures and their frames were smashed on the floor and placed in a pile at the entrance to the hallway.

"What in the hell?" Doug was amazed by the large mess that had been made.

"That's not all," Joanne said, walking toward the kitchen. Doug followed her into the room. The kitchen was also a jungle of rubbish.

Paper towels hung from the ceiling, like vines within a tropical forest. The kitchen tap sprayed out water, which now covered the island and the surrounding floor. Pans had been thrown across the room, and smashed plates littered the island surface and the floor.

Doug waded through the lagoon forming on the floor and turned the tap off.

"I don't understand," Joanne said, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Me either," Doug replied, throwing tea towels on the floor and mopping up the water.

"Why would someone do this?" Doug looked around the room. The scary image of an unknown intruder ransacking his house entered his mind. A sudden sense of fear ran through his nerves like the chill of an icy winter wind. He looked at Joanne.

"Joanne," he said with alarm as he rushed to the stairs, and bounded up them. He ripped open the girls' bedroom door. Raine screamed, startled, as she was getting ready for school. The room was normal no damage or mess. "Sorry, Princess, Daddy didn't mean to scare you."

Doug left the room, walking into his own. Ivy was fast asleep on Doug's side of the bed. She looked so peaceful, like a village cricket green on Sunday. She was holding her teddy bear close to her, with her thumb in her mouth, which was her comforting mechanism.

Joanne joined him, with Raine in tow. "I'm going to have to get Raine to school. I think Ivy should stay home today, especially after yesterday's events. I'm late; I've got to get going," she said, pulling on her coat. "We will talk about this later when I get home." Doug and she kissed, and she left with Raine at her side.

The morning passed quickly as Doug cleaned up the study, restocking the empty bookcases with the books from the floor. The cleaning frenzy carried on into the later morning, with continued checks on Ivy, who was still fast asleep in her parents' bed. He then continued his cleaning in the kitchen.

Cleaning the kitchen took him only forty minutes. He picked up the broken plates and placed the pans back on their hooks. Doug's attention was drawn to the kitchen island surface. He saw something that confused him beyond all understanding.

On the surface lay a picture. It was the family picture that was missing from the hallway. The frame was in good condition; inside, however, there was a strange alteration. The faces of Doug, Joanne, Raine, and Ivy had been cut out of the picture, leaving the bodies headless.

Doug lifted the picture and walked to the study. The images in his head were not making any sense. His mind went back to the previous night and to the image of a woman writing a horrifying message on the glass in blood. Who is she?

He rushed out the front door and down the stairway to his parked car. He bent down to inspect the front bumper for any signs of damage. To his horror, there was no sign of any damage, not even a scratch. Then, looking up at the window, he saw clean glass.

He stood up, shaking his head, trying to repress the memories. He could not talk to Joanne about this she would never believe him. Who would believe his story about an old woman with no eyes and a stitched-up mouth attacking him and threatening to come after him, after he hit her while drunk driving? It was ludicrous! Maybe it wasn't real. It must have been the drink. That's the only explanation.

Doug walked back to the garden stairway, sat down, and rested his head against his hands. It must have been the drink, he thought. But it had never happened before.

Doug thought maybe it was the Lord himself giving him a sign, trying to steer him off the alcohol. However, a strange feeling was lurking in his deep unconscious mind. The events of that night felt real, and Doug could not shake off that feeling.