Voodoo Masters

Chapter 5

The next day Taylor slept in as long as she could. Her head was pounding all night, so even when she woke up at noon, she was exhausted. Realizing that this was no way to spend her knew life, she dragged herself out of bed and into the kitchen.

The bright sunlight filtered through the ghostly curtains and lit up the apartment just enough so Taylor didn't have to turn on any lights. She made her way into the kitchen and pulled out a pack of mini muffins from the grocery bag on the counter. Plopping down on the leather couch, Taylor propped her feat up on the glass coffee table and nibbled on her breakfast.

Time passed and Taylor suddenly found herself bored. There was really nothing to do yet in this new apartment besides watch TV. After brainstorming for a few minutes and debating whether or not to go out and explore, Taylor made the decision to stay home today. She needed to get the place organized and truthfully, she wasn't in the mood for going out.

Within the next few hours, Taylor was able to unpack all of the food from the paper bags, and pull out a few things like picture frames or decorations from one of the cardboard boxes littering her living room floor. The apartment was definitely beginning to feel more like home, and that made Taylor so relieved.

Just as she was sitting down to watch a movie on Netflix on the new TV, there was a sharp knock at the door. Taylor's heart sped up at the memory of last night, but she gathered her courage and moved quickly to the door. With a deep breath she opened it and was relieved to find an actual person standing there.

The woman was a few inches shorter than Taylor, but she looked to be about her age. She had long black hair that was slightly wavy, and dark green eyes. The girl was actually quite beautiful and her smile implied that she was just the kind of friendTaylor was looking for.

"Hello," the girl chimed in a high voice. Taylor hated to admit it but it was actually a bit irritating.
"Hey there," Taylor replied with a smile. "How can I help you?"
"You're the new neighbor right?"
"Indeed! I'm Taylor," she said, extending her hand for the girl to shake. She took it and gave her a firm handshake before saying,
"I'm Karin, nice to meat you! I live a few doors down."

Taylor almost sighed in relief. There was finally someone here that she could befriend.
"So, I'm having this little party tonight at my place. A few of my friends are coming over and we're all gonna chill. Are you interested?" Karin offered. Before she could really think about it, Taylor was nodding in agreement.
"Yeah I'd love to! Which one is yours?"

Karin grinned and gave her hands a rapid little clap.
"Awesome I can't wait for you to meet everyone! And it's number 212 a few down to the left," she said, her voice and actions very giddy. "Be there at 8!"

With that, Taylor have her neighbor and thank you and Karin ran off down the hallway. She had an odd quirk about her, but it was amusing. Taylor needed friends fast so she didn't have to spend the days to come like today, just cleaning at her home.

In the few hours before 8, Taylor took a shower before she sat down to watch the newest episode of her favorite TV show. The apartment was feeling more like home the more normal things she did in it. Just hanging out on the couch in her bath robe, Taylor almost forgot about the party.

She decided to go a bit more casual for this gathering, so she stepped into a brown knee length skirt and pulled a light pink blouse over her head. The outfit had always been a favorite of hers so it was her go to for tonight. Seeing that it was already quarter-of-eight, Taylor decided to leave her hair as it was and only applied a light amount of makeup.

Before she knew it, it was 8 o'clock and she turned off all of the lights before locking the door behind her. She set off down the hall and searched for number 212. It came up soon, right where Karin had pointed. Taylor smoothed down her hair and skirt before knocking three times on the door. Moments later it swung open and she was greeted by Karin's wide smile.

A strong smell reached Taylor's nose as Karin motioned for her to come inside. It was a mix of chemical cleaners and food, and the combination wasn't too appealing. But the inside of the apartment was. The set up was the exact same as hers, but every piece of furniture was different. Most of it was black or white.

Karin waltzed right into the kitchen and Taylor followed her, still taking in her surroundings. The counter top in the kitchen was made of black slate, and there were little reminders scribbled in chalk in a few spots. All of the dark cupboards had silver handles that matched the glistening sink.

"So what do you think?" Karin asked, snapping Taylor out of her daze.
"Of your place? It's so nice I love the color scheme," Taylor answered, gesturing around her. Karin let out a slightly irritating laugh and her dark hair fell behind her shoulders.

It was now for the first time that Taylor realized what Karin was wearing. She was dressed in a pair of dark jeans with rips running down the legs, and a white flowing crop top. She had an emerald belly-button ring that swayed on it's silver chain as she laughed. Karin was dressed way more casual that Taylor. Not to mention way different that earlier when she was just in yoga pants and a T-shirt.

"I didn't mean the place, I meant having snacks to eat," Karin laughed. Taylor nodded in understanding and blushed slightly.
"Oh I see. Um, yeah that's fine," she said, avoiding eye contact.
"Awesome. Everyone else should be here soon so you can tell me about yourself while I get this ready. I have a feeling we will be eating a lot tonight!" Karin sang.

Over the next half an hour, Karin asked Taylor questions about her old life and her new one. The two girls talked and laughed as stories were exchanged. Karin took pride in telling Taylor that her parents had kicked her out of the house 7 months ago for numerous reasons, none of which she wanted to share. Taylor was really beginning to like Karin. It was nice to have a friend for a change.

Suddenly, there was the sound of the metal doorknob turning and then of men talking. Karin looked over Taylor's shoulder at the newly arrived guests. Taylor looked too and was surprised at what she saw. Four men walked right into the apartment and two girls followed behind them. Every single one of them was dressed in black, the girls in pencil skirts and the guys in leather jackets.

"It's about time you got here!" Karin shouted with a smirk. One of the guys stuck up his middle finger at her and Taylor tried not to scoff at him. "Did you bring the shit?" Taylor almost gasped at her friend's use of words.

The first man that entered the room took his jacket off and threw it on the couch. He then pulled out a paper bag from the pocket and set it on counter in front of Karin.
"Hell yeah I brought it," he growled, a smirk spreading across his thick lips.

Karin giggled with excitement and reached into the bag. She pulled the contents out one by one. It only took Taylor about 3 seconds to place all of the items.

There was a bottle of red wine, three packs of cigarets, slips of paper, a bong, and a bag of marijuana.