The Creek

Part 2

"Jenny, honey, can you please set the table?" Maria said to her daughter as she sipped from her wine glass. Jenny slowly got up from the stool and did as her mom asked. Something had been going on with Jenny all week. She had barely said a few words out loud to her, and she was starting to get worried. She tried prodding for answers, but that was no use. Jenny only answered yes or no questions. She seemed spaced out every day. She hadn't gone outside all week. And that was not normal for Jenny, especially during the summer break. 

Maria didn't want to make a big deal, she decided. She'd wait for Jenny to approach her instead. Maria knew the more she asked, the less she would be opened to her. Being a children's psychologist, she was used to sitting quietly in her office, waiting for her clients to be the first to speak. Jenny's silence, however, was almost unbearable. She knew something was wrong.

The doorbell rang and it snapped Maria out of her thoughts. "Grandma and grandpa are here! Go open the door Jenny!" Maria watched as a very somber Jenny, slowly got up from a chair in the living room and walked toward the door to open it. Jenny usually gets really excited when grandma and grandpa would visit, but this time, she was quiet, emotionless. It's like she's a zombie! Maria shook her head. She took another sip of wine, put on a smile and walked over to her parents. "Mom! Dad!"

***

After dinner, they all remained chatting at the dining room table. "May I be excused." Jenny spoke with a soft voice and looking down. Maria glanced at her mom before responding and caught her mom, Donna, making a face at her. "Yes honey, go ahead."

Donna waited for Jenny to disappear into the hallway, "What is wrong with her? Is she in trouble or something?". Maria didn't know how to respond. "Er, no, not at all. Um, she's fine. She hasn't been feeling well" Maria tried to cover her own worried face. She picked her wine glass and realizing it was empty, stood up to refill it with more wine. "Want some more mom?"

"Oh no, thanks. I might have to drive" She chuckled, as she pointed with her face at Mike who was nodding off on the chair next to her. "Daaad!" Maria laughed too. "Go lay on the couch dad, it's more comfortable there". Maria motioned to her dad with her hand. Mike didn't protest. He just needed a little nap before leaving, he told Donna as he got up from the chair and kissed his wife's head.

Maria sat down at the table with her mom. Suddenly, a vile, sickening smell invaded the place. Gagging, Donna scrunched her nose and quickly plugged it and covered her mouth. She looked at Maria. "Oh, honey, what is that smell?" She managed to mumbled . Maria who was just as confused, widened her eyes then quickly covered her mouth and plugged her nose as well. Her eyes watered as she went over to the sliding door. With one hand, she tried opening the lock, but somehow, it wouldn't budge. She tried again, and again. She hit the glass door with the palm of her hand in desperation. The lock finally opened and both she and her mom ran outside. Maria looked at her mom as they both exhaled their held breath. "Phew, what the heck is that smell!" 

Maria tried to compose herself after taking a few deep breaths. She knew she had to go back inside to figure out what happened. That's when she remembered, her dad was laying on the couch and her daughter was probably in her room. What if it's deadly?! Her mind was running a mile a minute, trying to remember if she had ever heard of a deadly and vile smell. She knew of carbon monoxide, of course. But they call that the silent killer because there is no odor. Then she wondered, what could make that kind of powerful stench?!

"Maria!!" Donna yelled, snapping Maria out of her deep thinking. Without hesitation, Maria covered her nose and mouth by using the collar of her shirt as a mask getting ready to walk back inside. She heard her mom protesting not to go back in. "I gotta get them out mom" said Maria though her shirt before taking a deep breath of air, getting ready to hold it. Inside, she walked over to the couch where her dad was sleeping. "Dad, get up, now, get up!"

"Okay, okay, we're leaving now" Mike said with his eyes still closed.

"DAD!" Maria sounded alarmed and that's what made Mike opened his eyes. He chuckled. What's going on, what are you doing?" Mike said.

"Don't you smell that?" Maria asked.

"Smell what?" Mike sniffed the air around and looked again at Maria. "What are you talking about?"

Maria put her shirt down from her face and sniffed around the air. Nothing. What the heck, she thought. She called her mom in. She heard her mom mumbled through the sliding door. Maria reassured her it was fine to come in. Donna came in and began to sniff around. She was pleasantly surprised that the the smell was gone.

"Oh that's better" Donna smiled. "Honey, maybe you need to make sure that the sewer is working correctly".

"Mom, that was not sewer!" Maria said, her hands on her hips. "That was something I have NEVER experienced in my life." She thought for a moment and then continued "It was more like a dead swampy thing. I don't know. All I know is that it wasn't a normal smell".

"Well, the good thing is that it's over. Mike, let's get going. I don't wanna miss bingo tonight". Donna gave Maria a kiss on the cheek as she walked by.

Maria, stood in the living room, perplexed. "Jenny come say goodbye to grandma and grandpa" She called out. Jenny came out of her room, stood by the front door and just waved them goodbye.

Maria sat  silently  on the couch in the living room. She was in deep thought, bothered by what had just happened. She hadn't noticed Jenny standing in the living room with her. 

"Mom? Are you okay?" She said to her mom. Finally, Maria looked up to answer, but as she did, she let out a loud scream. 

The girl in front of her was not her Jenny.