Stuck on Earth - ONC 2020

3. Madam Nova

"Are you sure this is it?" Hannah asked as she pulled up to what looked to be the oldest house on the block. Not just old, but worn and unkempt. Window shutters were hanging off the hinges and paint was chipping off the wood frame. There was a tarp on the roof near the chimney, which appeared to be crumbling, explaining the need for the tarp.

"Yes," the man responded. "It didn't look like this before," he added and stepped out of the car.

Hannah shut off her engine, stepped out of her car and walked around the front to stand next to the man. He still refused to give her his name. Now looking at him with a calmer mind, she noticed that his nose was perfectly straight, and his jawline was perfectly squared. She wondered if he may be the same age as she was. Hannah figured it was probably the clothes, hat, and hair that made him look older.

He made his way across the weed-infested walkway to the front steps of the old house. Hannah followed close behind. The man pointed out that the plank on the second step was completely missing. Not wanting to take any chances, Hannah hopped up from the first step to the porch, skipping the second and third altogether. She noticed the man checking his reflection and adjusting his fedora before pressing the doorbell.

It didn't ring, or at least Hannah couldn't hear the sound if it did. The man must have thought the same thing, as he then knocked loudly on the rickety exterior screen door.

Moments later, locks on the other side of the door were being turned. The interior door opened inwards by only a few inches, being stopped by a door chain. Hannah wondered why someone living there would be concerned about locking their doors. What would anyone want from a house that looked like it should be condemned?

A suspicious elderly woman peeked through the crack of the door. "Who is it?"

Hannah couldn't see her very well as the screen door was extremely dusty.

"Shattered mirrors and broken cups," the man responded. Hannah didn't know if he was using code words or trying to be funny, but whatever it was, it made the old woman react.

She slammed the door shut. Hannah could hear the top chains rattling, only to open again. She pushed the screen door outward, making Hannah move out of the way of getting hit. Before Hannah could get a good look at her, she had embraced the man, shielding her face from being seen clearly. Hannah heard something. Was the old woman crying?

Hannah felt so awkward at that moment. If she had the choice, she'd run back to her car and drive away as far and fast as she could. The man must have sensed Hannah's feelings. He released himself from the woman's embrace. Hannah finally saw her. She was an average-sized woman, in her early to mid-eighties. Her hair was white as snow and cut in a layered style down to the bottom of her chin, which complimented her oval face. Her eyes were light brown, similar to Hannah's, but hers showed much more wisdom.

"Oh! Hello, my dear." Madam Nova wiped her eyes and greeted Hannah with a surprisingly friendly tone.

"Hello," Hannah responded softly, feeling like a shy child wanting to hide behind her daddy's knee when meeting someone new.

"Nova, this is Hannah. She is why I am here now," he explained.

"Oh! Well, why didn't you say so? Why don't you both come in?" she said, opening the screen door and leading them inside.

Hannah was hesitant at first. After the scary movies she had watched the night before, Hannah was feeling extra cautious about stepping into a stranger's house. The man again sensed her hesitation. He turned to her and said, "I promise, you're safe. If I wanted to kill you, I could have done it when I had taken your soul from your body earlier."