Yours Truly, Death (ON HOLD)

||Chapter 6||

Tracy

At breakfast, my brother kept ranting on about his oh-so real dream. He claimed he could still feel the cold fingers of the ghost on his skin and the tingles and chills the touch sent down his spine. Somehow, I believed him. It was possible that it had some kind of relation to the strange figures we saw almost everytime.

"Cut the nonsense Robert!" Mum scolded. "Enough already. Now finish your food!" The rest of the time during breakfast was a silent one.

"I have to hire a new lawyer to go on with my closure of that orphanage." My dad said, standing up.

"You're closing an orphanage? With orphans? Homeless children?" Abigail couldn't believe her ears. My dad sighed heavily.

"I know Abi. I know but there's this very important reason why I must close it down. I promise it's a very good reason." He tried convincing her.

"What could possibly be that good reason that happens to send poor orphans back to the streets?"

"You'll know soon dear." With that, my dad took his leave of us.

I didn't utter a word. I had learnt to accept and stay out of my dad's crazy decision's. After washing the dishes with Anna, we went up to join Abi. Later on, we decided to go to the mall.

We arrived at home only to find Dad at home early-sitting on a sofa crying. Dad? Crying? Those two words couldn't be put in the same sentence without a not to show the negativity.

"What's going on?" I inquired. "Why's the atmosphere all gloomy and sorrowful?" I looked at my mum, then my dad, then at my brother and finally looking at Jake-who was so busy with his Play Station or whatever it was.

"Darling, Aunt Nina died today." My mother said with an unstable voice. My second favourite aunt was dead??! Too much to process. I never knew Aunt Nina to be a sick person with a deadly disease. For a moment, I was dumb. I couldn't seem to find my voice. I managed to make my way to the nearest sofa and plopped myself down.

"Aunt Nina is dead? It cant be. No..no." Despite my shocked state, I couldn't help but think about what Robert's answer would have been to my question. Nope..Aunt Nina is alive and kicking, feeding the chickens in her backyard, Robert would have given me his oh-so hilarious answer. My mind drifted back to the matter at hand.

"But how did this happen. You didn't tell me Aunt Nina was sick." Then realisation dawned. "Or she died in an accident?" I needed amswers. My mother wiped a tear with her kerchief before answering me. She loved Aunt Nina. It was Aunt who helped her with all the wedding preparations when my dad was getting married to my mum. The two were really tight.

"Sweety, I wish I had an answer. No one knows. She just...died. Just like that. She didnt say bye." Ok so my mum was in pain and grief, but seriously!? The woman didn't even know she was going to die. How was she supposed to tell her?

"Care to elaborate?" I said. Dad spoke this time, raising his voice a little above normal.

"The same letter. The very same one my lawyer received before he died. The empty letter with the creepy subscription. Nina had it with her when she died in her house, in her room." He said and broke down into more tears. His sister's death was really tearing him apart.

Aunt Nina was their family's first child. She was away in a different country with Abi and Anna's mother, when their family died mysteriously. They had been the ones to take care of him since that time.

I looked at my dad and my mum-who was rubbing my dad's back in circles to soothe him, and couldn't help the tear that ran down my cheek. I looked over at my cousins. Abi was in tears and Anna had this very pained look on her face. Everyone loved Aunt Nina. Even Jake had stopped playing his game and had his head bowed.

That moment when everyone had their head bowed. Thinking of the wonderful time they had with Aunt Nina. The only sound that broke through the silence of the moment was dad's consistent sobs and mum's continuous sharp air-intake.

To be honest, things were getting real creepy to say the least. I wondered what the reactions of everyone would be like if Robert and I told them about those strange figures we saw.

****

"I can't believe Aunt Nina is gone!" Robert told me sympathetically when we were alone.

"Yeah. Robert? Do you believe that those strange shadows we see has something to do with this?" I asked, wanting to her his thoughts on all that was happening.

"Huh! Seriously Tracy? Can you be any less wierd in your life. Do you know how you sound saying that? A superstitious teenage girl who's damn scared of being killed by some strange shadows." I got my answer but he proceeded. "I think all that is happening is just a mere coincedence and I'm trying hard to convince myself that its only my imagination. Besides, last time I checked it was only me that experienced that." I shook my head fiercely.

"Never mind." He shook his head and left my room. Abi and Anna were downstairs and I was all alone, save my thoughts.

I wondered how Aunt Nina's children would feel. Though they were all matured, they definitely hurt at the sound of this. Travis and Nancy. Both married but Travis with a girl.

I refused to believe it was just a coincedence. Call me crazy, superstitious, whatever but that's just how I felt. Maybe the house was haunted. Maybe all that happened were warnings that we should leave the place.

"We have to get to the bottom of this. I'm sure someone is planning all this. It has to be." I could her mum telling dad as they walked past my room.

I just hoped they were right.