Читать книгу: «Terrible», страница 2

“What stuff?” Spencer asked him.

Charlie hesitated then said, “It seems that they were in a hurry when they were leaving the house, or something made them leave sooner than they wanted and they left some things behind! Do you know anything about them? Or what could have happened to them?”

“No idea!” said Spencer. “I saw them last about two weeks ago and I didn’t notice anything strange in their behavior then. Well, you also were here two weeks ago and saw them.”

“Yeah, sure,” agreed Charlie. “But I was busy examining the house not them. I vaguely remember Mrs. Evans. Do you happen to know where they are now?”

“Of course not,” said Spencer. “It’s none of my business.”

Charlie was disappointed. He really hoped to get some answers to his questions about the former owners of the house from Spencer. Now he was getting even more nervous because of what Thomas had said about them.

“Thanks anyway!” Charlie said. “Thank you for the opportunity to work here and live in my own house.”

“My pleasure,” responded Spencer. “If you need anything, call me.”

“Ok, thank you! Bye!” Charlie said.

“Bye, Charlie!” Spencer hung up and Charlie heard long beeps from the speakerphone.

“What happened to that family? Where are they now?” Charlie asked himself. Soon he was already parking the car in his new driveway.

CHAPTER 9

“Booo,” somebody shouted to Emma from behind and touched her.

It was so unexpected that Emma let out a scream and quickly turned around.

“Christina! Never do that again! You scared me!” Emma gasped out.

But Christina was happy with what she had just done and only burst out laughing.

“Come on,” Emma said relieved that her daughter was alright. “Breakfast is ready.”

“Sorry, Mummy!” Christina stopped giggling at last and added, “I will never scare you again!”

“I felt my heart drop,” Emma said. “Ok, come on downstairs.”

Emma and Christina went into the kitchen where Danny was sitting and playing with the sandwiches.

“Oh my gosh!” Emma saw the ruined sandwiches. “It means that I will have to make a new breakfast,” she looked at Danny.

“Danny, what have you been doing?” she said nervously and began to remove the leftovers from the table surfaces.

“So, children,” she said suddenly “Let’s go to the bathroom at once and wash up.”

After a little silence, Emma said loudly, “Now!”

Danny came out of the table with a guilty face. He and his sister began moving to the bathroom.

At the same time, Emma removed all the leftovers and ruined sandwich slices from the table and picked up some from the floor.

“Well,” she said. “I have no other choice except cook fried eggs.”

Emma opened the door of the fridge, took several chicken eggs, then carefully broke each egg and began to fry them.

“We are ready,” Danny ran into the kitchen looking funny. He immediately sat down on the chair to show that he was ready to have new breakfast. Some time later, Christina slowly walked into the kitchen almost dragging her feet.

“Christina,” Emma said. “Take out the fruit drink from the fridge, please.”

Christina opened the fridge and took a jug with red liquid.

“Sit down, please,” Emma said. “Breakfast will be ready in a couple of minutes.”

Emma took some plates from the kitchen cabinets, put the fried eggs on each plate and then poured the fruit drink in two glasses.

“Don’t play with your food,” Emma told Danny. “Otherwise, you will have no breakfast today,” she added and stroked his hair back from his face.

Right at this moment, Emma heard the sound of a car in the driveway.

Emma quickly went into the guest bedroom and looked through the window.

“Charlie,” she said and immediately started walking to the front door thinking that her husband was early.

Emma went out of the house to welcome Charlie.

“Hey,” she said when she saw him.

“Hey,” he said blankly.

“What happened?” asked Emma puzzled.

“Never mind,” answered Charlie and closed the car door.

“Well, are you feeling a bit under the weather?” asked Emma and stood right in front of him blocking the way to the house.

Charlie looked at Emma and then said, “You know, Emma, we moved here only yesterday but I am starting to feel a premonition that something bad can happen to us.”

“I can’t understand you! What are you talking about?” asked him Emma.

“I was in the hospital and talked to Thomas, he is my new boss…” Charlie began telling.

“Does it have anything to do with your job?” Emma interrupted him worryingly.

“No, with regard to my job everything is okay, in spite of one thing – I am starting work tomorrow…” announced Charlie.

“So, what is wrong then?” Emma interrupted him again.

“Thomas told me about Lara Evans and her daughter Brenda, if you remember, Lara is the former owner this house,” Charlie said and threw a glance at the house. “Well, he told me something mysterious about them…”

“What is it?” asked Emma not letting him finish the sentence again.

“Lara Evans also worked in the local hospital but she was a nurse and, of course, Thomas knew her. About a month ago Thomas noticed that something strange had happened to her. She had changed beyond recognition. She was scared of everyone and looked really nervous. Then, they noticed multiple bruises on her skin. When somebody tried to ask her about what was going on, she just bottled up her emotions, she had always been introvert. If they insisted, she began to shout and wail at the same time without explaining anything,” Charlie said.

“You know, Charlie, now that I start thinking about it,” Emma said, “I remember that when we first came here two weeks ago to look at the house, you were too focused on its inspection but I noticed that she kept throwing weird looks at different places as if expecting to see something. Then, it seemed to me that she was searching for something or someone. But now I think she must have been afraid to see something. And, you know, now her behavior scares me a little,” Emma said.

“But the strangest thing here is the fact that she and her little daughter disappeared so fast and nobody knows where they are now,” Charlie said and looked at Emma.

“Well, if I remember correctly, they wanted to move to the city,” Emma said.

“Yes, this is true but Lara didn’t sign any resignation letters and for three days before their moving she hadn’t been answering the phone and didn’t show up for work. And, I found out that the police reported her and her daughter missing,” Charlie said looking very concerned. “In light of all the above, this mess in the house looks to me like a sign of something disastrous,” he added.

“I hope she is okay,” Emma said and gave Charlie a hug. “And I also hope that this will not affect us,” she added.

After a little while, Charlie and Emma began walking towards the house. Hardly had Emma closed the gate, when she remembered about the metal box she had found in the garden. She decided that it would be better to tell Charlie about it right now when the kids couldn’t overhear them.

“Charlie,” she said and stopped. “Do you remember that little grave in our garden?”

“Yeah,” replied Charlie. “And that grave also looks scary now. I think I will remove it today and we will forget about it once and for all,” he added and began resumed walking.

“Wait,” Emma caught Charlie’s arm. “Please, wait!” she repeated and fixed her hair with her hand.

“What?” Charlie asked a little bemused.

“I have already done it,” Emma blurted out.

Charlie looked completely baffled, “Have done what? Got rid of the grave? So who was in it?”

“I found inside a strange metal box. It was locked,” she said and looked Charlie in the eye.

“Locked?” Charlie asked seriously.

“Yes, and there was a weird inscription on its surface,” Emma said. “I’d better show it to you,” Emma said and took his hand again to lead him to the porch when she had left the box earlier in the morning.

Feeling curious, Charlie followed Emma.

“Did you try to unlock it?” he asked her.

“No! Of course, not,” she said and suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. She couldn’t believe her eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Charlie asked.

“I’m pretty sure I had left it here on the porch,” Emma spoke and pointed to the porch with her index finger.

Charlie stared at the porch but couldn’t see any box there. The porch was empty.

CHAPTER 10

“I swear that I had left it here!” exclaimed Emma loudly.

“What a strange day today!” remarked Charlie and began walking to the front door through the porch.

“But…. I clearly remember putting the box on the porch,” muttered Emma already behind Charlie.

“Come on, Emma! Let’s go into the house. Don’t worry, we’ll definitely find your box. Who could have come and stolen that useless box?” Charlie said and turned to Emma.

“Yes, you must be right. Maybe, I got something wrong.” Emma said approaching Charlie.

Charlie opened the front door and cheerfully declared, “Emma, I know where your box is!”

“Where?” Emma asked bewildered and ran up to the front door.

At the entrance, Christina and Danny were sitting bended over something. They had already brought the box from the porch into the home.

“Christina!” Emma addressed her annoyed. “What have you done? This is disgusting!”

Right at the moment when Christina and Danny heard their mother, they dropped the box and stood up.

“Sorry, mummy!” Christina said guiltily.

“Didn’t I tell you yesterday not to touch things here and not go out of the house alone?” asked Emma reproachfully, looking first at Christina and then at Danny.

“Mum, we were having breakfast and suddenly heard a knock,” Christina explained.

“What knock? Where?” Emma asked.

“We thought that it was you. We thought that you had locked yourself out of the house and were knocking at the front door. We thought you couldn’t open the door like earlier in the morning,” Christina continued. “And I went to open that door for you. The knocking was getting more insistent, harder. So, when I opened the door, I saw this,” Christina pointed towards the metal box. “Of course, Danny came here with me ‘cause he always follows me,” Christina added.

Emma and Charlie exchanged glances in complete bewilderment.

“Daddy,” Christina turned to Charlie.

“Yes, what?” he said.

“What does ‘Damn you to hell’ mean?” Christina asked.

“Oh, my! I have no idea,” he answered quite perplexed.

“What is inside that box?” Christina kept asking.

Charlie bent down towards the box and picked it up. Having flipped it several times in his hands, he shook it and said at last, “Well, the question remains and it is very, very interesting: What is inside the box?” After a short pause, he added, “Well, we should break it.”

“No!” Emma protested. “Charlie, the box looks so repulsive and hideous.”

“Why?” Charlie asked.

“What do you mean ‘Why?’, Charlie?!” Emma rolled her eyes. “It is a coffin from a grave!”

Momentarily, Danny and Christina inquisitively looked up at Emma.

“What is this?!” Christina let out a scream looking scared.

Charlie shook the box once again and they all could hear something rumbling inside.

Charlie inspected closely the lock on the metal box and tried to sniff in between the lid and the box.

Then he sniffed in one more time.

“What are you doing?” asked Emma.

“You know what… You will be surprised but it smells exactly like a perfume,” he said and glanced at Emma.

“Oh, Charlie! Is it one of your stupid jokes again?” Emma inquired.

“No, I mean it,” Charlie objected and handed the box over to Emma.

“No, no! I won’t do it!” Emma screamed waving her hands.

“Daddy, may I…” Christina suggested cheerfully.

“No,” shouted Emma but it was too late because Charlie had already given the box to Christina.

“Charlie,…” started Emma.

“Smells nice,” Christina gave her verdict after taking a deep sniff.

“And me, I also want to smell it,” asked Danny.

“No way,” interrupted Emma. “Get rid of it!”

“Why? I want to know what is inside,” replied Charlie and stood up.

“Where are you going?” asked Emma.

“To the garage,” Charlie answered and added, “Who is going with me?”

“Meee,” both children shouted in unison.

“Charlie,” Emma wanted to say something but they were already on their way out of the house.

CHAPTER 11

“I think that it is a horrendous idea,” Emma expressed her opinion when all of them gathered in the garage.

“I don’t think so,” responded Charlie looking for some tools in the drawers to break open the box.

“I think that it is an awful idea to do this in the presence of the children because nobody knows what we may discover inside,” Emma explained her train of thought and nervously touched her hair.

“We like mysteries,” Charlie told her. “Found it!” he cried when he pulled out a crowbar from a drawer.

“Yippee,“ both children were overjoyed. They waited for their Dad to unlock the box with great anticipation and excitement.

Charlie came up to the metal box and said, “Well, kids! Let’s step back from that thing just in case.”

Christina and Danny moved back closer to their mother. She embraced them at once.

Charlie made hit the lock but missed.

“Well,” he said and hit it again. But the lock which was hanging on the box turned out to be very strong.

Charlie was determined to break the lock so he kept hitting it again and again until it broke and fell to the floor.

Charlie stood up and looked at his family. In Emma’s eyes he could read her fear and a silent plea: “Please, don’t open this box.” But in the eyes of the children he saw: “Oh, yeah! Let’s see what’s inside!”

“Well,” Charlie said and bent down to the box again.

He cautiously touched the lid with his hands and slowly began to open it.

Emma didn’t understand why her heart started pounding so fast as if it was going to jump out of her chest.

She was absolutely sure that inside the box they would find an old dead cat or a dog and she really didn’t want her children see that.

But when at last Charlie opened the box, she was taken aback like all of them standing in the garage.

“Wooooow!” Christina and Danny gasped when they saw what was inside that box.

CHAPTER 12

Inside of the metal box that Emma had found in the garden laid a doll. It was about 70 centimeters tall with ginger hair, blue eyes and red lips. It was dressed in a white dress and red boots.

“What are you doing here?” Charlie said and took it out of the box.

At once Christina ran up to Charlie. She was so amazed and just said, “It is a doll!” and tried to take it in her hands.

“Daddy,” she said, “May I hold it?”

“It is dirty, filthy,” Emma suddenly said.

“But…” Christina started saying something.

“No buts!” Emma interrupted her.

“She is so beautiful,” Charlie spoke looking at the doll.

“Yes! I like it,” Christina said.

“Lucy,” Charlie read on the doll’s back. “Emma! It has a name!” he added.

“May I keep it?” Christina asked and turned to Emma.

After a pause and deep breathing, Emma finally answered, “Yes, you can.”

“Yippee,” Christina yelled for joy and looked at Danny, “It is mine!” She poked her tongue at him.

“But why was she buried in the garden?” Emma asked.

“Maybe you can dig a car in there,” Charlie said jokingly and laughed.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Emma replied and turned around to walk out of the garage.

“Daddy, please, give it to me!” Christina Charlie asked and stretched out her hand to take the doll.

Charlie carefully placed the doll into Christina’s hands.

“Woooow!” Christina said again. “Lucy,” she said. “You will be my best friend,” she added and touched the doll’s hair.

“Come on, Christina,” Charlie called his daughter and began to move out of the garage.

Christina followed him with an ear-to-ear grin on her face.

“Well,” Charlie told her smiling, “Today we shall tidy up your room for you and your new friend.”

CHAPTER 13

It was already evening. Charlie with his wife had cleaned and tidied up at first Christina’s and then Danny’ rooms and then Emma went downstairs to make dinner while Charlie continued cleaning their bedroom upstairs.

Christina and Danny spent all day in the yard playing hide and seek, tag and swinging on the swing.

Christina kept holding on to her new doll. She cuddled it as her baby and every time she began a new game with Danny, she would put it in her field of vision so that she could easily see it.

Sometimes Christina would pick up her doll and stroke its ginger hair and smooth down its white dress.

“Christina! Danny!” Emma called them when she went out onto the porch, “Come on, let’s change for dinner.”

Without hesitation Danny ran to his mother but Christina slowly stood up from the swing and carefully holding her doll Lucy in her hands also began moving towards the house.

“Christina,” Emma addressed her, “Hurry up!”

Danny was first to sun into the front door. He could hear behind his mother’s words, “Don’t forget to wash your hands!”

“Christina,” Emma was still waiting for her daughter, “Come on.”

At last, Christina reached Emma and they both entered the house.

“You also shouldn’t forget to wash your hands!” Emma reminded Christina.

Christina obediently headed straight for the bathroom where Danny was already washing his hands.

“Charlie,” Emma shouted standing at the stairs and looking up.

“What?” Charlie asked.

“Dinner is ready,” Emma told him and waited for an answer.

“I am almost done,” she heard him say and soon saw Charlie climbing down the stairs with two bags in his hands.

“What is it?” Emma asked.

“Garbage from the former owners,” he said and came up to Emma.

“I will burn it and forget all about it,” he said and put down the bags on the floor.

“Good! Now let us all have a nice dinner together. And after dinner you can do all you want,” Emma said smiling.

Charlie shook dust off his hands and followed his wife into the kitchen.

“You have to wash your hands,” Emma told him when they were walking past the bathroom.

Charlie opened the bathroom door and saw his daughter.

“Christina! What’s happened?” Emma heard her husband suddenly ask. She understood that something was wrong and also entered the bathroom.

Christina was standing before the sink crying.

“What’s happened, Christina?” Charlie asked again, came closer to Christina and gave her a hug.

“Christina! What is wrong?” Emma also asked.

Christina was still sobbing when her brother Danny, who had also heard that something had happened in the bathroom, went in. He decided to see what was wrong.

“Christina,” Danny called his sister.

At last, through her tears, Christina muttered, “I feel pity for my Lucy.”

“Why?”Charlie asked stroking her hair.

“Why did somebody bury her under the ground?” she asked sobbing. “She is so beautiful and so young,” she added.

At that moment Emma and Charlie looked at each other.

“Well,” Charlie responded. “We really don’t know who could have done that. And, in my opinion, that was an awful thing to do,” he added and looked at Emma.

“Charlie!” Emma spoke. “I told you that we shouldn’t have opened that box in front of the children,” she said anxiously. “You see what we are having to deal with right now?”

Charlie knelt down next to Christina who was still weeping.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “Maybe it is unpleasant and a little scary to know what had happened to Lucy but your doll definitely had a bit of luck.”

“What luck?” wept Christina.

“The luck that it is now in good hands and her new owner won’t leave it and will always be there for her,” Charlie answered and waited for Christina’s reaction.

“Really?” Christina asked.

“Yes! I am pretty sure,” Charlie said happily. “I know that you will be the best owner for this doll!” he added and stroked the doll.

Right then, Christina stopped crying, wiped off her tears and looked at her father with happy eyes.

“I will never leave you, my Lucy,” Christina promised the doll. “Never!” she added and kissed it.

At that moment, Danny came up to Christina and gave her a hug. He loved his sister very much and was upset that she had been crying.

Looking at the picture of the sibling love, Emma’s eyes filled with tears.

“Enough,” Charlie said. “Everything is okay,” he added. “Danny, Christina! Now you have your own rooms!”

“Yippee!” Christina shouted.

“Hooray!” Danny joined her.

“Yippee and hooray!” Charlie joined the choir and all of them exited the bathroom laughing merrily.

After a short while they were already in the kitchen having dinner.

• • • • • •

“Mmmm, this is delicious!” Charlie mumbled putting another piece of meat in his mouth. “You are a brilliant chef,” he added and looked at Emma.

The whole family was enjoying the meal. Charlie had time to change his clothes and was now swearing a white T-shirt. Danny was sitting and eating looking pleased and Christina was eating holding her doll.

“Oh! I am flattered!” Emma replied to the compliment.

“No! no! I really mean it. The meat is wonderful… deserves the highest praise possible!” he uttered.

“Well,” Emma spoke. “What is your plan for tomorrow?” she addressed Charlie.

“So, today is Wednesday,” he said, “Tomorrow I shall begin work and this is a little sad because I was hoping to stay home till the rest of the week to have more time to get used to the place, you know,” he explained and put another piece of meat in the mouth.

“Yes, that would be great,” Emma agreed. “As for me, tomorrow I am planning to clean downstairs and if I have some free time, I am going to start planning design for my garden,” she continued.

“Kids,” Emma turned to the children, sipping her tea. “You should get as much sleep as you can. Use the opportunity while it’s still summer. School will start in three weeks and you’ll have to get up early and work hard again.”

“I want to sleep with Christina in her room,” Danny said.

“Nooo!” Christina vigorously objected. “No way! Why?”

“I am scared of cockroaches in my room,” Danny answered.

“You can still swap your rooms if you want. It is still not late to do,” Charlie suggested.

“No,” Christina objected to that idea as well. “Lucy and I are not eager to sleep neat to cockroaches,” she added.

“There was only one cockroach that we spotted,” Emma pointed out. “Only one.”

“That’s right. When I was cleaning the rooms, I didn’t see any more insects,” Charlie confirmed.

“Ok”, Emma had an idea. “Christina, please share your room with Danny one more night. I think it will be safer, I’m still a little apprehensive about the house. I think we need some more time to get used to it. But you will sleep on different beds,” she said. “Charlie, put Danny’s bed to Christina’s room, will you?”

“No problem,” Charlie replied.

“But Lucy doesn’t want it,” Christina butted in.

“Hah!” Emma exclaimed. “How do you know that?” she asked.

“She whispered to me,” Christina answered. “She can speak.”

“Oh, Christina! You have a wild imagination,” Emma told her and patted her on the head.

• • • • • •

“Good night,” Emma said and kissed Christina.

After that she came up to Danny and also gave him a goodnight kiss.

“Good night,” both children replied.

“Have sweet dreams,” Charlie, who was also in the room, wished them.

As agreed upon earlier, Danny and Christina were sharing the room but sleeping on different beds. Danny’s bed stood near the window and Christina’s in the far corner.

Christina didn’t let go of her doll and, of course, was going to sleep next to her.

Emma stroked the doll’s head and asked it, “Keep an eye on them.” Then, with a smile, she walked to the bedroom door.

When Emma was already standing at the doorstep next to Charlie, she turned around and said again, “Have sweet dreams!” After that Charlie switched off the light and they went out closing the door behind them.

Christina turned on her left side facing away from Danny and started falling asleep.

Lucy was sitting on her bed looking right at Danny. He could clearly see its face because the light from the moon penetrated into their room shedding some light upon the doll’s face.

Danny was staring at the doll. He got a little scared because the doll stared back at him. Danny could see its almost red hair, moronic smile and big blue eyes.

Danny was ready to close his eyes when suddenly he saw the doll move. At first, Danny couldn’t understand whether it was his imagination or the doll had really shifted to the side. He cautiously raised his head from the pillow and then again noticed how the doll blinked once.

CHAPTER 14

“Have a nice day!” Emma wished her husband and kissed him on the cheek.

Today was the first day at Charlie’s new job. He woke up earlier than usual to better prepare for the day. By 6 am, he had already taken a shower and had a shave. Emma was also up. She felt as if his nervousness had passed on to her. She wanted to do something nice for him to relieve his stress.

While Charlie was taking a shower, Emma was cooking him breakfast. She made a perfect cup of freshly ground coffee and cheese sandwiches.

“Thank you very much,” Charlie took her hand. “Well,” he said after a short pause, “I must be going.”

“Be careful,” Emma warned him and went to the front door to see him off.

“Bye,” Charlie shouted and left.

Like the day before, Emma rushed to the window in the guest bedroom downstairs to look at Charlie and wave him goodbye.

Charlie got in the car, caught a glimpse of his wife waving at him, smiled and waved her back. Then he started the engine and began to slowly back out of the driveway. Soon he was already driving on the highway.

Emma stepped back from the window, hesitated then walked towards the kitchen to make oatmeal for the children for breakfast.

In about 40 minutes, when Emma had already cooked the cereal, she heard some noises coming from upstairs.

Right away, Emma ran upstairs to check on the kids thinking, “What could have happened again?” With the same words she opened their bedroom door and entered.

“What happened?” she repeated.

In the room, she saw Christina sitting on her bed crying.

“What is wrong, Christina?” Emma asked.

“My Lucy got lost,” Christina was crying wiping her tears on the blanket.

“What do you mean ‘lost’?” Emma asked and began looking for the doll.

“I don’t know but yesterday, before I fell asleep, she was here next to me and today, when I woke up, she was already gone,” Christina sobbed.

“Christina, I think it is somewhere in the room, maybe it is lost under your blanket?” Emma supposed and raised the blanket hoping to find the doll underneath.

“It must be alive,” suddenly Danny said.

“Danny, don’t be silly!” Emma cut him short and bending kept searching Christina's bed for the doll.

“I am afraid it might be true,” Danny spoke and stared at his mother.

“Enough,” Emma stopped him. “Better tell me where that doll is, otherwise Christina won’t stop crying,” she added nervously.

“For the whole night I could hear it walking around the room,” Danny sounded scared. “And I was really afraid, I was sleeping with a blanket over my head.”

“Nooo! You are lying!” Christina didn’t believe him. “My Lucy is the best doll I’ve ever had.”

At that moment Emma guessed something. She stood up and went to Danny’s bed. She looked under it but didn’t see anything. After that she started searching silently under Danny’s blanket.

“I thought so!” she uttered at last and pulled out the doll from the foot of Danny’s bed.

“You are a liar,” Christina blamed her brother when she saw the doll in mother’s hands.

“Mummy!” Danny protested. “It is not true,” he added looking surprised. “I didn’t do it! It came to me.”

“Danny,” Emma told him disapprovingly. “Please, tell the truth! Why did you take the doll from Christina’s bed?”

After such accusation, Danny couldn’t hold back his tears and burst out crying.

Instantly, Christina ran up to his bed with the words, “Never! Never touch my Lucy again! She doesn’t want that.”

Emma gave the doll to Christina and sat down on Danny’s bed to comfort him.

“Danny,” she said. “I know that you both like this doll! But to steal it from your sister is an awful idea.” she added.

“Mummy! I didn’t do that. Please, believe me,” he said through tears.

Emma started stroking him on the head and finally said, “Would you like a new toy car?”

Danny wiped his tears and took a deep breath. Wiping his nose, he said, “Yes.”

“Good boy,” Emma told him and kissed him on the cheek. “Don’t cry, sweetie,” she added and gave him a hug.

“But! I swear that I didn’t do that! It came to me by itself,” he insisted.

“Lucy couldn’t have done that because she loves only me,” Christina said and went out of the room.

“At the weekend, we will buy a new toy car for you,” Emma promised Danny and kissed him again.

“Mummy!” he called.

“Yes?” Emma asked.

“Can I sleep in my room now?” Danny asked.

“Well,” she said, “If you think you want this, then, yes, you can! But only yesterday you told me that you were scared of cockroaches…” she continued.

“I want this,” he sounded determined. Then he hugged his mother back.

CHAPTER 15

Charlie parked his car in front of the hospital. He looked at himself in the rearview mirror, smoothed his hair and straightened the tie.

“Hello, Mr. Brown,” Charlie heard and turned his head to the left.

“Good morning, Thomas!” Charlie said cheerfully.

Without hesitation Charlie got out of the car and greeted his boss.

While they were shaking hands they exchanged the usual “How are you doing?”

“I am fine, thanks! Ready to begin work,” Charlie answered promptly.

“Let’s go then, Charlie,” Thomas said and added, “I have some news for you.”

“I am all ears,” Charlie replied smiling radiantly.

Charlie was sure that the news Thomas was going to break would be good. But it appeared that he was wrong.

“So, Charlie,” Thomas started when they entered his office.

“Yes?” uttered Charlie with a questioning tone in his voice.

“Remember you asked me about Lara Evans the other day? The one who used to work here and, unfortunately, went missing under strange circumstances?” Thomas asked sitting down in his office chair.

“Sure,” Charlie replied intrigued and also took a seat. “What did you find out?”

“Well, the local police put out a search for her and her daughter Brenda,” Thomas began to explain.

“And?” Charlie interrupted anxious to hear the end of the story.

“So,” Thomas kept telling, “Yesterday, in the middle of the night, she was found.”

“It is good news,” Charlie interrupted him again.

“I wouldn’t be so certain about that,” Thomas responded.

“Why? What happened?” Charlie asked.