Run and Hide

Chapter Nine

Grabbing the morning newspaper off the table, dad looked at me with a concerned look. "You look tired, did you sleep?" I nodded, pretending that everything was okay. "I am well rested, don't worry about me." He smiled, walking toward the kitchen.

"Dane and Nicole are acting weird, like they are hiding something from us." Mom nodded; she saw what dad did. "I see it too, but we should not interfere. Nicole is fighting her demons, at least Dane is there for her. They may not want to involve us just yet, and I understand." Dad crossed his arms, he wanted to know what we knew. Dad has always been the one we confided in, but we could not involve him.

"I'll leave it alone for now, but if I see anything out of the ordinary, I will intervene." Mom rolled her eyes as she mixed the flour and eggs in a bowl, she was prepping for pancakes. The smell of crispy bacon and sausage drew everyone to the table, mom smiled. "Pancakes are going in the skillet, go ahead and get your drinks poured and ready."

A stack of steaming, fluffy pancakes were placed in the middle of the table. "Everyone, grab two and don't forget your protein." As plates were being made, we waited to say grace. "Dig in."

Pulling apart my pancake, I saw a red substance pour out the side. I jumped back, my chair falling backward. As I sat up, everyone was staring. "Can I be excused?" I asked. Dane helped me to my feet, he looked concerned. "Are you okay?" I grinned, "I am fine, my mind just got the best of me." Dane followed me up to my room, I explained what I saw and what scared me. "It was only syrup, nothing out of the ordinary. Some rest might help." He said before leaving me alone.

I laid in bed for a while, tossing and turning was all I could do. When rest was impossible, I always had options on what to do. I did not want anyone to know I was awake, so I climbed out my balcony window and headed toward the garden. "Why do we attract spirits?" I asked, taking a seat on the bench. "The home was built on a burial ground; spirits can bend the rules with ease."

Lilac looked up into the sky, she guided my head to where she was pointing. "Do you see those dark, puffy clouds hanging out above the house?" I looked up for a few minutes, the sky was different. It was not blue, nor grey, it was almost black. "That is an indication that your land is a burial ground."

While Lilac went into detail about spirits, I needed to know more. Questions began to flood my head, and she saw it. "Why don't you help me with the garden, and I will let you pick my brain." I nodded, grabbing the watering bucket.

"Why can you see orbs in pictures? Are movies about spirits and the paranormal accurate? How do Ouija boards allow us to speak to the dead? Are mediums real? And if so, how are they able to connect, see and speak to spirits without an actual way into the spirit world?" I spit out over the next hour, tending to the garden with Lilac.

She answered every question I had with ease. I also talked to her about Amon, even though he was human, she had some insightful advice I kept in mind, and I would share it with Dane. Finishing our conversation, Lilac had to leave for the day, I thanked her and climbed back up the balcony to my room.

"Trap Amon, then have him arrested. That is the only way he can stop hurting innocent people. Got it." I said to myself.

"Kids, let's go get some ice cream." Dad yelled; footsteps followed his voice immediately. Dane and I walked by the front door, we wanted to help Dad get them ready to go for the day. "Dane, Nicole, do you want to tag along?" We both politely decline. "Suit yourselves. We will also be walking around the mall for a few hours, see you in a while." Watching Dad back out of the driveway, I start talking over a plan with Dane.

A small knock at the door made both our heads turn, Amon was home. I walked off into the other room, Dane was holding a book in front of his face, pretending to read. Amon found his way in through the window, he had the blood red mask on. "It has been a while, Dane. I did not think I would be able to find you again, but here I am."