Chapter nine

"What?! But... But..." I said in response. 

I became speechless after hearing that from old Magritte. 

Why?! Why me?! Why would Henry sleep with me at that kind of period of time? 

Why at the midnight of Halloween? Why so? 

Didn't he know the kind of a place that we live in?! Isn't he aware of all the sayings of the oldies of the town? 

But then again... Why is anything happening to Henry? Why am I the only one seeing evil things and he sees nothing. 

How come he wasn't affected by what we both did. 

I turned, questioningly, to old Magritte. 

"How come my husband isn't being affected by all this?" I asked curiously. 

It's not like I wanted anything to happen to him but I just needed to know why he wasn't being affected by it all. 

"The one that suffers most is the one carrying the demon child in the womb." Old Magritte replied. 

"So nothing is meant to happen to the man?" I asked. 

"Young one, pay more attention to my words. I said 'suffer most'. I didn't say the man won't suffer." Old Magritte replied. 

"Okay, so what is my husband suffering? Are any evil beings torturing him too and he is hiding it from me?" I asked. 

"Your husband isn't being harmed or affected in any way." Old Magritte answered. 

"This is confusing." I said to her. 

"I thought you had said that..." I said. 

"Yes I did." Old Magritte replied, cutting me off. 

"But then why did you say my husband isn't suffering their wrath?" I asked. 

"That question isn't for me to answer and I advice you don't ask your husband about it either." Old Magritte replied. 

"But why?" I asked. 

"I can't tell you anything concerning that aspect." Old Magritte said. 

I was a bit surprised by her answer and just kept looking without saying a word. 

"You may leave. I have answered all your questions. I have nothing further to say about this." Old Magritte said. 

"Didn't you lock me in with yourself?" I asked, remembering that I had heard her lock the door. 

"I did. And that's the key over there." She said, pointing at a skull on her table.

What sort of a problematic situation have I gotten myself in? 

After all she had exposed me to, she still had to put keys on a skull. 

I walked to where the table was to take it. I didn't see any key and I returned to her. 

"I didn't see any key." I said to her.

She looked at me and then got up from the sofa. 

"Follow me." Old Magritte said. 

I followed her as she walked towards the table. 

She took the skull and dipped her hand into it. 

I saw some sticky looking substances attached from inside the skull to her hand as she removed her and from inside the skull. 

I almost puked at the site of it. So this was what she wanted me to do? That's so disgusting. 

Even after giving me all this horrific news, she ends up sending me to bring out a key from such a disgusting thing?! 

"Now that you've seen where the key is, next time you go and get it on your own." Old Magritte said. 

"Yes madam." I answered her. 

Sorry Magritte, but after all I had seen and heard here, there is really no coming back to this dump. 

But wait a minute, I had not even seen her walk to the table to keep the key there before. 

Could it be that she had some sort of extraordinary powers? 

I quick scrubbed that off my mind as I remember I had gotten lost looking at the way her house was worst on the inside then on the outside.

That was probably when she got up and kept the key in the skull. 

I noticed Old Magritte wanted to hand the key over to me. I pretended not to have noticed her attempt and went to pick up the portrait of 'She', which I had come with. 

Old Magritte walked to the door and opened it. 

I got out of her house and was about to leave. But then she started saying something to me and I had to stop. 

"Don't be scared of the skull. It's not allowed to go near you. And as for the key incident whoch you had seen back there, I hadn't put the old key there. I never got up." Old Magritte said. 

"Then how did the key get in the skull?" I questioned. 

"They would come in if I used the same key. The skull makes new keys every time it take one out for use." Old Magritte said. 

Before I could even say a word more, Old Magritte shut the door at my face. 

Well this is a lot to take in. 

I walked down her porch and up to my car. 

I dropped the portrait in the booth of my car and started my long drive back to my house. 

I looked out of my car window before leaving and I saw the shadow of old Magritte appear and vanish on her window. 

Surprisedly, my drive home was a peaceful one just like when I had drove to Old Magritte's house. 

Thank goodness I didn't get attacked this time. 

I got down from my car and put the portrait back into the old barn exactly how it was before I had taken it out. 

I turned around and saw and old man standing behind me right at the entrance to the barn. 

I freaked out at first, not expecting that someone would be there behind me. 

I calmed down only after knowing it was just an old man. 

Oh my, what if he is the owner of the barn. 

Now he has caught me hanging back something I had taken off without his permission. 

"Good day sir." I greeted. 

The old man didn't respond and just kept staring at me. 

I felt uneasy by the way he kept staring at me without saying a word to me. 

I wanted to leave so I waked to he door and passed him to the outside of the barn. 

I sighed and started walking to where I had stopped my car. 

"What were you doing with she's portrait?" The old man suddenly spoke up. 

My heart made a sudden stop when I heard his question and again I became scared. 

"N... Nothing but sir. It was tilted so... I set it straight." I lied. 

I realized that what I had made a stupid excuse. 

Who would go into such a dirty old barn to set straight a portrait that was tilted. 

Plus, I had put it exactly how I had seen it. Which means it was still tilted. 

"It is still tilted young lady. And it appears you are not a good liar at all." The old man said to me. 

My heart starred to beat faster than it normally does and I stood behind him like a statue. 

Yes, he hadn't turned around all this while since I had passed him. 

"I had asked you what you were doing with she's portrait and you lied. But now I want to know this truth. How did you know her name was 'she'?" The old man said to me. 

I felt a ball form in my throat and no matter how many times a swallowed, it wouldn't go down. I hated being in that sort of state. 

But if this man knows 'She', then it's possible he could have the solution to my problem. 

"I had seen that demon twice." I said to him. 

The old man turned around and looked me square in the face. 

" 'She' is was not like that before. 'She' is what you would call, demon by deceit." The old man replied. 

"What do you mean?" I asked, letting my curiousity show. 

"Go and park your car and return to me on foot." The old man said. 

I wasn't sure I wanted to do so but I had to know more, so I took the chance. 

I got into my car and drove to my house, got it parked at its usual spot and then started my walk back to the old man. 

I reached there and saw he was still waiting for me. 

"Follow me." The old man said. 

He walked along a lonely footpath and I followed him from behind. 

The deeper we got, the more I got scared and felt like a demon was going to pounce on me at any given moment. 

We were already very deep into the bushes when the old man stopped at a little hut. 

Is this where he lived? Why the hell would an old man live in such a location where there is only one road to and from his house? 

This doesn't feel right. 

The old man gestured for me to come into the hut but I felt uneasy about it. 

"Thank you sir but I'm okay where I am." I replied. 

He went into the hut and after some minutes, he came out with two chairs. 

I collected them from him and set them for us both to sit. 

He sat down and his and I sat on mine. 

"So... You were going to tell me more about 'She'?" I asked. 

"Yes, but first have something to eat." The old man said. 

"I'm okay sir. I just want to know about 'She' I replied. 

He looked disappointed after I rejected his over but decided to just speak about 'she'.