“Manny.”
He stops in the hall upon hearing the eerie voice.
“Manny.”
There it is again.
He goes into their bedroom.
“Did you call me?” he asks, looking over at the bed where his wife lay, but Serena is sleeping.
He goes down the hallway to the living room.
“Who’s there?” he calls out.
He doesn’t see anyone, though.
“That’s strange. I could have sworn someone called my name.”
****
The next morning, Manny explains to his wife about hearing the voice. Serena thinks it’s strange because she didn’t hear anything. At eight months pregnant, she is moving slower but refuses his help. She pushes the baskets with her feet into the laundry room. He retreats into his man cave, understanding her silence.
As Serena prepares to go to the store, a pain radiates at her side and around to her back. She gasps, grabbing the end of the couch. She doesn’t want to ask for any help from him after what he did the day before. Trying to forgive him for his episodes of rage is getting harder.
The pain shoots through her back again. Clutching her stomach, she tries to walk to the basement door.
“Manny.”
He doesn’t answer her. She opens the door.
“Manny!”
No answer.
Holding on to the railing, she takes a step down as pain grips her stomach. Serena rounds the stairs and stops.
“What are you doing?” Her hands cover her mouth, eyes growing wide as she watches Manny scrambling to cover himself and his computer screen.
“Why did you come down here?” he growls.
Tears run down her face as she grabs the railing.
“Why are you looking at such filthy things?” Another pain hits, and her knees try to buckle, but she holds her ground. “You are disgusting, watching young girls in that way. Who were you talking to?”
He reaches for her, but she backs away.
“Let me explain.”
“No. I’m tired of you and this marriage. I’m leaving.”
Holding her stomach, she goes back up the stairs. Manny panics. He fixes his clothes while running to catch her.
“You not leaving me! I won’t allow it.”
Holding on to the wall, Serena makes it to the top and over to the kitchen table where she takes a seat. The pain is coming more. She needs to stay calm. She tries leaning back in the chair and taking slow, deep breaths while rubbing her stomach.
Manny blocks her legs so she can’t get up.
“Did you hear me? I won’t let you leave me. You are my wife, and you belong to me.”
Looking up at him, she replies, “I don’t want a pedophile for a husband, and I definitely don’t want you around my child.”
He grabs her by the throat. “You think you can talk to me just any kind of way? Think again.”
Serena struggles to get away. He lets her go with a sudden backhand. Her head swings to the right, and she scoots back in the chair, trying to put distance between them.
Baring his teeth, Manny snarls, “Where do you think you’re going?”
Serena scoots one more time before she hears music playing. The same music from the music box Manny gave her to convince her to forgive him once again.
Why is it playing? No one opened it.
Both turn and look in the direction of the music.
“Why is that thing playing?” he asks, glancing back at Serena, but she stays quiet.
Just then, a creepy voice comes from the hall. “Manny.”
Serena stands up and moves by the basement door.
The voice speaks again. “Manny, you are a bad husband.”
He backs up toward his wife.
“You must pay.”
He turns around to see a woman in a dirty dress with gray skin and long nails.
“Who the hell are you?” he demands, puffing out his chest and trying not to look scared.
As the woman slowly approaches him, they both notice that her feet are not touching the ground. Serena feels another pain and starts moving down the hall to the front door. Manny tries to follow as the first slash comes down his back. He screams.
Serena stops and turns around, but the voice tells her to go. Manny screams again. The slashing continues as the music plays. He tries to crawl away from the woman but doesn’t get far. Her sharp nails inflict more cuts as he continues to fight and scream.
Serena makes it out of the house and to the car. When she turns to look back, she sees the woman in the window. The woman smiles. The music stops.
CHAPTER FOUR
Terri Anderson locks her front door and heads out to run errands before her daughter arrives home from school. After paying all the bills, she decides to stop by the Goodwill on 86th Street before picking up groceries. She isn’t looking for anything in particular but wants to survey the different racks of items. While looking, she sees a beautiful music box on a table by itself. Terri selects some shirts, a skirt, and a purse, then walks back over to the box and takes it with her.
Once she arrives home, Terri places the music box on her daughter’s dresser, then calls her babysitter to confirm she is available for the night.
****
Ashley, the babysitter, pushes the microwave buttons, and the popcorn bag starts to turn. It fully inflates until the light goes off and the microwave beeps. After removing the popcorn, she opens the bag and blows away the steam before taking a few kernels and pitching them in her mouth. Her cell rings.
“Hey, Mom,” Ashley answers, then replies to her mother’s question. “No, Mom. I told you this is just temporary until I can afford to start the spring semester.” She pours the popcorn from the bag into a bowl. “Who’s the family? I’m babysitting for the Andersons tonight.”
Ashley turns off the light in the kitchen and walks toward the living room. The beginning of Jed Kruder is playing in the background.
“Did you check the house?” her mother asks.
“Yes. I made sure all the
