Nerves felt rattled beyond words, and those within the room held their breaths to find out what Nora had to interpret of whatever cards she would pick from the deck. She laid them out in the same Crescent Cross that seemed to bother Laura badly, before slowly hovering her hand over the entire lot and halting on the first card at the top of the cross.
She flipped it over gently, bringing to light a card bearing a cloaked image with no face, drawing some degree of unrest from Lama as she adjusted in her seat.
“That’s a good sign right?” she asked, knowing something about the card was odd.
Nora ignored her, almost as though she could not perceive those around at that point in time, to flip open another. The next card drew out an image of darkened clouds with lightening slicing through them, as Muzin bit his fingers hard and well and looked to Laura who watched the girl keenly.
“The hooded figure can be anyone, but he is coming”, Nora muttered in a rather odd tone of voice. “On a day the clouds will weep, your fate shall come to past”.
Lama upped herself from her seat as Nora shot her a stern look and commanded her to sit back without having to use her words. She flipped open the third card and slowly looked back up at Laura with somewhat disturbing flickers in her eyes.
“I don’t think I want to do this anymore”, Nora suddenly seemed to gain her consciousness and dragged herself out from the persona she had been working with.
Lama sighed in exhaustion, while Laura looked at the girl sternly.
“We should take a break”, Nora demanded as she got out from her seat to go and put on the lights.
Daren sighed exhaustively and smiled at Naomi. “That was freaking scary”.
Naomi seconded his words with a nod, even while she wasn’t at all terrified by anything that had occurred.
“Why didn’t she open the third card for us to see?” Naomi asked Laura.
Laura shrugged her shoulder, motioning towards the table when Muzin walked past her and yanked at the unopened card his daughter had refused to open. He flipped it over and gasped in fright, with widened eyes and widely open mouth.
“No!” he muttered, prompting everyone to run back to where he stood.
His face suddenly whitened and his eyes veered towards Lama where she stood taking some water from a bottle in her hand.
“Nora”, her father called out to her.
Nora turned around slowly and clenched her fists nervously as she looked into her father’s eyes. Muzin held out the card he had picked up with the image of the Grimm Reaper on it, too scared to ask in words what it meant, as he hoped his daughter would tell him something soothing.
“I don’t want to do this anymore”, Nora pleaded, before racing up the stairs.
Those in the living room exchanged bewildering gazes with one another, while Laura relieved the card from Muzin and returned it to the deck.
“We need her to come back and finish the readings, or we are all going to die”, Laura let out the pretty disturbing words without blinking.
Muzin felt his lower jaw drop and his fists clench tighter as he cursed the fact he permitted the woman entrance into their house. A loud rumbling followed by really troubling flashes of lightning made everyone cower in fear, while Lama jetted for the door and made a run outside the house immediately.
“Lama!” Muzin yelled after his wife.
Naomi looked at Laura and noticed a sneer on the woman’s face that made her stomach crawl in discomfort.
“What exactly is your end game?” she thought to herself.
***
Muzin slid towards the bed slowly and without making his presence known as the lady crouched with her head in her hands and the muffled sounds from cries airing aloud. He paused momentarily, hearing something behind him and prompting him to look back but without any view of a person tailing him.
“Lama”, he called out, startling his wife.
Lama sat up hurriedly and wiped her face before turning around to beckon on her husband with a subtle smile.
“Yes?” she asked, trying hard to chuck away the obvious paranoia lining her eyes and trembling lips.
Muzin approached. Sighing exhaustively as he planted himself into bed by her side. They locked gaze momentarily, but felt too stiff and lost to utter any words. Everything about what had ensued was worrisome not just for her, but to him too. It felt like dejavu and as much as his daughter remained innocent and unknowing of how things had transpired in the past, he was worried sick that the little practice might doom them all.
“Are you scared?” Lama asked her husband.
Muzin shrugged, sighed again and looked to his feet. “I have lived in fear from the first time I saw those cards, and seeing them again only reinforces that fear beyond anything I can say”.
Lama sighed too and nodded her head. “What happens now?”
Muzin wasn’t sure answering the question would bring any good and he decided to keep his response to himself. For now, at least, they were all safe and as far as he could wish, his daughter might be wrong from being an inexperienced tarot card reader.
“We will put an end to the card thing by tonight and nothing of such will prevail in this house any longer”, he assured her.
Lama bobbed her head gladly and seemed to sigh out in relief.
“Insha Allah, we are protected and Allah will continue to have us under his covering”, he smiled.
“Insha Allah!” Lama smiled.
Muzin felt the smile he intended for his wife stiffen before it even grew, while his mind wandered off to the last card his daughter refused to flip open.
“Why didn’t she flip it open>?” he
