Night of the Hunter

I woke up to hear Shannon knocking on my door. I opened it to find him dressed in day clothes, staring down at me with eyebrows raised again. It seemed to be a classical look of his. 

"Make breakfast for three, this morning," he told me. "Leave the food at the door at the end of the hallway. I left you a list of things I need you to get from the town on the counter. I expect you back by lunch."

I nodded and he ambled down the hallway, in the direction of the room I wasn't supposed to go into. I slipped back into my room, sighed, and set about getting myself ready for the day. Once I was finished, I moved out of the large room, down the hallway opposite the direction Shannon had gone, and down the stairs into the main body of the mansion. After a few minutes of exploring the first floor a little, I moved into the kitchen and ransacked the cabinets and the fridge. There was little to work with, but I found eggs and sausage and figured I could do with that. 

After about thirty minutes struggling to get a meal out of the meager portions, I finished with two solid meals of eggs, sausage, and grits. Whatever was left, I saved for myself to eat later. I then placed the two meals on a tray and carried them quickly and carefully upstairs and to the door of the room I was not to go into. 

I set the food down carefully, wondering if I should knock to let Shannon know that the food was here. As I paused, debating wether or not to knock, a muffled scream came from the other side of the door. I paused in terror, shock making my eyes wide. 

What was that?

I heard footsteps on the other side of the door, and, afraid of being caught where I wasn't supposed to be, I turned and began to run down the hall. I didn't stop until I reached the stairs, and I skipped down them two at a time, only coming to a full stop when I reached the kitchen. I grabbed the list of items to buy, grabbed a set of keys, and vaulted into the garage. There I stopped, and my jaw fell to the floor. 

Four beautiful, expensive cars sat side by side in this garage, gleaming and waiting to be driven. Although bits of dust and dirt flecked the bright paint, they were overall a shiny, bright color of red. A single, less conspicuous car sat behind the shiny red cars - a black charger that would probably still look out of place in the little New York town I had moved to. I moved over to it, inspecting it, and examined the seats as I opened the front door on the drivers side. They looked freshly scrubbed clean. 

I opened the garage door, got into the car, and drove out into the bright morning light. The forest was still today, and not a cloud painted the blue sky. Wisps of white twisted across it, offering little protection from the bright sunlight. I ignored it and started toward the town, which looked inviting after my strange excursion in the mansion. 

I pulled up to the market and glanced at the list. Gauze, medical tape, disinfectant, and a few other things needed for medical purposes glared up at me. Not a single thing for food, which caused me to sigh. I needed this job, but I couldn't do it if I had nothing to cook with. 

As I folded it away, a little card with a sticky note attached fell out onto my palm. The note said,

Christian;

This credit card is yours to use. Money for food and anything else I have you buy will automatically be transferred here, but feel free to use it for other things, because your salary is here, as well. Please, feel free to explore the town, but remember to be back by lunch. Happy shopping!

~Leto

I studied the card for a while, surprised, then detached the note explaining my condition and stepped out of the car. People stared openly at me, and I let my gaze fall to the floor as I hurried into the supermarket. 

"Can I help you with something, miss?" asked the guy standing behind the lone register. I moved toward him and handed him the list of things that I need, as well as the note explaining my condition. He eyed the latter, handed it back, and smiled at me. "I'll find these things right now. Feel free to look around; I'll call your name when I've got everything."

I nodded and grabbed a cart, ambling through the store finding groceries that the mansion needed. All types of bread, vegetables, fruits, and canned goods went into the cart. After some debating on what meats Shannon would want to eat, I eventually just grabbed a number of all kinds, tossed them into the basket, and moved toward the front of the store, which was now bustling with activity. 

"Change?" begged an old woman, leaning heavily on a man with long black hair and a beard. He sneered away from her and moved toward the counter. I eyed him distastefully and moved toward the old woman. Her eyes latched onto me and she smiled. 

"Oh, dear child! Dear girl! Thank you, thank you!" I stared down at her, bewildered. A wide grin split her face and she continued thanking me repeatedly. 

I backed away a little when the cashier called my name. I looked up, moved over to him quickly, and began setting my things on the counter. "You'll have to excuse Mrs. Richards. She hasn't been right since her husband died."

"Died!" the old woman scoffed. "Angels killed him!" I glanced back at her, then turned my attention to the cashier as he rolled his eyes. 

"As I said... Wow, this is a lot of food, miss. You're new here, right? Did you bring a large family with you?" Hope brimmed in his eyes and I shook my head sadly. Discouraged, he began packing the food away, then ringed the total up when he was done. Shock hit me at the large three digit number that came up. 

I handed him the card and he slid it through the credit card slot. Once the transaction was completed, he handed it back and placed my bags in the cart. "Do you need any help putting this in your car?" he asked. I shook my head and he smiled at me and nodded, turning to the man with the long black hair. A conversation began between them and I turned away. The woman moved closer to me, following me out of the store. 

"There's whispers here, girl, whispers of strange things..."

"Whispers!" scoffed the man with the black hair. I turned back to him in shock, having not realized he followed us out of the store. "No one around here believes such rumors, you old bat." She shot daggers at him with her glare but he ignored it. "Don't be spoiling the new girl's innocence with your strange tales, old woman."

She turned to me, knowledge in her eyes. "Whispers of angels, miss. Why, there's even one on your shoulder..."

"Stop that!" the man yelled, stepping in front of me and blocking my view of the old woman. "Enough with your nonsense. Leave the poor girl alone." The old woman cowered, hissing at him, and then she ambled away, casting dirty looks at him as she went. After he was sure she was gone, he turned to me, smiled, and grabbed a bag, moving toward the black charger. After a bit of hesitation, I unlocked the car, popped the trunk, and began packing things away. Once the trunk was full, he began putting things in the back seat, but as he opened the door, he paused and took a deep breath. I glanced at it in alarm, wondering if it smelled or anything; to me, it smelled like Lysol and other types of cleaner. 

"You recently cleaned this car," he noted. I relaxed in relief, nodding. I myself hadn't cleaned it, but he didn't need to know that, exactly. He paused thoughtfully, then continued to pack the backseat with the groceries. He then closed the door and took the cart from me. "My name is Tomo," he told me, smiling gently. I smiled back and held out my hand to shake his. He took it, kissed it, and began leading the cart away. I watched him go back to the store before moving toward the car. It was times like these that I wish I could speak, if only for a few seconds. 

I got into the car and started back toward the mansion in the hill, glancing at the time. It was closing in on twelve, and I frowned. When exactly was lunch time for Shannon? Did he have a preference?

I opened the garage and pulled into it, closing it again before unlocking and opening the car doors and the trunk. After estimating it would take me between three to five trips to get everything in the house, I grabbed the bags that held all the medical supplies and carried them in first, setting them on the table instead of the counters. 

"Christian?" Shannon called. He appeared at the door and eyed the bags carefully. "Are those the supplies I asked for?" I nodded and he moved toward them, but as he grabbed them I placed my hands over his, watching him with solemn eyes. "What?"

I looked above me, toward the second floor, an indicator that I knew something was going on up there. I had heard that scream; there was no way I could imagine something so heart jarring. He assessed me with pursed lips, and then he pulled away. I lifted my hands without protest and he moved away. 

"Don't ask questions. You'll know when or if I tell you." He left without another word, but then he reappeared. "Cook for three again, for the rest of the day."

I nodded and he moved away again, stomping up the stairs. Once he reached the second landing, the sound of his steps disappeared. I moved back to the garage to finish bringing in the groceries, and then I started to cook again. 

Later, at dinner, Shannon came to eat downstairs, and told me he would take the third dish of potato and sausage soup up to his study when he was done. I took my carefully written letter and placed it in front of him, waiting patiently for him to finish before I began to eat my own food. 

I cannot continue to work for you if you hold secrets like this. It's a pleasure working for you, sir, but my mother cautioned me to know everything before I got involved with this job. Unless you are willing to inform me within the next two days, I regret to inform you that I must ask for a ticket home.

"I see," Shannon said quietly, pushing the letter away. He thoughtfully dug into his soup, taking his time, and I slowly began to eat mine. When we were both finished, he said, "Get the third bowl ready. You'll come with me to take it up."

I nodded and moved toward the counter, filling up a bowl with the homemade recipe of potato and sausage soup. As I turned back to Shannon, carefully balancing the hot soup and grabbing a spoon, he said, "Don't make any sudden movements. Don't do anything strange. Just place the food on the table and back away to the door slowly. Don't leave unless I tell you, and whatever you do," he paused dramatically, turning toward the main body of the mansion and the stairs. 

"Don't cry."