Viscious 2: Cult of Kellan

Home.

         The driver makes small talk as he drives, and I politely engage. He seems to know who I am, but he doesn't address it. This makes me feel much more comfortable. The man looks back to me occasionally, and I notice he appears nervous. He chews his gum aggressively and taps his hand on the wheel as he steers. The hair on my arm begins to stand, and I can't wait just to get home then back safely in Dallas's room. He is fresh, repositioned and I have the nurses on guard for him, but I can't fathom the idea of him alone in there. I text Sean again to let him know I'm on my way home.

         "Are you texting?" I raise my head to respond.

         "Yes. Yes I am. I'm not driving, so I figured I was safe to text." I chuckle, going for a bit of humor when I really want to ask him why it is his business.

          "True! I prefer you stop, because it can mess with my GPS." A lie.  There's no way I believe that.

           "I'm finished now. Besides, I can tell you exactly how to get there. Even a quicker route than GPS might take you. Go left up here." He chuckles too, but it is laced with anxiety.

            "Nice neighborhood, few neighbors."

             "I have close neighbors, I live farther out than this area. You'll go to the end of this road and then right. I'm the third house down." I scrutinize his reaction as I mention the neighbors. He almost seems bothered, and that bothers me.

            "Don't like neighbors?"

            "No...um...it's not that. Actually I'm fighting a sneeze. I can feel it, but it hasn't come yet. Driving me crazy..." He dramatically wrinkles his nose and I simply narrow my eyes. This man is not trustworthy. He gives me the jitters. Weird ass.

           "Allergies, hmm?"

           "Yeah. Not used to all the pollen here."

           "You aren't from around here? How long have you been working here?"

          "No, from the next county over. I've worked here several weeks now."

          "Which county?" I go for the kill.

           "Are you comfortable? I can turn the air on."

           "I'm comfortable, thank you. I'm not the one sweating though. Are you sure it's not an allergic reaction instead of allergies? You may turn the air on if it makes you feel better." I pull up my phone again to steal a picture of the driver's face in the rear view mirror while he's not paying attention.

           I immediately send it to Sean and Regina, then hurriedly text how creepy he is. This late in the game, I have decided to be safe rather than sorry. This way I have documentation and a witness, even if I am alone. I clear the message and photo off on my end out of paranoia. I also decide to turn on my location. I notice him glancing back at me, and I stiffen and ignore my cell. Once he seems satisfied, I pull up the app to check my home cameras.

          Nobody is in the driveway. Only our cars are there. I thumb through the rooms, one by one, until I settle on Dallas's home office. I have to contain a gasp as I see Dallas Sr. rummaging through paperwork in the file cabinet. Red hot fury rises in me, like pouring hot tea into a mug, and I text Sean telling him when he gets a chance to replay the camera footage. I intend to replay it myself and save it on another file as soon as I am back in the hospital room. I just want to know why he's in our house, and what he's up to. "Don't trust dad", Riley had said. Maybe she really is trying to help me.