The Incubus

Chapter 7, Scene 11

'It's dead, Justin!' Rebecca shouted into the receiver.

'Calm down, Becky,' Justin said over four hours' drive away. 'What are you talking about?'

'Lotus! He's dead!'

'Take a deep breath and tell me what happened.'

'I...I don't know. I wanted to feed him this morning and he just lay that the bottom of the cage.'

'Are you sure that the bird is dead?' Justin asked. 'It might just be sick or something.'

'His neck was completely twisted around,' Rebecca refuted Justin's argument.

'It's neck?'

'Someone killed our bird!' she raised her voice almost to a frantic scream. 'Someone came in here and killed our bird!'

'That's absurd, Becky,' Justin said while trying to keep his voice as calm and collected as he could manage. 'Who would break into our apartment just to kill a bird? And why? Was anything stolen? Is there any sign of forced entry?'

'I don't know,' Rebecca said. 'Justin, please come home. I'm really scared. I don't want to be alone anymore.'

Justin didn't say anything for a while. 'I can't come home,' he said. 'Why don't you visit Tanya until I get back? In fact, weren't you supposed to go to your parents' place for the week?'

'I don't want to go anywhere,' Rebecca said. 'I want you here with me.'

'I can't be there right now, baby.'

'Then I'm leaving,' Rebecca said. 'I can't take this anymore.'

'Are you going to your parents' place?'

Rebecca didn't answer.

'Becky?'

'Yes,' she said. 'I'm going.'

'When will you be back?'

'I warned you before,' she said. 'I'm not coming back.'

'You're kidding,' Justin said. 'Becky, you know that we both need me to have this job. We discussed this, remember? Short-term pain for long-term gain.'

'Goodbye Justin.'

'Becky, I...'

The line cut with an abrupt click.