Jokers child

The Week After

The week after I saw the deck of cards under Lucy's day time crib was a very strange week. I'd leave things somewhere one minute and the next minute it would be gone, in another place, it happened with phones, bottles, keys and remotes. I was for sure I was going crazy, well technically I'm certified insane, but that's not what I mean. Well I mean it is but it isn't at the same time.
What do you mean, Harley?
I mean things move-
Inanimate objects don't move
People move them
Who?
Shut up!

I asked my neighbor, Mrs. Blight, an elderly women, if she knew of anything strange happening around the neighborhood.
"Well sweetie," We were sitting on her porch, she was holding Lucy and drinking some hot tea, "I haven't seen or heard any tosh around here lately, now I do tell you," She stopped to take a sip of tea. "there is a little raccoon around here."
"He wouldn't come inside my house." I said, he also wouldn't leave a deck of cards under Lucy's crib, well I'd hope not.
"You never know, the animals around here make me get lost in a plot," She looked at me, I didn't have a clue what that meant, I haven't caught up on the British slang yet. Except rubbish, I love that word. "I'm sorry dear, they make me lose my mind," She laughed a little, sounded like a creaky noise, but like a laugh too.
Lucy's eyes were wide open, she was watching Mrs. Blight's earrings dangle and sparkle in the sun, she had so much hair now. And loved sitting in the sunlight.
"Well alright," I finally said, I shouldn't worry about something, I was probably just losing my mind. Again. I stood. "Thanks for the information, Mrs. Blight." I held my hands out for Lucy.
She smiled and stood, placing Lucy in my arms, "My pleasure, Little mother, take mighty good care of Lucy."
I laughed, "With my life."

I was warming up Lucy's bottle for dinner, she was shaking some rattle in her day crib, Julia Child was in tv again.
"Well Luc Luc, your dinner is almost done, you can pig out and then mama can too." I turned around and she was looking at me, shook her rattle, and laughed.
I laughed too, "What? Is that your dinner bell?" I laughed again, she's gonna be funny, just like me.
Grabbing a over mitt I pulled the bottle out of the pot, tested it on my wrist, not too hot but not cold either.
I set it aside and grabbed the pan of potatoes, asparagus, and slices of beef in a butter sauce and put it into the over. Thirty minutes then cover for another twenty. Thanks to Julia Child for that recipe.
Feeding Lucy was easy, just hold the bottle, she does all the rest. It's nice, she gets all warm and snug, which is a good feeling, because she falls asleep right after too. Which is usually before my dinner is done.
"Oh Lucy, we're going to have so much fun when you get bigger, and learn to walk and do all kinds of gymnastics stuff." I looked down at her green eyes, she stretched one hand out to me, and I could just picture her landing a back hand spring with her arms perfectly pointed and a big smile.
Like the Jokers smile?
No.
Please never!
Father like daugh-
Don't you say it.

She grunted, that's when I noticed that she had finished the bottle, wow. She was getting faster at this. Lucy burped easily and, after changing into a night onesie, feel asleep quite peacefully.
Then all of a sudden the phone rang, strange, it's almost nine o'clock.
Well at least I didn't lose it today.
"Hello?"
The voice that answered sounded panicked, almost chocked, and hoarse.
"You better run.
The quicker the better.
You better run.
Run, run away from this place.

You better hide.
You better hide.
Quick, you should be hiding now.
Hide, hide from this place.

There's no place for you.
There's no place for you here.
There's not place for someone like you.

You don't have to be here."
Then followed by a gasping sound and a pled, some blood curdling noise, then the phone went dead.
I sat there, holding the phone to my ear, looking at myself in the reflection of my kitchen window.
"Oh god."
I started mumbling, "Can't be. Nope. Can't. How? No, it's cant. But it can." And then the voices started again. One by one they all went off inside my head, over and over again, until I felt like I was drowning.
But what if it is?
Why in heavens would it be?
Wouldn't be, you mean.
It can and certainly is.
My dinner is going to burn.
Who?
I was sitting on the floor holding my head, it had been twenty minutes, didn't feel that way, but the oven was going off now.
It triggered an idea.
I headed upstairs to the attic, climbed around for a moment until I found it, and old circus looking traveling case. Popping it open, after swearing to stick with roller derbies only, and looked over all my old weapons. And my favorite mallet, perfectly perched on top, untouched.
Something inside me felt different, renewed, and the fear was gone.