ECHO [Rewritten - NaNoWriMo '16]

Chapter 4: The House Guest

I ran a hand over my face – avoiding the swelling black eye – before reaching into my pocket to grab the house key. I unlocked the front door, slipped inside, and three the keys into the bowl beside the door. There was a soft click of boots behind me, a soft hiss from a cat. I don't even bother to turn on the lights as I head into the kitchen.

I sighed heavily, coming to a stop, turning towards her. I crossed my arms and kept my guard up. Scarl – no, Echo – stood there. While she no longer had the gun in her hand, I didn't doubt that she could easily take me down if need be. There was a soft thump beside me and I felt fur brush against my bare arm. I flinched, watching the silhouette of Echo as she moved towards the wall. There was a flick and light flooded the kitchen. Echo stood before him in a grey tank top, with baggy jeans, and boots. Her long blonde hair was pulled back from her face, which was scrubbed clean of all makeup. She cocked her head, "Did you not remember our deal?"

"After today, I was kind of hoping that you were just going to disappear from my life actually," I stated.

"Sadly, for both of us, I need you in order to get revenge against someone. Plus, you need me to help you figure out what happened to your sister." She wrinkled her nose. "And I happen to owe you."

"Why do you owe me?"

"Because, in your own silly way, you helped me get out of jail." Echo said, her voice snide. The cat snarled on the counter.

"What in the hell is that thing?" I finally asked, unable to help myself.

"Paiute, my familiar. Be nice."

I rubbed my forehead and groaned heavily, "Alright. I give. There's a basement that you can use."

"Got it," Echo said, smiling brightly.

"But please, make sure when you exit and enter the house that no one sees you," I said, "I really don't need the Chief asking why I am housing a murder suspect."

"I'm not stupid, shizcoff," Echo snapped. She spun on her heel, Paiute leaping gracefully off the counter to land on her shoulder. I noticed the tattoo of the number 3 on her left shoulder. I blinked and she was gone.

The house was silent except for the hum of the AC and the chirping of the crickets that were irritatingly common in Arizona. It was near dawn, a steaming cup of coffee in my hand. While I did try to sleep, it was hard when there was some strange woman in my basement. With a fucking familiar. I had googled it after I left, and the fact that it was a demon that was obeying a witch did not bring any sort of comfort. Morning did not come soon enough, and neither did the sixth cup of coffee.

I hadn't seen a strand of the blonde hair since last night, and I was honestly curious as to what the young woman was doing. Still holding my coffee, I headed over to the hallway, the slippers on my feet making soft scuffling noises. The door to the basement was slightly ajar. The hinges hissed as I opened it to slide through. The light was still on, illuminating the wooden stairs. I reached the last step, looking around. Previously, I had furnished it in the hopes of making it a private space to escape the world outside. But life had happened and I didn't get to finish. It was sparsely furnished with a couch, a couple chairs, and a table. The new leather scent still filled the space.

Echo was asleep on the couch, curled on her side. Her long hair hung over the side of the couch, the strands just whispering against the floor. The 3 ominous on her shoulder. Sitting like a statue on the gentle rise of her hip was Paiute. His green eyes almost glowing as he watched me. I looked away to see an impressive arsenal on the table. Two Glocks, a set of six sharpened knives, half a dozen belts, and two whips – one crop and one cat o'nails – along with a screwdriver and a bag of nails. A pile of small notebooks lay next to it, I walked over and picked up the first one. Inside it was filled with names, first and last, along with the date. The next notebook had a list of countries and cities, along with the dates. The next information, scribbled here and there. It probably made complete sense to her, but to me it looked like gibberish. Especially since only half was in English.