Red Herring ✔️

44. Curiosity Killed the Cat

7 Days to Halloween

The first thing that Mazie noted was the green shag carpet which dated back beyond Mazie's birth. Although it was in mint condition - no pun intended - it had probably seen better days and was well past an update. The air smelled like fresh baked cookies and moth balls, an unpleasant mixture that reminded her of nursing homes and death. Somewhere in the house, a grandfather clock chimed the announcement of a new hour which caused Mazie and Christian to glance at their phones and watches.

As perfect strangers to this unknown part of town, Mazie and Christian stalled in the foyer, awaiting instruction for their shoes and belongings. Their kind and over exuberant hostess ditched them when the alarm sounded to remove the cookies from the oven. Thankfully, their solitude provided them with a private moment to case the house.

The second thing that Mazie noticed was the lack of a television. In this day and age, almost everyone owned a television, even the elderly. Although they wandered out of town to the countryside of Oregon, she didn't expect to pick up on so many signs of exclusion. In addition to the lack of live entertainment, the absence of books, magazines, and newspapers triggered another red flag. In fact, the space was so immaculately clean that it seemed like no one even lived there.

The clanging in the kitchen made Mazie jump and Christian laid his hand on her shoulder to steady her. He moved thoughtfully, taking into considering the bruises that hindered his movements. He suffered from high doses of pain meds so Mazie drove them out to this location. Christian slumbered peacefully beside her, relaxing with the assistance of seat warmers. She watched him carefully, and when he wasn't looking, she studied the cuts and bruises on his face. Still, not an ounce of his handsomeness diminished underneath the marred skin. Indeed, he was more ruggedly attractive than ever.

"I'm coming! Sorry!" The woman creating all the noise in the kitchen resurfaced at the entrance to the foyer where the green shag carpet met the gold tile floor. "May I take your coats?"

Mazie was about to agree when Christian declined. "That's okay. We won't be staying long. So she isn't here?" He asked, rocking back on his heels.

The elderly woman, Ms. McCormick of the dearly departed Mr. Eli McCormick, sadly shook her head. "No, deary. Mary Ann had prior engagements. Did she know you were coming to visit?" Assuming they would follow, Ms. McCormick scuffled along to the sitting room with brown suede sofas in immaculate condition for being about forty years old give or take a decade. In the seating area, her shaky hands fumbled with a lamp on a glass side table, and eventually she grabbed hold of the nozzle and twisted it, flooding the room with unnatural yellow light.

Lying through his teeth, Christian sat across from the older woman in a leather armchair. "We thought we mentioned it, but maybe we forgot. That's our fault. We're sorry for intruding."

Her lips pulled back in a neat smile to reveal pristine white dentures. "Not a problem. You know Mary Ann from school?"

"Yes," Mazie answered. "I have a few classes with her. We've connected lately on mutual interests."

"And how do you know my granddaughter?" Ms. McCormick aimed the question at Christian.

Smiling sweetly, Christian reached over and weaved his hand around Mazie's and laid their interlocked appendages in her lap. "Anything my girlfriend cares about, I care about."

Practically giggling like a small schoolgirl, Ms. McCormick swatted the air, batting away Christian's charm. "Oh, you. That's so sweet. I love to see young love. You know it's hard to come across genuine love nowadays. I can see how you look at her. It seems you share something real."

Laughing awkwardly at her honest approach to their relationship, Mazie shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Christian imperceptibly squeezed her fingers to soothe her frazzled nerves from all the fibbing. "That's us. So....genuine. I told Christian that I was worried about Mary Ann considering all she's been through. He agreed that we should try to check on her and offer her a shoulder to lean on in this difficult time."