Masks

Chapter 9

Three days later and the normalcy and joy I'd gotten from being around my friends crumbled. Alice hadn't shown up for work for several days and didn't answer the phone when our boss called to find out why- and she was a persistent lady. Being the only one to ever hang out with her outside of work, plus being the only one with the day off, meant I was the one they asked to go check up on her. It hadn't taken long to drive to her small house in the rundown section of town.

I walked up to the door and ignored the yard that was beginning to look overgrown. Nothing seemed out of place other than the lack of attention to the grass, the door was shut and didn't show signs of breaking and entering, and the window to the side was closed without even a crack in the dusty glass. I knocked, waited for a minute, and knocked again.

No answer, not even a sign of movement from inside the house. A bad feeling started to rise up in my stomach as I tried the questionably functioning doorbell. "Alice? Hey, are you home?"

I looked at the gravel drive; her car was the only one parked there. "Alice, come on! Why aren't you answering the phone? People at work are getting worried- this isn't like you!"

Despite my shouts the door still remained unanswered and I still couldn't hear anyone moving around inside. The cold feeling of dread crept through me as I made my way to the back of the house and walked up to the back door. This time when I knocked the door swung open freely on its hinges to reveal a trashed house. I slowly stepped inside.

"Alice...?" I called out, hoping for anything other than the deathly silence.

An involuntary shiver went through my body and I nervously walked further into the kitchen, glass cracking under my shoes from a broken cup. If it hadn't been for her car out front I almost would've thought this was the wrong house. "How long has it been like this? ...Was she robbed?"

I cautiously began searching the rooms one by one, very aware I had nothing to defend myself with should someone still be in the house. My search came to a halt when I found a trail of blood leading to the closet at the end of the hallway. For a few seconds I wasn't sure what I was seeing- what I knew I was about to find- was real. How could it be? This had to be another nightmare, right?

Numbly, I walked over to the closet and turned the worn, metal knob before leaping back as her limp body slumped in the hall. I pressed against the wall, staring at Alice's body; her hands were stained with dried blood from the wound in her stomach. I shakily backed away, unable to breathe from the shock settling in. A note caught my attention from where it had been hung in the closet for me to find.

"Do I really want to read that? I shouldn't- I should call the police...!" Despite the thought I found myself grabbing the note before hurrying back outside to escape Alice's corpse.

Reading the note didn't make me feel any better.

'You should've joined us, Pawn. Your little coworker was only the beginning- a demonstration. It'd be a shame if your friends were next.'

I dropped to my knees as my legs gave out and let the paper slip out of my fingers. "No... no Alice... I-I'm sorry... This is my fault... it's all my fault...!"

I ran my hands through my hair, tangling them as I sat there feeling dazed. Minutes passed by before I managed to recollect myself enough to get up and run back to my car. All I knew was that I couldn't call the cops- in fact by now I was sure the body would most likely be gone. "What am I going to tell my manager...? I need to get home... I can figure it out there... I can't stay here!"

I checked everything once I was back in the 'safety' of my apartment. As far as I could tell no one had been there, though I didn't put it past anyone to show up with another threat. Satisfied that I was at least safe for the moment, I called my manager and ended up on voicemail.