An Unexpected Visit - Speculative Fiction Authors (ereader android TXT) 📗

Did you always think your life would turn out this way? So untouched by the misery of the rest of the world, so sheltered; it would always be safe here forever in your cocoon, wouldn't it?

My life was the stuff of fairy tales and love songs. Or so I thought...

Rufus, the cat no-one owned, but lives here with me, opened one lazy eye and yawned.  He said, "I think I smell something wicked blowing this way."

Of course, he doesn't really talk, but I know his body language so well, it's as if he can; and he was right: something didn't feel right.

I went to look out the window to see what was going on.  I immediately saw a small red car I pulled up to the house across the lawn. I watched a family of three climb out, to head for the house.  Both of the parents carried a cover dish.

'And here we go', thought Rufus . He found some undiscovered energy he had, and ran for cover under the couch.

"Stupid cat," I said, kind of laughing and shaking my head a little.

At the moment I didn't realize just how smart that cat was, but I would soon come to know what Rufus already knew. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

The doorbell rang and I went to open the door.  I was startled to find a freckled impish looking pre-teen girl standing next to her parents. They were my neighbors.

"You're not Uncle Simon," the girl said, eyeing me up and down.

Oh Boy...now I know why Rufus skedaddled so quickly. I blew out a sigh, just before her parents pulled her aside to talk to her.

Just then I heard what sounded like someone being tortured. An unearthly howl was coming from where Rufus was hiding out. Had some evil hell hound gotten to Rufus, or was it just my imagination?

"Hold on," I told the family of three still standing just outside the doorway.  I ran after Rufus with my heart was in my chest. I wasn't going to take any chances whether or not it was my imagination.

I looked under the sofa and saw the dread in my cat’s green eyes.  I realized then that I couldn't let our new neighbors into the house under any circumstances.

I turned away from my frighten cat to stand. I was going to close the door and saw the reason for the dread in my cat's eyes.

The freckled innocent looking imp wasn't so innocent at all. Her facial features had changed into something unrecognizable.  I, at first, backed away from the door, but then I heard Rufus’ muffled cry.

So I  went to close the door that’s when the girl's father stuck his foot in between the door and the wall.

My heart thumped... I suddenly realized something was very out of place with these people.

Oh no,' I thought to myself as I tried to move the man's foot, without much success. My new neighbors were not what they seemed to be.

Rufus, who usually was a pussy cat, came out from hiding and rushed the man. He bit the part for the man’s  shoe that blocked the doorway.

"Go Rufus!" I cheered.

The man screamed, and pulled back his foot.

I slammed the door and bolted it as quickly as I could. Rufus purred as he walked between my legs. Now that the door was secure,  I headed to  the living area to look out the window.  I watched  the three scattering back to their car, which by the way looked like a hearse.

'Thank goodness,' I thought.

The stories I  heard about the former owner  Simon Coupel  and this house were true after all.

Yep, if I had let that family of walking dead into this house , I would have been in a heap of trouble.

This was the reason the town’s people said they had  buried Simon Coupel in a salt mine.

Rufus smelled something fishy...death.

Wait a minute, how did I know Rufus smelled something fishy unless I smelled it too?

At the window! The pale, pockmarked face of the imp stared at me, his small, white, long-nailed hand scratched at the glass, emanating a shrill screech that sent chills up my spine, before it jumped down and ran to the car. The hearse pulled out the drive with a shriek of its tires and down the dark road.

Am I losing my mind? I could have sworn that imp was a girl when I first saw her, or him, or whatever it was. This only confirmed my suspicion that these were not normal human beings!

I figured that was my hint to find a new place to live.  I stared down at Rufus who had found his original place on the floor to relax.

"What were those things?" I asked Rufus as if he could actually answer me.

Rufus just purred lazily.

Publication Date: 01-21-2014

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