I got as close as I dared, and I glimpsed
part of the room, enough to make out black candles—store bought—and a concrete
floor painted with geometry and symbols. I backed away. Getting closer wouldn’t
do me any good, just put me at risk.
Gotta find
the Nativity.
I started peaking in the other
rooms, using my flashlight to quickly search. No luck.
Did they
destroy it? Just take it and heave all of it into a dumpster? That would make
sense unless they’re planning something bigger. Doesn’t matter. I need to
search everywhere.
The bedrooms, except for the room they were
in, were all clean. The farther I got from their chanting, the better I felt,
so I moved more quickly, looking into the front of the house, but there was
nothing. Off of the kitchen was the utility room. Nada. The utility room led to
the garage. It was the last place except for the master bedroom. If it wasn’t
in the garage, I’d have to wait for them to leave again.
I turned the knob, trained my light,
and looked. I saw their car, exactly as described and, there, off to the side,
in a heap, the Nativity.
“Eeee!”
Jessie squealed.
I goggled at her. Nikki looked on
with confusion, a half-formed question on her lips.
“Sorry,” Jessie apologized. “I just
got excited. You found it.”
“Yeah, that’s the easy part. The
hard part is coming.”
“Escaping with your prize,” Nikki
supplied.
I nodded.
Nikki sighed. “I suppose it’s a
good thing I left my evening open. We shall be here all night.”
“Should we order food?” Jessie
asked, obviously missing Nikki’s intended dig at my slow pace.
“Sure thing,” I grinned.