Matt, after finding Jean peacefully asleep in her room, remembered his phone. He went back to Gina’s room to find Emmy slowly trying to clean off the debris on the bed in order to make her daughter more comfortable.
“She’s in her room. Asleep.”
“Is she okay? Is she hurt?”
“No, I don’t think so. She has some scratches on her arm. Nothing serious.”
“Oh, thank god!” Emmy exclaimed.
Matt looked around the thrashed room for his phone. He found it facedown, further back on the top of the cabinet he placed it in.
He immediately noticed the cracks. The screen had the most of it, both thick and thin. The plastic on the sides had crack too. It was off. Matt pressed the power button on top to see if it would work. He was glad when the screen came on, only for it to die while booting. He tried again. This time the screen just flickered.
Matt pocketed the phone and helped Emmy clean up the bed. He carried his daughter while Emmy removed the bedsheet and gently placed her back. His muscles screamed from the effort but Matt, despite the shaking, managed just long enough for Emmy to finish. He went to their room after, to wash his face properly and change, then went down.
He was not prepared for the sight that greeted him as he descended the stairs. The entire first floor was a mess. Chairs and tables were upended. Pots, utensils, pans, and broken glasses and plates littered the kitchen floor. The TV was broken, and the laptop lay near the door.
He turned left and headed to the kitchen first. The glass that topped the kitchen table was shattered. It appeared as though something heavy struck it right down the center and sent shards and everything laying on the table flying in different directions. All the of the six chairs were toppled over, some had broken legs.
The sofa on the living room were, aside from being flipped over, had gashes crisscrossing through their lengths. Foam peered out of the gashes. The coffee table was split, like someone stomped on it. The TV curved right in the middle where it hung, as if someone strong enough punched it in the center. Curiously, none of the panes on the windows showed any cracks.
He also noticed that the photo frames, figurines, and decorative items that were display on shelves were scattered on the floor, most of them broken. The laptop appeared to have had a rough time, the plastic housing had scratches and dents. Its screen was chock full of scratches as well.
Matt, only upon realizing that anger was building up inside him, found himself gritting his teeth and clenching his fists. He knew there was no one to pin the blame on and that holding on to anger was a fruitless endeavor, but Matt could not bring himself to calm down. This was a house built for his family, built from sacrifice, built by love. Now it looked like a set of a disaster movie.
Taking deep breaths, he went and picked up the laptop, stood a side table up and placed the laptop on it. He saw the wires to the cheap cameras had been torn off the walls. Thankfully, the laptop was just yanked, the charger and the plug were still intact. He turned it on and plugged his phone as well. He was itching to see what footage he might have captured in Gina’s room.
He started cleaning up while waiting.
~0~
What the hell was that? Why Gina? What happened to Jean? What are we supposed to do now?
Emmy was having a hard time focusing on the cleanup of Gina’s room. Her thoughts kept stubbornly returning to two things – what happened, and what it meant. She did not get any answers but that did not stop her mind from going back to those thoughts in a maddening cycle. Worse, she kept drifting off as she followed her scrambled thoughts.
She was glad that Matt had gone down. She did not want him to see her like this. She knew he was shaken and was just putting on a brave face. If he saw her like this, he might lose his resolve.
Despite her meandering thoughts, Emmy went about her task. She had to clean up the room before the children woke up. She sometimes caught herself just standing up, staring at nothing but Emmy soldiered on. Already, she was thinking of excuses, of stories to spin regarding what happened.
I wonder what Jean remembers.
Emmy’s skin was perpetually littered with goosebumps as she tried to recall all the details she could from what transpired. Her fear, her terror, had not left her. While she tried to recall the incident, Emmy would peer into the different corners of the room to check. Anything was possible now. She could not relax.
After collecting all the debris in several piles in the room, she went to clean her face. She needed a shower at the very least, she knew that. But she could not find it in her to leave Gina. Instead, she headed for Gina’s bathroom after cleaning up and did her best to remove any trace of blood anywhere. The bruises, she had no ready explanation. It was one thing for Matt to have them, it was another thing for all of them to sport them.
The quick face wash and the somewhat cleaner room gave Emmy a sense of normalcy. She noticed that the more she stayed stationary, the more her muscles ached with the slightest of movements. Deciding that keeping busy was the way to go, she went to check on Jean.
The sun was already up and filtered through the windows. The rays spilled out of Jean’s door. Emmy heard the sounds below and wondered what Matt was doing. She was tempted to peak but decided to head straight into her younger daughter’s room.
She almost died from fright when Jean met her at the door. Despite the pain, Emmy jumped back. The little girl was rubbing her eyes with one hand, rag doll on the other.
“Oh! Jean, you almost scared me.”
“Mom? I had a bad dream.”
“Yeah? What about?”
“I don’t remember.” The child muttered. “But I think it was bad.”
“Well, if you don’t remember, that means it’s not that bad. Just another dream and now you’re awake.” Emmy said, trying to sound cheerful. “Would you keep your sister company while I make breakfast?”
“Okay.”
“Perfect.” Emmy said, bending over slowly to give her daughter a peck on the head.
She noticed, just like Matt said, that aside from the slight scrapes and scratches on her arms, and some on her neck and cheeks, the little girl seemed to be fine. She was relieved to know that. When the girl looked up to her, something in the back of her mind began to surface. Emmy felt the need to find her husband quickly.
“Mommy? If Gina’s still asleep, why do I have to go there?”
“I don’t think you’ll enjoy coming with me. You’ll just get bored. You can play with your dolls if you want.”
“Okay.” The girl replied, then looked up at her again. “What are those?”
Emmy felt conscious about the bruises in her arms and face. She did not know what to tell the child. She managed a smile while thinking of what to say.
“There was a strong wind that entered your sister’s room last night. It was quite strong and broke stuff. Be careful not to step on the piles of trash in there honey, okay?”
“Okay.” The girl replied.
“Good girl. Alright, see you in a bit.”
Watching her daughter disappear into Gina’s room, Emmy proceeded to the master bedroom to get properly changed. A shower would have to wait. First, she needed to talk to Matt.