Mia
I thought that home would be better when I get there but it wasn’t. I saw mum standing outside unlike herself, looking worried with a huge frown on her face. Not that it marred her beauty but it was unlike her.
She was in a conversation with the cook when I got in and glanced up in surprise when she saw me.
“Come here, dear.” She said as she saw me. “Why are you here?”
I didn’t feel offended at the question as I knew that she was teasing me. I should have expected the question though. I hadn’t been home in some weeks after she came back from the honeymoon trip.
I had told her that I couldn’t be home because I wanted to give her and her husband the privacy she needed. We both knew that was an excuse but I was grateful that she didn’t push it.
The boys were home and the newly wedded parents were doing well without a complaint. I could have stayed home if I wanted to but I didn’t want to. I felt guilty about the escape of the dark wizard and couldn’t face Albert or the boys. I was to ashamed to be with them. I knew that this wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t brought Sasha to the house.
I felt stupid. If only there was a way to know that she was a witch. I knew I was being hard on myself but I couldn’t help it either.
“I missed you.” I replied mum.
She had a smirk on her face as if she knew that I was lying. I wouldn’t have thought if I wasn’t being driven crazy by the happenings at work and needed a break.
“Welcome home, daughter.” She said and turned to the cook she was talking to before I walked in.
I watched in surprise as the cook bowed to her, picked a bag I hadn’t noticed before on the floor and left.
Mum sighed and turned towards the house. I picked my bag and ran after her. “What just happened here, mum?”
She didn’t even turn back to look at me. “What has been happening since you left home, dear. Twelve of the household staff has left and I can’t even blame them.”
“Twelve?” I gasped in surprise. “How do you cope, mum?”
That would be a lot of problem for the remaining six. It wouldn’t be easy for them to handle the cooking, dishes, laundry and cleaning of the house.
“I handle cooking with the head cook while the remaining five handle the rest of the housekeeping.”
I nodded. Of course, mum would have chipped in to help.
She sighed and whispered. “Albert doesn’t like it though. He is making plans to get new workers. He says I should be working as the mistress of the house.”
I smiled despite myself and the surprising news I had just heard. Albert was just like dad. Dad wouldn’t have let her work on permanently in the house as well.
“But you don’t think he will find replacements.” I said, reading the expression on mum’s face.
She snorted. “The new ones he got after the staff started leaving didn’t use a week. What is the assurance that there is going to be a difference?”
“What is the problem?” I asked.
From what I’ve heard, all the employees had been working there for ages and I couldn’t believe that they would suddenly leave.
Mum had a sad smile on her face. “You will find out very soon.”
I sighed as I walked in, moving to my bedroom. Dinner was as silent as anything could be. There wasn’t much delicacies on the table as it used to be and I couldn’t blame anyone. There was only so much that only two people could cook, no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t beat the efforts of when six people usually cooked.
I sighed. The days of feasting at mealtimes were over. I didn’t have the strength to talk over dinner. The boys were silent as well and I didn’t know why they were like that.
When dinner was ended, we all went to our rooms. I pressed my phone till I felt my eyes were tired and I decided to sleep. I woke up few hours, not so long after I slept. I couldn’t sleep again, not even if I used drugs. The sounds were bizarre. They were loud and I didn’t know what they were. Sometimes, I would think that it was the sounds of cats, dogs, horses or the wind howling as if it wanted to break loose.
I laid on the bed and covered my head with a pillow. I couldn’t do this. It was too loud. I jumped up in bed when I heard a loud noise. I looked around, my eyes darting in fear, huddling my arms to myself. I was scared. I felt like the house was shaking. Suddenly, I heard songs in the air and I wondered where the music was coming from.
I didn’t think that there was a studio around here where the sounds could have been coming from.
I wanted to go to my mum’s room and cuddle up with her and reminded myself that she was married and would be sharing a room with Albert. I let out a frustrated sigh, missing those days that I could have her all to myself.
I didn’t think I could survive the night, sleeping all alone. I pulled my pillow to myself and slept.
I tossed around the bed till daybreak. It wasn’t easy to sleep at all with all that bizarre noise. I prayed all through the night that it was daybreak soon. I must have dozed off a little because I woke up to see a bright sky. I couldn’t believe that I could have slept a wink. My body must have been tired after all I had dealt with at work that it didn’t mind sleeping through all that troubles for a night.
I was going to tell the triplets and ask them if there was a way that we could have the gardens pruned. The birds could have built nests in the trees. I scowled at my assumption though and knew they were silly. The birds couldn’t have made those sounds that resembled those of animals. They couldn’t have shaken the house as if they wanted to push it down. That was the wind and yet, I wondered what kind of wind that was. The sounds were bizarre and some sounded like humans. My theory was not right but still, I couldn’t stop thinking that we had to prune the gardens.
I went out of the room when I was done with my bath and was surprised to find everyone looking as tired as I was. What was the problem? There was no doubt that I wasn’t the only one who had a troubled night.
I made my way to the dining table for breakfast. I didn’t even get mad as I used to when I realized that I was the last one to get to the table again. I had better things to worry about than my position at the mealtimes.
“How was your night, dear?” Albert asked as soon as I got to the table.
I shook my head. “It was horrible. I couldn’t sleep.”
Mum smiled and I found it frightening. It was the same sad smile she had given me yesterday. That wasn’t the smile that should be found on the face of a newly married woman. Moreover, that wasn’t mum’s usual smile.
“That’s the answer you were looking for yesterday, honey.” She said. “That is why the employees have all been leaving. We all find it hard to sleep recently because of the strange sounds that no one what causes it. The cooks left because it seemed like someone keeps raiding the store. Rodents were troubling everyone which was unusual.”
“Should I get rodent killers?”
John smirked at me. “The cooks have done all that and no rodent was caught. No one could see anything and that was why they were all leaving. They are scared.”
I sighed. I could understand why they left. They were superstitious and it was impossible for them not to be. Just a night at home with how I couldn’t sleep and what mum told me now, I felt like running to a church.
Albert didn’t look as worried as mum did or maybe he was masking his emotions and trying not to be affected, just as the triplets were.
“Don’t be scared. We will solve this soon.”
Mum sighed as she turned to me. “Maybe you should go back to work and stay there. Don’t come home till everything is resolved.”
“I came home to have a break, mum. I was being driven crazy at work.”
“What happened?” Albert asked, beating my mum to the question.
All eyes were on me, waiting for my response. Even the triplets who had been silent all through dropped their cutleries to stare at me. I gulped, feeling uncomfortable. I was back to being the baby of the house that got the hairs of everyone on end.
“My colleagues are acting out in ways that is not like them. My boss snapped at me, Sammy snubbed me and a lady poured her food on me at the cafeteria. When I asked all of them what happened to them, they all couldn’t remember.”
“That is weird.” Mum sighed.
“Sammy snubbed you?” Quinn asked.
I nodded. “Yes.”
Quinn glanced at his dad. “Something is definitely going on.”
Albert frowned. “Why do you say so?”
“I know the guy. He likes Mia. He wouldn’t have snubbed her.”
Mum smiled at me, her eyebrows wagging in excitement. “He likes you? When are you bringing him home?”
I sighed. I knew what mum was doing. She was finding a distraction for herself asides being happy that her daughter who had never shown her a boyfriend had an admirer.
I sighed. This wasn’t the time for it and I didn’t like Sammy in a sexual way. He was cute but I never thought of kissing him.
I was about to tell mum not to have her hopes up when we heard a shout from the kitchen. We all jumped from our seats and rushed there. We couldn’t believe what had happened.
“What happened here?” Albert said as he got to the kitchen.
The head cook was shivering as if she couldn’t hold on to herself. “I got to the kitchen to drop the plates I had used to eat and saw three black cats on the sink. I was confused on how they got here and was about to chase them off when they disappeared. That was when I shouted.” She sniffled. “I’m sorry I lost it and shouted.”
“They disappeared?” Mum asked, looking at her as if she was hallucinating and had lost her mind.
The head cook caught the look on her face and started crying. “I knew no one was going to believe me.”
Quinn moved to her and patted her on the back, shocking everyone. Even the head cook was surprised by his act of kindness and stopped crying immediately. “Don’t worry, cook. We believe you.”
“Thank you, young master.” She nodded.
Albert sighed. “Go to your room and rest for the day. Don’t worry about lunch or dinner, we will have deliveries.”
The cook bowed and moved away.
“I should go check on her.” Mum said and walked after her.
“You know what is going on, dad.” Jack looked at his father.
Albert nodded. “The dark wizard. We are being hexed. He is also manipulating the minds of Mia’s colleagues to frustrate her.”
I sighed. That explained it. He was responsible for everything.
“I think you should take a break from work for a while.”
I nodded. That was my plan too and I had talked the manager into giving me a leave instead of buying me a gift. He had given me without a protest and I had been happy. Now, I was worried that it was the dark wizard who had manipulated him to do so. What if he wanted me home?
I started shivering. I was in trouble.