Part 1
I haven’t had any dreams for the last couple days. Although I would like to get a lead on all the unanswered questions regarding the weird old lady, I am somehow relieved that I have managed to get a proper sleep.
The sun is shining so I decide to ride by bike to the office. But before that I need to pick up some props for the onboarding packages. I could get them delivered but the new starters need them fast and who can rely on postal services these days? As I arrive at the given address I put on my face mask but approaching the house I can only see an empty abandoned window front. You have to be kidding me … There is a note hanging on the window though. I try to get closer to find some info, carefully trying not to step over the yellow line painted on the pavement warning me to not get too close and in all fairness it looks like it could collapse any minute, when suddenly I notice movement in the window. WOW! What was that?? I look behind my shoulder but the street is empty. I swear I saw the reflection of that creepy old lady but with a face mask on. Was it me? Am I getting that paranoid?? Putting the mask on after cycling fast must have made me dizzy apparently. My heart is racing but I am telling myself to breath and gather myself. Ok, concentrate and read the note!
The note reads:
“Through the people’s park you will find me at the end of the fairytale”
Anyway, I decide to ride quickly to their new location since it is not too far from where I am right now. It is a nice sunny morning so riding around is the best I can do for my troubled mind. I remember there is a shop right at the other end of a beautiful park. I’m sure that it is what it might refer to. While I am riding through the park, the sun is turning the brown leaves of the trees into a glowing golden mass. From afar I see the shop’s sign. It didn’t take me more than 5 minutes to get here which is great as I am on a schedule and had not planned for a detour. I lock the bike, take off my helmet and the moment I step forward to enter I come across the weirdest thing I would see for the day: on a yellow line painted on the pavement sits a dog with a bloody snout holding something in its mouth. I have a good look at the dog only to find out with horror that the bloody thing in between its teeth is a furry rabbit foot! Anxiety reigns me, my legs and arms feel numb. How does this make any sense?? Is this another sign that I am going crazy?? “He killed the poor thing during his morning walk” a woman standing at the front door informs me, “I turned around for 2 minutes and he came back like this. As you probably understand I can’t let him in the shop like this.” Before heading on my eyes fall on the dog’s shiny collar. I immediately feel as if this reminds me of something.
Part 2
Day “one too many” of feeling like not really myself anymore. It all started with those dreams but my day to day life is increasingly affected by them and I wonder how long I can take this before it gets too much. Just a few good nights and I’m sure I’ll be back on track but today is not one of those days. I fell asleep thinking of it and even in my dreams it kept creeping up everywhere. This damn number is stuck in my head and I can not make any sense of it. I have gone through photos, papers, memory drives … if this really reminds me of a date, it seems like this day never happened for me. Weirdly enough, two words swirl in my mind:
Well, I am already in the office now as I came in a bit earlier to have enough time for some proper breakfast. I must be quite a sight stand over the kitchen sink staring blankly into it. Happy to have found a distraction from the number in my head I keep looking at a bloody knife that is laying in the sink. Just staring at it, noticing all the shades of red and silver gives me some weird feeling of relief and I can not bring myself to look away. A blood-stained knife meditation … there must be a first for everything.
After what feels like forever, I come out of my trance and realize it’s just beetroot juice. In the future I should not have my brain run with the first thought maybe. However, after my blissful moments of nothingness I am getting angry about the fact that someone could not be asked to put the minimum effort in to leave the kitchen in a slightly more orderly state. No they just left it there without caring who’ll clean up after them and I can’t help feeling frustrated. As I grab the knife I notice it has an engraved serial number at the top towards the blunt edge. Behind the red liquid it reads:
0142405469
This is creepy as I just yesterday noted down this number. My memory is failing me though what it was for.
If that doesn’t do the trick nothing will.
