Chapter 32

Craig was starving when he got home around seven in the evening. He had devoured the sandwiches too early which Sarah had packed for lunch. It was more of a breakfast than anything else. As he unlocked the front door, his stomach churned with the rich aromas of the supper Sarah had prepared. It felt good to be home after such a crazy day. Craig dropped his coat on the TV room chair and noticed Andrew, Patrick and Emily watching TV.

'Good evening my turtles,' Craig said.

They all greeted.

'What are you watching?' Craig said, moving into view of the TV.

'We got satellite. There's a program about the universe. Quite interesting though,' Andrew said.

'Ah finally,' Craig said, 'I phoned them on Friday morning already.

Craig walked passed Andrew and brushed his hair roughly with his fingers before entering the spotless and clean kitchen. A large bowl of fresh salad was sitting on the table, ready to drive any hungry person insane.

'Hi honey,' Sarah said, coming out from the scullery.

'Hello sugar, something smells fantastic.'

'Hope you are in the mood for lasagna,' Sarah kissed Craig on the mouth.

Craig hugged her, 'Your lasagna is almost as irresistible as you are.'

Sarah chuckled and walked over to the oven. She slipped her hands into a pair of cooking gloves and retrieved a large silver casserole. Craig noticed a juicy layer of melted cheese.

'God, that looks amazing,' Craig said. He could not wait to get some of that on his plate.

The Edisons sat around a rectangular, six-seater dining table, enjoying the food.

'So how was school today guys?' Craig asked before stuffing his mouth with a large chunk of lasagna. It tasted amazing. He expected nothing less from Sarah. She was a professional when it came to food, especially pasta.

'It was okay,' Emily said.

Craig looked at her for a moment while chewing on the lasagna. He could not help to wonder why she seemed a little run down. He swallowed and asked, 'How are the teachers and kids in school?' He scooped another piece of the lasagna and stuffed his mouth.

'They're fine dad,' Emily said. 'It was just a long day being new at school.'

Craig nodded, 'What about you two?' he said looking at Patrick and Andrew.

'Our friends were on the same bus,' Andrew said. 'The ones we met on the beach. They showed us around today. It helped a lot.'

'That's great,' Craig said. 'So you made friends already huh?' Craig looked at Patrick who seemed to be playing with his food instead of eating. 'Patrick, everything, all right? You're very quiet.'

'Yes dad,' Patrick said. There are a few jerks, but other than that everything was fine. Things will get better though.

'Oh yeah, those guys,' Andrew remembered.

'Jerks. What jerks?' Craig asked. He placed down his knife and fork and pushed the half-eaten plate away from him. He tried not to frown when he folded his arms on the table.

'Ah, it's just this click of idiots, probably like two years older than Andy and me. I think a slab of concrete has a higher IQ than all of them together,' Patrick said and took another bite of his lasagna.

'What did they do?' Craig asked. Somehow he had lost his appetite.

'It's their dumb remarks,' Andrew said. 'We heard this morning that a teacher went missing during the December school holiday last year.'

'That's terrible,' Sarah said, surprised. 'What happened? How can someone simply go missing?'

'No one knows. He just vanished,' Andrew said.

'Who was he?' Sarah asked.

'Mr Robert Griffin. Apparently, he was the mathematics teacher,' Patrick said.

'Robert?' Craig frowned. He thought about the man they found on the R27. The letters Ro he had written on the piece of paper. Could this be a coincidence? Craig's mind drifted towards the police inspectors whom he asked to look into the matter. How long could it take to get a docket?

'Yes, Mr Robert Griffin,' Andrew said. 'These guys even make jokes about his disappearance.'

'They sure sound stupid to me,' Craig said. 'People going missing is no laughing matter.' He paused and shook his head. 'If they try anything, you will let me know, right? Your old man can still take a punch or two.'

'Not these guys dad, apparently they are part of some cult,' Emily said.

'Cult? What cult?' Craig started to feel more uneasy as the conversation continued.

'Satanism I think, not sure,' Emily said. 'Just bad stuff.'

'Satanism? Really?' Craig frowned. He looked at Sarah who seemed deeply concerned. He looked at Emily again. 'How do you know that?'

'Delmar and Bernard, the friends we met on the beach. They told us,' Emily said.

'That's no good,' Craig said. 'You should tell the school principal about this. Don't you think?'

'That will probably make them want to target us,' 'Andrew said. 'I would rather leave it alone. Don't want any of that black magic stuff on our doorstep.'

'Maybe I should go and have a word with the principal,' Craig said. 'That way no one will know about it. What do you say about that Andy?'

'I think it would be fine dad,' Andrew said. 'No need for that. I don't expect any trouble from them, anyway. We'll just stay away from them. That's all.'

'Okay,' Craig nodded. 'You'll let me know if they try anything. Right?'

'Will do,' Andrew said.

'Well guys, I don't know about you, but I feel a hundred years old tonight.' Craig said, getting up from his chair. 'I think it has been a long day for all of us.' He walked to Sarah and kissed her on the cheek. 'Thank you for the food, my love.'

'You must thank Emily, she made most of it,' Sarah smiled.

'I'm not surprised,' Craig looked at Emily. 'That was amazing my angel. Thank you. I can tell you had cooking lessons from the best.'

'Pleasure dad,' Emily said with a satisfying smile.

Craig's focus turned to Sarah. He could sense an uneasiness on her face. He winked at her before heading towards the bathroom. He opened the hot water tap and unbuttoned his shirt. He sat down on the edge of the bathtub undoing his shoes. When satisfied with the water temperature, he got in and lay back submerging his body. Something about those boys bothered him. He remembered the state of the person they had found on the R27. His tongue had been split in half. Somebody must have done that, because why would someone inflict that pain onto oneself, and then still ask for help in the middle of nowhere? He remembered the poor fellow's severed legs. What person would do that to another? Craig thought. It could only be done by a person possessed by the devil. Maybe the fellow on the road had seen something he was not supposed to see. Therefore they tried to kill him, but by the look of it, they only wanted to silence him. Then there was the thing Craig found in the attic which could also be linked to some form of black magic. Craig remembered the thing the kids had found on the beach not long ago. He had not seen it, but he could imagine what it must have looked like. Craig had a terrible feeling, something was wrong with Saldanha. Was it a satanic cult that drove the kids insane? Maybe it was drugs. Craig remembered what his neighbour had said the day they met. When you have nowhere to go and nowhere to turn, turn to God young man. Start believing. Why would he say something like that out of the blue? What happened in this house in the past? Craig knew Brian would be able to answer some of the questions he had. Craig could not help to wonder if they had not made the biggest mistake of their lives, moving down to Saldanha in the first place. Was it a mistake or just some crazy destiny that was part of a bigger plan? He knew he would fight whatever it was to keep his family safe from evil or harm.

Sarah entered the bathroom. She leaned in the doorway with her arms folded. There was still a concerned expression on her face, 'what do you think of all this?'

'Not sure what's going on,' Craig sighed. 'I sure don't like it.'

'Yes, me neither,' Sarah said. 'It's not normal, and definitely not acceptable.'

'I'm thinking maybe I should give that principal a call tomorrow and find out what the story is with these kids. It seems like he doesn't know what's going on in his own school. I mean, these stories must come from somewhere, and if the kids are talking about it in school, then it must be investigated, at least.'

'I think you should,' Sarah said walking towards Craig. She sat on the edge of the bathtub. She looked at the water and stirred it playfully with her fingers. 'Do you think we made a mistake by coming here?'

'I was just thinking the same thing before you came in, but you know what? There is no such thing. We came down because I got offered a better job. I will do everything in my power to keep this family from harm's way. We're not going anywhere, and we are not running away. Not for anything.'

Sarah smiled slightly, 'I know you will take care of us.'

'Don't worry honey, I will sort this out. If they touch one of our kids, I will fuck them up. Who knows, maybe even their parents too for breeding such evil little bastards.'

Sarah got up and kissed Craig on the forehead, 'I love you,' she touched Craig's face and smiled.

'I love you too. You know that don't you?' Craig said looking into Sarah's eyes.

'I know,' Sarah nodded. She got up and headed towards the door. 'I'm gonna watch some TV with the kids.' Sarah watched Craig one last time before disappearing behind the wall.

Craig knew the world was going to hell, but he did not expect such a thing from a small town like Saldanha. Where was it going to end? Was this only the beginning of their trouble? There were so many stones still to be unturned. Saldanha had its own mysteries, but Craig did not know where to start looking.