Page 67 of Anathema Codex

“Um, hello.” The old guy that opens the door looks confused as hell, but I'm not surprised. There's no reason why I'd be on his doorstep if it wasn't making me think of the first time Ichabod opened it. If I'd broughthimalong, he'd probably appreciate this moment a little more than the idiot gaping at me right now.

"What the hell are we doing here?" the kid shouts from the SUV, and I roll my eyes, looking at the old guy.

"Kids, what are you gonna do?" I say, chuckling as I lean against the door frame, sneaking a peek at the living room that looks nothing like it did when Trixie lived here. The fat asshole in front of me closes the door part of the way, narrowing his eyes on me. "A friend of mine used to live here, I was just curious if I could take a look around."

"No, I don’t think so." He shakes his head, pushing the door a little further closed, but I drop my foot against it to stop him.

"Come on. Just a quick peek." I flash another smile at him, just as a woman's voice echoes from deeper inside the house calling him 'Eddie.' Tilting my head, I look over his head as the bitch I assume is his wife appears in the living room. "Eddie… I just want to take a look around. Five minutes, tops."

"Who's this?" she asks, and I'm getting irritated by all the fucking stalling when all I want to do is walk around inside for a few minutes.

"Are we stopping for party favors?" Daphne shouts from beside the SUV and I clench my jaw as I turn to look at the two of them, waving them back into the damn truck.

"Oh, are those your kids?" the woman asks, nudging her husband aside as she smiles at me, and I chuckle because it doesn't seem to matter how old a chick is, they all want me.

"Basically," I answer with a shrug, but then she eases the door further closed until it bounces against my shoe. "I was just telling Eddie here that my friend used to live here, and I was wondering if I could just take a look around for a minute. Memories and all that."

"Well, it’s getting late and we were about to have dinner. Maybe another—"

"That sounds great! We haven't had anything to eat all afternoon." Leaning my shoulder into the door, I push it open easily. The two of them way too weak to hold the door against me, and I whistle at the two idiots in the car. "Come on, kids! Dinner is served!"

"You can't just come in!" Eddie shouts and I wink at him as I stroll into the living room. They've got weird taste, and I don't really get what the fuck they're trying to go for other than… old people house. A bunch of knick-knack shit on the tables and shelves, and not a single piece of furniture seems to match.

"Please, we don't have anything you'd want to steal," Eddie's wife says, and I look her over from head to toe.

"Obviously."

"Thank you so much, we really are hungry," Red says from behind me, and I laugh as she pulls the sweet little girl act out of left field. Eddie doesn't seem to know what to do about her, and that gives the kid plenty of time to walk in behind her.

"Well, I—"

"So, what's for dinner?" I ask, tilting my head for a moment before I snap my fingers. "You know, I don't think Eddie mentioned your name."

"Gladys," she answers, smiling on reflex, before she shakes it off. "But, like I was trying to say, we really don't have enough food for all of you."

"Oh, don't worry about them. They're not that hungry anyway. Are you, kids?" I ask, glancing back at them where Red shakes her head and the kid just folds his arms and glares at me from beside the door. "See? No need to feed them."

"You need to leave. Right now," Eddie says, walking up behind me, and he's so much shorter than me that it's hard to resist the temptation to pat him on the head, instead I just throw an arm around his shoulders and drag him along as I wander back toward Trixie's old kitchen.

"I definitely have some shit to do tonight, but I just wanted to see the old place, you know?" I squeeze his flabby bicep as I wave a hand across the kitchen, remembering exactly where Basil's body was on the other side of the island. Letting Eddie go, I clap my hands together, rubbing them as I walk around to stare down at it. "Man, this place was in a lot better shape last time I was here. You guys just lazy, or too old for that home improvement shit?"

"Excuse me!" Gladys says, and I laugh, popping myself up onto the island as I look over the pots on the stove.

"Food doesn't exactly smell that great either," I add, grinning when Eddie starts wagging a finger at me.

"You're gonna leave right now, or I'm going to— AHH!" He starts screaming when I bend his finger sideways, but it's probably because the bone snapped like a twig. Still, he’s fucking loud, so I plant my shoe in his chest and shove him away to shut him up, watching as he bounces off the stove, spilling one of the pots before he lands on the floor, shouting some more as the hot liquid of whatever was in it drips onto him. Hopping down, I kick him in the face, and I'm pretty sure I hear another crack amidst all the noise.

"Huh, apparently osteoporosis is a real issue." Grinning, I tilt my head toward Red and the kid, and they manage to catch Gladys before she has the chance to run off. Between the two of them, they force her back into the kitchen, and I'm not surprised that Red looks like it's Christmas fucking morning, while Aftyn looks bored as fuck. Gladys is babbling about not hurting them, which doesn't bother me, but when she starts screaming for help, I rub my forehead. "Kid, you obviously don't have an issue hitting women. Handle that, will you?"

The dull smack of flesh doesn't sound interesting enough for me to watch, and instead I peruse the various pots on the stove, picking up a spoon to taste what's left of the soup that Eddie is currently bathing in at my feet. It's bland and full of vegetables and I sigh, disappointed.

"This really isn't a great meal, Gladys. I'm sure Eddie would agree with me if he wasn't chewing on his teeth right now." I glance down when I feel a hand on my ankle and yank it out of Eddie's grip, bringing my heel down on his face again and again until he stops reaching for me. "That's just rude, Eddie. Don't you know you're not supposed to touch people without asking?"

"Pl-please don't hurt me," Gladys blubbers, and the kid rolls his eyes next to her.

"Don't get ahead of yourself," I say, grinning as I hop back onto the island to look at her. She's got a red spot on her cheek near her eye, and I'm guessing that's where the kid popped her.

Good for him, maybe his balls are finally dropping.

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