Cottage Creep - Chapter 16
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The phone rang several times before Ron could hoist himself
out of the deep place his mind had settled into. He dragged himself
to the phone and answered. "Hello," he squeezed out.
"Ron? Are you okay? Why aren't you home? Why didn't you
call? What's going on?" the barrage pounded him. "You were supposed
to be home yesterday. Why are you still there?"
"Wait. Let me get my head clear. What do you mean yesterday?
I just got here yesterday. Tom was sick. I took him to the
hospital," he explained.
"What's wrong with Tom?" she asked. "Why didn't you go up
Saturday?" she added.
"I did. I got here yesterday about 2, and Tom was
unconscious. There was some crazy woman on the porch that tried to
keep me from taking him to the hospital. I need to call and see how
he is doing."
"Ron, you do know it's Monday don't you? Go ahead and call,
then call me back. Should I come up there? Should I call your Mom
and Dad?" she queried him.
"Let me find out how he is first. I'll call you back as soon
as I can," he finished and hung up. "Monday…" he mused to himself.
He called information and got the number to the hospital. "Hello, I'm
calling about Tom Hansing. I brought him in late Saturday afternoon.
Can you tell me how he is doing? I'm his brother," he informed the
operator.
"One moment please while I check. It shows he is in stable
condition. There is a note that you should speak with his doctor.
Let me try to put you through now. Hold on please," she rattled off
before putting him on hold.
"Hello, this is Dr. Ransing. Who am I speaking with?" the
doctor asked.
"This is Ron Hansing. I brought my brother in Saturday
afternoon. He was unconscious, and appeared to be very old. I was
calling to see how he is, and they told me I needed to speak with
you."
"Oh, yes. Odd case. He is stable right now, but his
condition seems to be worsening. He appears older every time I see
him. We've done all kinds of blood work and preliminary results don't
show any kind of infection or antibodies. I might be wise for you to
come in if you can. Are you his biological brother?"
"Yes, I am. I'll come in as soon as I make a few calls.
Should I bring in our parents? Do you think it is pretty serious?"
Ron asked.
"Well, it is serious. I don't have any prognosis to offer at
this time. If they are local, you might want to have them come in.
Otherwise, I think it is safe to wait until we know more. Do you mind
if we do a blood work up on you while you are here? In case he needs
a transfusion," the doctor explained.
"No, not at all. I will be there within an hour," Ron
finished. Next he called Julie back and told her to let his parents
know and to give them the number to the hospital. He was going back
up there and would call her as soon as he got anymore information.
As Ron headed for the front door, he felt an almost physical
restraint trying to hold him back. He forced himself out the front
door, and was startled to hear what sounded like a faint voice telling
him not to leave. He stood on the front porch and looked back inside
the house. Seeing nothing, and hearing nothing else, he shrugged his
shoulders and headed for his car.
As he entered his car, he caught a brief reflection of his
face in the rear view mirror, and what he saw caused him to take a
second look. He looked like he had aged five years. He stared in
shock for several seconds, his brain ticking off the possibilities.
One nagging thought pushed itself into the forefront. "Burn it," Tom
had said. "Burn the house!" He looked back over his shoulder at the
nearly completed house. He saw nothing out of the ordinary but
inside, he was beginning to believe something very different. He was
beginning to think of the place as evil. Still, it was just an old
house.