Midnight in Suburbia

NaNoWriMoDay 26: Chapter 26 - Sunday Afternoon

Chapter 26: Sunday, December 1, 2013
Late Afternoon

Daniella sat on the couch in her mother's living room watching the sunset behind banks of snow clouds. A fire crackled in the fireplace and she held a cup of hot chocolate in both hands. Rodger and Ralph had left for George's house an hour after George had left the house, making sure that the back door was secured and all the trash was taken to the garage. As she stared into the setting sun sipping her hot chocolate and thinking about the past few days she wished she could return to her childhood.

Drinking the last of the chocolate, she placed the cup on the coffee table and picked up her cellphone. Going through the contact list twice before finally dialing Preston's number. "Hello, Preston, this is Daniella."

"It's about sunset here," she laughed. "Did I catch you at a bad time?"

"I just wanted to let you know that Mom and I will be returning to Las Vegas sometime this coming week."

"I think I'm going to have to move Mom down there permanently." She sighed, "The problems is worse then I thought. When I arrived on Wednesday, the kitchen was on fire because she left the turkey in the oven while she went shopping."

"She thought Wednesday was Thanksgiving."

"I'll talk to her Doctor on Monday and then contact Jose to see if he can fly use back to Las Vegas." She laughed, "If he can't we'll catch a comercial flight. I'm going to have enough problems getting Mom on any plane."

"When I talked to her this morning, she was willing to accompany me to Las Vegas, but that doesn't mean she's going to remember the conversation."

"I think I'm going to have to make an appointment with another doctor there after I talk with the doctor here."

"I love you, too. I'll see you in a few days." She closed her phone.

Getting up, she picked up her cup and went to the fireplace. Removing a tea kettle, she poured hot water in her cup and then opened a packet of hot chocolate mix with marshmellows. She pour the mix into the hot water and stirred it and then she went back to the couch. Placing the chocolate on the coffee table, she picked her journal and reread her last entry; instead of writing she marked her place by placing the pen in the journal. Picking up the mug of chocolate, she leaned back on the couch and watched as the snow began to fall again.

Closing her eyes she inhaled the aroma of the house. The smell of burnt wood and smoke still lingered, but there was also the smell of pine. Finishing the chocolate, she got up and went into the dining room. There she and opened the china closet, she just stood staring into the closet for five minutes before removing a crystal serving platter. Going back into the living room, she placed the platter on the coffee table and then went into the kitchen. Opening the pantry she begin moving off the middle shelf and onto lower and higher shelves. Finally, she found what she was looking for three boxes of candy canes hidden in the back of the shelf.

"I wonder," she said taking the boxes back into the living room. "How long these have been hidden back there?" In the living room she opened the candy canes and placed them on the crystal platter. Once the candy was arranged to her satisfaction, she got up and went into her old bedroom. There she opened the closet door and pulled out a cardboard box marked 'Daniella's Christmas decorations'. She pushed the box back into the living room and opened it. Removing a small Santa Clause statue from the box she placed it in the center of the serving tray.

"Now," she laughed. "It fells like December," a tear ran down her cheek. "Papa Larry," she said, "I wish you were here because I could sure use your advice now. Mom is acting odd and I don't think I can let her return to Oklahoma and live by herself. Aunt Emily can't stay with her because she has medical issues of her own." She sighed, "I don't think Ethan and Alice will want to move back here just to take care of Mama; I know she wanted to live in this house for the rest of her life, but I don't think that's going to be possible."

There was a knock of the front door, Daniella got up and ambled to the foyer, stopped at the coat rack to brush a white feather off the red ski jacket that was hanging on the rack and then went to the door. Looking through the peephole she saw a woman wearing a lavender coat and head scarf standing there. She opened the door.

"May I help you," said Daniella trying to remember where she had seen the woman before.

"I'm Patsy Backer," the woman handed Daniella a business card. "I'm Mrs. Shupe's insurance representative."

"Oh," smiling Daniella removed a key from the hook by the door and opened the security screen. "Please come in."

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything, Ms Coffey, but I need to speak to you and Mrs. Shupe before I complete my report."

"My mother isn't here," Daniella showed her to the living room. "She's staying at Emily Duncan's house."

"Oh," she smiled sitting down on the couch and removing a note pad from her purse. "I can go other there tomorrow, but I need to talk to you tonight."

"What about?"

"I know the fire in the kitchen started in the oven, but I'm still at a loss as to why the fire department personal had to break in when Mrs. Shupe had a key."

"Well," Daniella sighed. "I understand that couldn't open the door with her key; however, I haven't had a problem with the security screen."

"I see," she frowned. "Ms Coffey..."

"Is there going to be a problem with the insurance?"

"I don't think so, but I just need to understand the situation. You see.... I received an anominous call from someone about Mrs. Shupe's mental condition and..."

"And you're worried that may have had something to do with the fire."

"Yes," Ms. Baker breathed a sigh of relief now that the reason for her visit was clear. "What is your mother mental condition? Could it have had something to do with the fire?"

"The answer to both questions is I'm not sure." Daniella was not worried about getting the house fixed, she knew that she could handing the repairs if there was a problem with the insurance. "I'm going to talk to Mom's doctor on Monday to see what she thinks, unfortunately, I'll have to return to Las Vegas next week because of business, but I will leave someone here to take care of the house and any issues concerning it."

"I see," she frowned. "Will you be at Mrs. Duncan's tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure, but my brother is there; however, I suggest you call there first because they may come over here."

"I will," she smiled. "Also, could you call me after you speak with her doctor."

"Of course, Ms. Baker. Would you like to see the kitchen again?" She ask as they got up off the couch.

"No, I have plenty of pictures, but I think I may need to get Mrs. Shupe's mental condition determined in case the anonomyous person calls the head office."

"I understand," Daniella escorted Ms Baker to the door and watched until she got in her car and let. Then she closed and locked the security screen, but instead of hanging the key back up, she took it in the living room and laid it on top of her journal.

Picking up her phone, she checked the time. Then she got up and went into her bedroom where she removed the bedspread and quilts from the bed. Dragging them back into the living room she spread them on the couch without pulling it out into a bed. Next she banked the fire and picked up a pillow from the love seat. Going back to the couch she placed the pillow on the arm so that she was facing the fireplace when she laid down. Turning off the light by the couch, she laid down and covered up.


"Daniella," a male voiced called to her in her dream. "Don't let Amity come back to Blackwell. Don't let her live in this house by herself. Please take care of you mother."

"I will, Papa Larry," she said before waking up. She turned over and went back to sleep, but this time she found herself sitting in front of the fireplace watching snow fall down the chimny and cover the furniture in the living room. Waking up, she found that the quilts had fallen onto the floor.

She sit up, turned on the light, and looked around the living room. "Well," she laughed. "If I'm not going to be able to sleep, I may as well writing something in my journal." She moved the keys off her journal and then checked her cellphone for the time and date. Opening the journal to the page marked by the pen, she took the pen out and wrote the date 'December 2, 2013 about 1:30 am.' Before she could write anything, there was a pounding on the door.

"Who the hell could that be," she picked up the keys and her cellphone and went to the front door. She looked out the peephole, but could not see anyone. She opened the door slightly and looked out on the porch, but all she saw were footprints. Closing the door she started back to the living room, when she heard a pounding on the backdoor. With a sigh, she went into the living room and picked up the flashlight sitting on the desk.

Opening the curtains, she peeked out into the front yard. The only car she could see was Amity's car parked in the driveway, so she closed the curtains and went into the kitchen. In the kitchen, she turned on the flashlight and shined it out the backdoor, but saw only footprints in the snow. She started back to the living room, when she heard the sound of glass breaking in Ethan's bedroom followed by a woman screaming. Leaving the kitchen she started to go to the bedroom, but stopped.

Dialing 911, she said. "This is Daniella Coffey, I'm at 1119 West College and someone just tried to break into the house through one of the back bedroom window."