For the second time in her life, Nancy was surprised again as she saw the familiar face of Julian at her doorstep. This time however, he came along with Randal.
"Should I start getting used to this?" She asked rhetorically, raising her eyebrow at the two men.
She moved aside and let them in. Her TV was switched on. It appeared she was watching the news.
"Sorry about the unexpected visit," Randal said as he sunk into a seat. "But we wouldn't have come on such short notice if it wasn't so important."
"I think that's what phones are for," Nancy replied. "You guys could have called or something. I mean what if I wasn't home?"
The two men stared at each other.
"You guys didn't think this through, did you?" Nancy shook her head. "This must really be a big emergency."
"Nancy, you can spare us the lectures till later, " Randal said. "We need your help."
"Okay, " She replied. "What's the matter?"
Julian who had been silently staring into space spoke up.
"I'm still seeing the tattoo on people of recent. It hasn't stopped."
"What?" Nancy raised her eyebrows, confused. "I don't get it. I thought the parapsychologist—"
"The parapsychologist did nothing," Julian said, and angry expression crossing his features. "She didn't solve it. If anything, it's even worse. I've seen it on two people in the last forty-eight hours. There was some news yesterday morning about a road accident—"
"Yeah, I saw it," Nancy cut in. "But I didn't really pay attention to it."
"Well, the car involved in the accident was mine." Julian said.
"That was your car?!" Nancy nearly cried out in disbelief, her eyes widening behind her glasses.
"Yes," Julian replied. "And would you believe the person who was driving it, robbed me to get it?"
Nancy opened her mouth to reply but for the first time in a long time, no words could come out.
"And get this," Randal said. "I brought a priest to Julian's house yesterday to provide a solution—"
"Only for me to see the same tattoo on his neck as he was leaving my house." Julian finished.
He sat on the sofa near Randal, rubbing his forehead and closing his eyes.
"If you're quite familiar with my narration, you can guess what has happened to the priest by now." He sighed.
"Dead." The words reluctantly escaped Nancy's lips.
Julian opened his eyes as he felt a weight sink into the sofa he was sitting on. Nancy had sat down beside him. She took his left hand in hers and held it softly, staring at him. Julian's expression softened a bit as he saw the compassion in her eyes.
"Julian," She said. "I know everything has been upside down and messed up of recent. Sam, Cheryl, and You. I've also had my share of sleepless nights as I'm still trying to process everything. But one thing is certain. We need to stick together in this and try and help each other. You'll be there for me and I'll be there for you. Okay?"
Julian stared at her hand over his. A warm feeling filled his heart at the moment.
"Okay." He nodded.
"Which means no more missed calls on your end." She wagged a finger at him, jokingly.
It took all of Julian's might to suppress a smile that was tugging at his lips.
"Agreed." He swore solemnly.
Randal stared at the two as they shared their moment. A feeling began to flow within him. He couldn't explain it, but it wasn't good. He gritted his teeth and clenched his knuckles. He knew at that moment that he didn't want to be there right now. He abruptly stood up, startling the other two, and made his way to the door.
"Where are you going, Randal?" Nancy called out to him. "I thought we were in this together."
'No, You two are,' Randal thought. 'It has always been you two.'
Turning around, he spoke out loud.
"I just remembered there's something I need to attend to. It's very important. I’ll get back to you guys as soon as I'm done."
Without waiting for a reply, he was out of the house.
"Well, that was anticlimactic." Nancy muttered dryly.
Julian opened his mouth to reply when a voice from the TV alerted their attention. The mayor was making a speech. He stood at a podium in front of a large crowd.
"Not this fat clown again." Nancy frowned.
"Don't ever say that again," Julian said. "That's an insult to clowns."
Nancy nearly fell off the sofa as she laughed uncontrollably. Clearly, the two shared the same view of the mayor. The obese man had made a lot of promises three years prior before getting into office. So far, not even one was fulfilled.
"Concerning the issue of the mart which was accidentally demolished last year," The deep voice of the mayor was heard from the TV. "I can guarantee that my team is taking care of it. I urge the citizens of this town to exercise some patience and be rest assured that by the end of this year, a bigger mart will be established."
The mayor paused and a wide smile creased his plump face as the crowd cheered.
"Who does he think he's fooling?" Nancy rolled her eyes at the screen.
Julian faced her and shrugged. Turning back to the screen, he jolted and let out a small gasp. His actions alerted Nancy and she faced him.
"Julian, what's wrong?" She asked. "Are you okay?"
Julian didn't answer as he stared at the screen, his facial expression reflecting terror. Nancy's heart skipped as she realized his expression meant one thing.
"You've seen the tattoo." She said.
Julian turned to face her. A solemn look appeared on her face.
"You're seeing it right now, aren't you?" Her eyes narrowed as she directed her eyes to the screen.
"Yes." Julian's voice was barely audible.
"On whom?" She asked.
"The mayor." He replied.
----------------------------------
The door to the office opened and the mayor stepped in with a massive grin adorning his face. The crowd had eaten his white lies like the gullible sheep they were. He chuckled lightly as he reflected on the looks of hope spreading through the crowd as he made his speech earlier. Build a bigger mart? Hell would freeze over before he would indulge in what he considered an abomination. There were better things he had in mind to use the town budget for. A vacation to the Bahamas. An expensive trip to Paris with his mistress who he was having an illicit affair behind his wife's back. Build a mansion in Columbia. Oh, there was so many choices. The town could go to blazes for all he cared. He had everything all planned out. When the year would eventually come to an end and the town made a request questioning him about his promise, he would make up an excuse and postpone the building of the mart.
He sighed in contentment as he stared at his richly furnished office. A large glass table stood near his table with all sorts of assorted cigars and drunks. Surrounding the table were about four brown sofas for relaxation. A large refrigerator stood a few feet away from the relaxation spot and finally, his most cherished attraction, a large gold lion statue, stood beside his desk by the right. It stood on its hind legs with its mouth wide open in a roar. The mayor smiled proudly as he stared at the statue. The statue was a symbolic representation of himself. He was a lion. A lion who preyed on the gullibility of the people. His devouring of their hopes, resources and dreams strengthened his pocket. And he felt not an ounce of remorse.
The mayor sat by his office desk and opened the laptop which was on it. He connected the Wi-Fi and began to surf the internet. He smiled as he discovered a site. He was going to book a flight out of the country. Paris was the destination he had in mind. He picked up his phone and dialed a line.
"Hello, darling," He said as soon as he heard a voice at the other end. "How about you and me take a trip to the city of love."
He rolled his eyes as he heard her reply.
"Of course, I'm referring to Paris." He said. "So, what do you say?"
He smiled this time as got her predicted reply. She was unsurprisingly interested.
After about few minutes, the mayor ended the call and placed his phone on his lips. He turned his attention back to the screen and resumed surfing the net.
Unbeknown to him, a thick dark smoke appeared in the air above him. Out of the smoke, the dark figure materialized. It's signature grin widened as it licked its lips, staring down at the oblivious mayor who had all his attention on the screen. One word escaped its lips in a harsh whisper as it swooped down towards its fifth victim.
"Sacrifice."