It wasn't just a nightmare. Loki awoke in his own bed. That didn't make sense. He went to sleep in the Antoinette room not his room. The only way he could have gotten down here is if he sleep walked. He knows he had a nightmare but he also dreamt of Thor too. Loki got up. His mind was foggy and he thought perhaps a cup of coffee could clear things away.
His mother's locket was still in his right hand when he opened his eyes this morning. He put it on around his neck where it belonged. He hopped into the shower and then got dressed before heading upstairs for that magic Columbian roasted elixir of life. The house was silent as always. Everything tidy. He poured his favorite flavored creamer into his cup, peppermint mocha, and leaned against the kitchen counter as he sipped.
He knew he dreamed of Thor but it hadn't been pleasant, or it had, but brief. Something bad happened but he couldn't remember. Loki wracked his brain, deciding that he would go and investigate the room for clues when a police car rolling up his driveway pulled him from his inner turmoil. The officer stepping out of the car was familiar. It was officer Muldowney, the cop that responded to Victoria's death and took Joseph into his custody. Loki wondered if this was a social call for something more official. He met the man at the door.
"Officer Muldowney. I'd say welcome back but the last time you paid a visit it was under gruesome circumstances. How is Joseph?"
"He's part of the reason I'm here. He's doing great actually but there are some things I need to ask you."
"Sure of course. Come on in." Loki guided the officer into the parlor to have a seat. "Would you like some coffee?"
"No thanks. I'm good."
"So what can I do for you?" Loki sat down.
"Well in the past four months there have been four deaths in this sleepy little town. Averaging one per month is not typical for us."
"No I imagine not. Two of them happened here."
"Yes well, that's the thing. The other two have connections with this place as well."
"What?"
"Mr. Laufeyson do you recall having a couple of guests by the name of Edward Mullens or Harold Williams?"
"Yes they both stayed here in my home. You're telling me they are dead?"
"Yes." Muldowney said. Loki's hands flew to his face in shock and tears welled up in his eyes.
"How?" He swallowed hard as horrific scenarios danced through his head.
"Well Mr. Mullens was found in his mother's home dead and buried under a pile of stuff. The guy was a hoarder. The place was filthy and infested with all kinds of vermin but what was really unnerving was what we found in the basement."
"What did you find?"
"His mother's body in a freezer. The freezer stopped working and her body was rotting. None of the neighbors had seen her in weeks and they all said that her son had shipped her off to a nursing home, which was believable given her age. But he was hiding the fact that she died so he could keep collecting her pension checks."
"Oh dear God!" Loki let the horror sink in for a moment before he dared to ask the next question. "How did Mr. Williams die?"
"He starved to death. Damnedest thing too. His family showed up at his place on Thanksgiving to check on him. His wife died a couple years back and they didn't have kids of their own so his nieces and nephews have been checking on him. Anyway they found his body face down in the bathroom. His refrigerator was empty, his cupboards were empty, and his freezer was empty. They guy had lost like 100lbs. I wanted to chalk it up to financial problems but the guy had plenty of money."
"What? He was such a sweet man! And he loved to eat. I made him surf and turf of steak and lobster at his request while he was here. He ate everything and asked for seconds."
"That might very well have been his last meal." Officer Muldowney said. He watched Loki's facial expressions as he dished out each detail. Loki responded how any normal horrified person would. The tears were real.
"Oh God I'm so sorry! I should never have bought this stupid house." He sobbed into his lap.
"Mr. Laufeyson, I know about the priest that had the stroke here. Is there anyone else that has come to harm while under this roof?"
"Yes. My housekeeper Jenny. A feral dog chased her into the pond out back and forced her into the frigid water. I had to shoot it to save her. It limped away. Officer, is there something wrong with Joseph?"
"That is the question. My wife and I have put in a formal petition to the court to adopt Joseph. He really is a wonderful kid and my wife and I love him to pieces. We've gotten him lots of help. He sees a child psychiatrist regularly for the abuse he suffered from Victoria and from the system as a whole. He has nightmares pretty regularly but they have been getting less severe and less frequent."
"But…"
"But there is one thing that Joseph still does that unnerves my wife."
"What is that?"
"He keeps breaking the mirrors in our house. He's afraid of them. He told us about a nightmare he had the night before Victoria died here in this house."
"What did he see?"
"He said a little white boy, and by white I mean WHITE white. Like an albino. He said the boy tried to drag him into the mirror."
"Tried?"
"Yeah. He said the voice of an angel told him to go back to bed. He said she made the little boy go away. He said he dreams about her sometimes."
"He does? What does she look like? Does she have a name?"
"Joseph said that the lady he dreams about at night is your mother." Loki's vision began to blacken and then the meager contents of his stomach gushed out onto the floor before he succumbed to unconsciousness.
He awoke with a start.
"Easy there. You passed out. You've been down about five minutes."
"Officer Muldowney, are you aware of my family history?"
"I did some digging yeah. I know your mother is dead and that she was albino too and that she and your father were murdered."
"You think I had something to do with all of their deaths."
"I don't know. I don't know what the hell is going on in this house. I heard you stopped taking reservations. You mind telling me why?"
"Because I think something is going on in this house too. That's why I brought Father Sheldon here to bless the house."
"And he had a stroke."
"Yes."
"The previous owner of this house disappeared without a trace. Mr. Laufeyson, if I were you I run as far away from this house as I could get."
"I'll take it under consideration."
"Merry Christmas Mr. Laufeyson."
"Merry Christmas Mr. Muldowney." Loki walked the man to the front door and watched him as he pulled out of the driveway and the disappeared down the street. The minute he was out of view Loki bounded up the stairs, taking two at a time to inspect the Antoinette room.
He barged into the room expecting…something. Something terrifying that he could not name. He only found an unmade bed and no signs of foul play. But Loki knew from experience to check the mirror and like the others it was slightly ajar. Loki pushed the mirror open and entered into the secret hallway to search for answers.
What he saw directly across from him filled his heart with terror. In the painting on the opposite wall was the field of purple flowers. Where before it had been an empty field, there was now a purple horse with red glowing eyes trampling a woman that looked very much like Victoria. Loki went down the hall to look at the others. In the painting that belonged to the one bathroom that had a mirror was a dog, THE dog that Loki shot that night attacking Jenny; but Jenny was not in the painting. The next painting, however, shook Loki to the core. It was Mr. Williams in the middle of a great serving tray with an orange in his mouth. He was bound up like a roasted turkey about to be served, and the creature feed upon him was a ghastly boar with great big tusks, red glowing eyes, and an evil countenance.
"No! Oh God no!" Loki ran further down the hall and saw Mr. Mullens depicted in a pit of vipers and filth. The paintings for the red room and gold room were empty still. But that was only six paintings. There were seven. Loki turned and looked back down at the end of the hall. The one painting he hadn't seen yet was of the room from whence he came. The blue room. He ran down the hall to look upon the painting about the lover's bed. He grabbed the edge of the frame and turned it to see.
A blue cow beast was displayed, angry, but alone. Memories of his experience from the night before came flooding back. Loki jumped through the hole in the wall made by the turning mirror, afraid of being trapped again. Once back in the Antoinette room Loki marched out the door and ran down back down the stairs to relative safety.
In spite of his terror one glaring detail stood out above all others. Thor wasn't in any of the paintings.