All Signs Point to Not Promising

91.

"Well I didn't want you to worry Gilbert is all." Clarissa had called Gilbert as soon as she had gotten to her jeep. She didn't want him to freak out that she was doing work, or be mad she didn't expect to get paid.

"I appreciate it, but you can handle this one on your own, probably just rats, though be careful rats can be mean little bastards." Gilbert remembered once he almost lost an eye to a rat suddenly lunging at him, he felt himself absent mindidly scratching near the eye.

"You sure? What if its not rats? What if its a secret Witch Cabal?"

"Well A. Witches aren't really a thing, I didn't say it earlier but yeah not a thing, and B. I highly doubt she left a note at a store to bring you to her secret Cabal that can not possibly exist in the first place. Make sure to wear a jumpsuit, don't want to get that dirt and shit on your clothes, also a mask, old places tend to have bad building materials."

"Yes dad."

"You'll thank me when you're fifty and your lungs work, have fun doing your spooky old lady house, I might have a line on something, its also probably nothing, but you said you wanted work." Clarissa smiled, her spooktober would be a thing!

"Sweet, well I'll check in with uhhh Mrs. Clausen and then check back in with you after I'm done."

"You do that, and on the off chance its job worthy be careful and bring our cards! This might be a charity case for you, but we aren't a charity."

"Will do Boss." Clarissa hung up and Gilbert looked over at Doris who was frowning at him.

"Don't look at me like that."

"You don't have anymore work."

"Well always been meaning to check out that ghost town in arizona."

"A ghost town?"

"Doris don't you have shows you should be watching?"

"You yell at me when I watch TV."

"Well I'm yelling at you now for bothering me, so go back to watching TV."

"Can't please you ever old man."

"DORIS!"

"Right right watching my TV, go look up your ghost town." Gilbert muttered under his breath he would go look up his ghost town. He secretly hoped Clarissa did stumble on to a real job, he already felt bored.

****

Clarissa pulled into the driveway and her heart was already in her stomach. The house looked like a normal rambler in a fairly average suburb neighborhood. The grass was even well maintained. Nothing looked out place, she double and triple checked the address, hoping she was wrong, but that was not the case. This was the address Clausen had provided. Clarissa didn't even know how to approach the house, she had on her jumpsuit with GD Exterminators she hoped that would be enough.

"Hello?" The old woman was fully dressed in a neat pantsuit she looked like she was ready for work at a bank or something.

"I'm sorry if I came at a bad time, Larry from the Double O sent me." Mrs. Clausen looked puzzled for a bit, and then like a light going on in her head.

"Oh the exterminator, come in come in." Inside the woman's house looked like it was the seventies all over again, walls painted in orange with deep shag carpeting covering the living room. The furniture was an awful lime green that Clarissa felt looked more like vomit than a good furniture color. Mrs. Clausen indicated a small table and some chairs she could sit at and Clarissa took her seat.

"So what exactly has been happening?" Nothing appeared out of the ordinary other than the decor.

"Its the basement, something is in my basement." The something sent a chill down Clarissa's spine, but she was also excited, maybe it would be a real case after all!

"Can you show me?" Mrs. Clausen pointed a shaky finger toward her kitchen and a door that was across from the stove.

Clarissa got up from the table and made her way toward the door, she noticed dust in the kitchen, as if no one had been in there in a while. There were also no lights on, but the switches were flipped to the on position indicating the bulbs had burnt out. Whatever was in the basement had scared Mrs. Clausen so bad she had left her kitchen and not returned. The door to the basement looked normal enough even with a lock to keep something in theory down stairs. Mrs. Clausen seemed on edge as Clarissa approached the door, she undid the latch and heard the old woman catch a breath. Clarissa cursed herself for not bringing any weapons, all she had was a flash light and her cell phone, she hadn't expected to be plunging into the unknown.

The door opened, Clarissa bravely took up her flash light and into the depths she went.