March 17th, 2018

What have I done?

Last night there was a break in to the museum. And this time it was almost identical to the break ins we had been reading about in the cities that Nephmesu visited during his tour. The difference was that the museum didn't respond to it as a break in, nor did they report it. Just that a door had been found unlocked and we all heard about it as though someone had forgotten to lock something up before we left at night.

That's what triggered Hal and I's attention, though of course Hal was only learning about it when he visited for lunch. He and I were both thinking it, we didn't need to voice our thoughts. As he left he said simply "We're doing this." and I couldn't disagree.

He showed back up later before the museum closed, and since everyone still knew him there was no issue with him coming into the back and being chummy. Just before we'd start doing the closing announcements he mentioned needing to use the restroom and disappeared in that direction.

Later I would mention that he was already outside waiting for me as though he had passed through and the others just hadn't seen him. I counted down my till as fast as I could mentioning that Hal was waiting for me, so that it could appear that I was one of the first to leave. I ran back to my locker in a rush, but of course rather than grabbing my stuff and going I met up with Hal who was hiding. He had made friendly with one of the aids who had a key into the locked areas and using the skills Tim had taught him stole the key. In that way we were able to lock ourselves into one of the areas that should remain locked through the night and escape detection.

Hal informed me later that if they had changed the key code on the pad since he'd left, we'd have been screwed. I'm not happy with him about that.

We waited long enough for the guards to settle into a predictable routine and avoided the cameras by not going anywhere. Then we waited longer for any indication that something was up. Hal was sure that however anyone was avoiding detection, it would affect the guards and we'd notice it. That was what he was waiting for.

And he wasn't wrong. As night fell and the museum became truly dark, Hal suddenly started yawning hard and his head nodded forward. Quickly he grabbed a charm out of his pocket that he explained would protect us from the magical influence. He and I held it tightly between our hands for minutes while he continued to yawn, which of course caused me to yawn in response. With all that yawning I was starting to feel tired, and then Hal looked up at me and said it was over. He took the charm back and put it in his pocket and then we carefully made our way back to the door.

Back out in the hallway, we crept up the stairs watching for guards. Up on the second floor we finally found one, passed out on the floor with his flashlight laying next to him. Hal turned back to me and smiled and after that he stopped trying to be so sneaky confident that we wouldn't be discovered.

We stopped into the wildlife exhibits quickly to see if anything was happening there, but Hal was impatient about getting to the Egyptian mummies exhibit. There was nothing to find so we made a beeline to Nephmesu.

At first nothing looked out of order, and Hal's impatience began to show. He stationed me there to watch over Nephmesu while he explored the rest of the exhibit hoping to find something.

While Hal was gone though I watched as Nephmesu stepped into view. He wasn't resting in the sarcophagus as we expected, but rather he'd already been down the other hallway leading to his chamber and was returning. Hal had gone back the way we'd come otherwise he'd probably have run right into the ancient.

The other thing was that Nephmesu didn't appear like one would expect a mummy to appear. He wasn't wrapped up in his bandages, nor was his face or body gaunt. He looked fully alive, and was dressed in a nice modern suit. What gave him away is that he looked nearly identical to the renderings that scientists had generated to put a face on him for the public. He was much darker than expected, though not as dark as Sam. Also his face was younger, and he had a scar on his forehead that no one could have expected. Finally he was wearing all the jewelry that accompanied his mummified form.

There was also a sense of power that radiated from him. I'm not sure I can explain it properly. It's like the area around him was charged, like static electricity. But it's not like I felt if I were to try and touch something I'd be shocked. More like there was a potential there that anything could happen.

I watched him, peeking from around the corner behind which I hid, terrified that he'd discover me. But like Hal he was confident that he wouldn't be discovered. Instead he just paced, like he was waiting for something. Rather, he was waiting for some one. From the lobby came a noise that in the silence seemed loud, the click of one of our lobby doors as it opened, and then closed. I couldn't call out to Hal, but I had hoped he'd heard that and that he would be mindful enough of what it'd mean.

Nephmesu heard it too though, and fortunately for me the more direct rout to the lobby was down the other hallway. Nephmesu actually looked down to his clothing and smoothed it out, checking to make sure he looked presentable. It was almost a nervous action, and at the same time when he looked up he assumed a demeanor befitting a king.

We didn't have to wait long before someone joined us, approaching from the expected passage. This someone was also a male, his skin was lighter than Nephmesu's though still darker than mine. I couldn't quite make out his features, he never did look my direction. His hair was cloudy white as though he were as ancient as Nephmesu's actual age. His form was solid though, like he was still in his prime. Both men were skinny like Hal, but this newcomer moved in a way that made me think of Sam. He was also dressed well, but not regal like Nephmesu. It made me think back to how Nephmesu had straightened his clothes, and made me wonder why Nephmesu was nervous to meet him rather than the other way around.

Like Nephmesu though, he also brought with him a sense of power. But this was different, as though the air itself became more dense, as though there were something tangible about it. Again, I'm not sure my explanation does the feeling justice.

They greeted each other formally, the body language universal. But once the formality was over, they seemed to become more familiar to each other. I get the feeling that they knew each other at least somewhat well. They remained professional, but comfortable.

They did talk, but I couldn't understand the language. Hearing them I was reminded of clips we have used to show us how the ancient Egyptians might have sounded. I suspect that's what they were speaking.

They seemed to come to an agreement, and then they shook hands. That was when Hal tapped me on the shoulder. I bumped the wall as I spun around, bringing my hands up to my face terrified that I'd scream. It was later that I learned Hal didn't see anything, but in the moment I could only think that he was completely unconcerned with the meeting happening right in front of us between two people who could probably squash us like bugs. Hal apologized for startling me, and started to explain that he wasn't finding anything in a volume far too loud. Seeing the fear on my face though he stopped and asked "What?"

I turned to look back down the hall, but both men were gone. When I turned back to Hal he asked again what was wrong. I told him what I'd seen and Hal looked down the hall hoping to see what I was talking about. Of course by then there was nothing to see. When he turned back to me I noticed behind him a guard approaching with his gun drawn.

The police were called, we were handcuffed and dragged outside. I just about pissed myself. Hal kept whispering to me "Don't worry, don't say anything, and don't worry."

I kept my trap shut, I was more terrified of what I might say than anything. Hal remained infuriatingly calm in the face of all of it. It might have had a calming influence on me, but once the CEO arrived with head of HR all I could hope was that they wouldn't recognize me.

They talked to the police and security, glancing in our direction every so often. Before too long a lady arrived approaching those talking about us. Hal said, "She's here," as though that explained anything. She was tall, almost as tall as Hal at least. She was dressed professionally, and had dark full hair that reached down to her mid back. While they talked a security guard arrived carrying a box. There were some questions, the guard shook his head and put the box down before walking away.

It felt like an eternity passed while they discussed our fate. Eventually the box was passed to me, it was the contents of my locker. They approached me and asked what had happened, why we were there, what we'd seen. I didn't hear Hal's answers, I just stared into my box. Finally Hal touched my shoulder and guided me away. We followed the lady who had come late back to her car. Inside Hal introduced her as Brigida Sarto, his college.

We won't be charged, and The Order would make sure nothing shows up on our records. But I also don't have a job any more.

Hal spent the evening trying to reassure me. We went out to get a late dinner, but nothing could fill the hollow in my stomach. I told them what I'd seen, but Hal said he didn't see anything. Brigida was kind, said she was happy to finally meet me. She thanked me for my help and told me not to worry, The Order could offer me a job if I wanted. I told her I'd think about it and asked if I could go home.

I don't know what I'm going to do.

March 16th, 2018

Hal is convinced he can hide in the museum to stay after hours. That he can then continue to avoid security so he can catch for himself whoever or whatever is causing the issues we've been having. He's also convinced that the who is in fact Nephmesu himself. And I know I've entertained that idea, but that's not possible. But even if it's not Nephmesu, if Hal can pull this off as he thinks he can, he'd be able to figure out who it is. And God help me, he's just about got me convinced as well.

I was hoping that after Monday things might settle down. I'm not sure why I hoped that, the only indication was that things were getting worse. Some of the other employees are talking about a ghost that's haunting the museum. I wouldn't be surprised at this point to learn it was goblins. But I had hoped that they did what they were trying to do and that was the end of it. It wasn't.

Today we had guests all day reacting to the wildlife displays moving. Some thought that we had used the days closed to install animatronics to make them come to life or something. Others were complaining that the movement was scaring themselves or their kids. By the end of the day we had someone posted in the display to try and catch the movement, and in the few hours they spent there they couldn't report seeing anything. Though I hear they felt like they were constantly seeing something move out of the corner of their eyes.

Hal had his last test this morning, so when I told him about this stuff at lunch he was determined to spend some time in the wildlife display for himself. Hal said it was like everything was moving just at the corner of his vision. But when he'd turn his head, everything was normal. He heard a few kids react to something, but when he went to check it out neither he nor the parents were able to find what the kid had reacted to.

Convinced that Nephmesu had something to do with it, Hal went into the Egypt exhibit to see if he could find anything there. He was still there when I got off and joined him, and he said he wasn't noticing anything. Nothing moved, not even out of the corner of his eyes and it all seemed normal. But he said he felt something was different and he couldn't explain how. I didn't see, sense, or feel anything to confirm what Hal was experiencing. Hal wanted to take me through the wildlife exhibit real quick to show me that, but with the place closing down we needed to leave.

The only thing is, he can't do this without me. He needs someone who works there, and that's me. So I can't just agree to let him try, I have to join him.

March 15th, 2018

Temperatures are already coming up and it almost seems warm. Working in Candace's garden I'd even taken my heavy shirt off. It felt good to have the sun on my back.

After Candace arrived at my place, we headed out to the garden supply store and mostly just shopped around. It's still early for things, but Candace wasn't looking for plants or seeds as much as she was looking through tools and whatever else she could find. I found a whole aisle of garden gnomes and pointed them out to her. I thought they were cute, Candace seemed more disturbed by them. We picked up some extra stuff for me to use, trowel, gloves, apron, things that would make it easier for us both to be working. Candace also placed an order for some pots and soil to be delivered.

I kept pointing out all the cute little fairy garden things, the furniture and stuff. Candace resisted buying those, but for some reason when I noticed the bird house kits, she thought that was a great idea and bought two of them for us to put together.

We also looked at patio furniture. Candace has a few chairs and table, but they look like they're made of rust and more of a health hazard than source of comfort. We picked out a set that Candace was happy with, a larger table that'll fit six chairs. Should be just enough for our group if we were all to set together. Candace requested they be delivered with her other order, and they said she'd probably receive it all next week. We asked them to call ahead and then when Sam showed up we let him know what was expected. That way he can be there to help move things around and if they show up on Wednesday or Thursday I can be there as well.

Hal did meet us for lunch, and we found a nearby Ethiopian restaurant to try. I don't think I've ever tried Ethiopian before, I certainly don't remember using sponge bread to eat the food rather than dinnerware. It was pretty tasty and I enjoyed it. Hal and Candace did too.

Hal gave us a ride back to Candace's before he needed to get to his lab. And then we spent the rest of the day putzing around in the garden. There wasn't a whole lot we could do yet, and I could tell Candace was anxious to see how the winter had treated what she'd already done. We did check on the buds hidden by leaves. They all looked good and there were many more sprouts to both our delight. There's still the chance of a late frost, so we kept them covered and protected. And then Candace went over with me the plans she had.

She's got flowers spread all throughout, some for color, others to distract harmful insects. She has mostly planted perennials, but she's left a lot of space for annuals that she'll plant once the stores have the seeds and sprouts. She wants to get a couple of tomato plants, and some radishes, squashes, she's got a whole section set aside for pumpkins and another smaller section for various herbs. She'll use the pots to create a raised garden for things that'll need a lot of attention. That way we won't be bent over the ground while we're caring for them. So next week she wants to make another trip for hardware supplies to build that. But that'll depend on when we get the order she already placed today.

I had thought she was only going to use the one section of the yard. But as she was going over her plans I realized she was going to turn the whole backyard into a garden. There'll be lawn space in the middle with a strip to get to the tree, and another strip leading to the front gate. But all along the fence and around will be plants. She wants the raised garden along the fence leading to the gate, and under that she wants to plant plants that don't like the sun as much. Mostly mushrooms, and they'll catch the water that drips down from the pots above.

Under the tree she wants to put a bench to sit on. And as we were looking her cat had already found a perch in the tree above. He looked like he was dozing, but he seemed to always have one ear perked to listen to us.

Sam showed up and Candace gave him the same tour she'd given me. He said he was expecting to be pretty busy with his commission, but he'd happily help out when he could. He actually admitted that working alone at his shop, he was having a hard time taking care of things like he'd wanted and lamented not having some helping hands himself.

It was a good day, and it felt good to be out in the backyard after spending the winter inside.

Tomorrow I'll be going back to work. It sounded like they kept the museum closed even on Wednesday, but it had reopened today. I just wonder what I'm going to find when I get there.

March 14th, 2018

I'm dating this for last night since that's when it's intended. But truth be told this is now the morning of the 15th. We had a very enjoyable night last night, and I took my parents at their word and just didn't come home. I did let Mom know when I was leaving to not wait up for me. She called out "Good, then I can have an evening alone with my husband."

Yesterday Candace called up in the morning to get together as we usually do. I had forgotten that we didn't include her with our plans, and she didn't know anything was up. So I called Hal and asked if our morning schedule was going to change. He said no, but since he hadn't already left he said he'd meet Candace and I at the gym.

While there I was able to explain to Candace that we were going to see a movie tonight. And after Hal left I asked if she'd help me pick out an outfit. I was happy with the dress I'd selected, but Candace has such a better sense of style than I do. And thanks to Max, she's already seen me in the lingerie... She knew which one I'd selected from my description, and she said it wasn't a bad choice, but since we were out anyway she suggested we go shopping.

We picked out some accessories that went well with the dress and hinted at the gift underneath. I'm not sure Hal's the kind to notice those things, but it made me feel amazing. And once I was all dressed up, it all just popped against my dark skin. Once Hal got there he didn't say anything, his eyes did all the talking.

I don't think he had expected me to dress up as well as I did. Which was fine, and it's not like he didn't dress up. But he was wearing nice jeans, and a nice button up shirt. It's fine, this was all for him anyway. Candace even managed to talk Mom into letting me borrow Grandma's necklace. Of course they were tittering like old maids when I came out.

Hal offered Candace a ride home when we were leaving, but she said she'd already talked to Sam and he was on the way.

Hal got us reservations at Solitaire thinking it was amusing given the game he'd shown us how to play. It was fantastic, I tried their Halibut and Hal got the short rib and of course we shared. Just amazing. But we couldn't stay for dessert because we wanted to get to the show.

We watched Red Sparrow. I wasn't sure what to expect, a reviewer had made it sound like there was going to be a naked woman in every shot. I'm still not sure how they came to that conclusion. There was nudity, but nothing I would consider gratuitous. Honestly I was more concerned that another family had brought their high school age daughters. They must've thought, 'oh Jennifer Lawrence, she was in The Hunger Games, this'll be fine for the kids'. What nudity there was wasn't even all that bad. A bit much for the high schoolers I'm sure, Hal said one of the girls glanced his way during the only full frontal scene. He did his best to seem unconcerned by it.

And then afterward was... well, that was for me and Hal. Let's just say he appreciated my present, and wasn't at all disappointed in receiving it late.

So yea, didn't get home till this morning, and I'm writing this out real quick while I wait for Candace to show up. Hal gave me a ride home, we got up late and didn't get to the gym like usual. So Candace is busing it here before we go shopping for her garden.

March 13th, 2018

After saying we'd still need to come in to work today, they decided otherwise this morning and let us all know at the last minute. So I get an extra day this weekend, unpaid of course. But it gave me a day to myself since Hal had his lab in the afternoon. Actually, we were able to spend some time together in the morning. He picked me up in the morning for gym as usual, and that's when we learned I wouldn't be needing to go in. So he brought me home so I could get into some more comfortable clothes for wandering around town. I let mom know what was going on and that I'd like to do laundry if possible.

Then I headed out into town to take care of things I would normally take care of tomorrow. Hal caught up with me after his class. This midterm was the one he was stressing over, and he's not feeling super confident about it. He's sure he passed, but not as well as he would have liked. We headed out to get some lunch and then down to the park to just wander around and enjoy the coming spring weather. Fortunately I remember to take some pictures this time, some that'll look more spur of the moment. The last pics I sent to Efe were all taken together and I felt they looked forced.

While we were there we noticed the Steampunk Bus pass by. I have to say, it looks fantastic. Almost like the double decker buses in England, but of course painted and decorated in a style more readily identifiable as steampunk. I tried to catch a picture of that too, but they turned out blurry. I thought it was really creative, Professor Causland?... can't remember his name right now, will have to look that up. Anyway, he took the steam powered concept to heart, and made the bottom back half resemble more a train engine, a steam engine. Complete with a smokestack that releases smoke. If I ever get the chance to see it, I'd like to know how functional it is, or if it's just for decoration.

I asked Hal about how tomorrow looked for him. Since I'll have my chores done today, tomorrow will be pretty open. He does have a midterm in the morning, but on Thursday since he's already taken his midterms for the morning classes he doesn't have them. All he's got is the lab completion that evening. So I suggested we go see a movie or something and have a night to ourselves.

After lunch, Hal needed to get to lab, so we ran one last of my chores before he brought me home. And I've been here doing laundry and watching some of my long neglected shows. I also rooted through my closet to find the perfect spring dress to pair with Hal's present. Tomorrow is going to be a wonderful evening.

Just looked it up, it's Professor Caleb Kerrigan McCausland III, which must be a character name.

March 12th, 2018

I think Hal might have me convinced that it's Nephmesu himself rather than someone working with/around him. Given today's events, I was able to "bump" into Dr. Karlson and talk with him. If he knows what's going on, he's a hell of a liar. Not that I'm necessarily that good at being able to tell when someone's lying to me, but he seemed genuinely surprised and worried with what happened. That and he's got a rock solid alibi.

I suppose I should explain what happened. This morning as Hal was dropping me off at work, we were noticing that the parking lot was full of vehicles. Official looking vehicles, and vehicles that we knew belonged to managers and other important persons. We looked at each other as he was letting me out, and Hal just said "Good luck."

I'm still not entirely sure what happened, but as I understand it one of the wildlife displays was completely rearranged, out on the commons floor. Everything was taken out of the display and put outside where the guests would walk through. More importantly, everything that had been going missing over these last few weeks was found there among the contents of the display.

From the sound of things, nothing is missing. Everything is accounted for, and it's all in good shape. Except the remote for the drone, as I understand it that was taken apart and is no longer functional as a remote.

But of course, because this happened, security and management are loosing their shit. Everyone who's had something taken was brought in for questioning. The official vehicles are there because the security guards are also being held accountable for allowing this to happen. The rest of us were questioned as a group but also instructed that if we had any information we were to report it right away. Failure to do so would make us accomplices.

So despite the museum being closed down for the day, none of us were allowed to leave. It was a long day of questions on the verge of accusations. Or standing outside apologizing to people we had to turn away. There was no good option.

Early in the day though I spotted Dr. Karlson standing alone watching what was happening. So I made my way over to him and approached him asking what was going on. I told him I'd just gotten there and let him inform me. Like I said, he was as surprised as the rest of us. But I noticed he wasn't being questioned with his peers, so I asked about that as innocently as I could. He was in a meeting last night with some of the directors, so he couldn't have been here to do anything.

But that did get him talking about what he was happening with the Nephmesu exhibit and everything. That allowed me to "remember" that he had been on the tour with our resident mummy and ask about that. I didn't want to ask any questions that would give away that I knew anything. So I just asked about how it went and we had a great conversation. From the sound of it, he's really pleased that he got to be a part of the tour and is thrilled with how well it went. In fact it seems he wishes it could still be happening. But I couldn't find a way to ask about the break-ins, and if he was aware of them he didn't bring them up. I don't think he is though.

I asked about the road crew, just trying to be curious how they managed what they were doing. If I weren't so interested in a certain aspect of the tour I might have found it more impressive. But the road crew was all employed through outside means, even road security. So the only one still here from the tour was Dr. Karlson himself, him and Nephmesu. And if Dr. Karlson isn't behind this...

I was skeptical about these thefts being connected with the break-ins, but now that the items are all returned it's like they were only borrowed without asking. Which puts this very much back in the court of what was happening during the tour. I still think Hal was jumping to conclusions, he just happened to jump to the right conclusion.

So after work at Hal's place, we discussed what I'd learned. It meant he didn't get a lot of studying done. He was feeling good about the tests he'd taken today and he only has one tomorrow that he'd already spent some time studying for. Hal is now convinced more than ever that we need to try and stay over. And when I raised my concerns about getting caught, he said obviously there was something preventing security from noticing what was happening. Hal's convinced we wouldn't get caught for the same reason they aren't catching whoever's been doing this stuff.

I have to admit that I really want to know what's going on. If I wasn't so worried about getting caught, if I felt certain that I wouldn't get caught, I'd stay after to see for myself what was happening.

We weren't called off for tomorrow, so I'll be showing up to work as normal. I don't know what's going to happen, and if we're still closed I don't know what they expect me to do.

I did get Efe's letter off this morning, hopefully it finds him safe. Not much else to say.

March 11th, 2018

Things are getting worse at work. Despite the museum's increased security, a taxidermied hare went missing last night. As the other items before, the hare was taken out of the back, not out of one of the displays. More than anything, I think this is why employees are being suspected. Except, I think someone has finally gotten it through their head that this is happening at night, not during the day. They're still putting pressure on us, but there seems to be a lot of scrutiny of security and night security in particular.

The museum is still keeping this close to the chest, internally rather than bringing in the police. I'm not sure their reasoning, but of course we've been instructed to not talk about it. I think our guests are noticing that something is up though. It's hard to explain how, the looks, the lingering gaze on the security guards, their visits aren't lasting as long, and even our count is down. They know something is up.

Even Hal said the atmosphere was different when he came to visit for lunch. Heck, we were practically the only ones in the cafe on a Sunday. There were a couple of others, but the cafe should have been hopping.

Even before that though, I had an attack about an hour after I'd gotten to work. It was bad enough I had to sit down for a bit, in the middle of helping a guest. As usual one of the others stepped in to help me, Sandy this time, and everything should have been fine. Oh no! One of the newer security guards was not aware of my issues, and decides to take me in back for questioning. To my surprise, it was John that came to my rescue. He chewed out the guard for the way they were treating me and refused to leave me alone even under threat of arrest. Fortunately for us both, HR caught up with us and explained my situation and that this was not uncommon.

They let us both go back to work, and John was good enough to ask if I was okay or if I needed anything. I thanked him, and asked if I could get something to drink before I returned to my register. I'm not sure what's changed for him, but he was a descent person today.

Anyway, since Hal was studying with Brigida tonight, I just went home. It's given me time to take care of some laundry that I don't normally get to and I finally sat down and wrote a letter to Efe. I told him things have been going, my operation, the new medication. I also finally admitted to him that I've been hallucinating. I didn't explain exactly what I've been seeing, just that each time I do I've confirmed with people around me that I'm the only one seeing it. I apologized that I didn't have any more pictures for him. I really need to start making it a habit to take pictures.

I also mentioned the town of Smithwick and it's disappearance. I asked if he'd heard anything about it, by the time he gets this of course. I caught up with him about what I'd knew of Albany and mentioned the news articles about the disappearances. Then there's the subject of The Stag. Which there's still been no word since he was dragged away by the other cloaked figure.

Finally I let him know about Mom's new project, and Max and Sam. I also let him know that Dad seems to have come to an acceptance of me and Hal.

I'll be able to send the letter out tomorrow one my way to work. With Hal's midterms starting tomorrow, we both suspect he'll be quite busy this week. I don't know how much I'll see of him, but next week we'll make up for it.