Not everything that is interesting is safe
“Ok, honey.” Dr. Brady Hanson answers with the phone pressed to his ear. A bright white beard covers an otherwise weak chin and a pair of wire rimmed glasses sit a top his nose and lightly touches a scar that stretches the distance between his nose and cheek.
“Yes, dear, a package just arrived.” He says.
“I’m not sure who sent it, Katy. It just showed up on my desk.” His attention strays as he reads the and muttered a few uninterested affirmative responses that let her know that he wasn’t paying attention anymore. He was busy scanning the address label on the package.
“Okinawa, Japan?” He read aloud before hearing Katy fussing at him. “Yeah, I’m sorry, honey. You still coming to pick me up for our dinner? Ok, good. I have to go. I’ll see you in a little bit. I love you, too.” He hangs up the phone and stares at the package for a minute, wondering who would have sent it and why.
He grabs a letter opener and opens the box. A note inside the box says “DO NOT WEAR!!! A stale odor fills the room and he sees that the box is packed with saw dust. He runs his fingers through the wooden dust and they fall upon something hard. He pulls out a wooden mask
The mask is a distorted face, with eyes shut hard, and two huge horns that jut out of the forehead. It’s deep red color and black features make him uneasy but he’s attracted to it. He glares at the beautiful craftsmanship of the ornate mask and slides his fingers over the tusks. As his fingers reach the tips he is amazed at how sharp they are.
Dr. Hanson turns the mask over to see the inside. The inside is different. It’s more rough. Splinters jut out as if reaching for someone’s face. He knows he shouldn’t put it on. He brings it closer to his face and studies the striations of the wood. He wants to press his face into it. The splinters are strips of muscle reaching for something to grasp. He feels it drawing closer. It almost seems alive.
He shakes his head free of the cobwebs that clouded his mind and turns the mask over to see the front again. The eyes were so alive, and the mouth… Wait, weren’t the eyes closed a moment ago? He stares at the now open eyes for a long moment and can’t seem to look away.
Katy Hanson opens the door to the small office and is surprised that her husband isn’t sitting at his desk. “Brady?” She says loudly trying to find him. As she rounds the corner she sees her him lying on the floor behind the desk. She screams and kneels down beside his dead body. She pushes a wooden mask out of the way. It’s silver beard attracts her attention and the crease that runs from its nose to cheek is so familiar.