It was the last day of her vacation in Chiang Mai and Alyssa was already dreading returning to the grind of everyday life. For the past five days of sweet freedom, she'd been lounging in the sun next to the sparkling pool whose view overlooked a stunning landscape of trees. There hadn't been deadlines or traffic, just cheerful sunshine and the hum of birds and insects going about their lives. Occasionally she had donned real clothes instead of her bikini to go and explore the market or eat dinner inside the hotel but she had practically subsisted on the generous poolside platters heaped with colorful fruits and bright cocktails.
Now, however, she was faced with the pressing deadline of a flight back home and the realization that she really should buy some kind of souvenir for her friends. A haphazard journey through the market later, struggling to discern what goods were being offered as she couldn't read a word of the local language, she found herself outside the tiniest shop she'd ever seen. She'd taken a wrong turn somewhere and couldn't quite explain how she ended up in front of the narrow building with darkened windows. The sign over the door featured a bright green and yellow bird that contrasted starkly with the otherwise foreboding exterior. Curious, she approached the door and was surprised to see a small sign detailing opening hours in English and didn't even think to consider how unusual it was that the shop didn't seem to have a name marked anywhere.
The door seemed stuck at first as she pushed on it and then gave in with a resigned sigh, swinging easily open. Coming from outside, the dim lighting inside the shop rendered Alyssa nearly blind for several seconds but she could swear that there were frantic rustling noises and the impression of movement just outside her field of vision. As she blinked, eyes finally adjusting to take in the empty shop, she expected to see the cause of the noise but found nothing.
Tentatively, she took a step toward one of the shelves. It was packed with small curios carved out of a variety of materials. One of the shelves had little black boxes that looked like dark wood but were cool to the touch like stone. Their lids were adorned with showy flower carvings. On the shelf above, a set of animal figures caught her eye: three little monkeys, one covering a different part of their face. She picked up the one furthest to the right whose hands were over his eyes and thought that it might be they might be the perfect gift - a set of sorts for her and her two closest friends.
A touch so feather-light she might have dismissed it if she weren't already on edge nearly caused her to drop the figure, a strangled yell barely caught on her lips. She turned to see who was trying to get her attention and was far from reassured. A thin man, hardly more than a skeleton draped in skin stood behind her. His clothes hung from his bony frame like a father's shirt on a toddler but it was the bandage that alarmed her the most; it was a white strip of cloth was wrapped around the man's face with dark smears of dried blood where the eyes should be.
"See no evil" he whispered, smiling.
