Santiago seeks answer from heaven.

The door was opened by a willowy brown-haired old woman in a bongo floral skirt.

"Santiago, son, how are you?" The woman beamed seeing Santiago after a long time. Her mid seventy age hardly depicted on her face. Shiloh stood back and Santiago strode past her into the room.

Santiago flung his hands in the air. "Thanking the good Lord for giving us life." He responded to the woman's pleasantries. "How have you been Grandma?"

"Oh Santa, son, the good Lord has kept us. We're alive eating and drinking." Shiloh leads Santiago towards a long corridor.

Santiago couldn't help but notice how sunken and colourless the old woman had looked over the months he had not seen her though she barely aged. He was afraid the woman would receive nature's call more than the woman was.

"How is Grandpa Mark? Where is he?"

"In the study,"

"Doing some research?" Santiago shook his head. "The old man doesn't want to get old"

Shiloh giggled at Santiago saying and opened the door to the study room.

"Grandpa Mark!" Santiago exclaimed.

"Woo! Look who is here Santiago Armsworth," Grandpa exclaimed. He was looming in front of his desk. He must have been clearing it, there was no paper in sight. Grandpa looked sicker than Grandma.

"Grandpa, how have you been?"

"Look at me son and you know how I've been" "Very Old," he added.

Santiago spared a little laughter with the two old people in the room amidst the pain he was hiding.

"What brings you here, son?" Mark dragged his old body towards Santiago.

"Oh Mark, maybe after a cup of coffee you can ask that. Show some courtesy first." Shiloh grinned.

"Grandma it's okay, I'm not going to stay long."

"You see? That's why I went straight to the point! My grandson only visits his grandpa when he wants something important." Mark flung his hands in the air grimacing.

"Oh Grandpa, are you going to hold me on that?"

"Well, it's been five good months since I've not seen my grandson. Tell me how do you think I'll feel about it?" Grandpa stood like he was disciplining his five-year-old naughty boy.

"And it's because he is so oo busy with work at the office," Grandpa added before Santiago could make the excuse.

Grandma quietly strode out of the place to the kitchen leaving the two men.

"So Santiago how is your love life going, and don't give me an excuse now. You know I depend on you for this family lineage to continue." Grandpa hit the point again.

"Grandpa, that's one of the reasons I'm here. Things are getting out of hand Grandpa and I don't know what to do anymore."

"Hon, will you cut him some slack? Even if it's just a bit. Why are you pressuring my baby boy?!" Grandma's voice ranted from the doorway. Steam came out from the cup she held in her hands.

"Dear wife, I was just... been thoughtful… and caring. Y... you know I was just... Um, I'm…" Grandpa panicked finding a way to defend himself. He had taken the chance the woman left to remind Santiago of the obligation he must complete. He had barely made two statements and he was caught.

"You old man!" Shiloh pointed at Mark.

Mark's heart skipped.

"We promised each other that we will not ask him or pressure him anymore. He has his life to live. He knows when best to marry, knows when to have children, he decides to plan well for all this. So hon, allow the young man to plan himself well. Don't make him end up picking some slut who would only be after his money."

Grandpa raised his hands in surrender and apologized to Grandma. "Oh hon, I'm sorry. I won't do that again."

"Son, forgive me for my impatience." He turned to Santiago.

"It's okay, Grandpa I understand you." Santa's head lowered. The sadness that rampaged his heart was overwhelming. He was not getting younger but it was not his fault that he won't accept to marry to who his heart does not belong.

Grandma placed a cup in front of Santiago.

"Grandma, I told you it's okay. You shouldn't have bothered bringing this."

"No, Santiago Armsworth!"

Again, Grandpa's heart skipped at her shouting. "Hon, can you find a way to lower your voice please, you'll kill your husband if you continue like this."

Grandma held a scoff on her face and glared at Grandpa before waving him off and turning back to Santiago.

"Look, son, because I'm your grandma and you visited my house, I won't let you leave without having at least water. DO YOU GET IT YOUNG MAN!"

Surely, Grandpa would pee on his trouser this time.

"Yes, Grandma." Santiago surrendered. The only good he would do for himself now was to drink this coffee and make sure he finishes everything in it else...

"Good boy!" Grandma replied.

After taking some sips of the coffee, he couldn't help but succumb to Grandma's drama.

"Oh, son I've missed you so much. Come over here and give me a hug." Grandma winced, stretching her hands towards Santa.

"So dramatic grandma, you're so dramatic." Santa chuckled. Grandpa who had recovered from the fear of his wife's voice got up and looked at the two longing to hold Santa too. He patted Santa's shoulder from behind.

Grandpa sat back and asked. "How is Roselle?"

Again Santiago's head went low. "She is m... missing grandpa, grandma."

"What?!" The two old people screamed together.

"That's why I'm here, to seek an answer from heaven. I need your help to know where she is."

"How can two old people help you search for a missing lady, son tell me!" Grandpa swung his body around angrily. "How could you let my daughter-in-law go missing?"

"No grandson, as much as we love you, we can't do anything about it." Grandma shook her head she turned away from Santa.

Santiago went to his knees immediately and grabbed Grandma's hand, sobbing. "Please grandma, Grandpa you two are my last hope. The police are useless, they're not helping, I can't lose her. I can't lose Roselle. So please help, I swear with my life that I will protect you afterwards."

"Son, this will be hard for you, it's not just about our safety if with do it, they will come after you too, they will kill you."

"I don't care, as long as I would be able to save her."

"Fine, get the cards hon, let's do it for him. He is our grandson, isn't he?" Mark suddenly made up his mind to help.

Grandma nodded, she stood and went behind the book shelve and brought out a box which was locked with a gold key. He had once learned that the box would only be unlocked by the owners. Peradventure someone who's not the owner unlocks it, it will lead to the death of the real owners and destruction in the place where the real owners come from.

Grandma slid her index finger into a hole in the box and brought out some playing joker cards numbered up to 56. Grandpa went to his room and returned with another pack of cards numbered up to 22, adding to Grandma's it was 78.

He remembered when Grandpa was teaching him the work of each card specifying how powerful the tarot card was. He could remember him talking about cartomancy but everything at that point was just like water poured on stone.

Grandpa sat on the floor, spread a small carpet filled with different drawings and paintings of different types and shapes. Some were dragon heads, at least he could identify that.

"Son, we are doing this just for you, we don't have much time to live but Santa we solely hope you don't let the history of our family die."

Santiago's head twisted at what Grandpa said. He was not interested in fortune-telling. Yes, he used it when he is in need through his grandparents, but he was not interested in learning how to do it.

"Now let the ritual begin," Grandma murmured and bent her head.

She began to spread the cards on top of the carpet they had spread. She began to list and identify them. The spades, hearts, clubs and diamonds.

Santiago watched, again he remembered Grandpa had said something about the four primary archetype elements: the earth, water, air and fire.

The two old people in the study room began to calculate something using their fingers. Then Grandpa's eyes closed like he was meditating. Grandma was pointing at the cards and the drawings nodding thoughtfully.

Something strange began to happen in the room. Grandpa was now shuffling and replacing cards with cards. He was too fast for him to grab a single thing he was doing.

Things began to turn and twist in his eyes. First, the cards. Second, the pictures on the carpet were miraculously moving but not getting off the carpet. Santiago's heart began to pound. The heat of what was happening around him suffocated him. He felt like he was losing consciousness, his head was banging and twisting at the same time.

He wanted to stretch his leg which her grandparents had warned him never to stretch until they completed the ritual.

"Put your hands in my palms." Grandpa suddenly ordered.

With all effort, Santa saw his hand on his Grandpa's hand amidst his twisting eyes.

"Now focus son, because if you don't, you might die in the process because we're no longer strong enough to control the powers."

Santiago nodded gripped with fear, any little mistake would be the end of him without finding Roselle.

"Now, think of her, everything about her, and where she is right now will be revealed only to you."

Again he nodded. The room was now completely covered with darkness and he saw candle lights flickering in the room. 'But how come this light appeared now, who had lit it? His grandparents had never used this method before. What was happening?' He was busy thinking about all this when his grandparents were deep in the ritual.

Santiago began to see a figure of a woman appear to him, it was not clear, but she was coming to him. She didn't look harmed or sad. "Roselle. Is that you Roselle?" He looked around trying to know where the lady was. He couldn't see any signboard. The figure began to diminish. "No, don't go! Roselle!"

"Grandson!" Grandpa and Grandma screamed at the same time dropping all their cards and they stopped their ritual.

"Wake up son, wake up. No, you can't die!" Shiloh and Mark cried. But Santiago Armsworth was not waking up.