You never heard about the cucuy?
That guy in there just told me I was going to die.
It had been a long time since I'd heard that sound.
I swear, I felt a chill run down my spine.
You have a lovely home.
Oh, my god.
This time, I was sure it wasn't my crazy imagination.
Something just felt wrong.
The mask doesn't work.
There is a woman in the house.
I saw her with my own eyes.
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My mother used to tell me that I got
my crazy imagination from my grandfather.
And growing up on an old ranch...
Well, let's just say it didn't help.
I guess all teenage boys torture their little sisters.
You're such a jerk.
But my brother, Manny, he was more sadistic than most.
Manuel, what are you doing in here?
Shh. It's all right.
It was just a mask.
You're in big trouble!
He knew I was afraid of pretty much everything,
and he wasn't happy unless I was in tears.
You're mean.
You think I'm mean?
The cucuy is what you should be worried about.
What's cucuy?
You've never heard about the cucuy?
The boogeyman?
Shut up.
Well, it's like a boogeyman, but a woman.
She goes from roof to roof and eats children who don't behave.
Trust me... You'll see her soon enough.
After that, I heard every sound that old house made...
Footsteps on the roof,
music echoing down the hallway at night,
things in my room.
I ended up sleeping in my parents' bed almost every night.
What the hell, papa?
What are you doing?
Your stupid cucuy story made it so
your sister can't sleep in her own bed.
And that means that I can't get any sleep.
So, from now on, every night she wakes me up,
you get two waters in the face.
What do you want me to do?
Figure it out.
You know why I got this mask?
To scare me.
No.
I got it because, well, see, what a lot of people
don't know is that the cucuy,
she's only powerful if you're scared of her.
But really, she's scared herself.
That's why she does what she does.
So, all I did was, I put this mask on one time,
when I thought I heard her coming.
And she ran so fast.
She's never come back.
It's true, Adriana.
So, I don't even need it anymore.
So, all you got to do is, keep it by your bed,
and if you get scared, put it on.
She'll never bother you again.
Thanks.
Goodnight, sweetie.
Goodnight.
I still heard sounds, every night, that terrified me.
But I was convinced that the mask would protect me...
And that my father would never lie.
I couldn't wait to get out of that creepy house.
And I finally got the chance when I turned 18.
Daniel, come on. We're gonna be late.
- Did you make me lunch? - I didn't have time.
Eat the school lunch.
The school lunch is gross.
Come on, hon. We really got to go.
Thank you.
I left Santa Fe to follow the love of my life
to Los Angeles, and by the time I was 25,
I was a single mother, struggling to survive
in one of the most expensive cities in America.
I was working 60 hours a week between two jobs,
but it still wasn't enough.
I was in a ton of debt, and I kept digging myself in deeper.
- Hi, mom. - Hey, hon.
Sorry about the phone tag all day.
That's okay. What's going on?
Well, your father and I have some news.
Okay.
We're moving to Sarasota.
Florida?
We're just too old to take care of the ranch.
The house is a mess.
We just can't do it anymore.
They found a retirement community 3,000 miles away
and just bought a place.
And here's the other thing I want to talk to you about.
Mom?
You can work at a grocery store anywhere, right?
Yeah, but I don't plan to work at a grocery sto...
What was that?
Earthquake, maybe?
Everyone okay?
Yeah.
How much is your rent?
Too much.
Eventually, we got to what this was all about.
She wanted me to move back to new Mexico with Daniel
to take care of the ranch.
My brother lived just a couple hours away from them,
but with all the trouble he'd been in,
they just didn't trust him.
I figured I could find work there,
live rent-free for a while,
and finally get ahead financially.
When we arrived a couple weeks later, my mom was right.
The place wasn't the same.
They sold all the livestock except for a single horse
and my dad slapped some boards over a broken window.
But at the same time, having that big house
and the big yard would be a nice change for Daniel, I hoped.
I knew it would take some getting used to.
My parents had pretty much left all their things behind.
Inside, the house looked like it always did.
Like, they had left with just the clothes they were wearing.
I got hired as an assistant manager
at a big-box store in town.
It was paying double what I was making in L.A.
Things were looking good.
Mom!
Oh, my god.
What's going on? What's wrong?
Daniel, you can't sleep in here every night.
That was the third night in a row that Daniel
came to my room to hide.
You have to get used to your own bed.
Did you have a bad dream? There's a woman in my room.
Wait. What?
You never heard about the cucuy?
Trust me. You'll see her soon enough.
We're just too old to take care of the ranch.
Mom!
You have to get used to your own bed.
- Did you have a bad dream? - There's someone in the house.
Wait. What?
Daniel exaggerated, but he was no liar.
In my room.
What do you mean?
I swear, I'm not lying. There's a woman in my room.
Stay here.
It had always been a creaky old house.
The floors and the walls were always making sounds.
Daniel, it's fine.
There's nothing to be scared of.
I thought I knew what he was going through.
You just have that crazy imagination.
I called my mom the next day for advice.
Mom, you don't understand.
He wasn't like this back in L.A.
He's really scared.
Remember what worked for you when you were little?
I hadn't thought about it in forever.
Yeah.
My mom told me I had a box of stuff in the storage room.
It had been a long time since I'd heard that sound.
I told myself that Daniel must have turned it on,
then left the room.
I was afraid to ask him and scare him even more,
so I just let it go.
I gave Daniel the mask that night
and told him what my brother told me.
If you get scared, put it on.
It'll never bother you again.
Thanks.
And that's when I realized,
I never told Daniel about the cucuy.
So, why was he also seeing a woman in our house?
Daniel, what's the matter with you?
You scared the hell out of me.
The mask doesn't work.
You have to give it a chance.
I did.
Honey, what happened?
I don't know. Why am I bleeding?
Stay here.
I want to go with you.
Stay here.
Take it.
I thought about calling the police,
but what was I gonna tell them,
a Mexican folklore monster
was playing music in our house?
I didn't know what to do.
The needle wasn't even on the record,
but I know I heard it playing,
and Daniel heard it, too.
- Mom! - What's wrong?
Daniel.
Remember what worked for you when you were little?
Daniel!
The mask doesn't work.
Oh, my god.
Oh, my god!
Oh, my god.
Daniel!
This time, I was sure it wasn't my crazy imagination.
Iknow I saw her.
I grabbed Daniel, and I got out of there as fast as possible.
Oh, pick up. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up.
Adriana, you know you're 3 hours ahead, right?
Mom, there is a woman in the house.
Daniel is right.
I saw her with my own eyes.
Adriana, that's just the ghost lady.
What did dad just say?
And that's when I learned the truth.
Dad, what are you talking about?
We didn't want to scare you or anything, but, you know,
sometimes, that old record player
would just start on its own.
We always just joked that it was your ghost lady, you know?
I wasn't the only one who heard things in that house.
Look, it's harmless, okay?
Just noises, that's all.
I saw a woman standing in the living room.
And she scratched Daniel.
You've always had an active imagination, sweetie.
No, wait. Wait, dad!
Te amo.
Four people had heard the same things in that house.
Two of us saw the same woman 23 years apart,
and my parents were basically telling me
that I was imagining it all.
We slept in the car that night.
We had nowhere to go, nowhere else to stay besides the ranch.
I was desperate.
Should we go inside?
So, I paid a psychic to come to the house,
see if she could tell me anything
about what was going on.
It's a female spirit.
Honestly, it's the strongest presence I've ever felt.
It's almost overwhelming.
Who is she?
I don't know, but something in here belongs to her.
No. Wait. It belonged to her son.
I think she wants it back.
Your son, has he been playing with something he found here,
maybe?
No.
All of his toys are ones he brought from L.A.
I can't even...
That's when it hit me.
It wasn't until my brother brought that mask home...
If you get scared, put it on.
It'll never bother you again.
Thanks.
...that I started seeing the cucuy.
Maybe the mask didn't keep her away.
It kept her there, in our house, for 23 years.
There was only one person who knew where that thing came from.
It was at, like, a yard sale or something, you know,
when someone dies, and, like, they sell all their stuff.
An estate sale?
Maybe.
Yeah.
I remember now.
I was walking by,
and I needed to get something for mom's birthday.
And I thought I'd see if there was anything good.
There wasn't.
I mean, all this stuff was, like, old-lady stuff.
The mask was real out of place.
The dude selling the stuff told us that,
that lady and her kid had died in a fire or something.
I bought the mask for, like, a buck or whatever.
Something in here belongs to her son.
I think she wants it back.
Why would you buy it?
I was into all that morbid stuff.
I knew the real answer to that question.
He'd bought it to torture an 8-year-old little girl.
To this day, I'm not sure if what I did was right.
Why don't you keep it?
Cool.
I'll never know what that woman wanted from us,
but that's not my problem anymore.
Daniel, it's time to go home.
I need to tell somebody what happened.
I can't stop thinking,
"Am I responsible for something terrible?"
When did it all start?
Hey, hey, hey. How's everybody doing?
Good? Cheers.
My boyfriend talked me into throwing a New Year's Eve party,
but then we broke up,
and he moved out two days before the party.
I wanted to get married and wanted kids.
It just hadn't happened yet.
A lot of it was my fault.
I kept picking the wrong guys.
There you go.
And then, there was my best friend, Jack...
- Hey, there. - Hey.
Whatcha doing?
Oh, just making a glass of liquor.
It's delicious.
...adorably socially awkward Jack.
How you doing?
Stop.
What?
"How you doing"? Come on.
Why don't you just come out and say,
"How you doing since you found out
Sean was cheating on you?"
Sorry. I just thought I'd ask.
Since you introduced me to the animal.
I didn't introduce you, okay?
He came out with me one night,
and you were all over him because he's younger,
he's hotter.
Meanwhile, I'm on the side, sitting there alone...
Single, nice guy.
We've been through this. We're too good of friends.
What a terrible idea for a relationship to start, huh?
Solid foundation, mutual respect for each other.
Whoa. It's not even 10 o'clock.
Yeah. Well, that guy out there is a real party-starter.
I had known Sandra since we were 12,
and she had a tendency to be a little dramatic.
I'm gonna go see what I'm missing.
You okay?
That guy in there just told me I was gonna die...
Well, I mean, in his defense, you are.
- We all are. - ...This coming year.
What?
Was it Todd? Ugh.
He's always saying stupid stuff.
No. I don't know what his name is.
He's the fortune-teller guy.
I thought he was someone you hired
to entertain us or something.
That's him, right there.
Amanda, do you know this guy?
No.
Excuse me.
Do I know you?
No, but I know you.
Did you come here with someone?
I swear, I felt a chill run down my spine.
Does anybody know this guy?
I just wanted that creep out of my house.
I think it's time for you to go.
- If you're asking me, I'll... - I'm not asking.
You have a lovely home, but not for long.
Are you okay?
That guy in there just told me I was gonna die.
What?
I think it's time for you to go.
I swear, I felt a chill run down my spine.
You have a lovely home, but not for long.
That's exactly what he said... "Not for long."
And that's when I remembered.
I know. I'm really sorry.
I had bumped into him a few days before.
...and I can pay... oh, sorry.
No. No, not you.
No, that was nothing.
I was frazzled and, maybe, a little rude to him.
Yeah, no, I'm here.
But it was an innocent mistake.
You good?
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm good.
Cool, 'cause we've only got about two hours left
till the countdown.
Right.
I plan on trying to kiss you... I mean, after the countdown.
You're not supposed to come right out
and say that, you know.
Yeah. Well, I tried last year,
and you said that I'd caught you off-guard.
So, I figured...
I'm not kissing you.
What can I say?
We ended up kissing.
Jack and I had so much fun together
that I decided to give it a chance.
Jack?
What happened?
You all right?
Yeah.
Come here.
I hadn't stayed up all night drinking since college.
You all right?
Yeah.
I told myself that I must have been half asleep
and that I didn't just see a man hanging in my hallway.
I didn't really think more about it.
It turns out, I should've.
So, what's up with Jack?
It's good. We're taking it slow.
You call sex on the first date taking it slow?
Okay. First of all, we've been friends
for, like, five years, so...
For what it's worth,
I actually like the idea of you two getting together.
He's just such a dork.
I know, but he's a fun dork.
And he's...
You want to do a double date with me and Tim?
What?
Hello?
I got to go.
Excuse me.
Do I know you?
No, but I know you.
You have a lovely home, but not for long.
What?
It fell out in clumps.
What would make something like that happen?
And you said neither of your parents are bald?
Not at all.
Both my parents have full heads of hair.
You work at the university, right?
Yeah.
Professor?
No, fund-raising.
Oh, that's right.
How is it?
It's fine.
Why?
Stress manifests in a lot of different ways.
Some people get migraines.
Some get muscle twitches.
My guess is that, the hair falling out
is a stress reaction of some sort.
I figured she was probably right.
After getting cheated on, the breakup, and work,
I was definitely stressed out.
So, I tried to relax and go to bed early that night.
Jack was out of town for business,
but I knew that I heard a door close.
I was about to call the police, until I remembered
what happened last time, so I waited.
Did I forget a candle burning?
Did I even light one that night?
I honestly don't remember.
I don't know.
Was I distracted because my hair was falling out,
or was it something more serious than stress?
I woke up to 27 missed calls, and my heart jumped right away.
And that's when I got the news.
That guy in there just told me I was gonna die.
I think it's time for you to go.
Sandra had been killed...
Hit by a drunk driver.
I wasn't in a normal state of mind,
but all I could think about was that man on New Year's Eve
and what he said to Sandra.
He just told me I was gonna die.
Did Sandra somehow die because of me?
A lovely home, but not for long.
Then, everything else, it all had a reasonable explanation,
but...
...something just felt wrong,
and it all started after that man came into my house.
My mom called her "crazy aunt Joanie."
She had been telling us she was psychic
for as long as I could remember.
Everyone rolled their eyes,
but she told me some things when I was little
that she just couldn't have known.
So, I called her.
So, you think someone put a curse on you.
Well, I don't know.
Let's see what we have here.
I was desperate.
This stranger, did he give you anything?
No.
Did he leave anything behind?
No.
Are you sure?
There's something here that was his, and now it's yours.
It's very, very dark.
You need to find it and get rid of it.
I had no idea what or where it was, but if something was there,
I was gonna find it.
I don't know what that guy could have done
or where he was when I wasn't watching.
Nothing.
I found nothing.
And just when I started feeling ridiculous,
I remembered the way he lingered near the pile of coats.
It had to be somewhere near there.
It was the only place I hadn't looked.
It was made of stone, or maybe marble,
and it was old.
And I had no idea what it was.
So, I brought it to one of the archaeology professors
at the university where I work.
Yeah, I don't know.
Thank you for your time.
Wait.
Would you like me to do some more research on this?
I could e-mail my colleagues
and we could try to figure out what this is.
Would you?
Of course.
Thank you.
A colleague of mine from a university in Mexico
got it first.
Then, a few others verified.
What is it?
Knife handle from the classic period of the Mayan culture,
500 A.D.
Yeah. An ornate knife handle like this
would not have been for everyday use.
It was almost certainly used in sacrificial ceremonies.
See, in that time period,
they would typically cut out the person's heart
while they were still alive.
Why would that man leave this in my house?
Here's where it gets a little unsettling.
You would think that this would make a fantastic
collector's item.
But according to legend,
souls that were sacrificed with each knife
would always remain attached to it.
And if the sacrificial knife were ever to fall into the hands
of someone besides the chosen practitioner,
the souls would curse the person that held it
and their loved ones.
So, I'll just throw it in the sewer?
It's not that simple.
The only way to get rid of the curse...
You have to place it in another home...
Again, according to legend.
I love my friends and my family,
and I love Jack.
And I wanted to protect them.
What would you have done?
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