Mercedes' Dirge

by Belle Zimet

  She carefully stamped and glass out of the bottom of her shoes before retreating from the attic. She couldn’t think of what else to do, and since no ghostly objections were raised she retreated back to her room. Troy was waiting for her.

  “What just happened?” He inquired, pointing to the ceiling.

  “What did you hear?” She asked as she plopped on the bed.

  “Crashes, glass shattering, you yelling to yourself. You know, the usual.” He told her as he sat at the foot of the bed.

  “Well, I got the customary thumping and when I got up there all of the frames jumped off the wall.” She told him.

  “All of them?” He clarified.

  “All of them.” She nodded and changed subjects. “I saw the picture.”

  He looked confused and then seemed to catch on. “The coffin picture? Yes, I was going to tell you about that. That was the dress, right?”

  “Yes, that was definitely the dress. Though I wish I hadn’t seen the picture. I can’t shake the image.” She said with a shiver.

  “Yes, it was disturbing to see her like that. An empty shell.” He said as he shook his head sadly.

  “I agree, and I’m glad it wasn’t open casket to the general public. I saw that they applied makeup to the bruises around her neck, not that I’m surprised, I guess.” She added.

  “So, is the general consensus that Mercedes caused the pipe breakage and flooded the room?” He asked, though it was clear from his tone that it was a foregone conclusion.

  “Yes,” she said decidedly. “It had to have been. She definitely wants me in this room.”

  Troy looked at her seriously. “I would understand if you wanted to leave, Ella. No one would blame you. She is definitely targeting you and it can’t feel comfortable.”

  “Look, I’ve thought about it, I won’t lie. And I’m sure that anyone hearing this story down the line will think I’m insane for not just squealing out of here with the clothes on my back, but I feel like I need to do this. I can’t explain it. If she is so hell bent on contacting me from the other side, it has to be important. If I can help her and make this house peaceful for my future niece or nephew, I will.”

  “Well, thank you.” He said with a smile. “What now?”

  “I have no idea. There is significance with the pictures. I just don’t know what it is. There was nothing on the backs of the pictures and it was all different people in all the photos, so I just don’t know where to go from here. I guess I just continue on with my life and wait for a sign, or something.” She sighed. “It all sounds so ridiculous.”

  “I guess I kind of wished she would disappear when Alexa was pregnant, but this is proof positive that she won’t.” He told her sadly. “I wish I could do more to help you with this.”

  “It might be spurring her on more. Maybe she doesn’t want a baby born into a house where an unsolved murder occurred,” she pointed out. “With a killer still on the loose.”

  Troy looked slightly uncomfortable and got up and headed towards the door. “Let me know if anything else happens.” He said with a smile as he exited.

  Ella spent the next few hours organizing and by the time she was done she felt like she’d been scrunched into a small cube for hours. She got up with a groan and stretched leisurely. She welcomed the rush of freshly oxygenated blood and raised her arms high above her head with a sigh.

  She went downstairs and found Alexa sitting on the couch nursing some tea, she looked up and smiled.

  “Hey, is Troy around?” Ella asked as she sat down.

  “No, he ran out to the hardware store. How’s it going up there?”

  “Well, I got lots of work done, but there is still more…so it’s fairly depressing. What are you up to?” Ella asked with a smile.

  “Just working hard growing a baby,” she laughed.

  “Are you feeling sick or anything?” Ella inquired, interested.

  “No, I guess that doesn’t usually come for a few more weeks. I just feel really tired and really hungry. I guess I’ll be saying goodbye to my girlish figure.” Alexa mused, resigned.

  “Nah, just temporarily, I know you will be able to get right back into shape after the baby is born.” Ella told her encouragingly.

  “How’s Mercedes been treating you these days?” Alexa asked suddenly.

  “There’s stuff going on all the time, Alexa. I just kind of roll with it,” she told her honestly.

  “I’m sure it has to be a little scary,” Alexa told her face on. “I’m very sorry that it’s happening to you so often. I wish she’d visit me.” She said as she put her head down sadly.

  “I’m sorry, Alexa. I really think she just doesn’t want to scare you.”

  Alexa shrugged. “I guess I’ll never know. I just hope she watches over my baby.”

  “I’m sure she will.” Ella told her as she reached over and patted her hand.

  “Well, onto less intense subjects, how are things with Bryan? I heard you guys broke up?” Alexa said, swiftly and decisively changing the subject.

  “That’s a pretty intense subject too.” Ella laughed. “We patched things up and I really like him, but I don’t know where we’re headed. The whole situation is really quite weird.”

  “Yeah,” Alexa nodded. “Troy was a real dick to him.”

  “That was extremely awkward,” Ella agreed.

  “Yes, it was. Troy knows Bryan and Mercedes had sex, so he is very suspicious of Bryan, he thinks he was insanely in love with her.” Alexa said casually.

  Ella snapped her head to look at Alexa directly. “You think Bryan and Mercedes had sex?”

  Alexa looked at her confused and with a furrowed brow. “I know they had sex. You didn’t know? Weren’t you here the night they came down after doing it?”

  Ella swallowed hard and her stomach dropped. “No, I didn’t know, and I’m pretty sure I wasn’t here that night.”

  “I’m sorry, I completely thought it was a night you were present. So, I gather he also didn’t tell you about it?” Alexa asked, eyebrows raised.

  “Worse,” Ella shook her head. “He completely denied having sex with her.”

  “That’s not good.”

  “How sure are you?” Ella demanded.

  “Completely. They came down looking guilty, and he left quickly. She sat down and started drinking and said something to the effect that she already regretted sleeping with him and that it could ruin their friendship. It was hardly subtle, Ella. I’m sorry.” Alexa told her straightforwardly.

  “Godammit.” Ella suddenly exclaimed. “Everyone has been telling me that they slept together, and why I would take his word over everyone else’s is beyond me.”

  “Don’t beat yourself up, “Alexa told her. “Admitting they slept together has all kinds of issues attached to it, I’m sure he just didn’t want to ruin his chances with you.” She told her reassuringly.

  “Aren’t you afraid that he may have killed her?”

  Alexa shook her head. “I know Nick killed her and got away with it. I just have no doubt in my mind.”

  “I don’t know. If he lied about that so early on, what else could he be lying about?” Ella continued. “After the relationship I just got out of, I can’t see starting up with someone who starts lying right out of the gate. Fool me once…” She trailed off.

  “I’m sorry, it seems like you really liked him.” Alexa said as she patted her shoulder kindly.

  “Yes, I did. I should have known better.” Ella got up and started to drag herself back up the stairs. “You’ll have to excuse me.”

  “Let me know if you want to talk.” Alexa called after her.

  As if on cue, her cell phone rang and she looked down to see that it was Bryan. She took a deep breath as she weighed whether or not to take the call. Impulsively she picked it up and greeted him in a flat voice.

  “Are you ok?” He asked without missing a beat.

  “No, I’m not.” She told him. “I was just told that you did have sex with Merc
edes.”

  The line was silent so she continued. “I don’t know why you would choose to lie to me. Having sex with Mercedes does not immediately equate killer with me.”

  “Ella, I’m not sure who you’ve been talking to-”

  “Alexa. She remembers you coming downstairs after having slept with Mercedes. She said you left nervously and Mercedes confided in her that you two had done it.” She told him bluntly.

  She heard Bryan sigh on the other end of the line before speaking calmly. “I know the night that Alexa was talking about, but she has it confused.”

  “How could she have it confused Mercedes telling her clearly that you guys had sex?” She demanded.

  “Ella, I did not have sex with Mercedes.” He said shortly. “If you want to calm down and see me in person, I’ll explain it to you.”

  “Fine, but I can’t see you today. It’ll have to be tomorrow.” She told him with edge still in her voice.

  “You tell me when, dear.” He offered. “But I should tell you that instead of focusing your Sherlockian efforts in my direction, you may want to look into your own brother.”

  She snorted. “I’ll call you later.” She said curtly before hanging up. She laid her head back on the pillow and sighed. She wasn’t even able to give the conversation a mental autopsy before the banging in the attic started again.

  She resignedly rolled out of bed and squealed in pain as her feet hit the ground. She was struck by a stinging pain in her foot and she looked curiously at the ball of her foot to see a chunk of glass slightly buried. She pulled it out, hopped to the bathroom and washed off her foot before applying a bandage. The banging in the attic had slowed, so she looked at the piece of glass, perplexed. She suddenly realized it must have been as a result of the frames breaking in the attic, she must have tracked the piece in. She groaned and went to get the vacuum, but was distracted by the banging gaining in intensity again.

  “How kind of you to give me a few minutes for first aid,” she said sarcastically aloud as she put on some shoes and started up the stairs again.

  She was no longer surprised when the noise stopped at her arrival in the attic, and she noticed immediately that there were other boxes askew. She sat in front of them and began to sift through the contents. It seemed to be a boxes relating to Mercedes. There were plenty of tests, and papers she had done for school, as well as some notes from Mira, that were the usual bored teenage scrawlings while in class. She saw a paper still housed in an envelope and picked it up curiously. She opened it and could hardly believe her eyes as she took in the content.

  The angry scrawling assaulted her eyes as she briefly scanned it.

  You told me when we started this that Nick would get no more of you than I would. Now you talk of leaving me to be with him. You can only push people so far, Mercedes. If you do this you may as well leave town. I won’t forget. I won’t let it go. You will both be looking over your shoulders forever. Just try me.

  It was signed Troy and Ella sat back on her heels and closed her eyes and tried to take deep breaths. She couldn’t fathom that the person represented in this threatening note was her mild mannered brother. That wasn’t even addressing the fact that it conveyed something that was the direct opposite from what he’d been telling her, while validating Nick’s claim that Mercedes was going to stop seeing other people.

  “Oh my god,” she said aloud.

  “Yes?” Came Troy’s booming voice behind her. “It is I. God.”

  Ella scrambled to her feet and shoved the note into her back pocket as casually as she could. “Hey,” she said awkwardly, not able to laugh at his joke.

  “Hey,” he said staring at her curiously, clearly noticing the tension rolling off of her. “What are you up to?”

  She shrugged and started to move past him. “Just snooping around for evidence, but I hurt my foot on some glass, so I’m going to take care of it.”

  She didn’t wait for a response but knew that he’d turned around to watch her in confusion as she walked out. He seemed to be staying there, so as soon as she was out of line of sight she ran downstairs to the office and quickly scanned the document. She sent it to her email account and then erased it from the family computer hard drive. Once she was done she carefully folded the document back up and placed it back in her pocket.

  Once she’d accomplished her mission she started to finally think about what this piece of evidence meant. She still couldn’t think of Troy as a killer and this was hardly a smoking gun, but it certainly put a twist on things. He hadn’t been entirely honest with her and that was a fact. She couldn’t imagine Mercedes getting back together with Troy after such an intimidating note, so his claims that she was dumping Nick for him seemed suspect. He’d displayed some real feelings for her, and anger and threats to both Mercedes and Nick.

  “No wonder he didn’t want to admit to the police he was with her,” she mumbled.

  “Are you talking about me?” Came the deep voice behind her.

  She gasped and whirled around to face her brother. “Hi,” she said slowly.

  “What the hell is going on with you?” He demanded.

  She realized that trying to skirt around the subject wasn’t going to get her anywhere and she threw the note out at him. He bent down and picked it up and hung his head down as he read it.

  “Wow,” he said slowly. Without warning he ripped it up and strode to the shredder where he tossed the remaining bits in.

  “What are you doing?” She screeched. “That’s evidence!”

  He turned towards her, his eyes flashing with anger. “Evidence against me? You want this out there?”

  “I don’t know what I want,” she admitted, defeated. “Or what to think.”

  The anger flashed into pleading. “Think that I’m your brother and that you know me. You know I’m not a murderer. This note means nothing.”

  “You said she was dumping Nick to be with you.”

  “She was.” He insisted. “That’s what she told me. This was written months before she died, and we had long since made up from this note. I was just reacting to rumors.”

  “She got back together with you after this note?” She inquired disbelievingly. “You threatened her.”

  “I was upset but I did not mean it.” He told her emphatically.

  “You threatened them both.” She shot out at him accusingly.

  “With what, Ella? Not death. For all you know I was threatening to siphon gas from their tanks or order 50 pizzas to their houses. This proves nothing.” He walked closer to her and grabbed her hands, eyes frantic and searching hers. “You have to believe me.”

  She slipped away from his grasp and backed up. “You can’t blame me for being scared by this, Troy. I hear noises in the attic and the box that this was in was open for me to go through. Why would she want me to find this?”

  “Will you listen to yourself?” He roared. “You’re letting your life and feelings be dictated by something that isn’t even real.”

  “You and I both know that she’s here. So don’t start now trying to say that she isn’t real and I’m crazy!” She yelled in reply.

  He took a deep breath and began again in a calmer tone, holding his hand up. “Look, I know how this must seem. I know it’s strange that I took up with Alexa and never told anyone about my relationship with Mercedes, and I know that this note seems to be kind of damning and that I shouldn’t have torn it up. But I had to. I know I didn’t kill her and what would this note do besides break up my family, upset my pregnant wife and possibly start a murder investigation?”

  “I know you’re scared, but you can’t keep denying the situation that you’re in.” She breathed out heavily.

  “Do you realize how high the stakes are for me in this situation? In the best scenario if this came to light, I would lose my wife, child and in laws. In the worst case I’m in prison for a murder I didn’t commit.” He stared at her. “Am I really out of line?”

  “No,” she sighed. “But
this is all so confusing.”

  “I have no idea what to do.” He lamented.

  “Look, I guess we will see what Mercedes does from here. She’s been pretty clear about being displeased up until now.” She looked at him miserably. “But we are going up against something here that isn’t earthly, and that’s quite frightening.”

  “Mercedes’ ghost is really the least of my problems.” He muttered and she half expected fire and brimstone as a result. The study remained mercifully quiet.

  “Where is Alexa?”

  “Running errands, thank goodness,” he sighed tensely.

  “I don’t know if it’s coincidence, Troy. Mercedes seems to try and avoid Alexa for the most part. I think she doesn’t want to frighten or shock her.” Ella shrugged. “She may have known Alexa was pregnant before any of us.”

  “Look, can you keep this under your hat for a while until I decide what I need to do?” He pleaded.

  “Yes, I will. Who knows, I may actually be able to find the killer.” She said, purposely omitting the fact that she had a copy of the note. She felt badly about it, but something told her not to reveal her entire hand to anyone just yet.

  “Great, then I will only have my family to lose instead of my life too.” He moaned.

  “If what Mercedes cares about is her killer, than perhaps you will have the luxury of not telling Alexa.”

  “I refuse to be dictated to by a ghost.” He said sharply. “This is beyond ridiculous. What can she do?”

  “Scare away your customers, Troy. You’re trying to turn this into a bed and breakfast, not a pee-in-your-bed-out-of-fear and breakfast.” She snorted.

  “Some places do quite well based off of their hauntings.” He reasoned with a shrug.

  “Yeah, I’m sure Alexa and her parents would just LOVE having Mercedes reduced to a macabre tourist attraction.” She shook her head. “I need to collect myself.”

  He was silent as she stomped up the stairs and walked briskly into her room. She gasped when she saw the same figure sitting silently at the vanity. She was again faced away from Ella with her head down and her hair hanging down as a lurid veil. The long, flowered dress crumpled around her feet, and Ella gasped as she started to turn and face her. She backed out of the room and took off down the stairs before Mercedes could show her face and was happily not accosted by Mercedes anywhere along the way. Mercifully she’d left her purse by the door and had her phone in her pocket. She bumped past Troy on the stairs and didn’t bother to talk or make an excuse. She opened the door hysterically and all but slammed right into a man’s chest that had been moving to knock on the door. She looked up wild eyed to see Bryan staring down at her with questioning interest in his eyes.