Twisted Truths & Leveled Lies

by Lessner, S. K.

  Following the curve, the chauffeur slowed the car, parking in front of what looked like a small brick house. There was limited lighting outside and I could only make out the front of the house that glowed in the lamp next to the door. Miguel exited the car first and lifted Josie into his arms as I followed and began stretching my arms and legs as we stood on the sidewalk. Glancing around, I realized the house was actually not so small afte rall, but obscured in the darkness beyond the entryway.

  After retrieving our bags, the driver led us up the few steps and to the doorway. The two white doors in front of us were very large, with gold trim, and large gold handles. I watched as he opened the doors and too k a few steps inside the darkened home. After setting our bags down, he flipped a switch, the unexpected brightness overwhelming my senses. Squinting, my eyes slowly adjusted to the sudden change.

  Opening my eyes completely, I couldn’t believe how elegant the interior of the house appeared. We stood in a very large entryway with a long, winding staircase to our right. Directly ahead was a circular room with multiple closed doors, presumably leading elsewhere into the home. Located in the center of the room was a magnificent looking wooden table that appeared to be hand carved. It was decorated with an impressive arrangement of colorful exotic flowers. The greenery trailed over the edge, nearly touching the beautiful marble floor that sparkled beneath the illumination of the huge chandelier above our heads.

  “Whoa.” I breathed.

  What happened to the small house I saw outside? It must’ve only been the entryway I saw, because this was far from little.

  “What does your brother do for a living, Miguel?”

  He didn’t respond. He looked back at the chauffeur and thanked him.

  The driver seemed confused, obviously expecting to take our luggage to our rooms. But reading the look on my husband’s face, he decided against it and excused himself.

  Miguel started walking toward the staircase, catching me off guard, and forcing me to hurry to catch up to him.

  “Do you know where to go, honey?”

  “I think I remember the layout. Come on.” He replied sharply.

  I needed to find out what was wrong, but I didn’t want to get into what was bothering him until we were settled in, and Josie was in bed. I followed behind him, grabbing two of the suitcases as we continued.

  After walking in silence up the massive winding staircase, Miguel cleared his throat, pulling my attention away from studying the elaborately decorated home. I was easily distracted by the vast amount of art and had slowed to try to take it all in.

  “There’s a guest suite with a bedroom attached to it that we’ll use.”

  He didn’t give me a chance to respond as he continued his brisk walk. I sped up and continued closely behind him, taking in as much as possible around us, as he led us down the upstairs hall.

  The entire house was decorated in gold and silver accents. Huge paintings of landscapes and wild animals hung on the hall walls and the vaulted ceilings had skylights positioned every few feet. I was certain they would look absolutely beautiful during the day with the sun shining in them. Contrary to the marble flooring on the first floor, the upstairs flooring was a patterned carpet with no give to it, but even it had an intricate golden pattern woven throughout.

  As we came to the end of the hall, Miguel turned and opened a door. Flipping on a light switch, the room in front of us was much bigger than any bedroom I’d ever seen. It looked more like an apartment with a complete living room that was centered around a fireplace. There was a bedroom area off to the side and three doors on the wall next to the bed. Rows of tall windows lined the walls on two sides of the room, reinforcing the attention drawn to the vaulted ceilings.

  Miguel angled his head toward the doors near the bed. “The bathroom is through that door, the closet is next, and the last door is into a small bedroom where Josie will sleep.”

  He didn’t wait for me to reply. He took Josie through the door to the second bedroom and disappeared.

  I stood motionless, trying to figure out what to do. It hurt to see Miguel suffering. If I dwelled on it too long, I’d get angry over how he was talking to me, and not letting me know what was wrong. Sighing, I set my problems aside and decided to go get the other two pieces of luggage and bring them back up.

  Surprisingly, the house was much scarier when I walked through it alone. The elegance did little to impress me as I rushed down the hall and steps, grabbed the bags, and ran back up, sprinting back to our room. Unfortunately, hurrying didn’t stop the goose bumps from covering my arms. Regardless of its beauty, I didn’t like the feeling of the house at all. It gave me the same malevolent sensation that Miguel’s brother had when I met him. If you’d call it meeting, it was more like viewing him.

  Pushing aside the negative thoughts and memories, I placed the luggage on the sofa, and took out clothes for Miguel and me to sleep in, choosing to unpack the rest in the morning. The nap on the plane and in the car did little to soothe my body. I was tired and sore and couldn’t wait to lie down.

  Setting the clothes on the bed, I went to find Miguel. I walked through the doorway I saw them go through earlier and found Josie asleep on a large bed in the center of the room.

  The room had already been prepared for after his surgery with an IV stand and other medical equipment set aside by the wall. The bed was a normal bed, not a hospital bed. I was very happy about that. It would be much more comfortable for Josie, and I could easily lie down beside him as well. It had a lovely canopy over the top with elegantly embroidered teal blue drapes that cascaded down and tied to the wooden posts on each corner.

  Miguel was sitting on the bed next to our son, softly brushing his hair off his forehead. Each time the little hairs would fall down, he’d gently brush them back again. It was so endearing, but he was looking down at him with such sadness. Love, but sadness as well.

  I walked over beside him and wrapped my arms around his neck.

  “I don’t know what’s wrong,” I whispered near his ear, “But please come hold me. Even if you don’t want to talk, just hold me.”

  He stopped playing with Josie’s hair and took another long look at him before he stood and started walking toward our room.

  “I’m going to leave a light on in case he wakes up and gets scared,” he said softly, turning off all the lights except one.

  Glancing back one more time, he put his arm around me, and continued toward our bed. “I woke him when I brought him in so he’d see where he was at, but I’m not sure if he’ll remember when he wakes up.”

  “You’re such a good dad. Thank you.”

  He really was a great father and husband. I couldn’t remember him ever putting himself before either of us. And I loved him dearly for that.

  We changed our clothes and washed up before climbing into bed. The bed was tall enough that I could’ve used a step stool to get up on it, making me chuckle as I had to pull myself up, using the blankets as a rope. It had a beautiful thick, gold embroidered comforter that appeared to shimmer in the dim light. Reclining back, the mattress molded to the shape of my body, easing my sore muscles, and alleviating my aching back. It felt wonderful after the long flight and uncomfortable ride. I took a long, relaxing breath and glanced around the room, my eyes settling on the intricate designs that were painted on the ceilings. We had left the bathroom light on so Josie could find us, but it wasn’t enough light to see the actual pattern. Yet, even without much light, it looked stunning.

  Miguel crawled in on the other side and scooted across the bed, wrapping his arms snuggly around me as he laid his head down on the pillow with me. I placed my hands on top of his and held his arms close to my chest.

  “I need to talk to my brother in the morning, Mel. I have to ask him a few things. I don’t want you leaving the house without me for any reason. Okay?”

  “I thought we were out in the countryside?”

  “For the most part, yes. But it’s still not a good area, es
pecially for an American. Please, just don’t go outside without me.”

  I’d never heard him sound so worried about my safety before. I didn’t plan on going anywhere without him anyhow, but to hear him beg me not to caused me to question our trip as a whole. Besides, weren’t Americans admired by other countries? Well, except a few. Weren’t we the good guys?

  “Are we safe here, Miguel?”

  He exhaled slowly. “Yes, don’t worry, everything will be fine. I just want to be careful.”

  He leaned over and kissed my neck, slightly below my ear. “You are my everything, Maelianna.”

  I felt only slightly reassured from his kiss and words. He sounded scared, but told me not to be.

  “As you are mine, Miguel.” I squeezed his arms tighter and closed my eyes.

  I wanted to talk more, but my body had other plans. As soon as my eyes were shut, I fell deeply asleep.

  ********

  When I woke up, the sun was shining through the large windows, the shear curtains doing little to keep it out. Miguel was still sleeping next to me, so I quietly climbed out of bed to go check on Josie.

  As I took a few steps, I noticed the bedroom door leading to the hall was slightly open. Hadn’t I shut it last night? Maybe not, I was running up here with the suitcases and could’ve forgotten.

  Walking through the spacious room, I admired the beauty in the daylight. The place was even more stunning than it appeared last night. The entire house was more like a mini palace or museum. At least the way it was decorated made it look like one.

  Walking through the doorway, I tiptoed across the floor toward Josie’s bed. The blankets were a mess, part of them hanging off the side and the other half in a big heap on top. I didn’t hear him talking or playing and assumed he was underneath them sleeping. I pulled back the covers, but found nothing other than one of his socks that must have fallen off while he slept.

  I immediately started looking around the room for places he could be hiding, but didn’t see anything except the dresser. There were no other doors, the windows were closed, and the medical equipment wasn’t big enough to hide behind. I got down on my knees and checked under the bed. Nothing.

  Rushing out of his room, I started running around checking everywhere. The bathroom was empty, the closet was empty, and everything looked untouched. I started to panic. I threw the suitcases to the floor, checking behind the overly large pillows that lined couch. They were big enough that Josie’s small body could’ve hid behind them if he’d wanted. But still, nothing.

  I ran to the windows, whipping the floor length curtains to the side, looking behind them as well. I had no idea where he could be and frantically checked anything and everywhere possible.

  “Mel, what are you doing, honey?” Miguel sat up in bed and asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes to see what was going on.

  The bed! I ran over and threw myself on the floor beside him, trying to look underneath. But it had a solid wood base, no way to get under or inside.

  “Mel!”

  I jumped up and looked at him as he said my name louder, trying to get my attention. At the same moment I looked at Miguel, I remembered the stairs.

  “Josiah’s gone!” I yelled and went running out of the room.

  There were so many stairs. Oh my God, what if he fell down them? I ran down the hall as fast as I could until I reached the top of the staircase. Looking over the banister, I glanced all around, ignoring the splendor of the house as I searched for my son. There was nothing, no matching sock, no lost toy, but most importantly, no Josie lying at the bottom.

  Taking a deep breath, I tried to focus on where he might be. This was a good thing right? He hadn’t fallen down the stairs so he had to be up here somewhere. Maybe he was in one of the other bedrooms. I had no idea what was in them or whose they were, but I didn’t care. I turned around to go check the rooms closest to ours first, but only took two steps when I heard a distant laugh. Josie’s laugh.

  I stopped and turned back. It sounded like it was coming from downstairs. I didn’t wait to hear another sound. I took one leap toward the staircase, turned, and barreled my way down them.

  After reaching the bottom, I paused momentarily to listen again. There were six doors circling the room. I didn’t hear anything else and wasn’t sure where to go first. Then I noticed the door that was slightly ajar straight ahead of me. I ran faster than I’d ever run before and shoved the door open.

  My feet skidded to a stop. The sight before me was nothing I had expected to see. My heart was pounding in my chest like a freight train, not only from running and the fear of losing Josie, but from what was directly in front of me. I wanted to scream for Miguel. To yell for someone, but I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t even catch my breath.

  “I see you found the kitchen.”

  No! This wasn’t happening. Miguel’s brother was standing in the kitchen, surrounded by food, holding my son. He wasn’t even supposed to be here!

  “What are you doing?” I barely found enough voice to ask and it came out somewhat of a whisper and a demand at the same time.

  Even if he was here, why was he holding my son? He hated me. Josie was half me. What the hell was happening?

  “I’ve waited a long time to see my nephew. I was excited to get to play with him. We already ate breakfast and have been playing in here while we waited for you and my brother to wake up.”

  Was he being nice? No. The smile on his face was anything but nice. It had a hidden meaning. I wasn’t that naïve.

  I didn’t respond. I was trying to catch my breath and understand what he was saying. Miguel’s brother, on the other hand, displayed perfect calmness. He stood there, staring at me, sliding his eyes up and down my body, his eyes wide and eyebrows raised, waiting to see what I was going to do.

  Oh shit! I had short shorts on and a long t-shirt of Miguel’s that I often slept in. He probably couldn’t see the shorts and thought I was standing there in my underwear. I knew what he thought of “Americans” and women in general and could only imagine what he was thinking right then.

  “I see what my brother… loves… about you,” he said slowly, looking at my body and saying the word “loves” bitterly.

  That was all it took to snap my attention back to where it needed to be.

  “Josiah?” My little boy turned his head when I called his name and reached his arms out for me.

  “Ma, ma.” He smiled and bounced in the nasty man’s arms.

  Just as I took a step closer to take my son from him, the kitchen door slammed open again and Miguel ran inside. Skidding to a stop, in much the same fashion as I had a few minutes ago, he stood there dumbfounded.

  “Da, Da!” Josie squealed and was happier than a monkey bouncing on a bed. He had no clue what was going on around him.

  I didn’t wait for an invitation. I took another step and reached out my arms. Keeping his fake smile intact, Miguel’s brother leaned forward and held Josie out for me. I wrapped him in my arms and hugged him closely while taking a few steps back.

  “How did you get him, Osan?” Miguel roared.

  Josie tucked his head under my chin and tried to hide. Neither I, nor Josie, had ever heard him yell before. I rubbed his back to tell him it was okay and gave Miguel a look to remind him that his son was still here. He didn’t look directly at me, but he must have noticed because he took a deep breath and asked the same question again, but calmly.

  “How, Osan? He was in our room.”

  So the hateful man had a name after all. I had never asked Miguel before. I really didn’t want to know. I guess now it was impossible to avoid.

  “Well, good morning, big brother.”

  Déjà vu all over again. Memories of three years ago came rushing back as I stared at Osan. I’m pretty sure my look matched the one he gave me that day in the airport. The only difference this time was that I was staring at him.

  “I came home this morning and made breakfast for my brother and his family. I heard your littl
e boy upstairs. You can hear footsteps down here, did you know? But these were loud noises so I went up there to see if he was jumping on the bed. You remember, like we use to do?” Osan chuckled and looked from Josie to Miguel.

  Was he really trying to be nice to us? It seemed to be only skin-deep, his eyes still held the same evil, the same hatred. Only his words and forced smile were different.

  “So, I knocked on your door, but nobody answered. I opened it and saw that you two were still sleeping. I could hear your beloved little boy in the other bedroom and worried about him falling off the high bed if he were jumping.”

  Worried, my ass. The man was in our room! While we were sleeping! I was pretty sure you could see steam coming from my ears as he continued speaking.

  “So, you took it upon yourself to enter our private room? What if my wife wasn’t dressed, Osan? You do know what the punishment would be for that, right?” Miguel growled to his brother.

  Punishment? Family punishment? What was going on here? Was Miguel threatening him? I was lost, but refused to leave until I knew the whole story.

  “I apologize, brother. I was only trying to help. I wanted to give you and your lovely wife time to sleep after the long flight. I brought him downstairs and we’ve been playing for the past hour.” He paused and looked around the kitchen. “And we ate as well. Believe it or not, I’ve been looking forward to meeting my nephew. He is part of my blood too.”

  Oh, no he didn’t. He did not just say that! Yes, he was allowing us to stay in his home and even assisting us with preparing the medical care for after Josie’s surgery, but we all knew what he thought of Miguel’s “wife.” And why did he keep calling Miguel “brother” and not his name, or referring to me as “wife”?