by Sarah Erber
“Thanks, Uncle Jack.”
Releasing me, he hops back into the car and drives out of Rosewood. I inhale a deep breath before facing the theater.
My bare feet beat against the grass. The goblins keep the townspeople at bay as I sprint into the theater house. The hallway does not smell of lemon or cleaning supplies anymore. The odor of death wafts through the historic house. Depositing my bag in the hallway, I return to the balcony. The Peters talk in rapid conversation with Whelan and Victoria below. I jog down the stairs, careful to tiptoe around the sharp crystals from the fallen chandelier.
“Temptation! We thought you were leaving?” Mrs. Peters says.
Whelan grips Victoria’s waist. Victoria’s face looks bruised and scratched from the Cyclopes rats.
“I have an idea how to help Silus,” I say.
“Silus?” Victoria asks.
“The Goblin King.”
“Oh.”
“I remember Silus telling me that the only thing that calms Jenkins’ demons is song. That’s why he held Victoria and me in such high regard. So I thought why not have Victoria and I sing, and see what happens to Jenkins.”
Victoria’s eyebrows rise and the first genuine smile I have ever seen forms on her lips. “I’ve always wanted to try a duet.”
“That’s brilliant,” Whelan says. “The speakers extend out of the theater and all around the town square. I’ll repair a few of the damaged cables.” He jumps on stage and off to the side to tinker with the sound equipment.
“Well, Dearies, what are you going to sing? We don’t have a band and I’m not sure I have any modern music–”
“I have something.” Victoria follows Whelan and whispers to him.
On the stage, I pull out two microphones. Another painful pressure to my throat causes me to choke. I drop the microphones. Mr. and Mrs. Peters rush to my side. Their worrying voices are surrounding me. I can only succeed to choke out the word, “Silus.” I feel his heart leap and wonder if he heard me speak his name. The pressure on my throat disappears. Inhaling a few times, I manage to say, “We do this now. We’re out of time.”
Victoria snatches up the microphones from the waxed floor and hands me one. “Ready?”
The Peterses’ move aside so I can stand next to Victoria. “What are we singing?”
“A classic with a modern twist. I actually got the idea from your obsession with opera rock.”
A drumming beat echoes out of the theater and courses through Rosewood. I recognize the revised beat pulsing with electric guitars. “The Phantom of the Opera!”
Victoria smiles. “Fitting, isn’t it? You lead first.”
The tone of the music slows a little and I burst into the song. Closing my eyes, I will myself to see through Silus’ eyes. He is standing on top of a building overlooking the carnival and listening to my singing. All of the demon townspeople below stop and listen. They do not flinch or fight back as the goblins tackle them to the ground and tie them up against the broken debris from the carnival rides.
Victoria joins me. Pulsing into a strong, beautiful beat, the music makes me feel empowered.
Honing in on my ability, I try to see through Jenkins’ eyes. He is crouching on top of the clock tower in the town square. Unable to move or even see his demons falling at the hands of the goblins, his only focus is on the theater house. The buzzing of his heart imitates the hum of an angry wasps’ nest, but as Victoria and I sing, the buzzing ceases and gives him a moment of pure bliss. He feels human.
I pause. Victoria continues.
Silus’ yell and a burst of pain in the back of my head, sends me swirling back to myself in the theater. I sway.
“Come on, Girlie! Me master be gettin’ the better of Jenkins. Keep yerself awake!”
Remorse’s grin at the balcony snaps me back into reality. I join Victoria as we hit the climax of the song. Desperate to see the battle raging between Silus and Jenkins, I attempt to shut my eyes again.
Victoria snatches my wrist, to get my attention, and then shakes her head.
Victoria’s right. Focus. Sing.
The song ends and a huge uproar of praise courses from the outside of the theater.
“Yah did it, Temptation! We captured the townspeople.” Remorse waddles down the stairs.
“Did Silus kill Jenkins?”
Remorse stops. “You tell me, girlie.”
A knot forms in my stomach. What if he did not win? What if he… Shaking away the gut-wrenching thoughts, I focus in on Silus once again.
Treetops zoom below. He whips his eyes over every dark inch of the forest. Panic seeps in with every beat of his wings. “Temptation get out of my head. I need you to abandon Rosewood. I’ve lost Jenkins. It isn’t safe!” I want to protest, but Silus touches his thumbnail into the palm of his hand. “I’ll miss you, Temptation.” Pushing down, his nail pierces his own skin, and blood rolls off his palm. The pain travels to my hand and I regrettably leave Silus’ mind.
“Be our master winnin’?”
Fluttering my eyes to get adjusted to my reality, I spot eyes peering at me from all angles of the room, waiting for my answer. “He needs your help finding Jenkins. He’s scanning the forest.”
“Jenkins be afraid of us goblins. We’ll not disappoint his expectations of us, will we?” Remorse forms an impish smile at the sound of the cheering goblins as they march toward the exit.
Caressing the scar on the palm of my hand, I think, I’ll miss you too.
Victoria, Whelan, and the Peters join the goblins in search for Jenkins. I follow behind, picking up my bag when I make it to the hallway. Beyond the front door, townspeople clash their teeth together at the mocking goblins. Since the music died, their old personalities resurface again. The biker gang’s motorcycles no longer inhabit the street, but Jerald’s did. Swinging a leg over the motorcycle, I start the bike, and take off down West Ironwood Drive. Checking my mirror, I spot Remorse’s scowl as I depart Rosewood. Trees devour the scenery and I focus on the road. Passing an aging tombstone, I check my rearview mirror to see the words, Welcome to Rosewood. A tall man stands in the road behind me. Wings expand in the moonlight. Slamming on my brakes, I skid to a halt. “Silus? What are you doing?”
“Don’t insult me by mistaking me for him.” Jenkins arches his head up so the moonlight sketches out his sharp features and horrible teeth; his feral eyes lock only on me. “My blood is in you too. You can run Temptation, but I will find you.” He stands parallel with the sign, unable to cross the threshold into the human world.
I carefully situate myself on the motorcycle. “I’m sorry things didn’t work out between us, Jerald.”
A side of this face twitches.
“I fell in love with Silus a long time before you and I. He never did anything to threaten or hurt me. Your brother did. You did. Silus will find me. You won’t because you’ll be dead.”
Jenkins expels a roar, creating earthquake like vibrations on the ground. Another dark figure with wings lands behind Jenkins.
It is Silus.
Jenkins’ face lights up. I realize Jenkins used my own ability against me to lure Silus to our location. Whipping a fist around, Jenkins slams it against Silus’ chest, knocking him to the ground.
Instinctively, I move to aid Silus, but he shouts, “Temptation run!”
Jenkins advances on Silus and bares his fangs.
Silus rolls to his feet and jolts forward. Jenkins attacks, but Silus jumps upon Jenkins shoulders. Pushing off, he shoots up into the night sky. Jenkins roars again. Extending his black wings, he ascends into the blackness of the night sky to hunt Silus, abandoning me to the waving trees masked with shadows.
I take off on Jerald’s bike. The tiny back road Aunt Sally took when we came to Rosewood appears on the left. Leaning the bike, I swerve down South Branch Road. The further I travel from Rosewood, the more I die inside.
Chapter Twelve
Reviving Memories
“Don’t let Mom bully you.”
Karma wipes tears from her cheeks. “See what you made me do. It’s going to suck without you around, again. It sucked when you weren’t around this semester.” Over the past month and a half, Karma helped me hide from my family. If Jenkins survives, I refuse to put my family back in danger. The back roads around Urbanna, Virginia shelter many abandoned houses. I took up residence in one of the houses in the woods. Ever since my last encounter with Silus, I crave the safety of the forest, and the beauty that comes with it.
A question I have been dying to ask since my return from Rosewood, escapes my mouth before I can stop it. “Karma, what are you?”
The rhythmic rise and fall of Karma’s chest stops. “What?”
“I can see you. Your hair is like gold.” I touch Karma’s dull hair. “Your skin glows like a light is shining underneath it.”
Karma’s tears decrease.
“And your eyes.” I observe my best friend’s frightened face. “They’re such a brilliant blue it almost scared me the first time I saw you when I came back. I’ve never seen anyone else who looks like you.”
“I didn’t know I look different.”
I grin. “Seems like our next mystery, is you.”
****
I sit in the guidance counselor’s office, listening to the news, and waiting for the eclipse to happen. While the school surrounding me erupts into chaos, my only thoughts are on him. Eyes shining like candles in the dark and needlepoint teeth, the shade of chrome, accent his horrifying face. Despite his beastly features, I love him. Like Beauty loves the Beast.
The office door hurls open behind me with an annoying squeak. It bounces on its hinges and then shuts with a bang.
“–ridiculous nonsense! We’re not even close enough for the hurricane to affect us! Oh, Hun, I have to go. I have an appointment with a young woman.” She pauses. “Yes, Karma’s in her last class. She’ll come to my office when she’s done. Herb, just because every other parent is taking their child out of school doesn’t mean we’re going too. I’ve gotta go. Uh-huh – bye.”
I shift in my seat.
“Hello Temptation, I’m sorry I kept you waiting.” The counselor stuffs her cherry-tinted cell phone into her tote bag. It bulges. “It seems like my intelligent husband is terrified along with everyone else. Ridiculous.” She drops, or rather throws, her bag on top of the file cabinet. “I’m Mrs. Linn.” Her gaudy necklaces clank together as she sits down behind her desk. She places a pair of jeweled reading glasses on the bridge of her pointy nose. It strangely resembles a stereotypical witch’s nose. “Do you know why I’ve called you into my office today, Temptation?” Mrs. Linn’s eyes flicker over area where my shoulder curves to my neck.
I tug the collar of my crochet shirt up and twist my fingers around the ends of my lengthy hair. “No. I’ve only been in school a month and a half. I haven’t misbehaved in any of my classes.”
Mrs. Linn rises to her feet and paces around the office. The thump of her stilettos matches my own heartbeats. “I’ve received a few complaints from other students about–”
“I don’t talk to anyone,” I interrupt, keeping my eyes on the desk with carvings of angels. “Anyone who tries to talk to me, I ignore.” I cross my beige arms. “Is it my hair? I like it black and white.” Ever since my departure from Rosewood, I re-dyed my hair black. Only highlights of white remain.
Mrs. Linn halts and regards my hair for a brief moment before smiling.
I notice her perfectly human teeth. The tension between us is suffocating. Gods, I want to get out of the office. I wish Mrs. Linn would crack a window; I need a breeze in here.
“A few students spied you washing your clothes in the locker room showers. People have also seen you stealing food from cafeteria and hiding it in your bag.” She glances down at my backpack, which reeks of soy burgers.
My body sags. “I get hungry easily.”
“What about your clothes?”
“What about them? I don’t like stains.”
“Yes, but you’re always wearing scarves or turtle neck shirts.”
“It’s winter.”
“One of your teachers approached me today. She swore she saw blood underneath your shirt collar. We both believe you’re being or have been abused.”
“Well, I’m not. So you both can keep those crazy assumptions to yourselves.” I fold my arms over my chest. My unnatural eyes kill the calmness of the flowery room.
Mrs. Linn strides around her desk. Bending down to my eye level, she says, “It’s absolutely imperative you describe to me the circumstances you find yourself in. It’s unnecessary for you to be afraid. I can help.” Her fingernails, the shade of ripe pomegranates, reach out and peel back the crochet collar from my neck.
My eyes, swirling electric lime-violet, twitch to my reflection in a mirror behind Mrs. Linn. The jagged bite mark on my neck still looks fresh. As fresh as the day he gave it to me. Halloween. He was right. It was sharp and unpleasant. I fight to keep the emotions swirling within from reaching my voice. “I-I want to go home like everyone else.”
Mrs. Linn drops her perfumed hand and ascends to her feet. She strides over to the file cabinet, ignoring my statement. “I called your uncle earlier.”
I press my ruby lips together. Tilting my view away from my foreign reflection, I stare out of the window, and watch panicky parents arrive early to pick up their teenagers. They embrace their near-adult children like toddlers. Everyone rushes to their vehicles, fearful of the minuscule amount of time they possess. But not me. Time is all I have and, because of Silus, death is not an option.
“The people I called said they didn’t have a niece. I checked your transcript papers.” Mrs. Linn tosses a file down. It lands with a loud thud, despite the shouts from the students outside. Mrs. Linn twists her stiff hair up and clips it. Platinum blonde spikes outline her head like a demented halo. “I tried to contact your old school, Rosewood High. It does not exist. In fact, every single document we have on you proves you don’t exist. Our records show Temptation Falls died earlier this year. Child Protective Services have been called. They’ll be her shortly, so if you want to change your story, now would be the time to do it.”
I continue to ignore Mrs. Linn’s penetrating line of questions. I am not surprised Mrs. Linn does not remember me. Whatever Silus injected into me through the bite mark, is changing my entire body. I often wonder if I am becoming part goblin myself. As for my cousins, I found out Uncle Jack went through the court system to prove they were not dead. I can only guess magic affected everything when we entered Rosewood. After all, we should not be alive. I urged my cousins to keep away from me until I discover the outcome of the battle of Rosewood. Though he was reluctant, Uncle Jack agreed to move to a different area in Virginia.
“Temptation, I know my daughter hangs around you sometimes. You need to tell me what happened to you.” Mrs. Linn lays a soft hand on top of my henna-tattooed palm. “I promise, whoever did this to you won’t hurt you ever a–”
“You can’t help me,” I snap and withdraw my barbaric hand. “No one can. I went to Rosewood High. It’s where all this crap started. Where he lied to me. Tricked me.” I glare at Mrs. Linn. “He’s not human.”
Mrs. Linn’s confusion transforms into pity. She stares at me as if I am a lost three-year-old. “Temptation, there’s no such thing as nonhuman beings. The town of Rosewood doesn’t exist–”
Emotions overtake my actions. I slam my fist down on the desk, startling Mrs. Linn. “Rosewood can’t be found on maps! The only way to get into Rosewood is if someone who’s been there before shows you. I would’ve died there if I wasn’t saved by–!” Halting, I grip the sides of my head and shake my thoughts away. I cannot speak his name – not w
ithout having a breakdown. A cold tear escapes my inhuman eye and rolls down my cheeks. I hate being alone. It is still possible Jenkins survived and not Silus.
Mrs. Linn plucks a few delicate tissues off her desk and offers them to me. “You need to stay calm, Temptation. Let’s say, for the sake of argument, I believe you.”
Liar. I grit my sharp teeth.
“But I need you to explain to me the how you received those cuts on your neck.” She scoots her chair back and reclaims her seat. Fingers lacing together, she waits patiently for me to speak.
I rub my nose with the tissue and sniff. “They’re not cuts. I was bitten,” I mumble.
The guidance counselor gaffs. “It’s hardly a bite mark, Temptation. More like someone took a set of razor blades to your neck. I’m surprised you survived. You’re going to have to see the school nurse later, unless she’s an idiot like everyone else. In which case, I’ll take you to the hospital myself.” She studies the wound from across the desk. “You’ll probably need stitches since it hasn’t healed.”
Viewing the unclear sky through the office window, I say, “The eclipse should be starting soon.”
Mrs. Linn leans forward. In a low voice, almost a whisper, she asks, “What happened?”
A shaky laugh escapes my lungs. “It would require a huge leap of faith for you to believe me.” Dreadful memories flood my vision, cranking out buried emotions rusting with decay. “It started the day I moved to Rosewood with my cousins. I knew something was wrong as soon as we passed the sign.” I pick up the golden locket dangling against my chest. “You know the weird feeling you get when you walk through a graveyard at night?”
Mrs. Linn adjusts her glasses on her powdery nose, apparently insulted by the mere idea of having a nighttime stroll in a cemetery. “I’ve never walked through a graveyard at night, but I can imagine how frightening it must feel.”
I shrug and unsnap the twinkling locket. I gaze longingly at the two photos within its tiny metal heart. “I used to walk through the graveyard where my parents are buried. You get this feeling, as if you’re not welcome because you are part of the living world. Only the dead are welcome.” My attention returns to the foggy window. Dark clouds pass over the sun, causing a few people to scream outside in the courtyard. I wish my worst fear is the hurricane. Not my life. Not what I am becoming alone.