Mephisto Waltz

by Bridgett Kay Specht

  “This isn’t a prank,” I insisted. “At least, I hope not. Are you at home?”

  “I’m with the others, on the beach in front of the beach house. Get down here now.” She ordered.

  “I will,” I said. “I will see you in a few minutes.”

  I hung up and flew down the stairs to the living room, where my parents sat.

  “Yes, you may go,” Mother said, before I could ask. “But don’t stay late, and take a sweater with you. It’s going to get cooler, tonight.”

  “I will,” I promised, and kissed her and Daddy each on the cheek. “Thank you.”

  #

  When I arrived at the beach house, the sun had dipped below the horizon, and the air was cool, but not yet cold. As I walked down the familiar, winding path through the dunes, I drank in the familiar sensation of the gritty sand beneath my feet, the sea breeze on my face, and the view of the deep purple evening sky, which had been painted elaborately by the setting sun. I saw a small group gathered on the beach, around a campfire. Two sat together, arms around each other, and one sat apart, strumming a guitar. As I approached, the one playing the guitar, Jason, stopped and looked up at me. Chad and Summer let each other go, and Summer ran to meet me. I gave everyone a shy wave, but Summer flung her arms around my neck.

  “Oh my god, Miranda, I can’t believe they let you come home.” She said.

  “I’m happy to be home, too, but there’s no need to asphyxiate me,” I gasped.

  “What?” Summer asked.

  “You’re choking her,” Chad said, laughing.

  “Oh, sorry,” she said, releasing her hold. “We just thought that our efforts to persuade your parents weren’t working at all. We were thinking about coming up with a new plan to spring you.”

  “So, does this mean you’re cured?” Jason asked.

  “No, I’m not cured at all,” I said.

  Jason and Chad each gave me a hug, as well, and then led me to where they’d been sitting.

  “Is Clara going to come soon?” I asked in what I hoped was an offhand manner. The others ignored my question, though, too eager with their own.

  “Tell us how you convinced your parents,” Summer said. “You look- well, frankly, you look terrible. You aren’t sick, are you?”

  “I was,” I said. “That’s part of the reason I’m home. My experiences with Prodigal Ministries were less than pleasant. A friend of mine, Alice, intervened on my behalf, and told my parents what they were doing to me, including the fact that they were responsible for my illness.”

  “What did they do to you?” Jason asked in a concerned voice.

  “Well, they dragged me out into the freezing night air, barefoot, to perform an exorcism on me,” I said.

  “An exorcism?” Summer gasped. “Why?”

  “To get rid of the evil urges inside of me, I suppose,” I said. “It didn’t work. I passed out, and developed a high fever. When Alice told my parents what they had done, they came to take me home. So, here I am.”

  My friends were still staring at me with shock and concern, and asked a lot of questions. Even though I hadn’t wanted to relive my time at the abbey, here, in front of the campfire and surrounded by trusted friends, I found myself telling the whole story of my confinement. I told them about the abbey’s architecture, and all of the people; the story of Mary of Misery, and the mysterious intruder who’d tried to break into my room. I even told them about the sleepless nights, and all of the bizarre treatments I’d been exposed to. When I got to the story of the exorcism, my audience was enrapt in shocked fascination. When I told how Dr. Caleb had slipped the noose around my neck, and how I couldn’t breathe, I heard a gasp of horror behind me.

  I stood, startled, and turned to see a familiar, tall figure half hidden in the shadows. As I recognized the figure, I went from fear, to Joy, to shyness.

  “Clara! I’m so glad you’re here. I tried to call you, before, but there was no answer.”

  “You’re home,” she said shakily. “Are you okay? I was listening to your story. Is all of that true?”

  “Yes, but I’m okay, really. I became ill, but my parents found out and brought me home.”

  Clara seemed unconvinced. She stepped closer, into the ring of firelight, and studied me carefully. Her eyes betrayed despair.

  She looked as beautiful as she ever had. She was dressed far less casually than usual, in a conservative, floral-patterned skirt and a pretty blouse. Her shaggy black hair was tamed, slightly curled, and pulled back with a thin headband. She was even wearing a touch of makeup, but as pretty as she looked, she was far too thin, and her eyes were shadowed. I could tell she had been unhappy.

  I was about to speak again, but Summer cut me off.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked Clara in a hostile voice.

  “I’m here to get my phone back,” Clara said. “I know you took it, Summer. Amber saw you.”

  “Since when do you trust a habitual liar like Amber?” Chad asked.

  “She’s not that bad,” Clara said. “Besides, Summer is the one who stole my homework planner, and David’s phone.”

  Summer laughed darkly, reached in her purse, and threw a phone to Clara. “Here, I didn’t find anything, anyway. I promise you, though, that I will find out what’s been going on.”

  “Aren’t you two friends, anymore?” I asked, turning from Clara to Summer, but both of them maintained a stony silence. The silence was interrupted by David, who walked up behind Clara.

  “Well, this is a surprise,” he said when he saw me. “It looks like the prodigal child has returned. Isn’t that wonderful, Clara?” he added with a sneer.

  Clara said nothing, but closed her eyes, as though willing him away.

  “If you have your phone, let’s go. We don’t want to ruin Miranda’s homecoming party,” he commanded. He put his arm around Clara’s shoulders, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she opened her eyes, nodded meekly, and followed him.

  Chapter 16

  Mysteries

  The Hanged Man

  As I watched Clara leave with David, I was frozen. I wanted to reach out to Clara, grab her hand, and beg her not to go. I wanted to shake David and demand to know what he had done to make her so miserable- so obedient, but my body rebelled against me. I felt as cold and immobile as marble, and stood, helplessly, as I watched David lead Clara away.

  “Miranda, are you okay?” Summer asked softly.

  I tried to answer, but the words formed a painful lump in my throat.

  “Miranda, you’re scaring me,” Summer put her hand on my shoulder, and the warmth of her touch seemed to melt the cold shock which had imprisoned me.

  “Clara… what did David do to her?” I gasped.

  “We’re trying to figure that out,” Summer said quietly. “Clara’s changed, and we don’t know how or why it happened. She’s with David, now.”

  “How can she, after everything he’s done to her? We need to do something to stop him.”

  “We know, Miranda, and we’ve been trying, but there isn’t much we can do, because we don’t know what happened. Clara has completely shut us out. She barely speaks to us, anymore,” Chad said.

  “When did this happen?” I asked.

  “That’s a difficult question to answer,” Jason, who’d been staring moodily into the fire, said. “Sometime after Christmas, she simply started to drift away from us. It started subtly, at first. She started dressing differently, and she seemed troubled by something, but she refused to talk about it. Then she quit the art club, and stopped sitting with us at lunch. Soon, she seemed to become a clone of Amber, following David around and doing his bidding.”

  I thought of the way Clara had acted, and the look of despair I’d seen in her eyes. I couldn’t help but see the parallel between her behavior, and the behavior of most of the people I’d been around the past few months. “He must have done something terrible to her. We have to stop him.”

  “Listen, Miranda, I know you care for her,
but you have to think about yourself, now.” Jason said. “You‘ve been through hell, and you’re still recovering from your illness. You won’t help her by making yourself ill, again.”

  “You’re right,” I conceded. “I do need to take care of myself, but I won’t give up. I’m angry, and I think that will help me get well, for her sake.”

  #

  I went home early, as I’d promised Mother, ate a small supper, and went to bed. I was warmer, and more comfortable than I had been for a long time, and though my mind was troubled, my body could not fight the pleasant physical sensation of being in bed, and I was about to fall asleep when my phone rang. I was still groggy, but I yawned, cleared my head as best I could, and answered.

  “Hello?”

  “Hello, Miranda,” a soft voice replied.

  “Clara, it’s so good to hear your voice,” I sighed, still comfortable and sleepy.

  “Miranda, I’m sorry about the way I acted, earlier, and I think I owe you an explanation. I know I said I would wait for you…” she trailed off.

  The remembrance of our earlier reunion brought me back to the cold, concrete reality of the waking world. “You don’t owe me anything, Clara, because I meant it when I said that you shouldn’t pine for me when I was gone. I wanted you to be happy, but… David? You know I can’t believe you’re happy with him. He’s abusive and manipulative.”

  “Maybe he isn’t so bad,” she said. “Maybe I exaggerated, when I told you how he used to treat me.”

  “I’ve seen firsthand how he treats people,” I replied. “Besides, when I left, he was already trying to manipulate you into getting back together with him, and I’ve been gone for a long time. He might have found a way to force you, in that time. Plus, there’s the small matter of your preferences. David is still male.”

  “There is another possibility,” Clara said coolly. “Maybe I’m not the person you thought I was. Maybe I’m a liar, on par with David. Maybe I’m a terrible person, who has done terrible things, and has lied to you and led you on.”

  “Even if you had lied to me, it’s not a crime terrible enough to be deserving of a punishment as bad as David,” I said.

  “Miranda, I’m sorry I have to say this, and I’m sorry that I ever dragged you into the mess that is my life. I’m sorry I was so selfish that I played with your feelings. You deserve someone who will make you happy. I’ve brought you nothing but trouble and heartache,” she said.

  “You’ve brought me more joy than sorrow, Clara, and you’re the same person I left here months ago. You’re unhappy, though. Please, let me help you. Trust me.”

  “You can’t help me, Miranda. I wish you could.” Her voice trembled, as though she was near tears. My own eyes stung sympathetically, and tears began to fall.

  “Clara-“ I whispered.

  “Miranda, don’t waste your time on a lost case. Find happiness with someone else, and take care of yourself.”

  I heard a click, and a dial tone.

  #

  I rested the next day, but I was unhappy, and my parents could see my moroseness, so mother took me the day after to re-register at school. It was further into the semester than they usually allowed students to register, but somehow Mother persuaded them to take me on a probationary basis. As we sat together in the vice-principal's office, and we waited for him to return with my textbooks and class schedule, Mother gazed at me with a look of concern. After a long, awkward silence, she spoke.

  “You must be glad to be back in school with your friends,” she said.

  “I am,” I said, though I was unable to put the proper enthusiasm into my voice.

  “I’m sure you’re glad to see Clara, again, aren’t you?”

  I was unable to hide the pain I felt at the mention of Clara’s name. “Things didn’t work out between us,” I said.

  “I’m so sorry, darling,” she said, though her tone was disingenuous.

  “My break-up with Clara doesn’t change anything, you realize,” I said.

  “I never said-“ Mother began to protest, but was interrupted by Vice-Principal Johnson’s return.

  “I was able to find the books that you don’t already have, and I printed your new class schedule. Be certain to get the assignments that you’ve missed from the beginning of the semester from each of your teachers, and report to the library at 4:00 for tutoring. I expect you to be entirely caught up by midterm.”

  “Yes, Mr. Johnson,” I replied.

  He smiled warmly and shook my hand. “I’m glad you’re back, Miranda. You’ve been an excellent student, and an asset to the school.”

  “Thank you.”

  “If you hurry,” he continued, “You can still make it to your first class. Don’t worry about your lack of uniform, today.”

  I thanked him again, put my books into my bag, said goodbye to Mother, and left. I had intended to hurry to my class, but I was completely distracted by the familiar warmth and cheerfulness of the campus. As I walked across the bright courtyard, alive with oak and palm trees, and with its dancing fountain, I couldn’t help but contrast it to the dead, stone courtyard at the abbey. Despite my present unhappiness, for a moment, my heart felt like singing.

  The feeling fled as quickly as it came, though, when I reached my first class, Latin, and saw Clara sitting next to David, who reached out to touch her arm possessively. Fortunately, I was quite late, and only had time to talk to my teacher and receive my assignments from him before class was dismissed. I only saw Clara once more that day, in biology, where I was seated next to her. I tried to ignore her, and concentrate on the lesson, but every small movement or sound she made shifted my awareness toward her.

  At lunch, Clara was absent, and the little group under the oak tree seemed morose and quiet. Summer and Chad laughed and talked quietly together, lost in their own world, and Jason seemed disgusted by their behavior.

  “They really do know how to rub it in, don’t they,” he said, gesturing toward Summer, who was feeding Chad French fries and giggling.

  “It would be cute, if I wasn’t single,” I said.

  Jason shook his head. “You need to find someone new, someone who can take care of you. Find someone stronger than Clara.”

  I shook my head. “No, I won’t give up on her. I can take care of myself.”

  He chuckled. “I guess you can take care of yourself. I underestimated you, I guess. You were able to survive hell. Still, I wish I could take care of you, just a little, after everything you’ve been through.”

  #

  When the day was over, I was glad for the opportunity to escape to the quiet library, and concentrate on my work in peaceful solitude. I arrived early, and saw no sign of my tutor in the empty library, so I sat down at one of the tables near the glass doors, in a patch of bright spring sunlight, and began to study.

  I was unable to concentrate very long, however, because Amber entered the library, and began pacing back and forth in front of the door, blocking and unblocking the light which fell on my book.

  “Amber,” I said, once this became unbearable, “my eyes can’t take much more of this.”

  Amber jumped and looked at me, as though she hadn’t noticed me sitting directly behind her. “Miranda! I’m sorry, I’m waiting for someone.”

  “Pacing won’t make them arrive any sooner,” I said. “Would you please sit down?”

  She shrugged and sat down beside me with a thump, throwing her bag onto the table. “I have a life, you know,” she announced. “I don’t want to tutor any more than they want to be tutored, but I’m here on time. Some people are so inconsiderate.”

  “You’re my tutor?” I asked, taken aback.

  “Don’t tell me you’re the one I’m supposed to be tutoring,” she groaned. “You’re smarter than I am.”

  “I don’t know whether I’m smarter than you, or not, but I am over a month behind for the semester,” I said.

  “A genius like you should be able to catch up pretty fast, all by yourself.” She t
ook a book from her bag and began to read. “Tell me if you have any questions.”

  I laughed a little to myself at her incompetence as a tutor, but I was able to work for most of the hour, uninterrupted, so I decided it was a blessing. Toward the end of the session, I thought I should take advantage of being alone with Amber, and to see what she knew what David and Clara had been hiding.

  “A lot has changed, since I’ve been gone,” I began.

  “Maybe you’re the one who has changed,” she replied without looking up from her book.

  “Perhaps I have, but I’m not the only one who’s changed,” I said. “For example, Clara used to hate David, and now she’s always with him. I wonder how something like that could have happened.”

  Amber put her book down and looked at me with a sympathetic look in her innocent eyes. “It would be easier for you if you completely forgot about Clara. You don’t want to undo the progress you’ve made.”

  “Progress?”

  “Everyone knows where you’ve been, Miranda. It’s difficult to keep that sort of thing a secret in a school like this.”

  I laughed. “If you think I’ve been ‘cured,’ then you’re quite mistaken. Besides, I doubt it’s even possible to ‘cure’ someone of their sexual preferences.”

  “Plenty of people are cured, every day,” she said with an indignant pout.

  “You’re entitled to your beliefs,” I said. “In any case, is that what you think happened to Clara? Has she been cured by David?”

  “I hope she has been. She’s getting better every day.”

  “Yes, she looks very happy,” I said sarcastically.

  “Some things are more important than happiness,” Amber said.

  “You wouldn’t say that if you’d seen the torment people will put themselves through, in order to change,” I said.

  “If they’re saved, though, isn’t it worth the trouble?”