by Tara Brown
"She can push people through the mirror. I saw it. I saw her do it. She did it to you. I thought I was having a stroke. I called the ambulance but they said it was a panic attack. They said I imagined you had died, but I couldn’t prove you had lived. They thought I was having a diabetic fit."
Oh God, the ambulance had never had Rosie in it. She hadn’t died. Where is she?
I swear, I can taste metal and smell burnt toast. I am having a stroke or something. The room spins, "What can I do, Grandma?"
I hear Bastion’s words ringing in my head. It was all true. What does it mean? Who am I?
She puts a hand out for me, "You stay away from her."
I nod, "I will. Grandma, it's my twentieth birthday. Is the money my dad left me still there?"
Her eyes widen, "Already? Where did the time go? Where does it ever go?"
I smile and squeeze her hand, wanting to choke the life from her. It's a fleeting thought, but it's there nonetheless.
She thinks for a second, "My room, Rosie. You'll know it when you see it. But it’s not what you think it is. I only ever saw it the one time, when she pushed you through it. But I think it’s still there."
I smile, "Thanks, Grandma,” I get up and walk from the room.
Sam looks at me, "What the hell was that?"
I sigh, "She must think I'm my sister."
He scowls, "You had a sister? I thought that was a town rumor."
I shake my head, "I used to think Mary pushed her down the stairs. She told me Rosie died from the fall, now I’m not sure."
He winces, "How did I not know you had a sister? How did she go in the mirror? What mirror? I think Mary has lost it."
I shrug, "Rosie was very little when she died. Mary is clearly confused." I know that’s not true, but there is no way to explain the hot mess it is without telling him everything that’s happened. He will have me committed. I stop a lady walking past, "Hi. My grandma is Mary Lake. Is there anything I should know? She seems pretty confused."
The nurse smiles, stepping back a little, "Yes. She fell yesterday, and somehow overnight, symptoms of dementia have just developed. She is full blown. We thought it was a head injury, like amnesia, but it's not. It's so much worse, but it's only the new memories. She remembers everything up to a couple years ago, perfectly. But yesterday is gone and she is confused. Her fall injured her hip. We can’t seem to find any trauma to her head at all."
"Can she come home?"
She shakes her head, "I'm really sorry, but no. She will be here until a bed becomes available at the nursing home."
I could jump for joy but the words ‘remembers everything clearly’ are killing me. If she remembers things perfectly then she must have some semblance of truth in those words.
I must have done something terrible, at some point. Why don’t I remember? Unless she’s talking about Baylor, the sister I don’t recall.
I need to get to Mary’s room at the house. I give the nurse a smile, "Thanks."
She nods, "Goodnight."
Sam puts his hand on my shoulder, "Mixed feelings there, I bet?"
I nod, "Very."
How do I tell him what has happened thus far?
"Want me to walk you home?"
I nod, "Please."
He takes my hand and we start the trek home. I can safely say I have never been so grateful to not be alone in all my life. The fact he is there is the only thing keeping me sane. I have to keep it together for him.
We walk, holding hands and strolling like I had wished one day we would. He babbles on about how everyone is, confirming everything I saw in the mirror. “Sarah and Brandon was a big shock. He came home at Thanksgiving and they hooked up. She’s living with him there now, at school. And you missed meeting Lune’s boyfriend. He’s from New York and really strange. They don’t ever leave each other’s side. It’s intense to be around. We basically spent winter break avoiding them.” He chuckles and I wonder if I can just tell him what has truly happened over the course of the year. Or will he see the crazy grandma and granddaughter as one problem?
We get to Mary's and I have a terrible feeling, "Can you come in?"
He smiles, "Yeah? You okay?"
I shake my head, "I don’t want to be alone. This house scares me. My room is stripped and she got rid of all my stuff."
"Really?"
I nod, "Yeah. She hated me. Rosie was always her favorite. She used to say she was the only one she believed was my father’s baby. I was the spawn of Satan.”
He opens the door for me, "That is so sad. I can’t believe the town never stepped in."
I look back over the town as I walk inside, "You and me both." I close the door and look up the dreaded stairs.
I don’t even know how I am going to explain a single second of this to him, or me.
Chapter Nine
We search under the bed in Mary’s room but we don’t find anything. I sit on my knees, “Wanna go to the old Lachlan mansion with me quick?”
He scowls, “That place is condemned—it’s nasty bad.”
I nod, “I know it. I just need to see something. And we’ve searched this friggin’ room three times. There’s nothing here.”
He sighs, “Yup. Let’s go.”
He nudges me on the walk to his parents’ house. “Did you miss me?”
I laugh, “You have no idea how badly.” My face flushes, “I missed the whole town.”
He looks down on me, “Weird.”
“Again, you have no idea.”
When we get the car, he drives us up the hill to the rotten old house. It looks even worse since the last time I was there, hours before. We get out of the car and the wind blows hard, trying to warn me. I ignore it and walk up to the front door. I shove it lightly and cringe when it squeaks and then just falls off the hinges onto the floor. We both jump at the loud slam when it hits the floor. I look at Sam, his eyes are wide. He shakes his head, “Maybe we should stay out of there.”
I reach over and take his hand in mine, “Come on. I’ll protect you.”
He laughs and blushes, “My hero. I think I’ll be fine. I’m more worried about the structure.” We take a breath and step together. The house smells and looks like a hellhole, worse than the first day working for Bastion. The huge front entryway is a mess. The walls have holes and mold growing up them. Sam’s fingers dig deep into mine. I hear a noise, and spin quickly. I jump when I see him. He looks the way he did before. The thick scars fold across his face. Sam actually screams, like a girl. I sigh, “Bastion, you turned back.”
“Bastion, that’s you? Man, are you okay?” Sam gives me and then Bastion a horrified look, “What happened, dude? Let me call 9-1-1. Those are bad. Holy shit, is that an animal attack? Lynnie, did you know he was hurt?”
I give Bastion a pained look.
He shakes his head and gives Sam a sad face, “No, I’m fine, trust me.” His dark eyes land on us holding hands. I see something flicker there; I don’t know how to take it. It’s the same face he gave at the party when we danced. His eyes find Sam’s again finally, “I’m fine, really. You, however, are another matter, Sam. You decided to gamble with your fate again with the ever-lovely Miss Lake? One scar isn’t enough for you?”
“That was uncalled for. She didn’t scar either of us.” Sam steps towards him but I grab his arm, pulling him back.
I step in front of him, looking at Bastion with a pleading look, “Stop turning me away. Let me help you. You turned and the scars came back, didn’t they?”
He nods once. I can see the hatred and fear in his eyes.
I step towards him, “Time to tell me the whole story, leave nothing out. No random thoughts and jumping from story to story or thinking you’re protecting me or whatever. Just plain facts.”
He nods again, holding a hand out to the library, “This was your favorite room. Let’s sit in here.”
Sam clutches to me, “Did I miss some of the conversation?”
I nod, “You missed a year of c
onversations.”
His eyes narrow, “This is where you were? Hiding up here with him? You lied.”
“I didn’t. Trust me, it’s not what you think. I worked here. I didn’t know it was Bastion. Would you have recognized him?” I bite my lip and turn to the library, following the monster into the scary dark. I drag Sam with me. I can feel the anger of my lie in his grip.
“What’s going on, Lynnie?”
I shake my head, “I need to hear this, then I’ll try to explain.”
Bastion starts a fire and I sit next to it. Sam walks about the room, shaking his head. “I can’t believe I looked everywhere for you but here.”
I love the house and wish it looked the way it did the day it changed. Slowly the room starts to brighten and transform. “Do you see it changing?” I ask.
He nods, “What’s going on?”
“Good, I’m not crazy.”
He looks at Bastion, “You look like you need a doctor, Bastion. You should probably go see your parents. Me and Lynnie need to go.” His eyes dart to meet mine, “NOW!”
Bastion gives Sam a dead look, “What I wouldn’t give to see my parents, Sam. That’s not an option.” His dead stare finds me. I crawl to him on my knees, taking his scarred hand in mine, “Tell me what this is. I want the whole story, Bash. Not some bullshit fairy tale. I want the truth.”
“All there is, is a bullshit fairy tale, I’m afraid.” He sits, slumping to the floor. His mouth opens and I still find it mesmerizing, even beyond the monster. “I don’t even know where to start. I guess the beginning was when I was twelve. Your sister, Baylor, she was my brother’s betrothed. They were to marry when they turned eighteen. Your father and mine had worked it out. Apparently, your family always assumed she would be queen. Little did they know that of the twin sons, he was the younger, born seven minutes later. My brother, Braden, was not the rightful heir to the throne, I was. Father kept it secret to protect the throne. My brother and I were best of friends; we never cared who was the heir prince. We were always equals to each other.” He looks at me and I start to feel sick. My family did this, I know it in my heart.
He nods, “A maid in the castle came to me and Braden one day. She had seen Baylor in the forest, sobbing. A friend sat with her as she had a fit. The maid got there as she was hugging her legs to her chest, sitting on the forest floor. The maid assumed she had been injured and stopped to help. She finally managed to get it out, that she was devastated she would never be queen if she was forced to marry Braden.”
Sam gives me a look, “You have a sister named Baylor? Like the song?”
I nod, “Shhh, let him finish. He never actually says anything in chronological order.”
Bastion scowls at me, “Anyway, Baylor was furious. When Braden and I confronted her about it, we told her that they would always be at our castle, maybe not ruling the castle. They would always be royalty and privileged, without the burden of ruling. She didn’t see this as a positive thing. She ran from us and avoided my poor heartbroken brother for years, always sucking up to me at public events when I couldn’t be rude to her.”
Bastion sighs, looking at the fire. Sam sits next to me and we listen, entranced by the tone of his voice and the way he speaks. He is suddenly not from here, his accent and manner are so different. “When we were eighteen, they were set to be married. She came to a party at my home and requested, in front of my mother, where I could not turn her down, to paint my portrait for my coronation. That night I turned into the beast for the first time. My skin ripped a thousand different ways. My bones broke. My body shifted into something unnatural. When I woke, I was horribly scarred and exhausted.”
Sam gives me a look, “Is this a prank? Are you two screwing with me?”
I ignore him and shake my head, “She couldn’t have turned you into this.”
He nods, “Couldn’t she? She had been learning the art. Alex found her out for witchcraft and plotting to seduce me the day she cursed us all. Your aunt, your mother’s sister, was cursed with the black blood. Your sister has it too.”
“Had.”
His eyes twinkle, “She is not dead, Erralynn. Baylor lives, quite well in fact.” He looks around the house, “Before I get away from the chronological order, let me finish. My mother found me the next morning, scarred and injured. She was desperate for an answer. Your father, no doubt fearing that Baylor was responsible, volunteered to hide me there while they searched for a solution to my hideousness. I was brought to your parents’ estate. Your sister was excellent at being distraught for me. She was desperate for me to get better, wounded for me, and of course devastated that I would never be able to rule with the hideousness of my scars. Your father, keeping me there as a favor to my family, made my parents love them more. I can only assume she is the queen, my brother the king, and you and I are here.”
I shake my head, “How was she able to put us here? Where is home?”
He gives me a subtle smile, “You mean when? We are not from here, Erralynn.”
Sam puts a hand up, “Whoa. Okay, so this is like dinner theatre practice or something like that, right? Is it like that new-age random art, where you act things out impromptu? Is that makeup?”
I shake my head.
He looks at me, “You don’t think this is true, do you? He needs medical help. In more than one way.”
I open my mouth but close it and nod. I look at Bastion, “How did we get here?”
He sighs, “She cast a spell on the house. Erralynn, this is your house, in some respects. She cast a spell upon it. One minute we were there, and your nurse Heidi was tending to me. My guard Alex was keeping me safe. Heidi’s son was playing in the library with you. Your mother was resting; she was very pregnant. Your father just made it off the property in time. I watched him ride away as a dense fog surrounded the land. When the fog cleared, we were here. No one could get out of the barrier but your mother. She used the mirror but we couldn’t see anything from our lives. No one we knew. She asked to see where we were—we saw Lakeland. A bustling place filled with strange things and crazy people. She carried you and walked away. I don’t know what she did or how she ended up being a Lake, but your real last name is Devereaux.”
“So you assumed I could break the spell on us and send us back home?”
He nods, “I did.”
“And when I kissed you and you changed back, we all sort of thought that was the end of it.”
He nods and Sam looks angry. I sigh, “But clearly, that’s just some side effect. That’s not the cure, ‘cause we are all still here. I need answers from Mary. She knows something. She said something about me pushing my baby sister through the mirror.”
He shakes his head, “I know nothing of this. I know this house has been my prison, apart from the week every year I can leave, and we only know that because the wind told us.”
“Where did you go in the carriage?”
He shakes his head, “We thought we might recognize some of the landscape and ride our way home, but we saw that we are still in Lakeland. The curse is not broken. We came back before the house pulled us back here. It always does.”
I sigh and look back at Sam, “The year I have spent here, passed by in a matter of maybe three to six weeks. We couldn’t leave at all. I saw what he is saying with my own eyes.”
Sam nods, “Look, I think that the scars are a little crazy, the whole missing for a year is a lot crazy, and the fact you have a sad song called Baylor is really crazy. But I think you all need to get away from this nasty old house. It’s a shit show. We need to go. The old lead paint is getting to you. We gotta go. Everyone up before we fall into an Alice-and-Wonderland sleep or some shit.”
My gaze narrows, “You said the equinox—on the equinox week you could leave.”
He nods. I sigh, “It is the equinox. That’s why we have been able to leave. It’s October.”
He looks confused, “But we never had summer yet.”
“Where is Heidi and everyone?”
/>
He nods, “In the study. They’re scared. I told them to stay away from you, in case.”
“Nice.” I point, “There are some things I’m having trouble with.”
He sighs, “Ask away.”
“When you talked to me before, you sounded so normal. Like a regular teenage boy. You ordered pizza and had a cell phone. How do I know this isn’t some crap story to torture the poor Lake girl?”
Sam points, “Good call. You seemed normal. Not like now. Now you’re Franken-freaky.”
Bastion laughs, “We have one thing we never told you about. We never wanted you to be able to tell the year was passing so fast. The enchantment would have scared you, and you might be like your mother. You might be able to walk right out and never come back.”
Something more important than him being a normal boy finds its way into my brain. I shake my head, “My mother tried to come back. She tried to come back for you. I remember coming here with her. She was searching for something. She made me walk around with her. I was freezing and she was sobbing. She kept making me chant and yell for you. She searched for broken pieces of glass and made a mirror with them. It was creepy.”
Sam grabs my arm, “Okay, I’m done. We need to get out of here.” I can see the shock of it all getting to him. He’s there, at the fine line in his mind that says he can absorb no more. He’s done.
I look at Bastion, “I’ll be back.”
His eyes are hopeful but he shrugs, “If you don’t come back, we will just wait here, in limbo. Nothing we haven’t been through before, and it is still the equinox week.”
I hate the look he gives me and the way his eyes are nearly dead. I hate that he doesn’t believe I will be back.
When we get outside, I see Sam relax. He gives me a look, “You need to stay away from him. He needs help. You’re a sweet girl, Lynnie. You believe in all these crazy curses and shit. This is nuts. That was crazy, not what I expected to find up here.”
I sigh, “We need to go see Mary again. I need answers. How did my mom end up with her?”