by A.L. Tyler
“I had nothing to do with it. I heard the cat at the door, and I opened it. I swear, sometimes I just don’t know how he gets out.” Master Daray smiled thinly. His cat rested complacently on his lap; he was getting too big to be a lap cat, but refused to give up the habit. The Master was too proud to pet him, but the cat was too proud to be cuddled, anyway. The feline had its eyes fixed on the girl, whose form rested on a couch; she was unconscious.
Ava paced back and forth, crying uncontrollably. Mrs. Ralston had just returned to the library, carrying several blankets, warm water, and wash clothes. She spread a blanket over Lena, and then sat down on the edge of the couch.
“Let me.” Ava went over to the couch.
Mrs. Ralston glanced over at Howard.
“Let her.” Master Daray nodded to his daughter. He watched Mrs. Ralston as if asking her to defy him. Howard nodded to Ralston, and she rose. Master Daray smiled as she did so. Ava sat down and started washing the nasty gash her daughter had received when falling down the stairs. It spread from her temple back into her hair; Ava hoped it wouldn’t leave a scar.
Howard continued pacing the room, deep in thought. He had been faced with complicated situations before—quite a few of them. At the start of winter, he had been asked to take on the task of guarding his niece in addition to her grandfather. He had made mistakes. The season was drawing to a close, and he had been presented with another very complicated situation. This time, there could be no mistakes.
“Daray, how did this happen?”
“You’re a good man, Howard, despite your family’s shortcomings. I already told you.” The cat had had enough, and jumped to the floor before dashing back up the stairs, tail held high.
“The cat. I see. Who is it? You’ve got someone on the outside, and I want to know who it is. Now!” He stopped in front of the chair that Daray sat in. Even though Howard stood, his seated companion was still the more intimidating of the two.
“I don’t know how you could suspect me of such a thing. It would be against the law.” Daray leaned back and crossed his arms.
“I want to know who you’ve been talking to, and how, or so help me…”
On the couch, Lena was beginning to shift.
“If you’ll excuse me, my granddaughter needs me.” His voice was cold and victorious. He pushed past Howard and walked over to the side of the couch.
Lena twisted uncomfortably and slowly opened her eyes. The library was so much brighter than the darkness she remembered that she thought for a moment she’d gone blind. Then the faces started to come into focus. Her mother, tearful and familiar. Howard, looking as concerned as he had that first night in the sedan. Mrs. Ralston, her lips pursed tighter than ever. And a new face, that she vaguely remembered from somewhere… Sharp, dark eyes and gray-white hair parted on an angle. Even though it was late at night, he was wearing a formal business suit. There was a sinking feeling in her stomach that she didn’t understand. It might have been the bloody rag her mother was holding, but she didn’t think that was it.
“Hello, dear.” He looked down at her. “You don’t know how much I wish we could have met on different terms.”
“You…” Her voice was hoarse. Her mother shushed her as she continued to wash the blood off her face.
“Abilene, is it? I would have named you Eden…”
Howard started pacing again. He was sweating. Lena looked back up at Master Daray, and just watched. At the time, it was all she was capable of.
“You look so much like your mother, and I guess we’ll all have to be grateful for that little blessing.” He knelt down by the side of the couch and started to examine her face. “Filthy, inferior human being. There’s hardly any trace of your father there to remind us of the abhorrent mistake he was…”
A single tear slid down her cheek. Howard lost his temper in a way that Lena never thought possible.
“UPSTAIRS, NOW!”
“I will not be ordered about, not anywhere, and especially not in my own house!” Daray turned to Howard. He hadn’t yelled, exactly; it was more of a whisper. His wrinkled face contorted, and she knew he was still more powerful than Howard, who was easily half his age. Lena was almost sure one of them would not be leaving the room alive.
“Let’s not forget what happens to you without me, Daray. Let’s not forget what happens to them.” He nodded towards the couch. Ava looked pleadingly over her shoulder.
Daray sneered. “Now that she knows, there’s no point in jailing me. I’ll expect to see her on a regular basis.” He turned and walked calmly back up the stairs. Howard was sure he saw him smiling.
He walked back towards Lena, and spoke to her over the back of the couch. She was crying.
“He’s not someone you should trust.” Howard said. “I know how rarely you trust anyone, but you should especially not trust him. He’ll say anything to get you to do what he wants. He’ll do anything. Don’t trust him.” Lena raised a hand to her face and wiped away the tears that had settled in her eyes. There wasn’t any anger in Howard’s face. His knuckles were white where he grabbed onto the back of the couch, and there was nothing but fear in his eyes.
“So you met him? What’d you think?” David smiled at her. It was two weeks later, and while most of her symptoms had cleared up, she still had nose bleeds from time to time. She had stayed in her room for most of the duration of her sickness, her mother at her side almost twenty-four hours a day. Howard had visited frequently, and told her not to worry, that Master Daray would not be allowed to see her again for quite some time.
In response to David’s question, Lena could only shiver. In her mind, “quite some time” was sadly too soon. Spring was arriving very slowly at Waldgrave; Lena had watched the transition through her bedroom window. As David removed a hornet’s nest from under the carport, Lena sat on the new grass nearby.
“I told you.” He sprayed the nest furiously.
“David, was my name originally Eden?” She squinted a little as she tried to watch him. It was nice to finally feel the sun on her skin again.
“How would I know?”
“Um…He never mentioned it to you?”
“No. As far as I know,” David climbed down the ladder, “You’ve always been Lena Collins.”
“Abilene Collins.”
“Whatever.” He grabbed the ladder and glared up the nest. It was only baseball sized, but it just refused to die. As he started walking back down toward the barn, Lena got up to follow him.
“Well, the thing is, I found a birth certificate.” He walked faster than she did, even carrying the ladder, and Lena was forced to half run to keep up.
“Uh huh.”
“And I know it has to be mine, because my parents and my birthday are on it, but it won’t even show me my name!” David stopped. As he turned around to face her again, Lena took a few steps back to avoid being hit by the ladder.
David’s expression was guarded. “And you think that your name must have been changed, and that’s why it’s blank?”
“Unless there’s something you know…”
David sighed and turned back around. He was quiet for a minute. “I think… that’s an excellent explanation.” He started walking back towards the barn.
“So then you think it’s true?”
“I think you should talk to your mother about it. You might want to take the certificate with you when you do.” David nodded back towards the house. Through a window, Lena could clearly see Ava watching over her. She said her thanks and goodbye to David, and walked back up to the house. After retrieving the certificate out of the bathroom drawer, she sought out her mother, who was busy making lunch in the kitchen.
“Mom? Can I ask you some questions?”
“Sure sweetie. You know you can ask me anything.” She smiled and turned around. She had a mustard stain on the front of her dress, but Lena decided not to point it out. Ava was particular about her appearance, and would insist on changing before they continued.
“Why don’t you let Mrs. Ralston do that stuff? I mean, we pay her to cook, right?” Lena asked.
“I just enjoy it, that’s all.” Ava’s smile faded a little. Lena doubted this was the real reason, as she’d never seen Ava make anything other than sandwiches. “Besides, I don’t like her cooking all that much. You came down here to ask me why I cook?”
“Not exactly.” Lena thrust the piece of paper she had clutched in her hand at her mother. “I can’t read the name on it. Why can’t I read the name on it?”
Ava’s expression softened, and Lena could see she was about to fall to pieces. Her whole manner changed and her voice became small, like a child’s. Tears stood in her eyes. “Where did you find this?”
“It was…Mom, what’s wrong? It was in a photo album I found upstairs.”
Ava walked slowly into the dining room and sat down. She held the birth certificate with both hands, as if she were afraid it would break if she dropped it. She just stared at it. Lena went to sit with her, and not too long after Howard appeared at one of the other dining room doors.
“Is everything okay in here?” He walked over toward them, and Ava held the certificate out at him. She got up and walked to a window at the other end of the room. She stared listlessly out across the yard, toward a small clump of trees further out on the property, as Howard started to talk.
“You’re…sure? You don’t want to do this yourself, Ava?”
Ava nodded.
“Uncle Howard, what’s wrong?” Lena looked frantically from her mother to her uncle. “If I’d known it was such a big deal, I wouldn’t have…”
“What do you know about this?” His voice was more gentle than accusing. Lena slowly took the birth certificate back.
“It says my parents’ names, and my birthday…but everything else is blank. Was my name changed, or something?”
“Lena, this is…this is not your birth certificate.”
“But it has my birthday—the right year, and everything!”
Howard looked uneasily back over towards Ava, who still stared firmly out the window. “This belonged to someone else, who lived here a long time ago.”
Something was starting to come together in Lena’s mind. The reason her mother was so anxious about her safety.
“Who used to live here?”
Howard took another deep breath and set the birth certificate on the table. “Your brother. You had a brother.”
She’d had a brother. From the window, Ava let out a quieted sob.
“He came to live here a long time ago, after your parents split up. Your father took you, and your mother took Thomas.”
Thomas…
“He died. When he was five, and because he was with your mother, I guess your dad just didn’t…didn’t want…” Howard’s voice broke, and he looked purposely away from the piece of paper in his hands, trying to collect himself.
“He never told me the truth about anything, did he?” Lena’s eyes were tearing up, but she wasn’t sure it was out of sadness. It was shocking. Somehow, she’d made peace with the fact that her dad hadn’t wanted her to know her mother. But to hide a sibling? His own child? Her brother, the one person in the world that would have understood her predicament, the friend that she had so desperately wanted, so many times, when she’d never stayed long enough as a child to form any real friendships. Everyone that was her friend was dead, leaving her with her psychotic mother, the deceptive Howard, and the horrible man in the attic. She was living in a personal hell, and part of her wanted it to just be over. She wanted to be with the family she belonged with…the dead family. She got up from the table, and started to walk away; Howard reached out and touched her arm. She shook him off and started into a run.
“Lena!” Ava screamed. “Stop!”
Out of the dining room, out of the house, out of the orderly green yard, and farther. She ran until her lungs burned, and finally collapsed under a large cottonwood tree. She sat with her back to the tree, and stared in a direction that was anywhere but towards Waldgrave. She looked at the mountains, and the sun hovering just above them.
Her brother, father, grandmother…everyone was dead. Everyone dies, after all. Why did she care? She didn’t know. It was all pointless anyway, wasn’t it? So what if her parents had never loved one another—or if she’d never gotten the chance to meet her own brother? So what if her grandfather was…the way he was? Her father wasn’t the person he had claimed to be—by far. But the more she tried to justify it to herself, the harder it was to understand. She had cried a lot lately, and now her head just hurt. Her whole life and being hurt.
Everything was so perfect before…
“It’s not that bad.” Lena twisted around. She was surprised to see Howard. “I mean, it could really be a lot worse. Trust me.”
Lena stared at him as he sat down by her.
“What?” Howard looked concerned.
“It’s just…I think this is the first time I’ve ever really seen you outside.”
Howard laughed a little, and Lena smiled.
“I guess I need to get out more.”
They sat silently. Lena tried to get a grip on what she had just learned; she had a brother. Part of her wanted to know what she could about him, because they’d never had the chance to get to know one another. Maybe she would be able to find a picture in one of her albums now that she knew; she wondered if they looked anything alike. Her lungs were still burning, and her eyes still stung. Lena was happy that Howard was looking out toward the mountains and not at her; she wondered if he’d read her mind to figure out she didn’t like when people watched her being upset.
“How did he die?” Lena looked over at Howard, who picked a tall piece of grass from the ground and started to fidget with it. He stayed focused on it while he spoke.
“He went out to walk his dog, and we don’t know what happened.” Howard’s voice cracked; Lena had always found this to be a little disturbing. She’d never seen her father cry, and seeing adults cry in general made her worry. “He liked to walk his dog, and he went out every night an hour before dinner. That time he just never came back. He was five.”
“He never came home? Isn’t it possible he’s still…out there, somewhere?” Lena asked hopefully.
“No…We found a body. Bodies. Both him and the dog. We started looking when he didn’t turn up that night, and we found them early the next morning. He was always so happy to go out with that dog, it’s hard to believe that someone could…at least they were together. It’s good that he wasn’t alone.”
“You let a five-year-old go wandering off by himself?”
Howard allowed himself a pause. “I wasn’t living here then. He’s one of the reasons why I’m here now. But I did know him—I was his uncle, after all. Rosaleen and I were visiting when it happened, though. But Waldgrave wasn’t always the way it is now. It used to be a much safer place, before it happened.”
“How did he die?”
“I’m not going to tell you that, because frankly I don’t like to think about it. It’s not something I want you to think about. He was murdered.”
That certainly got her attention. In the back of her mind, a sleeping memory stirred; a sort of déja vu feeling crept under her skin. Lena almost felt bad for having such a morbid curiosity, but she had never actually known her brother. If he had been anything like her, she was sure he would understand.
“Who killed him?”
Howard took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled it. “We don’t know.” He looked out at the setting sun. It was halfway behind the mountains. Lena let it go. It was clearly upsetting to Howard. Her brother’s killer was still loose somewhere. But then Howard continued.
“Lena, I know you know I’ve lied to you. I’ve had to, and you deserve to know why. I’m here because your brother’s death was…political in nature. We’re not a united front, people like us…”
“The Silenti?”
“Yes. Not everyone thinks like your grandfather, thank G
od, but our situation is so…extremely divided…that you’re in danger. Just for being born. No one deserves the life you have in front of you. No one.” Howard looked over at Lena for the first time since he’d sat down. Seeing that he had a captive and attentive audience, he thought it would be best to get it all out at once. “In the past, the Silenti were led by a monarchy, but not too far back they started to lose power as the world advanced. To make a long and bloody story short, those who followed the Darays wanted complete segregation from humans to keep the Silenti abilities and blood ‘pure,’ while the opposing party wanted more integration.
“Well, one night someone from the opposing party set fire to the Daray house while they slept, hoping to end the issue by killing all members of the royal family. Your grandfather and your mother, who was only a little girl, were the only ones who got out alive. The Daray supporters retaliated with a series of murders aimed at integrated Silenti families, and it’s escalated from there ever since. The monarchy has always been led by a male figurehead, and when Thomas was brought to Waldgrave, fears ran high that the monarchy would reestablish itself. And, well…” Howard settled his head into his hands. Lena could see he was trying not to cry. How could someone kill a little kid? “Lena, you need to understand that to some people in our little world, you present such a threat yourself. Please forgive me, I’ve only been allowed to tell you what the Council—part of our governing system—has told me I’m allowed to. If I’d have broken that rule, they would have removed me and stuck you with someone else. I honestly don’t know who I can trust anymore, and since your grandmother’s death, you’re the only family I have left.” He buried his eyes into his palms. For several long minutes they sat there, two people being alone together.
“You know, you really shouldn’t be so hard on your father.” Howard kept his head in his hands.
“He lied to me. You hardly know me, but you know I don’t like liars.” Her voice was barely a whisper, but she was surprised at the anger and sadness it held. She felt bad for Howard because she knew what it was like to feel alone, but at the same time it wasn’t fair that this had been dumped on her all at once—and her father had to know it was going to happen eventually.
“He had his reasons.”
“Yeah? Like what?”
“Have you been paying attention to anything over the last few months? Can you really blame him for trying to keep you out of all of this?” Howard wiped his eyes and stood up. “We need to get back before it’s dark.”
Howard reached out to her. Lena took his hand and he pulled her up. “I guess.”
“He was a good man, Lena. He loved you more than you can ever know.”
“I guess.”
“You’re as stubborn as he was.”
Lena looked over at Howard. He hadn’t meant it as a compliment, but she took it as one.
“He was stubborn as a mule when he was your age.” Howard said with a reminiscent smile. “Willful, and adventurous, and selfless. He did it all for you, and you shouldn’t remember him badly for it.”
“Yeah?”
They walked slowly back towards Waldgrave, neither speaking, as if allowing for a moment of silence after everything that had just been said. Lena would never be able to think about her life, or her future, the same way again.
“I remember one time he ran off to Australia because one of his friends needed help—his wife had recently passed on, and he had a small child. Aaron was always a giver. He never thought of himself…gave his life savings to that little boy’s college fund.” Howard laughed a little. “Our mom almost killed him. Dad just thought it was really funny.”
“Why?”
“Well, he was just under sixteen at the time.” They both laughed.
“How did a fifteen-year-old get all the way to Australia?”
Howard related the whole ridiculous tale, which involved a series of fake identities and a lot of bribery, as they walked back to the house, and it was only later that night that Lena wondered if it was all really true. Knowing her father, it could have been.
The next morning, breakfast was a breath of fresh air. Howard made an announcement that brightened Lena’s outlook more than anything up to this point had.
“Lena, I’m sorry I haven’t told you before, it wasn’t supposed to be until September.” He glanced over at Ava, whose eyes were still somewhat puffy from the day before. “There’s going to be a sort of get together here next week.”
“A get together?” Lena took a bite of toast.
“It’s a tradition. A sort of planning holiday; I guess we’ll probably have the one in September too, but the important thing is that starting next Monday, a lot of people are going to be visiting.”
“Okay. One—will I have to give up my room, and two—how long are they staying?”
“No, and one or two months, maybe. Some longer than others.”
“Months?!” Lena exclaimed; it wasn’t that she was opposed to the idea, but the length of the stay seemed unusually long.
“Calm down.” Howard smiled at her enthusiasm. “You’ve been out of the world for a while now, and I think you’ll enjoy the company. It’s a sort of party, really. We get together, discuss issues, and try to enjoy ourselves. It’s a time when we don’t have to censor ourselves for fear of humans overhearing.”
“So… Everyone there is going to be a Silenti?”
Ava smiled at her daughter. “See? I told you you’d figure that word out for yourself…”
“Oh…” Lena smiled cautiously at her mother, “Of course. Mom, you were so right! Thanks.”
Ava smiled.
“In answer to your question, mostly. They’re all Silenti, except for some of the integrated families. Your dad always came to them, even though he was human. But mostly they’ll be Silenti…the family Representatives need to figure out what to do about your…situation.”
Lena smiled. She wasn’t too sure how great partying with Howard’s business buddies would be, but the event did mean she’d have more people to talk to. More people who would be able to tell her about who she was.
“Oh—and on a side note, Mrs. Ralston is going to start tutoring you.”
“What?” Lena shot a look at her mother, who was giving Howard a look as distasteful as her own.
“Your dad home schooled you?” Howard asked.
“Yes…” Lena wasn’t sure if the term ‘home schooled’ exactly fit, as they’d never really had a location known as ‘home.’ And there had never actually been any ‘schooling.’ Lena had an amazing aptitude for reading and writing, and she’d seen a fair bit of world history in person, but she had only acquired basic math skills because her father had never liked the subject.
“And you’ve had quite a break. It’s time to start back up again. Aside from the usual subjects, you’re going to need to learn some things that normal schools don’t teach.” Howard nodded at her. It was funny how he had a way of putting a positive spin on things lately.
“I’ll teach her. I don’t want her going near my daughter.” Ava was still giving Howard a look that somewhat resembled a glare. She was attempting to smile.
“Ava, you know you won’t.”
To Lena’s surprise, she actually heard a mocking tone in his voice. Howard was smiling like Ava’s suggestion was a joke. Ava looked indignant.
“Mom…” Lena gave her a look that agreed with Howard’s statement.
Ava stood and stalked out of the dining room. Howard sighed, shaking his head as he looked after her.
Lena raised an eyebrow in agreement. “Why does she hate Mrs. Ralston so much?”
Howard looked Lena in the eye; both of them were grateful to be beyond keeping secrets. “It’s…ugly. Rosaleen was born to human parents, and your grandfather invested a lot of time when she was little teaching your mother not to trust people identified as ‘integrated.’”
They fell silent for a moment. It was ugly—it was bigotry. The morning had been going so we
ll before that little piece of information. For the first time in a long time, though, Lena felt like being an optimist.
“So. A party, huh?”
Howard and Lena continued to eat, as if Ava’s outburst had never happened.
“Yeah. I’m not trying to say you need it, but people generally try to make a big deal out of these meetings.” Howard smiled. “You’re mother’s clothes are fancy enough, and they certainly suit you well. You can have money for makeup, if you like.”
Lena nervously smiled back, trying not to give anything away. “Yeah—makeup. I think I might already have some.”
After breakfast, and Howard’s promise that he would find Ava and be sure she was okay, Lena sought out David. He seemed to be taking the day off, and was sitting in the shade on the opposite side of the barn from the house. When she turned the corner and found him, she was unpleasantly surprised by a visitor.
“What is that doing here?!”
The cat, who had been sitting on the ground in front of David, darted off around the other side of the barn. The headache and introductions the cat had provided her not too long before were fresh in her mind.
“He doesn’t mean any harm.” David stood up and dusted himself off.
“That cat—“
“He had orders. He brings me messages.” He grinned at her confused look. “What’s on your mind?”
“So, this party-gathering thing that’s about to happen.” Lena crossed her arms. “How did you know?”
David continued to smirk as he walked around to the barn entrance and motioned for her to follow. Once inside, Lena noticed things had changed a little since last time.
“Hey! I can see your table now!” Lena said excitedly.
“No, actually that’s new. It used to be on the fifth floor, but Howard needed a place to store it.”
Lena looked disappointed. However, it did give them a better place to sit when they talked. Lena pulled out one of the chairs and sat down.
“He said he’d be meeting you soon.” David winked at her. “I knew if you two met, there would have to be an emergency meeting to figure things out. Those idiots in the integration party thought he’d infect you with his ideals if you were allowed in the same room. So, I figured you’d want makeup for the gathering when we went shopping.”
“I’m not going to wear it.” She crossed her arms.
“Not the first day. But I bet you will once you see the competition.”
“The what?” Lena smiled.
“Okay.” David seemed exuberant that she didn’t know. He leaned onto the table, as though he were going to tell here a secret. “Howard told you what these meetings are for, right?”
“Business.”
“Officially, yes—but a lot of people like to use them for other things.” He watched her carefully, and was disappointed that she hadn’t picked up on his allusion. “It’s for the families. Families send their representatives. Usually, it’s the male head of the family who votes for the family, the wife, some household servants, and the children.”
“Children?”
“Young adults.” David clarified.
“I’m not following you…”
“Unmarried young adults.”
Lena laughed. “You’re kidding!”
David smiled broadly. “Look. Rich people like to keep the blood rich. It’s a way to get Silenti children to continue marrying with others of their kind, and keep the humans out of the family. Inter-human marriage is greatly discouraged, because…” He gave her a look. Because inter-human marriages produced situations like hers.
“That’s crazy. I’m still not wearing it.” She leaned back. No one was going to put her in any manner of arranged marriage. Her father had taught her to respect many world cultures, but the one thing he could not tolerate was the subjugation of women through arranged marriage, however indirect the process was. She was beginning to think that maybe his outright disgust at the practice had really been meant for her to see, in case of the situation she was now facing.
David smiled at her. “We’ll see.”
They stared at each other.
“Shouldn’t you be scrubbing bird poop off the windows, or something?” Lena mocked.
“Howard gave me the day off. Apparently he thinks we all need a few extra breaks since your middle of the night episode.”
“Very funny. I’m going back up to my room, where I’m going to read a book, and then fall asleep in my silk sheets on my king size bed.” She raised her eyebrows defiantly as she walked toward the door. Just as she reached it, David grabbed her arm.
“Yes?”
“About the meeting…” He looked briefly down at the floor. “You’ll save me a few dances, right?”
Lena just stared at him. She hadn’t known there would be dancing. She didn’t know how to dance—not the way teenagers do.
“Sure you will.” David pushed her out the door and then closed it. Puzzled, Lena walked back up to the house.
*****