Strangers and Lies

by P. S. Power

  There had been people like that back home too, of course. Apocalypse cults and fringe people that sat behind keyboards hoping for the end of the world each day, so that they wouldn't have to go into work on Monday or pay taxes. Gwen had given that a try for a while herself, but in the end she just hadn't had what it took to wish everyone else dead. Even if her life had sucked a lot harder than most people's. Maybe even because of that. She'd had to struggle to do anything in life, so everything seemed a bit like a blessing. Well, the good things anyway. The fact that she could keep a roof over her head and had television to keep herself distracted was good. That she'd constantly felt lonely... Well, that was just another thing to face each day, wasn't it? It hadn't been a good life, but it had been hers, what she'd made of things for herself.

  "Until Katherine took even the little I had from me. I'm all for taking what she had and not giving it back now. I know that sounds mean, and is probably wrong..." But what else could she do? There was no way to get back home now, was there? Not at all.

  Bethany Westmorland did something that she'd never done before and simply left the room, the little shed's door being left open, but she was clearly stalking away, lack of slamming or not. Gwen felt almost stuck in place, not certain if her words had been too offensive, or embarrassing or something, for this place. After a few minutes Beth came back in, carrying two silver Teletransport spheres.

  "For Park Street. I don't know how that's going to go at all, once you tell the Vernors your plan, but know that I support you fully. I think the King does as well. No matter what happens, you won't be alone. You didn't do anything wrong, and I think it's fully reasonable for you to not have to give your life up to that... murderer." There was a stiffness to her shoulders, that spoke of expecting a fight.

  From the Vernors no doubt. They were good people, but they loved their daughter too and, given that Katherine was right there in her head, it probably meant they'd have to fight to get her back. Since Gwen was planning on stopping that from happening, the whole thing might not be all that pleasant. Still, Bethany was right in her idea, doing it now, when they'd just confirmed things, would be easier than waiting. It occurred to her that they could also just not be told about it all, but that was just her trying to get out of it. The fact was, no matter what else had happened, their little girl was alive.

  They deserved to know that was the case, no matter how much it hurt Gwen in the end.

  She hurt a bit as they walked outside, and her mouth tasted foul and a bit gummy, since she didn't have toothbrush with her. Hopefully she'd get to clean up before the big confrontation with the Vernors. Her face felt swollen in places and it was hard to breathe, even if the damage wasn't that severe. Enough blows would do that to you after all. Cutting did it too. She'd had enough surgeries over the years, in her other body, to know how that went. Minor things added up over time.

  They both hit the buttons on their spheres, with Gwen going first, then quickly walking forward, since Beth was going to be coming into the exact same spot. It was interesting to watch, because there was no other indication that anything had happened, except for the woman suddenly being in a new place. She was dressed as a Westmorland and Gwen pretty much was, even though she smelled a bit. Not too bad yet, just less than fresh. It had only been a day since her last shower, but the activity level had been high enough to make her sweat a bit. Protracted beatings did that to most people.

  At the door they were met by Charles, who looked as dapper and conservative as always. Trim too. Kind of hot, Gwen realized, even if he was gay. She waved at him, which caused his face to fall.

  "Miss Gwen... What's happened?" He waved back, but his indicated that she needed to explain the injuries. There was no good way to shorthand the whole thing, so Gwen nearly paused then just decided to leap in.

  "I had to order myself beaten. I'll explain the rest later. I was pretty much mesmerized into a fantasy world and had to make certain nothing from that was left. No secret orders or anything." It was the truth after all, and oddly, the dapper man just nodded.

  "I do trust all is well? Do you require anything in particular? Medications or a healing generator?"

  She nearly said no, but the Vernors were rich enough that they had three of them just for household use. The devices were still a puzzle to her, but they did seem to speed damage repair a lot.

  "That might be a good idea, thanks Charles. If it could be placed in my bedroom? I think we can stay the night." She wasn't sure that would be happening, but giving that part away too soon wouldn't help her at all, would it? She also didn't know if the camp out thing started the next day or not. It turned out that they actually had five days to get in place for that. People did things slowly in this new place, but they were pretty good when it came to planning things out. It was kind of a shame, since if the Vernors didn't want her to stay, camping would have given her a place to live for a bit while she figured out where to go.

  Then, she could do that anyway. If worse came to worse she was pretty good at charging crystals, and had heard she might be able to make a good living doing that. She tried to keep that in mind as they walked in. She didn't know how to ask for the Vernors to be brought to her, or if she should just go to her room and change first. It was a point she didn't have to bother with at all, since Charles had them both rousted to see to her before she even was all the way into the front room with Beth.

  He did it by yelling, which was so different that everyone in the mansion that could hear him came running, a few of the servants being armed with whatever they could pick up.

  "We need medicines and a healing generator, now. Something to eat as well, I think. Juice." Charles was a great believer in the power of juices, Gwen recalled from her early physical training with the man. "The rest of you clear out for now, but stand ready. We don't know if an attack is coming. I want guard positions inside the house and out."

  It was an odd thing to say and most of the staff just wandered off, but a few nodded and left through the front door. There was a real military look to the ones that did that.

  Robert Vernor, reached out as if to touch her face, but didn't. He was pretty clearly troubled, and Ethyl seemed ready to cry, which wasn't a good start to the day's events.

  Instead of waiting or hedging, Gwen decided to just jump right in.

  "Well, we found Katherine, and she's alive."

  Both the older people, who were far from old, gave her a funny look, even as Beth nodded.

  Then Gwen finished it.

  "The bad part is that she tried to have me killed."

  Chapter ten

  Gwen really figured it was going to be a hard sell. At first it seemed to be the case too, with Mrs. Vernor wringing her hands and shaking her head ever so slightly, her husband looking stern and unfriendly, his face set like the men here did when they got scared.

  That was normal enough, since her entire life had been like that back home. She'd be hit, or beaten even, just for being different, and everyone would automatically assume that she was lying about it, no matter how clear the evidence was. She'd even been accused by the police of hurting herself for attention, more than once, even as she sat in the hospital with broken bones and more damage than anyone could have managed to do to themselves. For the first time with these two people, who had been generous and kind to her the whole time, a small bit of anger started to rise over the issue.

  It wasn't their fault, she knew that, but it was time for her to stand on her own, if people weren't going to do it for her. No one stood by you when things got tough, did they? It was what she was thinking as Bethany moved in alongside of her, looking a bit stern herself. The Westmorland nodded however, and didn't back down from the statement at all.

  "It's true, as unlikely as it sounds. Gwen was kidnapped, using mesmerism, as we feared might happen, since she lacks proper training to resist it. That only lasted about half an hour, but when she was freed and recovered herself, she ordered herself questioned closely. During that...
The inquisitors found Katherine, hiding inside of her mind." It was rather nicely done, not mentioning that Katherine was still in her own head directly at all.

  That was so clear that Mrs. Vernor looked amazed for a moment and held her hands out.

  "Katherine?" There was a bit of hope in the tone, so Gwen nodded, looking a little sour.

  She couldn't be loved for her, could she? Not in this case. Not with these people.

  "She's in here. My personality seems too strong for her, so she's in the background most of the time. The thing is... She admitted that she didn't trade bodies with me, that she and Debussey, and the others, had been trying to steal Erin's daughter from another world on purpose, knowing that my body would die when I came here. Katherine didn't realize that they were going to sacrifice her, I don't think. She's an odd combination of trusting and evil, that girl." Gwen realized that it was rude to claim the girl as evil to her parents, but didn't pull back from it as their eyes went wide. You didn't get to kill her and then walk away unlabeled. "It was her idea, Katherine's I mean. She was the one that came up with the idea of stealing information from other minds in different worlds, so that no one would be blamed for murder here. I think that was the reason they used her to get me."

  No one said anything for a long time, but Beth showed support, holding her hand suddenly, a warm bit of contact that left Gwen feeling highly uneasy. Unsure of anything. People didn't want to touch her after all. They only wanted to do things like that with Katherine, who was pretty and perfect. Only, she wasn't. Gwen's body might have been warped before, but she never once dreamed of stealing someone's life. Killing them for hurting her, or a few times even just calling her names, but she never acted on it. That kind of thing...

  Well, she couldn't expect the silent couple in front of her to realize any of that.

  There was no speaking for a long time, but finally Ethyl started crying. Silent tears that left tracks in her makeup, a pale mixture of foundation and black eye liner, which quickly made her look like a raccoon after she wiped at it with a handkerchief. The room itself was silent. It was nearly eerie, a sense of timelessness that started to become tension after a while.

  It would have been easier if the Vernors would just explode in anger. Then Gwen would know how to respond, lashing out, calling names or just leaving the situation. She readied herself for it, but they just stood, almost as if they were in shock.

  Finally Robert patted his wife's shoulder and shook his head slowly.

  "I... Don't know what to do Gwen. What are we supposed to... How do we fix this? We can't..." Whatever it was he thought they couldn't do remained a secret, for a bit, as Ethyl cried harder, finally sobbing out an answer, one that everyone else in the room got, but that Gwen felt baffled by.

  The older woman moved in and hugged her. After a second she realized, no matter how fucked up the situation seemed that was really the lady's intent. To hold her. Gwen.

  "We're so sorry dear. At every turn this has just gotten worse for you. We promised to protect you if we could, but we didn't know... We'll do anything you want. That... woman, and our daughter... They harmed you more than can be imagined. I... Katherine is still alive?"

  That at least let Beth explain it all, since she'd read the report on the matter it seemed.

  "Yes, she's still in there, but as Gwen said, her mind is dominant. She's simply a more mentally robust individual. A fighter on an innate level." There was a moment of reflection, as if the attractive blonde was going to hold her tongue on something, but she patted Gwen on the back instead, a bit of dampness having formed from the stress. "This morning, just minutes ago, she suggested that she be locked up, or perhaps put to death, so that Katherine wouldn't be used by our enemies as a spy or saboteur. Can you imagine that? Ferdinand personally ordered her watched, and even then only reluctantly, being that she's the wronged party here, but Gwen woke up this morning ready to die, to protect us all." There was a small sad smile then, as she looked at Robert Vernor directly. They locked eyes grimly for a long time before the Westmorland woman kept going. "I walked into that little shed, where she'd been beaten, tortured the day before at her own behest, expecting to be taken to task for us not trusting her, and she said that. That she expected to die, and stood ready for it. I don't think that any of us would easily defeat a mind like that, were things different."

  That was a little overdone, since all she'd said was that it made sense to her. It still kind of did, but if she could keep the body and not die, she was willing to work with that one too. The Vernors simply seemed shocked, but after a few moments she was being held again, by both of them. Mr. Vernor seemed stiff and awkward about it, but it was nice of him to try.

  He sounded very far away then, his voice slightly stern.

  "No one will hurt you Gwen. Not if I can stop them. Even the King ordered you to be merely watched... Which was probably hard for him, as Miss Westmorland here said. I..." He looked away, but didn't let go of her at all. "I feel ashamed, but I'm glad that Katherine isn't dead, or lost in another world, but clearly she's forfeited her life anyway. She wasn't a good girl, not in the last years, but..."

  Gwen got that idea, she thought. These were good people and they loved their child, like parents were supposed to. It was just that their kid was kind of... wrong. How could they make the two ideas meet? It didn't seem possible, and more than that, amazingly, no matter how much it hurt, they apparently were choosing to side with her. Gwen. Who wasn't their daughter at all.

  There was hand holding and crying for a long time, but, as both Vernors mentioned several times, Katherine still being alive didn't change anything for them, except that they owed even more to Gwen than they'd thought. Mr. Vernor finally stood, then hugged her again.

  "I'll be getting in touch with Grimes now. I'll have everything signed over to you by the morning. Everything we own. It... I don't know what to do after that. Perhaps we should be the ones assigned to prison? I'll... contact the King directly and ask. Not something I'd normally be allowed for such a thing, but I have the contact code, so I should use it. Ethyl, we should pack..." He glanced at Gwen grimly then straightened himself. "If we're to be allowed, I mean?"

  The funny thing there was that he not only seemed serious, but that Mrs. Vernor didn't even bat an eyelash at the idea, even if it meant being totally dispossessed.

  Gwen shook her head no, meaning it.

  "This doesn't change anything like that. You will not sign everything over to me and you won't be moving anywhere. I still need you, far more than money. I know that it will be harder for you, knowing all this, I just didn't want you two to be taken by surprise, you know, if Katherine comes back. If she does though, she has to go to prison." It was a bit of threat put out there for the other girl's benefit, if she was able to hear and see things the way Gwen had when she'd been in charge of the body. "It seems fair at least. Her best bet is to sit back quietly and not interfere with my life now. You deserve to know that she isn't dead however."

  There was a slightly shocked look on Robert's face, but Gwen didn't understand why that was, until he started to tear up and explained.

  "You need us?"

  It was simple enough to understand after that.

  "Um, yeah. You two are the closest things I've ever had to real family. Well, you and Bethany. That's worth a lot more to me than things ever could be."

  That led to a fairly long conversation, which took them over and over the fact that Katherine was alive, inside her and not going to be let out, if Gwen could help it. She'd have to be watched, just in case, but the Westmorlands were planning to take care of that part for them. Beth being reassigned to work from wherever Gwen was. It would make things a little harder, except for the fact that they could just go anyplace they needed for the investigation really. The hard part there being that she honestly wouldn't be allowed to know most of what was going on.

  "Well, I've been meaning to catch up on my studies anyway. So Ethyl, are you coming to the girls' camp
out?" After all the woman was even more in charge of the thing than Gwen was. It had sort of been her idea, but no one had left her with any power after it had come out that Katherine Vernor had stolen her body. She was a little shaky as to if killing her and putting her in this body along with her was better or worse than that however.

  To her it certainly felt worse, since it meant that somewhere, in her original world, her house was being stunk up by her rotting corpse. Liquefied into her bed by now no doubt, dried and turned into a husk. It might be years before anyone found her, since no one really checked on her all that often. It would probably look like she'd died in her sleep. That or overdosed, but no one would probably bother to check that too hard.

  She was allowed to go and get that shower, Bethany trailing along with her, to keep watch it seemed. At least she didn't insist on going into the shower with her, which would have been embarrassing, since she was still really shy about people seeing her nude. It wasn't something that people did there casually anyway, at least in the Western Kingdom.

  When she finally got out, she realized that she didn't have anything to do for days, other than try to figure out what was real and what had happened in her own make believe fantasy realm.

  Turning to her friend, who was sitting at the writing desk in Gwen's room, she made a face.

  "You know, it's hardly fair. I was able to fly and had cool energy blasts in that dream world and now I'm back to square one. I know that it wasn't real, but it felt that way. Really it still feels like it. Have you ever had a dream like that?"

  There was a small smile, a demure and friendly thing, rather than one that seemed concerned with her delusions.

  "Well, if you could do it there, then odds are you have the basic ability in some form. Magic is often dictated by what we believe we can do. You flew there, so you might well be able to reawaken that now. Why not try it again? If you truly feel that you remember how."

  The idea was a little strange, but they had time before dinner, so Gwen shrugged. It was kind of fun after all, wasn't it? Flying around. They headed down to the main ball room, which was a large and open space, currently empty, not being decorated for anything in particular. The Vernors weren't that well regarded socially lately, since the whole thing about what Katherine had done came out. Or, well, part of it had at least.