“The second was of a mob of faceless people chasing a girl through the forest, catching her and then hanging her. She looked just like me, but after thinking about it more, I’m not so sure that she wasn’t just an ancestor that looked like me.
“And this last one, I fell into a grave landing onto its occupant, which I think was the woman who was hung.”
“These visions—they’re related then?”
“Yes. I think so and they are all centered on the mirror.”
“The mirror? What mirror?”
“The mirror I asked you to take down and then you put back up just to spite me?”
“I have no idea what you are talking about. I took the mirror down and put it in the attic. I didn’t put it back up.”
“Well, it’s back on the wall. I saw it just before I left last night.”
“I didn’t put it back up. Why would I do that?”
“I don’t know; why would you? Maybe you were angry?”
“I thought you knew me better than that.”
“You’re not exactly easy to get to know.”
“I guess, but angry or not, I wouldn’t do something like that.”
“Who then?”
“I don’t know, but I too have been finding things misplaced or moved. I just didn’t think much of it. I’m sorry you think I could do something like that. I’ll go take the mirror down right now and put it away,” Jeremy said as he stood up and left the room.
Ella wanted to say something but she didn’t know what. Instead, she laid back and pulled the sheet over her face in frustration.
*****
When Ella came down to get some coffee, she found Jeremy in the hall covering the mirror he had just taken off the wall with a sheet. Their eyes met for a moment and she could see the sadness he felt at her accusation, but she wasn’t sure what to say just yet. She was still processing the vision and wondering how the mirror got on the wall if Jeremy hadn’t put it there.
She continued her search for Boo in another area of the forest well past the graveyard and very near the other end of Cauldron Lake. She found nothing quite as interesting there as she did the previous day, but after several hours she did come upon some ruins. A stone foundation ran the perimeter of what must have been a small home. Remnants of a hearth and partial chimney remained there too. The chimney had long since collapsed in on itself, but the hearth was very much intact.
Ella thought it must have been a beautiful piece of masonry at one time. The mouth of the fireplace was arched and large enough to easily sit inside, if you had the inclination. The keystone of the arch had a small, indentation in the middle with a decorative border of what may have been lilies around the outer edge, but she wasn’t sure with the age and deterioration of the stone.
She sat on the hearth for a long time enjoying the serenity of this place and wishing she had found Boo. The water could be seen from where she sat. Ella supposed more of the lake was probably visible when the long-gone occupants resided here but the forest, over time, had taken back what had been lost to it when the small house had been built. The ruins could easily be overlooked by someone walking by. Even what was left of the chimney was covered in ivy, vines, and brush, camouflaging it from the outside world.
She wondered if this might be the dwelling of the woman in the mirror—Willow, she said quietly, remembering the scrawling on the marker. A breeze rustled through the branches and leaves of the canopy above as if answering back and acknowledging her presence.
*****
Jeremy was on his way back to the house after yet another trip to the hardware store. Making the final sweeping curve just before the house came into view, he noticed a car parked near the house—a big, black monster truck. Matt was here. Jeremy surmised that he must be in the house with Ella since he was nowhere to be seen outside. Pulling up near the truck to park his own truck, he noticed something in the bed of the black truck. It was barely peeking above the sides of the bed and a shorter person might not have noticed it at all. It looked to be a large, tattered cardboard box.
The fact he didn’t trust Matt made the mysterious box even more suspicious. Jeremy needed to know what was in it. He didn’t know why, and nothing about the idea was smart or logical. He just knew he needed to know.
Closing his door as quietly as possible, he crept over to the truck and stood on one of the rims of the shiny wheels to get a better look at the contents of the bed. He stretched to reach over to the box to pull it closer to him.
There were holes randomly punched into the box with what Jeremy could only guess was a screwdriver. It had been taped up at one time but no longer was sealed. There was nothing in the box when Jeremy opened it, but it had a foul odor. The inside of the box was raked with irregular vertical lines that looked like they had been made with tiny razors. What could Matt have had in the box, Jeremy wondered, and why?
Jeremy thought he heard voices in the woods and quickly closed the box and jumped down from the wheel of the truck. He grabbed some items in a bag from his truck and made his way to the shed and out of sight.
*****
Ella made her way back towards the house with the untouched smelly tuna can. It had become quite ripe after a day of walking around in search of Boo.
A branch snapped somewhere in the densely wooded forest and Ella stopped for a moment and listened. Nothing. Must have been an animal. She trekked on, passing a large birch tree trunk that she recognized from earlier, ensuring her that she was on the right path and headed the right direction when she heard another twig snap, much closer this time.
She thought of Willow being chased through the forest only to be hung from one of these trees and a chill ran up her spine and made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.
“Who’s out there? Boo? Jeremy? Is that you?” she called out over her shoulder. Nothing again. However, she did smell something—cigarettes. She turned to continue down the path and Mr. Morton stood in her way.
Ella squealed slightly at the sight of him before she caught her breath. “Geez, you scared me, Mr. Morton.”
He smiled ghoulishly. “Did I?”
“What do you want?”
“What I’ve always wanted.”
“I told you I’m not selling Grey Manor to you—not now, not ever.”
“Well, you can’t blame a gent for trying. I’m only looking out for your best interest.”
“You are only looking out for YOUR best interest, not mine. Now please quit sneaking around and leave me alone.”
He took a long drag off his cigarette, and then dropped it on the ground without extinguishing it.
“What are you doing? Are you insane? You could burn down the whole forest.”
“That would be a shame,” he said looking around at the forest and its canopy. “Or would it?” he laughed deviously and then disappeared into the woods. Ella stomped on the cigarette, making sure it was completely out before continuing back to the house.
Chapter 13
The house came into view as she rounded a bend in the path; she could see a monster black truck parked in front, dwarfing Jeremy’s old pickup that was parked nearby.
She climbed the front steps to the porch and opened the door to find Matt in the house setting something down on the settee.
“Hey! What are you doing here?” she asked as she took off her coat and set down the tuna can.
A weak little meow was heard. Ella ran to the couch, finding a very dirty and dreadfully skinny Boo looking up at her pitifully. “Oh my God, Boo! I’ve been so worried.” She kissed the kitten. Boo purred and licked at her fingers where the smell of the stinky tuna juice had touched. “Oh, sweetie, you must be hungry.”
She quickly made her way to the kitchen with Matt and opened a fresh can of kitty food. Boo gulped such huge bites of food down that she gagged several times.
“Slow down, sweetie…” she said as she set down some water. “Where ever did you find her?”
“I knew you were pretty up
set about losing her, so I thought I would help out in the search and, well, I guess I got lucky.”
“I guess you did. I’m surprised you wanted to help, though? I didn’t think you even liked cats.”
“I don’t, but you do.”
She smiled. “It’s amazing that I didn’t run into you. I’ve been out everyday in the forest looking for her.”
“Well, it is a big forest. I’m sure we were just in different parts.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, kissing him on the cheek as Jeremy walked in.
“Jeremy, look, Matt found Boo!”
“I can see that,” he said coldly, never taking his eyes off of Matt. He squatted down and patted the still eating kitten noting how skinny she was. “Maybe I should call the vet and have her come up and check her out,” Jeremy suggested.
“It’s fine. Look, it’s eating. It’ll be fine,” Matt said abruptly.
Ella looked at Matt oddly, and then answered Jeremy. “I think that would be a good idea. She’s so young; not eating for a couple days is not good for any cat yet alone a young kitten. Plus, it couldn’t hurt to make sure she didn’t get beat up by any larger animals in the forest.”
“Don’t you think you’re going a little overboard?” Matt argued.
Jeremy and Ella both looked at him strangely this time. “No, I don’t,” Ella said harshly, which made Jeremy crack a small smile.
“Okay, whatever. So now that the cat is back and all is good, how about dinner?” Matt suggested.
“Not tonight, Matt. Although I am so grateful you found Boo and I would like to celebrate with you, I really just want to be with Boo tonight. I’d like to make sure she’s okay and pamper her a little. You have no idea how much I missed her.”
“Oh, I think I do. I mean, you couldn’t even return my calls because you were so busy looking for the little fur bag. I suppose I could give you a night to get reacquainted with the cat, but tomorrow you’re all mine,” Matt negotiated.
Jeremy couldn’t stand to listen to any more and left the room. Ella agreed to be all his the following night, if the vet said all was okay with Boo.
*****
Later that afternoon, the vet came and had a look at Boo. She found her rather dehydrated and starved but with no other major injuries. She did notice the cat’s front paw nails were cracked and worn almost to the quick and her throat was red raw. The vet deduced that it looked like the cat had been trapped somewhere. Clawing and scratching would explain her paws being raw and worn, and howling and crying could be why the throat was so red.
It pained Ella to think the kitten had been trapped somewhere, but she was so happy to have her back. In celebration of the cat’s return, Jeremy made tuna casserole for him and Ella and a can of tuna for Boo. He even set a placemat and plate for Boo at the table. The cat loved being part of the dinner party, instead of being shooed away from the table while they ate as they usually did.
When everyone was done eating dinner and Boo was happily cleaning herself on the quilted placemat, Jeremy said, “I’m glad Boo’s back. I really missed her, but I’m also glad we have a moment to talk. When I was in the attic today stowing away the mirror, I saw a portrait that caught my attention.”
“Really? What’s so interesting about it?”
“Well, it looks exactly like you. It’s really quite uncanny. The only difference I can detect between you and the girl in the portrait is the style of hair and eye color.”
“That is strange,” she said. “How did you come across it? I’ve been up in the attic and I didn’t see any portraits,” she asked.
“I was trying to put the mirror in a place you wouldn’t accidentally come across it—back behind some trunks and furniture at the far end, when I backed into it and the sheet that was covering it fell away. When I turned to see what I had bumped into, I just about dropped the mirror when I saw your face staring back at me.”
“That would be strange. Will you show me?” she asked.
“Sure.”
With Boo in tow, they went up to the attic. The room was huge and completely finished. There were several windows, which would let in plenty of natural lighting to move around without killing oneself, but seeing as it was getting dark outside, Jeremy turned on the lights. Though it was dusty, it wasn’t really dirty.
There were lots of old trunks scattered here and there, some sheet-clad furniture, and quite a few boxes stacked one on top of the other. Jeremy stood next to a half-covered portrait. When she was close enough for a good view, he pulled the sheet the rest of the way off the portrait and she gasped. It did look like her, but even more so, it was the woman in the mirror, the woman who had been chased and hung, then buried alone—it was Willow.
“That’s the woman I’ve been seeing in the mirror—the visions I’ve been having. That’s Willow!”
“Willow? How did you know her name was Willow?” Jeremy asked.
“I saw her grave. That was what was on her headstone. Why? How did you know her name?” she asked.
Jeremy turned the portrait around and on the back was a name and date. Willow Owens—1865.
“Do you think we’re related, and that’s why we look so much alike?”
“That’s my guess,” Jeremy said.
“Do you think there might be more things up here of hers or about her?”
“I would bet there are all kinds of things up here in these trunks about your family. If she’s part of your family, this would be where I would start looking for information about her.”
“Maybe I can find out why the mob of people killed her and why I’m having these visions about her.”
“Maybe,” Jeremy answered.
*****
The next day Ella ventured up into the attic to see what she could find out about Willow. She opened up trunk after trunk looking at photos and mementos from someone else’s life. It felt a little intrusive but it was also quite fascinating. Boo slept on an old quilt in a box within arm’s reach of Ella. It was obvious to her; the little kitten was a bit shaken up by her latest ordeal and didn’t want to lose sight of Ella. Every so often she would give Boo a little rub on the head and she would respond with a purr of contentment.
She found lots of things from the Grey family and if she hadn’t been looking for info on Willow Owens, she would have spent more time learning about the Greys, but for now she was on a quest. She had plenty of time to research the Greys whenever she wanted to.
She didn’t get through everything in the attic, but she went through a good portion of the trunks and boxes. The only thing she came across that had the name Owens on it was a small oil portrait of three children: Anna, Zachary, and Peter Owens—no date, just three solemn little faces.
She could tell by the light outside that it was getting late and she had to get ready for her date with Matt. She grabbed the box with the quilt and the sleepy kitten, stuffed the picture between the quilt and the box wall, and carried it all downstairs.
Ella made a detour to the kitchen and ran into Jeremy coming in the back door with two bags of groceries.
“Hey,” he said. “Find anything in the attic about your doppelganger?”
She smiled. “Not really. I found a bunch of stuff about the Greys, but nothing mentioning the Owens family. It’s weird. Aside from the portrait you found and this picture I found of some kids, it’s like the Owens family never existed,” she said as she handed the small painting to Jeremy.
“They look sad,” Jeremy noted and turned it over looking for a date or name. “Well, at least you have some more names to research.” He seemed intrigued by the mystery of the Owens woman; maybe it was his fascination with the past in architecture and renovating houses. It made her smile to see his interest piqued.
“You’d probably have a sad face too if you were a kid standing for hours while someone painted you.”
“Yeah. I guess I would,” he smiled.
“So you think I should pursue this strange crusade
, based on visions from a mirror?”
“I think you should do what feels right to you. What harm can come from better knowing your ancestors and the past? Maybe that’s why you are having these visions, as you call them. Maybe you are the only one who has the power to figure out what happened to Willow and why there’s barely any mention of her.”
His words somehow filled her with confidence. “I never thought of it like that. Maybe there’s a reason I’m seeing these horrible scenes. Maybe somehow I can help!”
“Exactly!” Jeremy said, popping a grape in his mouth as he unpacked the groceries.
“Thanks, Jeremy. You really have made me feel better about all this. I think I have been looking at this all wrong. The first vision was a warning, but maybe the others aren’t being shown to me to scare me, but to tell a story to help figure out what happened to Willow and the rest of the Owens family.”
“That’s my thinking,” Jeremy agreed.
“So what is all this?” she said referring to the groceries.
“It’s my night to cook,” he claimed.
“But you cooked last night,” she reminded him.
“That was a special treat to welcome Boo back; this is my normal night,” Jeremy explained.
“I’m sorry, Jeremy. I made plans with Matt, remember, to thank him for finding Boo,” she said, petting the kitten who was now checking out her food bowl and mewing.
“Right. I forgot,” he said indifferently. “Boo and I will have our own little date,” he said picking up the kitten and rubbing behind her ears.
“Sounds fun. I guess I better go get ready,” she said, seeing Boo was in good hands.
Chapter 14
Ella came downstairs after she showered and had gotten ready for her date with Matt. She came into the kitchen again finding Jeremy cooking up some veggies and broiling a big old steak.
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