Chapter 3: Alone No More

Upon chaptering one of the figures, she interrogates the orphan named Scott who leads her to the other children.

The bedroom window opened and rays of light surrounded her. She realized that the mansion itself was her only friend. She imagined it had a life of its own and she would do anything to protect it. Without this place, she was nothing. She needed to cherish what she had…and maintain it. Instead of complying with Mr. Claver’s unhappy prediction, she would use his words to fuel her determination.

She had no idea how much money was left in her care but she assumed she had enough to hire a maid. Until that time, she would take it upon herself to clean the house until she was able to visit town. For her, it would act as a perfect diversion from recent events. It had already been two days since both men visited and although she hadn’t known them for very long, she was already sick of them. Falinmore had taken the place of any need for the friendship she’d intended to find here, not to mention any family she left upon her departure.

Like any person, the mansion had its secrets and she intended to discover them. Still, she wouldn’t trick herself into thinking her actions could change anything. In the end, she would just be a mere paragraph in the grand history of this place. 

Raine made it a habit of remembering the location of every room that she cleaned. She attempted to make a map at first but she found that relying on her own memory was far more effective. She herself felt like a ghost as she traversed the corridors, like one of the many lost and forgotten. She even imagined that she was the last person on Earth and she would live out her days here without the nuisance of others. She knew it was childish but then again, she had never been alone for such a long period of time. The solitude was a welcome relief.

One thought brought another and she remembered that she wasn’t alone at all. Someone or something was there with her and she was determined to capture it. Her plan was simple enough. The cloaked figure was filling itself on the food that Vernon was bringing her. That same food she would use as bait. Time was all she had and yet she could not wait for her plan to take form.

As she trekked through the mansion, she occasionally spotted a near-dead plant. The place was probably full of them. She was tempted to use her gift and rejuvenate the vegetation but banished the thought. If the plants could stay alive, the goal of her journey would be healing rather than cleaning.

She remembered the day before when she visited the food storage for a second time and noticed that the vine that had freed her from her prison had returned to its original state. Performing the same action would probably yield the same result. It saddened her to think that they had died so quickly.

She also fully understood the mental and physical strain the process put on her. After giving life to the ivy in the pantry, she remembered the loss of feeling she had in both her hands along with the splitting headache that followed. Both side effects only subsided when she was lying on the floor after breaking open the door.

She could tell that flora was once abundant at Falinmore, and has been for a long time. Now the grounds were mysteriously void of it. It was far more than neglect that had brought it to this end. The plants were decaying regardless of the ideal weather. Knowing that it would be a futile attempt, she continued to perform the duties meant for Mr. Claver.

After a few hours of chores, she thought of circling the exterior in search of the garden she took note of outside one of the windows. After coming through the front door she turned right and went around the first corner. Raine welcomed the winds that gently propelled her forward.  She was alone in enjoying such small and wonderful things. Even fellow children she had known didn’t appreciate such moments.

A drawing on one side of the mansion caught her eye and she slowed her pace to lead in its direction. It was a bit weathered from yesterday’s shower, but appeared to be recent.

Frowning, she said, “What an odd location for a drawing.” She took a few steps closer. “Is that a person in the picture?”

The simplicity of the drawing made the figure look like a doll. It was a girl with a black woven jacket and long straight hair crying on the floor. Her eyes widened as she realized the picture was of her two days ago. She considered the meaning of this. Was someone there watching her, she wondered? Was it possible she was in such a state of misery that she hadn’t noticed?

Now, filled with fear, she returned the way she came with an even greater drive. Her jog transformed to a full-fledged run. She couldn’t stop herself. She’d had enough of this. She wished she knew more. Knowledge would be her escape. As she entered the house once more, the same fear she felt three days ago overwhelmed her. With the door closed, she leaned her head against it.

Whatever it was had a connection with her. It saw Raine in her most fragile state…and had drawn a picture…

She opened her eyes and with a satisfied smile went to set her trap. Determining what might be going on, she soon realized that her plan might be easier than she thought. Then again, this would be her only chance.

*****

It was now seven o’ clock and darkness was all around her. Only a few streams of light entered her hiding place. Making sure she wasn’t followed, she had crept into a metal sliding drawer meant for pots in the kitchen. Placing the cooking ware quietly into another drawer, she’d crouched there and waited. The only sound was the screech the door had made upon opening and closing.

Anyone wanting to enter that room would need to pass her no matter which door they chose. This drawer, at the side of the storage room, would almost guarantee her a confrontation without her having to sneak behind the cloaked figure. She saw the irony of trapping the figure in this room and looked forward to having the tables turned.

Her patience began to wear thin as the hours passed and she wondered if the thing would show itself. Perhaps the figure was clever enough not to remove the food until it knew where she was.

“I will tear this mansion apart if you do not show yourself,” she whispered. “You cannot hide forever.”

The hours marched on and whatever shards of light had entered her little box, vanished. She dreamt of trying to breathe life back into a plant, only to watch it wither and die time and time again. On the verge of tears, she tried to visualize her power once more but her mind protested in exhaustion.

She watched the plant grow at an alarming rate. The vines and stems wrapped around her and dragged her into the ground. She wanted so hard to fight but remained motionless regardless of her internal struggle. Her sight slowly faded and she took her last breath as she reached upward.

She found herself sleeping atop a rock surrounded by a thousand floating gems. In her dream, all she could do was watch. From the distance approached a woman but she was too far away for Raine to discern her features.  The woman’s demeanor was calm but Raine was still afraid. She sat next to the sleeping Raine and began whispering in her ear. Everything in her dream began to blur as she tried forcing herself awake.

She awoke in time to see two figures entering the food storage. Both looked in her direction and she knew she had to have made a noise upon waking. One figure went towards the small door on the left while the other went in the direction of the dining room. It didn’t matter if they split up; she only needed to catch one. Stumbling out of the drawer, she raced into the dining room.

The figure attempted to take a short-cut under the table in anticipation of Raine circling around. She however knew a short cut of her own. She leaped on top of the table, knocking over a patterned, cut glass vase. She made it to the other end in time to see the figure emerge. The only thing she felt as she jumped for the culprit was the impact of her hitting the cold tiled floor. She landed shoulder first and screamed in pain.

She ripped the agony from her mind and stood, expecting to see the figure leave. The room was empty. Raine emerged through the large double doors, wondering what had happened. She should have landed right on top of him. Was she still dazed from waking up and that’s how she missed her mark? Raine didn’t have time to think about it. If she hurried she could still catch them.

Now in the main hall, she made a left and entered a series of rooms. Remembering the layout, she followed the path that she thought the second figure would follow. She stopped in a passageway that split off in two directions. She could hear whispers coming from her right.  Convinced it was coming from the figure, she ran in that direction.

She turned the corner and passed the wash-room then continued through a small door on an adjacent side. Her adrenaline was flooding her senses. She was about to turn another corner when she heard sounds from the hall she had just left. She backtracked to the wash-room to find the other figure moving away from one of the sinks.

This time she would not miss. While halfway over the basin, she tackled him to the floor harder than she’d anticipated. The figure tried to stand but was kept down by Raines force. In no time, the figure was on its stomach with its face to the floor. His short blonde hair caught the light when Raine removed his hood. 

Seeing the figure as flesh and blood, she lifted herself up from him but held one of his arms as well as his hood. She pushed him into the corner and took a few paces back. In case he had a weapon, she did not want to be close to him.

“Just as I thought,” she said, “You are just a child.”

Hunched over and out of breath, the boy spoke. “I guess that makes you the grown-up.”

“You put me through, didn’t you? I had no idea there was more than one of you, however.”

“So you want an apology?”

“I want answers, but you were already kind enough to answer one of them.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“Until now, I actually thought you were a ghost. I see now how stupid that was, but I still need to know why you are here.”

He hesitated and she took this opportunity to observe him. What had appeared to be a cloak was in fact a ragged, bulky coat with a hood. Grime covered him and she was sure some of it had transferred to her. She’d thought he was wearing sandals but they were really shoes with holes in the front. The pants with caked-on dirt and tears along the side made quite the statement. She was uncertain if the dirt on his face came from their little wrestling contest.

Still keeping a close eye on him so he wouldn’t try to make an escape, she studied his face.  All things considered, he was actually a handsome boy. She wasn’t sure from this distance but it appeared that his eyes were almost hazel. She could tell from their fight that he was thin for his age which would explain his need to steal food.

She continued, “If you won’t tell me why you are here, would you please have the decency to tell me why you were trying to kill me?”

Lifting himself up, he responded, “Don’t you know enough already? Can’t you just leave?”

“Answer the question. Was it you who tried to kill me?”

“We weren’t trying to kill you.  Okay? We had a plan to set you free but you found a way out,” answered the boy.

She believed him, but that still didn’t justify his actions. “What’s your name?” she asked.

“You should leave.”

“This is my home.” she responded.

“Find another.”

“This was my parents’ home.”

“Goddamn it! Don’t you understand that our worst fear is that you run and tell those two fools!?” he shouted.

“Mr. Borrester…?

“And Claver. We don’t want to be kicked out. This is our only home. We were here before you and we’ll sure as hell be here when you leave.”

“I won’t tell. I won’t even threaten you. If it’s your permission I need then I will ask you as many times as it takes.”

He hesitated, but eventually looked her in the eye and asked, “What’s your name?”

“Raine Falinmore.”

“Scott.”

Satisfied with now hearing the first half of his name, she asked, “If I swear not to tell anyone, do you think I can live here?”

He smiled and shook his head. “It’s not up to me. You need to ask Cybil.”

“Can you take me to her?”

He scoffed, “Why not. At this rate we both may get kicked out.”

*****

The walk was calming for them both after the recent chase. Though still wary of each other, they trusted the other wouldn’t do anything rash. Each party had something to lose should this come out in the open. If someone found a way to take the mansion from her, they may all be without a home.

As they passed room after room, she wondered how many of them there might be. All the while she had thought it was just one person playing tricks on her but looking back now, she could see that the height of the figure was different with each encounter. The figure in the rumpus room was smaller than the one she spotted through the boards in the pantry. 

“How’s the arm?” he asked without turning.

“I haven’t inspected it but I doubt it’s serious. What about your ribs?” she asked.

“They’re fine,” he snapped.

Upon her tackling him he’d landed on his right arm, but it was his rib she thought she injured. She didn’t want to make him feel any less of a man, but she did have more experience. She’d often fought with her foster brothers and had developed an ability to bring them to the ground. She may have hurt their pride in the process, but it did keep them from harassing her.

“How many of you might there be?” she asked to break the silence.

“Your questions can wait.”

Although he was not the leader of the group, he seemed to know better than to give her any information. She could already sense that he was too reckless to take care of the others but from the figures that she had seen, he looked to be the oldest. She expected at least four of them. She was lucky enough to have him lead the way but Raine did not rule out the possibility that this was another of their traps. 

He was right, though. In the end, they would decide if she remained in Falinmore. If she could only get the others to trust, her she thought, maybe she could stay. The part of her that wanted to leave wondered if she even deserved their trust. This would most likely lead to everyone getting hurt. Just like it always had.

“What happened to the one you were with?”

“She’s probably there as we speak. It’s where we’re supposed to meet. Sort of like a rendezvous. We rarely go outside so we don’t have many problems. Cybil will go into detail if you want. Just don’t expect a warm welcome from her.”

They climbed the stairs. He was as tall as she was but his personality camouflaged his age. It was possible, like her, that he acted older than he really was. Scott unlocked the door with a key he had tucked away. She’d found it odd that the door was locked when she came to it a few days ago but now she knew that this room may be more special than the others.

“Isn’t that…?” Raine started to ask.

“It’s the same key as yours. We stole it from Claver.”

“I see now why he could not enter the mansion.”

Pushing the door open, “Oh, we didn’t make it easy for him. We played a few tricks on him as well. I suppose he could enter if he really wanted, but he chooses not to.”

“What I wouldn’t give to have been there to see it in person.”

As he moved the potted palm out of the way, a device with a handle appeared alongside it.  Strangely, another such mechanism was on the other side of the pot as well.  It was almost completely hidden.  Was it the work of her parents or one of the children living here? The closer to Falinmore’s truth she came, the further away she felt.

“Be my guest,” Scott said after moving the palm into the corner and signaling in the direction of the device.

She could tell that the pot was difficult for the boy to move, but Raine was sure that she would be able to do the same in the future if need be. She eventually nodded and wrapped her hands around the handle. She could feel the cold clay on her palms as she turned it counter-clockwise. A near-by bookshelf inched open with every circle until it revealed a set of stairs that lead down from the opening.

“I’ll go first,” he said with a smile. “We wouldn’t want to scare them. Lord knows what would happen then.”

He was enjoying this.

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