Devoured

by Amanda Marrone

  “Into the oven!”

  I stare at Mr. Roy’s lifeless body for a few seconds and then hit the emergency stop button. The car heading toward the oven stops and I bolt toward the exit. I have to find Luke.

  Luke is lying on the path a few feet from the exit of the ride. I rush to him and kneel down. His chest moves, and I cry with relief. His shirt is soaked with blood, though. With trembling hands I gently pull his T-shirt up to see if I can stop the bleeding.

  I gasp when I see the deep wound on the side of his abdomen. Blood rushes from the gash and I know Luke won’t make it if we have to wait for an ambulance. “I love you,” I whisper and then I dash off toward the office building, knowing I need to make another wish.

  I race into Miss Patty’s office and stop short when I see Ari sitting in the chair with her feet up on the desk. Oh, God, why isn’t she out in the park?

  She sits upright in surprise. “Well, isn’t this convenient,” she says as she picks up the gun. “I’ll tell Daddy he can stop looking for you. All the stupid mirror could show us was you crouching in the dark somewhere.” She cocks her head. “Although, from the looks of that cut on your shoulder, it appears Daddy found you after all. You must be quick, he doesn’t usually let anyone get away.”

  She picks up her cell phone and starts to punch in some numbers.

  I touch the blood dripping down and realize my arm is throbbing. “I wish Luke’s wound was totally healed,” I blurt out.

  The mirror flashes behind Ari, and she spins around in the chair. “What’s going on? What are you doing?” she asks the mirror.

  The face appears and looks at me with one eyebrow raised. “Nicely played,” it purrs, “but you’ve let the cat out of the bag now.”

  Ari pushes the chair away from the desk and looks back and forth between the mirror and me. Her eyes widen, and she puts her phone down. “That’s how you disappeared from the room—you wished it!” Her eyes grow even bigger. “How many do I get?” she asks the mirror.

  The face purses its lips, as if trying to delay answering her. It lets out a tired sigh. “Three. Everyone gets three.”

  Ari turns to me with an evil glint in her eye. “Three! Can I wish for anything I want?”

  “I cannot take or restore life, and it is also beyond my powers to alter love. But as you know, there are other ways to get around that particular limitation. I do think you should see what’s become of your father before you proceed any further.”

  The face disappears and Mr. Roy’s battered body appears, with the oven door above it, smeared with his blood.

  Ari puts a hand to her mouth and gasps. “Daddy!”

  The face fills the mirror again, and it bows its head. “You could save your stepmother’s life, though, there’s still time.”

  Ari turns and I follow her stare. Miss Patty is sprawled out on the carpet, blood leaking from a small wound in her stomach. Patty moans and Ari shakes her head and scoffs. “The hell with her, but Daddy, I wish Daddy was okay!”

  The mirror smiles coldly. “I’m afraid I cannot grant that wish, but your stepmother …”

  Tears gather in Ari’s eyes. “No! I’m not wasting a wish on her! She can rot in hell for all I care.”

  I look at Miss Patty and I’m torn between doing the right thing and saving my last wish. I shake my head. There’ve been too many deaths already. “I wish Miss Patty would fully recover from her injuries after a stay in the hospital,” I say, making sure she’ll be okay without adding her to the madness already in play.

  The mirror looks at me with surprise and then flashes. Patty coughs from the floor and Ari laughs crazily. “You just wasted your last wish! Are you insane?”

  I nod. “Yeah, I think I am.”

  “I win!” she says with glee in her eyes. “I finally win! All the suffering I’ve been through will finally be over.” She turns to me and shakes her head. “The only downside to all this is that you won’t be around to see what you’ve lost—to ache for what you can’t have.”

  She stares at me coldly, and then her eyes light up, making chills run up my spine. She walks over to me and twirls the gun on her fingers. “I can’t wish Luke was in love with me, right?” she asks over her shoulder to the mirror.

  “Correct,” it says.

  She taps my chest with the barrel of the gun. “And cutting out hearts is messy. But could you use your magic to switch our hearts?”

  “Yes!” The mirror’s smoky eyes burn with admiration. “Yes! Very clever, Miss Arianna!”

  Ari beams as she looks me up and down. “Looks like you’re going to lose your heart after all, but at least you’ll still be alive.”

  My hands fly to my chest as I stare at Ari. “No,” I whisper. God! Why did I throw away my last wish?

  Ari nods. “I mean what fun would it be if you didn’t live every day knowing Luke was making love to me instead of you?” She purses her lips. “And there’ll be nothing you can do, because who would believe you? It’s perfect!”

  Oh my God. She’s going to do it. My mind races. I don’t have any wishes left and Ari has a gun—my options are extremely limited.

  “She’s a bad apple,” Remy whispers.

  Remy! If I can get her riled up, maybe she can destroy the mirror, or at least keep Ari from making a wish until I figure something out.

  “Remy, that bad girl is gonna make some wishes that will hurt me. Do you hear me, Remy? I need you to stop her!”

  Remy appears in front of Ari. Ari shivers, obviously feeling the cold air.

  “Bad apple!” Remy growls. “Leave Meggy alone!” A blast of wet, frigid air swirls around the room, whipping my hair around my face. “No more wishes!”

  “What’s happening?” Ari calls out, her eyes looking wildly around the room.

  I smile at her. “Arianna Roy, I’d like you to meet my sister, Remy.”

  Remy solidifies and I hear the roar of the river echo around the room. My breath frosts in the air as the cold increases.

  “Really bad apple!” Remy says.

  “Arianna, hurry! Make the wish!” the mirror calls. “Quickly!”

  “I wish—”Ari starts to say, but Remy stamps her foot and a wall of water swirls around Ari.

  Remy looks at Ari with hate in her eyes. “I said no!”

  The water engulfs Ari, forcing its way into her mouth and nose. Her hands flies to her throat as her eyes bulge.

  “Remy, stop!” I scream as I realize Ari is drowning. I make my way toward the water and force my arm through the freezing whirlpool. Ari reaches out one hand, but as our fingers touch, I realize I can’t save her—I won’t. Nothing can save Arianna Roy from herself, and no one is safe if she lives.

  I pull my arm back, and my body shakes as the room grows even colder. Large snowflakes fly around, and the whirlpool freezes into a frothy wall of slush until Ari is finally encased in solid ice.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper, looking at Ari’s wide frozen eyes staring out blankly. One clawed hand is still clutched at her throat. I wouldn’t have wished for this ending in a million years.

  Remy smiles. “No more bad apples.”

  “Remy …” I don’t know what to say to her. I didn’t mean for Ari to die, but at the same time, I can’t say that I’m sorry either.

  Remy plops herself down onto the rug at the base of the ice wall. “Meggy, where’s Daddy?” she asks wearily.

  I walk over to my sister and kneel down. I smooth out my bloodstained skirt and hold out my hand. Remy slides her chilly hand into mine.

  I catch my breath as shivers wrack my body. I wait for some awful vision to hit me, but there’s nothing—just Remy and me sitting on the floor like we’re getting ready for a tea party.

  “Daddy’s waiting for you,” I say. “You just have to look for the light. He’s there, and Nicki too—they’re waiting.”

  A glow surrounds Remy, and she rubs her eyes with her fists. “I’m tired, Meggy.”

  “Go to Daddy and you’ll feel better.”<
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  The glow gets brighter, and for half a second I wish Remy would stay.

  “Are you gonna …” Remy trails off, turning her head toward the growing light.

  This is it—this is the last time I’ll be with my sister. “I’m gonna be fine, Remy,” I choke out.

  Remy stands up and brushes her wet bangs back, squinting into the light.

  “Remy,” a voice calls out.

  “Daddy?”

  “I love you, Remy,” I sob as the light engulfs her.

  She looks back at me. “I love you too, Meggy.”

  Remy fades from view, and the room warms. The ice starts to drip and then turns to water, dumping Ari’s lifeless body to the floor.

  It’s over now. It’s finally over. I pick up the desk phone to dial 911.

  Before I dial the numbers, I look up at the mirror. The face is gone, but I’m sure it can see me anyway.

  “Are you happy now, you miserable hunk of glass? Is this what you wanted?” I say, pointing to Ari’s body. My lip curls up in disgust. “Just you wait. I know someone who’ll be more than happy to make three wishes for me, and believe me, you’ll be sorry you screwed with my life.”

  TWENTY

  Luke and I duck under the police tape and he runs the flashlight across Miss Patty’s office until he zeros in on the mirror.

  It’s been two weeks since I was last here. I wanted to get back sooner, but Luke thought we should wait until things cooled down to lessen the chance of running into the police.

  We stand on the other side of the tape, and Luke puts a hand on my shoulder, giving me strength.

  “Are you up for this?” he asks.

  I nod. With Miss Patty’s confession, the excavators have already dismantled six rides and recovered the bodies she knew about, including Kayla’s. There’s no telling how many more bodies they’ll find that were buried before she met Mr. Roy.

  Luke and I researched missing persons from the area, and there have been at least a dozen over the years—including Mr. Roy’s older sister, who co-owned the park until she vanished, or as the article we read states, “ran off to Europe.” And I’d bet money someone’s remains are stashed under Hansel and Gretel’s Haunted Forest.

  “Let’s do it,” I say. We walk slowly up to the mirror. I stare at our reflection illuminated by the flashlight and can’t help thinking that Nicki and Kayla would still be alive if it weren’t for the thing inside. I know the genie wasn’t responsible for the actual killings, but from what I’ve seen, it certainly encouraged them. And if it’s as old as I think it is, it’s no doubt been causing misery and murder for centuries.

  “I’m back,” I say to the mirror.

  The face appears, and Luke jumps. “Whoa,” he whispers as he takes my hand.

  I’d warned Luke about it, but in the darkness of the room, its glowing eyes and smoky face look more chilling than ever.

  Its lips turn up in a hungry smile. “Ah, company. How delightful. I’ve found it very tedious hanging here with no one to talk to. Time moves so slowly when there’s nothing to occupy the mind.”

  I scoff. “I’m sure the police would’ve loved to have chatted with you!”

  The genie arches one of its dark eyebrows. “Actually the police did prove to be entertaining for a bit. Their theories about Miss Arianna’s death were quite amusing.”

  Luke and I exchange looks.

  The coroner determined that Ari had drowned, but he was unable to figure out how it happened on dry land. The CSI team identified river water in her lungs, and Patty— God bless her—stuck to the story that she didn’t know how things transpired, but that I came in after the fact. Arianna Roy’s murder will no doubt have them puzzled for years.

  “Yeah, so glad Ari’s death provided you with some fun,” I say. “Anyway, it’s time you found a new abode, but first we have a few questions.”

  The mirror smiles, and goose bumps break out on my arms. “Answering questions is my specialty.”

  “Why are there two of you? I reread ‘Snow White,’ and there should be only one mirror.”

  Its smile fades; it’s obviously disappointed by such a mundane query. “Mr. Roy’s great-grandmother liked to consult with me often, and thought it would be easier if there was one in the park and one in her home. She wished it to be so.”

  I scowl. “Oh, I’ll bet you just loved having an extra opportunity to mess with her head.”

  “I am only here to serve,” it insists.

  “We can get rid of that when we, you know …” Luke says to me.

  I nod.

  “Is there anything else you’d like to divine?” the mirror asks politely. “I can show you people you might be curious about.”

  “No, I think we’re good,” Luke says.

  “Wait,” I say as a question pops up in my mind. “I am actually curious about something. Can you show me who Samantha Lee Darling’s soul mate is?”

  “Oh, but you might not like the answer,” the mirror says, though there is a glint in its eyes that tells me this is what it does best—playing with people’s emotions.

  “I think I can handle it.”

  Ryan appears on the surface of the glass and I smile.

  “This pleases you?” the mirror asks, its face reappearing, the sparkle in its eyes replaced by a look of confusion.

  “Yes, actually, it does.”

  Luke gives me a look. “Are you ready now?”

  “Um …” I say as my thoughts race. Despite what I know about the mirror, the fact that it can show me anything makes me wonder if we shouldn’t be so quick to carry out our plan. I could see Mom—see what she’s really thinking when she’s alone. See if she really meant what she said about becoming a family, about wanting to be part of my life again. And Luke? There are a million questions I could ask about Luke.

  I look up and see the mirror’s eyes boring into mine and catch my breath. This is what it does: It offers you glimpses of your world that you weren’t meant to see, and then it destroys you with them.

  I swallow hard. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

  Luke clears his throat. “We did some research, and without a handy lava pit to chuck you into, we don’t have the power to destroy you—at least not the original you.”

  “And we don’t think it’s safe to let you influence anyone else either,” I continue. “So we got Miss Patty to agree to donate you to the nursing home where my father lived.”

  The mirror raises its eyebrows, and I smile. “But we’ll have to take away your power first.”

  The mirror scoffs. “I was placed in this mirror by the strongest of magics, and nothing can diminish my powers.”

  “Well, we’re not really taking away your power,” I say. “We’re just going to prevent you from using it.”

  I squeeze Luke’s hand and he nods. “I wish that you can no longer show your face or communicate with another person until the end of time,” Luke says.

  The mirror’s mouth drops open. “No, wai—” The surface flashes with light, and then our reflections reappear.

  “One down, two to go,” I say.

  “I wish the second mirror you created was destroyed.”

  The light flashes again.

  “And finally, I wish that you are unable to fulfill any wishes inadvertently made in your presence.”

  The glass flashes once more, and I know it’s over—finally, finally over. Luke turns the flashlight off and takes me in his arms. I hear his heart beating, and feel safe at last.

  Since Ari and Mr. Roy died, I’ve read all of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales. I’ve tried to guess which ones might be true and which ones might still be unfolding after all this time. But as I read those stories filled with beasts, magic, and murder, I saw that there was always the side trip through hell that came before the happy ending. I think I can safely say I’ve lived that hell, and it’s time for my happily ever after.

  I tilt my chin up and kiss Luke.

  “I love you,” he whispers.

 
; “I love you too.” I lay my head back on his chest and think that one of these days I’ll be smiling like the girl in the painting in his room.

  THE END