by A. E. Watson
Everything is silent in the large room, everything but my heart. My wings drag along the cold floor as I walk to her. She’s sleeping, her breath looking icy, even in the dark.
She moans and stirs, blinking and pulling the covers tighter to her chest. Her eyes look straight up and then dart to my face. “Rayne?” she whispers into the dark silence.
“Yes,” I whisper back.
“Why have you come? I sensed you. I thought it was someone else.” She sits up and I see her clearly. She’s small and pretty and wearing a stark nightgown. Her dark hair is in rags to make curls and her pale face is exactly as it should be.
“I came to free you.”
“Father said that an evil devil might come, and I should fear it.” She shakes her head. “But my real father, Yahweh, the one in the sky who whispers in the night, told me that you would come and that I would know you.” A smile breaks across her face. “And I do. I remember you from my dreams. I know we are sisters.”
I walk to her and slump onto her bed beside her. “Did our father explain what I would do here?”
“Send me home to finally receive a soul.”
“You know then, what you are?” I am baffled by that.
“Of course.” She shakes her head. “The Van Helsings have always been my family, but they explained that one day the world would require me to sacrifice myself. They described it in a way that made me feel like I am special. And now you have come and I know their words are truth.” She speaks like an English teacher might but she’s a kid.
“Do you remember our other sisters?” I am curious how the others knew me the way she seems to.
“Of course. We are together when I dream.” She says it like I should remember this. Her head jerks to the right. “My father is coming. We must hurry.”
I turn, not hearing a thing but ready. I stand over her, holding her small face with my left hand, cupping it because she is right, I do love her.
“I’m so sorry, Maggie,” I whisper as the blade pokes into her nightgown. I swear I feel it in me too.
“I already forgave you, Sister.” She closes her eyes and smiles, taking a deep breath. I press in as a gust of wind comes up behind me just as the door to the room opens. In the slit I catch a glimpse of a face I don't expect to see in the candlelight. Maggie exhales her life force and I am in the painting again with a clear view of Lucifer still in my mind.
“Holy balls, was that Lucifer at the Van Helsings’?” I turn and look at the confused stare on Constantine’s face.
Willow jumps me, gasping and covering me in kisses. “Oh my God. We didn't think you were coming back. You were gone so long.”
“How long?” I ask and pull back from her smothering me.
“I don't know but it felt like forever.” She gives Fitz a look. “How long was it?”
“An eternity.” He nods once.
Constantine lifts me from the floor. “We have one left and then we can end this.” He pulls me to the mirror. Something is picking at him, and I have to assume it’s the devil in the Van Helsing house. I know it’s picking at me too.
“Focus on Ellie, Rayne.” Willow pats me on the back and steps back as I close my eyes and see Ellie’s face. I would know it anywhere; we look so similar. I exhale and reach for the mirror, letting it pull me in.
We are in silence and then we are in the middle of a festival. The sound of music and shouting fills the air as I step from the side of the building. No one is near us, but it sounds like we are surrounded.
Constantine pales. He closes his eyes and exhales. His sin-filled breath is nothing compared to the air around us. I close my eyes too and take it all in. “That is some evil.” I lift my nose and truly take in a breath. “I can feed from the air.”
“Oh good,” he mutters and pulls me along the building as I tuck the blade into the side of my dress.
“If Lucifer is one of the Van Helsings in this reality, do you think it’s possible—?”
“It’s very possible he’s with them in the real world,” he answers before I finish. Clearly we are dreading the same thing. Wyatt might be my real brother.
Chapter Fifteen
I mistook his silence to be about the Van Helsings, but when we get past the party going on downtown I start to see something else behind his eyes.
“What’s wrong?”
“I think I pulled us here.” He gives me a look. “Could this perchance be the day you chose randomly? I don't think it is.”
“I don't know what today is so I can’t say.”
He turns and walks across a field toward the most beautiful house I have ever seen. It’s a mansion lit up for a party.
“You’ll see.” He stalks to the house, giving it a wide berth until he is close to the tree line. Then he cuts in. I try to keep up, but he’s walking faster and faster the closer we get.
Something is going on here that I can’t see. The house is some sort of estate. It’s beautiful and reminds me of something I might have seen before, maybe in a historical movie.
As we get closer to the house, music fills the air and lights fill the forest just beyond us. It’s warm here in this time, not like the Dark Ages. And here I don't feel like I am in danger, not that I know why I feel so safe. I’m still in a dreamland with strangers and there is so much evil in the air I can drink it with every breath.
I don't need to feed, I just need to inhale.
When we get into the trees I pause, closing my eyes and drinking the air. There’s far less evil in the breeze here than there was in town.
As I catch up, I smile seeing Constantine standing against a tree, staring at the garden and the back of the house. I squint, trying to see, but I don't have his binocular eyes.
“What is it?”
He doesn't answer, he just stares.
Curious, I continue to walk past him until I can see that there is a party at the house. People are dancing and laughing and drinking in every corner of what appears to be a greenhouse. But it’s ballroom-sized and there are no plants. Just walls of glass and mirrors. It’s beautiful. The candles light the place up so you can see the reddened cheeks of the pretty girls and the sly eyes of the handsome men.
It’s a bit magical to watch. The colors of the gowns and the curl of the hair are all so pretty. The lanterns and hand-lit chandeliers give off a glow that illuminates the room so it appears even more magical. As if organized waltzing and whatever else they’re dancing isn’t magical enough.
It takes me one dance to see what he meant about me liking it here.
When he said everything was more refined, he was right. I see it here at the private ball in the solarium-looking room. If I close my eyes I can imagine being here. I can imagine the innocence and excitement of it all.
I glance back to Constantine, still confused as to why he looks like Ebenezer Scrooge on his trip to the past.
The answer of course hits me in the face when I turn back to the party to see Constantine from this time in front of us. He looks different here. Younger maybe? He’s dressed much finer than the version I’m with. He’s standing next to a girl who has the brightest blue eyes I have ever seen. She bats her lashes and tilts her head.
“What?” My Constantine comes forward, sounding angry. “Who is that?”
“That isn’t what you were expecting to see?”
“No, it bloody isn’t!” He throws his hand in the air. “This was the night I knew Ellie was ready to accept my marriage proposal. We came here and danced and ate and laughed. I asked her if she would ever marry someone like me. It was the boldest I could be for the time. She said she would consider it and then scurried off with her friends.” He looks heartbroken. “We have messed with the time.” He turns and glances at me. “Where the hell is Ellie and why isn’t she mine?”
“I don't know.” I shake my head. “I don't feel her here.” I was wondering why he’d brought us here but now I see. He assumed it was the same night because of the party in the town.
“
This is not good.” He storms off, grabbing my hand as he passes by me. My feet trip as I struggle to keep up.
Frustrated and about to lose my balance completely, I yank my arm back from his hold. “Stop! I can’t run all over. I’m getting tired of this. I hate all this walking. Just give me a minute. When I was by myself I instantly went to where they were. I felt them and they felt me. They came to me. With you, we hunted Maggie down. If you let me calm down and figure it out for myself, I’ll find her.” I walk in the opposite direction of him and sit on a log. I take several breaths in and out before I tilt my head back and stare up at the sky. There aren’t as many stars now. Not by much, but there are fewer now. For whatever reason that makes me sad. Like there’s less magic as a result of less stars or less belief in the ancestors watching us.
After a couple of seconds I lose the annoyance I had at him and regain my focus. The dagger in my hand begins to weigh more and more. My parted lips feel chapped and dry, and for the life of me I cannot remember important things about the other girls. They are fading like I’m losing them. The dagger feels like I might as well be holding a poisonous snake. It has claimed the life of three girls I loved dearly and still has to claim the life of one more. I close my eyes and imagine her, Ellie. I have to work at it, but at least I can see her face clearly. The other girls are fading from my memory completely.
“Rayne?”
“Yeah?” I answer and then open my eyes, realizing whose voice I have heard. I turn and look at Ellie in her beautiful dress. “Hey.” I offer a wave but she looks confused.
“What are you doing here?” She looks around, pausing and smiling when she sees Constantine. “Good evening, sir.” She curtseys softly. Her lips toy with a grin, and I get the feeling she finds him attractive, but I don't get the impression that they know each other well.
“Milady.” He bows back but I notice the way he gulps.
“What are you both doing out here?” She cocks an eyebrow at me. “Where is Miss Fairfield?” she asks him.
“Who?” His eyes dart to the mansion. “Oh, of course. She’s inside. I was in need of some air and found this young woman here. She seemed lost. If you know her I shall return to my—Miss Fairfield, excuse me.” he stammers and hurries into the field.
Ellie’s gaze returns to mine. “Do you know him?”
“No. It happened the way he said it did.”
“He’s very handsome. I am envious of Jillian Fairfield because of him. He’s the handsomest man I have ever beheld.” She sighs and loses the airs she is putting on. “Why have you come here, Rayne?”
“You know why, don't you?”
“Yes, but I want you to say it.” Her eyes become glossy as her lower lip quivers.
“I have come to free you.”
“Tonight?” Her face tightens with sadness. “Does it have to be tonight?”
“It does. I’m sorry.”
She shakes her head and gazes up at the stars. “I always knew you would come. He said you would.”
“Lucifer?” I can’t believe he’s gotten to her too.
“God, no. I don't go anywhere near him. I have nearly run into him several times but there’s always a whisper on the wind, telling me to be cautious.” Her lips curl into a smile. “I know it’s Father; he’s always there for me. Telling me to be brave and to be ready for the night you would come.”
“How do you know me?” I have to ask her.
“My dreams. I know you from my dreams.” Her words become a whisper as she walks to the stump and sits. “I have never kissed a boy or loved a man. Will you do both for me?” she asks softly. “Before it’s your turn.”
I lean in, pressing my arm against hers. “I will.” I want to ask her what she means by my turn, but I realize suddenly how it all must work. My gaze trails over to the bushes behind her. Constantine’s heartbroken stare rips me inside. He closes his eyes, defeated and devastated. She didn't know him. In this world he never loved her. He didn't love Maggie so of course he never loved Ellie. I can’t help but wonder if it means he won’t love me.
“I will see you again, Sister,” she interrupts my thoughts. “The world is a sick place, Rayne. There is evil everywhere, and we must take it with us when we go.” She reaches for the dagger and presses it into the breast of her dress. “We were born for one purpose, Rayne, and one alone. Don't ever forget that.”
As she’s about to push in, I pull back. “Wait!”
“What?”
“Have you ever seen our father?”
“Many times.” A warm smile spreads across her lips.
“What does he look like?” I think I know but I have to be sure.
“He’s got white eyes that cannot see anything, and yet they see everything. He brings peace and wisdom everywhere he is. He’s always with us in our dreams.” She sighs and closes her eyes again.
“I’m so sorry, Ellie.” I don't contemplate any of it as I push the blade in. She gasps, the same way all my other sisters did. “I’m so sorry,” I manage to whisper again as the rush of warm air hits me the same way it did when I killed Maggie. After the second it takes for her to die, I realize the warm air is Constantine. When we get back through the mirror we aren’t in the painting. I blink through my tears and emptiness but can’t reach the pain I should feel.
“Rayne?” Constantine whispers into my nape. “Stay very still.” He holds me to him as he looks around the dark place we are. My eyes do their thing, thank God. “I don't know where we are and I feel incredibly odd.”
“We’re in the basement of the earth witches’ home,” I whisper. The smell is the very same as it was when I was here last.
“Interesting.” He breathes a deep sigh of relief. “The magic is burning my skin a bit. I thought we might be under attack.”
Seeing the pouch on the floor, I know the witches left it for us to put the magic mirror back into. At least that’s the same. We have altered the past so I don't know what else will be different here in the future. “The man with the white eyes is God. I need to go and find him. He’ll have the answers.” I drop to my knees and stuff the dagger into the magic pouch to keep it safe while I’m gone.
When I glance back at Constantine. I notice he looks worried but before he can say anything I turn and climb back into the mirror with no destination in mind. I let it suck me in, dragging me through the mirror on the other side.
As I crawl out, Mona rushes me. Her stomach is swollen big like she’s ready to burst. “Rayne! You came back!” She wraps her arms around me, crushing me. “I thought you were dead.” Her words are followed by sobs. She shakes, gripping me. “I waited for you, but I worried you wouldn't come.”
“Why?”
She pulls back, wiping her eyes. The grief and worry have made her face hollow. She looks like she hasn't eaten or slept in weeks. “The world has been in terrible chaos. There’s so much anger and hate and destruction out there. The garden has been oblivious to it, but I have seen what’s on the other side of the gate.” She runs her hand along her belly. “I can see things out there.” Her eyes are so wide I feel like they’re sucking me into them like deep, dark pools.
“Is Yahweh here?” I go out on a limb and say the name that’s been said to me.
“He’s here.” She nods eagerly. “In the woods. He stays close to the gate, maybe out of worry.”
“I need to see him.”
“It’s this way.” She grabs my hand and pulls me from the room with the mirrors all over the wall. We hurry through the busy castle, across the village, and down the path to the forest. She doesn't talk until we get there. “He was trying to reach you and then he just stopped.”
I narrow my gaze to try to see deeper into the lush green forest. “I don't see him. Is there a way to call?”
She laughs bitterly. “He comes when he feels the need.” She looks at me intently. “What did you do to the world?” Her eyes tell me a story, one I don't want to hear. One where I broke the world far more than it ever was.
“I don't know.” It’s the truth. “I used one of the witch mirrors to go to the time when each of my sisters was alive and killed them all before Lucifer could make them take the evil. So I think there’s now an accumulated amount of evil out there. I don't know what I’ve done to the timeline. I don't know what’s different from before. I have no idea what I’ve done.”
“What do you remember?”
“My whole life is a hot mess. I met you at college and Wyatt and Michelle were there, and she became a girl when my father bribed her, and Wyatt is a Van Helsing, and you’re married to the fae king, and Constantine is my ex from before, and my mom and dad are Lucifer and Lillith, but I was raised by Willow. I’m a sin eater and you're my best friend.” I exhale gasping.
“Yeah.” Her eyebrow angles. “That's how I remember it too. But Gill said that the garden isn’t touched by time. The events of the outside world have no bearing here.”
“Great.” I wince and look around. “Where’s Yahweh?”
“He comes and goes.” She shrugs. “I’m sure he’ll be back.”
“I don't have time for this. I have to go and kill my dad. Again.” I roll my eyes bitterly. “I don't know if I’m doing this right, but I’ll bring the mirror with me if I need to.”
Mona shakes her head. “Don't go. Stay here. It’s too dangerous out there.”
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn't tempted. There’s a shitstorm on the other side of the magic mirror, but it’s my shitstorm. I inherited it and maybe created it. So I have to clean it up. And I think I know how.”
Her eyes glisten. “Come back though, okay?”
“Okay.” I hug her hard, taking a deep inhale of her before turning and running back to the mirror. I might never see her again. I know that is at the very least possible.
Chapter Sixteen
Creeping up the old stairs from the basement isn’t scary, but I don't understand why Constantine left me here. I had assumed he would stay until I came back.
When I crack the door open a cold wind blows through the house. It isn’t coming from a window but from the outside. There are massive holes blown through the house and there isn’t a single witch here. I clutch to the tiny ring pouch with the magic mirror and dagger in it, wishing I knew where Constantine was.
