by Anne Haley
"You are a life saver." Aylin smiled across the table.
"I know. Just wait till you really need my saving." El winked at her and quickly went to work. After the initial wave of panic dissipated, Aylin let herself feel quite proud of El. After a few years of showing her how to work with flowers, El’s hands moved with ease. She made quick work of picking out the yellow roses and mixing in greenery. She added a few small white stephanotis blooms, hidden under the roses, for a happy marriage, just as Aylin had done with the bridal bouquet. Once that looked just how she wanted it, she grabbed a bunch of gerbera daisies. "You want me to trail some of these down the cake?" El asked her.
"Um, yes. That’s what I was thinking too." It was simple, but elegant and perfect. Aylin knew that had been exactly what she had imagined to sit on top of the four tiered cake.
After all the flowers were delivered Aylin and El walked home together. "Do you think she’ll come?" El asked Aylin as they walked up the front steps.
"I hope so. She seemed better last time. Maybe having her brother around strengthens her."
"I need to see this brother of hers. He sounds hot." El dropped her purse and shrug on the living room chair. "There’s a message." She pointed to the blinking light on the answering machine.
Aylin hit play. "Hi Aylin, this is Terra. I would like to take you up on your offer. I hope it’s not too late. I can come by tonight if that works for you." Aylin smiled at El.
"I think it’s a really bad idea to go alone. I should come with you. I mean, what if she’s some crazy nut?" Blake asked, leaning against the kitchen counter. "She just sounded so dramatic with wanting to ‘answer everything you’ve ever questioned about yourself’," Blake said mocking Aylin.
"Charming, Blake." Terra rolled her eyes. "I can’t explain it to you why she… unsettles me. But it’s not because I think she’s some psycho." Terra sighed.
Suddenly Blake was in front of her, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Try Terra. Tell me what’s going on. Why are you choosing a complete stranger over me? I’m your brother Terra. You can tell me anything." He pleaded.
She shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. "I can’t, Blake. I want to, but I don’t think I can put it into words. Maybe after I talk to her I can explain myself. But I should go alone." Terra grabbed her purse and when he followed her to the door she put a hand out to stop him. "I know I’m hurting you right now," she said quietly. "That’s tearing me apart, but I need this. Please Blake." He finally gave her a slow nod and she left him standing at the back door, watching her go.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Terra approached the house from the sidewalk, finding the cottage style home at the bend of the road. Lining the fence around Aylin’s front yard were large thorn rose bushes. "Hello Terra." Aylin smiled at her. She was sitting on her front step, holding a glass of lemonade. Her legs were stretched out in front of her allowing her white eyelet sundress to ripple in the breeze. She wore flat sandals and her ankles were crossed on the bottom step. Her shiny black hair was draped in tumbling waves down her back.
Even though everything about her was welcoming there was something off and Terra couldn’t put her finger on it. The moment she had first seen Aylin, that first day in the bookstore, she knew Aylin was different. At first it had been terrifying, looking up from her spot on the floor stocking the shelves up to her when she seemed to glimmer, lighting the shelves and books around her. It had been a shifting silver glow around her, and when their eyes met it sent waves toward Terra. The sight was mesmerizing and frightening, especially when she realized no one else in the store seemed to notice it.
Here Aylin sat in the evening light, with the sun beating down on her, and the same glow was barely visible. The sunlight masked it, but didn’t completely hide it. It pulsed around her, as if it were as alive as she. "Come on in." Aylin was still smiling at her, even though she had stopped at the gate.
Terra looked down at the lock on the gate and stilled. There was a slight current running over the white picket fence. She hadn’t thought it to be an electrical fence, but it seemed to glimmer just like the current around Aylin. Terra reached out her hand to touch the wood, and the current seemed to slow, and pull itself together, concentrating under her hand. She tensed her muscles as she brought her hand down, ready for a shock. But she didn’t feel any pain.
Terra opened the gate and stepped across the entrance and an odd feeling came over her. Immediately a wave of warm air came over her, lifting her hair off her neck, and flowed straight through her like she were a ghost. Every ounce of air had been stolen from her lungs, and just as quickly new clean air filled her lungs. Terra swore she heard it whoosh in and out.
Her heart hammered in her chest; every inch of her body fought against the overwhelming calm of Aylin. There was something not right with the woman, and it was the same thing Terra feared was developing in her.
"Aylin, right?" Terra asked nervously, her hands were shaking from the madness that just happened to her at the entrance.
"Yes." Aylin stood and smiled widely to Terra. Terra had to stifle another gasp. First, Aylin seemed to not have noticed what just went on at the gate. Second, the closer she got to Aylin, the more she could see the woman was literally glowing. The pulsing iridescent aura came from her core and beat outwards. It would be a terrifying sight if she weren’t so beautiful. It seemed to change and shift when she moved, and when she looked down at Terra, the waves traveled toward her. Terra wanted to back away and run. "Eliana is inside making dinner. Have you met her?"
"Um, no. I don’t think so." She wrung her hands together. She was beginning to turn away when she spotted the patch of bluebells in the corner of the yard. The sight of them made her sigh, and relax her shoulders slightly.
"You would know if you did. You’ll like her; it’s unfortunately hard not too. Are you hungry?" Aylin opened the front door for Terra.
"Oh, um, sure." Terra shrugged. Terra stopped just inside the door and looked around. She might as well have walked into a house that was in a cottage style decorating magazine. The entryway of the house opened to the brightly lit living room from the sunlight streaming in the windows. The cream colored couch sat in front of three windows, and the wooden blinds were pulled up high, allowing every bit of the low sun into the room. Tan and sky blue pillows were tossed on the couch, instead of placed neatly, along with the cream colored throw. Books and candle lanterns covered every surface, making it feel down right cozy. Scattered around the room were pottery vases filled with lush flower arrangements from carnations to sunflowers to orchids. It was clean and casual with a strong sense of comfort.
When she took a few steps inside she turned her head to look into the dining room, which was simple with a long dark wood table, with more pottery vases and lanterns. "You’d never guess that El would be such a wonderful cook." Aylin led her through the dining room into the kitchen. "Eliana, meet Terra."
Eliana was blond, bronzed and beautiful. Terra almost whimpered when she saw the distinct glow around Eliana. Hers was orange, and didn’t seem to pulse like Aylin, she seemed to smolder like hot embers left from a bonfire. Terra was afraid to go near her as if she would burn her. She beamed at Terra. "Hey." She waved a hand, and the slight movement of her hand sent a warm wave toward Terra. Terra felt the warmth touch her face. "It took you long enough to get here-"
"El!" Aylin snapped.
"But better late than never." Her smile didn’t falter. "I’m keeping dinner simple tonight, just a pasta primavera. Hope you don’t mind."
"Oh, it sounds great." Terra felt her head start to spin. The wonderful smell of tomatoes, onion, and garlic sautéing together in the kitchen made her stomach growl, letting her know that the small bowl of oatmeal she ate this morning had long worn off. She desperately wanted to ask them why they looked so different to her, but she didn’t think that would be very polite considering she was their guest. And who knew what the woman made of fire would do to her food.
"Here," Eliana sh
oved a hunk of warm rosemary bread into Terra’s hands. Her fingers lightly touched Terra’s thumb, and she wanted to laugh. Eliana’s skin felt no hotter than hers. "I could hear your stomach clear across the kitchen."
"Oh! Gosh, I’m sorry." Terra shook her head. "It just smells so good."
"Nothing to be sorry about," El lifted a shoulder and headed back to the stove. Terra began nibbling on the bread, which had a thin hard crust and the center was light and airy.
In stark contrast to Aylin, Eliana was barefoot and her toenails were painted a glittery red, which matched the scrap of red fabric that was a dress. It was cut low in the front and hung loosely from her shoulders with two tiny straps. The bottom was a stretchy band that hugged her bottom, and not much more. Her blond hair had been twisted up on top of her head. Terra blinked and averted her eyes to the wall because she felt embarrassed for looking at El’s mile long legs. She had been taught that it wasn’t polite to stare, and she had been staring.
Before she knew it, she only had a few crumbs left in her hand. Aylin came back into the kitchen with a bottle of wine. "I think we will eat before we get serious, but since it’s not quite ready yet I will give you a tour. It’s not large by any means, but it’s our home." She winked at Terra.
Off the kitchen was a small gathering area where the stairwell was. Doorways led to the living room, bathroom and a small office. When Terra peaked her head in the office she noticed immediately that it was not a small office, but a work room. The desk was a large wooden table with a stool tucked underneath. Empty jars and lids were scattered on the surface of the table. The walls were lined with shelving, and were full of jars and canisters. Terra took a step inside to peer at the jars. On the wall closest to the table the jars were full of dried herbs, flowers, and seeds. The wall that had the door on it had thousands of jars of oils, creams, powders, and stacks of muslin cloth. "What is all of this?" she asked Aylin.
"It’s a little side business that El and I have. She has a knack with working with herbs, so we make oils, bath salts, shampoos, cooking oils, etc." Aylin shrugged. "Some are for pure pleasure, others for ailments. Ever since El has been in my life I haven’t bought a single bottle of hand cream." Aylin smiled at Terra.
"This is amazing." Terra ran her finger over a handmade label. It was on a cobalt blue bottle and stated the contents inside were Rosemary Beeswax Furniture Polish.
"And household cleaners." Aylin shrugged. "Why don’t you take that? It will make your home smell really nice." She plucked it off the shelf. "It’s easy to use," she said tapping her finger on the label on the back of the bottle with the directions.
"Thank you." Terra flushed.
Aylin led her up the upstairs, which was no more than their bedrooms, and El’s was significantly larger than Aylin’s. "I would have never heard the end of it if I had the room with the largest closet. Her amount of clothing is quite remarkable." Aylin said with a hushed tone.
"I heard that!" El called from the kitchen, her voice rising up the stairs.
"Where did you grow up?" Aylin asked once they sat down to eat at the large dining room table. They were only using up half the table, and Terra wondered if they did a lot of entertaining.
"I’ve lived in a town called Lancaster Bay in Minnesota my whole life. It’s on Lake Superior." She didn’t notice the look that passed between Aylin and El. "My mother owns the only bookstore in town, and it’s one of the few stores that stays open year round. It’s a tourist town in the summer because there are so many places to go hiking and camping around town. So many people don’t realize that there is a large community of artists there. It’s a beautiful town." She speared a chunk of tomato. "Eliana, this is wonderful."
"El, please. Eliana is so formal." El smiled. "Thank you."
"Where did you learn to cook?"
"Culinary school," El shrugged. "My parents are very, very wealthy, but they don’t want me to rely on my inheritance. I suppose its smart thinking. My grandfather started out with barely anything to his name, and at the end of his life he had more money than he ever dreamed possible. My father is carrying on the legacy. Thank God I have a brother to learn the business because I am no paper pusher." She poured herself a second glass of wine. "Save room for dessert, I made a strawberry custard tart."
"What about you, Aylin?" Terra asked.
Aylin shrugged and leaned back. "I was born and raised here. My father died when I was ten, so I helped my mother in the floral shop. I took over the store four years ago when she was diagnosed with cancer. She passed six months later, leaving me this house and her store." She waved her wineglass around, gesturing to the walls around them.
"I’m so sorry," Terra said softly.
"It’s alright, but thank you." Aylin smiled. Terra could tell there was more to her and El’s stories, but she didn’t feel like she was comfortable enough to ask. She had been having a hard enough time trying to ignore the glimmering light that danced on the walls from the candlelight and the two women. "So, tell me, Terra, what brings you to Willoughby Island? So far from your home?"
"I just needed to get away for awhile. Change of scenery," Terra said automatically, and shrugged her shoulders.
"I know that feeling," Eliana said smiling. "What kind of work did you do there?"
"I help my mom run a bookstore in town. I also repair old book spines."
"Oh, how interesting." Aylin leaned forward. "I bet you saw some pretty interesting books."
"Yeah, I only repair spines right now. I hope to develop it into a full restoration of old books, you know, restoring the leather, the pages, everything about it. I’ve heard there are families looking to get their ancient family bibles restored. It’s really impressive what can be restored." She shrugged, "But I have a lot to learn before I get to that level."
"But you’re on your way." Aylin tipped her wine glass to her.
"Yes." Terra nodded.
"Dessert?" El held out a plate that had what looked like a slice of creamy heaven on it. But Terra was distracted by El’s wrist. She held the plate so the inside of her wrist was facing up. On it was a Celtic tattoo. Three swirls formed three circles, and in the center between the circles was a small, intertwined triangle. Each of the three circles was different. On El’s, the lower left circles was an orange sun with it’s flares turning red and yellow. The other two circles were black, but one was a full moon, and the other was the earth. What distracted her was how familiar it looked. "Terra?"
"Tattoo," she could barely utter, pointing at her wrist.
"Oh, yes. Recognize it?" El smiled.
Terra numbly slipped off the thick leather strap she wore as a bracelet everyday. Hidden underneath laid an exact replica of El’s tattoo, except the sun was black, and the earth was colored in blues and greens. The reason she had kept it hidden was because she swore she could see the earth slowly turning on her skin. She knew it couldn’t be possible for a tattoo to change. Terra’s tattoo had appeared on her wrist, and it had unnerved her to discover it since it hadn’t been something she had ever done to herself.
Aylin held out her own wrist, which also bore the same tattoo, except the moon illuminated silver. "How is this possible? I mean I didn’t even get this done. My whole life I had this ugly dark birthmark there. Then on my eighteenth birthday it changed into this."
"The birthmark was hideous, wasn’t it?" El wrinkled her nose. "I always tried to cover it with makeup. Of course, it never worked."
"How is this possible?" Terra asked again.
"Let’s start at the beginning." Aylin held up her hand to quiet Terra. "It’s a long story, so eat your tart. El, get another bottle of wine."
Terra took a quick bite of the tart, and was about to take a second when she stopped. There was a different flavor than strawberries and the sugar glaze in this tart. "What is in this?" she asked conversationally.
"Oh, some sugared honeysuckle." El licked her spoon, watching Terra.
"That’s edible?" She frowned at the tart
in front of her.
"Oh yes. Some even believe it’s good to eat because it helps one understand… things." El shrugged and winked at Aylin.
Without another word Terra had inhaled her tart and now she sat on the edge of the sofa. El and Aylin walked in, carrying a new bottle of wine and their glasses. "Okay, Terra, are you ready?"
Terra took a deep breath and slowly nodded. "Yes."
Aylin sat perched on the other end of the sofa, making sure she gave Terra some distance. Eliana, however, lounged in the overstuffed chair, her feet propped up on the footrest. El nodded at Aylin.
"When I was a child I was vaguely aware that my parents were different from other adults. They weren’t treated differently, but no other parents spent extended periods of time in the woods, or have message bottles appear in the yard, or the pond, or have pantries full of dried flowers and herbs." Aylin smiled at herself. "One night I slept over at my best friend’s house. We snuck out to the garden and I asked her why they didn’t have any floating lights in their garden. I figured they were broken or they forgot to turn them on. She laughed at me and told me that you don’t have Christmas lights on in the summer. I learned to keep my mouth shut when I was a teenager. There was so much I didn’t understand, but I didn’t want to express my embarrassment to my mother. After my father passed she kept herself tirelessly busy with the shop.
"The night I turned eighteen my mother slowed down. It was just before midnight, and I was reading in bed when she slipped into my room." The memory easily opened to Aylin, still so fresh in her mind.
Nights in late August were prone to be hot and sticky with humidity. Her mother didn’t like to run the air conditioner, so Aylin had her ceiling fan on, her two windows wide open, and a second floor fan pointed at her. With all this airflow moving around her, she felt sweaty, even down to her toes. It was stifling hot sitting in bed. She had kicked all the covers off, pushing them to the floor, and only her small bedside lamp was on to read. She felt sticky and uncomfortable, and desperate for her book, a murder mystery in Antarctica, to distract her. She was to turn eighteen in three minutes.
