When she turned the corner, she stopped dead in her tracks, nearly scuffing her leather boots. The man who had assaulted her sister was standing right in front of her door. He turned to her. Catherine didn’t know what to do. She wasn’t frightened, though she thought perhaps she should be. Though he could be dangerous, he didn’t look it.
“Hello!” he called.
Catherine simply waved her hand as a reflex. She walked closer. He seemed frustrated.
“I told you to leave!” he said, agitated.
“Who are YOU to tell me anything?!” she replied pointedly in a harsh tone.
He seemed taken aback, and his voice grew softer, “I’m sorry again. It’s important that you leave. I told you . . . they will come and you will not be safe. No one in Ireland will be safe.” His concern grew with each word.
“Who are they?” she asked raising an eyebrow.
He seemed stand offish, “I can’t say.”
“Well then, I can’t help you . . .”
He was unmoving.
Catherine gave out a sigh, loudly exasperated. “Well, who are you then?”
“My name is Bowen,” his voice grew deep when he said his name.
“Bowen . . . How do you know me? Have we met before?” she asked.
“It doesn’t matter,” he replied curtly.
“Right,” Catherine stood her ground and looked him dead in the face, “Look yo-Bowen, you’ve been stalking me! How do you know my name, and where I live for that matter?”
Catherine could tell he was conflicted. Her arms were getting tired from the heavy grocery bags, but she continued to stand patiently waiting.
As though he’d made a decision, his stance became rigid and he said nothing.
“Fine,” she said. Bowen looked at her surprised. “I don’t have time for this . . .” she muttered to herself, and stepped to pass him.
Bowen took a step in front of her. “You must leave. If you don’t go on your own, I will have to force you. I can’t risk it any longer!” he said angrily.
“Well then, what are you talking about? If you’ll only tell me!” Her feet were planted, ready to swing at him if he made another move.
“I hate this . . .” he mumbled under his breath.
Catherine felt her cheeks flush with anger.
“My brother will be here shortly. And you are already on Garda records, Mr. Unknown, should something happen to me. They have your description. I won’t just leave my life here because some nut tells me to, without a reason of any kind. So it’s up to you how this plays out . . . you tell me, or shall we duke it out right here and now?” She dropped her bags on the ground emphatically.
“I’m not going to fight you, Catherine.”
“Oh? You certainly came off pushy before,” she said.
“You won’t believe the truth,” he replied solemnly.
“Try me,” she said putting her hands on her hips, waiting.
“You haven’t believed anything I say so far . . .” he mumbled.
Catherine heard footsteps and turned to see Danny come around the corner. He was holding the stamps in his hand with the receipt. She turned back to Bowen, but he was gone. She turned around frantically trying to glimpse him in the distance. But he had disappeared.
Danny smiled his lopsided grin. “What’s wrong?” he asked, seeing the groceries on the ground.
“Ugghhh!” was all Catherine could get out.
“Okay . . .” he replied and held up the stamps with the receipt to his sister, “Here, I didn’t want to crunch them in my pockets or bag, so they’ve been in my dirty airport hands.”
“Thank you Danny,” she sighed.
“Sorry, what was I supposed to do? Would you rather I’d bent them?”
“What?”
“The stamps . . .”
“Oh, no you did fine, it’s not that,” she said, bending to pick up the bags.
“Ah, then, what’s your problem?” Danny asked, quickly grabbing some fruit that had rolled out of one.
“Someone was just here. That guy I told you about from the other night,” she said.
“That guy who bothered you and Kathleen at the pub?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh my God Catherine, that was the guy? He was big, you can’t take him!”
Catherine looked up at her brother with a surprised expression, “I can take him just fine, don’t you worry!”
“Listen, just be careful,” he sounded concerned.
Catherine rolled her eyes as she patted her brother’s arm before unlocking the door to go in. Though she was staunchly feminist, she was glad Danny was visiting during this drama. Catherine didn’t need this right now. There was already too much going on in her life.
Kathleen was in the sitting room with her pink laptop on her lap. She was watching a favorite mystery drama on the Internet. She looked up at her siblings when they entered through the door. After she waved her hand in greeting, she looked back down quickly.
“Nice,” Danny said, relieved to drop his backpack on the floor. He had packed it to the fullest.
“What?” Kathleen looked up again.
“You haven’t seen me in months, and that’s how you greet me? With a wave of your hand?” The irritation in his tone was mostly aimed at Kathleen, but some over the pain in his shoulders while he tried to massage the kinks out, wincing.
“I’m just in the middle of this intense scene! Jenny is about to figure out who the spy is!”
Danny shook his head, “Oh, that . . .” then he walked over to look down at the screen, and within a few minutes was locked into the drama just as deeply as Kathleen.
After Catherine put the groceries away, she was too preoccupied with everything to concentrate on her planned work research. She leaned on the counter in thought, wondering where Bowen had disappeared to, and just when he would reappear again to cause trouble. Walking into her room she threw herself on her bed. She stared at the ceiling in a daze. Relishing this moment of peace, she thought of nothing, absolutely nothing. After some time had passed her mind began to wander again, but aimlessly this time, and she fell into a deep sleep filled with strange shapes and occurrences. Her dreams led to their graduation trip to Ireland, and one of the days they ventured out of Dublin to some rural spots surrounded by trees, hills and lakes. She remembered feeling watched in one area, but in this dream Bowen appeared in view to startle the scene.
Knock Knock.
Catherine couldn’t tell where the knocking was coming from. She looked around the still figure of Bowen before her, and behind her as well. Bowen’s hand reached out for her.
KNOCK KNOCK.
Catherine fumbled awake.
“Catherine?” came Kathleen’s voice.
“What is it?” her voice was only slightly groggy.
Kathleen opened the door, “The internet went out. Can you call the provider company?”
Catherine sighed for a moment while holding her head. Then she smiled. “I was thinking we’d just go out for the rest of the day, like we did during our last trip here,” Catherine replied.
“Why?”
“Just to get out of the house. Let’s go revisit a few places.”
“Danny, did the reset button work?” Kathleen turned and yelled behind her, completely ignoring Catherine’s suggestion.
When Kathleen was no longer overcome by the show’s cliffhanger, she reluctantly consented to going somewhere, as long as it wasn’t a tourist spot.
“That’s not revisiting places though . . .” sighed Catherine.
They soon agreed on finding a nice spot outside the city. Both girls decided a walk, as long as it was nice weather, would be pleasant. Leaving Danny, who didn’t want to go, the twins set off in Catherine’s compact car. Once the drive went far enough away from the city, it was easy to find a quiet, hilly place in the country. As they cruised the rural road, Catherine kept an eye out for the best place to stop, but suddenly recognized the eerie tingling sensation on her ar
ms. Worried it was a warning about something on the road, she chose to stop right then and parked off to the side. The sensation remained, as it usually did, for some time, so she ignored it. They stretched their legs before beginning their walk to enjoy the scenery. At first, they stayed on the road for a while and took in the lengthy land off to one side speckled with hills in the distance. The sun was high, and the grass was green. They could see layers of flowers that gave a different hue of color wavering above the green.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve walked together, just the two of us, to talk,” Kathleen said looking ahead.
Catherine thought about it for a moment, “Yes it has,” she agreed.
Kathleen paused to breathe in deeply. “Ah! It really is so beautiful here, it even smells beautiful,” she remarked.
“Mhm,” Catherine agreed, chuckling quietly.
As they continued, their steps fell in sync after a while. Catherine kept watching her sister and thought she seemed peaceful for the first time in many years.
“You know, I’m very proud of you,” Kathleen said, breaking the momentary silence.
“What for?” she raised her eyebrows.
“For accomplishing your dream with work and moving here,” she smiled.
Catherine smiled back, “Thank you, that means a lot.”
They continued to talk about anything and everything, just like they did as children. Kathleen’s infectious laugh reminded Catherine of how much she enjoyed spending time with her sister, how she once was. When the laughter died down to a calming roar, they slowed their pace and decided to sit for a moment on the gravel. The dirt felt hot under their hands as they lowered themselves down.
“Kathleen, why aren’t you like this more often?” Catherine asked as she fiddled with some grass.
“Like how?”
“Like you, the real you. Why do you hide it away? I mean, it’s almost like you want nice people to dislike you,” Catherine said, then quickly realized she might have gone too far. “I’m sorry! I just mean—”
“I know what you mean,” Kathleen sighed, fidgeting over a split nail on her index finger. “Catherine, you’ve always known what drives you, what you wanted. I never found anything like that for myself. I felt lost,” she said.
“I see . . .” Catherine was stunned by her honesty.
“So I changed,” Kathleen continued, “because I had nothing meaningful in my life. Nothing to strive for. I became shallow, and consumed with unimportant things. I became mentally, and emotionally lazy. Unfortunately, my standards in myself, as well as in men became lazy too. I thought he cared about me . . .” she cleared her throat. “I’m still me, the me you know, I just buried it. It’s all an act. I’m a fake, Catherine!”
Catherine could see she was holding back tears.
Softly, Kathleen continued, “It’s just easier to act the way I do, rather than admit I’m going nowhere. I—I feel I have no purpose. I should have found it by now, right?” she asked. “I know how you and Danny must have thought of me all this time, of how I act. Selfish, and rude. I know I’m a pain! But being meaningful, I can’t. Especially now with the divorce. I know I did this to myself. It’s just too much to handle. What do I do, Catherine? I don’t know anymore!” Kathleen’s tears flowed freely now.
Catherine was feeling teary herself at this sudden confession from her sister, and she reached over to hug her. “I don’t know, Kathleen. But I’ll help you in any way I can! We’ll figure it out together now that you’re here with me. Keep letting your real self out, and maybe the act will fade away,” she said holding her tightly. She pulled back to look at her, “No one figures everything out right away. You’ll find your purpose!”
Kathleen sniffled and leaned back on Catherine’s shoulder, giving her a sweet smile. After a time, they both felt better and continued on their walk.
*
About an hour later, Catherine walked alone down a small hill as she mused about the scenery. She usually felt calm surrounded by nature. But not today, not right now. Catherine’s senses were off. She felt uneasy, and she didn’t know why. The not knowing was probably the worst of it. So as she passed bushes with her feet kicking up dust, and as the heels of those feet felt the harsh rocky ground beneath them, swinging her arms trying to appear cheerful, Catherine began to whistle. But she soon felt silly and instead resigned to stop for a break to take in the sky and the outstretched land on her left.
Stepping over to take in the view she sighed, and looked back the way she came. Kathleen had said she wanted to sit alone for a while because her feet hurt from walking. I’ll go back soon she thought to herself. But not too soon. That way Kathleen won’t feel I’m being over-protective as always.
Catherine looked up at the sky and saw an empty blue mass. Not a cloud. The sun was bright, which made her squint. But she loved every minute of it. She closed her eyes to feel the sun warm her face. Just a few moments she thought. While soaking in the sun, Catherine thought that it amazed her how opposite she was from her sister. Thinking of their childhood made her smile. Where had all those nice times gone? Kathleen was the same person somewhere in there after all. This outdoor venture had been the first showing in many years. Catherine missed that side of her sister, and wanted to see it more often. A deep breath of the fresh air mingled with dust from the road filled Catherine’s lungs, and as she exhaled she firmly decided to have another talk with her twin sister about her feelings on the matter. She opened her eyes and turned away, trying to blink the spots from the light of the sun out of her eyes. Perhaps that was longer than a few moments she thought.
Walking along, Catherine all of the sudden felt very strange. It was an unsettling feeling which made her skin crawl and caused her body to shiver. Then came a hot sensation in her core that calmed her. There was an invisible and deeply rooted pull inside her to change direction. As she followed the eerie feeling, it lessened the further she went. Suddenly, as she turned a corner to her right, Catherine stubbed her toe. Around the bend there was a pile of giant rocks in a wooded area. Gritting her teeth to avoid cursing, she leaned against the offending rock as it jutted out in a spot above her shoulder. Moving a step further she could see it was connected to the rocky hill. She saw a bubbling creek and hobbled over to it to inspect the water. It seemed clear enough so she took off her shoe and quickly stuck her foot into the numbing stream to bring relief to her inflamed toes.
Catherine watched as blood mingled with the bubbles and quickly spread. The impact had apparently cut part of her ankle as well. It wasn’t a bad cut, though she would have to clean it better when she got home. She was taking one of her socks to soak in the cold water to dab with, when the sock flew out of her hand. Catherine struggled to hobble over to retrieve it from behind an old standing stone that came to her elbow in height. She was excited to notice the stone had very worn illegible markings carved into it, methodically arranged. After briefly studying it to no avail, she then used it to help her lean over as she picked up her sock and returned to the creek to complete her task. Plopping herself down full force on the ground to leave her aching foot in the water to soak comfortably, she thought she heard a noise. Suddenly, someone appeared to her left some feet away towering over her. She started.
“No need to be alarmed,” Bowen said, his long arms crossed in front of him.
Catherine let out a yelp, and looked away irritated as she hit the top of her thigh in frustration. “Geez! You didn’t have to sneak up on me!” She took a breath. “You can’t just say ‘No need to be alarmed’ and expect me not to be, just so you know.”
“I see . . .” he looked past Catherine, lingering for a moment, then returned his gaze to her judging hazel eyes.
“What are you doing here? You shouldn’t be following me.”
“I’m not trying to threaten you. I’m warning you. What you’re doing is incredibly dangerous-”
“Incredibly dangerous? Hiking with my sister, and stubbing my toe?” Catherine interrupted.
“Why are you being this way? I’m trying to save you, to save everyone!” Bowen said as he slapped his hands down against his sides in defeat and frustration.
Silence surrounded them as Catherine took out her foot to look it over.
“Is your foot all right?”
Catherine side glanced up at Bowen, but didn’t answer.
Bowen sighed and walked closer before sitting down. “What can I do to make you see that what I’m saying is true?”
“That what I’m doing is dangerous?” Catherine said.
“I’m not talking about your stubbed toe. I mean you being in Ireland, and walking here . . . it’s uncanny,” Bowen said gesturing around him.
“Why, what’s wrong with here specifically?”
“If I tell you then you’ll promise to go?”
“Of course not,” Catherine replied.
“Why on earth not?!” Bowen shouted.
“Because I can’t make a blind promise to someone I don’t trust. Sorry.” Catherine said flatly.
Catherine noticed Bowen’s hair was curling down his neck from the heat of the day. His green eyes blazed at her. She felt oddly aware that she was attracted to him, and wondered if he felt it too. Catherine scoffed at the idea, knowing every time she’d seen the man he was telling her to leave. Yet the stalking was sending mixed signals, along with that look he gave her. She laughed under her breath. I know how to pick ‘em.
“It’s insulting you think this is funny . . .” Bowen huffed.
“I don’t! Honestly . . .” Catherine held up her hands in surrender.
Bowen stared at the ground.
“Look, I’m sorry that you hate me. But it’s really not my problem. Maybe you should see somebody about that, and just stay away from me if I’m making you so angry that you want me to leave Ireland.”
Bowen’s eyes widened then narrowed. “It’s to save everyone . . .” he mumbled.
“What?”
“It’s the only way . . . to save everyone from them,” he looked at her, and added “. . . I don’t hate you.”
Catherine’s eyes locked with his. In that look, in that moment, she could see he believed what he was saying. And for some reason so did she. “Save everyone from who?”
Oak & Mistletoe Page 3
