Ophelia frowned, “Why do you all keep saying these things about me. I’m no witch. I’m a regular girl. I want to go home. I'm being haunted by a poltergeist. I want my mom and dad and my sister. Do you know where they’re keeping her?”
“Ophelia welcome. I’m Lydia. It’s so nice to meet you finally my dear.”
She turned to see an older woman walking into the room. Something about her made Ophelia feel relaxed. The older woman took her hands and squeezed them. “Please sit and relax. You’ve had an odd day I would imagine. That was some prom you manifested.”
‘Trust her Ophelia. She’s like us.’
She tried to ignore the voices but she watched, as an older lady seemed to sense them there.
Ophelia nodded, feeling herself getting teary again, “It's been a terrible week. First he froze and then they chased me and the voices and then the wolf and my sister and prom and now here.” She knew she wasn’t making sense but she felt lost in it all.
Lydia laughed bitterly, “Nothing I haven’t heard before my love. Sit and have some tea. It will relax you. Now how much do you know?”
Ophelia shrugged, “About what?”
Lydia looked over at the ghost, “I guess we’ll start at the beginning. Your parents are very powerful people Ophelia.”
“Vic and Helen are my parents.”
She smiled a sweet old lady smile, “Of course you would believe that. Anyway your real parents are very powerful people. Your father wanted a son, for a very long time. Purposefully your mother only ever gave birth to girls. They were, well…”
“Slaughtered Miss Ophelia. My sisters and I feels it every time he takes another one. The light leaves the earth for a day when the magic is taken into the dark. Don’t be sugar coating none of this Miss Lydia. None of it.”
Ophelia shook her head, “I don’t get it. I don’t have sisters who are dead. Just Abbey. My parents are boring people. You have the wrong person.”
“No sweetie, the people who’ve raised you were not your real parents. They too believed you were theirs but you were put there.”
The words stung. She felt the truth in them somehow, but she pushed it away. She shook her head, as if it stopped the words from sinking in. “No, no, no, no.”
‘She tells the truth sister.’
She looked up suddenly to see the six balls of light separate and fill the room with light. They became the ghostly figures they had been before. They each looked identical to her but with blue lights instead of eyes.
“How?” Lydia gasped, looking around the room.
Ophelia couldn’t help but be thankful that someone besides her could see the ghostly women.
“Ophelia have they been with you long?”
She shook her head, watching the six mirror images, “They came the other day.”
Lydia shook her head, “What’s special about this week? Hmmm it’s only June. You’re birthday will be in July.”
Ophelia frowned, “My birthday is September 21st.”
Lydia shook her head, “No we know you were born in July.” She counted the six floating balls, “July 7th if I’m not mistaken."
Her eyes grew frightened for a second, as she looked at the ghostly maid who scowled.
“She be the seventh daughter of the seventh daughter born on the seventh day of the seven month? That be great. Just great. Just dandy.” The maid vanished.
Ophelia frowned, “Why does she hate me?”
Lydia laughed, “She doesn’t sweetie. She just fears what’s next. You are the prophecy I’m afraid.”
Ophelia shook her head, “This day is just getting better by the second. What prophecy? You people have me confused. I'm telling you. I'm not the girl.”
Lydia looked up as a redhead walked into the room with a very tall young man and a pretty blonde girl. The blonde looked haunted.
“The prophecy of the end of days. You've heard of Armageddon?” The redhead spoke with a bite in her tone.
Ophelia felt her breath quicken, “You people speak in riddles, just answer a question.”
The blonde laughed bitterly, “It gets so much worse. I still don’t get straight answers and I’ve been here years. I’m Aimee and while this seems like some kind of odd dinner theatre production, it isn’t.” She put a hand out and forced a smile across her lips.
Ophelia took the girl’s hand and attempted a smile, “Ophelia. It does seem like a play or a movie.”
“This is Lorri and Lucas.”
Ophelia smiled and tried not to point out that they were standing amongst her pretend ghosts. They didn’t seem to see them hovering there, looking spooky.
“Do you ever have dreams that seem like they’re trying to tell you something?”
She shook her head, “No.”
The ghost maid came toward her, “Does some peoples act like they don’t sees you?”
Ophelia blushed as she looked at Jake and nodded her head, “Sometimes. My aunt. She swore up and down she couldn’t see me.”
Annabelle threw her arms in the air, “The witches who saved her put a curse on her. Baby girl you are trouble. You Roses is biting off too much this time.” She was gone again before Ophelia could ask her any questions.
She looked at the people left in the room and scowled, “Is anyone going to tell me what’s really going on?” She wanted to know where her sister was. Not to mention where she was. She looked back at Jake and sighed.
“Ophelia dear, we are telling you the truth. You are more special than you know. Come sit by me.” Lydia patted the couch and smiled as if she were her grandmother and about to offer her a cookie.
Chapter Twelve
Sam
Her red hair stood out against the brunettes. He watched her smile and laugh through the small window of the tiny Greek kitchen. It was just like the other times. He watched her laugh and smile or read. As always, she was clueless to his spying eye. From the moment he had met her he had known, she was his. He would never forget seeing her splash of strawberry blond hair against her father’s chest, before the accident. He remembered her mother taking her own life. He tried to block out the unhappy memories. He tried not to remember the pain on her father’s face, the tears that streamed before the rage took him.
Sam had never suspected Marcus in the blame for her mother’s death. No one had. His advances toward her mother had been kept secret. She had never told anyone. Sam had always loved her like an aunt. She was of the few Sirens who had shown love and sisterly affections toward his mother. They had visited him and his mother on the Canadian Island many times when Hanna was tiny.
His heart ached, watching her through the window.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
He looked at Lorri standing beside him. She had moved there silently.
“I go where my heart is Lorri.”
Lorri watched Hanna laugh and enjoy meeting the other Sirens. After a few moments she spoke, “They could come for you if they sense you.”
He felt the grim smile cross his lips, “I would kill them all.”
“Samuel.”
The tone in her voice told him there was no negotiating with her.
He watched for one more second, before flashing back to the woods in Lydia’s back yard. He felt the distance between them instantly crush his chest. He dropped to his knees, ignoring the wet moss soaking through his jeans. The extreme difference between late June in Portland Oregon and Ithaca Greece became obvious, as he felt the cold mist creep into his skin.
He wished for a second he could shift into an animal and go kill things in the forest. He wished Ben were there. Ben would make him laugh and make snide comments about Hanna.
He heard footsteps behind him in the moist grass. He looked back at the haunted face of Aimee walking toward him.
“Can we talk?” Her voice cracked.
He wanted to say no. He wanted to dislike her as much as she disliked Hanna but he couldn’t. He loved her like a sister.
He stood and nodded.
She sat on the bench next to the lake. He watched her eyes gloss over as she struggled with her breath.
His chest ached again but not for Hanna. It hurt knowing the losses were fresh wounds that festered instead of healing.
“I can’t do it anymore.” She whispered.
“I know. I miss them too Aimes.” He felt moisture threaten his eyes, as he pushed away the thoughts of Ben and the many nights they had spent laughing and joking. He had become the brother Sam never had.
“I made the wrong choice S-S-Sam.” Her voice broke on his name. She sniffed and wiped her eyes. “I knew he would be there waiting for me. I knew it wouldn’t always work with Shane. He’s human. I knew it wouldn’t last. I just loved him for so long. It felt like the choice my heart would have made before.” She broke into sobs.
Sam dropped to his knees in front of her and encased her with his body. Her shaking cries filled his chest, as she lost the control she always struggled to maintain.
Sam had gotten tired of her battles with which guy to love. He had always hoped she would just chose Aleksander and be done with it. He liked Shane just fine, but the whole mortal thing had been doomed from the start.
He rubbed her back and let her wreak havoc on his t-shirt with her tears and god only knew what else.
“I can’t face him. I can’t see him. I need to but I’m scared.”
“I know Aims. I’m scared too.”
She pulled back wiping her puffy cheeks, “I feel like I’m never going to get my sister back and Blake is going to kill her. I feel like everything is lost. You know?”
“Yeah I do. You bitches have been hard on my lady and now she’s in Greece. They hate me in Greece. They hate angels. Well they hate humans too. They hate everyone. You should go there. You'd fit in.”
She laughed and slapped his chest, “I don’t hate everyone. I like you. And we were nice to her. Very nice.” She leaned in and sniffed. She closed her eyes for a second and let it fill her. He felt almost violated by how long she lingered.
