Shadow Taking Over

4 - Someone left the door open

Footsteps stomped down each step, attempting to break the wood. They travelled a short distance afterword, pausing, then disappearing behind a door. Lance left with Alice to take care of an "unwanted individual" as he described it. This left Eve alone in the basement, the only place in the home without objects she could burn. Panels of silver coated the walls. The floor was concrete. Down here, Eve freed her body of the baggy clothes that kept her heat preserved within her. The original bandages from that first day still wrapped tightly around her waist, upper thigh and chest. She could walk around bare foot without worrying about starting a fire. Even though the basement was dark, she could see by the light of her own palms when she ignited them. Before, she would not have thought to watch a fire glow. Now, to stare at its brilliance was the only thing that could keep her calm.

Today, she wanted to leave her quiet paradise to visit Tanner. Lance never let her out of his sight, so this would be her only opportunity for awhile. That's why she had patiently waited several hours awake for him to depart. She didn't know when he would be back, but she knew it wouldn't be right away. With much reluctance, Eve pulled her clothes back on. Each step she scaled barely squeaked under her weightless. Fire and shadow were not dense.

The living room was just as she remembered it. Single crimson cushioned couch, a dark oak table, a brown and red woven carpet, an alcohol cabinet completely stocked, and a medium sized television resting upon a bookshelf filled the living space. All too familiar to her was the wafting stench of ale mixed with cigar smoke. Eve noticed a bunched up blanket and pillow on one side of the couch. It was apparent that the couch acted as Alice's permanent sleeping arrangement now. Alice no longer had her own bedroom because of Eve. She could not feel regret for that consequence.

In the hallway leading to the front door was a mirror. Eve stared at it from afar, debating whether she dare face herself. Ever since she had burnt Alice's room to ash, a month ago, Lance had forbid her from traveling about the house. Her first and only glance at her new self had been that fateful night. She fought the urge to look for she worried at what she might see. She took her right bicep in her grasp tightly, massaging the leather-like material concealing it. Steadily, Eve breathed through her mouth and approached the mirror like a timid mouse.

Horrific.

Staring back was someone she couldn't recognize. Slowly, she brought her ashen hand to touch the mirror. Eve locked gazes with herself. The under of her sunken eyes were lined from days without proper sleep. Tiny scratches pointing every which way rested on the right of her mouth. Those scratches were self inflicted due to stress. She gently stroked a few lines with her index nail. Her lips chapped and naturally darkened in tone. It stood out against the pale. Ovals of sheer white skin enclosed the space around her eyes. She scrubbed her chin with both hands, wincing at the rough texture. Shadows crawled up the visible veins of her neck like ropes. They froze after taking the shape of triangles every which size. Their formation was quite impressive, and to the unsuspecting eye the shadows appeared to be tattoos. Eve marveled at the beautiful shape of them, but was not yet comfortable with the shiver she endured while they roamed her body's surface.

Metallic droplets dripped from the frame. Eve suddenly realized that her hand melted a print in the mirror. Startled, she stepped away. A silver liquid coated her palm. Shadows zipped down her wrist to remove the unwanted substance. It took a moment for her to regulate her breathing. Eve's index curled around portions of her hair. Each uneven, choppy layer sparked tiny embers from the tips. She watched as several embers flicked onto her arm and died. Watching the fire calmed her once more.

She turned away from the person in the mirror. With a shaky, sleeve-covered hand, Eve turned the door handle. She was not sure that it would give. But, despite her doubts, it clicked free. Sunlight poured in and washed over her. Eve slinked backwards into the shade with her eyes shut tight. The sun was harsh against her skin. A dry summer breeze whipped inside the house, releasing dust from the furniture into the air. Birds sang in choirs overhead. She fisted her eye sockets. Perhaps this wasn't a good idea, she thought. Perhaps she should go back downstairs before Lance returned and found that she had gone.

No, it was too late to go back now. This was what she wanted. She needed to see him. Had to see him. Eve embraced the day with open arms.

"Besides," Eve spoke to the house, "someone left the door open."