A Mother's Embrace

CHAPTER 12

I don't know when I fell asleep, but somewhere around dawn I was woken up gasping for breath. As I sat up straight, I could see my clothes and beddings wet. I sat in shock and disbelief in what I saw. I thought of telling this to Jenny but I knew she would dismiss this as just another fit of mine. So, I reached out to the bedside table for my phone and decided to take a picture as proof. Just as I clicked the picture, the water evaporated at light speed just before my eyes. I screamed and got out of my bed.

"What the hell?" This was no hallucination. I saw it right before my eyes. I didn't bother to wash or brush my teeth. I ran down in my nightgown looking for Amada.

Amanda was in the kitchen calmly brewing a cup of tea. I stormed inside and pulled her by her shoulder. I was shocked. The lively, happy and cheerful Amanda was not there. Instead someone who looked so similar to Amanda yet looked so different stared back at me. Startled by my sudden intervention, she turned back again trying to hide her face. I pulled her towards me again and looked at her. Her face was pale white with dark circles around her eyes. Her eyes were red as if she was crying the whole night. She tried to free herself from my grip but I held on stronger.

"Amanda, what is this?"

She was shaking by then. "Leave me, you are not supposed to see me like this."

"What the hell are you hiding from me?"

Amanda shook my hands away and ran past me through the back door. I followed her as I was not going to be kept in the dark anymore.

"Amanda! Stop running and answer me! Amanda!" She ran towards the lake with me following her barefoot. The cold morning hair hit me and my thin gown was not helping me. But I didn't stop and followed her. Right when she reached the lake, she stopped as if commanded by someone. I stopped a few steps behind her and slowly walked towards her. She was staring into the lake as if speaking with someone. After a few seconds, she nodded her head at the lake and turned back to face me.

"Amanda, what is happening in this house? Why are you like this?'

"I am sorry for dragging you into this mess. But I didn't have an option. I can't take care of that kid alone!"

"That kid?"

"Yes!"

"You mean David? He is your son right?"

"NO! NO! NO!!!"

"What?"

"He is not my son and this is not my house! I have been trapped here for 15 years! I want to run away but the only way I can do that is by killing myself!"

"What the hell are you saying?" I asked in disbelief as the cold air swept past us. Just then, the lake ruffled. I looked past Amanda's shoulder to see ripples forming on the lake and slowly a piece of fabric floated to the top. The same fabric fabric as in the framed picture! The same fabric as the one I saw last time I was here.

"Amanda! Look over there!" I yelled in disbelief.

She calmly turned back and watched the fabric float to the top. After a few seconds, it went back down and she turned towards me again with no expression on her face.

"You saw that right? Why are you standing still like that?"

"I have been seeing this for years." she said, almost sounding like a ghost.

"I will tell you everything. But before that I am sorry that I dragged you here. I am sorry that you have to go through all this. I didn't have an option."

"What do you mean?" I said, almost in tears.

"Come inside. It's cold."

I followed Amanda back into the house like a ghost. I couldn't help but turn back and look at the lake. As I turned back the last time, I saw myself wearing the dress in the picture and looking sadly at me. I froze for a second and stared back at the faint figure I saw. I saw my reflection over the lake like a mirror but with a sad aura to it. I stared in disbelief. Just then Richard came and stood before me blocking my view.

"Go back inside." I stared at him confusingly. "Go inside, once you start paying a lot of attention to the shadows, you will eventually become one." he said and limped away. I turned back and ran inside following Amanda.

Amanda was sitting at the kitchen table slowly sipping tea.

"Sit" I followed her order and sat opposite her. "Drink this"

"Before you offer me anything, I need to know what mess I am in."

"I will tell you, have your tea first."

I hesitantly took the cup from her and wrapped my hands around it for warmth.

Amanda cleared her throat and started telling me the most unbelievable and shocking story I have ever heard.

"I came to this house with my mother when I was 8 years old. At that time Sir Willian and his wife were the owners of this house. They were the ones who built this place too. After Sir Willian passed away with no heir and the age of 50, his wife decided to sell this house and move back to her hometown.

Daron and Mrs. Ben came here then."

"Mrs. Ben?" I was surprised.

"Yes. She was Daron's housekeeper. After Daron's parents passed away at an early age, she was the one who looked after him. I still used to come here with my mom for small works. As I was a student, Mrs. Ben was always considerate to me. Daron was a really charming and handsome young man. When he came here to teach, all the girls in this town were mad about him. He used to come home and say that everyday he received a lot of gifts and chocolates from students and professors alike. Even with all these women wooing him, he didn't flinch, his heart went out for only one girl and that was Alysa.

I knew Alysa from a very young age. We were in the same school and she used to always be bright and happy. When she was 9, her father killed himself. She didn't know about the truth of how he died until a very late age. Her mother always sheltered her and was afraid she would take after her father. But as the sheltering increased, she grew more restless and upset. I had decided not to go to college after high school as I got my mother's housekeeping job here. It was a decent salary and good working conditions. So I stuck to it. But Alysa was lost and confused after high school. She had always wanted to teach children but didn't get admission anywhere. Her mother labeled her hopeless and gave up on her.

I still remember the time we met at church and half way through the mass, she asked me if it was a sin to kill herself. I was worried about her but there was little I could do. She wasn't the type to talk about her problems aloud.

But one day, I saw her sitting at a café, laughing and being excited with Daron. I knew Daron was a good man, so if this makes her happy, I was all in to support them. Because that girl needed joy in her life and someone who would always be by her side."

"What happened then?"

"I thought Alysa was all well after she started dating Daron. They were so much in love that they decided to get married not long after they met. You should have seen Alysa walk down the aisle. I have never seen a happier bride. She looked as if she conquered the world. And nobody in this whole damn town was able to predict the rollercoaster ride that came after that marriage." she said, taking a sip from her cup.