Pearl Academy I The Emergence

Chapter 16

Transcript, 20th session: K. Foster                                                                             Date : 09/04/20

Dr.Cale: Last time, you mentioned the house that you lived in after you were found. Would mind telling me about that?

K. Foster: Sure, what about it?

Dr.Cale: Well, what do you remember for starters? What was your foster family like?

K. Foster: It wasn't easy. There were a couple of kids that lived in that house. It's mostly just a blur of faces.

Dr. Cale: And the girl that went missing was one of those kids?

K. Foster: Yeah, I think so.

Dr. Cale: You think? You don't know?

K. Foster: Helen and Stan fostered the kids that were yet to placed in a home. There were a lot of kids coming and going. Many were adopted while others where taken to more permanent homes. They didn't really like kids that much but they took care of us well enough. At least, from what I can remember.

Dr. Cale: It says in your file that Helen and Stan both filed a report about what happened the night that you and the other child left the house. Have you had a chance to read it?

K. Foster: No, I didn't. Helen and Stan didn't give Karen a copy. Karen was never told why and I didn't ask. I didn't want to know. I don't even know the other girl's name.

Dr. Cale: You don't remember her?

K. Foster: I don't even remember what she looked like.

*****

The ground is hard yet smooth. My eyes open to a ceiling, rotting and filled with webs. I will my body to roll over. My body is heavy and aching. I groan as the pins and needles travel up all my limbs. I have no memory of how long I've been laying here. Another groan sounds from somewhere behind me. "Sadie," I gasp.

It gives me the strength I need to sit up. Sadie is laying right next to me with her hand still clasped around my wrist. Her blond hair created a soft pillow around her head. It almost looks like a halo in this dark room. "Sadie." I shake her lightly. "Sadie!" Her eyes snap open, her eyes move frantically back and forth. "You're okay, Sadie! You're okay." Her hands grip me tightly. In her panic, all she can is hold me tighter. With my other hand, I try to pull her up. "We're fine," I try to reassure her. "We're just, um, somewhere else. I don't know exactly where yet but we'll figure it out."

Her breathing slows down little by little as she takes a look around. I do the same. It's a bedroom. There's a bed covered with a huge white sheet over it. Two wooden bedside tables on either side with dust all over the surface. The door is shut but on it is a human sized mirror. "That must've been where we came in from." I get up from my stop on the floor and begin searching for some clue as to where we are. There aren't any pictures on the wall. No clothes on the drawers. It's odd.

"What was that, Kelly?" Sadie whispers. "How did you do that? Where are we?"

Sadie has been rooted in her spot since I woke her. "I don't have the answers, Sadie. The only reason why I knew how to do that was because I saw it in a vision." I cringe the moment the words reach my own ears. I sound absolutely insane. I'm sure she thinks so too because she doesn't answer me. I go around the bed towards the table on the other side of the room. There is a single dust covered frame. I grab it and wipe the gray dust away from the frame. My eyes widen at the picture. "No..." I set it back down gently.

"What is it?" Sadie says over my shoulder.

"I know where we are," I say as I turn to face her. "It's my first foster home. I thought about Stan before the portal opened. And now we're at his house."

"Can you explain what exactly is happening?"

We don't have time for the long version. We need to get out of here before Stan finds us. "I know you've pieced together certain things about me, but you haven't heard the whole terrifying truth. I am from here, that part is true, but I wasn't born here. I was found here. When I was placed here, they had no idea who I was or where my parents were. I know nothing about my past. I've started getting lucid dreams since I've gotten here and today I had vision about the unknown person who appeared in town. She showed me how to go through that...portal."

Sadie doesn't say anything. She barely looks at me. "Look, I know I sound crazy but for whatever reason I am here now. I have this sense that I'm here for something. Can you trust me? For right now?" I plead with her. I can only hope that she'll understand me. That even with all the crazy that is sprouting from my mouth, she can see that I am genuine. Sadie finally meets my eyes and nods slowly.

"I trust you, Kelly." Sadie touches my arm. "With everythin' that's happened, I'd be a fool not to."

A sigh of relief escapes from deep within me. "Ok, then," I smile. "Then let's investigate, yeah?" She nods and follows me towards the door. Once we near the door, I signal for her to be quiet as I begin to turn the knob. A strong, musty smell hits us in the face like a strong slap to both of our faces. Sadie visibly grimaces at the smell, trying to cover her nose and mouth. "Oh, mercy Scott," she exclaims, "Is this what it smelt like when you lived here?" I try to sum up the memory of my time here. I come up empty. It's strange, really. How is it that I can remember the faces of my first foster parents but not the home? Not even the other kids?

"I'm not sure," I respond, slightly hesitant. "But I doubt it looked like this when I lived here." The paint on the walls were peeling. The cracks in the corners were sprouting with black mold. We tiptoe down the hallway as quietly as a mouse hiding in their hole. All the rooms are empty. Some have sheets covering every surface inside, others are just empty of any furniture. Whatever happened after I left, one thing was certain...Stan and Helen never fostered again.

The entire upstairs hadn't been lived in for years. "So why do you think we were taken here?" Sadie whispers her questions quietly. "I mean, why would that thing take us here?" That...is an excellent questions. I can't imagine that any answers I give will be the correct one. I genuinely have no idea where to start. "I can only guess." I answer back. "Maybe the portal took us where we needed to go. The girl in vision visited Stan's shop. She went through all that trouble to show me how to do this. I didn't get any explanations as to why or how. Just to touch the glass. And the a singular word. 'Haven'."

There doesn't seem to be anyone home. It's so quiet. It doesn't feel normal for this house to be this quiet. The hallway leads to rickety wooden stairs. There are no lights on downstairs. At least, not any that has reached the bottom of the stairs. The step creak with every step we both take. "I don't think anyone's home, Kelly." I turn into what used to be a living room. Now it's obviously being used as a bedroom. The couch is draped in a thin blanket and an even thinner pillow. Dirty plates cover the tables in the room. And on the opposite side of the room stands an old tv. "What kind of people could possibly live like this?"

I peruse the table quietly, looking for anything. Anything at all! Any clue, any detail that can tell me why I'm here.

"There aren't any pictures anywhere," Sadie points out, "isn't that strange? Didn't you say this man was married?"

I notice a stack of papers underneath a plate with a half eaten sandwich. I read the front of the envelope before picking it up with my hands. "He was," I sigh, "I don't think he is anymore." I show her the envelope. It was a coroner's report. We both give each other a look before I go to open it. Once I flip open the report, I scan it quickly. What the hell? "What is it?" Sadie peers over my shoulder.

"Helen died of radiation poisoning."