Beyond the Veil

Chapter 1

My breath froze in my chest as the steady tip tap of the water faucet dripped water into the nearly over flowing sink. I stared mutely at the ripples in the water as they started small and then moved on to grow as they went outwards.

Tip…tap…tip…tap.

The water soon overflowed, creating a short waterfall that flowed over the sink like a translucent ribbon to pool on the floor and under my feet. Regardless of the liquid being absorbed into my stocking covered feet, I continued to stare at the water as it fell into the mass majority.

Am I a part of the mass majority? Am I like the water drop that falls into the sink never to resurface and be myself again?

These words, these questions ran about my mind, surpassed only by the Tip Tap of the faucet.

“Honey? I’m home.” My husband shut the door and hung his hat on the rack by the door, his words worming their way into my head like threads of madness.

“What’s for supper?” He came around the corner of the hall to see me staring at the water in the sink, mumbling a curse under his breath; he shoved me out of the way and pulled the stopper out of the sink, letting all of the little drops of water flow down into the abyss of the drain, releasing my from the trance I’d been held in.

With clear eyes I blinked, taking in the entire scene before me, my husband who stood with his back to me, the floor soaked in water, and belatedly, the pot of soup that belched black smoke up to the ceiling.

Why didn’t I smell that?

“Darling.” Reese, my husband, gritted out as he turned to face me, “What’s wrong with you?” I opened my mouth to tell him I was fine, there was nothing wrong, when his hand shot out and closed around my throat.

Forcing me to back up he slammed my head against the brick wall behind the sink, “Don’t you dare tell me nothing!” He roared as black mist flowed over my vision blinding me momentarily.

He slammed my head against the wall again tightening his grip on my throat, I felt a warm sticky wetness run down the back of my head as the mist thickened into fog.

Tip-Tap-tip-tap…the steady staccato of the falling water purged the fog from my vision; cursing under his breath Reese released me to turn the spigot off again on the sink.

His eyes blazing with anger he seized a hank of my short red hair and hauled me towards the attic, “I’m sick of coming home and having to clean up after you and your ‘Spells’, if you want to act like a freak then like a freak, I’ll put you in a cage.” Forcing me up the stairs with a shove that cracked my knee against the rim of the attic entrance he slammed the door shut. “You can scream all you like no one will care.”

And then he walked away, his footsteps quick and light in the silence that permeated the dark room I now inhabited.

Standing awkwardly, and nursing my throbbing knee I limped towards the small circular window situated at the very top of the attic.

Moonlight spilled through the glassless window, providing me with a little light in which to survey my surroundings.

Trunks, boxes, and Clothes lay scattered about in complete disarray, evidence of the passed owners.

Suddenly struck with a fit of hysterics a short bark of laughter came out my throat, we had owned this house for three years and had never bothered to throw away what was not ours.

Am I being thrown away? Stowed away up here because I don’t need to be bothered with?

A tickle at the back of my neck made my hair stand on end. Reaching back my hand came back sticky and red. I patted my head tentively finding the origin of the ruby fluid. There was a gash, which sliced up from the base of my skull up to about the middle of the back of my head.

After a wave of nausea hit my I stacked a pile of the clothing in one of the corners, cuddling down for a short rest. I closed my eyes giving into the warm sensation of sleep, the only thing that offered me comfort from the pain.