Blood Rose

Chapter Three: The Rose

The eighth day was just as bad as the seventh. So was the ninth, tenth, and eleventh. The routine was: wake up to make and eat every meal alone, clean up the entire house, attempt to get my mom out of bed and to get her to eat something, go to chapel alone, and go to tea with the neighborhood ladies alone. All with the feeling of being watched looming over me. The same thing everyday.

For two weeks my life went on this way. Each day the feeling of being watched was slowly grew stronger. I saw someone out of the corner of my eye for hours at a time, only to realize that there was no one there once I turned around.

One day, there was a slight difference in this routine. However, this slight difference would change the course of my life.

I woke up as usual. I made my breakfast, and I once again attempted to get my mother to eat something(by this point I knew that she would not leave her bed no matter how hard I tried). After I set her breakfast on her night table, I walked to the front of our house. I opened the door to take in our daily newspaper to find a letter addressed to me. I picked it up lightly, noticing the wetness on the outside of the envelope. I opened it carefully, and gasped at what I saw.

Inside was a rose drenched in blood. I dropped it immediately and stepped back, as if it carried a contagious disease. Who would do that? Who would send a bloody rose to a sixteen year old girl? I warily pondered this thought and, forgetting the newspaper, stayed inside all day.

☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎◎☁︎

The next day I checked the mail again and was lucky to see no roses or blood. I went outside rarely, and each time I was even more careful than before.

I went straight to chapel from my home, not stopping anywhere to see anyone. When I got there, I quietly sat in the back and left abruptly as soon as service ended.

I was almost home when my neighbor pulled me aside, rendering me annoyed and worried. "Evelyn! I haven't seen you in so long, my dear, how are you?"

Trying to be polite, I stated, "well, thank you," and tried to be on my way. But Mrs Adana, my neighbor, was relentless. "Oh, you weren't leaving so soon, were you?" she pressed.

"I apologize, but I really must be getting back to my mother."

I looked up at the town clock anxiously to see that it was nearly time for me to be back at home. I was on my toes, ready to pick up my pace and go home when Mrs Adana grabbed my arm with an iron grip. "Oh!" she exclaimed, "That reminds me, I made her favorite miniature meat pies, as I heard she was not feeling well. I will go get them."

She ran into her house before I could stop her. I bounced on my toes to ease my anxiety, but I knew it wouldn't do anything. I looked back at the town clock multiple times in what felt like hours, although the minute hand had barely moved each time. I considered going home anyway, but I knew how much Mrs Adana's meat pies would lift my mother's spirits. After another minute of an agonizing lack of patience, I turned around to go home, completely fed up with how slow Mrs Adana could be. I froze when I came in contact with what hit me.

A/N: sorry about the cliffhangers but to me it makes the readers want to keep reading. Also, what do you think the roses were about? What do you think hit Evelyn? Comment your thoughts!