Reflections of Light

Secret Weapon

"Evelyn...

Evelyn...

Evelyn..."

Evelyn groaned incoherently into her pillow, to tired to quite register the ghostly voice thrumming oh-so-faintly through her greyed-out mind.

"Evelyn...

Evelyn...

Listen to me..."

Evelyn's eyes flew open. She stumbled out of bed almost on reflex, not entirely awake.

"Evelyn...

Trust me...

There are things you do not know, Evelyn...

Things you do not want to know...

Things I know..."

The voice was almost taunting, sing-songing it's messages with an element of cryptic glee.

Evelyn blinked owlishly, kneeding at her eyes with the palm of her hand, fishing around on the desk with the other for the switch to the bedside lamp.

A ghostly chuckled brushed her mind.

"Believe me, Evelyn...

You know I know what I'm talking about...

You know me, even if you deny knowing me...

And in turn, I know you..."

Click!

Light flooded the room as she finally found the switch to the lamp, drenching the room in the fear-banishing, golden beams.

She panted heavily, each breath settling her tumultuous mind, her calculating, innovative, precise one clicking into place.

Her eyes narrowed, surveying the room, simultaneously reaching for the knife she'd secreted away in a trinket box besides the bed.

"Over here, Dovey..."

The words lightly kissed her mind, barely tangible, more akin to a stray, half-finished thought than another's voice.

The cackling laugh again.

"Or maybe I should call you 'Stormy' instead... Definitely more fitting..."

Evelyn had a hunch, and deciding to follow it, she strode towards the en suite bathroom, knife blade pressed into her hand.

Once in the dark bathroom, without turning on the light, she made a beeline for the small rectangular mirror screwed to the wall above the sink.

In the sense of it, her hunch proved right.

Dark mist swirled behind the glass, languidly rolling over itself, emiting a soft glow as shades of deep purple and midnight blue layering through the black.

The voice chuckled again.

"Hello Evelyn..."

A pair of dark hands pressed against the glass from the inside, with a suddenness that would have made anyone jolt.

Evelyn raised an eyebrow.

"Is the childish illusion supposed to impress me?
It's a little cliche, almost predictable.
What, you ran out of other, more inventive ideas to convince me to let you go?"

"What do you mean, childish? How was that childish?"

"It's not like you actually did anything.
It's clearly all for show.
It's really showing how bored your getting down there. Honestly thought you'd have more patience."

"Trust me, I'm being so incredibly patient...
Just not with you...
You're just wasting my time, pretending to be important..."

"How did you get a reflective surface anyway? You're in an empty room."
Evelyn cut through Alysha's words.

The mist faded from the glass, swirling out of existence.
Evelyn felt Alysha draw back, like a physical weight lifted off her mind.

She breathed out an exhausted puff of breath, shaking slightly in the cool morning air.
"Well... That was... Interesting..."

Not so far away, restrained in her cell, Alysha smirked, tucking the small shard of glowing, glassy rock back up into her sleeve to where it hid.

Her secret weapon.