Fool's Paradise

Chapter 4: There is Only One Master

Ava sat up in bed startled. She swore someone was breathing near her ear. She looked around the room in the dark. The dog and cat stared at her like she was insane. The lingering feeling that someone had been in her room made her skin crawl. The air felt chilly. She turned on her bedside lamp. Everything looked normal. Fudge stretched and circled around until she laid back down in a giant circle of white fuzz. Stella yawned and laid her head on her paws. The dog watched as Ava got out of bed. The clock on her nightstand said it was on two in the morning. She had only been asleep two hours. She opened her bedroom door. A feather lay in the hallway floor near her door. A solitary gray feather. Ava picked it up and turned it over in her hands. She looked up and down the hallway. The house was dark and still. Had she left a window open? Ava jumped as she stared into the darkness of the hallway. The doorbell chimed loudly. Ava gathered her robe about her body. She ran down to the first floor. She peeked out through the peephole on the heavy oak door. A youngish looking man stood on the porch his ball cap hiding his face from view. Leaving the chain on the door, Ava opened it slightly.
"Surprise, Sis!" The young man ripped off his ball cap. It was her younger brother, Tanner. She closed the door and undid the chain. Ava tanked the door open hastily. She wrapped her arms around her little brother in a big hug.
"Why didn't you call me? I would have picked you up at the airport. Come on I will make some coffee." Ava helped her brother with his bags. They left the bags in the front room. The siblings gathered in the kitchen at Grammy Rose's round kitchen table. They talked and laughed while catching up on everything that had been going on in their lives while they had been apart. Ava mentioned what she had created for her brother. They went upstairs and she showed Tanner the game room. He looked around and she saw his eyes glaze with tears he would never openly show to her. He ran his fingers over the boxes of games on the shelf they had played with their grandmother every week. The room held the items of their fondest memories. "This is now my favorite room in the whole house, Ava. This is awesome! I can't wait to have the guys over here to game." Ava smiled at her little brother. She felt so happy that she was able to give him something like this. The two of them had been through so much heartache together. She knew over time the sight of all the board games would hurt less and just be wonderful memories spent with the world's best grandmother. Rose Steinmarch was probably the kindest and most loving woman Ava would ever know. As the two turned to leave the room Ava saw a gray feather lying atop the box of "Fool's Paradise". Ava glanced at her brother as she slipped the feather in her robe pocket. He was already exiting the room. The feeling crept back in. She knew no one was there but it was like someone was hiding in the shadows watching her every move. She shook the feeling off. Tanner took his bags into his room to unpack, shower and crawl into bed for a few measly hours of sleep. Ava went to the kitchen to wash the cups in the sink. As she stood at the sink  a strange distant tinkling sounded behind her. It was like the sound of a tiny brass bell. The sound echoed from somewhere beyond the first floor of the house. She turned the water off and wiped her hands on the nearby dish towel. As Ava dried the cups and put them away, Fudge sauntered into the room and twined herself around the legs of a tall stranger standing near the opening to the kitchen. He tipped his top hat in Ava's direction. His glorious beauty and piercing eyes made Ava's breath catch. She gasped audibly frightened by this intrusion. She dropped the spoon she was drying. As she bent to grab it, Fudge ran over to rub her face. As she stood and looked toward the door, she screamed. "Oh my God, sis! Are you alright? I really was not sneaking up I swear." Tanner stood there with his hands up apologetically. Ava burst through the door past her brother. The strange man was never there. She had imagined it. Once again she had pictured the beautiful stranger from the picture in the game book. Tanner hugged his sister as she entered the kitchen to put away the spoon still in her hand. "Tanner, I am fine. I am so used to being home alone. You startled me is all." Ava smiled at her younger brother. He nodded at her stating that he was going to go lie down for a couple of hours. As Tanner walked away toward the stairs in the other room, A small gray feather by the kitchen door caught Ava's attention. She bent and stuffed the third silky gray feather into the pocket of her robe. Ava placed the floral dish towel on the counter near the sink. She peered out the kitchen window at the roses twining their way up Grammy Rose's gazebo in the backyard. The moon shone brightly on the flowers. Ava thought of her grandmother and Allison. She wanted to know what had happened. Why had her grandmother never mentioned the love of her life. Their love story was blossoming in the diary and Ava felt honored to read the story for herself. She knew Grammy rose had never married nor loved anyone. She knew that she had taken over the family home and raised Ava's mother alone. She never needed to work after she lost her father from cancer. A cold chill crept up Ava's spine. A movement caught Ava's eye in the reflection of the room behind her. She turned sharply to see Fudge twining her way around Stella's leg. Ava sighed a sigh of relief as the animals stared at her. She petted them both and turned out the light as she went to the stairs. She trudged up to the third floor realizing she could use a couple more hours of sleep. A curtain fluttered outward in the hallway ahead. Ava stopped short afraid to move any further. She never left the windows open at night. She never felt safe leaving windows open at night when she was alone. She knew it had been open earlier in the day when she was cleaning. She stood second guessing herself. Stella stared toward the billowing curtain a low growl emitting from her throat. Fudge sat at Ava's feet staring at the empty hallway. Ava looked at Stella. Stella focused solely on the area where the curtain blew out from the window like a silver and pink rose covered phantom. Stella suddenly sat with a small whine like she wanted to burst forth and lick someone in a frenzied love attack. Ava looked toward the curtain expecting to see Tanner. The curtain fell back against the window as the wind changed and lightning flashed. An earsplitting crash of thunder shook the house. Ava rushed forward. She shut the window right before the rain fell in a sudden deluge. The wind whipped and howled outside like a tortured beast. Tanner came around the corner as Ava stood there staring at the sudden storm outside. "You look like you have seen a ghost. I am off to sleep. Night." Tanner was holding a toothbrush in one hand and toothpaste in the other.