Smoke and shattered mirrors

Chapter eleven: As she stalks herself...

I sunk into the deeper part of my dark walk-in closet. Wanting the noise to leave my head. Wanting the world to shut down completely. Wanting it all to just stop hurting.

"Oh this? There was just this accident yesterday."

The way I said it in a completely calm manner irritates the hell out me. It wasn't just an accident. It was THE accident that ruined my entire life. 

Angrily, I half-sneaked, half-stomped into the family room. I was worried that Martha might be curious on who was making all those awful choke sobbing noises.

I walked past my family portrait: Sophie was on my mother's lap, probably five years old at that time, My mother sat on a plush velvet chair with red drapings.My father stood and held both my mother's shoulder and mine. All of us wore matching white colors. I wasn't smiling, although my mother and father did, I wonder why... My face reflected the shiny frame, it was puffy and red. And it was no where near the gorgeous girl in the portrait.

The family room was as equally large as my room. There was a big flat screen on the wall. There was also a ping pong machine and an air hockey table. But what I intentionally came here to use is the desktop computer beside the rusty old popcorn machine. Martha already explained the fine layout of my house. Aunt Caroline and Rory has a permanent room here because Rory's dad is a certified drunkard and Martha told me that once, he even hurt Aunt Caroline.

This house has two kitchens, eight rooms (But only three rooms are occupied, two guest rooms, and my parents' and kid sister's empty rooms), there were the maid's quarters on the third floor, a pool and jacuzzi, a dinning room, this family room, the patio, I had my own treehouse outside (Something I have never noticed before, but it was there when I looked out, stuck up on a thick trunk tree.)  there is an attic above us and a cellar.

Come to think of it, it was the perfect house. Not too showy on the outside but very elegant on the inside.

I started up the desktop computer that hasn't been used for months now, it still worked well. Slowly, I typed MERCICUS LOVE on the search engine. About three hundred searches popped up.

I click on the first, it was my Worchester Heights profile page:

                         Mercicus Love- THE WORCHESTER DATABASE

Sports: Worchester Heights' swim team (Captain), Archery Staloon Worchestarian (Head archer), Worchesters' Soccer team (Lady Mustang's Captain Ball), Volleyball Staloons (Spikester) 

Clubs: Prom commitee chair person, Regular Support group attendee

Awards: Freestyler of the year (3 years running), Miss Worchester Heights (2011), Excellency in humanism awardee, 2nd place in declamation, Student body favorite(2010), 1st place in individual archery, Homecoming queen

Notable achievements: Led the Worchester Heights' swim team to it's multiple wins against numerous schools seven times. Led the soccer team to it's second victory after fourteen years for the TRIUMPH CUP in delaware. Handles the volleyball team alongside KYLIE ANN PARRS (Captain ball). Tenth person to be awarded the "Excellency in humanism award". 

I must've been one sociable student... Is it even legal to be into so many sports and handle them as captain as well? I rolled my eyes at the student body favorite for 2010, mainly because people were probably scared of me or something. Or maybe I bribed them into voting for me.

Oh luck! I'm starting to think of how much of a monster I was! 

But what is the "excellency in humanism award"?

I left the page and clicked on the second link under it. Only, to my dissapointment, it was a facebook profile of someone named Meri ann Love. I left that page and specified on the search engine: Mercicus Love death

There were ten available links.

I clicked on one and a news article flashed before me:

                                                              THE REILLY LAKE HERALD

         On the midnight of October 19, 2011, The bombing accident in Botanical Park's Function tent near Camp Bower took place. Horrified were the guests of the party, who fled and saw the tent burst into a chaotic sight. The event that was being held that day was Miss Mercicus Love's sixteenth birthday, known Worchester Heights' student and daughter of famous Christopher and Elizabeth Renner-Love's eldest daughter both of which owns the largest and most famous vineyard plantation in the pacific northwest: Hacienda De Amor. Although, later on, the firemen covering the whole ghastly tragedy finds the dead corpses of Mr. and Mrs. Love along with a cadaver that is believed to be their youngest daughter, Sophia Love. One witness stated that the large clock resembling the Big Ben was the one that must've triggered the bomb. Another victim claimed there were three explosions in all. All 350 guests were escorted safely. There were counted 10 casualties, the Love family included, and 29 guests were wounded and rushed to St. Lukes, the nearest hospital. Sadly, two senior students was reported to have died in this truly terrible event. The police look into it as a terrorist attack or a ravenous attempt from several companies against The Love family's vineyard. But two weeks after the said bombing accident, the head of the Reilly Lake police department, officer Mr. Wayne Langley stated that, "There was no bombing; There were no traces of any explosives, TNT, bombs or any hazardous substances. What we are looking into now is the possiblity of the Large clock mulfunction or the problems in faulty lightning equipment. It was all possibly an accident. A very... very... uneventful and saddening accident." The other mystery involving this case is the dissapearance of Miss Mercicus Love, the hostess of the party. Her name came into focus after two days of investigation. The fire department ransacked the entire area in search of her. Two meters away from the venue, a large amount of blood is found on the streets surrounding the Botanical Park. It was tested by the NBI forensics, confirming  that the found pool of blood belongs to Mercicus Love. Although her body hasn't been found, Mr. Wayne Langley isin't entirely convinced that Mercicus Love is dead. But the closest living relative of Mercicus Love, Mrs. Caroline St. Mitchell is in search for her niece's body. As friends and close acquaintances mourn over the losses of that unfortunate accident, the police are still speculating whether Miss Love is dead or alive. 

It was all I needed to know. I knew in my heart that the bombing was no accident, I could feel it in my bones. 

My phone beeped. It was Topher : OTW to Snowflakes. Cracked into your internet history (Sorry!) But I found something interesting you might like to see. I'll see you soon.

I replied, Okay... On my way now. I'm pretty enticed. I got something you might want to know,

I turned the desktop off and wiped the stray tears away while walking back to my room. I changed into a more comfortable attire and thought twice before bringing the red coat with me.

"Merci." Martha taps on the door. 

"Yes?" I answered, shoving the Shrink CD into my leather handbag.

"A friend is here to see you!" 

I wondered who could that be. "Tell her I'll be right out."

"It's no 'her', miss love."

I opened the door and saw Martha's worried expression. 'I told him that you will rest. That you need rest but you know how persuasive he can become."

"Who?" I said, racing down the stairs and into the living room. I stopped cold on my tracks.

Brandon Asher was pacing back and forth in my house. He wore this glum emotion but looks amused as he whispers," Merci.... Long time no see."