One Week in June | ONC2020

June 8th 6:30 PM

The Miller estate is secluded in the middle of the forest that surrounds the town of Kepner; it's one of the farthest houses away from the lake that's still considered within the city limits and just happens to be situated near the peak of the mountain with a gorgeous view of the town below. Mrs. Miller always liked to brag that while the rest of the founders were arguing over the beachfront, the Miller family rose above the quarrels of the other families and claimed the mountaintop for their personal property during the beginning years of Lake Kepner. 

The drive up to the property is magnificent. Whoever constructed the paved road leading up to the manor left the natural tree line intact, so when you turn off the main road you're met with lush forests that tower high over you. It's always felt like the entrance to another dimension full of mythical forest creatures.

The Miller Manor itself stands three stories high with beautiful British Colonial Architecture. The only reason know this is because Mrs. Miller liked to brag every time Mom and I joined them for a play date with her son, Alistair, when I was younger. I pull into the driveway loop and before I even can turn off the car engine, my door is opened by the Miller's butler, Bernard.

"Good afternoon Miss Marlow. It's a pleasure to see you." He says with a little bow. I click off my engine and let myself out of the open car door. "I was not aware of your appointment with any of the Miller family members."

"Hi Bernard, it's great to see you again." I throw my hands up in the air and stretch out my back. The road is a lot windier than I remember and I was white-knuckling it at one point to stay on the path. "I'm so sorry for the short notice, but I'm dropping in unannounced."

Bernard nods slowly. I know the Miller's like to have their guests announce their intent to visit beforehand, but this is kind of an emergency and I'm hoping they'll make an exception. Bernard looks up at the manor then back at me before opening the door to my car once more, this small gesture signifying that it's time for me to leave. Before I can even protest and explain my reasons for being here I hear an all too familiar voice come booming from the bottom steps of the mansion.

"Reia freaking Marlow!" I'm lifted off my feet just as I turn to see Alistair Miller's face inches from mine. His eyes are bright with excitement as he plants a kiss on my cheek. A giggle escapes my lips as she spins me around before placing me back down on the ground. "Girl, where the hell have you been?"

"Sorry! I just got in yesterday and there's been a lot happening..." I rub the back of my neck as I look down at my feet. I don't want to go into detail about what I mean, so I redirect. "My Mom took my phone away, otherwise I would have called ahead!"

"Reia, you're twenty-three years old. What could you have possibly done to get your Mom to take away your phone? She's one of the most forgiving people I know, especially for an officer." He teases.

Alistair Miller is nothing like Peter Petrov. Well, besides the fact that they're both incredibly attractive, they're nothing alike. Peter has always been this untouchable, mysterious jock that's only ever given me just enough attention to keep me hooked. Alistair on the other hand is one of the most friendly, caring people that I've ever met. I'm always so eager to see Alistair because he gives me the same energy back. If I'm happy then he's over the moon with joy. If I'm sad or upset he does everything in his power to make me smile and laugh again. While Peter was off with his bros on the court, Alistair was right by my side doing whatever mundane thing I wanted to do at the time. Alistair was a smashing hit with my friends while Peter was always more aloof, which drove Marsha, Kellsie, Riley, and me crazy, but infuriated the guys to no end. It's like night and day with the two of them.

"It's a long, long story." I sigh and I watch as Alistair's face goes from exuberant to apprehensive.

"We can talk inside." Alistair plucks my car keys from my hand, placing them in Bernard's hands, as he slings my backpack over his shoulder and wraps his free arm around my waist, leading me up into the manor.

Alistair guides me into the library, yes their house is big enough and fancy enough to have a full room dedicated to books, and directs me towards the furthest wall. He starts to run his fingers along the spines of one of the rows of books as he looks through a section that must hold journals from all of the past Millers.

"You said it was Herald Miller, correct?" I nod my head and he pulls out an extremely tattered journal. The leather on the spine is practically falling off and the string holding the pages together is wire thin. Alistair carries the heavy book towards the large redwood table in the middle of the room and gently places it down. A wave of dust puffs out of the ancient pages as I flip it open. It takes all my willpower not to sneeze as I continue to skim through the pages and pages of entries Herald Miller made in his lifetime. The closer I get to the dates I'm looking for, the smaller the remaining number of pages becomes.

"Here!" I exclaim as I see the exact page that I've been missing.

June 7th, 1815

Last night was awful. It was close to midnight when we woke up to a woman screaming. Lily and I were the first ones to get to the lake when we realized that Vera was gone. We searched through the night, stopping when the animals that roam in the dark started nearing our village. This morning we split into separate searching parties and though I offered to look with Igor, he wanted to look for his wife on his own. We all searched for hours, only stopping when it was supper time. Igor didn't leave the forest until near nightfall. He didn't speak a word to any of us as he retreated back into his house.

Lily spotted the Petrov boys at the water's edge again today while the rest of us were out searching. They were wading into the shallows, holding hands while they stared down into the depths of the lake. Those poor boys need something to busy themselves with, ideal hands are not what we need around the village right now. I offered them jobs working with me in the fields tomorrow. I could use more help as we get closer to harvest.

Some of the villagers are going to join Igor tomorrow to continue searching for Vera, but I fear the inevitable has happened. I also fear that there is more to Vera's disappearance than Igor is letting on. I'll investigate as much as I can without letting Igor know I'm suspicious of him.

Herald Miller

I turn the page over anticipating more, but the next entry is two weeks from the last date and all the pages in between are missing. I groan and start pacing the length of the table. Alistair leans back against the hard, redwood table as he watches me curiously.

"Are you going to tell me what's really going on or just leave me in the dark, guessing?" Alistair sighs as he crosses his arms. His eyes are trained on me like a Mama Bear watching her cub.

"Shit." I mutter under my breath and walk back towards Alistair. He's been nothing but good to me since I got here, he didn't ask any questions until this point and let me do the research I needed to, and honesty, I could really use some help right now. Besides, if this all goes wrong then he won't remember this conversation anyways since Rusalka will have wiped his mind by the end of the week.

"You promise not to call me crazy or tell me to go to the police?" Alistair's eyes widen when I mention the police. "I've already given the cops my story and they don't believe me." He nods more to himself than at me.

"I promise." He says and I know it's the truth. Alistair has always kept his promises with me.

I pull out one of the chairs scattered along the length of the table and plop down, "Sit down, this is going to be a long chat."