Page 45 of Through The Woods

She grinned again, as if she found my words entertaining. “Neve, I’m just fucking with you. I’ve been with Axel since freshman year of high school. He’s patching in, so this club has become like a second family for us, you know?”

I nodded, even though I had no idea what she meant. I’d been here going on two months and nobody had tried to adopt me. Amber continued to chatter on about her experience with the club and growing up in Kasselhessen, while I counted the hours until I could read the journal again. It wasn’t that her stories were boring; I had just become addicted to that leather-bound book and needed another fix.

She finally paused to take a breath before eagerly asking if she could give me a makeover, further solidifying that it didn’t matter the age, we women could always bond over beauty.

Fir tree

My body jerked, startling me awake. I rubbed my eyes and looked over at the clock. It was just after two. I needed to get at least another hour if I wanted to be productive. Amber had left me just before the men got back and by then, it was time to start dinner. The journal was returned to Charm’s room and I made excuses to turn in early. I really just wanted to be left alone with my thoughts.

A light caught my attention and I turned toward the source. The mirror on my dresser flickered as if it was a television screen and I sat up and stared at it dumbly.

My reflection disappeared and the mirror became a window. It was Clint’s house. He sat on the worn couch, snorting lines, oblivious to the fact that I was watching him.

I slid out from under the sheets and padded over to it, trying to make sense of what I was seeing.

Maybe I’d relapsed.

If that was the case, why couldn’t I remember using?

I brought my hand up and touched the glass. As I did, Clint’s head popped up and he stared right at me. There was something wrong with his eyes, something unstable. He grinned and stood up, taking slow uneven steps toward me.

I jumped back in fright, nearly tripping over my own two feet.

“Hey, baby. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” He continued advancing closer and I bit back a scream.

“You’re not real. You’re not real.” I shook my head back and forth, as if clearing the image of him. The back of my calves connected with the mattress and I fell onto the bed, but I continued to scoot away until I hit the headboard with a low thud.

Clint reached the glass and stopped. “I thought for sure a bear had gotten to you—maybe even a mountain lion. I never imagined you were shacking up with eight men. You know fairy tales aren’t real, right? You find yourself living in the woods with seven men and their leader, you’re not a princess, Neve. You’re nothing but a slut.”

He moved his body and then his hand pushed through the mirror as if it was made of water. Once he knew that the mirror wasn’t a boundary, he began crawling through onto the dresser. It was like something out of a horror movie, but no matter how many times I pinched myself, I couldn’t wake up.

I started screaming then. “No…no!”

He slid all the way through and dropped onto the carpet. Now, he was blocking me from my only exit. The mirror shimmered behind him, flames erupting across the glass.

I clutched my chest. It couldn’t be. Clint followed my gaze and turned toward the destruction. “Careful, it’s hot!” He laughed and moved his hand away from the mirror before looking back over at me, cowering in fear.

“I can’t—I can’t.” I clutched at my throat, feeling the familiar tightness wrap its way around my vocal cords.

A family portrait grew black from the smoke before the fire devoured it. Trinkets and collectibles gathered over the years were no exception and quickly fell victim to the destructive blaze.

Clint held his hands up and I realized they were covered in blood. “Oops…guess I made a little mess.” He dipped his hands into the mirror and when he pulled them back out, both were in flames.

I screamed until my throat was raw, the smoke becoming heavier to breathe through. It was like trying to inhale through a damp blanket.

Clint touched the bed and flames began racing up the sheets, scorching my skin. “Trial by fire, Neve. Let’s see how you fare.”

The walls began to bend inside the house stuck in the mirror. The fire had weakened the entire structure and I had to turn away. It hurt too much.

“Neve!”

I looked back at the mirror and I could see them, at the top of the stairs. They were terrified. And it was all my fault.

“I can’t stop it! I’m so sorry!” I hoarsely yelled to them.

“Neve!”

I shook my head. “I don’t know how to get you out.”

---