Sofia's Curse

The Absolution

It all happens so quickly. As the sound-protective veil is down, Christopher and Victoria hear the door slam. Chris thinks Yasmine came home. He goes for the door and as he opens it, he sees his mom's body on the floor. Her corpse. He instantly knows she is dead. The blood around it is becoming wider and wider at an astonishing speed as all he can do is stand still, his face pale, but giving no emotions away.

Victoria catches his stillness and frowns. "What're you doing?" she asks, afraid to hear the answer. She paces towards him and looks into the living room. Her heart falls to her feet.

Just as she is reliving Chris' shock, he comes to his senses and rushes to kneel beside their mom. Their adoptive mom. How many times did he resent her? How many times did Victoria insult her with her rude behavior? Only a couple of hours ago, they were fighting with her, demanding explanations. Ones that she could provide. But refused to do so. Why? With a tickle in his throat, he realizes now they will never find out the reason.

"Who...did this?"

He hears her sister's rugged voice, but it seems a mile away. It doesn't matter who did this. It was either Sophia or her father. But it doesn't matter. Point is...Yasmine is dead. Everything is changed. Nothing will ever be the same. She was the thread that kept them together. That made them a family. And now she is gone. The thread is gone. They're alone. It's only him and his sister left. Why did they have to kill her? And, more importantly, why did they let them live?

He sees his sister join him on the floor and there are tears in her eyes. Victoria cries so often. He hates seeing her cry. It makes him feel powerless. It is disarming. He wraps him arm around her and pulls her near, resting his chin on her head. "Shhh," he whispers, "It's pointless to weep now."

Victoria ceases to gasp and looks at him in shock. "Pointless?" she exclaims, "She's our mother, Chris! What is the matter with you, you...you cruel...Do you have a heart of steel?" She starts sobbing again.

Chris shuts his eyes for a brief moment to gather himself. Then he speaks gently, "She's gone, Vic. She's gone. And it means they were here. It means they know where we live."

Victoria hears him, but doesn't say anything. She can't speak from all the sobs.

"It means Yasmine was right. We have to run," he continues. But inside, he is brooding on why they left them live? Why didn't they kill them, too? It is obviously their wish. Their intention. Or is it?

"It was her," Victoria says, wiping the tears off her cheeks.

Chris looks at her, a crease in his forehead.

"Sophia," Victoria continues. "She was the one who was here and killed her. Not Leeroy."

He narrows his eyes. "How can you be so sure?"

"Well, for one, we're still alive."

Chris knows what she is trying to say, but can't quite manage to speak.

"If he was here, we wouldn't have been. Alive, I mean. His intentions were quite clear this morning," she continues.

Chris nervously bites his lip. "Yes, they were. But...you're saying hers weren't?"

Victoria shakes her head, staring into the kitchen cabinets. "It wasn't clear...what she wanted to do with us," she gazes at him. "But it was clear she saved us."

Chris nods slowly. "I thought so, too," he whispers, "All this time, I was thinking of how we managed to escape. And...there is no other explanation, is it? She unlocked that gate. For us to escape."

Victoria shuts her eyes affirmatively. "Yet she was unwilling to show the same courtesy to our mother..."

Chris gazes down at Yasmine and runs his fingers over her eyes to shut them. He will never see those warm eyes again. Her curious, overly protective head will never peek into their room again to check how they are doing.

"It's funny, right?" Victoria says, "How people never appreciate things until it's too late..."

How can she always read my mind? he thinks. "Yes. It's too late now. She's gone. But you are still alive. And my job is to protect you."

Victoria frowns. "What are you talking about? We can't leave."

"Victoria," he admonishes, "we lost our mom. I'm not losing you, too. Here's not safe. Not anymore."

"But Chris...we can't go. We don't even know what her plan was..."

"Yes, we do. She said we would fly to Croatia. She had someone there. Relatives."

"Yes, I know," she says, irritated, "But Croatia? We don't even know where that is! It's Europe! We can't just leave! We'll never find her alleged relatives..." she starts sobbing. Why does her mother make her mad even when she's gone? Her mysteries angry her. "We never met any of her relatives! We don't even know where the money she went to collect is..."

"I know," he says gently, caressing her hair. "She didn't go to pick up the money. She'd never keep her money in a bank. You know her. She must've hidden it somewhere around here."

Victoria frowns, tears still dripping down her cheeks. "So what? You suggest we search for it?"

He shakes his head. "Don't be ridiculous. We'd never find it." If Chris' thoughts were right – if their mother really had some paranormal abilities – the money is hidden somewhere under a protective spell. But he can't tell that to Victoria. He wasn't sure. And she would cry even more. "We won't go to Croatia, but we got to leave here."

She gasps. "And go where? If they wanted to kill us, they would've!"

He's infuriated. Why is his sister so stubborn?

"Sophie doesn't want us dead! Her father does! And once he locates our residence, his wish will be granted! Don't be stupid, Vic! Don't be so reckless!"

"There's another reason we can't leave Chris..."

He stares at her and seeing her teary eyes looking down at Yasmine's body, he knows what she will say.

When she speaks, there is an angry undertone in her voice mixed with sobs. "We can't just leave her.... not like this...lying on the ground....like a dead animal hit by a car. The least we can do for her is a funeral! We owe her that and you know it. Chris, we can't run away like this!"

He swallows hard trying to weigh their options. He is scared of lingering here for too long. On the other hand, Victoria is right. Yasmine deserves a funeral. It is hard being the head of the family. He not only has to protect his sister but is now in charge of taking all the important decisions.

Finally, he nods. "We can't stay," he says determinedly. "That's for sure."

Her eyes widen in surprise. "So what are we going to do?"

He lets a loud sigh out. "Yasmine couldn't even stand the mention of the word God. She would not have chosen a Christian funeral."

"What kind of a funeral do you think she would like?"

"I don't know..." Chris shakes his head. A thought of them throwing her ashes into the sea goes through his mind. But then immediately, it seems too ordinary. Yasmine always talked about the four elements – water, wind, earth, and fire. Suddenly, he knows how to pay respects to their beloved mother. "We could cremate her body and then... pour the ashes into the sea, bury some into the earth and disseminate the rest into the wind's mercy," he says.

Tears flood her eyes. Hearing her brother's words awake pride inside of her, and the emotion joins the infinite sadness she feels for her mother. It seems like Christopher has done the impossible – he almost found a way to compensate for the undignified death of their mother. "I think that's a beautiful idea, Chris," she whispers in a heartbreaking manner.

He nods. "Also...we will burn down the trailer and never come back to this place again."

#

"You don't say..." Leeroy's lips twist into a vicious smile. His study is a dark space, only light peeking in through the thin opening between two layers of thick black curtains. "I've got to say, I'm impressed." He rises from the wide sofa of the color crème and holds out his hand to congratulate Sophia on her accomplishment.

"I'm glad to have pleased you," Sophia nods stiffly. "I hope this makes up for my prior omission."

Leeroy takes his seat. "Omission?" he raises his eyebrows.

"Failing to help you murder the twins."

Leeroy purses his lips, brooding. "Hmm...It does. We are even now, Sophia."

With those simple words, Sophia's world is back to its place of comfort. He forgave her. The hatchet is buried. She nods satisfactory, and turns to leave.

Just as she grabs the dark oak door bronzed knob, he speaks again. "I'm just wondering..."

And Sophia knows what he is going to ask. She stiffens in place.

"Where the twins were...today," he continues.

She turns without hesitation, knowing that if she does hesitate, he would notice she is lying. "No luck," she shrugs. "They weren't home. But we know where they live now. It's only matter of hours before we kill them."

Leeroy narrows his eyes, nodding slowly. "You suggest we go back today and finish what you've started?"

Sophia swallows hard, "Exactly. I mean, if that is what you desire."

"Hmm...that leaves me with another question, Scarlett."

A hundred volts go through her body. He called her Scarlett. This is not going to be good. "I know what you're thinking."

"Enlighten me," he says coldly.

"You're wondering why I hadn't stayed and waited for them to come home. But I assure you, I have. Despite what Giovanna had told me just before I slaughtered her."

"And what did she tell you?"

"She said the twins left town," Sophie lies. "I didn't believe her, though. I stayed and waited for them for a few hours. They never came home."

"So..." Leeroy rises again, slowly stepping towards her. "What you're saying is you think the twins indeed left town. But you're suggesting we go back to their place to kill them? Hmm...that makes no sense, Scarlett."

"No," she whispers. "I think Giovanna lied. I believe the twins are still here in Salem."

"But you didn't wait for them longer than a couple of hours to return home. Knowing that once you leave..." he comes very close, "they could come, see the body, and be warned to leave town."

Sophia gazes to the floor. "I'm aware of that," she says, apology obvious in her voice. "But I was simply too excited to deliver you the good news of Giovanna's death to linger there any longer."

Leeroy is at first quiet. Then his lips stretch into a satisfactory smile. "Well, well...you are like me after all."

#

An hour drive separates Salem and Lincoln City, Oregon. Christopher and Victoria had to take the bus, however, since the car Chris' had has magically disappeared somewhere around Leeroy and Sophia's mansion.

"How much longer?" Victoria asks, yawning on the seat next to her brother.

Christopher glances at his wrist. "It's only been half an hour, Vic. It will take us another hour and a half. Go sleep," he says gently and pulls her black wool hat over her eyes.

She frowns and pulls it back up. "I don't want to sleep."

Chris looks through the window. There is only wilderness surrounding them. He enjoys the nature, but this landscape is only deepening his sorrows. "You'll be bored awake, but suit yourself. I'm out," he states hastily and rests his head against the cold window.

He closes his eyes, pretending to be trying to fall asleep, and smiles when he feels his sister's head on his shoulder. It worked.

He slowly opens his eyes and stares at the hills they're passing with a note of nostalgia. He loved mountain-climbing as a child. He misses it. He remembers he will have to climb one now to disperse his mother's ashes. That thought makes him aware of the urn stuck in a net pocket of the front seat. It's actually more of an ash pot that an urn. They didn't have time to prepare. What does it matter, he thinks. The important thing is that they honor their mother's life.

Lincoln City is home to one of the world's smallest rivers, the D River. He plans to disseminate the ashes into it, and then the Devils Lake, which is connecting it to the Pacific Ocean, will ensure her mother's ashes linger onto this planet for a long while. The rest will be spilled off a hill and buried into the ground. Earth, wind, water, and fire, he thinks.

Suddenly, he feels his sister's tear crash against his sleeve. He stretches his hand around her and caresses her hair. "Shh," he says, "It will be alright." He feels like crying himself, but he knows he has to act strong for Victoria. She needs somebody as her pillar. And he must give her the support she needs to feel better.

With his words of comfort, Victoria reluctantly succumbs to his caresses and is slowly taken away to the land of dreams...

White.

White walls, white beds, white ceilings, white floors. Everything is white. Even the clothes the children and nurses are wearing. Are they nurses? Victoria never realized who those women were.

Is it a hospital? Or a mental hospital, perhaps? She never figured it out.

Cries. Lots of cries. Followed by women's loud instructions: "Calm down!"

"I told you not to do that! You will go to bad boys' room!"

Victoria trembles. It is not out of fear. She is used to hearing those threats. But it is very cold in the room. She looks around and sees that the only window in the room is opened. She doesn't move. She knows she can't reach it. It is very small and high up on the wall. She suddenly feels somebody's hand wrapping around her and warmth finds its way up her spine. It's Christopher. Of course. She smiles. Suddenly, a mirror appears in front of them. She can see herself and her brother. No, Christopher disappears. She is only facing herself.

Her reflection is moving. How can it move when she is seated? She knows what follows next. He will come. The big bad man will come and take her. She forces herself to stand up and hide under the bed. But she can't. She is glued to the floor.

"Chris!" she screams, but she can't see him anymore. It is only her in the room. She and her reflection in the mirror. Until she's not alone anymore.

"You can't come in, sir! Haven't you heard me?" she hears a nurse yell. She is in front of the door. He's coming. Any second now.

"No!" another scream from outside. And a loud bang. As if something is broken. The sound is followed by cries of other children. And then the door opens.

He's here. He's here. No. Run! Run!

"Hello, little devils," he says.

Victoria shivers. Run! But she can't run. And he's coming towards her. Closer... And closer... then he stops.

She shuts her eyes. She can't look at him. Sing, she thinks. Sing a song! But she doesn't know any. She has never heard someone sing. She can invent some lyrics. Somehow they will flow to her mind. She focuses hard.

Bang!

Something is broken. She starts crying, afraid to open her eyes. Because she knows what happened deep inside, even if her conscious is not aware of it. She hears a door slam and she opens her eyes.

The man is gone. He left. He left and she is unharmed. So why does she feel this bad? Why does it feel like she is being tortured?

Suddenly, some lyrics come to her mind. The mirror, the mirror...is gone. Only Vic is left. Left all alone...

"Vic!" she hears Chris calling her name. He is shaking her awake. "Wake up, Vic! Wake up!"

She wakes with a start, momentarily disoriented and petrified. She looks around. She is on the bus. Chris is here. They're travelling to Lincoln City. To bury their mother. She remembers everything. She wishes she didn't.

"Are you okay?" Chris asks.

Victoria stares at the urn, blank expression on her face. She shakes her head. "I had that dream again," she whispers.

Chris presses his lips. He knows what dream Victoria is referring to. "Was it the same?"

She slowly nods. "Always has been..."

"It's okay," he says, wrapping his arm around her once more. "You're safe."

Victoria dwells on the words. You're safe.

Am I?

Even if I am...why do I have a feeling it's not me who I'm worried about?

#

It is a one-hour walk from the deserted bus stop in Lincoln City to the Devils Lake. Since Lincoln city is the closest town to Salem providing a hill, Mt. Blackwater, and a lake, Devils Lake connected to the ocean, it constituted Christopher's first choice for Yasmin's funeral.

Lincoln city has always been a spooky place, but today for the first time, Chris realizes that he has never seen any living soul there.

As darkness starts to fall, the weather gets cold and wet. In their rush, the twins had forgotten to bring jackets. Slowly and silently they walk next to each other through the woods, as shadows get longer in the fading sunlight. Putting one foot in front of the other, staring at the ground, they stride ahead. The last rays of sun shine weakly between the tree branches and an increasingly thick fog transforms their surroundings into a nightmarish scenery.

Both were so deeply lost in thought that they have just realized the coldness that took possession of their bones and the absolute darkness surrounding them as they arrive at the lake.

Christopher grabs Victoria's arm as he throws some of Yasmin's last mortal remainings into the water. As the ashes encounter the Devils Lake's surface, Chris cannot hold his tears back anymore. Suddenly, as if an inner barrier had broken, he starts sobbing loudly without holding back. He takes a stronger hold of his sister's arm, such that under normal circumstances she would have felt pain. Thick tears roll down her cheeks. She has had her eyes closed since they have arrived at the lake, but now watches her brother with sorrow, ignorant to the miracle about to take place before her eyes.

As Chris' tears hit the water surface, merging with Yasmin's ashes, a strong wind starts to blow. Perplexingly enough, the surface of the water stays smooth, clear like a perfect mirror, completely unaffected by the wind. Victoria observes it in amazement.

It is in this moment of biggest despair and darkness that she realizes not everything might be lost. She and her brother, just like their mother, are no ordinary human beings. They have never been. Even though she cannot describe what it is that makes them different from everybody, she is suddenly certain that both of them are not only cursed by faith, but somehow also endowed with a precious gift.

She is too exhausted to bring the thought to an end - how this discovery could anyhow increase their chances to survive Leeroy's and Sophia's hunt. Instead, she accepts Christopher's snatch and they keep standing by the Devils Lake's shore, crying until the morning rises.