Alevai's Castle

  ¶ 5:26 PM 0 comments

  Chapter Five… Caitlen paced her small cell. She usually spent much of her day pacing, as there was really nothing else to do. She heard running footsteps in the hall outside her cell. She went to the door and peered out. She could hear two of the guards speaking just outside her cell.

“Similitude, why do you run so?” asked Epik, the guard who normally protected this hallway.

“I have news,” Similitude answered.

“So, tell me this news that brings you so far from your post.”

“The queen has sent for Foyln,” Similitude replied.

“Foyln? Why? Has something happened?”

“The portal has been opened.”

‘Opened!’ Caitlen thought. ‘Perhaps this will mean I can go home.’ Even though it had been years since she had been home, she could still smell her grandmother’s cooking and she could see the fields of corn. Every night, she would dream that she was back on her grandparents’ farm, running through the corn fields or hiding in the hay loft. Every morning, she awoke in the dungeon and her heart would sink, as she realized this cell was her home.

“I wonder what this means.” Epik said.

“I do not know, but there is talk that a child and a dog came through the portal. They were seen by Poshet.”

“A child and a dog? What an unlikely pairing. Perhaps,” Epik lowered his voice to a whisper and Caitlen had to strain her ears to hear. “Perhaps, the queen will be overthrown.”

“Epik, do not talk that way! We could be overheard. It is not safe to speak of such things while we are in the castle.”

“Similitude, do not be so fearful. Everyone knows that Queen Elva is evil and she is ruling on a throne that does not truly belong to her.”

“Maybe so, but she is the queen and we must honor her. We must remain faithful, even when we disagree.”

“Similitude, you go on and remain faithful. I will choose to speak my mind.” He paused. “I do not believe that this one show be kept locked up. She should be allowed to go free. Maybe, her people have finally come to claim her.”

“Maybe so, Epik, maybe so, but if that is the case then we must be on guard even more to protect our queen.”

“You may protect the queen, Similitude; I will join in the fight to put the rightful queen on the throne. I am weary of living in fear and hiding my head. I have no children and no wife. There is no reason for me to continue to serve a queen in whom I do not believe.”

“Epik, you should save your judgment until we know more of what is to happen. Perhaps, I would join the rightful side. For now, keep an extra watch on the prisoner.”

The two men saluted and Similitude continued running down the hallway. Epik watched Similitude turn the corner at the end of the dark hall way. Then, he peered into Caitlen’s cell.

“Did you hear that, mi lady?”

“Yes, Epik, I did. What do you think this means?”

“I think it means that a new queen has been chosen. Otherwise, how would the portal open?” Epik glanced around to be sure he would not be overheard. “Stay alert, mi lady, for I will try to free you soon.”

“Thank you, Epik. I long to be free of this dungeon.”

“After my watch is over, I will see what I might learn of this girl and her dog.”

“Be careful, Epik. You are the only companion I have.”

“I will remain vigilant and careful, mi lady. I will not fail you again.”

Caitlen caught her breath. Epik always spoke like this to her and yet, she knew that he had been a boy himself when she had been captured. He had just begun his apprenticeship to the castle guards at the young age of 13. Still, he felt guilty for not being able to stop her capture.
Epik would have joined with the wizards and soldiers who had risen up against Queen Elva, except he worried what would become of Caitlen. Instead he stayed on the castle guard and worked his way into being the one guard who was able to spend the most time with Caitlen. His devotion to the young girl moved from brotherly interest to an innocent love as the years went by. Now, Epik was a man of thirty three and, yet, he did not allow himself to marry, so that he may remain free for Caitlen. His only hope was that Caitlen would be able to return the affection that he felt.  ¶ 3:26 PM 0 comments

  Moderation... Hi, I just wanted to quickly post and let you know that I have turned on the moderation setting for the comments. I haven't received any comments that shouldn't be published, but since I did design this blog with children in mind, I thought I should protect them from any adult type comments that might arise.

Be assured that M-F, all comments will be reviewed within 8 hours. The weekends might take longer. I believe that if you are a member of blogger, your comments are not moderated.

Thanks and keep reading! New posting tomorrow!  ¶ 7:13 PM 0 comments

  Chapter Four… Balbatisher ran through the castle to the throne room. At age 12, he was Queen Elva Zores’ youngest servant. His age is why the older servants sent him. They knew that he, as the baby of the lot, would not be punished too harshly when he passed along the news that the portal had been opened.

The older servants remembered the wrath of Queen Elva twenty years before when the girl who was to be the next queen stepped through the portal. Queen Elva went mad with the thought of being cast aside after ruling Alevai for so long. She had the young girl imprisoned. She did not dare have her killed, for none of her advisors could tell her what would happen if she did.

All, but one, of wizards of the land immediately rose up against the queen. They had hoped to save the girl and give her back her rightful place on the throne. At the very least, they desired to send her back through the portal. Through various means, the queen and the rouge wizard, Foyln, defeated the wizards. Queen Elva banished them to Schein and Foyln place a ward along the dividing line to prevent the wizards from coming back.

Today, while out in the fields, Poshet, Balbatisher’s uncle saw a young girl come through the portal. He watched for sometime and saw a white dog follow. Poshet heard them speak about going to the castle to find help. He ran as quickly as he could to the servants’ quarters of the castle to get there before the visitors. There the servants gathered to decide what should be done. They had discussed not telling the queen, but this was quickly disregarded. If the young girl and the dog made it to the castle, Poshet could be punished for knowing about them.
After much discussion, they agreed that Balbatisher would tell the queen what Poshet saw. They hoped his youth would protect him from her wrath.

Balbatisher rounded the corner and entered the Throne Room. Queen Elva was sitting upright on her throne, drumming her fingers on the arm. Two guards stood at the base of the raised altar, one on each side. Balbatisher caught his breath a moment, before moving from the doorway and into the Queen’s line of sight. He wondered why it was that the Queen never looked happy.

“Your majesty,” Balbatisher said, bowing as he did so. “I bring you news.”

“Come closer,” said the Queen. “Of what do you have knowledge?”

Balbatisher walked a few feet forward. He kept his head down and did not meet the Queen’s gaze. “Your majesty, I have received word,” he began, using the words he had memorized in the servants’ quarters, “that the portal to the far land has been breached.”

The queen leaped out of her chair, startling the guards. “What did you say?” she screeched.

Balbatisher kept his head down. His knees were shaking with fright. “The portal has been opened, your majesty.”

“How?”

“I do not know, Your Majesty. I only know that a young girl and a dog came through the portal.” He took a breath. “We do not know where they are, but they were last seen heading for the castle.”

“So, they are coming here?” Queen Elva smiled and sat back on her throne. “Perfect. Thank you, Balbatisher. You may go now.”

Balbatisher looked up at the queen in wonder. She smiled at him and nodded. He bowed again and quickly walked out of the throne room.

“Coming here,” the queen said to herself. “How delightful.” She turned to one of the guards.

“Call the wizard Foyln and tell him I require his presence in the throne room.”

“Yes, mi lady,” the guard said, as he bowed. He ran quickly out of the room.  ¶ 3:13 PM 1 comments

  Chapter Three Becca found herself in the same place – on a path in the middle of long flowing green fields. She started down the path. This time she would find her way to the castle. Maybe, there would be a nice princess she could play with. She looked up at the sky and noticed how blue it was and how it didn’t have a cloud in it at all. She wondered what kind of place this was where the sky was so blue without any clouds.

Becca heard a voice behind her and she stopped in her tracks. She was scared because she thought the voice called her name.

“Becca, get back here!” the voice yelled.

Becca slowly turned around and looked. Standing ten yards away was Sky. “Sky! What are you doing here?”

“I’ve come to take you home, young lady, so come on,” Sky said.
“But, I don’t want to go home.”

Sky opened his mouth to reply, but stopped. Did Becca answer him? How did she know what he was saying? He barked to her. “Hurry up, Becca.” ‘Wait,’ he thought. ‘I’m speaking English. How can that be?’

Becca ran back to him. “Sky, when did you learn to talk?”

“I don’t know,” he answered, truthfully. “It must be because of this place.”

‘Hmmm,’ he thought, ‘I rather like being able to speak.’ He thought a moment that perhaps they could stay wherever they were, but he knew that Vicy would worry about them. “It doesn’t matter,” he finally said. “We must be going.”

“I don’t want to go. I want to see the castle.” Becca stood in front of him with her arms crossed.

“Well, you don’t have a choice. Your mother will be worried and so will your sisters.” Sky turned around and watched as the portal between the worlds disappeared.

“I want to see the castle,” Becca said, stomping her feet on the ground.

“Uh oh,” he said. “It’s gone.”

“What’s gone?” Becca asked.

“Our way home. It’s gone. It just closed up. Now, we’re stuck here.”

“Good. Then I get to see my castle.”

Sky turned and looked at her. “Your castle? Becca, we can’t get back home if the hole is gone.”

“Oh,” Becca said. This thought sunk in and scared her. How would she survive if she couldn’t see Mommy? What would she do? She began to cry.

Sky sighed. He wished, for just a second, that he had crossed into this new world with Elizabeth or Maddie. They were much stronger than Becca and wouldn’t cry. He hated crying.

He jumped up on Becca and licked her face. “Now, you need to stop crying,” he said, softly. “Wipe your eyes and lets just think about what we’re going to do.” He sat back down.

“Okay,” Becca sniffled. “But, I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
“Well, we have two choices. We can sit here and wait. Maybe, one of your sisters will figure this out. I think Elizabeth might have seen me disappear, so maybe, she’ll touch the mirror.”

“When will she do that? I want to go home.” Becca sat down on the dirt path in front of Sky.

“I know you do.” Sky moved and licked Becca’s face. “I want to go home, too.” He sat back. “Our second choice is we could go and take a look at the castle. Maybe, they’ll know how to get us back home.”

“Do you really think so, Sky? Maybe, there’s a wise old King and he can send us home.” Becca stood and started to jump around. “We can go home and I’ll get to see the castle.”

Sky looked at the castle. “I think,” he said, “if we cut across this field, we’ll make better time than taking the path.” He took the lead and the two of them walked into the tall grass toward the castle.


***  ¶ 11:47 AM 0 comments

  Chapter Two…

Elizabeth loved her room, with its high ceilings, built in bookcases and large window seat. She had all ready filled more than half of the tall bookcases with books and stuffed animals. As she unpacked her room, she daydreamed about curling up in the window seat, covered with a blanket and reading one of her favorite books. Her mother had promised that they would make a large pillow to place on the window seat. Elizabeth was looking forward to picking out the fabric for the pillow and the new curtains they would put in her window.

“Hey, Elizabeth!” Maddie exclaimed, as she barged through the door. Becca and Sky followed her into the room. “What’cha doin’?”

Elizabeth looked up from her box, annoyed at this intrusion. “I’m unpacking. What does it look like I’m doing?”

“I’m tired of unpacking!” Becca whined. She threw herself down on the bed.

“Me, too. I don’t think we’ll ever be done,” Maddie said, sitting down next to Becca.

“You’re not going to be done if you’re sitting in my room,” Elizabeth said, taking another book out of the box and placing it on the shelf in front of her.

“Let’s go back into the attic,” Maddie said.

“Yeah,” said Becca. “I want to see my castle again.”

Elizabeth thought a moment. She was torn between doing the right thing – unpacking – and goofing off with her sisters. Maddie and Becca both pleaded by saying come on and even Sky barked his agreement. He wasn’t sure just what the girls had in mind, but he was tired of lying around watching everyone else unpack.

Elizabeth placed another book on the shelf and then gave in to her sisters’ pleads. “Okay, but just for a little while. I still have tons to do.” She stood and wiped her hands on her pants, before following her sisters out into the hall.

Maddie had the attic door opened and she led the way up the stairs. Becca followed, with Sky trailing behind. Elizabeth closed the attic door behind them before running up the stairs.

The attic was still the way the girls had left it, with trunks and boxes opened. The clothing items they had tried on were scattered haphazardly throughout the room.

Elizabeth looked around the dimly lit room. “There must be a light switch somewhere,” she said and set about to find it.

Maddie was more interested in finding out what was in each trunk. She would open a trunk and rifle through the clothes. She thought maybe she’d find a clue as to who these items belonged.

Becca wanted to go back and see her castle. She raced to the far end of the attic, with Sky right behind her. She turned around to glance at her sisters. They had made fun of her for saying that she had seen a castle. Well, she’d show them. She was going back.

Becca stood in front of the mirror. She rose up her right hand and let it touch the mirrors smooth surface. She felt a whoosh and then, she was gone.
Sky blinked and shook his head. ‘Here we go again,’ he thought. He barked and was shushed by Elizabeth. He walked behind the mirror and then in front of it.

Where had Becca gone?

Sky turned and looked at Elizabeth and Maddie. He couldn’t believe that they didn’t notice that their younger sister had disappeared, seemingly into thin air. He barked again to get their attention, but they ignored him. He knew that he had to do something. He sat down and began to think. This was tough for him, for although he was a very bright dog, he hadn’t spent much of his time trying to solve problems.

Sky thought about what Becca had done right before she disappeared. She touched the mirror! He thought. He stood up and looked back at Elizabeth and Maddie. He wondered if he should leave them alone in the attic. Well, they were safer here than Becca was wherever she was. He took a step toward the mirror and barked, before touching it with his nose.

Elizabeth, hearing Sky bark again, turned toward him in time to see him vanish. “Uh, Maddie,” she said. “Did you see that?”

“See what?”

“See Sky disappear.”

Maddie stopped rummaging through a trunk and looked at her sister. “What are you talking about?”

“I just saw Sky disappear.”

Maddie stood and walked to her sister. “Disappear? He must be here.”

“No, he’s not and I don’t see Becca.”

“Elizabeth, do you think Mom’s going to ground us for losing Becca and Sky?”

Elizabeth nodded. “She’ll probably take away our allowance, too.”

***  ¶ 2:32 PM 0 comments

  Sky, the American Eskimo Dog Here is a drawing of Sky, the American Eskimo Dog hero of the story. More pictures will follow, including pictures of the girls...

Stay tuned and I hope you're enjoying the story so far.

Blessings.  ¶ 3:23 PM 0 comments

  Chapter One…

Elizabeth sighed as only a young girl can. She had been placed in charge of her two younger sisters while her mother unpacked the kitchen. Her mother had not come right out and said that Elizabeth needed to watch over them. She had merely told the girls to run along and play. Elizabeth took it upon herself to become her sisters’ guardian. She did not want to watch over Maddie, age 9, and Becca, age 5. She felt that she should be downstairs with their mom, helping unpack. That would be a job worthy of a very mature 11 year old, which she was. Instead, Elizabeth – who never wanted to be called neither Liz nor Beth – was exploring their new home with her two younger siblings.

All three girls were in the upstairs hall of the old home. There were three doors on the left side of the hall, one door at the end and a single door in the middle of the right wall. Maddie had begun to busy herself opening the three doors on the left and inspecting each bedroom carefully. Her mother had promised that each girl could choose her own bedroom. Maddie wanted to scrutinize each room before she made her decision.

Becca, being quite the Mama’s girl, had chosen the bedroom closest to their mother’s, although, their mother had not yet decided which room would be hers. Becca was frantic with the thought that Maddie would choose a room that would end up being the closest. This thought was very unsettling to her.

Elizabeth followed Maddie unconcerned as to which room she would fill with her prized belongings. Being the oldest carried with it the responsibility of watching over her two younger siblings. Therefore, she was going to pick the room in between their choices. She would be able to hear Becca if she had a nightmare and she would be close to Maddie for one of their late night reading sessions. Since her parents’ divorce, Elizabeth had taken it upon herself to reign supreme over her sisters. She hoped that this would take a huge weight off her mother’s shoulders.

Maddie walked out of the bedroom at the end of the hall. “I don’t like that one,” she announced.

“Well, which one do you like?” Elizabeth asked impatiently.

“I’m not sure. I need to think about it.” Maddie stood with her arms crossed. “Which one do you like?”

“I have not thought about it,” as usual, Elizabeth chose her words carefully.

Becca sat down on the top step at the opposite end of the hall. “I don’t like any of them,” she said. “I don’t like this place.” Becca placed her arms upon her knees and her head on top of her arms. Quietly, she began to cry.

Elizabeth shot Maddie a knowing look. Becca had not been happy to leave their father so far behind. She, as youngest daughters often do, had her father twisted around her little finger. Both Elizabeth and Maddie sighed. Maddie went to comfort their youngest sibling. Elizabeth stood behind the two of them and was about to place her hand on Becca’s shoulder when the front doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it!” she exclaimed and ran down the steps into the foyer. She yanked opened the front door and in bounded Sky, the girls’ seven year old American Eskimo. He leaped up at her to give her kisses. “Sky!” Elizabeth yelled, as the two of them crashed to the floor.

Sky stood over her and wagged his tail, which in turn wagged his whole body. He licked her face and barked a tremendous greeting. He had missed the girls.

Hearing their sister yelled out Sky’s name, both Maddie and Becca bounded down the stairs, calling to him. This sent Sky into a tizzy, as he didn’t know which girl he should kiss next. He jumped on all of them, licking and barking. They had only been separated a couple of days, but to Sky, it had seemed like a year.

“This is just great! I’m overshadowed by a dog.”

Elizabeth pulled herself away from Sky and moved to hug her Aunt Cheryl. “Thanks for bringing Sky home,” she said.

“I really had no choice,” Cheryl said. “He’s been bugging me to come home. Keeping me up nights, staring out the window. It has been a pathetic sight!”

Vicy came up the basement steps and looked out of the doorway. “I see the fur ball is home,” she said. She closed the door behind her before wiping her hands on her jeans. “Thanks for bringing him by.”

“You’re welcome. Are you unpacked yet?”

“No and the movers have been delayed. We won’t even get our furniture here until tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? That’s unacceptable.”

A shriek from the excited children stopped the grownup conversation. Both Vicy and Cheryl smiled at them.

“Hey, girls, why don’t you give Sky a tour of the house?” Vicy said to them.

“Okay, Mom,” Elizabeth answered. “Come on, Sky. Let’s show you around.”

The three girls and one furry white dog ran up the ornate staircase. Cheryl and Vicy watched them.

“Let’s go in the kitchen. I’ve unpacked the coffee, the coffee maker and some cups,” Vicy said.

“You’ve unpacked the most important things,” Cheryl said. “What are you going to do without beds?”

“Oh, we’ve got sleeping bags. I’ll light a fire and the four of us can campout on the living room floor.”

“I’m sure the girls will enjoy that.”

Vicy and Cheryl strolled off to the kitchen, their voices echoing thru the big downstairs.

Upstairs, the girls gathered in the hallway with Sky jumping up and down between them. Sky was a standard size American Eskimo. He stood 19 inches at the shoulder and weighed 35 pounds. This made him quite formidable when he wished to jump on the girls.

“What room will Sky want?” Becca asked her sisters.

“This house is so big, he can have any room he wants, I guess,” Elizabeth answered.

“I think he should sleep in all our rooms,” Maddie said after a moment.

Becca kneeled in front of Sky and took his face into her hands. She was feeling much better now that her best friend had arrived. “Do you want to sleep in all our rooms?” she asked him. Sky licked her face and wagged his tail.

“I think that’s a yes,” Elizabeth said.

Maddie turned away. “I still don’t know which room I want,” she said. She opened the single door on the right side of the hallway. To her surprise there was a set of steps leading upward. “Hey, I wonder where this goes?”

Maddie bounded up the dark steps. Becca and Sky followed her. Elizabeth stood alone in the hall for a moment. She wasn’t so sure they should explore more of the house without their mother knowing.

Maddie stuck her head back out the door. “Elizabeth! Come on!”
At this prodding, Elizabeth shook away her doubts and followed her sisters up the stairs, closing the door behind her.

The upstairs was a large attic, filled with old furniture, dusty boxes and beat up trunks. The girls ran through the large room, opening trunks and boxes. Each of them found various old style hats, gloves and dresses.

Sky, too, got into the act by pawing at the dust. He sneezed.

“Where did all this stuff come from?” Maddie asked, as she tried on a black glittery hat.

“The people who lived here must have left it behind,” Elizabeth answered her. She placed a feathery, purple boa around her neck. “We could wear this stuff as Halloween costumes.”

“That would be cool,” Maddie said.

“Yeah, cool,” Becca echoed. She had found a large blue hat with an Ostrich feather sticking out of it. She placed it on her head and added a pink boa around her neck. Long black gloves completed her ensemble.

Becca looked around for a mirror. She spotted a one standing next to a large wardrobe on the far side of the attic. She pushed her way past boxes and trucks to the mirror, with Sky following behind her. She stood in front of the mirror, posing as only a little girl could, but the mirror was dusty and she couldn’t see herself very well. She took one end of the boa and reached for it. Once she touched the mirror’s surface, she vanished.

Sky, who had been standing behind Becca, could not believe his dog eyes. One second, Becca had been there and the next, she was gone. He walked around the mirror and sniffed the floor. The dust made him sneeze. He came back around the front and looked toward Elizabeth and Maddie. They were oblivious to the disappearance of their youngest sibling. ‘This isn’t good,’ Sky thought. He barked to get their attention.

Elizabeth barely glanced in his direction. “Shh, Sky,” she said, “you’ll get Mom up here and she might make us stop going through these boxes.”

“Yeah, Sky,” Maddie agreed. “Be quiet.”

Sky rolled his eyes and barked again. The two sisters glared at him, before going back to their opened trunks. ‘This is really not good,’ Sky thought again.

***

Becca glanced around her. She could see a huge castle in the distance. Between her and the castle were fields of green grass. She didn’t know where she was. The view was beautiful. The sun was setting behind the castle and the sky was all shades of pinks, yellows and reds.

Becca took a step toward the castle, but then, she heard Sky bark behind. She turned back around and saw a hole. Through the hole, she could see Sky, pacing back and forth. Beyond him, she saw her sisters. They hadn’t noticed that she was gone. She turned back to the castle. She really wanted to explore this land, but what if she couldn’t find her way back home. That would not be good.

Sky barked again and Becca turned back to the hole. She took a step forward and placed her hand out in front of her. She felt a whoosh and found herself back in the attic. “Cool,” she whispered.

Sky blinked. Here was Becca, no worse the wear, standing in front of him. How did that happen? He sniffed at her. She smelled almost the same, but he could smell a fresh grass smell. He barked at her to ask her where she went, but she merely smiled at him and patted his head. He supposed he wouldn’t get an answer – such was the life of a dog in charge of three girls.

“Elizabeth, Maddie, Becca!” they could hear their mother calling them. “Where are you girls?”

“Uh oh, we better get back downstairs,” Elizabeth said. She took off the clothing she had been playing with and dropped it on top of a trunk.

“Do you think she’s mad?” Maddie asked.

“She doesn’t sound mad.” She looked at Becca. “Come on, Becca, put that stuff down.”

Becca started to tell them about the castle, but decided not to. She took off the gloves, hat and boa, dropping them in front of the mirror. “Come on, Sky,” she said, as she ran back to her sisters.

The trio of girls and Sky walked down the attic steps.
Vicy and Cheryl were waiting in the foyer when the girls came down the stairs. “Hey, where were you guys?”

“We were in the attic,” Becca said.

Elizabeth and Maddie looked at each other before watching for their mother’s reaction. They were worried that she, in one of her overprotective moods, would ban them from the attic.

“Really? And, just what were you doing in the attic?”

“I saw a castle,” Becca answered truthfully.

“A castle? There’s a castle in the attic?” Vicy asked.

Elizabeth looked over at Maddie and mouthed, A Castle. Maddie shrugged. Who knew what Becca could possibly be taking about?

“No, silly, it’s out in the field,” Becca answered. “But, I saw it when I touched the mirror.”

“Really, well, you’ll have to tell us all about it at dinner,” Cheryl said, squatting down to Becca’s level. “I’m betting you’re hungry.”
“I’m starving,” Becca said, with a giggle.

“What about you two,” Vicy said. “You girls hungry.”

Both Elizabeth and Maddie nodded in agreement. They were happy that their mother hadn’t banned more trips to the attic.

***

  ¶ 12:54 PM 0 comments

  PROLOGUE…

Her grandmother, Sadie, having both a thirteen year old and a seventeen year old to worry about, didn’t quite know what to do with her young charge. So, she did what busy women often do – she allowed the girl free reign. Her grandfather, Robert, more worried about the crops in the fields than the entertainment of a five year old, mostly kept to himself. The two boys, after working hard in the field, were not interested in amusing a five year old. This left Caitlen on her own.

The huge house was the perfect place for a five year old to explore. Built in the 1800s, it had the big and ornate design of the Victorian age. The home had two stories, not including the cellar and attic. The ceilings were unusually high.

Since arriving at the beginning of summer, Caitlen had explored nearly every floor. She had rummaged throughout the basement, breaking a jar of her grandmother’s canned tomatoes in the process. She ran through the first floor, until her carrying on had finally disturbed her grandmother enough to banish her to the outside.

Today, however; the rains had come, making it impossible for her to be outside. Even her grandfather and two uncles, after tending to the farm animals, were shacked up. The two boys were playing chess. Her grandfather was catching up on some paperwork.

Caitlen decided to amuse herself in the attic. She quietly walked up the stairs, careful not to disturb anyone, lest they inform her that the attic was off limits. She opened the door at the top of the stairs, a blast of trapped summer heat caused her to take a step backward. She moved back up the stairs and closed the door behind her.

The attic was loaded with boxes and trunks all covered in a heavy layer of dust. The place smelled of mothballs. Caitlen found it difficult to breathe, as the air was heavy with heat. She sneezed and then held her breath, hoping no one in the house below had heard her.

They hadn’t.

Caitlen began her walk through the stacks of boxes and trunks. She dragged her hand through the dust as she made her way to the other side of the attic. The flurry of dust particles brought on another sneeze. Again, she paused and again, no one heard.

Once reaching the far side of the attic, she came to an old wardrobe. Standing beside it was an old full-length mirror. Caitlen admired herself in the mirror for a moment before pulling on the wardrobe’s handles. The wood creaked as it stuck in place. Caitlen put all of her five-year-old strength into it. The door finally gave, causing her to thump on the floor in a pile of dust.

There was no response from downstairs.

Caitlen stood up and brushed herself off. She looked into the dark wardrobe and wished that she had a light. She pushed the doors open even farther. She could see something glitter on the bottom shelf. She reached in and pulled it out. It was a small tiara.

Caitlen squealed with joy at her discovery. A real tiara! Now, she could look like the princess she was. She placed the tiara on her head and danced around in front of the mirror. The mirror, being covered in a layer of dust, didn’t reflect her image back to her as brightly as it should. Caitlen reached out her hand to clean the mirror and vanished.

***
Hours later, Sadie began to call for her. Daylight had faded and the rains changed to a bad storm. When Sadie could not locate her energetic granddaughter, she sent Robert out to look for her.

Robert grumbled about children wandering off, but he went. He checked the hayloft first. Caitlen knew better than to climb the rickety old ladder to the top and play among the bails of hay. But, Robert knew that a playhouse such as that would be irresistible to an five year old.

Robert called her name, before resigning himself to climbing the ladder. Once at the top, he called her name again. “Caitlen, now you come on out of there.” He received no response. He heard a noise toward the back. Grumbling about Caitlen’s obvious disrespect, he pulled himself the rest of the way up. He walked to the back of the loft. “Caitlen, you come on out of there!”

There was no answer, just the rattling of the wind and the tapping of the rain on the tin roof.

Robert moved a bail of hay and was startled as a young bird took off flying. He dropped the bail, as he turned to watch the bird soar out of sight. Peering over the rest of the stack, he saw no sign of Caitlen.

Robert climbed back down the ladder and searched the rest of the barn. No sign of Caitlen. He began the walk through the pastures, but didn’t make it too far. The wind shifted into high geared and buckets of rain fell down upon him. He headed back to the house, cursing the bad weather and wondering just where his small grandchild ran off.

Robert was surprised to find the sheriff’s car in his driveway. He rushed into the house, just in time to hear Sadie say that Caitlen had vanished into thin air.

"Vanished? Little girls don't just vanished, ma'am,” the sheriff's deputy said. "She must've wandered off and gotten herself lost." He closed his notebook and tucked it inside his jacket. "With this rain, it'll be pretty hard to find her, but I'm sure she's probably all right."

Sadie spotted Robert. “Did you find her?”

Robert shook his head. “She’s not out in the barn and the rain prevented me from going to far out into the pasture.”

“I’ll keep a look out for her,” the sheriff said. “She probably ran to the Thompson’s when the rain started getting bad. I’ll check with them.”

"Thank you," Sadie said. She was trembling with fright. How in the world could she possibly tell her daughter that she had lost her only child?

"Well, better get on back out there," the deputy said. "Let us know if she wanders on back home."

"We'll do that," Robert said. "We'll be sure to do that."

The deputy turned back around. "Don't worry, ma'am. I'm sure she'll show up."

She never did.
***

  ¶ 10:38 AM 0 comments