THE SECRET ROOM
Jeremy still didn’t know the truth.
He told us regretfully that he was no able to find Sheriff Sheridan anywhere.
He really wanted to know if they found something down at the Zet. And to be honest I was starting to worry about the fact that the council didn’t come again to look for Jeremy. Even though I told him to leave him alone, I didn’t truly expect that they would.
But now Jeremy was the one looking for then *sigh* I could never be rested.
Jenny and I went upstairs after dinner leaving Brook and Jeremy in the kitchen to clean up as they both offered to do so.
We were giggling in the room. We were positive. There was something going on in between those two.
After a while, Brook came up and blushed all over as we looked at her.
We never said anything to her but she was already blushing giving away too much.
I shook my head and chuckled internally.
I found amusing the way they were behaving. If they liked each other they only had to say it.
But as I though that, I started feeling guilty. Something in my head was telling me the same thing I just thought about Brook and Jeremy.
If they liked each other they only had to say it.
Why was that making me feel as if I was giving an advice that I wasn’t following myself?
We were chatted a bit more before going to bed.
Jenny kept talking about how weird and out of tune his protector was but she kept smiling at the thought of having someone protecting her, even if it was a vampire that could kill her if he lost control but she wasn’t worried about that. She replied with “I’m a witch, remember?” I just shook my head.
Did she really think that she would be able to protect herself from the attack of a vampire with her witchy powers? She couldn’t even control her own body how was she expecting to be able to take care of something like that.
Totally absurd I thought.
And then I remembered that glance that always disturbed me. I needed to ask her about that. Would she have an answer for me?
“Jenny”
“Yes?”
“There’s something I’ve been intending to ask you about”
“What is it?”
“Why…do you keep giving me that glance?” I said in a whisper, I was suddenly afraid of the reaction she would give me. I didn’t know why.
“What do you mean? Am I looking at you funny?” I nodded “now?”
“No. Not now. You did in the car while going to the Zet. And after you read my hand the first time, you used to do it a lot”
“Really?” I nodded again
“Have I ever looked at you funny Brook?”
“No, not me”
“I don’t understand. How do I look at you Gabrielle?”
“I wouldn’t know how to explain it. It's disturbing, a bit…frightening sometimes. You look at me with recognition but a dark recognition if that makes sense”
“No it doesn’t” said Brook, I sighed “do you think it has something to do with you getting into a trance?”
A trance? She did look at me funny after she got out of the trance here in the house and while she was in another trance in the car.
“Maybe” I said thoughtful “maybe is not you but the person or entity that gets into your body, all those glares where after you got into a trance or when you used to go blank in school”
“Huh-ho” Jenny said “huh-ho?” I echoed “what’s that huh-ho mean?” I continued.
“I think we have to make another visit to my gram’s, I’m sure she knows something and I haven’t asked her about the fact that she was already waiting for me with a bag full of stakes without me calling her to let her know we were on our way”
We fell asleep almost instantly after we finished talking.
We all slept in my small bed for 3, but Jenny was too afraid of going to the guest room and Brook didn't want to either. So we decided to sleep together. At least we felt safer that way.
I had a dream, one that really pleased me. I saw my parents, together. I pictured mum in her teenage years gasping for air every time she saw my dad Johan.
I even went with them to one of their dates. The settings were really familiar to me though as if I knew what would happen next.
He's going to call her name now, I thought. And he did.
She's going to smile now liking that he called her name, and she did. Oops I thought, the kiss was coming, the kiss was coming and I didn't want to see that.
I gasped trying to force myself to open my eyes. Open them. C'mon go back to consciousness Gabrielle, open them!!!
He gave her the flower and I could see in her face the confusion. Oh please, no. I moaned and when they were close enough to almost kiss, I opened my eyes.
Ugh! I said while shaking my head. I almost witnessed my parents sagging each other. GROSS!!!, I think I will restrain myself from reading those kind of entries on mum's diary from now on.
The girls were still asleep beside me. I tried to go back to sleep but I couldn't. Instead, I went down to the kitchen.
I was dying for a glass of water my throat was so dry that I couldn't even swallow properly. As I drank the water I chuckled involuntarily -remembering the dream- making me choke. I ended up coughing loud gasping for air.
After I recovered I walk to the stairs trying to hear if I woke somebody up.
The house was as silent as a cemetery as it was the whole neighbourhood. I don’t know why I compared it with a cemetery but it kind of suited, with the obvious difference that the people now lying on the cemetery’s ground where dead and we were alive -for now-.
I went to the living room and sat on the sofa for a while, my tortured mind wouldn't let me sleep anymore. There were so many things bothering me, things that I didn't know how to clean off mi mind.
I suddenly found my eyes wondering around the leaving room. I never spent much time in here. It was actually a nice living room. My eyes wondered from the wide windows to the walls, to ceiling to the door. My eyes stopped at that door. Mum's office door.
I snapped.
I almost forgot about the secret room we found behind those walls. I quickly stood up and walked towards the door. I hesitated to open that office. Nobody has been in there, since she left we were the last ones and I doubt that Jeremy knew about this place.
It was gonna hit me again, the tears.
That office smelled so much like her and it's been closed which meant her perfume would still be there. I recollected all my courage and opened the door.
A wave of her perfume smashed against my face making me tear up, as I expected.
I took a deep breath and walked towards the locket. I had to put my hand inside the slot of the locket and wait till the needle pricked me so that a drop of my blood would fall in and the door would open.
I really didn’t get this mechanism, why did blood have to be the key? There was nothing important in there just old stuff -not that my family's portrays and relics weren’t important -that nobody would be interested in.
I bet mum used to clean this place all the time to keep it as clean as it was when we last came here. Now it was dusty and humid. This wouldn't be good for the paintings. I saw a small cubical window high up on the wall, almost touching the ceiling. I looked around trying to find something to step on so I could open it.
Surprisingly I found a ladder. I opened the window and then run to the kitchen to get some tools and cleaning products.
I started cleaning the relics and the walls and the floor, with a duster I brushed the dust from the paintings.
It always made me shudder whenever a passed front Gabriella's painting.
It was so shocking and still unbelievable to know that I was her.
I went to the office and switched on mum's laptop. I was looking for a good picture of her, a picture that I would put in that room. I searched everywhere but she didn't have any. I switched it off frustrated and then looked around trying to find it somewhere else. She had to have a picture of herlsef somewhere. How could it be possible that there was none!!! I sighed in defeat and got back in the room.
Meredith picture was there. Brook told me once that her father used to have a crush on her. I wasn't surprised, she was beautiful as beautiful as mum.
Then I turned to Gabriella’s picture, my picture and looked at her deeply in thoughts. I was set to find a difference in that picture that could freed me from being her.
I found none.
And when I was about to give up I saw something that caught my attention.
One of the corners of the painting was pulled forward as if something was underneath it, almost coming out of the frame.
I looked at the other corners and they were flat. There was something there…now how was I going to remove it without damaging the painting?
I run to the kitchen again and tried to look for something small and flat, something like a spatula but smaller. I didn't, so a leaned for the big scissors.
I went back into the room and very carefuly I introduced the tip of the scissors at the side of the corner -where the paper kind of came out of the frame- and then used it as a lever. Once it was wide enough to put my finger in, I pulled slowly making a swwu sound come out of the paper as it ripped at the corner.
Oops sorry Gabriella I said and then I thought to myself that it was ok, that wouldn't hurt me -already thinking as if I was her "Bad really BAD"-.
I managed to lift it and take what was underneath, then I put all together again and left it as it was before.
It was a note, a small note folded into a tiny rectaungle.
I was surprised that it's been tacked in there for 300 hundred years.
I opened it intrigued to know what it was but it was so blurred that I couldn't read it complitely. I was even surprised that I could still read something from it.
The ink was supposed to be gone from the paper already.
It said. "I give you my heart so you can carry it around with you" something else that I couldn't read and "open it, you'll find a surprise in the medallion, always tours Christopher" oh my gosh!!! I said out loud and then covered my mouth with my hand as soon as I realised it was too loud.
Nobody came down so I guessed I didn't wake anyone.
It was a love letter from Christopher to Gabriella, my heart started bouncing at the thought.
His eyes wide with surprise "how did you get in here?" He asked making me confused. Was he surprised because of the room or because he found me here? Did he know this place existed? "How did you find this place?" He insisted "did you know about this place?" I asked "no…" he shook his head "that's why I'm asking you. I've been in that office thousands of times and never knew this was hidden behind it" he said his eyes still shocked wondering around the room "how did you get in here?" "Uhm hmm, I wanted to...see how the office was...she...spent most of the time in there and then...I saw the lock and then...I put my hand in and…it pricked my finger” I said showing him the small pink spot in my finger “and the door opned, our blood oponed it” His eyes shifted from the relics to my face “blood did you say?” I nodded “how is that even possible?” he said astonished “Well this is Zoneville, right? This place is as weird as mysterious” he just nodded and walked forward into the room. I actually told him the truth and he just accepted it as stupid as it sounded.
“Wow! This is Amazing”
“I know” he Looked at all the paintings and then stopped at Meredith's, he sighed and I could tell he was about to cry, befote he did I tried to distract him.
“I think this is like a family sanctuary. Even gram’s and pops are here, look” I took him towards them but he suddenly stopped halfway staring at another painting.
It was Gabriella’s painting.
“Wow” he said again “you look totally like her” and he shuddered, if he knew I was really her what would he do? This is living me headache.
We spent most of the night in that place, checking books, admiring the relics and the clothes of the 17th Century that hanged there.
“Jeremy”
“Yes?”
“Do you have any picture of mum that we could put in here?” he smiled and then nodded “I’ve got one that you’d like to see” he left for a few minutes and then came back with a picture. He eyed me for a while and then gave it to me.
It was mum, pregnant.
I almost started crying as soon as I saw it “It’s beautiful” i said, my voice breaking because of the tears. He patted my back and rubed it to make me feel at ease.
“Is a little small” I said making us both laugh.
Morning came faster than I expected I still wanted to sleep a bit more as I spent last night talking to Jeremy but we had to go to school.
I wasn’t worried anymore about the council as they never looked for Jeremy again and he seemed to be tired to try to find Sheriff Sheridan. I told him that we’d visit Jenny’s gram’s after class and then our breakfast was again in silence but not as bad as yesterday.
I saw Jeremy look at Brook a few times and viceversa, this two were really driving me nuts. Jenny looked curious about something as she stared out the kitchen window; I looked too but never saw anything.
“Is there something wrong?” I asked her
“I don’t know” she said “I thought I saw someone out there”
“What?”
“You think is a vampire?” she said, now fear in her eyes, I automatically looked at Jeremy innocent as he was, he still didn’t know anything. I hoped that my silence wouldn’t put him in danger. I hoped that danger wouldn’t come find him here.
We finished breakfast and was now time to leave. To leave Jeremy alone.
He said he wasn’t going anywhere today and I begged him not to let any stranger in the house, he looked at me surprised “what, are you turning into Elizabeth now?” he said “there are good reasons behind her behaviour” I said making him arch a brow “really?” he replied “why don’t you tell me about those reasons so can understand too” he said with a smile “just don’t let anybody in ok? Please?” he shook his head –probably thinking I was loosing it- but then agreed.
Last night while we were talking he commented on my emotional improvements. Before I wouldn’t let anybody see me cry or even let them touch me, but lately I was all about the hugs and the tears. This place was changing me.
As we closed the door we looked around trying to find that someone that Jenny though she saw outside the kitchen window. We walked down the staircase but never saw anybody until we walked towards the car, a shadow appeared in the border of the woods. We stopped in a halt.
“What’s that?” said Brook
“I don’t know” I replied
“We better get back in the house” said Jenny and as we turned the shadow materialised in front of us making us all scream.
“Shhh he’ll come out” the shadow said. But he wasn’t a shadow, I knew his face. I saw him somewhere.
“Are you nuts!” said Jenny.
“Do you intend to give me a heart attack!” she said again altered “How dare you do that to us knowing how scared we are” the guy looked as if she wasn't talking at all.
“Gabrielle” he said now looking straight into my eyes, I tensed. His eyes were pure black. He glared at me for a while with his brows narrowed and then his face went back to a poker face “you’ll be late…to school” he said. He then looked at Jenny “it’s Renzo by the way” he touched his forehead with the tip of his fingers and then vanished.
“What was that about?” Brook said “Who’s that guy? He’s a vampire, right?”
“He’s the one sent to protect me” Jenny replied
“You were cut short when you said he was weird” Brook continued “What is Renzo? By the way”
“His name” Jenny said “He read my mind as I wondered about it, that’s why he touched his forehead. To remind me he knew what I was thinking” Jenny said almost blank but not as in a trance. I could smell something not really sane about to explode.
The day at school passed fast enough for us. We did the same thing as yesterday, not let anybody alone and attach ourselves to other colleague when we were going to different classes. I used Ben again and this time I asked him things most of the time so he wouldn’t have time to ask me anything.
In our lunch break I told them about the note I found behind the painting.
“It opens, how?” Jenny said as surprised as I was last night. There are no slots or cracks in it to give a hint of where to open it from but I took it of my neck and gave it to her.
“Why are you giving this to me?” she said pulling herself back
“You are the one that knows about weird lockets and stuff” he sighed and took it, she looked at it for a moment not knowing what to do with it.
“Maybe blood?” said Brook. Jenny shook her head. “I don’t think so, we’ll have to take it to mu gram’s”
We decided last night to go to Penelope’s house after class, so we needed to harry.
As we arrived Penelope was already waiting for us at the door. We never called her to let her know we were on our way.
This was really spooky, I didn’t know if I would get used to them being witches. It seems even more frightening that being a vampire. I really don’t know why I thought that…just erase it.
“Gram’s what’s happening to me?” Jenny said and Penelope sighed “first drink your tea” I hesitated as the last time I drank tea in this house I ended up submerged in a dream too real to be a dream. “It’s just a tila” Penelope said.
Jenny drank it automatically, then Brook followed and I had to drink it too. I actually felt relaxed after drinking it. Woow it must have been a strong one. It made effect really quick and the Penelope started talking.
“You don’t have to worry about what’s happening to your body honey, it happened to all of us once we accepted our path. Being a witch is no simple thing. That entity will be with you till you are able to control it. The fact that I know when you are coming is simply cause we are connected honey” she said with a smile.
“Does that entity have something against me?” I asked “Jenny always gives me this disturbing glance whenever she’s in a trance or just left it” Penelope shook her head “no, nothing like that. How can I explain this…When we get out of a trance we don’t snap out of it at once, the entity is still inside us for a while longer. The entity probably recognises your soul Gabrielle or should I say Gabriella”
“Gabrielle’s fine” I quickly said
“Ok Gabrielle, That entity’s been around for a while, is part of our family and knows a lot of things, even things that normal humans wouldn’t know. Things as destiny, it was around in times Penny Anne was, so it knows who you really are, that’s why Jenny gives you that glance from time to time. Is not dangerous don’t worry”
“Have you talked to it?” Jenny said
“That’s not something you’d like to do darling, believe me” we just nodded
“By the way gram’s, any way you would know how to pen this medallion?” she said pointing towards my chest.
“Let me see that” Penelope said and I took the medallion off my neck and gave it to her. She looked at it from everywhere and then her brows narrowed.
“Is there something wrong?” I asked
“Where did you get this from?” Penelope asked
“My father gave it to me” Penelope looked up at me confused “my mum gave it to him when she let me to him as a baby hoping he would give it to me” she nodded
“But it belonged to her anyways” Brook said
“How so?” Penelope asked
“Christopher gave it as a present to Gabriella”
“Did you mum know about Gabriella?”
“I think so; we found a hidden room behind her office. It contains all kind of relics and pictures of our ancestors, in between them is Gabriella’s portray with this medallion on, but she could never imagine that I was actually her. Nobody could’ve”
“You need to press your finger on the back of the medallion” Penelope said “is enchanted, just the owner can open it” she concluded and gave it to me.
“Opened it” Brook said. I pressed my finger on the back and a click sound came out of it. I could now see the line from where I had to open it.
What I found inside was a small portray of Christopher’s perfect face. I didn’t know what to say, I was in blank. I suddenly blushed.
I've been carrying that around my neck all this time and he knew what was inside. I knew he gave it to her but I didn’t know this was so important. He said "I give you my heart so you can carry it around with you" this was him claiming her as his.
“Are you ok Darling?” Penélope asked and I nodded though I wasn’t ok.
Who was I in love with?
TO BE CONTINUED……
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