#ndae

I grew up in a house of many secrets. Some were like little prizes to discover and some were… well, not. When you’re the only child in that big old house, they’re only yours to discover. And sometimes, they’re only yours to keep.

This is the story of how I earned my secret.

My father was rarely in our house for long. He wasn’t a deadbeat. Quite the opposite. He was a high payed diplomat. One day he’d be reading the newspaper right in front of me, the next he’d be on the other side of the globe, dining with foreigners or trying to hash out a new agreement. He lived a free life. There were responsibilities, but never heavy burdens. The type that buries deep inside you. The type that keeps you up at night and greets you in the morning. Unfortunately, that was the type my mother held.

You see, she never truly wanted me. She wanted to be as free as my father. She thought his money would make her that. But she did have me. And she did lose her freedom for me. Because what kind of mother leaves her young child to chase dreams? So she stayed put, and let that burden bury deep inside her. She let it greet her in the morning. And she let it keep her up at night. Until one night, when she just couldn’t take it anymore. She packed her bags and left.

Was my father devastated? Perhaps. He was in Belarus when he got the news. But it wasn’t long until he found some new girlfriend to replace her. I think her name was Yvonne. I only saw her once. I don’t think she was fond of children. Or at least children that weren’t hers. Soon she was replaced by Lestari. She wanted to marry my father the second she learned he had money. She didn’t last long. Next came Tanja. She despised England. She never wanted to move out of Norway. And there was a strange woman called Mairwen.

But this story isn’t about them. It’s about the woman that came after.

Linda Petrov.

I didn’t like her the second I saw her. She was young, much younger than my father, and extremely demanding. She would refuse to go somewhere, and then complain that she had nothing to do. She would throw a fit if my father spent to much money on her, and then complain that he was neglecting her. I thought she would go like the rest, but apparently not.

They were married a week after my eleventh birthday.

I still remember what he said the night she got engaged. That I should treat her like a mother. That she was family now, and family comes before everything. I think maybe a little part of me believed him. I think a little part of me wanted a mother that stayed around. But she didn’t have the same interest.

When she didn’t ignore me, she told me to go away. She thought of me as an annoying strange little girl that butted into her life. To be perfectly honest, it confused me.

Why did they get married? I know she didn’t really love my father.

Why did she live in our house? I know she despised it. To her, it was creepy. Gaudy. Disgusting. If my great Aunt didn’t live with us, she would have redecorated the entire thing. And then I had another thought.

Why don’t I use that to my advantage? There was an old stories about witches and werewolves floating around. Even a few curses painted on the walls… hidden in dark gloomy secret passageways. She’d be the one who ran away. She’d be the one who would be blamed in the long run.

The only question left was how to scare her. I could just try to tell her the stories… but that wouldn’t work, would it? She’d just ignore me. I had to bring it a step further. Yes, I had to make her feel like she was the curse.

I looked up everything I could on lycanthropy. How to make someone think they were a werewolf.

Increased body hair?

I could slip some hair replacement cream into her moisturizer…

Fatigue?

I could slip some sleeping pills into her food…

Irritability?

Already covered.

Before I knew it, she was cooped up in her room, hiding behind a curtain. My father was far, far away and she had nobody to turn to.

Or at least, until her mother sent a detective in. She was young. Very sweet. But she riffled through this house like it belonged to her. She ripped open my family secrets like they were nothing. So my house killed her to keep our secrets safe.

You see, my house has many passages. Very old, very dark, very crumbly passages. Take one wrong step, and the ceiling will come crashing down. She took the wrong step, and well… you can imagine.

You probably think this is the end of this letter. This is my secret, right? I led to the death of someone so young. But we’re not there yet.

The second Linda heard that the detective went missing, she started mumbling to herself. How she should’ve stopped her. How she should have thrown her out of the house. How she knew something like this would happen.

After that, she was quieter. She refused more food. She refused to talk to anybody, even my father.

Until one day, she was a little too quiet.

But even this isn’t my secret. It was what I felt when I heard that she had died.

Like something very deep and dark hidden away inside me was awakened. And it was very, very hungry.

Once my father had a foreign leader stay over for diner. I forget which country. It doesn’t really matter. What does matter was how vile he was. He’d torture and slaughter anyone who opposed him. So he just happened to take the wrong pill on his flight back.

Another time there was some woman who tried to cheat on her husband with my father. Her car’s breaks just happened to stop working.

And I suppose if you’re reading this, you may happen to die fairly soon. I can’t tell you how. That would spoil it for you. You might not be able to even get to this part. But if you are, trust me, there’s no use in trying to stop it. This letter will soon be destroyed. There’ll be no evidence. You’ll just be another unfortunate death.

Title: He Makes a Wish in Black

Chapter 3:  Just Promise Me We’ll Be Alright

Summary:  Ben dreams of one day seeing his favorite band, Schrodinger’s Cake, in concert but with the onset of a sudden illness, he doesn’t even think he could manage getting out of bed. Lee races against time to find a solution and make Ben’s dream a reality.

AO3