The End of Innocence: Book 3 of the Kinstone series

Saturday rolled around and I had the house to myself for the day. Marron had driven to Cleveland to personally pick up a crate of materials, seeing how the usual shippers decided to have their trucks break down.

She wasn’t the happiest about doing it either. Cleveland, while closer than Chattanooga, still laid forty-five minutes away. Driving through the mountains takes a lot of time.

She offered to take me with, giving me a chance to enjoy being away from home for a bit. I chose instead to stay back, feigning having to do more homework. The truth is that I really just wanted to be alone for the day.

She never said anything about the fox. She was on the other side of town helping with the local Presbyterian Church repairing some of the choir robes. Easter is coming up in less than a couple weeks, meaning summer was all the closer.

Well we also have spring break too. So I started thinking about what Marron and I could do for the week. There’s always heading up to Gatlinburg for a few days. That’s always a plan.

I spent the day curled up on the couch, pouring into yet another book. I had so many to read from and would always either order another one or just head down to the library to checkout a few more. I nixed the idea of heading into town; due to the how everyone reacted to me in front of the fox.

On the way home, I had garnered the glare of dozens of people. That was really unsettling. High school is one thing; you can ignore glares of students. But the local townspeople…that stung a bit. So I figured it best to just hide out at home all weekend.

Neither Riley nor Ash called me, which is kinda weird. I know I freaked out Riley with how calm I was while staring down the fox. Which if I have to honest…why would I be scared of a fox? Foxes aren’t like wolves. Maybe it had something to with it having eight tails.

Ash called it a kitsune, a spirit from Japanese mythology. Now with Ash, I’m sure she’d be more than happy to talk about it, given her diehard love of anything Japanese. But again…nothing from her.

None of it matters really. I’m sure by Monday this’ll all be nothing but a footnote in the daily lives of our little town.

I stir to the sound of the phone going off. I sit up on the couch and looked around, must’ve fallen asleep again. I stood up and darted for the kitchen, I let out a soft yawn as I picked up the phone. I figured it was Marron telling me she was on her way home. “Hello? O’Connor residence.”

“Ar…Aria. You…to…wa...up. I…iss…you. Sear...ing…for…you.”

I raise an eyebrow, “Hello…who is this?”

“Sweet…heart. Where…are you?”

The voice over the phone sounded so garbled I could barely make what the person was saying. “Hello...I think you’re in a bad cell area. Why don’t you try again?”

“Aria…my dar…ling. Where are you?”

My heart shudders a bit. The voice sounded…familiar. Somehow the image of the woman from my dream pops into my mind. Were the two connected? “Hello…who is this?”

The line went dead just as the backdoor opens with Marron walking in. “Hey sweetie, who are you talking to?”

I look to her and lower the phone, staring at it, “No idea. Whoever it was they were too garbled. Think they were driving or calling from a bad cell area.”

My sister walks over to me, placing her bag and keys onto the counter, “You sure it possibly wasn’t one of your friends pranking you?”

I lean over and hang up the phone, “No…they would’ve call me on my phone, not the house line.” I bring up the caller ID. The number the call belonged to wasn’t there, odd.

She leans over and examines the phone, “Sure you weren’t hearing things?”

I roll my eyes, “No…someone did call.”

She pulls me close into a hug, holding me tightly, “Just be careful all right? You never know who is on the other end.”

I nod, “Got it sis.”

She smiles, planting a kiss onto my head, “Good…well since I’m home, how about we get dinner started?”

I peer up at her, “Sure you want to start cooking now? You’ve been gone all day. I figured you’d want to get some rest before we ate.”

She ruffles the top of my head, “Oh I’m fine you silly nut. Just have to decide if I should make steamed Brussel sprouts or liver and onions?” grinning slyly.

I groan and pout, “You know I hate both of those.”

She chuckles, giving me a tight squeeze, “Just teasing you sweetie. I’ll figure out something, or we can head into town for dinner.”

I shook my head, “Nah, let’s just eat here.” She smiles, letting me go and steps over to the fridge and starts rummaging through it.

After dinner I retreat to my room, spending a few hours on my computer randomly going from site to site. I still hadn’t heard anything from the girls, even texting them on their silence. No response from either. I couldn’t figure out why they’d go dark on me all of a sudden.

I glare at my phone hoping to get some sort of response, in the end I gave up. I’ll see them on Monday anyways so there’s no rush overly bugging them.

The sky had darkened from the soft amber of dusk into the dark purples and blues of night. I hadn’t even bothered to turn on the lights, just didn’t care to. Sometimes I prefer the dark, helps me think.

Another reason I love living in the mountains, zero light pollution. The house sat deep in the hills and surrounded so heavily by trees that the faint lights of the town don't even reach us. Plus the fact that my room faces opposite of the town anyways, so even less chance of seeing much of any light. Compared to Boston…

My eyes darted for a moment, trying to drudge up my memories of the city. Why…why I can’t remember the apartment I lived in? I know I remember living there, and…hating it, but…why aren’t the memories of actually being there…there?

The image of an apartment does enter my mind, but…it was smaller, meant for one person. Wait…when did I live alone? I felt another sharp pain streak through my mind. The memory was faint, as if from another life.

I saw myself…sitting on the floor, crying. Why was I crying? The door behind me then opens, revealing a figure, someone…important. The figure looks like the woman from my dream. I then…ran to her, crying.

Tears run down my cheeks, and drip onto my desk. Am…am I crying right now? Why am I crying just thinking about it?

I wipe away the tears, with my thoughts switching back to the fox. There’s a draw, a pull towards the creature. When our gazes met, it felt like staring into a mirror. Why do I feel such a strong connection to it?

So many questions and uneasiness riddled through my mind. It felt as though my life was being turned upside-down and nothing was making sense anymore. I turn in my chair to head down to the kitchen for something to drink, thinking it might help clear my head.

A shadow then darkens the room, sending a tingle up my spine. I turn to see the very fox I had just been thinking about sitting on my window. Its dark-furred body sat majestically in plain view, its eight tails swishing behind it. My body slowly turned back towards it.

The creature’s body rose slightly and bobs its head, beckoning me to follow. I step closer only for the fox to dash off of the roof. I run to the window, seeing it sitting on the tree out front, again, beckoning me to follow.

My hands clench tightly on the window sill, feeling the urge to run out after it growing stronger by the moment. Marron had gone to her room to rest for the night, meaning I had to quietly sneak out, seeing how our rooms practically sat next to each other, with only her workroom separating us. I turn and find a pair of boots, but didn’t put them on, wanting to do so after I got outside.

Silently opening my door, my body creeps towards the stairs and inches downwards. Once in the living room, my socked feet dash over the floor, and slowly open the door, closing it equally as such.

I sit down on the top step and push each foot into the boots, and then stand up. The fox had since moved toward the woods, but was still there, waiting for me. I run after it, heading deeper in.

The trek through the darkened woods wasn’t exactly easy, but some help was given in the form of the full moon above. Its unobstructed light easily pierces through the densely packed tree branches. I encounter exposed roots, low-hanging branches, rocks that seems to materialize seemingly out of thin air.

Quickly as the journey seemed too arduous, a clear path emerges. I step onto it and see the fox I had been following, standing but a few yards away. Again it beckons me to follow, turning and heads off deeper into the woods. I run after it once more, following the clear and easy path.

A couple minutes later, I found myself standing in a small clearing. The sound of rushing water rang in my ear, seeing a small stream to my right. In the middle of the clearing stood a tall willow tree, its flowering branches hovered over the ground. The trees surrounding the clearing appeared to be forming some sort of barrier. A few rocks jut out from the ground in a few places.

The more I look around, the more…at peace I felt. I couldn’t help feel a strange fondness for the clearing. But…I know for a fact this shouldn’t be here, having gone into them since Marron brought me here. Yet here it is, plain as day.

A gentle breeze blows against me, carrying my hair with it. In the corner of my eyes I see the fox sitting on a rock under the tree. The moon’s light seemed to shimmer off of it dark fur, glistening against it’s the silver on it paws. The strange, odd, familiar creature’s eyes flicker a gentle fierceness.

“Finally…you made it.”

My body freezes as my eyes widen, did…did that fox just speak?

It curls back its lips into a tender smile, “You have been sleeping, but now you must awaken from your forced slumber.”

I tilt my head. It sounds just like me, only slightly older, and maybe a little British.

“What are you?”

It smiles, wrapping its tails around the rock, “I’m you.”

My mouth hangs open, in confusion, “What?”

“Well…to be honest I am the part of you buried deep within your mind. Something that can never be hidden away, no matter how hard someone tries to. More akin to a dream-self if you will.”

I step back a little, “Dream…self? Are you saying that I’m dreaming?”

It stares more intently at me, “Yes I am. You also know this to be a dream. A wonderful fantasy designed to keep you imprisoned for some reason or another. But a lie this world is. A lie you must shatter.”

I look at it incredulously, “Seriously? I love fantasy books and movies. So what are you saying? That this is like the Matrix or something?”

The fox rocks its head, “You might say that. Although Xiphos might refer to it as a memory construct,” it then looks to me, “and therein lies the problem.”

Its eyes stare softly, yet fiercely into mine, “Your memories have been altered to keep you in this dream…this false world. Memories and feelings become dreams, and something is using that to keep you here. But the mind is a powerful thing, never truly able to accept everything shown to it, even when it is what someone truly wishes for.”

My memories have been altered? “No…that can’t be right. I know who I am. I’ve been living with my sister for the past five years after our parents were killed.”

One of the tails slipped against the rock, “No…that is the one of the foundational lies which has been implanted into you, to keep you a prisoner. Your mother is alive, alive and possibly going out of her mind searching for you.”

Another sharp pain rockets through my mind. This was far more intense than earlier in the week. I hear the cawing of a raven echoing in my mind. Its cries reverberate heavily between my ears.

The image of the woman from before flared into view. Her hair began to part, revealing her face. With her face uncovered, a name then enters my mind.

“Rachel,” I breathe.

“You must remember the truth. You do not live here; your home is the Estate.” The surging pain then shot down into my heart, feeling it thumping rapidly. “Remember the fields, the forests, the lake, and the rolling hills. Remember your other sister, your aunt. Remember he who is as a father to you.”

The pain in my head and heart force me to my knees. I hold my head, nearly screaming out, feeling it throb and pulse. I double-over, resting my head onto the soft grass.

“Remember. You must remember. Those who you are bound to are searching for you, stretching out in hopes they might find you. You must awaken from this false life and return to them.”

The pain grew more and more intense as names and faces flashed passed my eyes. Fenris…Silvi…Velhemina.

My eyes flared open as memories came rushing back into me. I could now clearly see the image of the Manor, the battle, my fighting to protect those who couldn’t fight. I could see blood running down my arm and legs, feeling a slicing pain come from them.

Shouts and cries echoed around me, coming from both friend and foe alike. There was a massive explosion, and then a brief moment of peace from victory. I then feel a sharp pain emanate from the side of my neck, rubbing it with my hand.

I pant heavily into the grass. Fear and shock ripple through my body, feeling it trembling. Anger soon replaces my fear. Tears streams down my face as I stare up at the rock, seeing now the fox had vanished. No…not vanish. I was now awake…and pissed.

I stand up and wiped my cheeks. I turned and left the clearing, the path before me was straight and slices straight towards the house…and someone I need to confront.

I see Marron standing on the front porch, leaning against a beam, arms folded. “You’re in a lot of trouble missy. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice you gone from your room? I’ve been worried sick about you. Now come inside and we’ll discuss your punishment for sneaking out.”

My hands clench into fists, the anger I had felt earlier began to swell even more than before. “Why…why did you take me?”

Her head tilts in confusion, “What are you talking about? I brought you here after Mom and Dad were killed, don’t you remember?”

I glare up at her, “Stop lying to me!” I had never felt so angry before. My heart aches heavily within my chest.

She steps forward, “Aria…I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m telling you the truth.”

My teeth grit tightly, “No…you’re not.” Tears once more begin to streak down my cheeks, “Why did you take me from my home on the Estate? Why did you take me from my mother?”

The world around us begins to darken, to fade away as the sounds of glass or something else begins to break.

Marron stops dead in her tracks, her face contorted with fear. “You’re awake,” she whispers. Her body trembled, finally taking a step back. Her mouth hung opened, knowing the truth of what she had done.

Hot angry tears continue to run down my face, “Of course I’m awake. Now tell me, why did you take me?!” A stabbing pain plunges deeply into my heart, a feeling I had felt once before and I never had to ever again.

Soon everything fades completely to black, as the shattering sounds from earlier fill every corner of the yard. “Why Marron?!” I shout into the deepening void. “Why?!”