CHAPTER 4: First Disappearance
“Please, excuse her, kids. She must be weary.” Mrs. Trima said with a forced laugh. She then stole a peek at Athanasia.
“The doctor said she should not be around too much crowd.”
“You don’t have to worry, we understand.” Kyle answered. “William, Stella, Rose, you guys can go first. Dyris and I can wait here.”
Mrs. Trima let them enter. “I’ll prepare some drinks for you.”
Kyle and Dyris stood near the door.
His eyes shifted towards Nora’s room.
“Did you spend most of your time here, when you were younger??” Dyris asked him.
“Huh? Yeah.” He replied with an offhand voice. “I still come to meet Asia from time to time. But my visits are infrequent now. My relationship with Nora is not the same.”
She placed her hands behind the wall and turned towards him. “You know? I first saw you in this house.”
“I remember. You came with your Dad for a welcome dinner?”
“Yeah! The Trima were the only ones we knew here. My Dad wanted to move in a more peaceful place.”
“Nora’s dad is the chief secretary for your branch here, right?”
“Yes. Dad has to travel more now, and he chose Mr. Trima to accompany him. He is his most trusted employee.” She paused and continued. “Nora and you seemed quite close, and I thought you were a couple.”
A faith smile came to his lips. “I stayed with her that day because I wanted to annoy her.”
“Why?”
“I was mad. We had organized a trip for a long time, but the dinner created a hurdle in our plans. Mr. Trima felt sorry for me. He invited me to join you.”
“If I remember correctly, you both left early.”
“Nora was trying hard to be the dutiful daughter, but her father saw her sad state. He let us leave before they served dessert.”
The door moved, William, and the girls stepped outside.
“We will stay in the living room.” William said to them.
“All right,” Kyle said, letting them pass. “We will leave together afterwards.”
Kyle sensed a strong pang in his heart when he entered the room. He felt to a certain extent, responsible, for Athanasia’s state. He walked towards the bed and held her hand. Her eyes were open, but he did not distinguish if she recognized him or not.
“No one would have predicted that a bright girl like Athanasia would suffer with such a miserable fate.” He said with a dejected voice.
“Don’t worry Baby,” Dyris said, placing her hand over his shoulder. “I am sad to see her like this. But I am sure that someday she will be fine again.”
“Even if she gets better, she will have to deal with big emotional wounds, Dyris. Nora has pushed her into a great turmoil. She will never be the same girl.”
A pregnant pause fell between them before Dyris spoke again.
“Did the police make any progress on her case?”
Kyle shook his head, “No, apart from the evidences that showed that Nora was present at the crime scene. They found nothing else.”
“Do you suspect that Nora cause this misdeed?”
“I can’t accuse her with any proof. But there’s a high possibility she is behind Athanasia’s assault. If she turns out to be the culprit, it will not be a surprise.”
“But, Kyle! She won’t do anything so terrible to her own sister!”
“Step-sister, don’t forget Dyris. Athanasia is Nora’s step-sister! Mr. Trima had married twice. They are not real sisters. Nora had everyone fooled into believing she genuinely loved Athanasia. The truth is she has been plotting against her all the time.”
“Kyle-”
He did not let her continue. “No Dyris! Stop making excuses for her! She claimed she liked Ethan, and you saw how she ruined his life! She used me as a perfect tool. Damn it! I even fought against my best friend for her. It was shocking when we all discovered her lies. She had created this malicious ploy, just to serve her ambitions. I will never forgive her, never.”
Dyris came behind his back and embrace him with a tight clasp. “Kyle, please stop it. I can’t bear to see you like this! You are letting your abhorrence for Nora consuming you! You will end up destroying yourself.”
“Dyris,” he said as he turned to face her, “Don’t worry, I won’t let her become a priority in my life again. I have wasted too much of my time by being her puppy.”
He kissed her hand. “Sometimes I wonder if I deserved to have such a wonderful girl like you in my life.”
When Ethan died, he had become volatile and became distant towards everyone. However Dyris stood by his side and broke down all his walls. She gave him a desire to live again.
“You should not have tears in your beautiful eyes.” He took his handkerchief and wiped them for her.
Someone knocked at the door and they turned behind. It was Mrs. Trima.
“I am sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.” She then noticed Dyris’s teary face. “Are you okay dear? Did something happen?” She asked concerned.
“No, she got a little emotional that’s all.” Kyle answered with a tranquil tone.
Mrs. Trima calmed down, “I wanted to thank you for your visit. What you did today was an incredible gesture. I am glad to see that my daughter is still alive in your hearts.”
“Oh, you don’t have to be so formal.” Dyris reassured her.
“Yes, Mrs. Trima, Athanasia is our friend, and it’s always a pleasure to meet her.”
“Speaking of your friends, they asked me to fetch you. It’s getting late.”
“Sure, we are coming.” He threw one last look at Athanasia before leaving the room.
They were making their way down when Kyle noticed that Dyris was halting her steps.
“You don’t want to go home?”
She stopped walking and looked at him with guarded eyes. “Kyle, I want to check on Nora. I mean after when happened today. I want to make sure she is okay.”
Mrs. Trima twirled and asked, alarmed, “What happened to Nora?”
“Didn’t she tell you?” Dyris said, surprised, “We held a memorial for Ethan at school today and Mrs. Scott was present there. When she met Nora, she became upset and spattered on the poor girl!”
“What?” Mrs. Trima walked towards her stepdaughter’s room with frantic steps. “Nora, open the door!”
No response.
“There’s no need to see her,” Kyle declared with a rough tone. He came closer to Dyris and grabbed her wrist, “Let’s go, William, Rose and Stella are waiting for us.”
They walked towards the stairs, but Dyris kept looking behind. Mrs. Trima continued to knock the door. Nora was not answering any of her calls.
She tugged his jacket. “Kyle, please wait! Something is wrong. She did not come out yet.” She left his side and went help Mrs. Trima.
Kyle took a deep breath and retraced his steps. Deep down, he thought his nemesis was doing an act just to attract attention. However a terrible idea crossed his mind. Nora did not have a sane mind.
What if she was in some real danger this time? What if she tried to harm herself?
“Let me try.” Both women stepped aside. He knocked twice, “Nora! Stop your drama and just open the damn door!”
She was still not giving any reaction.
“Hey, what’s going on here?” Stella asked. William and Rose were behind her.
“Nothing, It’s just Nora, who wants to steal the show again!” Kyle bawled.
“Nora is not opening the door,” Dyris explained. “We are afraid that something has happened to her.”
“She went through a hard trial today. I hope she did not try to take her life.” William said with a concerned tone.
“Don’t say that!” Stella exclaimed. “Nora would never do something like this!”
Rose looked at them with a panic look. “But we can’t let her stay locked in her room! We have to get her out.”
Kyle turned towards Mrs. Trima, “Do you have a spare key?”
She nodded, “All the spare keys are in the kitchen. I’ll get it.”
“We will come with you,” Stella and Rose offered.
“If I find out she is pretending again, she will witness my bad side,” Kyle swore giving the door a strong punch.
Mrs. Trima and the girls came back a few minutes later. She handed him the key. He unlocked the door. They all stumbled inside. The room was empty.
“Where is she?” They asked in union.
“She did not use the front door. We would have seen her!” Stella exclaimed.
“Her window is closed too!” Rose said, shocked.
William examined the room. “It’s like she disappeared in thin air.”
“Oh, this is scary.” Stella said huddling her shoulders together.
Kyle remained calm and clutched his fingers.
“Guys go home.” He said after a moment. “I think I know where she might be.” He moved near the door, but his girlfriend stopped him, “Kyle wait! I am not letting you go on your own. I am coming with you.”
“Dyris, don’t be afraid. I’ll be fine. I will call you when I will find her. You guys are worn-out. It’s better for you to head back home.”
“But! Kyle, you can’t go alone! What if something happens to you? It’s dangerous!” William protested.
“I am asking you to put your faith in me. I am the only one who can bring her back.” Without paying heed to any of their objections, he walked downstairs and left the house.
As he got out, he sensed that someone was observing him. It was Mrs. Fletcher. Kyle made eye contact with her; the old lady had lifted her curtain and pure odium was coming out of her eyes. Kyle did not react. He knew she held a strong grudge against the Forester family.
He shunned her gaze and turned his back from the creepy old lady. Kyle marched towards the woods. Mrs. Fletcher can wait. My main concern is to find Nora.
A chill travelled through his spine when Kyle entered the Lossell’s cemetery. He hated this place. It contained too many painful memories. It reminded him of Ethan’s funeral. When they lowered his coffin down the soil, a part of him also died that day.
“If I didn’t listen to Nora, he would be still alive today.”
He took out his mobile phone and switched his torch light. Kyle heard some footsteps behind him and he made a swift turn.
“Hey, put that light away from me. It is burning my eyes!” William said lifting his arms up.
“What are you doing here?” He asked, annoyed, “I said I would find her myself!”
“To be honest, I didn’t want to come, but your girlfriend pleaded me to go after you.”
He did a close-up imitation of Dyris. “Please, if something happened to him, I won’t be able to live.” Kyle rolled his eyes, “You behave like a grown-up child. Sometimes it’s impossible to state I am your younger cousin.”
“Only by two months, but you on the other hand has always acted like an adult. You were born in this world with a bag of maturity.”
“Can you stop talking? I thought you came here to help me find Nora.”
“You hate her, right? What’s the reason are you so worried about her?” William asked adjusting the sleeves of his jacket.
“I never said I hate her. Even if she had hurt me with a profound blow, I never detested her with my whole heart. We had a wonderful childhood together.”
Deep down he was aware this bond would link them for the rest of their lives.
Kyle took a step forward and kicked a can of beer.
“However, her actions are still inexcusable. And when I supported her against Ethan, I also became part of her wrongdoing. We are both his culprits and neither of us deserved to be happy.”
“Kyle. There is a reason why you keep pushing her away. You are afraid that you will end up, forgiving her!”
“If I pardon all her mistakes, it will not be fair towards Ethan.”
“Kyle you sound like a grandfather. You need to learn how to enjoy your life again!”
“How can I enjoy my life when I directed my best friend towards his death?” He whispered with a cold voice.
“For God’s sake Kyle, He committed suicide!”
“He died because of me and Nora. Don’t forget that. Anyways, I don’t want to continue this conversation. Let’s find her and get out from here.” He shifted the light in front of them and they started to walk on the path of the cemetery.
“What are we looking for?”
“A tomb.”
“Whose? Ethan’s?”
“No, it’s for Nora’s mother. Whenever she is upset she would not care about the time. She will always visit her mom's grave.”
They took a long time, but they located the burial place. The boys saw a bouquet of fresh flowers on the top of the stone.
“So she came here,” William whispered. “You guessed it right!”
Kyle shrugged “I almost grew up with her. It’s not a big deal.”
“Do you think she already went back home?”
A thunder echoed in the sky and both boys looked up.
“It will rain soon,” Kyle remarked. “This will pose a problem. We need to get her before it showers.”
“Hey, why we don’t just call at her home? She might be there already.”
“Okay.”
Mrs. Trima picked it up at the first ring itself.
“Hello? Nora?”
“Mrs. Trima its Kyle. Nora did not come back?”
“No! She is not here! Maybe I should contact the police?”
“No, we should wait for some time. One hour didn’t even pass yet. I’ll continue to search for her here and if I don’t get her. I will take you to the police station myself.”
“What are we going to do now?” William asked after he hung the phone.
Kyle looked around him and hid a grin. He fidgeted with his phone and said in a sinister tone.
“You should head back home Will.” Kyle said, “I know you don’t like the rain. And you are afraid of the spirit of Keil Lossell.”
“Don't joke with those things. Many people claimed it is Keil Lossell’s ghost who screams every night.”
“And why would he do that?” Kyle asked rolling his eyes.
“His fiancé died on the eve of their wedding and he kept looking for her even after his own demise.”
“I don’t trust your sources. I am sure it’s only a folktale to scare people off. It can either be the work of an ordinary person or a stupid cult might be behind this.”
William stared at him transfixed.
“What? Why are you looking at me like this?”
“You seemed too calm and composed. Maybe you know something about those strange occurrences.” He stopped talking for a moment and placed his hand on his chin.
William stared at him and exclaimed. “Ha! I get it! You are Keil’s reincarnation!”
“What? Don’t be ridiculous William. I don’t have time to indulge myself in such activities! You sound even more stupid than Nora. Guess what? At school, she proposed that we make the death of Keil as our topic.”
He stopped talking. A lighting felt down and at the same time a possibility struck them. They looked at each other in horror.
“You are not thinking what I am thinking. Aren’t you?”
“If she is there, then it’s dangerous for her. I remembered the legend. It proclaimed that Keil has a penchant for young maidens’ souls.”
“I am going to check,” Kyle stated with no hesitation, “You can stay here if you want.” He was already heading towards the path which led to the statue.
William stood there petrified. I can’t let him go there alone.
“Hey, wait!” he called out with a frantic voice, “If you get killed, your mom would never forgive me.” He ran to join him.
“Then hurry!” His cousin shouted back.
They were both breathless when they reached the statue; however, there was no sign of Nora.
“She is not here either. I think we should inform the police. It’s getting dark now.” Kyle said defeated. He was about to walk away but he heard something. He followed the sound and squirted his eyes. “There is someone over there.” He said pointing towards some bushes.
“It must be an animal.” William suggested.
“No, it’s a person! Wait, a minute! I know that shirt. It belongs to Nora.”
He walked closer and tried to see her. “Yes, it’s her. She’s over there! Come on, let’s go.”
They rushed towards her direction. Nora was there, kneeling down and was digging the soil with a mini-shovel. She heard their footsteps, but refused to look up at them.
William was the first one to speak to her. “Nora what are you doing here?”
She lifted her head. There was something dark looming inside her eyes. “I am digging my grave.” She replied with a cold voice.
“What?”
Kyle and William exchanged a frantic glance.
“Relax. It’s a joke. I buried something here. I came to retrieve it.”
“Near Keil Lossell’s statue! You are not afraid?”
Nora shrugged her shoulders. I used it as a guiding mark. While they were talking Kyle remained silent. Both Nora and William knew he was trying to stay calm.
The bomb will explode at any moment.
William decided to take things in his hands before the situation would go out of control.
“Nora,” he said with a persuasive voice, “It will be night soon. You can continue your task tomorrow. For now, please come with us. Mrs. Trima is worried about you.”
“I know the way back. You can return without me.” She said with a flat tone.
Kyle walked closer towards her and kneeled to her level.
“Nora. Stop this madness right now!”
She remained unfazed and continued to dig. This time he lost his patience. He seized her arm and yanked her up in her feet.
“Is there something wrong in your head?”
She shook his hand off. “Don’t touch me! I already found what I have been looking for and I just need to take it out.”
Kyle glanced down. He saw a jewellery box which was only half visible. He removed it out from the soil and placed the box in her hands.
“You are happy now? You got what you wanted! Now pack your things! We are leaving!”
He took some steps away from her. Kyle could not accept her carefree attitude.
She ignored him. Nora remained standing and brushed the dirt from her treasure.
William moved closer to her. “Hey? Can I have a look at it? Where did you get that box?”
“Sure. It belonged to my mother.”
“Wow, there is a necklace inside.”
He took it out. The cord was old; however, it had a beautiful green pearl.
Kyle looked at the gemstone shocked. It was the first gift which he gave her.
“Is that a real sapphire?” William asked as he gave them back to Nora.
“I don’t know,” she replied. She made eye contact with Kyle. Do you still remember this necklace?
Kyle observed the jewel with intense eyes. Then he turned his gaze towards her. “So, you are ready to step this low!”
Nora stared back at him with widened eyes. She closed her hand around the stone but chose to remain silent.
“What? Are you still going on with your pretences?” Kyle said, lifting his hands up. “You are turning our childhood memories into your best weapons. Do you want to keep me under your grasp forever?”
Nora gasped, “How can you say something so twisted? I did not ask anybody to come after me. You guys came here on your own will! I never ask for your help.”
William attempted to stop their argument. “Listen guys, we should go now.”
They ignored him and continued to fight.
“You know what? I feel sorry for your parents. If your mother was still alive, she would be ashamed to have a daughter like you!” Kyle stopped when he realized what he said. “Forgive me. I did not mean to hurt you like this.” He tried to reach out for her, but she stepped back.
Nora trembled with rage when she remembered his words. “Yes, you shouldn’t.” She said with a sour voice. The boys did not realize her intention when she bent down. She took a handful of mud and threw it squarely at Kyle’s face.
William’s jaw dropped when he witnessed this scene. To say that Kyle became angry was an understatement. His cousin’s whole body emitted an atrocious animosity. “You will regret this.” He declared and marched towards Nora.
“Kyle! Don’t!” William said, stepping in front of him.
“How dare she? She threw mud at me!”
“You were wrong, as well. You had gone too far by saying those things!” He then turned towards Nora.
“However, Nora, you should not have attacked him. He had already accepted his fault now it’s your turn! Apologize!”
“Why should I?” She declared with a stubborn tone. “Giving him an apology? Never!”
“He spent, the past hour searching for you. You owe him some gratitude!” William scolded her as if she was a five- year- old girl.
“Fine,” she said curling her lips. She agreed just because of William. All of a sudden an idea came into her mind. She did a half-bow and said in an exaggerated accent, “Pardon me Master Forester.”
She mocked him without any regrets.
Kyle took another step towards her, however, at that moment some drops of water fell on their heads. They stopped moving and the three of them looked up at the sky in despair.
“I guess no one brought an umbrella,” William commented with a dry voice.
“Let’s get out of here.” Kyle muttered. Nora collected her things. Both boys grabbed one of her arms and they quickly ran to find a shelter.
Jenny and Mack waited for Nora and the boys to leave before they stepped away from Keil Lossell’s statue.
“Do you think they noticed us?” he asked with a worried tone.
“Nah,” she replied and opened her umbrella. “They were too busy helping the damsel in distress.”
“She was in front of us alone and helpless. We could have easily captured her and keep her locked in the sanctuary.” He complained.
“Will you quit whining? You perfectly know that it’s not the right time to take any action against her.”
“I feel uneasy letting someone who possessed so much incriminating information about us, on the loose like this. We can’t buy her silence forever.”
“Of course we can,” She said while flipping her hair. “Don’t forget that we have her weakness on our side. Kyle Forester!”
“In case you did not notice their relationship is deteriorating every day. If he continues to treat her like this, soon she will be the happiest person to see him root in jail.”
“Nothing of that sort would happen! She still loves him.”
“People tend to change and their feelings change with them. We may have extraordinary powers but we can’t predict the future!”
“You need to stop worrying! The cult, Ivory, has chained of her whole resolve. Besides, I don’t think she would dare to open her mouth. We practically turned the whole islanders against her. She knows that no one would believe her.”
“What if she gains an ally from the cattle?”
“Who?” She asked with a sceptic voice.
“Rose Mayfair. She seemed oddly interested in our activities.”
“Why are you so worried? That girl is not even a real journalist. Right now she only suspects that we are dating. Besides, if the matter begins to heat up, Ivory knows how to get rid of unwanted guest. We did the same thing for Ethan and conveniently placed the entire blame on Nora.”
“I still think that we are taking too many risks. Nora is a direct Trima and our powers are not really effective against her.”
“Even if she is our natural enemy, we are still stronger than her. Her strength is still dormant. Her life will be sacrificed if she creates any danger for us.”
“Aren’t you tired of following the rules like this?”
“We took a pledge when we joined Ivory. To be always faithful towards our Deity.”
“But-”
“Stop it! I don’t want to hear your chicken voice anymore! Our loyalty is bound with our leader.” She looked down on her feet, “For now, help me get rid of this corpse. Don’t forget we are still Keil’s servants.”