Regina (9 page)

The next morning, we had visitors for
breakfast.

Their peals of laughter floated up to my
room. It was only eight in morning on a Saturday. I groaned and put
my head under my pillow. My head slapped the journal I left there a
couple of hours ago. Ouch! This day was not starting out well!

The smell of Grandpa’s biscuits and fresh
expensive coffee was the only thing that got me out of bed. I
turned over, put on my robe and brushed my teeth before it could
compute to me that we possibly had company. I opened the armoire
and chose a cute Prada dress with blue Manalo’s. Grumpy but looking
pretty cute, I made my way downstairs and into the kitchen.

They were sitting at the dining room table,
eating breakfast and sipping coffee. My grandfather was at the one
end of the table, dad was at the other. Mom and some lady were on
one side, having a good time. The smile on my mother’s face was
wide happiness was everywhere on her face and in her body
movements. It pained me. I never saw her so happy when dad and I
were with her. Mom and I are pretty close but that closeness feels
as if it’s dwindling down.

The woman who made my mother so happy was a
pretty, petite red head. Her hair was cut fashionably short to her
chin line. Her pretty hazel eyes were filled with sunshine as well
as her smile. Those perfect white teeth were hard evidence of many
years wearing braces. Her tiny nose and thin lips made her face
look beautiful.

When I walked in, she was telling a story.
Her hands were wild with gestures, just like my mother did when she
told a story. The brown sweater hid her emerald green short sleeve
shirt. I couldn’t see the rest of her, but her jewelry was hanging
off her arms and fingers. Her fashion sense was pretty cool. This
woman must be my mother’s sister, Rachel.

The two brats sitting across from them must
be Rachel’s children, my cousins. I walked into the room a little
further.

“Good morning Regina. Um, did you sleep
well?”

Giggles rippled across the table at my
mother’s joke, I guess they heard about the invisible intruder last
night. When Aunt Rachel smiled, I noticed her dimple was gone. In
fact, her cheeks were pretty hollow. They matched her thin body,
and that hair dye job was pretty good. She was a brunette in her
younger days and a red head now. It did look chic.

“Actually, I didn’t sleep so well, but
Grandpa’s biscuits woke me.” I smiled at my grandfather. The two
heads in front of me turned around and looked at me. The girl
looked about my age, with blonde hair and blue eyes. When she saw
me, she smiled as if she was glad I finally arrived. But the little
boy, he couldn’t be older than ten, looked at me with fire in his
eyes. Hatred maybe?

“Sweetie, this is my sister, Rachel and these
are your cousins, MeKayla and Michael.”

“Good morning.” I said acknowledging all of
them. “It’s nice to meet you.”

The ice was broken with my kind smile and
polite words. Was everyone expecting me to shout and demand for
them to leave? I was angry no one ever told me they existed but
happy to have family. I’ve felt alone for too long. Living in New
York has wonderful advantages but mom and dad are so busy, they
never have time for me unless it’s scheduled in the summertime.

“Go on ahead and get ya a plate, hon.” I
loved grandpa’s little southern accent!

My breakfast was waiting for me on the
antique gas stove. I took a good whiff of the biscuits before I
took a lot. Grandpa made these from scratch every weekend morning.
Since he got up so early to tend to his vegetable garden, he made
these perfect and delicious biscuits. I sat down eager to gobble
these things down!

Darn! There wasn’t a seat was available,
guess I don’t have to sit with them. I suppressed a giggle and
started scarfing the food down in the kitchen. Dad gave me a toxic
look as he sipped his coffee. What was up with him this
morning?

Mom and Aunt Rachel started talking again and
the brats talked with dad. Only grandpa came over to me to ask how
I was doing. I was beginning to love my grandpa deeply. He would
talk to me about anything: his youth, life, marriage, life in
general. I told him about Jeff and my life in New York. We had a
lot of things in common. We loved old black and white movies, pork
chops, watching TV late at night, reading, and the ocean. A
carpenter by trade, he loved to show me how to use my hands.

He gave me a hard pat on the shoulder as he
walked by. I smiled up at him.

“Regina? Why don’t you come sit with the
family?” I have to say, my dad knew exactly how to push my buttons.
The problem is he never does. I told him yesterday I wanted to know
our family and I’m so not a morning person. His tone was calm and
mocking. No one would be able to understand it except me.

Hiding my curled lip of anger, I picked up my
food and went to grandpa’s chair. Grandpa was already out the door
to work on something outside. I desperately wanted to follow him
and get away from dad’s terrible looks but I knew I couldn’t just
get up and leave. So I turned to the family and put on my best fake
smile. I was very good at it.

“It’s so nice to finally meet you, Regina!
Mom told me all about you and New York City! How exciting to live
in New York!” Mekayla squealed, jumping a little in her seat.

This had to be a test! She heard all about
me? Well, I hadn’t heard a thing about her and was pretty mad about
it. Trying hard to fight my anger from rising, I kindly turned my
head towards her and struck up a conversation about home. It was
easy to talk about New York.

“I would love to go one day!”

“Well, we’re cousins! You should come visit
us.” My fake smile was plastered on my face but making my parents
happy. I did want to know MeKayla but I was in too sour of a mood
to make a real attempt.

“Tell you what? Let me get back to normal
today and later, we can have dinner in town! You can tell me all
about the people here and what there is to do. I can tell you about
New York.” Anything to get away from my parents, I thought.

“Sure! I don’t have a car, though.”

“You’re sixteen!” I gushed, finally happy to
find something in common.

“Yes, mam. I turned sixteen last Christmas.
Getting my driver’s license was the coolest gift ever!” Pride
stretched across her face as MeKayla told me this. I had less than
one month to go.

We talked a little more about Lee and what
there was to do here. My other cousin, Michael, talked to my father
the entire time. They looked in heavy discussion when I checked on
them. Dad was sitting with his legs crossed, engrossed in what the
kid was saying. What did that kid have to say that was so
interesting? I wondered with some jealously.

I answered Aunt Rachel’s questions while
constantly checking my father’s gaze as I did so, but he was so
enamored with Michael he didn’t hear me.

Breakfast ended shortly after that, they
started long before I came downstairs. We walked Aunt Rachel and my
cousins out to their car. It was a miserable little car. A beat up
Plymouth sat in the driveway. I think the color was green. I wasn't
sure because it needed a paint job very badly. When Aunt Rachel
started it up, I didn’t think it would make it down the driveroad,
but I saw it disappear safely over the horizon.

“Did you enjoy meeting your Aunt and
cousins?” The pleasant words came out of her mouth.

“Yes mom, thank you. Mom? Can I talk to you
for a minute?”

“Can it wait sweetie? Grandpa and I are due
at the funeral home in an hour.”

“Sure mom.” It was the only reply I could
think of giving. “So, dad? How ‘bout a driving lesson today?”

Mom and Grandpa disappeared quickly in the
car and down the driveroad. Yikes! That was quick. Mom tapped the
accelerator so hard rocks flew out from the rental car. The clouds
turned grey as dad turned to me with eyes hard as stone. Oh shit!
My evil dad was back!

The sky was definitely grey now. Thunder
rolled in from the distance. I could smell the rain in the air. I
inhaled the magnificent scent and took a moment to enjoy it for it
only lasted a moment. Daddy’s back hunched forward, his head fell
into his neck slowly and his hands went deep into his designer
pants.

“Uh, never mind. I think we’re done for the
week.” Turning around quickly on my five hundred dollar heels, I
fled to the house. I ran to the safety of my room for it was the
only room with a lock.

I need to get out of here! I’m totally going
crazy!

After I shut my door tight, it felt silly to
lock it, I sat on my bed and tried to Skype Jane. I needed to talk
to someone, but the sensation of someone staring at me sent me into
creped out mode again. I looked around but didn’t see anything out
of the ordinary. My eyes searched the room for any signs of
movement, but I found nothing.

I waited. I know someone was watching me, I
felt it so strongly.

But the sensation stopped as quickly as it
came. I waited another minute and went back to my phone. Maybe it’s
time to introduce myself to the boys and girls of Lee.

Chapter Eleven

He picked up his ringing phone, a smile on
his face. It was 7pm sharp.

“Your Report?” He answered.

“Regina Ann Roth, Lee Texas,
979-542-1662.”

The phone on the other end was silent. Though
she knew he was still on the phone, she gave him a moment of
silence and did not speak.

“You’ve seen her?” He asked, the excitement
bursting.

“No sir, but I’m on my way. I estimate I will
arrive in Texas before dawn. Marcus will be waiting for me and we
will go to ground in Austin. Physical confirmation in forty-eight
hours, sir.” Sarah answered.

Lady Sarah Lordview was definitely on her way
to the small town of Lee, Texas. Waiting for a plane to leave from
Kennedy, she sat on the hard airport chair trying to get
comfortable. The airport was crowded with people and lots of
baggage. Sarah hated large crowds but had to endure it in order to
secure a nighttime flight. Sarah did not know what she was looking
for. The girl known as Regina Roth would be easy to spot but how
would Sarah know it was really ‘her’? The task at hand was vital to
the survival of their people, most would not survive another twenty
years or so. The incredible amount of pressure that was on Sarah’s
shoulder was large indeed.

“Remember Sarah, you are to only identify
her, for now. Once you get confirmation, report back to me. If
Regina really is Anna then we need to form a plan, a backup plan
and a backup to the backup plan. We must be deep in the ground and
away from their territory. Do you understand me?”

“Yes sir.” She responded.

The silence was very nice while he thought.
Sarah had been tracking Regina, her cousin, for a very long time
and she was ready to take a nice needed rest. Though she knew if
she located the Princess, rest would never come.

“Why is she in Texas?” he asked. The question
came with a hint of anger and a lot of disgust.

“The ‘grandmother’ died. They took her to
Texas for the summer.” Sarah responded.

“They must know we are close.” He
mumbled.

“Possibly sir. Though I don’t think it’s the
only reason they took her away.” Sarah took a deep breath and
braced herself. “She will turn sixteen in four months.”

“Four months, you say.” The Pirate’s voice
came with quiet excitement. Sarah was very surprised. “We will have
Anna back in four months…. Do you know where to look?” He asked,
his voice coming back strong and firm.

“Yes sir. The mark is on the forehead, in
red.” Sarah responded.

For hundreds of years, Sarah has thought of
nothing, looked for nothing but that red mark on an unknown young
girl’s forehead. It has chased Sarah for so long, she felt weary
from it.

“That is all, for now.” He said, breaking the
silence. “I want confirmation you arrived safely in Marcus’s care,
then I expect to hear from you again in forty-eight hours. Am I
clear, Sarah?” He demanded without anger.

“Crystal.”

Chapter Twelve

The ‘pasture party’ was in a large circle of
surrounding cars and pickup trucks in the middle of nowheresville.
Katie picked me up at eight the next night from Grandpa’s house.
Her brand new little yellow Volkswagen came up the driveway safely.
I laughed to myself. This was not the way she really drove!

At first, I was sure mom and dad would say no
to a party when we were here for a funeral. However, I think dad
regretted the way he acted towards me and convinced her to let me
go. Again, I wasn’t use to them telling me what to do. They are
never around to help or guide me, so they shouldn’t start now. We
all agreed we needed a break from each other and letting me out of
the house would give us time away. I felt great as I got into
Katie’s car.

“My birthday present.” She gushed about the
car after she picked me up. “I’m so glad I met you! The girls here
are nice but I think we get along best.”

How odd of her to say this. We’ve only talked
a few times on the phone.

We took CR 226 to once again in order to get
back to the main highway. When we were halfway down 226, Katie took
a left on CR 224. I had never been this way before and was
interested in the scenery.

We passed mobile homes on concrete blocks,
new and larger homes, acres upon acres of open pastures of green
grass and livestock. Mostly cows grazed here but I could see the
occasional sheep, goat and pigs. This road was rich with large
trees that reached as far as they could to the sky. Beautiful
garlands of ivy and moss hung from some of the trees, adding a lot
of charm. Since it was getting dark quickly, a creepy feeling came
over me as we drove deeper into the woods.

Have I been here before? I wondered. Was this
road in my dream too?