Rose for Rose: Book Two in the Angels' Mirror Series (13 page)

Part Two:

Revelations

Fifteen

Portland, Oregon… August 14, 2013

Paloma glanced around her at the garden as she walked up to Eugenie and Mark’s front door. It stood open, the screen between her and the entryway.

“Hello!”

She heard a scrambling of feet only to see Mouse, their black and tan Dachshund, run for the door, Eugenie behind him. Mouse began to bark before she even entered. She could see someone sitting on the couch, but only the top of their head. She figured it was Rose.

“Welcome,” Eugenie said with a hug. “Come in and meet Rose.”

Her friend crouched down to the little dog, carefully swooping him up. “And you, little man, are going into the back yard again, where you belong.” Mouse yipped at her in protest, but out he went.

Paloma sighed in relief.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like the dog, she did; but he didn’t really know her yet and his yipping, in honesty, got on her nerves.

Petunia Grace was noisy sometimes, but she’d rather hear rroowls and mews than barks most days. Besides, she had Molly, Polly, and Dolly’s clucks and cackles to go along with…

“So, Edward mentioned he was going to go with your idea for the party, eh?” Mark smiled across the room as she drew nearer.

Rose looked as nervous as she, herself, felt.

She knew Mark was only making conversation, but it threw her.

What did her party have to do with their current conversation? What had it to do with little miss Rose Angela Wishart-Laurent? And to boot, it surprised, her, making her look up.

Her husband hadn’t told her that.

“Really? Somehow I’m surprised he’s alright with an ombred party, especially since it’s a theme ombre rather than a normal color one like people are used to. I guess I’ll have to ask him about that, since he hadn’t told me.” She glared at her host, and he flushed before looking down at his pants, then began playing with a thread on the seam.

Typical Mark
, she thought.

Paloma flashed a smile Rose’s way as Eugenie came to sit with them in the orange and white themed living room. Then, she finally addressed the girl with a smile as she moved closer to her.

“Hi, there… so, you’re Rose, hmm?”

The girl looked at her, sadness in her big green eyes.

“Yes, I’m Rose, and you must be… Edward’s wife?” She looked forlorn; lost. The young girl fingered a necklace Paloma couldn’t make out as she nodded, trying to help Eugenie’s guest feel at ease.

“We were just telling Rose you’ve found some of her family,” Mark announced without any more hesitation.

Paloma whirled around in her seat, shocked. How had this man become a therapist or gotten a degree in psychology at all? His manners were horrid, and he couldn’t have been more insensitive…

Or could he?

This girl had only been here a short while, and he already seemed to want to be rid of her. What was his problem?

“Have you, um… contacted them?”

“What do you think, Mark,” she asked, sighing.

Until she knew for certain this was Peter’s sister, why unsettle the old man. Hadn’t Daniella said he was frail and becoming somewhat confused?

“I don’t want to see him,” Rose blurted, and all eyes turned to her. “If I’m really in 2013, then he’d be… let’s see… he was born in April of 1923, so that would mean… he’d be… wow, my baby brother is…. Is he really ninety years old?”

Quickly blanching even more than before, the girl ran a hand over her eyes, tears running down her face.

“You don’t want to see…?!”

Mark looked so livid Paloma wondered if he might actually hit the young girl, who they now knew to be fifteen.

Wow
, Paloma thought.
She’s fifteen and her younger brother is ninety… of course that’s a shock!

“Now, Mark, be kind. This is a lot for her to take in,” Eugenie said quickly, standing now, hands on her hips.

Paloma waved Rose closer, then hugged her. Eugenie stepped in and hugged her from the other side, as well.

“There is no way that girl is going to live here, Genie. No way. She has a family of her own, and she needs to be with them, where she belongs!” Mark’s words roared into the room.

Rose unhinged herself from Paloma and Eugenie’s grip, leaped around her, and ran out the door.

Paloma and Eugenie rounded on a surprised looking Mark, who was now acting sheepish.

My, how Mark’s emotions were whirling, and causing Paloma’s own to swirl!

Unsure what to do, she stood and went to the door. “If you won’t go find her, Mark. I’ll look for a bit. And believe me, Jason and Edward are going to hear about this.”

Her words were soft, but they were power-filled. They were almost a threat in her own ears.

She jumped inside at her own tone of voice.

With a sigh, Mark finally stood, letting go of the pant-leg seam he’d been fiddling with.

“Fine. I’ll go search for the brat. One hour. Then, I’m going to go finish that letter I started yesterday morning before all this… nonsense happened. How we ever got into this…” His voice trailed off into a sigh.

With that, he moved toward Paloma, frowning, but his eyes were piercing into her. He stopped just in front her, his fists clenched, grumbled a bit more, and then walked outside.

A letter? He’s seriously more concerned about getting a letter finished than the well-being of a child?

Paloma took a deep breath, reached into her bag for her cell, and left a message for her husband. Then, she turned around, ready to head for her car.

She’d had enough of Mark for one day.

What was his problem with Rose? She hadn’t exactly done anything warranting his rudeness, let alone his downright meanness!

Before she could reach for her door, she whirled back around. Eugenie had followed her outside, carrying Mouse.

“You know what? I’m going to go search for her a while, too. Hopefully we can get to her before she wanders very far,” she finally said, looking at her friend.

Eugenie nodded, shrugging.

“I don’t get it, either, Paloma, but I hope this all gets settled soon. Something’s been bothering Mark for weeks now, and I have no idea what’s gotten into him,” Eugenie said, tears coming to her eyes. “I wish I knew how to help him, but I just… for now, we need to concentrate on finding Rose. The poor dear.”

Paloma could only imagine what the young girl must be thinking. As she began to walk the neighborhood, she thought back on how Edward had coped with the changes once he’d come through the mirror, and she sure hoped that, somehow, things would smooth out with Rose soon and she would be able to accept her new reality. If not, this would be a long, tough road for her.

Paloma entered the house quietly, greeted with only the sound of her sons’ laughter. She set her keys and purse down on the nearest chair and headed toward the commotion to see her husband on the floor with them, having a tickle fight.

She smiled as she watched a few more moments before entering the room.

“Mama,” Chosen exclaimed. “Come on, Mama,” he said, holding his chubby little arms out to her.

A cozy delight rested in her belly, and she allowed her worry to take a break.
I’m sure they’ll find her soon
, she told herself, thinking of Rose.
She doesn’t know anywhere else, other than the café, and how would she get there?

She knelt down near the trio as they continued to laugh, the young boys’ bodies curling over with a bouncing enthusiasm she wasn’t used to seeing. Edward beamed as he held out his hand to her. She took it, and he kissed her as he pulled her closer into their circle.

From where she was, she could hear Cherish cooing in the background somewhere. “Where is she?”

Paloma looked around for a few moments, trying to locate her daughter.

“Kate’s got her in the nursery,” he replied, smiling again even as Duncan began to tickle her underarm and elbow. “She had her bath about half an hour ago, and everything’s… under control,” he finished, sounding a little short of breath.

Chosen cheerily pounced on her before she could reply, causing her to lose her breath for a moment. Her skirt was askew, and she smelled something funny, but in the moment, she didn’t want to ruin the fun.

“Glad to hear it,” she finally replied a few moments later, shifting so Chosen wasn’t jumping directly on her stomach.

Soon, her laughter joined theirs, and all thoughts of worry were set aside.

God, I know you’ll take care of Rose. Watch over her and help us to find her, safe and sound. If there’s someone out there she’s supposed to meet before we do, I understand, just… take care of her. You brought her to us for a reason
, she prayed silently even as her laughter pealed in the air.

Moments later, there was a knock on the door. It was so soft that, with all the laughter, she almost didn’t hear it at all.

“Coming,” she called.

Edward gave her a quizzical look, then began to rise with her. With a quick glance to her now fully-askew attire, she began to laugh even harder.

“I hope whoever’s there has a good sense of humor,” she said as they headed to the door, the twins tagging along. When they almost reached it, Petunia roamed into sight and bee-lined it for them.

Rrrowl, the cat said, her tail swinging in the air as she followed the parade of her people.

Paloma and Edward both tried to grab her, unsuccessfully. “Who is it,” she asked once she’d reached the door. She smoothed her skirt and faced it forward once more.

“Tom and Tawny,” she heard her best friend’s voice say as it floated through the door. “We’re here to pick up Kate. The kids are already in the car.”

“We’ll send her right out,” Edward said a little louder than necessary. He winked at her, then turned somewhat to the main part of the house. “Kate? Your family’s here. They’re waiting in the car,” he said.

Moments later, a flash of neon blue streaked toward them as Kate grabbed her backpack and headed for the door where they still stood. Paloma took the boys by the hand and scooted out of the way.

“Thanks for all your help, Katie,” she said, taking in the girl’s wild outfit and smiling. “I really appreciate you watching the kids while I was gone and helping Edward out. It’s been a hectic day… really, a hectic month.”

Kate looked up into her eyes and smiled back. There was a twinkle there that Paloma had never seen before.

“No problem, Auntie. Love you. Gotta go. We’re meeting my friend and his family for pizza,” she said, resituating her backpack before hugging her.

“Have fun,” she replied, a warm feeling coming over her.
How fast they grow up
, she thought as she watched Kate leave. She caught Petunia trying to escape, then waved goodbye as the Henleighs’ car inched away from the curb.

Sixteen

Portland, Oregon… August 13, 2013

Rose awoke with a start.
Where am I,
she wondered. There were voices outside, but….
Oh, yes.
She was in the treehouse she’d found.

A sudden stirring near her caused her heart to drop.

What was…?

A little calico kitten, not more than six or eight months old, poked its head out at her from the corner, with big yellow eyes. It had long fur, and what looked like a white star across its blackened nose and cheeks, and reddened ears. Most of the body was a red-gold on top, with black and white interweaving through the tail and on the paws. When it came closer, Rose put her hand out and it came to her, tentative at first, then purringly close.

She began stroking its fur when the voices got louder. Two more little furry heads popped up after she’d been petting the first kitten for a few moments. One seemed older, mostly white with black patches; perhaps two years old, and the third was another kitten… possibly a sibling of the first; it was another calico, mostly white with grey, pale red, and black striped markings covering its legs, belly, and rump. On its cheeks were a few more stripes, two-toned red. She almost laughed when she saw it.
How could a cat look so funny
, she wondered, trying to constrain her laughter.

“Muddlebear, Nadalina, Wiley, where are you, kitties? Come on, kitty, kitty,” a girl called. Her voice sounded….

Rose wasn’t sure what the accent was for sure. All she knew is that to her Father’s ‘sometimes French,’ this voice sounded kinda…tilted.

“Come to Pilar, kitties. Come now…”

“Where are you, kit-tens,” another voice called. “Mama Fifine miss you.”

It sounded like an older girl; perhaps a young woman.

Because of their accents, it was hard to know how old the people calling the cats were. Rose was just thankful they sounded nice, so far.

The oldest and largest of the cats, its ears twitching back and forth with the noise, scampered back into the corner.

Why, the poor thing looks like it’ll begin to shake any time, now
, Rose thought.

Suddenly, instead of staying hunkered down, when the next call came, the patched cat scampered hastily to the stairs, waited a moment as if to gauge the situation, then leapt from the third step, not bothering to try to amble down the rest of them.

Rose held her breath, the sound of her own heartbeat rushing into her ears.

The kittens remained where they were, purring and rubbing against her as she silently pet them, each with a hand. She tried to ignore the itch that was creeping up on her, but failed.

Hastily pausing her right hand, she reached up to scratch at a bug bite along her jawline, and then her neck began to itch. She’d acquired a handful of the bites since leaving Eugenie and Mark’s place the other night, and wished she’d thought of the possibility before she’d run.

The voices were closer now.

“There you are, Wiley, you silly gato. Are the kittens in there? I better have a look,” Rose heard the girl, Pilar, say.

She sounded like she was scolding the cat; so what would she do when she found Rose?

Quietly reaching for her St. Peter’s medallion, she began to pray, even as the girl’s footsteps came closer. As she closed her eyes, tears began to silently stream down her cheeks. Oh, how she missed Mother, Father, and the boys.

Why did she have to fall through a stupid mirror into a different time? What good had it done for her? What was the…?

“Who are you,” she heard the girl whisper all of a sudden.

As Rose opened her eyes, she came face to face with a lanky young girl, perhaps twelve or thirteen, with long black hair, brown eyes, and caramel skin. She had a wide but shy smile, and in her hands were the other two cats, softly mewing. She had on a pair of dark green pants and a white top that read “CREO Juan 3:16” on it.

Whatever that meant…

“So, you ran away from the people taking care of you,” Pilar asked her once she’d told her story.

Rose had decided to leave out that she’d fallen through a mirror, but everything else she’d said was the truth, wasn’t it? That she missed her family on the other coast, and she was staying with a couple nearby, but that the husband didn’t seem to want her around.

That was all accurate…

Inwardly, she cringed.

She really liked this girl. Maybe they could even be friends.

But what if she ever found out Rose had lied to her right from the beginning about her whole identity? Or at least about when and where she was really from.

Absentmindedly pushing aside her bangs for the third time since she began her story, Rose watched her hand ruffle through Muddlebear’s fur. The first of the cats to introduce herself, she didn’t seem to want to be anywhere but with Rose, and the thought of it warmed her intensely.

It felt good to be loved, even if it was only by a cat.

Pilar held Nadalina in her lap, the cat’s strange markings winking together with every movement. A loud purr emanated from her throat as Pilar gently mussed her fur.

“Well, I guess until after I did it I didn’t think of it that way, but… yes, I ran away,” she finally answered, looking back up at the girl. “I mean, Miss Eugenie’s super nice, but her husband, Mark, well, he’s…. I don’t know how to put it, Pilar,” she said. “It’s like he already decided not to like me before he even met me. As though he just knew I wouldn’t be a likable person.”

Tears began to stream down her face and she carefully wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, making sure there was no dust or dirt on it first.

“I just really miss my family, and then on top of it, there’s this man who hates me and just wants to be rid of me. It isn’t fair!”

Pilar reached over and carefully placed a hand over her own.

“I know it won’t make all that go away or make it better, but how about at least staying part of the day. I think my parents will let you come for lunch… maybe even dinner, too… if we go talk with them now,” she said with a shy smile.

After a few moments to recollect herself, Rose nodded. What could it hurt, a few more hours?

Besides… maybe she’d be able to clean up a little before she had to go back. She missed Eugenie and hated that she might be worrying over her, what with being pregnant and all, but she didn’t relish the thought of seeing Mark again.

Her stomach turned at the very thought of being around him.

Who did he remind her of?

She couldn’t figure it out….

Carefully making her way down the ladder after Pilar, Muddlebear tucked between her elbow and chest, Rose finally exhaled as she exited her treehouse refuge.

Maybe, just maybe, there was a reason she’d come through time and to Portland, after all.