Falling With Grace

“Grace, there you are.” Rosa’s hunched form moved in my periphery through the open doorway leading into the conservatory, her hand raised to shoulder height, and her paintbrush paused before touching the canvas. “I need a steady hand for this tree. Come quick.”

I groaned inside and shuffledtowards her.

Not now, Rosa.

“I don’t know how much help I’ll be.”

“What’s wrong,mi hija?”

“My stomach is a bit upset. I was going to lay down.”

“Hmm.” She dipped her paintbrush into the dark green and, with a shaking hand, dabbed the canvas. “Guilt will eat at the soul until there’s nothing left to devour but the flesh off your bones.”

Her darkness filled the room, her words a deafening prophecy.

“I… what do you mean?”

I glanced back at the two pairs of eavesdropping ears. They stood outside of the room like obedient soldiers.

“Come now. Don’t be coy. Nadia is here, and your stomach is acting up before we eat…” She clicked her tongue. “It seems like the soul knows what needs to be done.”

Blood rushed from my veins, pooling in my feet, and a wave of dizziness tilted me towards her chair. I gripped the small decorative nub on the back, and steadied myself. “You want me to tell her?”

Rosa lowered the brush, resting her wrist on her knee. “Don’t be daft, girl. She’d tear you apart, and I like you too much to turn you into minced meat.”

I gulped, my nausea growing by the minute. “So what are you saying?”

She sighed, her shoulders sagging as she turned in her seat to face me. “Stop being foolish, and keep your distance.”

My lungs filled with the stench of rotting truth, and acrylic paint, a pungent odor that should be ventilated.

I nodded. “I’m going to take that bath now.”

“I thought it was a nap?”

My stomach cramped.

“See you at dinner.”

I rushed through the arched doorway and ran up the stairs. Nadia’s moans burned into my mind.

Stay away.

I needed to stay away while trapped in the same cage.

Because that was easier said than done.

26

Grace

“Grace?”

I jerked my attention towards the door, my butt resting on the edge of the bed where I’d sat for hours after my bath, watching the clock tick down.

Where I’d been alone, forced to deal with memories playing on repeat without a controller.

Javier’s muffled voice slipped through the crack under the door, the knob twisting until it swung open, invading my sanctuary.