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“Well, precious, it’s been a long month for you, I’m sure,” she says. I don’t comment, not wanting to anger her by agreeing or disagreeing. After a moment, Jane smiles. When Amelia smiled at me, it made me feel warm inside. Jane’s smile only makes me feel cold.
Jane steps forward and pulls a key from her pocket, twisting the lock to my cage.
“I think it’s time we changed some things around here,” she tells me as she steps away from the cage. “Well, come on then, I don’t have all day!”
I scurry out of the cage as fast as my numb limbs will take me and stand before her, doing my best not to shake.
“O-okay, Jane.”
I’m not about to argue. Anything to get me out of this cage, this room.
She smiles at me again before patting me on the head. I don’t cringe at her touch—as much as I want to—and only let myself shiver when she turns back to Amelia’s cage, opening it as well.
I watch as Amelia steps out of the doors before giving Jane a brilliant smile. Smart girl.
“Hi, Mama!” She exclaims and Jane pats her head too, looking down fondly.
“Okay, Teddy, Precious. Come with Mama.”
Without waiting for either of us, Jane turns to leave, trusting us to follow. I glance over at Amelia again and see her watching me. When she smiles, it touches her eyes and I feel my mouth twitch again. When she holds out her hand, I take it and I feel the warmth spread through my body as we step forward, following Jane hand-in-hand.
As we make our way through the gallery, I watch Amelia’s face. Her eyes are even wider than usual, and her breath is quick, but she doesn’t seem overly disturbed by the macabre art she sees. I swallow deeply and keep my eyes forward.
We get to the end of the gallery. My room is off another hallway to our left, but Jane surprises me again when she leads us both to the right. To the stairs.
I haven’t been upstairs in years.
We follow Jane up and watch as she pulls another key out, unlocking it and holding the door open as we cross into the next level of the house. Amelia looks totally unfazed, I guess she came through here recently, but I am sure my eyes are wide as saucers as I take in the unfamiliar sights.
I know we are in the kitchen; I see a fridge and a sink, but they’re dusty and unused. Rather than the smell of blood and bones, I smell dust and mildew. It’s wonderful.
I want to ask what is going on but am too afraid that Jane will change her mind and put me back in my room, or worse, the cage.
“Branson,” Jane says, and immediately my attention is on her. She never uses my name. “I would like you to begin by cleaning this room. There are supplies in that closet.”
I am too surprised to do anything but nod. She wants me to clean? I forget for a moment that I am still holding Amelia’s hand until Jane reaches out and I instinctively flinch. Jane smiles at that before taking Amelia’s hand into her own. I swallow as the cold overwhelms me again.
“We won’t be far,” Jane tells me. “I’ll be back to check on your work soon.”
For the next while, I am left on my own. My body aches from being in the cage for so long and I still feel weak, but the longer I am moving and standing, the better I feel. I am just scrubbing the last dust mites from the counter when I hear footsteps behind me.
“Well, well, well,” Jane says, “What a good little cleaner you are.” She steps into the room and takes a moment to inspect some of the cupboards and even the inside of the fridge—which was turned off, but I still cleaned.
“I should have done this years ago,” she mutters to herself before turning back to me.
“Are you hungry?” she asks me. I hesitate before nodding. Of course I am, I’ve barely eaten in what feels like forever. When Jane beckons me to follow her, I do. This time without hesitation.
I follow her through the dark hallways that are only vaguely familiar to me from when I was first brought her. The walls seem to be peeling a bit at the edges and that old, musty smell permeates everything.
We turn a corner to a sight I have definitely never seen in this house. A table is set up and Amelia is sitting there wearing a frilly pink dress. Tantalizing aromas drift up from the covered plates, and my mouth immediately begins to water.
Food. Real, honest-to-god food.
I stand there frozen, not sure what I am supposed to do while I watch Jane walk around to the top of the table and take a seat.
“Where are your manners!” Jane scolds. “Sit!”
I hurry over to take a seat across from Amelia. We both look to Jane who is watching us with a small smile on her face.
“My children,” she begins, and despite my hatred for her, I feel a small flush of warmth at being called her child again, “I know this has been a big day for you both, so we will talk more tomorrow of the changes going forward. Tonight, we eat and celebrate our new family.”
After dinner I am brought back to my room downstairs fuller than I can ever remember being. I drift off to sleep thinking of bright green eyes and a brilliant smile, and for once, the nightmares don’t come.
