Just from looking at the outside, there was something a bit off about the house.
A black gate surrounded the property, encasing a large front yard and a small stone path trailing to the front porch. A chair was set at the top of the porch stairs, and strangely, vases and boxes filled with flowers, stones, and other small trinkets lined the entire perimeter of the brick house.
"Watch your step," Damien warned as they approached the stairs. "You knock one of them over, they all fall like dominos."
Wendy nodded, making a mental note to stay as far away from the walls of the house as possible.
The inside of the house was even more eerie than the outside, but it was not unwelcoming. Tiny figurines of angels and other peculiar creatures stocked the shelves, along with rows and rows of books. Parchment paper sketches plastered the walls, but the subject of the drawings was not always clear. There were candles on every desk and table—was it not a fire hazard? However, neither Wisteria nor Damien seemed to be concerned, so Wendy let the matter slip from her mind.
It was eerie, yes, but in an almost homey way. The strange décor gave the house a sense of personality, a show of character that Wendy did not necessarily dislike.
"Make yourself at home! You can sit on the couch," Wisteria said as Wendy slipped off her shoes. "What would you like to drink? Coffee? Tea?"
"Oh, you do not need to trouble yourself…" Wendy's voice faltered as Wisteria pouted. "…Tea is okay."
"Right away!" Wisteria hummed to herself as they walked through the foyer and straight to the kitchen. Damien set the bags on the counter, beginning to put the groceries away.
Across the kitchen was the living room, with two couches and a glass coffee table between them. An old, Victorian-style telephone rested on the table beside one of the couches.
Wendy tucked her long skirt neatly under her legs as she sat down, still unsure if she should be here. A stack of cards sat on the glass table. Curious, she leaned over to read the card at the top of the deck. 'Wheel of Fortune.'
"Sorry about the decor," Wisteria apologized. Wendy quickly sat back onto the couch as the girl set down a tray of cookies, followed by a teapot and teacups, onto the coffee table. "Most of them are gifts from worshippers, and some of them are a bit of an odd sort of bunch."
"Worshippers?" Wendy repeated.
"You mean you don't know?" Damien asked, making his way towards them while wiping his hands on a kitchen towel.
Wendy shook her head. Damien gestured to the wall across from them, where three sketches on parchment paper covered the walls. Upon closer inspection, Wendy realized each one depicted a little girl, and seemed to fit together to tell a story.
The first one in the sequence was a rough drawing of the little girl. Her face was tilted up to meet the eyes of a taller man with a crude sketch of a knife in his hand, pointed menacingly at her.
"When she was ten, she was approached by a man, who demanded her to give him money," Damien explained.
The next drawing showed the man, now on his knees, looking up at the girl as she held onto his hands.
"But instead of being afraid, she kindly took him in her arms, saying she was expecting him. She sympathized with his pain and told him God had not abandoned him. She told him to go home, and tomorrow his son would be alright."
Wendy shot a confused glance at Wisteria. She shrugged, a sheepish smile on her face.
The last picture in the sequence depicted the little girl with wings on her back, flying above the people who held their hands in prayer towards her.
"The man went home, and just like she said, his son miraculously recovered from his deathly illness. The man found her again and pleaded for forgiveness. She told him he was forgiven, in both her eyes and the eyes of God. The man then spread the word that an angel had descended from the heavens, and that there was a saint who could hear the voice of God. She soon became an idol of the people, and now dedicates herself to calming the woes of the desperate and conveying the voice of God." Damien ended his lecture with a flourish, a sparkle in his eyes. Delight? Pride? Wendy could not tell.
"Well, that's a bit of a dramatization, but I suppose something like that did happen, a long time ago," Wisteria said, an embarrassed smile on her face as she took a sip of tea.
"Is that how you knew I needed help?" Wendy asked.
Wisteria stared at her, blinking in surprise. "…I did see you coming, yes," she said finally, setting her teacup back down on the table.
"You saw the future."
"In a way, maybe." Wisteria paused. "You don't seem very surprised about this."
"I've been surprised more times than I can count today. I don't think I can be surprised anymore." Wendy gingerly took a teacup from the tray and took a careful sip. Earl Grey. It was much sweeter than the cup her mother used to make for her every morning—perhaps they added a touch of honey or a spoonful of sugar—but she was still warmed by its familiarity all the same.
"So," Damien started, "if you don't mind me asking, was that your mother?"
Wendy looked down at her feet. She nodded.
"Did you guys get into a fight, or…?" his voice trailed off, waiting for her explanation.
When she did not respond, he turned to Wisteria, a puzzled expression on his face. Wisteria shook her head, and he sighed. "I'll call Winston for you. He'll be able to get you two to make up." Damien picked up the telephone, getting ready to dial in a number.
"No!" Before she knew it, her arm was outstretched, having slapped the phone out of Damien's hand.
The phone clattered onto the ground. Wendy stared at it before turning to Damien. He was looking at her in stunned silence, mirroring the same shock she felt tingling on her skin.
"I…" Wendy trembled. What should she say? What excuse can she make? I don't want to go home. He won't understand. He will take Mother's side.
Everything that happened today was just too much. She was tired. So, so tired. Too tired to think up a convincing lie, too tired to convince someone else that things were fine when she could not even convince herself.
"He…" Wendy took a shaky breath. "He's already left for the Garden."
Damien's jaw dropped as he inhaled sharply. Wisteria covered her mouth, but Wendy could tell she was hiding her disbelief as well.
"I'm so sorry, Wendy," Wisteria said softly, taking Wendy's hand into her own and guiding her to sit back down on the couch. "It must've been so hard."
Tears stung her eyes, but Wendy did not blink. She was too scared that if she closed her eyes, she would see him hanging from the tree in their backyard, swaying with the wind.
Damien sucked in a breath, rubbing his temples before pushing his brown hair back. "Well…I never expected him to be pushing up daisies before the end," he muttered. "But it has been a year since the last time I talked to him at school, and I guess people change," his gaze trailed to Wendy, "especially at desperate times. People surprise you."
"I disobeyed her…" Wendy whispered. "Mother will be furious."
Wisteria squeezed her hand. "Everything will be okay, I promise." She rose from the couch and started walking towards the door.
"She's right. Everything's going to be fine," Damien repeated, but it sounded like he was talking to himself rather than to Wendy. He shook his head hard, as if he was trying to shake water out of his ears, before slumping down beside her. The shattered expression on his face was replaced by a wistful one.
"I'm sorry," Wendy said.
"Woah, woah." Damien glanced at her. "What are you apologizing for? Don't you even think for a second it's somehow your fault. At least you got away. She won't find you here, I pro-"
Knock knock.
He was cut off by a knock on the door.
Cold sweat started running down her neck. Wendy clenched her trembling hands, desperately trying to stop them from shaking, but it only seemed to make it worse.
Wisteria leaned against the door, her hand on the doorknob. She whispered something under her breath before slowly cracking it open.
She peeked her head out the door. "Can I help you, ma'am?"
"…You. You were the one from earlier. Tell me where my daughter is," a familiar voice said, sending cold shots of fear into Wendy's heart.
"Is that…?" Damien whispered, leaning towards Wendy.
She nodded, her mouth agape but no words coming out. It was like all the air had been sucked from the room when Wisteria opened the door—it was taking all of her energy and concentration to force herself to breathe.
"I'm sorry, but I haven't seen your daughter since then. I'm sure my brother told you exactly where she went," Wisteria said firmly.
"Don't lie. I've heard the rumours about you. I know who you are. You'll tell me where my daughter is. Right now," Wendy's mother ordered.
Wisteria refused to give in. "I'm sorry, but I don't take guests on Mondays. If you could come back tomorrow, I'd be happy to-" She let out a small squeak of surprise as Wendy's mother grabbed her by the collar, pulling her out the door.
Damien jumped, alarm lighting up his face and his body tensed. It seemed he was about to run to the door, but ultimately decided it would be wiser not to. He clenched his fists.
"I don't care if you're God. I will find my daughter, and when I do," Wendy's mother hissed, "I'm going to take you with us to the Garden."
Wendy stood up, hands covering her mouth. "I-I have to go," she whimpered, "I've never run away before. I have to go, she's furious…"
Damien grabbed onto her arm. "No, you can't!"
"Let me go!" Wendy struggled to pry his hand off of her, but his grip only tightened. "I have to, she's so angry, I—"
"Are you listening to yourself?" Damien was still whispering, but there was so much anger in his voice that he might as well be yelling. "If she catches you, she'll take you to the Garden. You'll die."
Wendy flinched.
"Isn't that why you ran away in the first place?"
You'll die too. She'll kill you too. Wendy still could not force the words out, bursting into tears instead.
Damien's eyes widened as he realized what he was doing. "Oh!" He quickly released his hand. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get angry. I'm sorry if I hurt you."
Wendy rubbed her wrists before wiping her eyes, refusing to meet his gaze.
He bent down slightly, so he was eye-level with her. "Wendy…?" Damien said softly. "Are you-"
She broke into a run, dashing towards the door.
"Wendy!" Damien lunged forwards. His fingers grazed her arm for a moment, but she managed to slip away. He stared at his hand for a moment before clenching his teeth. "Wisteria!"
Wisteria grabbed onto Wendy's mother's hands, calmly but firmly removing them from her collar. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but you'll have to excuse me. I have other matters to attend to."
Wendy's mother started to protest, but Wisteria did not give her time to finish. Instead, she retreated back inside. "Good day to you." She slammed the door shut.
But not before they met eyes, Wendy and her mother, through the cracks of the closing door.