Prologue: Special Alice
“I can't be here."
"You've said that over and over again, Liz! This isn't what I wanted. We were supposed to raise her together! Instead, your parents are taking care of her while you play hero?!"
Clenching the blanket that helped me remain invisible, I looked between the woman who wore a red silk cape and my father.
My dad was holding a bottle in his hand, a usual routine for him, as my grandparents said over and over again. The bottles always smelled yucky, and they always made Daddy act mean.
He'd yell and scream when he didn't get his way, and there were a few times when he'd throw the bottles and they would break, the glass flying everywhere.
Grandma always got mad when he did those things, saying how dangerous it was for me to be here with him. She'd tell him if he didn't stop drinking the yucky fluid, I wouldn't be allowed to stay here.
It made me sad because I wanted to be near Daddy.
If I'm closer to him, that means I'll be able to see Mommy. That's what I've been praying for.
"It's for her own protection," the woman whispered. "It's the best I can do."
"The best you can do. Leaving me to raise our only daughter on my own! You know how stressful it's been? Your parents treat me like a fool and threaten to take Alice away, every day. One day I'll come home, and she won't be here anymore."
"Theo...it's complicated."
"Life is complicated, Liz!" he yelled, and there went the bottle in his hand against the wall a few feet from me.
I flinched at the loud noise of broken glass, and a bit of pain poked into my hand. I turned my left hand to stare at the back of it, tears welling in my eyes at the clear glass shard that was deep into my flesh.
"Hurt," I whispered to myself, but I tried to stay quiet.
"Alice?" Dad's voice made me flinch, and I noticed he and the woman were looking my way.
The woman wore a hood that covered her head and most of her face. All I could see were her red lips and glowing red eyes.
Instead of running away, I lifted my blanket and covered myself entirely. Returning to looking at my hand, I began to cry quietly, my tears hitting my tanned skin.
"Hurt," I repeated, and wished Grandma or Grandpa were here to give me a band aid for my booboo.
This was one of the reasons why daddy was scary when he drank too much. I wanted the kind daddy who'd play with me when I was sad. If he was sad, I'd hug him and say I loved him.
I wished that was enough for him.
Something patted my head, and with caution, I lifted a bit of my invisible blanket to see the woman with red eyes. She had tears in her eyes, just like me, and she almost looked like me.
It was like I was staring at a mirror and playing a game with what Grandma called a reflection.
I lifted my hand to her, my lips trembling and my tears rolling down my cheeks. "Hurt," I whispered to her.
She looked to my hand, and a frown formed on her lips.
"You want me to heal it with magic?" she whispered. Her voice made me stare at her in wonder. It was gentle and loving, reminding me of Grandma's, but this woman looked like she did care about me.
The word magic interested me.
"Won't hurt anymore?" I asked.
Her lips curled upward then. "Won't hurt anymore, darling.”
I nodded my head, loving the way she called me darling. It sounded right and was filled with love.
A small light caught my attention, and I lowered my gaze back to my hand.
"Light!" I giggled and enjoyed the warmth the soft glow offered me. I watched in amazement as the shard of glass levitated out of my hand, and the cut that was left began to heal.
My eyes doubled in size, and I leaned in closer to see my hand was healed. It didn't hurt or anything, and when I spread my little fingers out, a gleeful giggle left me.
"I'm better!"
"Yes, you are," she replied, and I glanced up to stare into her red eyes.
"I wish you were my mommy," I whispered. "My mommy is gone, but you remind me of her."
The woman's lip trembled, and she blinked a few times.
"Do...you hate her for being gone?" she asked.
I looked to the floor and thought about it.
"No. I don't hate her." I