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THE PORTRAIT
Charlie reluctantly cracked open the door; after 20 years, the shroud that veiled the family secret was finally starting to unravel.... “How did I get here?” she uttered softly with despair as she fell helplessly to the floor.
Charlotte was the name on the mail she received but she preferred Charlie as it more aptly described her tomboy personality. There was a mirror embedded on the east wall directly below the window where the sun would soothe the aching in her body every morning. It was her only friend at times. She spent many days sitting in front of the mirror looking at her face age over the years like a Dorian Gray novel. She can’t remember the last time she wore make up which has kept her face almost unchanged through time. At 44 years of age she could still be mistaken for someone in her mid twenties. Her big brown eyes would often show remorse, sometimes mystery, and always seem to be searching for something.
Charlie was never married and had no children so visitors to her home were less frequent as the years had passed. Her fear of the world outside had consumed her every thought, her every dream, her entire existence. She relied on her maid of the last twenty years, Doreen, as her only source of news and contact with the world outside. She kept her life simple. She wore the same clothes every day…basic white to encompass her purity and innocence. Doreen did her shopping, cooking, and any errands that needed to be done. Nothing changed - Day in…Day out.
There wasn’t much that Charlie remembered of her life before she became such a recluse. Was she a wealthy heiress? Did she come from nobility? What were her parents like?
Doreen left around 10 pm that evening and had accidentally left the door slightly ajar. It was early morning and the screams from one of the neighbors had awoken Charlie from an already restless sleep. This person seemed to be fighting relentlessly…but with whom? The screams wouldn’t stop. This went on for nearly a half an hour. Why hadn’t the police come yet? Was this person being raped or murdered? Was she next? Shadows had entered through her door and disappeared randomly as they passed the lights outside. It was an eerie darkness on the other side of the door and through the screams in the distance she could hear voices mumbling. She wanted to scream for help but wasn’t sure if the voices were good voices or someone that could harm her. She made her way under her bed to hide but was frightened by the thought of being trapped with no way out. The one place in her home she felt safe was under the mirror where she spent so much time during her days searching for comfort. Quietly she made her way as she soon found herself trembling uncontrollably in her blanket. Her clothes had become soaked in fear. The door to the outside world seemed miles away. If she was to scream would anyone hear? She couldn’t remember why she had her home sound proofed but with the screaming from outside she soon rationalized why. To keep the outside from getting in!
Fifteen feet was all that separated her from her fears, her hopes and dreams of an existence, and of a past she would like to remember. Her eyes moved from the light switch that could comfort her in the darkness to the hands of the clock moving in reverse. Time had stood still and she felt paralyzed. Tick…tick…tick…
“Make it stop!” She screamed, covering her mouth and slumping closer to the floor. Did anyone hear? The sound of her heart beating was now moving in unison with the sounds of the clock. Tick…thump - thump, tick…thump – thump.
An hour had passed. There was no traffic sounds or pedestrians walking by. Twenty years had gone by since she had been on the other side of the door. Twenty years and the door was never left open…not even a crack. With her legs limp in fear she crawled across the tiled floor wrapped in her blanket as her only security. Her wet clothes against the chilled tile floor were adding to her already shaking body. She was within reach of the door as her fears started to subside as a new adrenaline had entered her body. Her favorite time of the day was approaching with the sun slowly rising behind her peeking in through the window. A new dawn of possibilities and a past soon to be awakened.
Excitement of the unknown made her heart skip a little faster than the clock on the wall. Visions of a life started to emerge within the deepest parts of her mind. A child swinging in the backyard with her father smiling as he pushed her. Was this her father? Was it in this home?
“Time for breakfast,” came a voice from the home as the father and child stared in the direction of the voice.
Smiling, Charlie reluctantly cracked open the door; after 20 years, the shroud that veiled the family secret was finally starting to unravel.... “Mom” she cried out as she pushed the door open from her knees.
“What are you doing out here,” Doreen said hurriedly setting a tray of eggs and bacon next to Charlie as she lay motionless on the floor. No more tears. No more dreams and no more fears. In one night she aged. Her mirror was now broken and her portrait was complete as the halls of the insane lit with the morning rays.
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