I should have known the high of spending my day with Jason wouldn’t last. The minute I stepped in the house I felt suffocated. Reminding myself it would all be over soon usually helped, but it didn’t. Now I was worried about the house being too still and quiet. As I walked up the huge staircase I couldn’t help but be nervous. Catherine seemed to come at me when I least expected it or had my guard down. The closer my birthday got, the more time I spent looking over my shoulder. Near Marietta’s room I heard voices. The door was partly closed but no light came from inside. I paused to listen. Cold air drifted out of the room so I knew Catherine was in there as well. Standing as still as I could, I strained to hear what they were saying. “Why can’t you leave me alone?” It was Marietta. Her voice sounded hoarse and pleading, beaten down. It pulled at something inside of me. I wanted to rush in and help. I imagined her huddled in the dark talking to shadows, sort of like Gollum in Lord of the Rings.
