The kitchen lights seemed to dim, drawing further away. Her words hung in the air, protracting the deafening silence we shared. The clock ticked away, a constant reminder that time was still passing.
“Not in this way.”
Leaning back, watching the girl lay there, seemingly at rest, I tried to straighten myself. Though, I could not do so. I felt heavy, my head lurching as if there were a weight on my back.
Jane shifted her weight, pulling on her dress so she could sit cross-legged. “What do you mean?”
I sighed. Easing myself down to sit with her, I distracted my hands with the towel. “Where should I start?”
Though I was mostly asking the question to myself, she pondered with me as she rubbed her knees. “Mm… You said this has gone on for a few weeks now?”
“Ah… Yes. Well…” I gathered my thoughts, though I was certain I would sound incoherent anyway. “A week or two ago, I came across her in the woods, just outside of my cottage… my garden.”
“Really?” Jane raised her voice. An arm raised, pointing towards the door with her thumb. “Just, like, out here?”
I nodded. “She was a bit shy, and didn’t say a word…”
“What’s a girl like her doing this far out into the woods by herself?”
“Exactly. So I took her in because I thought maybe she was lost…”
“Certainly doesn’t look like she’s from around here,” she remarked.
“But… A few days ago, she ran away…”
“… Oh…?” She did not continue, clearly taken aback.
“And I haven’t seen her since. Not until today.”
“Right.”
Silence once more. I kept my eyes fixed on Alice as I thought of what to say next. I sort of jumped too far ahead in my recount.
“And was it because you scared her, or…?”
I did not look at her, silently squeezing the towel in my hands. “Although, I should mention… she’s not a girl.”
There was a bit of a shuffle next to me. “She’s a boy?”
“No… I meant… She’s a spirit.”
There was no immediate response. Jane leaned forward, closer to Alice. She was inspecting the girl’s face.
“This girl?” she uttered, almost dismayed. “A spirit?”
“Yes.”
“You sure?”
“I’m almost certain she is.” I gestured towards the back corner of the dining room. “She revived those flowers over there. Right in front of me.”
Sitting up, she tried to peek over the couch, though it was too tall to look over from the floor. All she managed to do was catch a view of a lazy Abbey. That was as much effort as she gave it, slouching back down.
“A girl spirit, huh…?” she pondered, blankly gazing forward. With a flick of her eyebrows, she rocked her head to the side. “Well, that’s news to me.”
Checking her forehead, Alice felt warm to the touch. “She also doesn’t speak,” I continued. “Not a word. I’ve had to communicate with her through gestures.”
“Really?”
“Well, pardon. She’s had to communicate to me through gestures. She understands me, somehow. But she can’t speak.”
Retracting my hand to my lap, I played with the towel again. It seemed like we were in the clear. Alice was stable, or at least seemed stable. I could still see her weakly breathing. What I was not sure about was if I needed to feed her some more.
“I mean, that sounds just like any other mute child.”
There was a tingle on the back of my head. “I’m certain she is. I’m not going ment—”
“No, I believe you, sorry. Don’t worry.” Jane gesticulated with her hands, pushing the air.
I sighed, noticing my ears were growing warm. I needed to calm myself down. Jane was safe. She was a safe person to talk to. There was no need to get myself worked up.
The room felt a little darker now. The sun was probably dipping now. Checking on Alice once more, just to be sure, I was content she was safe.
“Care for some supper, then?” I asked Jane, who then turned to look for my clock.
“Dear, is it that time of the day already?”
I glanced at the grandfather clock, reading the hands. “A bit early, but we might as well, while we talk.”
She nodded. “If you will, please. I’ll stay and monitor her condition a bit longer.”