Chapter Eight: It's Always One too Many

Redeenka sure was having problems at home. It seemed to go in a sort of cycle. It was better, but then it got worse again, until it got to its peak. Then it would start all over again, each time convincing Redeenka that it was better, but in actual fact it wasn't. This was Redeenka's life. But what was her problem?

It's quite simple to say that her mother was a drunk, but it was more in-depth than that. It wasn't simply that her mother drank too much alcohol. It was the way that it made Redeenka feel. She felt she couldn't trust anyone, and she couldn't really talk about it. Well, it wasn't as bad as it used to be. Redeenka remembered one day. It was the last day of school for the spring holidays in year three, and Redeenka was heading over to a culdasac where she would wait for her mother to pick her up. When she got there her father and mother were waiting. Her father had walked with Bridget, a little toy poodle, and her mother had driven in a car.

“Hello, Redeenka,” her father greeted, “Would you like to come with me for a walk and then go home, or would you like to go in the car with your mum?”

“I'll go with mum,” said Redeenka. So she got in the car. Immediately she noticed something wasn't quite right with her mother. But, being so little, she barely picked up on it.

“I've just got to go to the shops and get your dad a present,” said Redeenka's mother, whose name was Helen.

“Okay,” said Redeenka. When they were at the shop Redeenka was instructed to stay in the car and wait for her mother to come back. She was about ten minutes, and when she got back Redeenka was quite tired of waiting.

“What did you get?” asked Redeenka.

“Oh, just some of your father's favourite Nobby's beef jerky and a fridge magnet that is a frog,” answered Helen.

“Could I see them?” asked Redeenka.

“Oh, I've already put them in the boot,” Helen answered, “Before we go home, would you like to go to that playground we always used to go to?” Redeenka nodded. She was quite excited about going to that park, it was very fun for her. So they drove over to Banks and stopped at the park. Helen stayed in the car while Redeenka went and played. She jumped on some logs that were stuck in the ground and slid down the slide and ran around. It was very fun, but soon it started getting dark. So Redeenka ran back over to her mother, who was waiting in the car, to find she was asleep and snoring. A glass filled with water was at the bottom of the car, next to her feet.

“Mummy, mummy,” said Redeenka, pushing her and trying to get her to wake up. She did.

“Mummy, could I have some of your water?” asked Redeenka.

“Oh, it's probably hot by now,” said Helen, throwing the water on the grass. Then she threw the glass into the back.

“Are we going to go now?” asked Redeenka.

“Let's just have a rest first,” said Helen, and she was soon asleep.
Redeenka hopped into the back and sat down. There was still a little dribble of water in the glass, so she picked it up and drank it. But she instantly spat it out, for it tasted disgusting. It surely didn't taste like water.

She waited for a while while her mother slept. Soon it was black as night. Redeenka was very scared and didn't like what was happening. It seemed like something was wrong but what?

Eventually Redeenka fell asleep and then woke up again in the morning. She was very uncomfortable in the car, and it smelt bad. Helen was still asleep.

“Mummy, wake up,” called Redeenka.

“Ugh, was I asleep all night?” said Helen when she woke up.

“Yes. Are we going to go home now?” asked Redeenka.

“Um, yes, but first I need to do something. And they went down to Tuggeranong shops and went to Mother Nature's. Helen bought a strawberry flavoured milk drink for Redeenka and then told her to stay in the car while she went to get something from the shops. When she got back she seemed...

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weird. Of course she seemed weird before, but now it was worse.

“Now can we go home?” Redeenka asked.

“Let's go to the Tuggeranong Park first,” said Helen said, her voice a bit slurred.

“Okay,” said Redeenka, for she liked the Tuggeranong Park.

When they got there, Redeenka went running around, swinging on tire swing, sliding down slides, and climbing over bridge-like things. But never would she go to the top towers, because in them were metal models of insects, and they scared Redeenka very much. For lunch, Redeenka had a McDonald's Happy Meal which she very much enjoyed. Inside, she got a toy Strawberry Shortcake which had yummy smelling hair. After that, Redeenka went playing on the park again. All the while her mother sat in the middle of a few pine trees. Every time Redeenka came near she would put something behind her, as if she was doing something she didn't want Redeenka to know about. That scared Redeenka a little bit. But eventually it got dark again, and Redeenka came back over to her mother.

“Mummy, can we go home now?” asked Redeenka.

“Um, yes, you wait for me in the car,” answered Helen. So Redeenka ran over to the car to wait for Helen. She waited in the car for about an hour when Helen came stumbling over. When she got in the car, she got in the passenger's side, not the driver's side.

“Mummy, Aren't we going home now?” Redeenka asked.

“I'm just having a rest now,” Helen answered.

And that happened for the next five days. They never seemed to go home, because Helen kept avoiding going home and went to sleep instead. And Redeenka was very thirsty, for she hadn't had any water, only the strawberry flavoured milkshake. And also some coke she got from the McDonald's Happy Meal. That just made her thirst worse. They always parked at quite public places to sleep, it was a wonder no one ever saw them. It was so very uncomfortable sleeping in the car, for Redeenka didn't have any blankets or her special soft toy whom she named Boofy, because 'he' was a bear, but Redeenka always thought 'he' was a dog, and she used to say dogs made the noise “Boof Woof.” She couldn't sleep very well without Boofy. And also, the seats in the car were very, very uncomfortable and hard. And it was quite scary driving around, because the car would sometimes swerve from side to side and it seemed like they were going to crash. And it scared Redeenka not going home, for you must remember at this time she was only a little girl. Something else scared her, too.

It was the morning of the third day, and Redeenka had just woken up. She was very tired because she didn't have a very good sleep. It was still dark this morning when she woke up, so it must have been about four or five O'clock a.m. Someone was tapping on the window of the car.

He was a man and seemed quite short. He wore a suit and was carrying a silver briefcase. His hair was short and brown and he had blue eyes that seemed dull and lifeless.

When Helen woke up, she wound down the window and greeted the man with a slurred “mornin'”

“Good morning, madame,” said the man, “May I ask you to please move your car from my front garden?”

“What? I'm not on your front garden,” said Helen.

“Yes you are, and my car can't get out, and that means I'll be late for work and possibly be fired, so please move your car!” the man commanded, his voice rising in volume so he was nearly shouting.

“Um, Okay,” said Helen and moved the car.

“Are you two Okay?” asked the man, “You seem strange and you stink, and you've been sleeping in your car. And are you alright, little girl? Is your mummy treating you right?”

“Of course I'm treating her right!” screamed Helen, moving to the side so the man couldn't see her. Tears had actually started running down Helen's cheeks now.

“Why are you sleeping in a car?” asked the man.

“Because my jerk of a husband locked us out of the house and we couldn't get in,” said Helen. Now Redeenka was crying. What had her lovely mother just said? Would her parents get a

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divorce? That was her worst fear! She couldn't handle it if her parents divorced. But it somehow seemed inevitable, for everyone on her mother's side of the family had had at least one divorce in the past. Not that Redeenka really understood it all at the moment.

So, on the fifth day something exciting happened. Helen drove to Lanyon, and past the Lanyon shops and down a familiar street. It was the street that led to Missy Ohio's house, who was Redeenka's friend since they were babies, along with Lydia, although Helen and Jadis weren't very close.

When Redeenka got to Missy's house she rushed to the door and pressed the doorbell. It made an exciting tune, not the boring ding dong ding dong, ding ding ding dong. Then she heard someone, most likely Missy's mother, Christine, shout, “Coming.”

She came and opened the door and beamed.

“Hello, Redeenka! What are you doing here?” she asked, “Where's your mother?”

“Hello, Chrissy!” Redeenka said, hugging Christine, “Mummy's just up there.” When Christine saw Helen, she seemed quite shocked, but quickly recovered. She seemed to understand the situation and want to help.

“Oh, come in. I expect you'll stay the night?” asked Christine. Helen nodded.

“Just for a night,” she said. This made Redeenka very happy, and was a nice change to what had been happening.

“Okay, I'll make up the bed in the Rumpus Room. That's where Missy is, playing the Game cube, Redeenka,” said Christine. So Redeenka ran off into the Rumpus Room while Christine stayed back to talk to Helen.

Christine has red hair that she normally ties back in a ponytail. She had nice brown eyes and was quite large, which matched the size of her heart. She was such a kind woman, and Redeenka loved her so much. She was also such a help to Helen in times such as this. She never judged Helen and forgave her anything she did, and was always the shoulder to cry on, if ever it was needed. Some humans may call her 'daggy,' though.

When Redeenka got into the Rumpus Room she saw Missy was playing a game called Luigi's Mansion, which is a video game that you can play on a game console called game cube.

“Hello, Redeenka,” said Missy, “What are you doing here?”

Because they are only young now, I may as well not describe Missy yet, but it may be useful just to know her hair is golden and looks like Goldilocks' hair. Her eyes are blue and she has perfect skin.

“Mummy brought me here. We'll be staying the night!” exclaimed Missy.

“Yay!” exclaimed Missy, “Do you want to watch me play Luigi's Mansion? It's my new game and it's really cool, even better than Mario Sunshine!”

“Really? It must be good!” exclaimed Redeenka, and then she sat down and watched Missy play. The game was about a character called Luigi, who is brother of Mario, whom everyone must know. Luigi wins a mansion and throws a party there and then Mario never comes, even though he's invited him. And Luigi discovers that the house is full of ghosts! So what Missy had to do was suck them up in a vacuum cleaner, which was a very entertaining and funny thing for Redeenka to watch.

When it was time for dinner, they had some pizza from Domino's. Then they stayed up for quite a long time playing Luigi's Mansion, before they went to bed at nine O'clock.

Redeenka had a very scary nightmare and woke up alone, with no one to support and help her. So she just wept and lay back in bed, trying to fight away the fears from a nightmare she could no longer remember. But what had happened was not about something as trivial as a nightmare, it was about the fact that now, and for the rest of her life, Redeenka would have no one to help her. She would be alone in the world.

The next day Redeenka and Helen left Missy's house and went back to their home. Redeenka's father, whose name was Jim, was in the lounge room playing a game called Myst. Helen ran into her bedroom and closed the door. And Redeenka got her Nintendo DS and played

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Pokémon, not saying a word about what happened. It seemed as if it had never happened. But it hurt Redeenka very much, not that she realised it. Yet from those five days, Redeenka seemed to have an emotional attachment to the Strawberry Shortcake toy, even to this day in two thousand and twelve.

After the school holidays, when Redeenka went back to school, the class had to write down what they did in the Holidays. Then they had to make up a question of true or false consisting of three statements. When Redeenka got up in front of the class to present hers, she said:

“On the holidays I slept in the car for the first five days with my mummy. Then we went and slept over at Missy's house and then went back to our house. Then on Thursday we went to Ballina to our cousins house. And when we were up there my dog named Dot died and we buried her at Roxanne's farm. It was very sad and we cried and cried the whole day after and I wasn't going to come to school today but Mummy said I have to. It was very funny because one day we were walking around Ballina and my cousin Stacy told us she had a dream about scooterboards and skateboards and it was really funny. Which one is true: My dog Dot died. I had a dream about scooterboards and skateboards. Or, I slept in the car with Mummy for the first four days.” Of course the first statement was correct. But it was quite silly of Redeenka to tell everyone that she had slept in the car with her mother, and she would regret it always after that, even though nothing really came of it. In the years that followed, Redeenka actually felt quite embarrassed because she said it, and it made her teacher, Ms Sullivan, quite suspicious and worried about Redeenka.

Over the few years that followed, while Redeenka was still relatively young, she was taken in the car and driven all over Canberra a couple of times. It always scared Redeenka and made her feel very sad. And it would always end the same way, with Helen and Redeenka stopping off at Missy's house. It greatly affected Redeenka, but she didn't actually realise it had. She didn't even understand what was happening.

So that's a bit of background information about Redeenka's life. At this point in time, which is the same day that Summer found out whales were extinct, Helen had had a job for a while, and it was going well. Or so thought Redeenka.

Redeenka got home quite upset, because of what had happened with Summer that day. She needed someone to comfort her, and she was lucky because her mother got home from work earlier than Redeenka got home from school. But when Redeenka got to the front door of her house, she saw a note stuck to it. It read:

Redeenka,

I have gone down to the Calwell shops to get some milk. I'll be back in a bit.

Love from mum.

Redeenka knew what this meant. It meant her mother wasn't coming home. But she wouldn't let herself think those negative thoughts. It was no good to, and besides, Helen might come home. There is always hope.

So Redeenka waited and waited, always making up excuses for her mother not coming home yet. And eventually Jim got home.

Redeenka was in the shower when Jim arrived. She got out and got dried and dressed before stepping out of the bathroom to see her father standing in the kitchen which was just down the hallway from the bathroom.

“Are you alright?” was all he said.

“Yes of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?” said Redeenka, “I'm off to bed now.”

“Don't you want to watch How I Met Your Mother?” asked Jim.

“No, I'm tired.”

“You're sure you're alright?”

“Yes,” answered Redeenka. But when she closed the door to her bedroom she sank to the floor and wept bitterly. This was her life. Always when she was little she thought her life was perfect, but the happy faces and warm cuddles and kisses were all an illusion. Truly, her life was falling apart, and there was nothing Redeenka could do to pick up the pieces.

LXXIX

[[[

Redeenka may have been getting an A for science, I.Hum, French, cooking, and anything else that took brains to exceed at, but she wasn't coping very well at school, which may seem hard to believe. She was so very tender and it seemed as if anything could happen to hurt her. She never felt safe, for she was afraid of the popular humans who would tease her and be beastly towards her. It even got to the point that she hated school. It felt as though she wasn't safe at school, but when she came home she was no longer safe there, either. Home used to be a sanctuary, but now what with her mother being drunk nearly all the time it didn't feel much like a sanctuary at all. She felt trapped in between a world of abuse and a world of fear, but never quite sure which was which. Her home life was ruled by fear that her mother might come home drunk, or else not come home at all. And also when Helen was drunk she could get quite nasty. She would never hurt Redeenka physically, though. She was a better human than that. She still loved Redeenka very much, but she just didn't know how to show it. And her school life was ruled by fear that the popular humans might do something to her. And she was abused by them in the way that they were very mean to her. Even when it seemed they weren't, Redeenka was smart enough to see through their guise. She was always treading carefully, and just wished Marcus was back at school. He was her protection. As long as she had friends around her she was safe. But now all her friends weren't at school any longer. Except for Missy, but she had a tendency to hang out with the popular group. Redeenka was much too nervous to approach her.

So now school seemed like hell to her. Marcus hadn't come to school since the holidays, Lydia disappeared after the first day, Ryan after the second, and Summer was being held in a cell. So what was Redeenka to do? She was a loner, and many humans would tease and mock her. As you can tell, it is very stressful being Redeenka Meestopple.

And class seemed so much harder than it had before. Redeenka was still doing just as well, but it seemed to be harder to do that well. She was a very quiet student and very anti-social. It was hard for her to make friends. Almost impossible, although I can't say that, because everything is possible. Well, that's what I think.

At home Redeenka was mostly confined to her room, and made her own dinner before Jim got home, to try and avoid seeing him. She didn't like the awkward conversations they would have. So it made Redeenka sad when her father brought home a delicious meal of take-out food, but she said she had already eaten. Jim had gone out of his way to make Redeenka happy and she had rejected him.

But it was exciting because on the following weekend would be Redeenka's Aunt Judy's wedding, and she was a flower girl. Also, Helen was a bridesmaid, so Redeenka just hoped she would be back by then. The week seemed to go by so slowly as Redeenka waited and waited. She couldn't wait to have a break from school, even if it was only a weekend, and be around her family whom she loved and could count on.

The week seemed to go by slowly, with no friends or fun. It seemed to take weeks and weeks, but it was only Tuesday. And then Wednesday came along. Then Thursday. And finally Friday came, and Redeenka could barely wait any longer.

She got on the bus, and kept muttering inside her head, 'Only one more day, one more day, one more day...'

But it was quite frightening because Helen hadn't come back yet. And Redeenka needed her to comer back, for the wedding. For, if she wasn't there for the wedding, it would be disastrous. Judy would be so angry, and she would have good reason. It was supposed to be her special day, but instead Helen could only think about herself and get drunk, again. Redeenka always thought there would have to be a limit, but it appeared not, for she would miss her step sister's wedding because she was drunk. It was wrong, rude and selfish. Redeenka hated thinking these thoughts, but they were true, and she knew it. No matter how hard she tried to convince herself otherwise, she couldn't.

Redeenka jumped in surprise as she felt her mobile telephone vibrating. She picked it up and looked at it. Missy was calling. So Redeenka answered it and greeted Missy.

LXXX

“Hello, Missy. Why are you calling?”

“Do I need a reason?” said Missy, “Oh, fine then, I was going to ask if I could come over to your house this afternoon.”

“Yes, that should be fine. I',m going away tomorrow to Sydney to my aunt's wedding,” said Redeenka.

“Wow, that's just peachy. Are you excited?”

“Yes of course. I've been waiting all week.”

“Are you doing anything special?” asked Missy.

“I'm a flower girl.

“That's just peachy.”

“Yes,” said Redeenka, “You see, my little cousin Precious was going to be the flower girl, but she got sick and couldn't do it just two weeks before the wedding. Of course I am a bit old, but apart from Precious I'm the youngest in the family. Mum's a bridesmaid. It's her sister's wedding. It's funny because she always said she would never get married, but now she is. Mum says next she'll have a baby, and she's always said she won't have a baby.”

“By your mum's sister, do you mean Judy?” asked Missy.

“Yes. How did you know?” asked Redeenka.

“Remember last time she came down I met her?”

“Oh yeah, I remember now. Hey, why do you have to come over this afternoon?” asked Redeenka.

“Oh, sorry, it completely slipped my mind,” said Missy, “My mum needs the house to be clear, because she's painting the Rumpus Room.”

“Ooh, what colour?” asked Redeenka.

“I'm not sure, but I think it's a pinkish colour,” answered Missy.

“Okay, well I better go,” said Redeenka, “I'm running out of credit.”

That afternoon Missy caught Redeenka's bus. They talked all the way home, about all sorts of things.

“You're friends with Ryan Moorash, aren't you?” asked Missy.

“Not really. We can't stand each other,” said Redeenka, “Why did you ask?”

“Well, I just think he's pretty hot. And he seems nice,” said Missy.

“No Missy, he's a jerk,” said Redeenka, “Don't get involved with the likes of him.”

“How do you mean?” asked Missy.

“Well, for starters,” said Missy, “He never shuts up about himself and he is completely self-centered and selfish and just about every second word he says if f*** and he's just... just a jerk.”

“Well, if your sure,” said Missy, “But I'm not convinced.” When the bus arrived at Trinity Christian School, a little girl and her father hopped on the bus. The girl looked scared, and the man was wearing a bowler hat that was pulled down to cover his eyes and had a scar running down his face. He actually seemed quite translucent, as if he were made out of smoke. The bus driver didn't seem to notice him, and he didn't pay any money or put a ticket in. He had quite a frightening face, not that Redeenka could see much of it.

When it came time to get off the bus, Missy got off first, but that man blocked the isle as Redeenka walked down it.

“Redeenka Meestopple, am I right?” he whispered into Redeenka's ear.

“What? How did you know?”

“You can see me,” whispered the man.

“Who-who are you?” asked Redeenka. She was horrified.

“I will be your murderer,” snarled the man, “If only I could.” And then he was gone, a wisp of smoke slowly dispersing in the afternoon heat.

Redeenka rushed off the bus as fast as she could. What had just happened was absolutely beastly! Who was that freak? And what did he mean when he said, “You can see me.” Couldn't anyone else see him?

LXXXI

Redeenka was left to ponder this as she and Missy headed to Missy's house. Redeenka was sure she kept seeing the man out of the corner of her eye, but when she turned to look he wasn't there anymore. It made Redeenka on edge, and nearly even forget about her mother. And then there was one time when Redeenka was sure she saw him. He was standing on the other side of the road to her, and was holding a long, thin sword. Suddenly he hurled it over to Redeenka, and it whizzed past her ear, only just missing her. It got stuck in a tree, but then dispersed as smoke. Only the hilt remained solid. It fell to the ground and landed near Redeenka's foot. She picked it up to inspect it and saw it was a little bell, with strange markings on the side. She put it in her pocket and continued on her way with Missy.

They arrived at Redeenka's house and went inside, for the door was unlocked. Once inside they were quite unsure of what to do. They ended up watching P.S. I Love You, which is Redeenka's favourite movie. When it was about halfway through Redeenka went into the kitchen to get Missy and herself an Kanga Coolers ice block. She got a cola flavour for herself and a bubblegum flavour one for Missy. She was walking back to her bedroom (which is where they were watching the movie) when she saw Helen walk down the hallway.

“Mum?” said Redeenka. And the two hugged. Helen hugged Redeenka so tightly she felt she was going to be crushed. But it didn't matter. Her mother was back, and that was the most important thing in the world. They embraced each other for what seemed like hours. But then Missy broke it.

“Redeenka? Are you coming back?” she called.

“Oh, is Missy here?” asked Helen.

“Yes,” answered Redeenka.

“What are you doing?” asked Helen.

“Watching P.S. I Love You,” answered Redeenka.

“Do you mind if I join you?” Helen asked. Redeenka shook her head and they went to watch P.S. I Love You.

It made Redeenka very upset to see her mother again. Happy, of course, but she couldn't help thinking she seemed so fragile and helpless every time she came back. And when they went into Redeenka's bedroom Missy saw Helen and didn't say anything, as if she understood what was happening.

And so they watched P.S. I Love You and everything was bliss. But deep down inside Redeenka knew it wouldn't last.

The car trip to Sydney for the wedding was very good. Redeenka put on the mixed CD she made and everyone sung to the songs, such as: Dream Catch Me by Newton Faulkner, Afraid by Nelly Furtado, Where the Wild Roses Grow by Nick Cave and Kylie Minogue, Leave out all the Rest by Linkin Park, Superstar by Lupe Fiasco and Matthew Santos and many others. But Redeenka sang a lot louder when her favourite song came on, which was Do Wah Diddy by Manfred Man.

And the best part of the trip was the fact that her parents weren't fighting. They didn't even seem to be mad at each other, and Jim never even brought up the subject of Helen's last job. To Helen it appeared as though they were fine with each other, but it was really just an illusion. Helen wanted a divorce and Jim would, but he just didn't want to hurt Redeenka. So Redeenka thought it was a fun ride where everyone was happy, but in actual fact it wasn't. It was a ride with a guise of a happy one. And yet Jim and Helen were so good at acting as though they loved each other not even Redeenka could see through their disguise. And even if she could, she would still be happy, because things might not be perfect, but they seemed perfect, and that was enough.

By the end of the journey Redeenka's voice was hoarse from singing, but she didn't regret it. It was her one chance since the start of school to be safe, be herself and not worry about what anyone else thinks. Home was a sanctuary once again.

“Are we stopping off at Nanny and Poppy's house first?” asked Redeenka.

“Yes. And then we'll go to the hotel,” answered Jim.

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“Wow, how exciting!” exclaimed Redeenka, “Is it a nice hotel?”

“Yes, it has a pool and a gym and a spa!” said Jim, “It is very fancy.”

“I'll only be there for a little bit,” said Helen, “I have to go to Judy's hotel to get ready! How I love weddings!”

Redeenka's Nanny and Poppy lived in Campbell Town, in the biggest house in their street. All the other houses were only one story, but their's was two stories and big and white. Redeenka always knew they were nearing it when they passed a house with a pale garage door, and then they would turn into the street. Redeenka's Nanny was very kind and had a big heart. She definitely did not look her age, in fact much younger. Missy always thought she had had plastic surgery or something like that to make herself look younger. Redeenka's Poppy look a fair deal older than her Nanny looked. He had a big pop belly and white hair. But at least he had hair. Their names were Sarah and Simon. They were nearly sixty years old.

“Hello, Redeenka!” greeted Sarah when they arrived. They embraced in a big, warm hug. And then Sarah proceeded to greet Jim and Helen.

“How long are you stopping here for?” asked Sarah.

“Only about an hour or so,” said Jim.

“Oh, that's good,” said Sarah, “Come in, we've got Friends on.” They had Foxtel so Simon could do his betting on the horse races, and one of the channels had repeats of Friends just about every time Redeenka came up. Of course she didn't complain, because Friends was her favourite television program apart from Desperate Housewives.

So they watched the episode of Monica and Chandler's wedding and had a good time. Of course, Jim and Helen were very bored with Friends, having watched just about every episode a million times. And Simon would much prefer to watch Everybody Loves Raymond which was on a different channel. But Redeenka loved friends and couldn't get enough of it. Although she would prefer it if there was a channel with Desperate Housewives on.

Jim had woken everyone up early at six O'clock (which isn't very early, but early for Redeenka) so that they could get to Campbell Town by nine O'clock, because it would take about three hours to get to Campbell Town. And then at about ten O'clock they would head over to the hotel, which was about an hour's drive away. And then, after getting settled down, Aunty Judy would come and take Helen away to her hotel to get ready for the wedding. The wedding started at five O'clock pm and went to twelve O'clock am, so it was probably too long for Redeenka to stay up, because she fell asleep easily.

“So Redeenka, how's school?” asked Sarah.

“It's pretty fun,” said Redeenka, “Much better than primary school. And I'm doing pretty well, even though it's only the end of the second week, so it's hard to tell.”

“That's good. And, how's your mother?” Sarah leaned in close and almost whispered the last part.

Redeenka didn't like talking about it. She would always retreat into herself if ever someone brought it up. She would talk in a very soft voice that would be jumpy and she would constantly pause and try to avoid talking about it. Although, she always wished she could talk to someone about it, just not family. It was awful trying to talk about it with family, even though they were all more or less going through the same thing as Redeenka.

“Um- she's, um- alright- I, um, guess,” said Redeenka. And then Helen came back into the room (for she had been in the kitchen with Simon), and the conversation ended abruptly. This relieved Redeenka indescribably.

“What were you talking about?” asked Helen.

“Oh, just how well Redeenka's doing at school,” lied Sarah, “What were you saying you wanted to be when your older?”

“A brain surgeon,” said Redeenka.

“Well, you sure are smart enough,” said Helen. Redeenka didn't like to brag, but she knew she was right. But would her amazing brain be able to stand the ultimate test that was about to come her way? How much longer would she be able to live like this until she caves in under the enormous

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pressure?

Jim was right. The hotel was very fancy. It had Foxtel on the downstairs TV, but on the one in the top story there was no Foxtel. It had a washing machine, dishwasher, ironing board and iron, radio alarm clock, stove, oven, everything you could possibly want. The only thing it was missing, though, was a microwave. So when Redeenka made her mi goreng, which is Asian two-minute noodles, she had to cook them over the stove, which she didn't like. Oh, did I mention there was a garbage disposal in the sink? It was quite frightening for Redeenka, because she flicked the light switch but instead the garbage disposal started whizzing away and gave her an awful fright. But she soon recovered and turned it off, muttering, “Okay, that is definitely not the light switch.”

Redeenka unpacked her bags in a room upstairs that had two beds in it and a window with a lovely view outside. Redeenka quite enjoyed walking through the hotel, because their were beautiful paintings hanging up on the wall all through it. Did I mention the hotel wasn't simply a big building with heaps of rooms? There were all separate buildings all over the grounds. They were made of beautiful brown bricks and all were two stories.

The setting of the hotel was also amazing. It was in the middle of a rainforest. Well, not really in the middle, more on the edge, next to a road. But it was still very beautiful and had lovely ferns and conifers all through the grounds. When Redeenka walked on the ground on the beautiful stone paths she sometimes saw little lizards darting across the path. And once she even saw a huge monitor.

In the car park there was a little bird's nest on the ceiling, in a corner. Redeenka could even see the little baby bird's in it. There were three of them, and they still had their eyes glued shut and pink skin with no feathers. She sometimes saw the mother flying about as well, and hear the little squawks of the babies as they begged for more food.

It was all very quiet outside. It was so peaceful. Redeenka could wander around the grounds all day. Although, if Summer were here she could do it for far longer. And there was also an artificial water fountain that created a lovely sound. And at the back, only visible near the gym, was a trickling stream. It sure was the best hotel Redeenka had ever stayed at, and she planned on coming again someday, if possible. Maybe next time she would bring Summer, because she sure would love it here.

The only thing she didn't like was that all around the grounds of the hotel, she glimpsed the man she saw on the bus. Or, 'her murderer' as he called himself. Redeenka was still carrying the bell around with her, but was too scared to ring it, because of fear of what might happen. It seemed very mysterious back in suburban Canberra, but here it seemed a thousand times more mystical and strange. She longed to ring it, though. She could remember the sound it made as it hit the ground. The sound was like a drug, and she had to listen to it at least one more time. But she had a strong will, and could resist. For now.

Helen left to get ready for the wedding, and Jim and Redeenka went to go in the spa for a little bit. It was outside, next to the pool and was ever so warm. They turned the nozzles on, and enjoyed the feel they had against their backs. And every now and then they would dive into the pool, which was so much colder than the spa, and swim around for a little bit. Then they would hop back in the spa and it would feel a hundred times nicer than it did before they got into the pool.

“This is such a nice hotel. Thank you so much for letting us stay here,” said Redeenka.

“Well, it was really your Aunt Judy. Without her, I would have never even discovered it,” said Jim.

“Yes well--” then Redeenka screamed. For what she saw was horrifying. Her father's face was red and fleshy, and dripping with blood. His eyes were white, and his mouth idly hanging open. Then he started speaking. And as he spoke, smoke poured out of his mouth, and Redeenka could have sworn she heard a bell ringing, somewhere in the far corners of her mind.

“Where is it?” he said in a rasping, scary voice.

“Where is what?” Redeenka asked, horrified.

“The bell!” he roared.

LXXXIV

“Um, it's back at the hotel,” said Redeenka, inching away, but not daring to look anywhere else, even though she longed to tear her eyes away from this thing, “Wh-why?”

“Ring it!” he roared. The blood running from his face had started dropping into the spa. Redeenka tried to stay away from it, but she didn't dare get out of the spa.

“Why?” said Redeenka, “Who-who are you?”

“Ring it!” was all he said.

“Why!?” Redeenka screamed, very distraught.

“Only it can free me and the others, to take our true place in the world!” he roared.

“What is that?!” Redeenka screamed.

“Ring it!” And then everything was gone. The blood, the ringing in Redeenka's head, everything. And Redeenka was looking into her father's eyes again.

“I-I've got to go,” stuttered Redeenka, “And, um, get ready.”

“Surely you can stay for a bit longer?” said Jim, reaching for Redeenka (who was climbing out of the spa).

“No!” Redeenka snapped, pulling away from Jim's grip. And then she ran back to the hotel, distraught beyond measure.

What was it that was happening to her? First she can't remember the holidays, and then her friends disappear from school and then she meets a man who disperses as smoke, and now this? What was going on?

Redeenka was very scared having a shower. Across from the shower (which was very long because at the bottom was a bath) was a long mirror, and she hated mirrors. And she kept imagining she saw things in it. It more or less looked like smoke, but seemed to have piercing piercing eyes. They were like... ghosts. Of course Redeenka didn't believe it was ghosts, and in the mirror they weren't clear to her and only fleetingly appeared, so she convinced herself she was imagining them. But in actual fact they were there, but weren't ghosts. They were something much worse.

After her extremely long shower she got changed into a shiny pink dress that flared at the bottom. She put her hair back in a high bun and put some makeup on. Even she had to admit that she looked very beautiful. She would be an amazing flower girl. She put on some pink, high heeled shoes that, even though they were pink, shone like gold. Soon it was time to go to the wedding.

They had to catch a taxi to the wedding, because Jim was planning on having a drink or two at the wedding.