Mrs. McDermott’s vanity has lost its gloss, and now seems to huddle upon itself, dingy and aged. The lone perfume bottle, now tipped on its side, looks like little more than a cheap, scuffed bauble. The vanity drawer is open, like a mouth agape in horror. The lightbulbs surrounding the mirror have all burned out, while the mirror itself has tarnished disturbingly. You can’t see any real reflection in it, instead it’s like looking into a murky pond.
All that remains inside is this torn family photo.
You right the deposed perfume bottle, before lifting it to your nose. For a brief moment, that gentle perfume is as notable as before. Before it can fade, you hear a familiar voice whisper behind you.
“Just leave already. The horrid matter perplexed the police then, and all you folks are doing is keeping these awful memories fresh for us.”
You turn to find the foggy figure of Vera sitting at her vanity. She stares into the discolored glass, not bothering to turn towards you.
“I’m sure you do. Please go on, enlighten the murder victim as to what concerns a living person has.”
“Come now! How should I know what has happened to her? It’s just as likely that she’s become overwhelmed by this whole ordeal and is going to hide away pouting somewhere for another 50 years.”
“As I mentioned before, things got blurry rather quickly. I remember entering our house, and that it felt suddenly too full of people for such unpleasant weather. I had wanted to tell them all to leave, that the day had gone sour enough as it was with the breaking down of our car, but I didn’t. Birdie was rather insistent that we have a conversation, so after putting her off onto Jane I left the room. Duty compelled me to at least offer everyone some refreshments, so I went to the kitchen to gather a tray. I did, believe it or not, peep my head into Elsie’s room to make sure she hadn’t snuck off somewhere to cause trouble, and I was satisfied that she appeared to be sleeping. I found that someone had already prepared hot cocoa in the kitchen. It was sweeter than I would have prepared myself, but I figured it would do well for the guests. As I returned to the chaos of the crowd and sat down the tray, I started to feel faint. My head swam, and I felt as if I had swallowed a purse of coins! It had to have been that awfully sweet cocoa!”
“‘As I should have’?! Presumptuous, aren’t you? Well, yes. I admit I never could cultivate maternal feelings for the girl. My “motherly obligations” had their limits with Virgil, and admittedly even that was a struggle at times. Maybe I just haven’t motherhood in me. Do not misunderstand me, though. Elsie was Charles’ pride and joy, and I would never have done anything that caused him pain. I loved Charles, and he and Elsie were a package deal. I cared for that girl as much as I could, as best I could.“
