Dawn of Eve - MJ Howson (read full novel .txt) 📗

A chill filled the bedroom this evening. The high-mounted windows whistled from the wind buffeting against them as the nearby radiator hissed. Eve tucked her diary beneath her pillow and pulled her red flannel sheets closer. She rolled to her side to face Tina.

“Hey,” Eve said. “Another lame birthday party, huh?”

“Estuvo bien,” Tina said. She looked at Eve’s furrowed brow. “It was fine.” She pulled herself upright, pulling the drab green flannel blanket closer to her chin. “I’m just glad I’m finally going home.”

“Sure.” Eve looked over at Hugo. He’d finished his cake and was now a big lump beneath his blankets. You could barely hear the sound of his PEZ dispenser clicking, followed by Hugo munching on the sweet candy. Eve asked Tina, “So, um, what’s the first thing you’re going to do when you get out?”

Tina glanced at Suzie, smiled, and said, “Find Billy.”

“What?” Suzie asked. She lowered her mirror and frowned. “Why?”

“Before he left I gave him my number,” Tina said. “He doesn’t live far from me. Unlike you, Suzie.”

“Whatever.” Suzie rolled her eyes and went back to playing with her hair. “He’ll just ignore you.”

“He won’t!”

A Magic 8-Ball, Tina’s favorite item brought from home, rested on her nightstand. She snatched the toy and held it close to her chest. As she stared at the sphere, she asked, “Will I see Billy when I leave camp?” She turned the ball over and waited. The twenty-sided white die floating in the blue liquid slowly faded into view–ASK AGAIN LATER.

“What did it say?” Suzie asked.

“It’s none of your business,” Tina said. She returned the Magic 8-Ball to the nightstand and slid beneath her covers. Tina looked at Eve and whispered, “It said maybe. That’s good, right?”

Eve nodded and propped herself up on her elbow. She glanced over at Suzie, relieved to find her lost in her mirror. Eve always thought Tina was the prettiest. At least on the outside. She definitely wasn’t going to miss Tina’s bratty attitude.

“She’ll be here soon,” Eve said. “Caretaker.”

“I finally don’t have to take those stupid vitamins,” Tina said. “It’s nice to be a teenager.” She shot Suzie a quick glance and said, “Just like Billy.”

Eve was thankful Suzie didn’t take the bait. Suzie placed her mirror on her nightstand and sunk beneath her pilled and worn pink flannel blanket.

“Are you going to ask me to get you a message?” Tina asked Eve. “You ask everyone else.”

“Oh, uh, why? Would you?”

“No. But I’ll talk to Billy. Maybe he has a plan.”

“Thanks.” Eve closed her eyes and pictured Billy taking her hand that final night before he left. She felt her cheeks blush. “He said he’d find a way.”

“Wait. Do . . . do you like him?”

“What?” Eve opened her eyes, her cheeks becoming redder. “Um, no.”

Tina frowned, rolled onto her back, and stared at the ceiling. She said, “Billy was too afraid to show me he liked me. Boys are like that.”

Hugo whipped his blankets away, sat up, and said, “Would you shut up! All of you!”

The sound of Caretaker’s keychain rattled from outside the heavy wooden door. Hugo quickly retreated beneath his blankets. Tina looked at Eve and rolled her eyes. As Eve flopped back against her pillow, she knew tomorrow morning there would be four empty beds instead of three.

∞∞∞

Dawn closed the diary and glanced at the doll resting against her arm. She said, “October second wasn’t that long ago. And only seven years back. Did you ever hear from any of them?” Dawn waited patiently, but Eve did not respond. She opened the book and flipped a few pages ahead but then decided she’d read enough for this evening. Deep down, Dawn found the stories a bit repetitive and boring. “We can read more another time, Eve. Maybe we can take it to a bench on the High Line someday.”

“Hide my diary,” Eve said.

“What?” Dawn stared at Eve and then the diary in her hands. She ran her fingers along the deckled edges of the faded pages. “Why?”

“Hide my diary.”

Dawn frowned as she thumbed through the book. She looked at Eve and said, “Janet did say this belonged to you. Who are we hiding it from? Jacob?”

Dawn waited for Eve to say something, but the doll remained quiet. She tossed the blanket away and stood up, holding the diary in her hands. Dawn opened a drawer in the nightstand but then closed it. Too obvious, she told herself.

The wooden box was still on the corner of the bed. Dawn went to it and placed the diary inside beside her fertility pills. The fit was perfect. She smiled as she closed the box and shoved it deep beneath her bed. Dawn dove back under the covers and pulled them close to her face. The time projected on the ceiling read 10:18 p.m. She said, “Evelyn, secure the apartment. I’m going to bed.”

“Securing the apartment,” the voice assistant responded.

The overhead lights in the bedroom dimmed, and the curtains slid closed. Dawn flicked the nearby light off, rolled over, and pulled Eve close. The doll’s eyes snapped shut. She said, “Sweet dreams, Eve.”

Within less than ten minutes, Dawn drifted off to sleep. Despite weeks free from nightmares, her hope for pleasant dreams soon faded. She found herself running down a hallway filled with twists, turns, and intersections. The stone floor beneath her sliced into her bare feet. There were lights now on the walls, casting an eerie orange glow everywhere. Running just out of reach from her was Eve, her copper hair bouncing wildly against her red robe.

“Stop!” Dawn cried out. “Eve! Please, stop!”

The air felt ice-cold as it wrapped around Dawn and entered her lungs. Dawn struggled to catch her breath as she chased young Eve past an open gate and through the maze. She looked ahead of Eve and saw the dark wooden door at the far end of the hall. Dawn reached out to grab hold of Eve’s shoulders but couldn’t get to her. Dawn’s