The Mystic Inn

The Mystic Inn - Chapter 2

"Kylie! Kylie lets talk about this!" Lola was banging on my bedroom door. My heart was pounding in my chest and I felt like I was running on auto pilot as I packed my suitcase. "Kylie....please, I need you darling, I can't manage on my own". I blinked back tears, now wasn't the time I had to be strong. "I am sorry Kylie, I had too much to drink, lets just go to bed now and tomorrow you and me will go shopping just like we use to" Lola cried, panic in her voice.

I pulled my bedroom door open and she fell inside. I didn't stop, I stepped over her pulling my suitcase down the stairs step by step. I felt it catch and I feel backwards into the steps. I looked back and Lola was holding onto the other end. "Kylie...don't go....I love you". The tears I was holding back rushed forward and all I wanted to do was drop the suitcase, go back to bed and pretend none of this had happend. But then nothing would change. Lola wouldn't turn into the Mother I never had over night. She would be nice as pie for a week and after that she would be back to resenting me because of how I looked.

How I reminded her of a young version of herself, when she had the world at her feet and her career was just taking off. Before the drink, drugs and string of no good men and now she was starting to lose work to up and coming models 20 years her junior. At 38 she only looked to be in her 20s thanks to regular botix injections and a few sneaky surgeries here and there, but there girls as young as 18 to compete with now. Lola had always needed to be the centre of attention and when I reached my teens and suddenly it was me she was noticing instead she turned jealous. It was like she had to prove she could out do me still to feel good about herself.

No, nothing would change. I would be stuck in this house with her, dealing with her issues forever. That and I felt the longer I stayed the more I felt like I was turning into her, as if it wasn't bad enough I had to see her face every time I looked in the mirror.

I tugged the suitcase back away from her. "Too little too late Martha" I told her. She didn't flinch like she normaly did at me using her real name. Her eyes were wide with terror when she realised I was serious. She was petrified at the thought of having to live alone. With no one to bring her asprin for her hangovers or calm her down when she got depressed coming down from her cocaine binges. Now one to ring up Karl and make excuses for saying she was ill and couldn't make it to work when really she had stayed out all night with one of her shady boyfriends and still wasn't home.

She lurched forward and I knew it was now or never. Grabbing the suitcase up under my arm, groaning at the weight of it I ran, pulling the front door open and rushing out, slamming it behind me. I bolted down the street, struggling with the suitcase. I heard the front door open again and knew she was coming after me. "KYLIE!!!" she shrieked like banshee. "DON'T DO THIS TO ME KYLIE".

I wasn't even thinking about where I was going but in the back of mind I must have known because I arrived at the train station not daring to look back. I ran down the steps onto the platform and onto the train that was waiting there. I ran through the almost empty corridors as there weren't many travellers this time of night. Settling on an empty carriage I kicked my suitcase under the table and managed to duck under it myself just as Lola ran past the window outside on the platform looking around her frantically.

"Please move, please move" I prayed and let out a sigh of relief as the trains engine kicked into action, once more and it lurched forward. I crept out from under the table and sat down on the seat just in time meet Lola's eyes as the train moved passed her slowly picking up speed. She looked stunned once she realised I was on the train. She stared for a minute and then started to run, waving her arms at the train shouting to have it stopped but it was too late. I looked away, I would never forget the look on her face.

"TICKET!" Someone shouted inchs from my ear. I jumped startled unsure for a minute where I was as I focused on the red face of the train conductor, I had fallen asleep. "T...ick...et" he repeated like he was talking to an infant. My heart sank...."I...em...look, please I don't have one but I". "Don't want to hear it missy you are off" he told me grabbing me under the arm and taking my suitcase in the other and marching me towards the doors. "Ow!" I hissed "I can walk myself" I told him. He ignored me and waited for the train to pull into the next station. As soon as the doors were opened he pushed me out and threw my suitcase out after me. I held up my middle finger at him as the train left.

I checked my watch. It was 7:30am and I had no idea where I was. Lookinga round for the name of the station I spotted it on the wall. "Stonewake Station platform 2". I guess I am in Stonewake then I muttered to myself. Not that I knew where Stonewake was. Grabbing my suitcase I pulled it after me with no idea where I was going.

I didn't even have enough money to rent a room for the night and despite sleeping on the train I still felt bone weary. Stonewake was a rural little village type place and in half an hour I had managed to see most of it. Nothing was open this early anyway. I pulled my suitcase into a small park in the middle of the town and sat down on a bench with my head in my hands. What was I going to do. Now that I had calmed down I realised how foolish I had been. Running away with hardly any money and no place to go.

That when it all came flooding up to the surface. Everything that happend. Catching Lola and Derek, the things she had said to me in the club, slapping her, arguing with her, arguing with Derek. Lola crying, Lola screaming...the look on her face. I couldn't control it any longer as I sobbed into my hands.

It felt like forever that I sat there and cried but when I finally managed to gather myself and look up I couldn't believe what I seen. There was a building in the park now, just tucked slightly into the forest. Surely that hadn't been there before. I would have noticed it. It wasn't exactly small. Intrigued I made my way across the grass to what appeared to be some kind of old fashioned and rather creepy looking inn.

I peered at it cauitously. I had never seen a building quite like it. How could I have missed this. Then I seen it, the notice in the window. "Staff wanted apply with in, accomdation and food provided for right candiate, start immeaditly". I felt a surge of hope. Maybe all wasn't lost after all. I checked my watch. It was only 9 in the morning. Most inns weren't open that early but the door wasn't locked when I pushed it in.

I could hear laughter and conversation as I entered and I crossed my fingers I would get the job. I didn't stop to take in my surrondings as I made my way to the bar but something was wrong. Everything had gone quite and I turned to looka round the bar. Everyone there was staring at me stunned. Alot of them were hidden in the shadows but I could feel there eyes on me. "Can I help you" an equally startled voice enquired from behind me. Feeling less than optamistic now I turned back towards the bar. "Yes I wanted to apply for the.....j....j...job" I stammered as I took in the figure in front of me.

He was transparent. It looked like he was made of mist and he was floating in mid air. Like a ghost. A ghost Kylie.....its a ghost! It finally registered and my head started to swim, everything went black and the ground came rushing towards me.