Land of the Yellow Sea

Chapter 2. MIRROR, MIRROR THROUGH THE WALL...

ROSE THOUGHT SHE heard the sound of a piano playing. Not from the television, radio, computer or anything like that, but a real live piano? She was sure of it. And it was playing a tune she recognised!

"D-D-Dad?" she muttered, her face scrunched up in confusion.

It was one of her Dad's Christmas songs. She remembered him making it up the Christmas before he went missing. She rushed up to the upright piano which was up against the wall opposite the settee. But despite the howling storm, which could not be kept out of the house, she realised it was definitely not coming from that. She wondered where on earth the piano playing was coming from. She prowled around the living room, befuddled...

Eventually she determined that the piano music was coming from behind the boarded-up fireplace.

So maybe her Dad was in the house next door!

And still the Christmas song continued...

But Rose, as hard as she strained her ears, could not hear her Dad's accompanying vocals. She couldn't see how anyone could know that tune or play it the way she remembered her Dad had played it. There was even his usual mistake when his thumb knocked the black note. Moreover, what made all of this so interesting, was that he had told her he made the song up just for her as an extra Christmas present.

She ran back to the kitchen with her heart thumping excitedly in her chest.

"Mum! Mum!" she shouted above the raging storm.

Lightning strikes lit up the kitchen as if God had an interest in adding flashbulb photography of the Lavender's kitchen to his infinite collection of photographs of humanity. Thunderclaps accompanied the lightning strikes, piggybacking on their heels, constantly pounding and shaking the entire house.

Rose tugged urgently at her mother's arm.

"I won't say anything, Mum. Just come into the living room. Something really strange has happened. Please, come on!" She looked intently into her mother's eyes, and added, "And this time it's not my imagination!"

So forceful was Rose that she managed to quickly wrench her mother's prized cup of tea out of her hand and put it down on the kitchen table before dragging her reluctant mother into the living room.

"See? Listen! Hear it?"

"What? I can't hear anything?"

"Well, the storm's far noisier now, but I can still hear the sound. And Mum, don't get upset, but I'm sure of it. I'm absolutely certain."

"Sure of what?"

"Listen, Mum. Listen! It's definitely Dad playing the piano!" Rose pointed emphatically at the boarded-up fireplace.

Rose's mother was about to volcanically erupt when suddenly her face transformed into a living question mark.

"What the...? That does sound just like your father's piano playing."

She edged trancelike to the fireplace and bent her head down. Listening intently...

The piano music poured out from behind the fireplace's boarding bringing some sort of paradoxical harmony to the cacophonous storm. It was without doubt Mr Lavender's Christmas tune and it was playing in his style.

"Good grief!" gasped Rose's mother. "The Christmas Song he wrote for you. Well, I don't see how it can actually be your father, Rose, but we must at least investigate."

"It must be from next door. He might be there!"

"No, Rose—next door is on the other side of the house. On the other side of this wall is the street!"