I See the Light
Boston
She stared down at the yellow clamp attached to the back of her front left tire. Her wiper fastened all 13 tickets close against her windshield. The older tickets had turned a dull brown from the week's constant rain. The pier along the parking lot was empty. In the summer, yachts would line up along the sides, extending their flags high. But the air had become crisp overnight and the leaves had begun to change into their deep autumn colors, leaving the waters along Boston to become less restricted.
A small meow from beneath the car made the girl kneel down to extend a hand. The small orange tabby cat appeared through the shadows nuzzling its head into the palm of the girl's hand.
"Look what I got you, Oliver." The girl opened her backpack to reveal a small can of cat food with a pop off lid. Leaving the cat to feast, the girl opened the trunk of the car to store the valuables in her backpack.
The right side of the trunk housed the 2 pairs of jeans and 3 total sweaters she owned. There was one plastic bag of shirts she had nicked from a boutique on the North End of Boston, but the shoplift was too recent to be walking around the city with the items on. The left side of the trunk housed her food supply. Dumping the remaining items from her bag, the girl added a box of crackers, granola bars, pop tarts, and 2 more cans of cat food to the left side.
The girl opened the back seat of the car to crawl into. Oliver hopped in, waiting for the girl to get comfortable before nesting. Looking through the window opposite of her, she watched the dark clouds overhead move slowly over the stars in the night sky. She closed her eyes and fell asleep to the sound of the city behind her.
She tried to ignore the tapping on the window, but soon gave up when a bright light flashed into her car. A familiar face appeared at the window she had just been staring out of as the flashlight went dark.
"What did I do this time?" She groaned, trying to cover her face with her army jacket that had turned into a pillow for the night.
"Come on, Elle. Out of the car. I think you know why I'm here."
Slowly opening the door and staring up with an innocent face, one that she had mastered through the years. "What's the problem, officer?"
"Mr. O'Malley reported a young brunette running out of his store today with a backpack full of his merchandise."
"There are a lot of brunettes in Boston. But I'm flattered I was the first one you thought of. I know I'm your favorite. Sad to say, I was nowhere near O'Malley's today."
The officer took his cap off to run his fingers through his short brown hair that had hidden strands of grey growing on the sides. "He did have a few cans of cat food stolen. And there I thought, who would be desperate enough to do that."
"That's all you got? Cat food plus brunette girl equals Elle? I'm starting to feel like you're just making excuses at this point." Elle expressed a tight, taunting grin at the officer.
He knelt down and picked up the empty can of cat food that was left next to the clamp on her car. "So, this is just coincidence then?"
"I was going to clean that up."
"You have 3 choices. One, come down and own up to you shoplifting. 48 hours' max in the cell. Two, come down and pay for your tickets. I say you're looking at about $750… more likely $1,000. Three, come down and own up for littering. That will be about $200."
"Really, Booth? You'd go so low and charge me for the can on the ground."
"Kid, I'm just trying to look out for you. Always have, always will. Oh, yeah. Options 2 and 3 are kind of tied into number 1."
"I will one condition." Elle lifted up one finger sternly as the Officer Booth looked at her in disbelief. "You're not in a place to negotiate."
"Please, don't let them take Oliver away again." Elle lightly scratched the top of her orange tabby's head. The officer reached his hand out for hers. "I promise he will be waiting for you when you get out."
"Turner. Elizabeth Turner."
Elle was almost embarrassed to stand up. The other 3 women she had been sharing the cell with were already in before she had been booked. "Huh?"
"Are you Elizbeth Turner?" The officer looked as if she had a long night and zero patience. "Yes? Am I getting moved to another cell or…"
"You're done. Your bail was taken care of." Elle did not move an inch. The 8 pairs of eyes continue to stare at her as if she were insane. Any other person would jump at the opportunity and run out before the police had caught the mistake.
"I've only been in here a couple of hours. I'm supposed to be here for another day and a half."
"Your bail has been taken care of. If your plans were to sit on a bench for the next couple of days, be my guest. But not here. Let's go."
Elle awkwardly stood up and walked out looking around waiting for someone to tell her she was on a prank show. The officer guided her to the front, where she pawned Elle off to another officer behind a glass window. The officer slid a manila envelope through the glass opening and began reading off a list.
"One Backpack. One iPhone. One swiss army knife. $2.43 in change. One Book. One tank top. One bracelet. One bottle of water…"
She quickly took the bracelet and placed it around her wrist. It was the only thing she had from childhood. The only thing she was found with. A simple silver bracelet with her name Elizabeth scrolled across a bar above ocean waves.
Elle looked into her backpack to find a large leather bound book. The title Once Upon a Time was written in gold scroll around the front. "Excuse me, this isn't mine."
"If it's on the list then it's yours."
"I think I would remember coming in with a 50 lb. book. This isn't mine. There must have been a mess up."
The officer reread her list impatiently and the let her fingers scan the page with her eyes. She slapped the paper copy of the list against the wall window to show Elle her proof. "I was working last night when you came in, sweetie. I don't mess up."
Elle read all of the materials she came in with, including the book, when she came into the precinct at 10:34 PM the night before. She held the book in both her hands and felt a small vibration buzz through her finger tips and up her arms. Taking a few small steps toward the exit, the officer stopped Elle.
"Wait you have one more item." The officer slide Elle's Massachusetts license underneath the window opening. "Happy Birthday."
Elle walked to the waiting area of the prescient and sat down with the book on her lap. A small cloud of dust escaped from the bookas she opened to a random page. Skimming through the pages, Elle waited to find a picture that interested her and scan the words for an idea of the story. "Fairytales."
She stared at picture of Snow White curled into her Prince's arms, scared on their wedding day. Confused as to why someone would leave this behind in her name, Elle quickly skimmed to the beginning to see if there was any dedication or someone's book ownership signature. Nothing. A thick, brightly colored piece of paper flew out between pages as Elle scanned the page numbers.
Elle picked up what looked like a postcard with a large clock tower on the front. Large yellow block letters spelled out Storybrooke over the clock tower with the state Maine in smaller letters below. Flipping over the card, Elle had found a note written to her.
"Elizabeth,
Family always finds each other.
Your big brother, Henry"
"I have a brother?"
Elle was the only one driving on the single lane road. The drive to Storybrooke, Maine was only 2 hours from Boston. She didn't think it could hurt dropping in to meet the brother she never knew existed. The family that she never knew existed.
The GPS on her phone highlighted the path to turn right at the next four-way stop. She soon discovered the road led into dense forest surroundings. "Stay on Route for 2.3 miles." Elle gripped the steering wheel tighter with anticipation.
She had so many questions. How did he know about her? How did she not know about him? Did he know her parents? What were they like? Why did they abandon her? Why was he just reaching out to her now? How did he get the book to her? Was he the one to bail her out of jail?
Elle found herself at a three way stop with the only options to turn right or left. Signs ahead pointed left with labels of "Town Hall", "Main Street", and "Sheriff's office". Signs pointing right read, "Storybrooke Park" and "Dock". Taking a left-hand turn, Elle slowly entered Main Street to find small shops lined along the road.
Her heart skipped a beat when her eyes met the clock tower; the same tower that stood tall on the face of the postcard. Finding an open parking spot along the street, Elle slid her book into her backpack and stepped of her car.
Large neon lights pointed down on a two-story house labeled Granny's. Elle froze entering the diner. Only four customers filled the space, sitting in their separate seats and booths. Everyone had the same emotionless expression, sipping their coffee or picking at their plates. But soon Elle felt the hot spotlight beam down on her as all eyes focused on her. "Can I help you, Sweetie?"
Elle turned her attention to the older woman behind the counter with a notepad in her hand. An annoyed young girl stood beside her in bright red, popping a large bubble of gum. Elle made her way to the counter in all hopes that the customers would refocus on their lunch.
"I was wondering if you would be able to help me find someone." Trying to contain her excitement, Elle eagerly pulled the postcard out of her backpack; ignoring the crumpled receipts and loose change falling to the floor from her front bag pocket. She watched the older woman read over the postcard and the young lady peering over her grandma's shoulder.
"Henry... I don't know any Henry. But he might know." The young girl's smile grew wide as she twirled her hair. "Afternoon Sheriff." The grandmother gestured the postcard to the dirty blonde haired man walking into the diner from the back hallway. His blue eyes gave a wink to the young girl as he took a seat on one of the stools along the bar.
"I'll just take a coffee today, Ruby." The Sheriff gave Elle a second look making her cringe with the attention she didn't ask for yet again. Granny leaned casually over the counter sliding the postcard to the Sheriff. "She's looking for a Henry. Ring any bells?"
He took the time to study the card. Scratching the small scruff on his chin, he flipped the card over to look at the picture on the cover. Elle impatiently tapped her fingers on the counter top. It wasn't a good sign that the name wasn't registering with the town people.
"Ruby, make my coffee to go." Ruby dumped the filled mug into a Styrofoam cup and watched as the Sheriff stand with purpose. He turned to Elle with one hand stretched out. "I didn't seem to catch your name. I'm Sheriff Nolan." Elle couldn't make eye contact as her eyes searched for the only thing connecting her to her brother asthe sheriff slid the card into his jacket pocket.
"Elle. Do you know Henry?" Her dry response and refusal to meet his floating hand took the sheriff back a step.
"Unfortunately, no. But I know where to look into this. Do you mind taking a trip with me to town hall?"
Elle reluctantly followed Nolan to his sheriff's vehicle and looked back to see Oliver lying patiently beneath her red car. "It's only a couple of blocks from here." Nolan turned into Main Street, driving into streets that Elle had yet to explore.
"Is he your boyfriend or something?" Elle was caught off guard by the question as she was focusing her attention on the small craftsman homes that aligned the streets. "Oh, no. Just an old friend, I guess. Are you sure you don't know any Henry in this town?"
"Henry isn't the most common name now a day. But I know we will find what we need here." They drove into the parking lot of a bright yellow building. A few apple trees accented the landscaping with bright green apples hanging from the branches. Walking through the entrance, Elle followed Nolan down steps leading into the basement of the hall.
Nolan walked his way down the hallway, following the signs that were labeled "Town Records." A short man sat behind the counter playing a game on his phone as his fingers motioned back and forth with tension. The sheriff cleared his throat to grab his attention andthe man quickly hid his phone trying to make his way to the counter as fast as he could. His ears and cheeks began to turn bright red. "Sheriff, I- I didn't see you there. What can I do for you?"
"Do you have any records on a resident named Henry?"
"Uh- Yeah. Do you have a last name?" Nolan turned to Elle waiting for her to respond, but she couldn't. She didn't even know his last name. She tried to speak but choked. Looking clueless at the Sheriff, Elle quickly made eyes with the floor in pure embarrassment. She was wasting the Sheriff's time to look up someone she never met, she didn't know the last name of, and she didn't even know lived in this Storybrooke.
"No need. We have one Henry in Storybrooke. A Henry Mills. And it looks like you're not the only one interested in him. The mayor checked his file out just recently."
"Thanks, Morty." Morty's cheeks turned bright red as he gave a timid smile.
Elle followed Nolan up the stairs to the third floor as she sounded her name out in her head- Elizabeth Mills. Elle Mills. With a gentle knock on the door, the sheriff walked right into the mayor's office. "Madame Mayor, do you have a second to chat?" The mayor had spun in her chair to face the sheriff and Elle with a curious expression across her face.
"David, how good to see you. What can I do for you… and your new friend?" Elle slightly tilted her head to side in interest as she listened to the tone of voice coming from the mayor. Something that many people did not know about Elle was that she was a great judge of character. From growing up in foster homes, moving from city to city, and always needing to find new convenient friends, Elle had grown to learn the art of knowing someone within the first 10 seconds of meeting them. Some would compare her to a dog- knowing if someone is good or bad by just being near them. She always liked to think of it as a superpower.
Tilting her head and watching the mayor uncomfortably shift in her chair while she looked Elle up and down sent red flags to Elle's mind. The mayor's thick red hair in loose curls shaped the face of a woman who looked like she was trying to play nice when she really just wanted answers.
"I'm sorry if this is a bad time, but we have Elle here. She's looking for a friend of hers, but it seems that you have some of the information that we could use to find him. Is there any way we can grab a quick look?" The mayor continued to stare at Elle in curiosity. Being uncomfortable with the attention from the diner did not compare to the eyes the mayor had on Elle.
"Friend?" The mayor had refocused her attention on David. Her stern, cold eyes began to shimmer with fear. "Yes, a Henry Mills? I believe you have the file on him?" Her eyes darted back to Elle as the fear began to slowly creep in more. Elle could tell she was not overthinking the attention the mayor was giving her as David began to look confused as his eyes darted back and forth between the mayor and Elle..
The mayor opened the top of drawer of her desk and pulled out a couple of folders; one being thicker than the rest. "I think you may be right, Sheriff. I've been updating our systems recently. Trying to upload some of our older files." She began to look through the names on each folder, slowly making her way down to the thickest folder. While it seemed as if she were purposely taking too long to read through the files, David tried to fill in the awkward silence.
"She's always good about updating the latest information here at the hall. Mayor Hamilton is in her current third term; unopposed of course." Elle looked around the room admiring the different plaques and awards dedicated to the Ms. Victoria Hamilton. The mayor finally plopped the thickest folder in front of her. "Henry Mills. What would you like to know?"
Elle could feel her legs and hands starting to shake. This was it. She could finally meet her brother. David stepped forward to see if he could make out any of the information upside down. "Well, I guess his address would be the best help."
The mayor lightly scanned the words below impatiently, pulling the folder closer to her chest; out of David's sight. "No known address. I'm sorry." She began to the close the file, but David took another step closer. "How about a phone number? Somewhere he works? Anything?"
Elle watched Victoria look down at the file, but her eyes did not trace the paper. Elle watched as her eyes stay concentrated on the edge of her desk. She closed the folder once again and placed it firmly out of reach. "I'm sorry to say, but it looks as if this Henry passed away 5 years ago."
Victoria forced a sad, sympathetic smile and continued to place the folder back in her top drawer; this time locking it with a key. David looked back at Elle with apologies in his eyes.
"There's nothing? Not even anything about his parents or his family…but that doesn't make sense. How could he have-" Victoria leaned forward in suspicion, causing Elle to stop midsentence. "How could he have what dear?" Again, Elle tilted her head to the side analyzing the way the mayor perked up with eyes that could pass for having flames replace her pupils. David slid the postcard from his pocket to Victoria to read. She quickly grabbed the card off her desk.
"There's no stamp. How did he give this to you if there's no stamp?"
"It was just waiting for me."
"Where were you?" The mayor was becoming too aggressive for Elle's liking. Elle awkwardly looked away, trying not see the reaction of the Sheriff when she answered "a precinct in Boston".
"And this is it? He didn't give you anything else? Just this?" Her eyes were wide, begging to learn more. Elle had thought of the storybook, but her superpower told her to not speak of it at all. "No, just the postcard."
Victoria's shoulders relaxed as if she took in one big sigh of relief. She slid the card back to Elle across the table and leaned back in her chair. "Well, I am very sorry that you have to find out about your friend this way. I wish I knew how he gave you the card, but I think that question will remain unanswered." She looked at the clock overhead and forced a dramatic sigh.
"And it is getting to be later than expected. I wouldn't want you driving back to Boston at night. These roads can be dangerous. So I would assume you would be on your way." Elle responded in a light head nod as her eyes continued to stare at Henry's signature. She had driven all this way, she had allowed herself to actually be hopeful of a happy outcome. Time after time, Elle would have to remind herself that happy endings don't exist. They just were not in the cards for her. She tucked the postcard into her jacket pocket and stood looking to David to drive her back to her own car.
"I do appreciate you making the drive up here and I do hope you liked our small town. Best of luck and safe travels." The mayor reached her hand out to shake Elle's. As they shook hands, Elle couldn't help but notice that her soft, sorrowful tone did not match the look of victory in the mayor's eyes.
With a quick, awkwardly silent, drive back to Main Street, Elle said her goodbyes to David and watched him drive back toward the sheriff's station. Elle forgot how useless it was to depend on the clock tower for time as it remained frozen. She could tell it was later as some stores began to close and more town's people walked into Granny's for early dinner.
Letting Oliver back into the car, Elle took hold of the steering wheel once more and began to drive back to Boston. Passing more shops and craftsman homes, Elle soon came to the three-way stop. Turning right to drive toward the town line, Oliver had crawled over the seats and began to peer his head into Elle's pocket. His tugging on her jacket pocket made her swatting him away end with a claw to her hand. Taking a hard break at the town line, Elle shook out the sting in her hand and found four scratch marks left behind. "Damn it, Oliver!"
Oliver pulled the postcard from her pocket and nudged it deeper into her lap. Looking down at the card, Elle couldn't help but think of the file. It was so thick that it had to have something on her brother. At this point, she would take any information. There must have been something about her family, their parents, her history. Elle began to tap the steering wheel with her fingers impatiently thinking about the mayor. She couldn't help fight her gut feeling that something was off.
"I don't know about you, Oliver, but I think we could stay just a little longer." Oliver let out a small purr has his head nuzzled against the hand he had just scratched. Elle turned her car around and headed back to Main Street. Driving some of the side streets off of the main, Elle came to the bed and breakfast attached to the back of Granny's diner.
Hiding Oliver into her backpack, Elle walked in to find a check-in book covered in dust and cobwebs. With a small ding of the service bell, Granny came rushing from the back hallway. "You again! Deciding to stay?"
Elle couldn't help but smile at the warm hospitality coming from Granny. "Yeah, just one week. That's all." Granny brushed the dust off the books and began filling out paperwork. "We don't get a lot of visitors here. Don't mind the dust." Granny pushed the book forward for Elle to sign. "You will be in room number eight. Great view of the town square." Granny handed over an old fashion key with a thick metal tag attached of intricate flowers and swans.
Closing the door behind her, Elle quickly opened her backpack to let Oliver roam free. She didn't remember the last time she had slept on a real bed. The past year, her back had become accustomed to cheap couches and car back seats. She lightly bounced on the mattress to feel the comfort and support. "No bad."
Within seconds, Elle's eyelids grew heavy. From staying awake in a holding cell all night, driving to Storybrooke, running around town trying to find her brother, to learning that her dreams were just that; Elle was beginning to run on low fuel. As street lamps began to turn on outside and the sky turned pitch black, she decided it was time to go to bed. Only having a week in this town would cause her to spend every waking hour learning more about her family.
Walking over to the window to close the blinds, Elle took in the site of the clock tower across the way with the moon high above. Grabbing both sides of the curtains, Elle stopped as she saw someone standing in the middle of the road. She squinted her eyes, trying to make out what the person had been doing.
A woman with long blonde hair stood in the middle of Main Street, staring up at the frozen clock. Elle stood watching, waiting for something to happen. The blonde folded her arms, standing still as her head looked up. After a couple of minutes, the blonde looked down at her hands. She raised both hands up and extended her fingers wide motioning toward the clock. As nothing happened, the blonde shook her hands in frustration. Elle continued to watch the woman stand and stare until she finally walked away into the shadows.
Once the blonde had disappeared, Elle finally closed the blinds shut.