Chapter One
The rain splattered on the window and the thunder shook the whole house. A strike of lightning would briefly illuminate the room in which Megan was occupying. She sat on the windowsill and stared out at the landscape of her California home. There were rarely any storms, only earthquakes. She lived in Los Angeles.
She was enjoying the rare treat of a storm for a while and gently drifted off to sleep. She usually never dreams, but tonight was different. Her dream was like nothing she had ever dreamed before. She was in a strange house, or maybe it was an apartment, but nonetheless, she was in a strange room with bare floors. There was nothing in the room but a cabinet with drawers and a closet.
She tried the top drawer; locked. The bottom one was open. She looked into it and found a bottle with a strange looking substance in it. The label was unreadable. The closet also was opened. She looked inside and found a shelf filled with books. She tried to read the titles, but they were all illegible, expect for one. The one titled Death and Life Again.
Megan awoke the next morning, startled. The little antique sliver clock in her room said it was only 5 am, but the light shining through the window was a sure sign that it was clearly afternoon. She didn't remember setting her clock back. When she got up and dressed, she went downstairs. "Hello?" she called. No one called back. "Where is everyone?" she wondered.
After thoroughly searching the house, she went into the kitchen to eat lunch. Opening the microwave to make her macaroni and cheese, she noticed the clock. It said 5 am. She knew it was after two o'clock because her watch said... 5 am? Why did all the clocks say 5 am, and where was her family?
Chapter Two
When Megan finished lunch, she decided she would go to her grandmother's house. Although the only communication between her and her grandmother was during holidays, she was Megan's only living relative. Grandmother Levine from her father's side had lost contact with tem almost all together when he died from cancer. She had nowhere else to go.
She took out the keys to her brand new, bright red BMW that she got for her birthday last week. The car had almost never been used and was ready and rearing to go all the way from LA to San Francisco. When she got there, her grandmother didn't really welcome her with open arms. "Here," she said apprehensively to Megan "You can have this room. Dinner is at six."
The room looked oddly familiar. "Like the one from my dream!" she thought. The closet was there, and so was the cabinet, but there was more. A rusty copper bed and nightstand, and a dresser with a silver mirror on top occupied the room along with Megan. There was also a white carpet cover the center of the bare, hardwood floor.
Again, as in her dream, she checked the drawers. The top one, as usual, was locked. Much to her surprise so was the bottom one. She checked the closet. This time she could read all of the book titles. She finally found the one she was looking for, Death and Life Again.
She took the book from the shelf. As she did, a small golden key, slightly tarnished, fell out. While picking it up, a strange, yet obvious thought overwhelmed her. "The key must fit the locks on the cabinet!" she said, delighted and scarred at the same time. She slowly walked over to the drawers and put the key in the hole.
Chapter Three
The key did not fit the top drawer, but only the bottom. "Odd." She thought. When she went to open it, she found a bottle with a strange looking substance in it. This time, the label was readable. It said, nosiop. It was written in small capital letters so small, it was as if whoever labeled it didn't want her to know what it was.
She held the bottle in her hands. Her whole body shook with fear and with curiosity. "What is nosiop?" she wondered. She set the bottle down and went to go look in the mirror. "I must look decent for dinner." She said. It was five forty three. She grabbed a brush from her bag and started brushing her hair. When she was done. She stepped back to admire herself. She caught a glimpse of the bottle in the background. She gasped.
In the mirror, the bottle was no longer labeled nosiop, but poison. "Of course!" she said. "Nosiop is poison backwards. But who would write a label backwards?" She thought. She put the bottle back in the drawer and locked it. She put the key in the bag and then went down to dinner.
Her grandmother's maid is scurrying around as Megan walks in to the dinning room. "Your late." Her grandmother says without turning around. Her voice sounds not all to hash or disappointed. It has a faint sound of grief and sorrow hidden beneath the feeling to do everything so perfectly as she no doubt wanted Megan do feel too. " I am sorry, grandmother. I was simply distracted by something." That, Megan later found out, was the wrong thing to say.
"Were you snooping around that room? That room is for sleeping only. I do not want you looking around it." Grandmother says. "I wasn't. I..." "And I know it was you setting the clocks back to 5 am. I had my maid fixing every clock in this house all day. Did you know there are one hundred and two clocks in this house and that every one of them said 5 am? OH, but you should know that Rosemary, I mean Megan..." "Rosemary, who the..." "Never mind. Just don't go snooping around the house. Sorry for chastising you, but I feel it is necessary thing to do in order for you not to be like Rosemary, I mean rude and selfish." "Who is this Rosemary you keep talking about?" Megan says. "If you must know," grandmother says, "She is your Aunt."
Chapter Four
"My aunt, I have an aunt?" Megan says, surprised and ecstatic. "Where does she live, when can I meet her how..." "You can't meet her." Grandmother says. "She died March 14 at 5 am. "March 14, that was yesterday." Megan said. "At 5 am? Is that why all the clocks are set back? Does this have to do with my mother and brother missing and the poison and..." Megan stops short. "Poison, where did you find it!" Her grandmother is now yelling. "Where!!" "The bottom drawer in the cabinet in my room." Megan says.
"But that drawer is locked."
"I have they key. I found it in the book called Death and Life Again. It fell out. It is small and gold and slightly tarnished. It only fits the bottom drawer."
"Where is the key now, Rosemary, I mean Megan."
"In my bag under the bed."
Grandmother races upstairs as Megan watches. In a few minutes, she is back. "The poison has been there all the time. I haven't even noticed. Thank you for telling me Megan. That poison is vital to prove that Rosemary was murdered and did not commit suicide. Do you want hot chocolate?"
"Yes please." Megan says meekly.
Grandmother comes back followed by the maid with a steaming cup of hot cocoa. The maid hands it to Megan. Megan takes a sip and swallows uncertainly. "This tastes fu..." Megan starts but then falls suddenly to the ground. The last thing she saw was a look of pure horror on her grandmother's face, and a brief look of sheer delight and terror on the face of the maid as Megan fell slowly into the deep and forever sleep of the dead.
The rain splattered on the window and the thunder shook the whole house. A strike of lightning would briefly illuminate the room in which Megan was occupying. She sat on the windowsill and stared out at the landscape of her California home. There were rarely any storms, only earthquakes. She lived in Los Angeles.
She was enjoying the rare treat of a storm for a while and gently drifted off to sleep. She usually never dreams, but tonight was different. Her dream was like nothing she had ever dreamed before. She was in a strange house, or maybe it was an apartment, but nonetheless, she was in a strange room with bare floors. There was nothing in the room but a cabinet with drawers and a closet.
She tried the top drawer; locked. The bottom one was open. She looked into it and found a bottle with a strange looking substance in it. The label was unreadable. The closet also was opened. She looked inside and found a shelf filled with books. She tried to read the titles, but they were all illegible, expect for one. The one titled Death and Life Again.
Megan awoke the next morning, startled. The little antique sliver clock in her room said it was only 5 am, but the light shining through the window was a sure sign that it was clearly afternoon. She didn't remember setting her clock back. When she got up and dressed, she went downstairs. "Hello?" she called. No one called back. "Where is everyone?" she wondered.
After thoroughly searching the house, she went into the kitchen to eat lunch. Opening the microwave to make her macaroni and cheese, she noticed the clock. It said 5 am. She knew it was after two o'clock because her watch said... 5 am? Why did all the clocks say 5 am, and where was her family?
Chapter Two
When Megan finished lunch, she decided she would go to her grandmother's house. Although the only communication between her and her grandmother was during holidays, she was Megan's only living relative. Grandmother Levine from her father's side had lost contact with tem almost all together when he died from cancer. She had nowhere else to go.
She took out the keys to her brand new, bright red BMW that she got for her birthday last week. The car had almost never been used and was ready and rearing to go all the way from LA to San Francisco. When she got there, her grandmother didn't really welcome her with open arms. "Here," she said apprehensively to Megan "You can have this room. Dinner is at six."
The room looked oddly familiar. "Like the one from my dream!" she thought. The closet was there, and so was the cabinet, but there was more. A rusty copper bed and nightstand, and a dresser with a silver mirror on top occupied the room along with Megan. There was also a white carpet cover the center of the bare, hardwood floor.
Again, as in her dream, she checked the drawers. The top one, as usual, was locked. Much to her surprise so was the bottom one. She checked the closet. This time she could read all of the book titles. She finally found the one she was looking for, Death and Life Again.
She took the book from the shelf. As she did, a small golden key, slightly tarnished, fell out. While picking it up, a strange, yet obvious thought overwhelmed her. "The key must fit the locks on the cabinet!" she said, delighted and scarred at the same time. She slowly walked over to the drawers and put the key in the hole.
Chapter Three
The key did not fit the top drawer, but only the bottom. "Odd." She thought. When she went to open it, she found a bottle with a strange looking substance in it. This time, the label was readable. It said, nosiop. It was written in small capital letters so small, it was as if whoever labeled it didn't want her to know what it was.
She held the bottle in her hands. Her whole body shook with fear and with curiosity. "What is nosiop?" she wondered. She set the bottle down and went to go look in the mirror. "I must look decent for dinner." She said. It was five forty three. She grabbed a brush from her bag and started brushing her hair. When she was done. She stepped back to admire herself. She caught a glimpse of the bottle in the background. She gasped.
In the mirror, the bottle was no longer labeled nosiop, but poison. "Of course!" she said. "Nosiop is poison backwards. But who would write a label backwards?" She thought. She put the bottle back in the drawer and locked it. She put the key in the bag and then went down to dinner.
Her grandmother's maid is scurrying around as Megan walks in to the dinning room. "Your late." Her grandmother says without turning around. Her voice sounds not all to hash or disappointed. It has a faint sound of grief and sorrow hidden beneath the feeling to do everything so perfectly as she no doubt wanted Megan do feel too. " I am sorry, grandmother. I was simply distracted by something." That, Megan later found out, was the wrong thing to say.
"Were you snooping around that room? That room is for sleeping only. I do not want you looking around it." Grandmother says. "I wasn't. I..." "And I know it was you setting the clocks back to 5 am. I had my maid fixing every clock in this house all day. Did you know there are one hundred and two clocks in this house and that every one of them said 5 am? OH, but you should know that Rosemary, I mean Megan..." "Rosemary, who the..." "Never mind. Just don't go snooping around the house. Sorry for chastising you, but I feel it is necessary thing to do in order for you not to be like Rosemary, I mean rude and selfish." "Who is this Rosemary you keep talking about?" Megan says. "If you must know," grandmother says, "She is your Aunt."
Chapter Four
"My aunt, I have an aunt?" Megan says, surprised and ecstatic. "Where does she live, when can I meet her how..." "You can't meet her." Grandmother says. "She died March 14 at 5 am. "March 14, that was yesterday." Megan said. "At 5 am? Is that why all the clocks are set back? Does this have to do with my mother and brother missing and the poison and..." Megan stops short. "Poison, where did you find it!" Her grandmother is now yelling. "Where!!" "The bottom drawer in the cabinet in my room." Megan says.
"But that drawer is locked."
"I have they key. I found it in the book called Death and Life Again. It fell out. It is small and gold and slightly tarnished. It only fits the bottom drawer."
"Where is the key now, Rosemary, I mean Megan."
"In my bag under the bed."
Grandmother races upstairs as Megan watches. In a few minutes, she is back. "The poison has been there all the time. I haven't even noticed. Thank you for telling me Megan. That poison is vital to prove that Rosemary was murdered and did not commit suicide. Do you want hot chocolate?"
"Yes please." Megan says meekly.
Grandmother comes back followed by the maid with a steaming cup of hot cocoa. The maid hands it to Megan. Megan takes a sip and swallows uncertainly. "This tastes fu..." Megan starts but then falls suddenly to the ground. The last thing she saw was a look of pure horror on her grandmother's face, and a brief look of sheer delight and terror on the face of the maid as Megan fell slowly into the deep and forever sleep of the dead.