Chapter Thirteen
Knock! Knock! Knock!
The door seemed to shake as it was banged on.
"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Irma's step mom shouted.
Hmm, she thought, Who could that be?
I'll bet it's Irma, she decided after a long moment of pondering, She probably left something. She opened the door. Instead of Irma, she saw a young woman, about 25 or 26, wearing an eerie, black robe that covered her feet.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
"I'm looking for Irma Lair," the girl said, "I need to talk to her."
"Well," Irma's mom said, "I'm Anna Bannister. I'm Irma's stepmother. Is she in some kind of trouble?"
"No trouble. I need to speak with her father, as well. And I guess I'll need to talk to you, too." She looked up at the sky. "Well," she sighed, "Let's go get your family."
"What's wrong?" Anna asked her.
"Nothing," she replied, quickly, "I just have to get you and your family out of here. Something's coming for you guys. I also have to go to the Cook, Vandom, Hale, Lin, and Side and Flyer residencies."
"Why?"
"You are all marked. Doomed to suffer the same fate: a slow, painful death. I was appointed the task of saving you from this fate. I have said too much. Come on!"
"But who are you?"
The woman turned from her face. Anna could see a tear in her eye. "I am Heather," she said, her voice breaking, "I'm the mother of Irma."
"Irma's mother? How can this be?" Anna said in shock. "You died while giving birth to her."
"No, I didn't. I died, but the doctors were able to revive me. When I went to see my newly born daughter, she and Tom were already gone. They were told that I was dead. I decided to leave it that way. I left Heatherfield, so I didn't have any suspicions arise. I went to California, to the town called The Fallen City. It's close to Hollywood. There I met a young woman. She taught me how to Concentrate. I stayed with her for the past 14 years. I've come back to ensure the safety of all that she loves. All that I loved. All that you love. And in doing so, I have the same fate as you. Now come on! Let's save our husband, and our children!"
With that, Heather took Ana's hand and together they left to the Cook residence.