Days seemed to blur on in a dreamlike daze. Sara grew older and more intelligent, though she kept to herself. Her brother, Nathaniel, was spritely and always curious about the world. Both grew rapidly as children do, with the sibling love which is often confused for annoyance. Edith watched her children grow and so she had no fear for her children, sensing that her brush with danger was a mere glimpse of a nightmare long forgotten. Alan continued his work casually since they were all fairly rich, even for a middle-class doctor as he. Still, the inheritance from Edith's father and the Sharpe's remaining estate, the family lived in comfort stateside. Edith and Alan were fairly progressive in their private tutoring of their children, teaching them that whatever they both strove for, with hard work and prayer, they'd most likely achieve it.

Of course, though both children were homeschooled, Sara is older and was university-age when she completed her studies with her parents and few private tutors. Nathaniel was still in a middle-age primary level so Alan and Edith tutored him until he is the same age as Sara. Both of Sara's parents decided that since she was an adult she needed to finish her schooling elsewhere and hopefully find a career and family of her own outside theirs. Nathaniel, naturally, would have to wait.

One evening at dinner they discussed such a topic. "Sara, your mother and I wish to discuss something with you." Sara looked up from her water glass, curious.

"Is this because Nathaniel destroyed one of my art sketches and I pummeled him for it?" Sara scowled at Nathaniel.

"I think I improved its grotesque visage anyway." Nathaniel's dark green little eyes glinted at Sara mischievously. Sara made a motion with her knife, but their mother cut in, "Settle down. It's not about that," Edith looked sternly at Nathaniel who glared at Sara before continuing to eat.

"Sara, you are now twenty and a young lady. Your father and I wish to send you to a university or finishing school abroad to find a career of your choosing and a family of your own. We don't believe you would want to live with us forever. What are your thoughts?" Edith presented. Sara thought for a moment and chose her words carefully.

"Are you casting me out?" Sara began.

"No, no, no, no. We would never cast either of you out. We have plenty of money to leave the four of us wanting for nothing until we are dead. We just thought that-" Alan was cut off by a quip Nathaniel made.

"They just think you're a freak that sits alone and draws dead people and want to give you to Bedlam with a Christmas bow."

"Nathaniel! Apologize to your sister!" Edith exclaimed furiously. Sara knew deep in her heart it was fairly true. On occasion, Sara would draw or write about her experiences, like her brother's birth, and it would disturb her parents. In part it was because Sara would draw the likeness of her dead father, a man she has never actually seen. Sometimes she would draw a woman, who looked like her father, but didn't know who she was herself. During her teenage years, Sara sometimes would sleepwalk and sleep talk and frighten the maids, butlers, and other servants in the mansion hall. Because of her odd quiet nature, she kept to herself. The only one she would really ever talk to was not even alive, nor seen by others.

Sara replied, "When you get older perhaps that's what they'll do to you." Alan snapped, "All right that's enough."

Edith faced Sara, "When I was your age I wanted to write books, so I went to Father's smaller companies to have my work printed. I went out and explored the cities before I married."

"And then daddy dearest died and you ran back here from across the seas with Alan, both half dead and frozen while daddy dearest lies stone cold dead beneath the harsh ground at Allerdale Hall." Sara replied. Both Alan and Edith looked at her in sheer horror with Sara glaring beneath her dark hair, as if someone else talked through her. Someone that Edith once knew long ago, but it was not her beloved husband, instead someone much darker.

Nathaniel was even stunned by his sister's shocking change in behavior, so much so he couldn't even make a funny quip about it to anger her. Suddenly, it seemed that Sara returned to her usual disposition. "So you went out at my age and you want me to have a similar experience of finding myself? Is that it?" Sara asked, unphased by the last few minutes-as if they never happened.

Edith stammered but Alan, though shakily in his voice, responded, "Yes that's right but Sara do you not know what happened three minutes ago?" He asked the obvious.

Sara looked confused at her father, "Yes, mama said that she explored the cities before she married daddy…right?" It seemed to slowly dawn on her but ignored the idea. The others couldn't dismiss it as easily as she could. The reason why is because she was used to it, hell, it is how she lost friends frightening them with secrets that they thought were hidden from the world. Yet, somehow Sara knew them. This was the first occurrence that happened with her family though, because Sara's uncanny abilities with the supernatural were unnerving and observed through repression.

"So, with that proposal," Edith tried to persevere, "do you know where you would like to go, or somewhere for us to look for you?"

Sara thought for a moment, "I wish to go to the Old country, and find artistic inspiration for my work. Perhaps I'll find a descent print company there too. Do we know any people that I could stay with?"

"I'll make a few inquiries, but I know a colleague of mine has a son that lives in an estate in Keswick, England." Alan replied nonchalantly.

"Keswick?" Edith looked to him with worried eyes. Alan realized that Keswick was fifteen minutes away from Allerdale Hall. But since Allerdale Hall was on top of a cliff, it seemed isolated from its neighbors.

"Yes, Keswick." Alan swallowed. Sara looked intrigued, "Sounds interesting. I'll go there." Nathaniel broke in, "You'd do better in Bedlam, you bloody Cassandra. Maybe Apollo will finally whisk you away from the rest of us." He mumbled. Sara heard and abruptly stood up, "I hope that when we both die and go to Hell, just remember that you will be under my feet and I will be upon the throne!"

Sara stormed off angry at the notion of feeling that everyone she ever met believes her to be a crazy she-devil. Her response was always the same that if she was a devil, then she'd be the one on the throne. Her parents called back for her to apologize to her brother and to continue the discussion, but the evening was at an end.

"Don't antagonize your sister." Alan warned Nathaniel. "But Dad it's only a joke! She's not even my full sister; you know how crazy she is!" Nathaniel blurted out of frustration, not hatred. Edith slammed her hand on the table, "ENOUGH! GO TO YOUR ROOM!" Nathaniel muttered something unintelligible as he trudged away.

Edith and Alan looked quietly at each other, "Do you think it is wise to send her there? What if she finds Allerdale Hall?" Edith's worry crossed her forehead as she put her head in her hands. Alan took them reassuringly, "Though I shouldn't have suggested it, it caught her interest. With our luck she might marry the boy who lives at the estate and so she'll never venture to Allerdale, I think it'll be ok. The boy likes art like Sara does; he doesn't want to be a doctor like his father. Ok?" He kissed her hands then he leaned in and kissed Edith who reciprocated.

"Very well then. She is too much like me; I fear her gift to see those who shouldn't be seen is too potent."

"Whatever God wants to happen will and then it will pass. All ends well, and if it doesn't then it's not the end." Alan whispered.

"What's the boy's name?" Edith inquired.

"Dylan Kestrel. He's about the same age, maybe a little older than Sara. My colleague mentioned him only once, which is peculiar."

"Why is that?"

"I don't know. I suppose I talk of my family too much at work." Alan smiled as Edith and Alan kissed.

Meanwhile, the room above the dining room had very thin floors. In the right spot, one could hear everything as easily as if the person next to you said it. Sara heard everything they had discussed, pressing her ear to the floor in the drawing room. She was all alone in the locked room, or so she thought. As she listened to the discourse, Sara heard something faint on the wind. "Father?" Sara whispered. At first she heard the voice of her father saying "Don't faint my child." But it was so quiet she thought she imagined it. She thought that he touched her shoulder lovingly and whispered a little kiss on her ear and looked back, expecting her father but gasped as there was no one.

Sitting up from the wooden floor, Sara looked around seeing that no one was there. No people nor ghosts-just her. Something didn't feel right though; she looked around the room and startled herself when she saw her reflection in the mirror. Panting slowly, Sara caught her breath. The mirror suddenly looked dusty with mist; naturally, she went to clean it off with her hand.

All of a sudden, a black hand jumped out of the mirror and grabbed the hand Sara placed on the mirror that wiped away some dust. Sara jumped backed and gasped loudly, too frightened to scream. When she pulled back the apparition disappeared; she checked her hand to see that it was all right. Blood surged in her ears thumping wildly.

Before Sara could recover, the piano was struck with dissonant chords. Sara's head snapped to the startling sound and saw a horrifying black figure of a woman screeching at her. Sara stepped back and fell on the carpet line near the wooden floor. Sara let out a scream that could curdle blood of the dead. The figure now collapsed to the floor and started to crawl its way towards her. Sara tried to move further back, but realized she was now in the grand fireplace, with the black slimy evanescent woman ghost crawling towards her screeching as Sara continued her wailing. Ash fell above her like snowy rain and she looked up and saw another ghost; a bloody crimson man with his chest opened and his pumping scarlet heart in his hand, crawling his way on the wall down the chimney towards her.

With the noir and sanguine ghosts coming at her, cornering her, in the chimney, Sara screamed, "GOD HELP ME!" and continued to wail with her fists on either side of her head as she curled up in the sooty fireplace. They closed in to where she could feel their chill of them of their hands millimeters from her skin ready to grasp her ankles and her wrists near her temples.

By the grace of God, the drawing room doors slammed open. Edith grabbed Sara's wrists as Sara struggled, kicking, screaming, all with her eyes wide shut. "Sara! Sara, it's me!" Edith tried to console her. Opening her eyes and no longer screaming, Sara realized that the spirits were gone and her family burst into the room to comfort her. Once Sara realized she was safe, she sobbed into her family's shoulders, as they coaxed her out of the fireplace into the middle of the floor. There, Sara simply threw up, and said, "I need to leave this place. The ghosts don't want me here anymore. Father's voice isn't here anymore; Lucille brought them here to me. I can't dream, and I can't see his face anymore. Not father's and not his, I can't see my path. All I see is oblivion." She mumbled how she felt sick.

Alan and Edith exchanged looks, knowing what they needed to do. For now Alan had to care for Sara, who felt sick to her stomach, for the night.