Rachel stood in the living room, admiring the mirror she had inherited. Shivers ran down her spine and she felt tears well up, thinking back on that fateful day. Two months ago, while she was at work, she had gotten a call from her brother, Joe. His voice was barely above a whisper. “Rachel. There’s been an accident. Ma and Pa are dead. I’m at Natalie’s, how soon can you be here?” Her whole world came crashing down when she heard it. Rachel teared up, let out a high-pitched wail and started crying, her co-workers and boss came running to her, asking what was wrong. She remembered hanging up, grabbing the nearest person and just hugged her and cried. Next thing she remembered was sitting in a cab, crying. Later she found out that her boss, Hugh, had ordered her a cab after talking to Joe and finding out the circumstances. She was really grateful for how Hugh had handled things, as well as how well the co-workers had responded, doing their best to help her and comfort her. On the ride in the cab, she had reminisced about her parents, her youth, how they had always supported her and how wonderful human beings they were – no, had been. That thought made her cry even more. She simply couldn’t imagine life without her daily chat with her mom, or her dad’s witty comebacks. Eventually the cab arrived at Natalie’s, and Rachel made her way inside. Everything got a bit hazy after that. The funeral came and went. Then she thought about the day their parents property was to be settled. Everything went smoothly, as their parents will had been pretty clear. Natalie and Joe decided to have the lawyer sell most of the stuff that their parents had had. Too many memories. For some reason though, she had ended up with this accursed mirror. Joe had remembered how fascinated she had been with it when she was a little girl. She hit the wall with her fists, crying. She looked at the mirror again. The memories were overwhelming. Thinking of her Ma, how close they had been, always talking about everything that happened in their lives. Thinking of Pa, who was always ready to come and help her fix stuff in her apartment. She let out a wail, feeling crushed. Two damned months and she didn’t feel any better. The worst part of it all – well, apart from the loss of her parents, of course – was that the drunk driver who had hit their car survived, with minimal injuries. And since he was the kid of a wealthy businessman, he was released on bail. She got so angry thinking about that piece of human excrement. She hated him. Hated his family. She let out another wail, and cried. After crying for a bit, she looked at her image in the mirror, hit the wall again with her right fist and turned around. She hated being like this. So emotional. So vulnerable. She decided to try to take a nap. She hadn’t been sleeping to well since the loss of her parents.

  As she lay down on the couch, she found herself caught firmly in sleep’s cold embrace, and she no longer was in her living room, but rather on a dimly lit road, somewhere far away. She looked around, trying to figure out where she was. She weakly shouted “hello”, trying to establish contact with anyone. No response. Suddenly, there was a loud crash behind her, and the sky lit up. She looked to see what was happening behind her, and saw a car, totally crumpled together and in flames. “oh no”, she said, “I can’t go through that again. Please.” As she stared at the burning car, she heard a raspy voice behind her, saying:”Rachel…where were you?” She turned slowly, and then saw her parents. Except they were engulfed in flames. Tears started running down her cheek. Then, in the blink of an eye, her parents were right in front of her, giving her an angry stare. “Where were you?”, her father screamed. And with that, she woke up with a start. She had only slept for 5 minutes. She was exhausted. Being unable to sleep for longer periods did take its toll on her. She slowly sat herself up on the couch, and put her right hand on her temple. She had a big headache, probably due to the lack of sleep. She stood up, and slowly made her way to the bathroom. She opened the medicine cabinet, found the aspirin and took a couple of pills. She looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Huge bags under her eyes, hair unkempt and she looked very pale. “What a catch”, she thought sarcastically, trying to somehow cheer herself up. It didn’t quite work though. She just sighed. She made her way into the living room. Even though she turned the lights on, it was rather dark. The drapes were always down. She walked in and looked around. She really needed to clean soon. However, to her, even a simple vacuuming seemed like an insurmountable task. It didn’t used to be so. But after the loss of her parents, even basic chores felt like she was at the base of a mountain, and she didn’t have any energy to make the climb. She sighed again. She let her gaze wander throughout her living room, finally fixing upon the dreaded mirror. It was a rather beautiful mirror, with a golden frame. The frame had a wave-like looking pattern carved into it, and on the bottom there was an area with smooth surface. There had been something inscribed there, words she didn’t even recognize. She walked up to the mirror, fixated on the wave-like pattern. She let her eyes glide all over the pattern, from the left side, to the top, to the right side. Finally she looked at the inscription. Tared el karaz it said. “What on earth does that mean?”, she said to herself. She sighed deeply, and looked at her reflection. Her hair was messy and unkempt. She had huge bags under her eyes, due to the lack of sleep. She looked gaunt, because she didn’t eat so well anymore. Sometimes she just skipped the meals because it was such a hassle to make anything. She started to stare at the reflection. How did she get here? To this state, where even the most basic of chores seemed an insurmountable task. How was it that it was so hard for her to come to terms with the loss of her parents? As she stared at her reflection and had these thoughts, something seemed to happen. Her eyes wandered across the reflection, looking at random spots. Then, she locked eyes with her reflection, and seemed unable to break it. And as she looked into the eyes of the reflection, a cold breeze licked the back of her neck. She shuddered, but was still unable to break the eye contact. After a few seconds, her reflection seemed to… age, somehow. Her hair grew longer, and turned white. The bags under her eyes grew longer, and her temple and cheeks turned wrinkly. This change happened over a few second period. Then, she thought she saw a movement in the lower right corner of the mirror. And that was enough to break the spell. She no longer held eye contact with her reflection. She looked in the lower right corner of the mirror, and saw a small black shape, and in the middle of where the head presumably was, a couple of greenish orbs, eyes probably. She gasped, and looked to her side. Nothing. She looked back in the mirror, and her reflection had turned back to normal. No black shapes or green eyes. She shuddered and found a blanket which she covered the mirror with. Now, she wasn’t as much grieving as she was terrified. She decided enough was enough. It was time to get to the bottom of this mirror mystery. She decided to call her brother Joe. After a few rings, she heard Joe’s gruff voice. “This is Joe”, he said. It took Rachel a few moments to find words. In the meantime, Joe said:”Who is this?” and was obviously getting annoyed.

  Finally, Rachel managed to say:”hey Joe. Rachel here.”

  “Oh hello sis. How are you doing? I haven’t heard from you in a while, I was getting worried.”, Joe said.

  “Well, actually, I have been awful since the accident. But that’s not why I’m calling. I need some information from you”, Rachel replied.

  “Oh, that’s not good to hear”, said Joe. “I mean, that you’ve been awful, not the information part.”

  That last sentence from Joe made her tear up, and she let out a soft sob. “Oh Joe, that reminded me so much of dad. He was always so funny.”

  “Sorry”, Joe said. “I know you were rather close to dad. I didn’t mean to -”

  “It’s OK”, Rachel interrupted. “But I need to ask you about that mirror I inherited. That huge mirror.”

  There was a pause. Finally, Joe replied with:”what mirror? We had the lawyers sell everything. There was nothing left. Didn’t you receive your share?”

  “Joe, I’m not here to ask about my share. I’m sure it’s on my account now. No, I’m asking about that hideous mirror. You know, the one I used to love when I was younger, the one dad was so fond of.”

  There was again silence in Joe’s end. And after a few moments, Joe said:”are you talking about the mirror in the bathroom? Or the large one on their closet?”

  Rachel was getting frustrated, so she snapped:”no Joe, I’m not talking about those. I’m talking about the large one with the gold frame. With that nonsensical inscription on the bottom. You know, the one me and dad used to spend so much time in front of.”

  Again, Joe was silent for a moment. Then he awkwardly said:”Rachel, I genuinely have no idea what you are talking about. We didn’t have any mirrors fitting your description. Maybe you saw it somewhere else?”

  Rachel was getting angry at this point, and shouted:”no Joe, I distinctly remember standing in front of the mirror along with dad when I was younger. In our living room. And there are glimpses of us playing in front of it. How can you not remember it?”

  Joe sighed, and was silent for a moment. “I’m telling you, we never had any fancy mirrors like that. With a golden frame. And when did you get it? And from who? It just sounds like a gift of some sorts, although I can’t explain the memories you supposedly have.”

  “What do you mean by that? ‘supposedly’. These memories are clear as day. Maybe if you stopped drinking for a second you could remember it.”

  She regretted saying it immediately. There was a long pause. Then he simply said:”Goodbye Rachel, don’t call me with more of you hallucinations”. And with that, he hung up. She felt sad at how this conversation ended. She knew he hadn’t touched a drop in over two years, and how proud he was of that. And why did she react like that? That wasn’t like her at all. Was it the grief talking? She hung up the phone, sighed, and then decided to try to call Natalie. After a few rings, she heard Natalie answer it. “Hello?”, Natalie said.

  “Hi Natalie”, Rachel said. “It is so nice to hear your voice again”.

  “Oh Rachel, what a pleasant surprise”, Natalie said. “Me and Joe have been quite worried about you. We have tried calling you a few times, but to no avail.”

  “I know”, Rachel said. “The accident was quite a blow for me. I haven’t coped well. But that’s not why I’m calling. Do you remember the mirror dad had? The one with the golden frame and an obscure inscription on the bottom?”

  There was a pause from Natalie. Then she said:”what are you talking about? Dad didn’t have any mirror like that.” Rachel paused. “But how can I distinctly remember standing in front of that mirror along with dad?”

  “I couldn’t say, dear”, said Natalie. “Are you sure it’s dad you remember? And not uncle Keegan or something similar? I mean, they do look a bit alike.”

  Although Rachel was getting annoyed, she was also getting doubts. How real were her memories of this mirror? Had the accident perhaps muddied her recollection of the events? Or had they even happened? And if not, where did that accursed mirror then come from? After a moment, Rachel replied:”I don’t know. I’m not so sure anymore. Everything seems to be a blur, and I have a mirror that gives me hallucinations.”

  “Oh sweetie, that doesn’t sound good at all. I’m not a doctor, but it sounds like it’s something that’s in your head. Would you like some company?”, said Natalie.

  “No, it’s all right,” Rachel replied. “I just have to find a way to get rid of this blasted mirror. Whatever is happening, it’s not just ‘in my head’.”

  “OK. But if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call either me or Joe,” Natalie said.

  “I will. Now, I have to go. Goodbye sis.” Rachel said.

  “Goodbye sweetie,” Natalie said and they both hung up. Rachel sat down in the kitchen, and let her gaze wander around. Gosh, it was getting filthy. She hadn’t had the energy to clean in…what, 2 months ? The massive castle of dirty plates, glasses and other kitchen utensils looked foreboding and unconquerable. The flies that made it their fort circled their territory, defying anyone to try to conquer their castle. The longer she looked at it, the more Rachel became angry. Angry at the flies for their audacity. Angry at herself for getting to this point. And angry at fate for taking her parents away. This insolence would not be tolerated today. Not anymore. Rachel picked herself up, and marched on towards the plates. This would be the day she reclaimed her life. She loomed over the large mountain of plates, and started her task. She filled the sink with water and soap, and took the first plate. After she was finished with the first one, she went on to the next. After a while, she had finished all of the plates and silverware. She felt rejuvenated inside. She was getting better. She had taken the first step towards a new beginning. This would be a new start for a better her. But now, she had a more important task. She had to remove the accursed mirror from her house.

  As she entered her living room, she noticed something lying on the floor, in front of the mirror. It was the blanket she had put over the mirror. A chill ran down her spine. She was certain she had made sure she had tucked it in good, so it wouldn’t fall. No matter. She wouldn’t let something trivial such as this stop her from her mission. The mirror had to be destroyed, or at least gotten rid of somehow. She slowly walked towards the blanket, making sure she kept her eyes on it and not on the mirror. As she got to it, she knelt and picked it up. However, as she stood up, she looked at the mirror. She made eye contact with her reflection. For a few seconds she looked into the reflection’s eyes, and around the eyes, the reflection seemed to age. She kept on looking, feeling a shiver run down her spine. This felt hypnotic, the reflection getting older, the shadows of the room getting longer and the room seemingly getting larger. As she stared, transfixed, a voice in the back of her head kept warning her, that this wasn’t natural. But in the circumstances, it was hard to listen to that voice, as it seemed…muffled, somehow. She started feeling a tingling sensation, and deep inside she knew she was in danger. But, alas, that part was hidden far away at this moment. She rejoiced in the sensations, in the fascinating visuals happening before her eyes. Suddenly, the air around her became extremely cold. Her skin felt as if she was being caressed by death’s icy hand. She shuddered, but kept staring at her reflection, who now had a large, creepy smile on her face. She felt uncomfortable, yet still unable to break away from the mirror’s grasp. After a few moments, she heard the doorbell ring. She wanted to tell whoever was at the door to please come in, in the hope that they would be able to save her from the icy stare of her now grinning reflection. Her lips moved…no, twitched, but no sound came out. She became desperate to contact the person outside, to save herself from the mirror. After a few moments she heard a couple of knocks and another ringing of the doorbell. She tried to communicate, but only a low whimper emerged from her quivering lips. Then she heard a key enter the keyhole, and the door being unlocked. That meant that either Natalie or Joe were the one trying to enter. That gave her hope. She heard Joe’s booming voice calling:”Rachel?”

  She tried to muster everything in her body in order to make a sound. A rather muffled sound came out. She tried again, focusing everything she had, and more. A squeaky:”Joe! Help!” came out. She wasn’t sure if anyone could here it. She heard Joe’s heavy footsteps as he climbed up the stairs. “In…here”, she managed to say weakly. Then she heard Joe come running towards the living room. The door flung open and Joe stood there, his eyes wide. “Rachel”, he yelled.

  “Help me”, she said weakly. And then Joe ran towards her. He planted himself firmly between Rachel and the mirror. He looked her in the eyes and said:”Rachel. Are you OK?”. After a few moments, her eyes started moving, and they finally landed on Joe’s.

  “Oh thank you, thank you, thank you”, she exclaimed. She started crying, not only because she was so relieved to see Joe after their little spat, but also because she was free of that damned mirror’s grasp. She hugged him for a long time, apologizing for her harsh words in the phone call.

  After the events of that day, Rachel and Joe decided that the mirror shouldn’t be in the house, and indeed that it should be kept somewhere where others wouldn’t find it, so it couldn’t destroy any more lives. Joe took it on him to disperse of the accursed mirror, and said that Rachel shouldn’t worry about where it would be hid. The fewer that knew, the better. Gradually, Rachel overcame her overwhelming grief, and she and Joe became even closer than before. And in the deepest recesses of an unknown system of caves in an unknown desert, an old mirror lies, waiting.