Mirror Image

Chapter Three

As I enter into the large foyer of Locke's huge manor, I am greeted by my seven children.

"Mom! You're here!" shouts Susie, my oldest. She wraps me in abear hug as the rest of my children crowd around me.

"We missed you, mommy!"

"We didn't think you were coming..."

"It's been so long!"

Locke clears his throat. "Hey! Take it easy!"

The room falls silent, the children staring widely at their father.

"Your mom just had a really long flight. Give her some space. You'll have time to get reacquainted later," Locke explains tothem.

"But-" begins Duke, our second child.

"No buts. There will be plenty of time at dinner," Locke says, cutting off the rest of the protests.

He turns to Gritty, who is still clutching my hand. "Gritty, go onupstairs and get washed up, okay?"

He nods. "Okay."

Gritty relinquishes my hand and trudges upstairs, tracking mud acrossthe foyer floor and the stairs. Locke scowls.

"Susie, clean that up will you?" he asks irritably.

"Of course, father." She scurries away to find a mop. Locke finally turns to me as the rest of our children continue to mullabout in the foyer.

"I'm sure the butler had all your things brought up. Let me show you to your room," he says.

"Okay." He leads me up a grand set of spiraling stairs and down along, fancy corridor. I gaze all around at the ornate lights andshiny floors. This place has an old, rustic theme about it. My lightfootsteps echo on the hardwood floor.

"Quite a place you've got here," I say. In case it isn't obvious,my ex-husband is loaded.

"It...took a little fixing up," he replies. He stops in front ofa light, wooden door with a golden knob. Actually, all of the doorslook like this.

"Here is your room. I put you on the second floor, with the youngerchildren. I figured you'd want to be closer to them," Locke tellsme as he opens the door. He swings it open to reveal a bedroom thesize of my apartment back home in Virginia. My eyes widen as I gulp.

"Whoa," I whisper, stepping into the vast room. "This ismassive."

"You like it?" I can hear the cocky smile in his voice.

"It's amazing!" I exclaim, gawking.

"I know," he says.

I whirl around to face him. "Don't brag!"

"Why not? This place is pretty great," he says with a grin.

The bed in the right hand corner of the room is colossal, with fancy,wooden bedposts carved with intricate representations of fairy tales.The bedposts hold up a red canopy, the curtains tied around thebedposts. An antique, oriental rug sits underneath of the bed,covering most of the wooden floor. Instead of a dresser, there is awooden wardrobe made out of mahogany wood with glass windows.

"Bathroom's right over here." Locke walks across the room to anen suite bathroom and turns on the light. A large, stand alone tubsits inside with a porcelain, bowl-style sink and a fancy, goldrimmed mirror. The toilet even looks fancy. I'm gonna enjoy a nicebath.

"Nice," I mutter.

"Yeah. Well, here's your room. Guess I'll...leave you to it,"says Locke, turning to leave the room. Right before he leaves, Iremember something. I only remember counting six children in thefoyer, and that included Gritty. Where was Lucas, the youngest?