The Dark Maiden

Chapter 4

Carmen didn't know exactly what she was going to do. She needed to get away. Away from Lilli. Just away from the woman who claimed to be her mother and to know what was best for her.

No, Carmen thought to herself. Elsi Francis is my mother. She has been and always will be. That woman isn't anything to me, she's nothing. Nothing. She's not my mother and I am not her daughter.

But first she needed to let her head heal. It was feeling better, but she had barely been able to get herself back in bed from her previous position sitting on the floor.

A knock sounded at the door. "May I come in?"

"Yes." Carmen shouted. It didn't sound like Lilli, so Carmen assumed it was the girl, her daughter, Izzria.

When Izzria opened the door, Carmen looked at the owner of the voice and saw the eleven year old. The little girl was holding a tray, peering at Carmen with her large green eyes. Carmen wondered if all of Lilli's daughters had her dark green eyes. "I brought you some food."

"Thanks," Carmen replied.

Izzria stood there for a moment before speaking again. "May I ask you a question?"

"Sure," Carmen shrugged. What harm could it do?

"Earlier, when you jumped into the ocean, where were you hoping to go?" Carmen expected her to be asking this sarcastically, but had Izzria a deadly serious look on her face.

"Nowhere in particular really," Carmen answered. She didn't know why she was sugarcoating. "Home."

"I'm sorry you can't go home, but nonetheless, that's good," Izzria observed. "That means I can show you around. Later of course, when you're better. But I could sit with you, now, if you don't mind. I always feel better when I'm sick when I'm with my siblings."

Carmen paused for a moment. She didn't really want to be around any people at the moment, but she wondered if the company of Izzria would be better than being alone. Children didn't annoy her as much as other people did. What could it hurt? Carmen thought, She is my sister.

Carmen put a smile on her face. "Thank you. That would be nice."

"My name's Izzria. I'm eleven." She explained. "But everyone calls me Iz."

"I know," Carmen replied. Iz sat down in the chair next to her bed, setting the tray down for Carmen on her lap. "Your mother told me about you and your brothers."

"Did she mention Jaya and Ivy?" Iz inquired. "Those are my older sisters."

"She mentioned she had twin daughters, but not their names." Carmen answered. "Jaya and Ivy?"

"That's them. They'll be sixteen in two months." Iz continued. "I have a picture in my room, if you'd like to see."

"I don't think I'll be able to really move anywhere anytime soon," Carmen explained. "Going onto the deck pretty much took everything out of me."

"Oh no, I didn't mean you had to get up and walk to my cabin, though we can probably create or find a makeshift wheelchair for you to use. I'll go get the picture, if you want to see it. Father said you didn't have a concussion, so you should feel better soon. Also, that drink you had- it'll make you feel a lot better," She nodded her head. "Whenever I fall or bruise, that's what they have me drink. It doesn't taste great, but..." She shrugged. "It does the trick."

"OK," Carmen replied. "I'd love to see."

Iz smiled and bounded off to her cabin, leaving Carmen to pick over the food. There was a glass of water with a straw, and some sort of pinkish purple smoothie that also possessed its own straw.