Auntie's Hotel

Chapter 21 One Last Dance

The light glow spread quickly across his face and began to radiate more as it spread across and throughout his body. Brian Jensen's skin felt warm and soothing. The pain faded.

"I'm sorry," Hope said. "I should not have left you alone in this place."

Victor began again as he drove every blow as hard as he could into the body of the man lying before him. He knew what was coming. He knew what had just happened and every strike, every ounce of his rage could not penetrate this man's new found armor.

"No!" he protested. "No!"

Instead of harming him, he hurt himself. His iron hard fists became as brittle as old bean bags being kicked around until all of their beads had fallen free. His own bones turned to dust. Yet, he continued to punish himself because he believed his queen would heal him. She would make everything ok.

"This is not happening!"

The glow became a force, a pulsing force pushing him back.

"You're not here!" He had only heard of her. She was not supposed to be here. She was locked away somewhere far away where no one would be able to find her.

He flew through the air and blew through the wall and into the dining area. Five of the onlookers fell to the floor.

"Hope?" Auntie asked.

"Sister?" she replied using Jensen's voice.

"Where have you been hiding all this time?"

"As if you care, beloved sister. Or... what do they call you now?" Hope asked.

"Do I sense anger, dear sister? What would mother say?"

"How could I know? You are more her than I could ever wish to be."

"You know you were always her favorite, sister?" Auntie said as she slowly changed from her larger body and shrunk into the form of the brittle old woman. "She spoke of you, always, even up to the end. It's really too bad you couldn't be there when she passed."

"You mean... when you destroyed her?!" Hope bellowed. "Your jealousy! You couldn't handle sharing the realm with her... with me!"

"Blah. Blah. Blah," Auntie taunted as she changed her form again. This time she shifted to the body of a dark grey skinned woman with emerald green eyes. Her skin became hard and covered in scales that reflected the glow of Hope's light. "All you ever do is talk," she said.

"You know?" she questioned. "You've ruined yourself."

"I don't see how," Auntie laughed.

"You've become blind."

"How's that, dear sister?" she skipped around the room with the two children following her every move... mimicking her.

"You've released the children," she said as she shook her head in shame. "They don't know it yet, but they will."

"What do I care about the Children? They are of no concern to me... feeding off my scraps is all they know."

"They should be a concern," Hope threatened. "Didn't mother teach you anything?"

"Oh, dearest Hope, I do bore of you so quickly. Can we just dance and get this over with? I can't wait to send you back to your... where were you this time? Oh, that's right, a little shack in the woods. Besides... I hunger for these two souls and here they are right before me."

"This one," Hope said. "You cannot have."

Hope forced her energy out and knocked all of the onlookers unconscious. Only Auntie and her two children continued to dance, unaffected.