“TELL ME EVERYTHING you remember.” Jennifer had a pen and paper ready to jot down notes.
She had been true to her word, knocking on the door of the guesthouse at around 8:30 in the morning.
Jennifer was wide-awake and ready to start sleuthing. Alex had had a terrible night, her sleep plagued by nightmares and worry for her mom. Her jaw creaked as she yawned.
“The woman was olive-skinned and had very dark hair and eyes.”
“What did the room look like?”
“A room with an open window! I didn’t really pay much attention to the room, just the woman.”
“Well, a dark-haired girl and an open window isn’t going to help us figure out when and where she lives,” Jennifer said, as if stating the obvious to someone who was too thick to get it.
“Maybe I’ll see her again before I get taken away.”
“And maybe you won’t. So think. Or else you could be flying blind here with no way of knowing what could happen.”
“I did fine before without knowing anything,” Alex grumbled. She was tired and cranky.
“Come on, Alex! How else am I supposed to help?”
Alex gave her a dirty look and closed her eyes, trying to picture it in her mind. “I think the room was made of brick or something. It didn’t look like wood. And the window didn’t have glass, only large wooden shutters that were open. And they were faded red.”
“See? That’s something. Keep going,” Jennifer said, writing on her yellow legal pad.
“There was a man doing some sort of work with a horse. But it looked different than regular riding. More like prancing.”
Jennifer grinned and typed furiously at the computer. “You mean something like this?” She turned the laptop around.
Alex watched the short video for only a few seconds. “Sort of, yeah.”
“It’s called dressage. My family went to the Cavalia show in Denver and they did all sorts of cool stuff. I remember reading on their website about the dressage and how it’s tied to ancient Europe. You should look it up sometime. Since you are into history and all that.” Jennifer winked. “What did the horse look like?”
“It was white with a tiny bit of grey on the rump.”
Jennifer tapped away at the keyboard. “It could have been an Andalusian.”
Alex piped up. “They’re also called Pure Spanish Breed. Did they have those in the horse show?”
“They had quite a few actually. They were so gorgeous! Their handler got them to do all these tricks and ride in complex formations.”
Alex closed her eyes, trying to remember anything else that would help them identify the time period and place where the girl lived. “Are they found everywhere or only in Europe?”
“I have no idea.”
Alex did some searching on the internet and found the practice of dressage and Andalusian horses was practiced all over Europe, South America, and even parts of Asia. “This doesn’t really narrow it down. I wish I could hear the other girl speak. That would certainly help.”
“It must be weird to hear yourself talking in different accents.” Jennifer giggled.
“Totally weird! I wish I could bring back that knowledge and speak in funky accents here.”
Jennifer giggled. “And give little miss Snotty Pants more reason to tease you?”
“Good point.”
“I can’t stay long. I have to babysit this afternoon,” Jennifer screwed up her face. “If anything else...you know...happens, text me.”
Alex walked Jennifer to the front gate to meet her mom, who was coming to pick her up. When they drove off, she realized she didn’t have anything to do. Her aunt and mother were at the store and C.C. was out with friends. It was too cold to go for a hike and she didn’t have any homework.
After clicking through all of the TV channels with not a single thing worth watching, Alex finally decided to begin reading some of those books she had gotten for her birthday. She lost herself in the stories of the past until her aunt and mother returned from the store.
Alex studied her mom, wondering how she was doing. Patricia looked tired, but she gave her daughter a small smile, well aware of Alex’s scrutiny. Alex felt a surge of anger at Gary (she refused to call the man father ever again) for sending the divorce papers during the holiday. Especially since they hadn’t heard from him since he left.
Alex also hated the man for leaving them with nothing. He was the one that insisted on Patricia staying home and he had to know how difficult it would be for her to find work. How could he leave without giving us some money first? She knew the divorce agreement stated that he would be sending them money each month, but it would have been nice to have some before they had been forced to sell all of their stuff and move across the state.
Little Miss Home Wrecker probably needed some special surgery. Alex did not know for sure that Gary had left them to be with the woman her mother had seen him with, but she would not put it past him. She just did not understand how he could just leave and not miss them at all. Even though she hated him with every fiber of her being, she also missed him. Gary could be funny, after he had had a few beers. Despite everything, he was the only father she had ever known.
“I could use some help tomorrow, Alex, if you’re interested,” Karen said.
“Sure.” She didn’t have anything else to do and she could use the money. She excused herself after dinner and read about the history of Vlad the Impaler. The story was gruesome but she felt a twisted compulsion to continue turning the pages. God, I hope I don’t get transported back to Transylvania.
As she got ready for bed, Alex was disappointed that the dark-haired girl did not make another appearance, and she was surprised that she felt that way. I should be glad. It means that I won’t have to travel yet. She thought Jennifer was right. If they could figure out what time and where she lived, Alex could arm herself with present historical knowledge to try to help her.