Secrets Always Get Out by Caitlin Talbot

“Come on! It has to be here somewhere!” “Give up Lacey,she didn’t go.”

Lacey scours through the mess of books,knocking some down,pages falling out. Bue she didn’t care,all she wanted was the visitor book for her father's funeral. “Just one more minute Jace,I need to find this,I need to know who she is,She would’ve gone to the funeral!” Jace grabs Laceys shoulders,his firm grip turning her to face him. He could see the determination in her tear filled eyes. The eyes that could hypnotise an army with a single glance. One grey eye,one turquoise. The tears slowly rolled down her pale face and dropped to the floor. The streaks left behind were illuminated by the dim lights of the library. She slowly drops to the floor,cradling her knees. Putting out a hand to help her up,he quietly whispers “Let’s go home.” “Home? Jace,I don’t have a home. I have an empty shell,I have nobody to go home to! And don’t say you understand why I’m angry. Losing a sister is NOTHING compared to losing everyone!” Taken aback,Straight away Jace could see that the Lacey he knew was still there,still fighting. But he didn’t know how much fight she had left in her,and it tore him apart thinking of a life without her.

*Later*

“Lacey?Where are you?” Jace runs towards the library. He heard whispers around the village that she found out about her mother. He knew he should have told her,What will she think of him now? Her best friend never told her that the person she was looking for,her mother, was alive and supernatural. “How long have you known?” Jace stays silent. “Wow,wow...I trusted you.” “I know you did,but she’s -dangerous. I was only doing it to protect you!” “Protect me from what? Jace, I don’t need protecting, I needed answers and you kept them from me! Even if it was to protect me, you couldn’t protect Iona when she was kidnapped so you wouldn’t be able to. You are weak. You need to look after yourself before coming after others” Lacey looks up at Jace, Tears swelling at the brim of his eyes, ready to fall down his face and merge with the puddle of Laceys tears that already surrounded them. “Lacey, I’m sorry, I really am,but I care about you too much to have told you. And you’re right, I am weak, I couldn’t save Iona.” “Help me find my mother.” Laceys voice is almost a whisper. Jace stares at the floor, hurting from the memories of losing Iona when she was just 3 and he was 9. “Jace! Where is my mother?” “I don’t know Lacey, OK? I don’t know” His voice is rough,about to crack as the tears roll down his face. “Jace,I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you when I mentioned Iona.” Jace looks up at her,turns on his heels and walks out and into the woods,leaving her sitting there. “Jace! Jace! Come back here” “Why? Why should I? You made it perfectly clear in the library that you didn’t need my help.” Jace suddenly stops when he sees a little girl,about 10, running through the woods in scraggly clothes. “Hey, Little girl? Are you Ok? Are you lost?” The girl slows down, Looks at him before taking off again. Jace sprints after her. He lost his sister when she was only only a small girl,he didn’t want anything to happen to anyone else. Eventually he slows to a stop outside this old cabin. Trying not to make a sound, Jace approaches a window and looks through, trying to see if the little girl had run in there. “Hey Jace,Why did you take off running like that?” He stares over at Lacey, His eyes wide in terror. They hear the faint sound of a bolt being dragged across and falling,unlocking a door. He runs towards Lacey, but suddenly realises that he was caught in something. Before he has a chance to react he’s hurled into the air, haphazardly swinging side to side in a net trap. Lacey steps back and out of the corner of her eye she sees a woman standing in the doorway,the small girl cowering behind her. “You,Girl. Come over here.” Hesitantly, she walks over. “Hand” The woman orders. She does as she’s told and the woman puts some sort of leaves in her hand. Suddenly the leaves start swirling in her palm and the woman's face lights up. Jace looks down, unable to speak with fear. The woman looks up towards him and that’s when he noticed. The Eyes. “Lacey! Lacey!” but she can barely hear him. “Lacey! Her eyes!” He says using as much force as he could, and she must have heard him because she looks up at the figure before her. Shocked, she spits out “M..m.mother?” The woman looks at Lacey. “My baby? Is it really you?” Jace falls to the floor with a swift twist of the woman's hand. “Who..Whos this?” Lacey says, pointing to the girl,still cowering behind her legs. “This? This is Issy, I think her name was Iona or something but I didn’t vibe with it.” Lacey and Jace immediately lock eyes. “Iona? Hey, It’s,ehm, It’s Jace,Your brother?” The little girl steps out from behind Lacey's mother and looks inquisitively towards the tall pale boy with jet black hair that matched hers. She runs towards him and flings her arms around him. “I’ve missed you so much.”

CATHAL-LACEY CATHAL-LACEY'S MOTHER CAITLIN-JACE

CAITLIN-NARRATOR CAITLIN-IONA